�gamechanger the idea for the latest version of the ap1
was to take weight from the topline, center bar and soleplate
and move it low and towards the toe to enhance ball speed
on off-center hits and reduce twisting at impact. whatever
the intent, ben curtis used the irons expertly in winning the
valero texas open, where he ranked first in greens in regulation for the week. for those not playing the tour, the irons
come with true temper dynalite gold Xp steel shafts as the
stock offering. price: $800 (set of eight).
equipment// e. michael johnson
kuehne, duval try new drivers; chopra goes retro
�hammerin’ hank prior to the
valero texas open hank kuehne
spent time getting dialed in on
a new taylormade r11_s driver
(with a fujikura motore speeder
7. 2 shaft), keeping the adjustable
weights and soleplate in the neutral
position but lowering the flight control setting a half-degree. kuehne’s
numbers on the launch monitor
with the club were near perfect for
his 122 miles-per-hour swing speed
with a launch angle of 12 degrees
and a spin rate of 2,200 rpms.
�changes david duval was trying yet another driver last week,
this time a callaway razr-fit model. although duval made the cut,
he still had trouble finding fairways,
ranking t-71 out of 76 players at
41.1 percent. … daniel chopra was
wielding a blast from the past with
a 14-degree callaway erc fairway
wood. the forged titanium clubs
first debuted in 2002. note: chopra
was using the legal version and not
the nonconforming erc ii.
�expensive season ping has
been busy making duplicate gold-plated—and for major winners bubba
watson and sun young yoo, solid
gold—clubs for tour winners. in addition to watson and yoo, ping has
made duplicates for hunter mahan
(two nome putters), mark wilson
(karsten anser putter) and John huh
(scottsdale wolverine c putter) and
angela stanford (scottsdale anser 2).
the latest addition: a gold-plated s56
4-iron commemorating louis oost-huizen’s double eagle at the masters.
�putting prowess Justin
leonard worked with two taylormade ghost putters in san antonio.
leonard arrived gaming a ghost tour
ma-81 and re-gripped it with a super-stroke small grip, resulting in a shade
more toe hang. leonard also tried a
ghost tour da- 12 that was re-weight-ed ( 25 grams on the heel and toe) and
re-gripped with a super stroke small.
after testing, leonard opted for the
da- 12 and used it to rank t- 9 in putts
(with only 27 per round) en route to
finishing t-35 in texas.
Valero Texas open// winner’s bag
�in the bag
(Ben Curtis’ lineup)
ball: Titleist Pro V1x
DRIVER: Titleist 910D3 (Aldila RIP),
8. 5 degrees
3-WOOD: Titleist 910Fd, 13. 5
degrees
HYbRIDS: Titleist 910H ( 18, 20
degrees)
IRONS (4-PW): Titleist AP1 712
WEDGES: Titleist Vokey Spin Milled
C-C 200 (52 degrees); Titleist
Vokey Spin Milled C-C TVD (60
degrees)
PuttER: Scotty Cameron by Titleist
Newport 2
courtesy of titleist; darren carroll/getty images
cover // contents //
10 things // pga tour // lpga tour // champions tour // european tour //EquipmEnt // tim rosaforte
