Furyk’s New Driver
Jim Furyk couldn’t close things out at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, but he might have found a new driver when he put Callaway’s latest Great Big Bertha in play at Fire-stone C.C. Furyk is known for being finicky with his driver, making his decision to change notable. “The feedback I got from Jim was that he really liked the look, and his start lines on his shots were much better with his new driver,” said Callaway tour rep Kellen Watson. The length on Furyk’s driver was 44⅝ inches, slightly shorter than most on the PGA Tour, and the shaft was Oban’s Kiyoshi Tour Limited. Although the driver features adjustability for loft and directional bias, Furyk had both set to standard. His stats off the tee en route to his T-3 finish were a bit misleading: He barely hit 40 percent of his fairways while averaging more than 300 yards off the tee. However, Firestone is known for producing big drives despite having pinched fairways that are among the hardest to hit on tour. Irons a Foreign Thing For Henry
Several players hoping to make their way up the money list and FedEx Cup points standings with just three weeks to play in the PGA Tour regular season were at the Barracuda Championship. Playoff winner J.J. Henry was among them, and he produced his third career victory with a set of Epon AF 302 irons, an Asia-only model first produced in 2009. The irons, produced by respected forging house Endo, are a player cavity-back iron featuring a progressive thickness in the back cavity directly behind the hitting area to enhance feel. The weight also helps lower the centre of gravity to produce a higher trajectory, particularly on the long irons. Henry’s win was his first top 10 in a PGA Tour event since the 2013 John Deere Classic.
Johnson Relies On A Rat
Those who follow the success of the Scotty Cameron by Titleist putter line on the PGA Tour know many players use variations of production models or prototypes built to their exact specs. One of the most coveted by collectors is the Tour Rat blade, which features the Cameron-hallmark sole weights but also a sitting rat etched in the sole. Dustin Johnson had a Tour Rat at the WGC-Bridgestone, and expect to see it again at the PGA Championship as Johnson posted a 1.235 strokes gained/putting mark at Firestone.
