With an 18-foot birdie putt on the fifth playoff hole, 20-year-old PGA Tour rookie Aldrich Potgieter became a PGA Tour champion and thus brought one of the coolest bags in pro golf into the spotlight.
Potgieter thrilled Detroit fans this week at the Rocket Classic with booming tee shots, nearly touching 200 mph, on a Detroit Golf Club course that was nearly perfect for his game.
But there were a couple of key changes the young South African made to his bag before his first win.
The first was switching to the Titleist Pro V1x+ golf ball. The Pro V1x+ is one of Titleist’s Custom Performance Option (CPO) golf ball offerings on tour, like the more commonly known Pro V1x Left Dash and Pro V1 Left Dot.
The Pro V1x+ first showed up on Tour about two years ago, and there isn’t too much Titleist has divulged about the ball they still call a prototype, but the company does say it offers more spin than the retail version of the Pro V1x, which is the spinniest ball in the Pro V1 lineup.
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Extra spin was what Potgieter was looking for, and it directly ties in with the other major changes he made this week.
Before an off-week visit to the Titleist Performance Center at Woburn in the UK, Potgieter was playing with five wedges (including two pitching wedges!), Titleist 620 MB blade irons in his mid and short irons, the new fourth-generation T100 for his 4- and 5-iron and a new T250 2-iron.
But he was looking for a little more height and spin with the golf ball change, so he moved into the T100s for his mid- and short-irons and swapped his T100 long irons for T150s. In his words, this setup was much easier to hit.
How did this work? It likely starts with the golf ball. The MBs are going to spin more than the T100s for him. But with the spinnier ball, he’s able to utilize the extra forgiveness of the T100 profile without sacrificing the peak height, spin and control he had with the MBs. The same goes for the T150 long irons. When pros can get the same ball flight they get out of blades with more forgiving clubs, there’s no reason for them to play the blades anymore.
You would never think someone with prodigious speed like Potgieter would want a ball that spins more, but many pros actually seek more spin because of their optimal delivery dynamics.
The added control also allowed him to take out one of his pitching wedges, which opened up the spot for a 3-wood this week. Titleist Tour rep Liam MacDougall also added some weight to his GT2 driver head, which gave him a bit more stability and better clubface control.
But it all goes back to the golf ball and goes to show how much someone can gain from playing the right golf ball. Kudos to the Titleist Tour team for helping Potgieter to his first victory.
Keep reading below for all of Potgieter’s specs.
Aldrich Potgieter birdies fifth playoff hole to win Rocket Classic
In the final round of the 2025 Rocket Classic, Aldrich Potgieter sinks a 17-foot putt for birdie on No. 15, the fifth hole of a sudden-death playoff to claim his first win on the PGA Tour.
Aldrich Potgieter’s winning clubs at the 2025 Rocket Classic
Driver: Titleist GT2 9.0˚
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8-X
Titleist GT2 Custom Driver
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3-wood: Ping G440 Max 15.0˚
Shaft: Fujkura Ventus TR Black 8-X
Irons: Titleist 2025 T250 2-iron, 2025 T150 4-5 iron, 2025 T100 6-9 iron
Shafts: Mitsubishi MMT Hybrid 90 TX (2), KBS V10 130 X (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM10 (46.10F, 50.12F, 54.10S), Vokey WedgeWorks 60K*
Shafts: KBS V10 130 X (46-50), Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Black Onyx X100 (54-60)
Putter: Scotty Cameron 009M Tour Prototype
Ball: 2023 Pro V1x+
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Plus4
Golf Pride Z Grip Cord
Want to overhaul your bag for 2025? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.
