All the Gear: New Ping G400 drivers in play at Erin Hills
You wouldn’t expect the US Open to be place where players would experiment with new equipment but with more eyeballs than usual paying attention, it kind of makes sense.
Lee Westwood wasn’t the easiest player for Ping to get playing brand new equipment so he must be a fan of their latest driver.
We don’t know the details yet but we know it’s called the Ping G400 and expect there to be three different models – standard, a low-spinning version and a draw-biased straight-flight model.
It seemed to do the job for Westwood who hit 13 out of 14 fairways on his way to a three-under 69.
“It can be dangerous putting a new driver into play but I’d been hitting it so well, I had plenty of faith in it,” Westwood told Sky Sports after his round.
We also spotted 2007 champion Angel Cabrera gaming the new big stick.
Oh and of course Bubba Watson has a pink Ping G400…
(Pic: PGA Tour.com)
Jason Day puts ‘zero iron’ M2 model in the bag
This is a bit naughty.
Jason Day has got the guys at TaylorMade to build him a 13.5-degree ‘zero iron’ to hit it low, straight and far.
It’s actually an M2 2-iron head which has been cranked to the max with a 40.5in Project X HZRDUS Black 6.5 hybrid shaft.
Hands up who wants to hit an iron 300 yards…
Sergio ditches Masters-winning Spider putter
Well not exactly. But the famous Tour Red model which Garcia used in his Augusta victory has changed colour…
Maybe Garcia saw every other player, including Rory McIlroy, opting for the Red version so has switched to a black version – similar to the one used by Dustin Johnson.
Is that Rory’s 3-wood, Dustin?
Speaking of Dustin Johnson, it looks like the world No. 1 has followed McIlroy’s lead and plumped for the TaylorMade M2 Tour fairway wood.
Johnson previously had a 16-degree M1 HL in the bag. We’ll try and find out the exact loft on this model and come back to you.
Rickie gets creative with sand wedge
After his stunning 65 it would be wrong not to take a closer look at Rickie Fowler’s gear.
We know he switched to a shorter driver shaft earlier this year which has helped him hit it straighter off the tee. He also helped Cobra create their rail technology on the soles of the new King F7 fairway woods.
And now he’s been tweaking with the centre of gravity on his sand wedge by having some odd looking material added to the sole. Looks a bit like a dead worm. But the theory will be to align the centre of graving more with where he’s impacting the ball.
A couple of pics of @RickieFowler gear. Check out that extra material on his wedge. pic.twitter.com/aCjx5aGyPP
— Mike Johnson (@EMichaelGW) June 15, 2017
Fowler is also sporting a new bag this week – in honour of nearby NFL team the Green Bay Packers.
“Anything that gets the locals behind you,” he joked after his first round.
McIlroy switches to TaylorMade Spider putter for US Open
Review: TaylorMade M2 Tour 3-wood
Review: Sergio Garcia’s TaylorMade Spider Tour Red putter
James Savage
Former equipment editor of NCG. Inconsistent ball-striker and tea-maker.
