Equipment

14-year-old hybrid in play at Q-School

Published

14 years ago

Nov 27, 2012

Australian Steve Allan finished first at the PGA Tour Q-School 12 years ago. He’s back at the Q-School Finals this year at PGA West in La Quinta. Calif., armed with a club that predates his Q-School win — a TaylorMade Firesole “Rescue” Hybrid with a “Bubble” shaft that was introduced in 1999.

Take a look at the almost 15-year-old technology Allan brought with him to the PGA Tour Q-School Finals this week at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif., as well as the photos below of what a Firesole Rescue looks like when it still has its paint and its stampings intact.

Click here to see more photos from Q-School, and Click here for more discussion in the “Tour/pre-release equipment” forum.

Click here to see more photos from Q-School, and Click here for more discussion in the “Tour/pre-release equipment” forum.

Related Topics:hybrids TaylorMade

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22 Comments

Dennis Clark

Jul 8, 2014 at 2:07 pm

If you’ve made it to the final stage of Q school good chance your equipment is working pretty well.

Reply Report comment
Straightdriver235

Jul 2, 2014 at 10:13 pm

I don’t get it. What is the deal? There’s many old clubs superior to the newer ones. These pros are generally paid to play stuff, but many serious players use old equipment quite effectively. You are pretty much a fool if you are buying clubs not two or three years old at the least. My Sonartec 18* hybrid is older than this, well used… and looks much better. It has always striped the ball, so why would I want to change it? I was using a Tommy Armour Ironmaster from the late 1930s until recently. I simply found it better than any other putter I ever tried.

Reply Report comment
hawkeye3743

Jun 18, 2014 at 6:42 pm

HMMM, so newer is always better. And that old Bubble Shaft was a great shaft, too bad they quit it. I have a few new heads. Probably worth Millions if he is a success. LOL

Reply Report comment
West

May 2, 2014 at 12:35 pm

Wow, I’m just amazed at the fact he still uses the same shaft after all these years, in a stiff-flex no less. Also, that club face looks way closed? Anyways, to each their own, no “right” way to play the game…

Reply Report comment
Max

May 1, 2014 at 12:58 pm

I still have on of those, in brand new condition. Never played it but will give it a try the next time.

Reply Report comment
Walter

Apr 22, 2014 at 1:37 pm

I’ve been playing mine for years and when it started to look like this one I sanded the head. Looks awesome.

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grexa

Nov 29, 2012 at 12:20 pm

It shows the confidence in the equipment a player is comfortable with. It also shows how it’s the indian, not always the arrow.

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Tom McCarthy

Nov 29, 2012 at 12:10 am

Still playing my Taylormade Rescue club I bought on an American Express points promotion about 12 years ago. What a great club!

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3putt18

Nov 28, 2012 at 5:59 pm

I had 2 of these clubs. I sold them both last year. They were/ are great clubs.

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northhighlandway12

Nov 28, 2012 at 1:11 pm

Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but, weren’t the majority of clubs, way back in the birth days of golf,
wooden shaped heads with lofts that resembled todays 7-irons, 6,5, etc. Why are people calling hybrids, new technology?

Reply Report comment
- Shallowface
  
  Dec 16, 2014 at 7:52 pm
  
  You’re right, and we’re certainly headed back in that direction.
  
  I don’t think we’re too far from the day where the only iron in an average player’s bag will be a sand wedge. Everything else will be a hybrid of some sort.
  
  The long iron just wasn’t a good idea for most. I enjoy shopping thrift stores, and every now and then I’ll see a ladies forged blade two iron from the 1960s.
  
  What were they thinking?
  
  Reply Report comment
Dalton

Nov 28, 2012 at 11:46 am

I wish today’s hybrid’s were all as small profile as this original. I’ve still got one of these in my attic. May be time to break it back out!

Reply Report comment
Omar R.

Nov 27, 2012 at 10:04 pm

needs to go to continental golf

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Greg M.

Nov 27, 2012 at 6:19 pm

maybe this hybrid is to Steve as the 7 iron is to Tin Cup! …old reliable

Reply Report comment
Mike D.

Nov 27, 2012 at 5:43 pm

The groove rule doesn’t apply to clubs with less than 24 degrees of loft.

Reply Report comment
Jake03331

Nov 27, 2012 at 4:51 pm

@Rick, the grooves back in 1999 were not of the same design as more recent years and those no banned under the “conforming groove” debate. Most irons still rocked V grooves, so this club would be good to go.

Reply Report comment
Rick

Nov 27, 2012 at 4:46 pm

What about the recent rule on the grooves shape?

Is this “Rescue” still conforming?

Reply Report comment
Rus

Nov 27, 2012 at 2:24 pm

It looks like he lost the H/C in 2000… Put an old sock or somethin on it!

Reply Report comment
CA

Nov 27, 2012 at 12:22 pm

+100000000000

Reply Report comment
John

Nov 27, 2012 at 10:36 am

Says a lot about my addiction of buying into new equipment frenzy…My wife is absolutely right, I’m an idiot.

Reply Report comment
- purkjason
  
  Apr 21, 2014 at 1:00 pm
  
  Haha … it’s the opposite in my house. My wife will always buy the new crap. Whereas I’m cool with my reliable Maltby Equipment.
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Shallowface
    
    Dec 16, 2014 at 7:46 pm
    
    That Maltby gear is some of the best you’ll find anywhere. Great design through sound engineering principles.
    
    Reply Report comment

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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”