Equipment

TaylorMade Tour Prototype Golf Ball — Project 5

Published

14 years ago

Sep 5, 2012

TaylorMade has started its prototype process for a new tour ball, calling it ‘Project 5’ for now.

This is the tour prototype golf ball that TaylorMade Golf Tour Staff Professional Justin Rose put into play at the Deutsche Bank Championship.

Prior to the start of the tourney at TPC Boston, Dean Snell, TaylorMade VP of Research and Development was on-site to test the new prototype ball. Rose put the new ball in play for 9 holes and was longer that the current model he was using.

Rose said, “This is what I’m looking for. Balls are staying on line so much better and carrying out longer.”

He liked it so much, he asked if he could play that week in Boston. He played 18 holes in the Pro-Am with the ‘Project 5’ and came back to Dean and said “I don’t how you did it, but outstanding work.”

Dean says “This is the first time in 24 years on tour for me that a player wanted to play a new ball that same day as proto testing. I called the plant, had 4 dozen overnighted and brought them back to him Thursday for the start of the tourney.”

We’ll have to see what the ball is called when it comes to production. Of course the TaylorMade prototype ball can’y just be put into play without USGA approval first, so this has likely been in development for a while. Some screen grabs from the USGA’s approved list are attached.

What do you think, current Penta and Non-Penta users? Click here to discuss in the GolfWRX forums.

Related Topics:golf balls TaylorMade

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11 Comments

mike

Dec 22, 2012 at 12:11 am

OK, I got up enough nerve to use the ball Darren Clarke’s caddie gave me. I didn’t pull it out my bag until the 16th hole because I was spraying my drives all day on a course that has a lot of trouble off the tee. I tee’d it up on a short par 4 with no water trouble. I usually hit my drives with around 230 yds of fly with little to no roll out. The tee shot flew out about 240 with no roll because of the terrain. Very soft coming off the club face. Hit a PW to 6 feet from the pin. Stuck like a dart to the green. Made my straight uphill putt for bird. Both the wedge and the putt very soft off the club face. Put the ball away for 17, because I usually block my drives into the jungle on that hole, which I did again. Took it out again on 18. long par 5. Ripped my drive about 270 with good roll out. Didin’t cautch my 3-wood clean and ending up in a bunker 110 from the green. Hit the green with a 9-iron on and sunk an 80-foot putt for bird. Used the ball on 2 holes and got my only 2 birdies that day. I wish I had a dozen of these balls so I could play a full round with them. Makes me wonder if what you hear is true that golf equipment manufacturers make one set of products for pros and another for us ameteurs.

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mike

Dec 10, 2012 at 12:49 am

Darren Clarke’s caddie gave me a Project 5 ball yesterday at the Thailand Golf Championship where I marshalled the 3-ball he was in. Darren was obviously playing this ball that day. He was just as long off the tee as Hunter Mahan and Chapchai Nirat at over 300 yds. These 2 guys are 10+ years his junior. I’m going to play a round with it soon and I’ll post my opinion of the ball. The dimpling pattern is almost identical to the Titleist ProV1x but the ridges around the dimples are a little crisper.

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Johnny

Oct 30, 2012 at 11:40 pm

Looks like Callaway Hex Golf Ball Pattern.

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Andrew

Oct 17, 2012 at 10:21 pm

I have this golf ball. Justin gave me one. Its pretty sick

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Elliott

Oct 9, 2012 at 10:40 pm

Looking forward to winning golf tournaments with it.

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Danny

Sep 14, 2012 at 11:38 am

cant wait to game this ball!!!

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Brody

Sep 11, 2012 at 10:15 am

This is to be the “Rocket Fuel”, right?

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mmontisano

Sep 6, 2012 at 1:12 am

finally a seamless ball from TM!

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Mike

Sep 5, 2012 at 7:42 pm

or maybe the Royal Plus 6 from eons ago!

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Homer

Sep 5, 2012 at 5:32 pm

Looks like Callaway’s Hex Black Tour

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Bryan

Sep 5, 2012 at 4:18 pm

Blah blah blah… 3 months repeat story.

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Equipment

Putters that never made it: Check out some of the best tour builds that didn’t make the cut

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2026

Alistair Cameron

Arguably, the best perk of being a professional golfer on the PGA Tour is the ability to request or even just be handed pretty much any club you could think of. It happens more often than you think, usually with putters around the practice green from one event to the next. Come Wednesday, the Tour bags lining the edge of the putting surface become resting places for fallen flatsticks that never made the cut.

So let’s take a look at some of the best we’ve seen out on Tour this year that never made it to the competition. (You may notice none of Hideki Matsuyama’s custom Scotty Cameron putters made this list. There are too many.)

Let’s start with this custom Damascus Milled Odyssey Rossie made for Ryo Hisatsune. Featuring a single line and the short-slant hossel, we’ve seen plenty of Number 7 and jailbird heads featuring the Damascus Milled insert, but this is the first and only one we’ve spotted in a Rossie. Hisatsune primarily putts with an Odyssey Black Series iX #9, but we have seen him recently with a TaylorMade TP Collection SOTO, so there could be potential that the Damascus Milled Rossie could end up in the bag.

Everyone wants to be Cameron Young right now. We’ve had Justin Thomas and Tom Hoge both game the Scotty Cameron 9.5R prototype. Well, for the PGA Championship, Brooks Koepka nearly joined that list after requesting the same style of putter, with the full-length alignment line. But the Scotty Cameron reps took the request a step further and made one specially for Koepka with a Teryllium insert, similar to one in his previous Newport 2 gamers. The reason why this one didn’t go into play, though? Because it was too heavy.

Harry Hall was the third-best putter on Tour last year, so when Bettinardi made him a custom proto, you know it was going to be good. The custom BB28 blade features VDF face milling, a custom-welded single-bend shaft, and the owner’s initials – HH – on the sole of the putter. Hall, who usually games an Odyssey O-Works #7 W, has dabbled with a TaylorMade Spider Tour X already this year. Maybe there’s a chance this Bettinardi might make his bag.

Honestly, this one doesn’t need a description. It’s Kieth Mitchell’s custom Scotty Cameron Napa. One Scotty Cameron face stamp, two Scotty Dogs, two Scotty Cameron 7-Point Crowns and one Circle T. That is all. Oh, except for the Cashmere Cameron headcover.

Finally, and just for fun, how about we pour one out for this TaylorMade Spider Tour X made for Scottie Scheffler in its new torched finish. It’s unlikely we’ll see a putter change anytime soon from the best golfer in the world. In fact, he hit just two putts with it on the Harbour Town practice before going back to his trusty gamer.

Whats in the Bag

Patrick Reed WITB 2026 (May)

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Driver: Titleist GT3 (9 degrees) Buy here.
Shaft: Aldila Rogue Silver 130 M.S.I. 70 TX

3-wood: TaylorMade Qi35 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 7 X

7-wood: TaylorMade Qi35 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 8 X

Irons: Grindworks PR-202 (4), Grindworks PR-101A (5-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Wedges: Cleveland RTX6 Tour Rack (52-10 Mid), Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (56-08M), SM11 (60-04T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Scotty Cameron Tour Rat 1.5 Tour Prototype

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Grips: Golf Pride MCC

See more photos of Patrick Reed’s clubs here.

Equipment

Which of Tiger’s major winning irons are your favorite? – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

In our forums, our members have been discussing their favorite major winning irons used by Tiger Woods. WRXer ‘golferdude54’ kicks off the thread saying:

“Mizuno MP 14/29. Titleist 681T. Nike Forged Blades. TaylorMade P7TW.

Among these irons that helped Tiger win 15 majors, which is your favorite in terms of looks?”

And our members have been naming their favorites and why in response.

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

SwingBlade: “I prefer the early blades he played and the more recent TM TW’s especially because after Tiger had his major behavioral setbacks, part of Nikes support payback was making Tiger play a Nike putter and cease using his beloved uniquely customized Scotty putter.”
ProjectX: “This (Nike Forged Blades) and there’s not even a close second.”

Entire Thread: “Which of Tiger’s major winning irons are your favorite? – GolfWRXers discuss”