Tiger Woods has changed his putter for the fourth time this season – going back to his trusty Scotty Cameron Newport 2.
It’s the putter with which he started the 2018 season and the model with which he won 13 of his 14 major championships.
His first switch of the year came before The Open at Carnoustie where we saw him using a mallet for the first time.
The TaylorMade TP Collection Ardmore 2 seemed to be working OK but it wasn’t in the bag for very long.
It was no surprise to see Woods returning to an Anser-style blade for the last two PGA Tour events.
But Woods was clearly not happy with his putting at the Dell Technologies Championship so the TaylorMade Juno was shown the door.
So for practice ahead of the BMW Championship the iconic Scotty Cameron was in play once more.
Even less surprising than Tiger Woods getting a captain’s pick later… he’s gone back to the Scotty Cameron Newport 2 this week #RyderCup
(?:@GCTigerTracker) pic.twitter.com/ayCcSy4KiS— James Savage (@JamesSavageNCG) September 4, 2018
When Woods first made the switch earlier this year I was far from convinced it was the right call.
Being honest, I suspected it might have been pressure from TaylorMade who pay him a pretty substantial sponsorship deal.
But I later learned his contract with TaylorMade does not include the putter – he’s free to use whichever flatstick he chooses.
So the fact he went with the Ardmore 2 and the Juno was still decent product validation for the brand.
Pic: Jonathan Wall
But no one, not even TaylorMade, would begrudge Woods a return to the putter he has had so much success with.
The world seems in order when Woods is putting well with his trusty Scotty Cameron.
And that’s exactly what he did in his opening round 62 at the BMW Championship…
Tiger switched back to his old putter – that he won 13/14 majors with – this week. He’s now -6 & leading the #BMWChamps.
Scotty is back ?:https://t.co/XLTREFELZnpic.twitter.com/8pmTjAjHXQ
— National Club Golfer (@NCGMagazine) September 6, 2018
Will ball switch help Rory get back to his best?
Rory McIlroy was alongside Tiger at the top of the BMW leaderboard after also shooting 62.
And we’ve learned that a change of ball has been helping the four-time major winner find a bit more control.
Since signing for TaylorMade in May 2017, McIlroy as used the TPx golf ball.
But he’s just switched to the TP5 for better launch and spin.
“I mean mentally it gets to you when you aren’t hitting the golf shots you want to hit,” McIlroy said.
“And you’re visualizing what you want to do with the golf ball and the ball is not doing that.
“So mentally that can be frustrating. But more physically. I know why the golf ball is doing what it’s doing. And it’s just a matter of getting the reps away from tournament play.”
The TP5 has a lower compression than the TP5x so should have a slightly softer feel.
New FootJoys on the way?
We pay close attention to what tour players wear on their feet.
If there’s a new product on the horizon, it’s the first place we are going to see it.
And we’ve spotted a few players testing out a new pair of FootJoy shoes which look like they could be an upgrade to their Pro SL line.
The Pro SL has been one of the brand’s best-ever selling shoes. If the Pro SL was a brand on it’s own it would still be taking a healthy chunk of the market share.
We see you Cameron Smith with your new FootJoys. We see you. pic.twitter.com/j39UQPs6OT
— James Savage (@JamesSavageNCG) September 4, 2018
We don’t know exactly what these are yet but expect to learn more in the New Year.
And we expect to see a few pairs on show at the Ryder Cup…
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