Tiger - clubs expert.
|
More information has emerged on the clubs that Tiger Woods uses from Dave Stites, the man who has made him more than 160 personalised drivers and dozens of sets of irons.
Stites is Nike's chief club designer and having previously worked with the legendary Ben Hogan, now devotes his time to the specific needs of the World No.1.
And by all accounts they are quite specific - to within 1,000th of an inch or one hundredth of a gram.
Though Woods' contract doesn't require him to use Nike golf equipment - only wear the logo on shirt, hat and shoes - he apparently a real technician when it comes to clubs in the same league as Nick Faldo.
"I worked with Mr. Hogan late in his career," Stites told Golfweek's James Achenback. "He had the ability to discern small things that would seem humanly impossible. From the first time I saw Tiger, I knew he had the same gift. He's well beyond his 26 years in what he knows about golf equipment. His ability to pick up really small, minute things is just incredible. He can accurately describe differences in equipment that nobody should be able to pick up.
"I gave Tiger six drivers. There was only a gram and a half difference (in overall weight) in the whole bunch. Without any hesitation, he picked out the heaviest driver."
Stites and Woods tested irons at Shady Oaks Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, where Hogan regularly popped along most days to putt on the practice green and have lunch, almost up to his death in 1997.
"We were right there, within five feet of the exact spot we used to test Mr. Hogan on the original Edge irons. There have been very few people who have been able to jump from world class player to club designer. Tiger, like Mr. Hogan, may be one of those guys who can go back and forth between those two worlds.
"Tiger is like Iron Byron (the ball-testing robot), only he can talk."
Apparently Stites continually moves the centre of gravity for Woods on the forged blade irons he started using in 2002. Most golfers prefer the centre of gravity low in the clubhead to help get the ball airborne, but Woods prefers it very high in the iron blade, Stites reveals.
He also gets angry when he hears claims that Tiger is playing with Titleist clubs with a swoosh engraved on the back. When he heard a caller ring in to a talk show with such a claim he was furious. He phoned the station immediately.
"We worked so hard on those irons, moving the CG around and getting everything perfect," he said. "People just don't know."
All Tiger's irons are muscle-back forgings, with taper tip X-100 shafts and a D4 swingweight. Apparently their length is graduated down in half-inch increments from a 39-inch 2-iron to the 33.5inch pitching wedge and the lie for the 2-iron is about one degree upright from standard.
Lofts are weaker than most pros and amateurs, which means they have slightly more loft. His are as follows: 2-iron (21 degrees), 3 (24), 4 (27), 5 (30), 6 (33), 7 (37), 8 (41), 9 (45), PW (50).
Under normal conditions, 185 to 190 yards is a regular 7-iron shot distance.
His grips are basically standard, using the '58 round' Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord slid over a single wrap of tape.
Within two to three years, it's expected the Tiger Woods-branded clubs will be in the shops, with Woods claiming a royalty on every set of irons but for now Nike are very happy at the way its equipment is progressing with a confident swoosh through the industry.
*From December 31, 2002, TaylorMade-adidas Golf, a division of the adidas-Salomon Group, exercised its option to acquire the Maxfli brand of golf balls and accessories.
Since the start of the licensing and distribution agreement at the beginning of 2002, the TMaG's market share in golf balls has grown from less than one per-cent to 7.5. Maxfli recently launched its new three-ball Performance Series: M3 Tour (red), M3 Tour LT (black) and A3 (red).
.jpg)
.gif)
.gif)
