9-woods and other high-lofted woods were among adds to the bag for this year's Masters.
Jack Hirsh/GOLF and Callaway
Welcome to Fully Equipped’s weekly Tour equipment report. Every Friday of PGA Tour weeks (plus other times, if news warrants), GOLF equipment editor Jack Hirsh runs you through some of the biggest news surrounding golf clubs on Tour, including changes, tweaks and launches.
Augusta National presents a unique challenge to the best in the world every year, but with near-perfect conditions, the test is even more demanding.
With a fairly dry lead-up to the Masters and the rare occurrence of no rain in the forecast for this weekend, Augusta National will be as firm and fast this weekend as the club wants it, meaning pros are searching for more height to stop the ball.
That’s why it shouldn’t come as a surprise that 11 players chose to drop 4-irons this week in favor of high-lofted fairway woods or hybrids. A few of those players are guys who don’t typically play a 4-iron, like Tommy Fleetwood, Zach Johnson and PGA Tour Champions players Vijay Singh, Mike Weir and Freddie Couples, who has his normal three-hybrid setup this week.
Heard a lot about firm greens this week at Augusta National. Lots of guys seeking more peak height because of the conditions.
Akshay Bhatia is one of them and he’s taking out his 4-iron (which was already an X Forged UT) and replacing it with a new 21-degree (@ 20) Apex UW that… pic.twitter.com/l8lyOPKJGJ
But other players, including Akshay Bhatia, Brian Campbell, Jason Day and Matt Fitzpatrick, have all dropped the 4-iron for clubs they’ve had built specifically for Augusta National.
“Basically, he was looking at incoming second shots to Nos. 13 and 15 and needing something hitting a higher apex to land softer on those greens,” Callaway Tour Content Manager Johnny Thompson told GOLF.
Bhatia’s gamer OG prototype UW, which is closer to 17 degrees in loft, remains in the bag as his 5-wood alternative. Despite the roughly three-degree gap between the two clubs, the new UW is more than two inches shorter, which provides an optimal carry yardage gap.
Akshay Bhatia’s new Apex UW specs Apex UW ’26 Loft: 21˚ @ 20˚ Lie: 58.2˚ Sole weight: 14 g Hot melt: 2 g crown Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 10-X Length: 39.375” Tipping: 2” Swingweight: D1.8
Campbell, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour last season, like Bhatia, also does not play a traditional 4-iron week-to-week, opting instead for Ping’s iDi long iron replacement. But this week, he’s got a G440 Max 9-wood to help him get even more stopping power on the firm greens.
“When he hits it on No. 4 or into 5, that 9-wood is just going to allow it to stop so much faster than even that [iDi]4-iron,” Ping Tour Rep Kenton Oates told GOLF. “The 4-iron gets in there fine, but it still spins like a 4-iron — it’s just not going to react the same.”
Oates said the spin is the real difference maker when it comes to switching from an iron to a fairway wood or hybrid. He could build a 4-iron that nearly reaches the same height a high-lofted metal wood, but it’s the extra spin that really gives a player control on the greens.
The G440 fairway family (MAX, LST, SFT) advances PING’s reputation as a Tour-preferred model of choice through a re-designed face structure and low CG system. The face is taller for more confidence off the tee while maintaining a CG location that delivers high- launching performance off the ground. The MAX model (which fits most golfers) is available in five lofts (including a new 4-wood) to provide more gapping solutions.
HIGH MOI
Easy to launch, stable design increases forgiveness.
FLEXING FACE
Maraging steel face flexes for more ball speed, optimizes spin.
TALLER FACE PROFILE
Improves performance off the tee, maintains low CG.
FREE-HOSEL DESIGN
Saves weight to lower CG, optimize launch/spin and increase forgiveness.
“It’s probably not a huge difference on a TrackMan peak height number — maybe only about 15 feet — but that extra height is coming from spin. When the height is coming from spin, that’s when you really start to see the ball actually react on the green and stop. That’s the difference,” Oates said. “That extra 15 feet can end up being 15 feet closer to the hole when it lands.”
Ping had three 9-woods in play this week, 10+ 7-woods and Carlos Ortiz gamed a 26-degree G440 5-hybrid.
Shane Lowry, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Jason Day all used TaylorMade 7-woods, but the interesting note there was that Fitzpatrick and Day both kept the 5-woods they already had in the bag, bucking the trend of either having a 5- or a 7-wood. Lowry dropped his Srixon ZXiU 3-iron for the Qi4D 7-wood.
“Sometimes I feel like you need it, especially with the added length,” Day said on Wednesday of the extra fairway wood. “You kind of need a better gap at the top end for some of these holes around Augusta National. So nothing too dramatic, but just the top end.”
Other cool TM fairway note is that Jason Day (Qi4D 7-wood) and Matt Fitzpatrick (Qi35 7-wood) are both using 3w-5w-7w gappings in their bags without 4-irons.
TaylorMade’s Adrian Rietveld told GOLF that both Day and Fitzpatrick have shorter builds on their 7-woods, but otherwise, there’s nothing different about the spec for it to cover both a 3-iron and 4-iron distance. Rietveld said both players are using shot-shaping to hit higher, more floaty shots when they need to cover 4-iron yardage.
Basically, the 7-wood acts as two clubs in one.
Mini Mania at Augusta National
A whopping 23(!!!) mini drivers in play this week at the Masters. TaylorMade had eight including Tommy Fleetwood. Callaway had several in the new Quantum Mini prototype including some big names like Min Woo Lee and new co-leader Justin Rose. And Ping's unnamed prototype mini had… pic.twitter.com/DyhnpJK2mQ
Mini driver usage has been growing steadily on the PGA Tour over the past two years, but it seems like it might be peaking at the Masters.
A total of 23 players played a mini driver at Augusta National and it seems the consensus is that the clubs are built for the modern game at the historic course. Callaway lead the way with 10 while TaylorMade had eight.
While several of those mini drivers were from players like Fleetwood, Max Greyserman and Min Woo Lee who game one every week on the PGA Tour, other players like Justin Rose, Harris English and Tom McKibbin had them built in the weeks prior specifically for this course.
“I think it’s all about predictability when it comes to a mini driver,” Callaway Tour Representative Kellen Watson told GOLF. “You have a driver where you know it’s going to carry this bunker, but you don’t know how much it’s going to roll out. With this, you want to know the carry number and have the total be very tight — like nine yards or so — which is perfect.”
Even as the Masters tees have been lengthened over 500 yards in the last 20 years, the bends in the fairways — and the firmness of those fairways — make several holes ideal for players to use a mini driver.
The most obvious case is the long downhill dogleg left par-4 10th, where a drive down the left benefits from the steeper slope. But because a mini driver is easier to work right-to-left, it’s also favored on Nos. 5, 7, which have awkward run-outs and slants in the fairways.
PERFORMANCE FOR THE MODERN PLAYER
Inspired by one of the most iconic models in TaylorMade history, the R7 Quad Mini Driver pays homage to what’s come before, while creating its own modern identity in the same breath. It’s that very modern design that incorporates proven TaylorMade technologies to give golfers versatility and playability.
R7 QUAD WEIGHTING SYSTEM
The new quad weighting system features four movable weights (13g x2, 4g x2) that provide the ultimate in spin management and shot shape control. Forward CG creates a penetrating flight best suited for maximizing distance whereas rear CG helps prioritize control and ease of use from the deck. Shot shape can also be fine-tuned helping create the most optimal flight. Additional weights can be purchased for a wider range of adjustability.
INFINITY CARBON CROWN
A new satin Infinity Carbon Crown has been added to the R7 Quad Mini Driver chassis creating a stunning look while saving weight for better mass optimization. The cosmetic package is clean, elegant, and confidence-inspiring.
For many longer players, there’s also only one hole where a 3-wood off the deck comes into play: The uphill par-5 8th. But No. 8 allows players to hit a low approach and chase it up, a shot well-suited to a mini driver.
“If you’re a longer player, there are basically no 3-woods off the ground here,” said Oates. “So now the mini driver fills that gap, especially when you combine that with the number of tee shots where you have to work it right-to-left. That combination makes it really valuable.”
Oates said English, who primarily plays a fade with his driver, was hitting his mini driver on 6-7 different holes during practice rounds.
Max Homa also tested out a Cobra King Tec mini that Ben Schomin said was to give him an option off the tee to move the ball right to left.
“The idea was to be able to make a stock swing and have the ball turn over without having to do anything differently with setup or alignment,” Schomin said. “But also have the ability to really swing it around when you need to, like on 10. He felt very comfortable doing both.”
Schomin and Homa had the club dialed for an 8˚-10˚ launch and 2800-3100 spin, but Homa ultimately decided on a 3-wood instead.
Quiet week on the trucks
One common theme with all of these new clubs players have in their bags this week is that the vast majority weren’t built this week.
In fact, Masters week, like most major weeks, is a fairly quiet one on the Tour Trucks.
“There’s really not much going on. I mean, there’s really not much we can do,” Watson said. “At this point, if you haven’t done your job already, then you probably shouldn’t be here.”
Much of the work is validating or re-validating clubs that were built for this week, or minor maintenance jobs like re-grippings and loft and lie checks.
The Ping Tour Truck built 109 clubs this week, but the majority of those were players like Vijay Singh, who doesn’t get serviced regularly, or guys like Sandy Lyle, who aren’t even playing this week.
“A lot of the stuff you’re seeing built this week is for past champions or guys we don’t see as much,” Oates said. “The Conners and the Hovlands, they’re already dialed. There’s really not much for us to do.”
Harry Hall goes nuclear on the bag after Round 1
Harry Hall started his Masters with a brand new driver, a Ping G440 LST, one that helped Ping tie Titleist for the lead in driver count for the week, a first in roughly two seasons for Ping.
He also had Ping’s prototype mini in the bag as he continues his torrid pace of gear switches throughout this season.
Already this year, Hall has switched between no fewer than four different drivers, two sets of irons, three sets of wedges, two putters and a golf ball change just for this week.
After Round 1 at Augusta, where he shot 77, he seemed ready to do all of that between then and his Friday morning tee time.
“I’m going to change my driver. I’m going to put two drivers in play tomorrow, different ones. I’m putting a new putter in play and going to figure out on the range,” Hall said Thursday. “I don’t think I spin my irons enough either. I went into a spinnier ball this week, but I still, you know, can’t stop it on a dime like I need to. So I probably need to add off to my irons or do something to compete in these majors.”
Hall appeared to only use the TaylorMade Qi4D driver he was playing most recently before this week and he did switch from his longtime Odyssey O-Works putter to a TaylorMade Spider that he started using at Bay Hill.
After all of that, Hall had a wild Round 2 of five birdies, five bogeys and eight pars for an even-par 72 that puts him at five over for the week and likely to miss the cut.
No surprise here as Golf Pride continues to dominate grip counts at majors.
Of the top 10 betting favorites heading into the week, eight of them used Golf Pride grips with multiple models represented, including the Tour Velvet, MCC and Align Max families.
Overall, 80 of the 91 players in the field are using a Golf Pride grip.
Check this out
This section is dedicated to cool photos we’ve snapped recently on Tour, but haven’t had a reason to share yet. For this week, check out some more of the Cleveland prototype RTZ offset wedges that are sneaking into multiple bags on the PGA Tour. Take a guess who this one is for. Check out the full story behind them.
Cleveland’s RTZ offset wedges are based off the legendary 588 design. Johnny Wunder/GOLF
Odds and Ends
Some other gear changes and notes we’re tracking this week.
Justin Thomas (GTS2), was among three players to add a new Titleist GTS driver this week. The others were Dustin Johnson (GTS2) and Cam Smith (GTS3) … Cameron Young added a Titleist GTS3 7-wood in place of his GT1 hybrid … Thomas also gamed a Vokey WedgeWorks 60L lob wedge, a grind that sits between his normal 60T and 60K* gamers … Vokey had 114 gap, sand and lob wedges … Ping and Titleist tied for the driver count lead with 25 and the G440 LST was the most played model… Vijay Singh had a new Ping G440 K … Keegan Bradley tested a TaylorMade Qi4D LS driver but stuck with his G430 LST … Wyndham Clark has a new TaylorMade Qi4D Tour 3-wood, replacing his G440 Max … Justin Rose has one of Cleveland’s prototype RTZ wedges with a 588 Wide sole … Aldrich Potgieter has a new TaylorMade Spider, one of 16 in the field … as he continues a search for a new putter … U.S. Mid-Am champ Brandon Holtz asked the USGA to send him his Callaway Paradym Ai-Smoke TD that he won the Mid-Am with an donated to the USGA Museum, but chose not to use it … TaylorMade had 79 fairways in play, including two from Rory McIlroy, who switched back to his Qi10 3-wood … Odyssey led the putter count with 28 … Fujikura swept the counts for driver (36/39.6% of field), woods (116/41.3%) and hybrid shafts (10/62.5%)
3 things you should read/watch
A selection of GOLF content from the past week that may interest you.
GT3 – Speed-Tuned Distance & Control
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For players with a relatively consistent impact location, GT3 offers a precisely adjustable CG Track to max out distance and directional control.
Seamless Thermoform Crown
A reimagined ultra-lightweight design, born from a new Proprietary Matrix Polymer. The tunable acoustic properties of this unique composite allow Titleist engineers to realize new material gains while maintaining our signature sound and feel. All wrapped in a clean look that inspires total confidence.
Split Mass Construction
A breakthrough in internal weighting unlocks longer drives and enhanced directional control in GT3. The Adjustable CG Track now sits closer to the face for more dynamic CG control, while additional discretionary mass is pushed to the back of the club to maintain optimal stability through impact.
Advanced Aerodynamics
GT3 features a new raised tail contour that represents a dramatic shift in driver aerodynamics. Previously impossible to execute due to design constraints, this advanced shaping results in a driver that swings faster while still providing optimal CG control.
Jack Hirsh is the Associate Equipment Editor at GOLF. A Pennsylvania native, Jack is a 2020 graduate of Penn State University, earning degrees in broadcast journalism and political science. He was captain of his high school golf team and recently returned to the program to serve as head coach. Jack also still *tries* to remain competitive in local amateurs. Before joining GOLF, Jack spent two years working at a TV station in Bend, Oregon, primarily as a Multimedia Journalist/reporter, but also producing, anchoring and even presenting the weather. He can be reached at jack.hirsh@golf.com.
