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Geoff Ogilvy - winning with Cobra
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Geoff Ogilvy's Cobra clubs, Tiger Woods' new Nike ball and Justin Rose's new shoes are among the highlights of Dominic Pedler's latest monthly column on technical news from the Tours.
After an eternity of Nike hogging the equipment headlines (as detailed in my last column), Tiger Woods' relentless streak finally came to an end at the WGC-CA Championship, with Geoff Ogilvy's victory bringing some overdue publicity to his Cobra (and also Titleist) gear.
It was a wake-up call for the industry watchers who claimed his new Cobra Speed Pro Driver is 'acoustically too loud', and 'too radical in shape' courtesy of those deep crown dimples that help push the centre of gravity (CG) so far back from the face for a higher ball flight.
Meanwhile, the Australian's decision to carry a cavity-backed Cobra Pro CB 2-iron alongside purer Cobra Pro MB muscleback irons reminds us how even top pros appreciate some extra forgiveness at the long iron end of their sets.
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Cobra MB muscleback used by Geoff Ogilvy
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Titleist joined in the celebrations, with Ogilvy's defining par-saving chip-in on the Blue Monster's 13th hole, deftly executed with a 50-degree Vokey Design wedge, while his Scotty Cameron by Titleist prototype putter restricted his stats to only single and two-putts for the 72 holes.
Despite using an almost identical putter from the same master craftsman, World No.1 Tiger Woods 'couldn't buy a putt' at Doral. However, less we forget, that snaking 24-footer across the last green at Bay Hill the previous week, to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational, was surely Shot Of The Month for March, and arguably one the defining images of the season so far, alongside his tournament winner in Dubai.
Never far from equipment controversy, Tiger asserted at Doral that, despite rumours that he plays a USGA-approved custom construction ball with super-low spin to counter his high-spinning power, he favours the off-the-shelf model of the Nike One Platinum, now upgraded for 2008.
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Nike One Platinum used by Woods on his winning streak
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“I've always told the guy at Nike: build me a ball that spins and it'll be my responsibility to take it off,” he said referring to the overriding short-game benefits of a high-spinning ball. “I'll hit more club. I'll do something to take that spin off. But I want to be able to be aggressive around the greens.”
He also claimed the new ball gives him an extra couple of yards (even with his irons), presumably from the much-publicised Power Transfer Layer which, at 2.7mm, is now more than double the thickness of the previous model.
Meanwhile, Callaway's own high-profile new ball this year, the high-MOI Tour i and Tour ix I reported on in February, notched a hat-trick of wins in March, courtesy of Alastair Forsyth (Madeira Island Open), Graeme McDowell (Ballantine's) and Ernie Els (Honda Classic).
In a nice plug for his sponsors McDowell claims he's getting an extra 15-20 yards off the tee through the combination of the new ball and his Callaway Fusion FT-3 driver. Indeed, with Forsyth playing the FT-5 and Ernie Els the square FT-i, there was also a hat-trick of wins for Callaway's range of Fusion big sticks.
After a series of watery final-hole mishaps in both Africa and Asia, Els finally came good with his first win in the US for four years, steering his Callaway X Prototype wedge away from the lake at PGA National's fearsome final hole. It was just enough to hold off Luke Donald who is overdue a win with his higher-flying Mizuno MP32 irons to which he switched last year (from the more traditionally bladed, MP33s).
Meanwhile, among those doing some frantic testing ahead of the US Masters next week is Jim Furyk. He's expected to put into play the new Srixon ZR-W driver (probably with an 8.5-degree loft and UST ProForce 65 shaft), as well as a new putter.
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Ping Redwood putter used by Lorena Ochoa
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Perhaps, he too should opt for the space-age TaylorMade Rossa Monza Spider which, since my report last month, continues to notch up new converts and Tour wins, most recently in the hands of Sean O'Hair at the PODS Championship).
Special mention, too, for Lorena Ochoa's new Ping Redwood ZB putter with which the Mexican won both the HSBC Women's Champions event by 11 shots (no three-putts) and, last weekend, the Safeway International.
It was timely publicity ahead of April's commercial launch of what is a notably new head shape for Ping with, interestingly, a small cavity in the heel-shafted hosel which further enhances Ping's pioneering heel-and-toe weighting.
And finally...Justin Rose has a spring in his step courtesy of his new adidas Tour 360 LTD (as in 'Limited') shoes, an enticing mix of high technology and retro styling and an “antique” finishing that makes it the classiest new model on the market.
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Justin Rose wears the new 360 LTD shoe from adidas
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“It's really cool-looking, but the whole shoe also feels incredibly different,” says Europe's No. 1 enthusiastically. “I feel lower to the ground, with my feet really 'planted' which makes me more in control," says Rose, hoping for another good showing at Augusta.
"My leg action is something I work on every day, so feeling solid and stable is vital to my game,” he adds, referring to how the LTDs dispense with the practice of 'bulking-up' the soles with layers of spongy materials, while also returning to a generous 10-cleat configuration.
Particularly striking are the shoes' off-centre seam (reminiscent of some fancy modern football boots) and the intriguing Mono-Tongue that shuns the typical two-sided flap in favour of a one-sided connection to the upper which envelops the foot rather seductively.
Dominic will be back next month with more equipment making the headlines, including the pick of the technical trivia from the US Masters.
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