Equipment

Kings of the West Coast Swing: stats and equipment

Published

14 years ago

Feb 29, 2012

Seth Kerr

By Seth Kerr

GolfWRX Staff Writer

With the World Golf Championship-Accenture Match Play Championship marking the official end to the West Coast swing; let’s take a look back at some of the more important stats and what we learned so far.

Americans have won all nine PGA Tour events, with Kyle Stanley and John Huh being the only first-time winners. Huh is the only rookie to win on Tour, finishing off Robert Allenby in a marathon eight-hole playoff at the Mayakoba Golf Classic.

Despite Stanley’s disappointing loss at the Farmers Insurance Open, he is still the current Race for the FedExCup point leader over Johnson Wagner and Phil Mickelson thanks to his impressive win at the Waste Management Open.

Phil Mickelson had an up-and-down West Coast Swing, struggling early in the year before dominating Tiger Woods by 11 strokes in the final round to win at Pebble Beach. Tiger made the switch to the Nike Method 001 putter and it hasn’t worked so far, missing a number of makeable putts at Pebble Beach and the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in his loss to Nick Watney.

Mickelson followed up his victory at Pebble Beach with a disappointing finish at the Northern Trust Open. He had the lead for three rounds but could not finish off the tournament, losing to Bill Haas in a playoff.

Stanley is the only player in the top-25 of driving distance to win on Tour this year. He is average 303.3 yards off the tee, well behind No. 1 Bubba Watson and his pink PING G20 driver (Watson is averaging 312.7 yards). Gavin Coles has the lowest driving average on tour at just 267.1 yards.

Gary Woodland used his Titleist 910 D3 driver for the longest drive of the year at an outrageous 450 yards on No. 18 at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. The top-39 drives of the year were all 400 yards or more and all were from the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.

Using the new Cleveland Classic driver, Jason Kokrak had the longest drive from a tournament other than the Tournament of Champions at 399 yards at the Sony Open.

Paul Goydos leads the Tour in driving accuracy, hitting 73.76 percent of fairways. Hunter Mahan is the highest ranked winner in driving accuracy at No. 4, with an average of 71.26 percent of fairways hit.

Webb Simpson used Titleist 680 irons to hit 75.93 percent of greens in regulation to lead Bubba Watson and his PING S59 irons by just over 1 percent. It is a shocking stat for Watson, who is also the leader in driving distance.

You would expect the leader in driving distance and second in greens in regulation to be in contention each week to win. But Watson is just 21^st in FedExCup points with only one top-10 finish. For Watson, it shows just how badly he has putted this year.

Watson and his PING Anser putter rank 170^th in total putts with an average of 30.60 putts per round. That is a whopping 3.22 more putts per round than Greg Chalmers, who leads the tour in putts per round at 27.38. Chalmers is one of few players on Tour to use a Bobby Grace putter.

Brian Gay, who now wears TaylorMade gear but still uses Mizuno irons, gets up and down 74.68 percent of the time, making par or better an outstanding 59 out of 79 times. Scott Brown is worst on tour in scrambling only getting up and down a paltry 38.71 percent of the time.

Titleist gamer, Bobby Gates, leads the Tour in eagles with eight, while fellow Titleist pro, Ben Crane, who is not known for prodigious length, is second with seven eagles this year.

Perhaps the most well-known American Titleist player, Steve Stricker, leads the tour in scoring average at 68.13, but has only played eight rounds after taking five weeks off following the Sony Open.

In a sign of how well Stricker has played this year, he leads the Tour in seven total performance stats.

Stricker leads the tour in:

1) Birdie Average 5.13 per round

2) Sand Save Percentage 73.33 percent

3) Par-5 birdie or better 75 percent

4) Scoring Average 68.13

5) Scoring Average before cut 66.50

6) Consecutive Cuts 45

7) Back Nine Scoring Average 33.13

So what do all these stats tell us entering the Florida swing? Probably not a whole lot. None of the 2011 players who won on the West Coast won again before the Masters. In fact, Bubba Watson and Luke Donald were the only multiple winners who won on the West Coast last year.

Tiger Woods and Gary Woodland are just two players happy to hear that. While Woods has had a few good rounds, he has yet to show he can put together four solid rounds. Woodland has looked lost for most of the year, though he and his new coach, Butch Harmon, promise he will be ready for Augusta. And for pros that is what it’s all about. They would all trade there rankings in every stat for one major, because while no one remembers who finished No. 1 in scoring, putting, or birdies, everyone remembers who won major championships.

Below are a list of the winners and the clubs they played.

Hyundai Tournament of Champions — Steve Stricker

Driver: Titleist 909 D3 (8.5°)

Fairway wood: Titleist 906F2 (13°)

Hybrid: Titleist 909H (19°)

Irons: Titleist 710 AP2 (3-PW)

Wedges Titleist Vokey (54°, 60°)

Putter: Odyssey White Hot #2

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Sony Open — Johnson Wagner

Driver: TaylorMade R11S (8°)

Fairway Wood: TaylorMade Burner SuperFast 2.0 (13.5°)

Hybrid: Adams Idea Pro a 12 (18°)

Irons: Titleist CB 712 (3-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey (48°, 54°, 60°)

Putter: Scotty Cameron proto

Ball: Pro V1x

Humana Challenge — Mark Wilson

Driver: PING I20 (8.5°)

Fairway Wood: Cleveland HiBore XLS (13°)

Hybrid: Ping i15(17°, 20°)

Irons: Ping i20

Wedges: Ping Tour (52°, 60°)

Putter: Ping Karsten Anser

Ball: Pro V1x

Farmers Insurance Open — Brandt Snedeker

Driver: TaylorMade Burner SuperFast (10.5°)

Fairway Wood: TaylorMade Superfast (15°)

Hybrid: Adams Idea a12 Proto (20°)

Irons: Bridgestone J40 Cavity Back (4-PW)

Wedges: Bridgestone J40 (52°, 56°), Titleist Vokey (60°)

Putter: Odyssey White Hot XG Rossie

Ball: Bridgestone Tour B330

Waste Management Phoenix Open — Kyle Stanley

Driver: Titleist 910D3 (8.5°)

Fairway Wood: Titleist 910Fd (13.5°)

Hybrid: Titleist 503i (19°)

Irons: Titleist 712MB (4-PW)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey (52°, 56°, 60°)

Putter: Scotty Cameron for Titleist Timeless (GSS) Proto

Ball: Pro V1x

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am — Phil Mickelson

Driver: Callaway RAZR Fit (9.5°)

Fairway Wood: Callaway Big Bertha Diablo (15°)

Hybrid: Callaway X Proto (19°)

Irons: Callaway X-Forged (4), RAZR X Forged Muscleback (5-PW)

Wedges: Callaway X Series JAWS (52°, 60°, 64°)

Putter: Odyssey White Hot XG Blade Prototype

Ball: Callaway Hex Black Tour

Northern Trust Open — Bill Haas

Driver: Titleist 910D2 (8.5°)

Fairway Wood: Titleist 910F (13.5°)

Irons: Titleist 712 CB (2), 710 CB (3-PW)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey (54°, 60°)

Putter: Scotty Cameron for Titleist Studio Select Kombi

Ball: Pro V1x

Mayakoba Golf Classic — John Huh

Driver: Ping G10 (7.5°)

Fairway Wood: TaylorMade Burner (13°)

Hybrid: Titleist 910H (17°)

Irons: Ping S57 (3-PW)

Wedges: Ping Tour (52°, 58°)

Putter: Ping Scottsdale Wolverine

Ball: Pro V1

World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship — Hunter Mahan

Driver: PING G20 (9.5°)

Fairway Wood: PING G20 (15°)

Hybrid: PING i15 (17°)

Irons: PING S56 (3-PW)

Wedges: PING Anser Forged (56°, 60°)

Putter: PING Nome

Ball: Pro V1x

Click here for more discussion in the forums.

Equipment

Tour Edge unveils all-new Exotics mini driver

Published

2 days ago

May 12, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Tour Edge Golf has today introduced the all-new Exotics mini driver, engineered to deliver a powerful combination of speed, control, and versatility in the long game.

The Exotics Mini combines a titanium face with a stainless-steel body in design to balance ball speed with stability and control, creating a versatile option at the top end of the bag.

At the core of the design is Tour Edge’s proprietary Combo Brazing technology, a high-precision thermal bonding process that seamlessly fuses a titanium cup face to a stainless-steel body into a single, continuous structure. By eliminating energy loss found in traditional multi-piece constructions, Combo Brazing is designed to deliver faster face response, more efficient energy transfer, and a uniquely powerful yet controlled feel.

The multi-material construction also allows mass to be positioned lower and deeper in the head in a bid to increase stability, while the thin titanium face is engineered to maintain ball speed across a wider impact area.

“While the initial goal was to enhance control and versatility in the long game, Combo Brazing ultimately drove measurable gains in ball speed and distance within the mini driver category. In robot testing, we’ve documented higher ball speeds, higher launch, reduced spin, and increased carry and total distance compared to leading models.” – Vice President of R&D Matt Neeley

In addition to distance performance, the Exotics mini emphasizes forgiveness through a heavier stainless-steel body that shifts mass toward the perimeter. This configuration increases MOI relative to traditional all-titanium mini drivers, helping preserve ball speed and directional stability on off-center strikes. Paired with Pyramid Face Technology from the Exotics metalwood line, the design is intended to support consistent speed across the face.

To further enhance MOI, a lightweight carbon fiber crown frees additional mass that is strategically repositioned low and deep in the head in design to improve stability and promote optimal launch with controlled spin.

“We designed the Mini to be about five millimeters shallower than other mini drivers on the market. That change improves playability off the deck. From a clean fairway lie, it can function as a strong 3-wood alternative while still providing control off the tee.” – Tour Edge CEO David Glod

An adjustable hosel system allows for loft and lie tuning to dial in trajectory and shot shape, while a fixed 13-gram rear weight helps stabilize the head through impact to improve dispersion consistency. The Exotics Mini Driver is available in 11.5 and 13.5-degree lofts in right-handed models.

Pricing & Availability

The Exotics Mini Driver is available for pre-order beginning today for $399.99 USD at touredge.com, and will be available for purchase at retail outlets worldwide on May 22, 2026.

Equipment

Srixon ZXi combo or TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo? – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

2 days ago

May 12, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

In our forums, our members have been pitting a Srixon ZXi combo against a TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo. WRXer ‘edutch22’ is on the hunt for a new set of irons and kicks off the thread saying:

“Looking at picking up a new set of irons and think I’ve narrowed it down to Srixon ZXi combo or Taylormade P7CB/770 combo. I am currently a 5 cap and allbeit I feel irons are my weakness. My miss is a little to the toe side. I am decently steep at 4-5 down. Always thought I am high spin but recently on trackman my 7 was spinning at 5800 roughly.

My question or looking for thoughts on which one would benefit me more from a forgiveness standpoint? Or is there another iron is should be looking at entirely? I only get to play about once or twice a week, if I am not playing a 2-3 day event. Thanks in advance.”

And our members have been sharing their thoughts and suggestions in response.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

manima1: “You just can’t go wrong with Srixon ZXi7.”
MattM97: “You have to hit them to know, the V-Sole on the Srixon can be make or break for many.”
dmeeksDC: “P7CB is more forgiving for me than ZXi7 because my main miss is low middle and the P7CB still flies and spins great on that miss. These are both really nice irons but I like the P7CB more than the Zxi7 and the P770 (or P790) more than the Zxi5. The Srixons are larger so if that gives you confidence that is the way to go. I don’t feel like I get any benefit from the V-sole and the P7CBs live up to their high Maltby forgiveness rating so the TaylorMades have been great for me.”

Entire Thread: “Srixon ZXi combo or TaylorMade P7CB/770 combo? – GolfWRXers discuss”

Equipment

From the GolfWRX Classifieds: 2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade combo

Published

2 days ago

May 12, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @pianoman0123 has a 2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade combo up for grabs.

From the listing: “2024 Wilson Staff CB/Blade Combo. 4-8 irons are CB’s and the 9,PW are Blades. 5-PW have Project X 6.0 Shafts and the 4 Iron has a Steelfiber CW110 Stiff Shaft. Standard Length, Lie and Lofts. These are in very good condition the shafts just don’t work for me. Like new Lamkin Grips on the 5-PW and a stock Golf Pride on the 4 Iron. $525 OBO.”

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules