It remains to be seen if Tiger Woods will wield a new TaylorMade Stealth driver this week at the PNC Championship, but one thing is certain: the 15-time major winner will have at least one new piece of gear in play.
Woods took to social media on Wednesday to confirm Bridgestone’s Tour B XS prototype will be his ball of choice in Orlando.
“I’ve been working with Bridgestone’s R&D team on an updated version of my ball since the 2019 Zozo Championship,” Woods said. “The process of perfecting this ball has been really fun. I have tested the new Tour B prototypes at home, and I’m looking forward to putting them into play at the PNC Championship. This event is the perfect spot for me to take the prototype testing to the next level.”
Woods has played a vital role in the development of the company’s Tour B line since he signed an endorsement deal in 2016. Woods has been more vocal about the ball in recent years and helped Bridgestone zero in on the Reactiv cover formulation that’s found on the current Tour B golf ball.
It’s unclear how Woods’ Tour B XS differs from the 2020 version, but it’s safe to assume additional distance and an increase in greenside spin are part of the recipe. A recent conversation with Bridgestone staffer Matt Kuchar revealed some interesting observations about the new Tour B from a recent testing session. (It should be noted Kuchar was one of the first players to put the Tour B prototype in play at the RSM Classic.)
“The basics are I want to hit it further off the tee and I want to spin it more around the greens,” Kuchar told GOLF.com. “And you go, ‘Well good luck doing that.’ I have been amazed, the last couple of generations of golf balls have been able to do just that. And now, again, they came to me and asked the same thing. If you could change anything, again, it’s the same thing. Yes, I’d like to hit it further. Yes, I’d like to spin it more around the greens. I think they’ve done it again with this new generation.”
Woods confirmed he’s noticed something similar around the green as well when testing the Tour B XS.
“What I’ve seen from my recent short game work tells me this ball is special,” Woods said.
In addition to Woods and Kuchar, Nick Faldo, Lee Trevino and Nick Price will also use the Tour B prototype at this week’s parent-child event. Each of their sons is expected to use the ball as well, meaning Tiger won’t be the only Woods using the prototype.
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