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The Nordea Masters at the wonderfully named Bro Hof Slott Golf Club near Stockholm is this week’s venue for the European Tour. Quite often on the Titleist Tour Blog we will deviate away from talking product in order to speak about our players or give our readers information on the host venue, course, conditions etc. This week however, we make no excuses for the fact that we are talking nothing but product!!! And with good reason, as the new 712 series prototype irons have been a real talking point among the players on the range in Sweden this week.
The new 712 series prototypes first broke cover on the PGA Tour at the AT&T National where Titleist Ambassador Nick Watney put the new 712 Ap2 straight in play and subsequently won the tournament. Since then, 712 has delivered another PGA Tour win for rookie Titleist Ambassador Chris Kirk who claimed victory at The Viking Classic this past weekend. Now the 712 story will really begin on the European Tour, with the Nordea Masters being the first opportunity for most to experience the new irons. And, as was the case on the PGA Tour, the response to the four prototype 712 models from Titleist Ambassadors on the European Tour has been immediate and unanimously positive. Positive to the tune of 18 sets of 712 irons being put in play for this week’s event event!!! In addition, each one of the four 712 prototype iron models (AP1, AP2, CB & MB) are in play this week. Below is a list of those players who are trusting their game to a 712 series prototype irons:
> Robert Karlsson 712 MB
> Michael Jonzon 712 MB
> Scott Strange 712 AP2
> Michael Hoey 712 AP2
> Martin Wiegele 712 CB
> Phillip Price 712 AP1
> Kenneth Ferrie 712 CB
> Mark Haastrup 712 AP2
> Seve Benson 712 MB
> Bernd Wiesberger 712 CB
> Oscar Floren 712 MB
> Robert Dinwiddie 712 CB
> Joel Sjöholm 712 CB / MB
> Lloyd Saltman 712 MB
> Lee Slattery 712 CB
> Wade Ormsby 712 CB / MB
> Liam Bond 712 AP2
> Victor Dubuisson 712 MB
With such an incredible early response to the new 712 series irons it’s a really exciting time to be on the Titleist Tour Support Vehicle and we’re fully prepared for another busy week of 712 club fitting and club building at the Irish Open next week. Rest assured that the Titleist European Tour Blog will provide regular updates on this exciting range of prototype products in the weeks to come.
July 22nd, 2011
Aside from Ryder Cup years there is no doubt that Open week is the biggest event in the golfing calendar from a European perspective. The game’s oldest championship is also the only major held on European soil and for any golf fanatic on this side of the Atlantic it gets no bigger than The Open Championship. Royal St George’s (Sandwich) is the host venue for the 140th installment of this most illustrious event and this beautiful links course on England’s South-East coast looks in stunning condition for it’s 13th hosting of an Open Championship.
In the entire history of this most famous of tournaments, seldom has it been harder to predict a winner. With such a depth of talent at Royal St George’s from all four corners of the globe the tournament really is wide open. From a Titleist perspective our Open roster is also packed with an array of talent, each of whom have the game to prevail at Sandwich. Titleist Ambassador Rory McIlroy is an obvious contender following his success at the U.S. Open, winning a major by eight strokes and breaking tournament records tends to make you heavily fancied, but there are also a number of other Ambassadors from around the world that just could make their major breakthrough this week.
From Europe, young Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal, fresh off a win at the BMW International Open in Munich could be one to watch. The mecurial Spaniard’s swashbuckling style can sometimes land him in trouble but, when confident and on form with the putter he can make birdies in bundles and has already proved his winning mentality on the European Tour.
Another man to watch is South African Titleist Ambassador George Coetzee. The man from Pretoria is one of the longest hitters on the European Tour and over the past five events has quietly gone about posting a string of solid finishes, including a third place spot at the Barclays Scottish Open. With his game in great shape it would be no surprise to see George contend this week as he looks to emulate fellow countryman Louis Oosthuizen in lifting the famous Claret Jug.
Heading west to the U.S.A and there are two prime candidates to contend from the Titleist roster. The first of these is seasoned campaigner Steve Stricker who arrives at Royal St George’s having completed a hat-trick of wins at the John Deere Classic on the PGA Tour. The man known affectionately as ‘Strick’ has become one of the most consistent performers in world golf over the past few seasons and a major victory at The Open Championship would be both well deserved and no surprise. Another American hope who enters the week waiving the flag for Titleist is Rickie Fowler. If Steve Stricker is the archetypal experienced campaigner, Fowler is the very definition of a bright young thing and anyone who saw his Ryder Cup performance at Celtic Manor in 2010 knows how well he can perform under pressure. The exuberance of youth coupled with a steady nerve could make for the perfect combination as Rickie tees it up at Royal St Georges this week.
Finally in our Titleist league of nations comes young South Korean Ambassador Seung Yul Noh. Noh is the reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit winner and, despite his tender years and soft spoken manner, he is nothing short of an assassin out on the golf course. Noh has been working through some swing changes recently with renowned coach Butch Harmon and his athletic move really does look every bit the swing of a major champion. Whether this will be Seung Yul’s week only time will tell but here at Titleist we’re tipping him for great things, whether now or in the near future.
Enjoy the action from this week’s Open Championship and let’s see if any of our bold predictions come to fruition. In the meantime, here are a few members of the Titleist roster gearing up for The Open in this week’s slideshow.
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July 15th, 2011
With the 2011 Barclays Scottish Open now confined to the history books, we wanted to share some of the pictures from our week at the magnificent Castle Stuart Golf Course. It’s a real shame that the weather played havoc with the event but there is no doubting the credentials of Castle Stuart as a European Tour venue and a great warm up for the Open Championship at Royal St. Georges this coming week.
There can also be no doubt as to the calibre of this weeks winner as Pro V1x loyalist Luke Donald reaffirmed his position at the top of the Official World Golf Rankings with yet another impressive victory. The smooth swinging Englishman will surely be among the favourites to lift the famous Claret Jug at Sandwich and, on current form, it’s easy to make a case for Luke claiming a maiden major title at the Open Championship. Congratulations to Luke and good luck to all of our Titleist Ambassadors and golf ball loyalists at Royal St. Georges.
Click here to launch the slideshow.
July 10th, 2011
The Titleist Team have been in Munich this week for the BMW International Open at Golfclub Munchen Eichenried. Last year saw Titleist Pro V1 loyalist David Horsey gallop to victory for his maiden Europen Tour victory and the young Englishman is back in the field this week hoping for a successful defence of his title.
We wanted to give our Blog readers a look behind the scenes from Munich so here are just a few of our favourite shots from the week.
Click here to launch the slideshow
June 24th, 2011
These days it’s fair to say that the world of golf never stops. Event schedules around the world mean that professional tournament golf is played all year round and a tournament winner can soon become yesterday’s news as the next player moves into the winner’s circle. However, there are certain victories that bring the world of golf to a standstill. There are certain victories that make players, journalists, industry insiders and golf fans alike all stand up and take notice. There are certain victories that transcend golf and permeate their way into the consciousness of mainstream society.
This past weekend saw one such victory as Titleist Ambassador Rory McIlroy produced one of the greatest performances in golfing history to claim his maiden major title at the 111th U.S. Open Championship. The 22 year old from Holywood Northern Ireland has always been touted as one of the brightest talents in the game and this came to the fore at Congressional Country Club as the young Ulsterman carded four consecutive rounds in the 60’s for a tournament record total of 268 (-16) and an eight stroke margin of victory.
Click here to launch the slideshow
A glance at the tournament statistics reveal just how Rory achieved his record 16 under par total and probably the most amazing statistic of them all was his greens in regulation for the week. At a tournament widely regarded as the toughest test in golf Rory hit a simply staggering 62 of 72 greens in regulation. Whether approaching with his Titleist fairway metal, his Titleist MB irons or his Vokey Design Wedges Rory was simply laser like with his accuracy.
> Driving Distance: 310.62 yards
> Driving Accuracy: 64%
> Greens in Regulation: 86%
>Putts per hole: 1.65
As he has since his first day as professional, Rory placed his trust in Titleist equipment to claim the U.S. Open Championship. Rory navigated the challenging layout of Congressional Country Club’s Blue course with total trust in the #1 ball in golf as each and every one of his record breaking 268 strokes was executed with the iconic Titleist Pro V1x golf ball. Complementing the Pro V1x was a full bag of Titleist equipment which includes the 910D2 driver, 906F2 fairway, MB irons, Vokey Design Wedges and a prototype Scotty Cameron Studio Select Newport putter with distinctive ‘chromatic bronze’ finish.
Everyone at Titleist Europe would like to congratulate Rory his major championship breakthrough; watching him over the coming years is certainly going to be exciting and we are hugely proud to have Rory as an Ambassador for the Tileist brand.
June 24th, 2011
As part of an unwavering commitment to custom fitting, Titleist operates three National Fitting Centres across the UK and Ireland based at the St Ives (Hunts) Golf Club, Cambridgeshire, Kings Acre Golf Club, Scotland and the G.U.I National Academy at Carton House, Republic of Ireland. Each facility offers serious golfers the opportunity to experience a Tour proven fitting process conducted by expert technicians using state-of-the-art Trackman Launch Monitor technology. For any golfer looking to shoot lower scores, having the correct equipment is of vital importance and the Titleist National Fitting Centres provide the perfect facility for serious golfers to find their exact specifications for Titleist metals, irons and wedges.
Click here to view the slideshow
One gentleman who is certainly serious about his golf paid a visit to our St Ives Fitting Centre earlier this week. We were honoured to welcome former England Rugby Union Coach and World Cup Winner Sir Clive Woodward to the St Ives Fitting Centre. Sir Clive currently occupies the role of Director of Elite Performance for the British Olympic Association but took time out from a busy schedule to receive a fitting for Titleist 910 metals and Vokey Design wedges from fitting technician Richard Harries. This is Sir Clive’s second visit to the facility having already received a fitting for AP2 irons and the previous generation 909 metals back in 2010. As mentioned above, the correct equipment is essential for any player looking to lower their scores and Sir Clive Woodward is firmly in that bracket having challenged himself publicly to become a scratch golfer before the 2012 Olympic Games commence in London. Having started the challenge at a ten handicap, Sir Clive is already down to a handicap of six and continues to work hard on his game. Recognising the importance of the right equipment, Sir Clive’s visit to St Ives was another vital piece in the jigsaw on his journey to become a scratch player. Images from Sir Clive’s fitting can be found in the slideshow and his fitting specifications are as follows:
Driver: 910D2, 9.5°, Graphite Design YS-6 Stiff, SFT Setting: D3, Multi-Compund White/Black (+1/64″)
Fairway: 910F, 15°, Graphite Design YS-6 Stiff, SFT Setting: A2, Multi-Compund White/Black (+1/64″)
Hybrid: 910H, 21°, Titleist Diamana Kai’li 80 Hybrid Stiff, SFT Setting: D2, Multi-Compund White/Black (+1/64″)
Wedges: Vokey Spin Milled C-C (Tour Chrome Finish), 52.08, 56.08, 60.04, True Temper Project X 5.5 (52.08), True Temper Dynamic Gold S300 (56.08 & 60.04)
Everyone at Titleist would like to wish Sir Clive all the very best in his quest to become a scratch golfer and we look forward to watching his progress over the next 12 months.
Click here to learn more about Titleist National Fitting Centres
June 9th, 2011
Following on from last year’s Ryder Cup, The Celtic Manor Resort was looking resplendent once again as the players assembled to test themselves around the Twenty Ten course in pursuit of the Saab Wales Open crown.
The old adage goes that a picture tells a thousand words and, with that in mind, we thought we’d let the images do the talking. The accompanying slideshow has a bit of everything, from Ross Fisher’s new Vokey wedge and images of the beautiful Celtic Manor Resort, right through to Messrs Strange, Sjoholm and Dinwiddie striking a pose. Enjoy!!!
Click to launch the slideshow
June 3rd, 2011
Whilst some of the European Tour’s most recogniseable names are engaged in Match Play duals at Finca Cortesin this week, a host of talent has also headed to the beautiful island of Madeira for this year’s Madeira Island’s Open. The cliff-top links of Porto Santo Golf Club again welcomes the players for the event, and what a poignant moment for the European Tour to be visiting a venue designed by the late, great Seve Ballesteros.
The world of golf is very much in mourning over the loss of one of the most talented, inspirational and colourful characters ever to grace the game and, as you can see from the accompanying slide-show, the tournament organisers have paid their own tribute to Seve with flowers that mark out his name on one of the course’s most prominent areas. It’s easy to see why Seve would have chosen to design the par-72 layout at Porto Santo; not only is it a spectacular piece of terrain providing magnificent vistas over the Atlantic, but the blustery conditions that can be created on the small island of Madeira would have been a perfect fit for his legendary shot-making skills. One thing is for sure, all those players arriving in Madeira for this week’s event have Seve at the very forefront of their thoughts - the great man will be sorely missed by everyone on the European Tour.
Click here to view the slideshow
With two events taking place in Europe this week the Titleist Team face a logistical challenge to ensure that all the players are catered for. Titleist Tour Representative Mattias Jelver has headed down to Fince Cortesin to work with the players at the Volvo World Match Play whilst fellow Tour Representatives Guy Smith and Phil Dimmock took the Madeira event. With Madeira so isolated, it’s an impossibility to have the Titleist Tour Support Vehicle (TTSV) on site for the event so product has to be shipped from Titleist’s European HQ well in advance to ensure that our Team have product to work with when they arrive. It’s quite the logistical operation to make sure everything runs smoothly but the Titleist ‘dream team’ had everything under control and, as you can see from the slideshow, did it all whilst remaining cool, calm and collected!!!
Amongst those in the field this week in Madeira are two Stevens; namely messrs Tiley and Lewton. Titleist golf ball loyalist Steven Tiley has recently made the switch to the 2011 Pro V1x having used a previous generation version of the ball and is continuing to familarise himself with the product. The 28-year old from Herne Bay, England will be looking to make the most of the absence of some of the European Tour’s leading lights to post a strong finish in Madeira, and the improved aerodynamics and consistent flight of the 2011 Pro V1x will certainly be of benefit in potentially windy conditions. Fellow Englishman Steve Lewton will also peg it up in Madeira looking for a strong finish to really kick-start his season. The big-hitting Titleist Ambassador will undoubtedly be looking to utilise his power at Porto Santo and if his hitting on the range is anything to go by the course should be rather worried. Steve is more than capable of generating ball speeds of 180mph with his Titleist 910D3 driver.
Good luck to all our Titleist loyalists in action this week at Finca Cortesin and Porto Santo.
May 20th, 2011
Titleist Ambassador Rory McIlroy is one of an elite field of players teeing it up at Finca Cortesin Golf Club for the 2011 Volvo World Match Play Championship. The event is back on Spain’s Costa del Sol after a short hiatus and Rory is just one of the players who will be looking to wrestle the title away from Titleist Ambassador Ross Fisher, who won the first playing of the event at Finca Cortesin back in October of 2009.
22-year old Rory is now established as one of the game’s top performers and currently occupies sixth spot in the Official World Golf Rankings. The sweet swinging Ulsterman is widely regarded as one of the most talented players in world and he will undoubtedly prove a formidable match play opponent for anyone in the field at Finca Cortesin. Despite his tender years Rory is no rookie when it comes to match play having represented Great Britain and Ireland at the 2007 Walker Cup during his time as an amateur and, more recently, played a vital role in Team Europe’s victory over the USA at the 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor.
Click here to view the slideshow
Rory hasn’t been seen on European soil since the Maybank Malaysian Open back in mid-April due to defending his Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow on the PGA Tour and taking some well earned rest. A trip to the US can often result in a player arriving back with some new equipment and Rory was no exception. Titleist Tour Representative Mattias Jelver caught up with Rory at Finca Cortesin to find an interesting looking Scotty Cameron headcover in the bag alongside his regular ‘gamer’. The headcover was created by Scotty to commemorate Cinco de Mayo (translates literally to ‘Fifth of May’), a day which annually celebrates Mexican pride and heritage. The headcover, which draws on the Mexican passion for Lucha Libre wrestling, is undoubtedly another creative masterpiece from the Scotty Cameron studio, but was quickly usurped by what lied beneath. A quick rip of the velcro revealed a stunning new Scotty Cameron putter which Rory has recently added to his arsenal; namely a tour issue Studio Select Newport featuring a deep-milled face and dull chromatic bronze finish. It remains to be seen whether the putter will go in the bag for the World Match Play this week but don’t be surprised to see Rory hit the links with it in the near future.
Check out Rory’s new putter in the accompanying slide show.
May 19th, 2011
There can be little doubt that the European Tour is very much a hot-bed of golfing talent at the moment with a plethora of young, up-and-coming talent currently plying their trade on the Tour. Titleist is fortunate enough to call a number of these players ‘Ambassadors’ with names such as Rory McIlroy, Seung Yul Noh, Tano Goya, George Coetzee and Pablo Larrazabal all placing their trust in the Titleist script. However, one such name that regular followers will also have noticed in recent weeks is that of 26-year old Swedish Titleist Ambassador Oscar Floren.
Oscar takes to the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country club in Malaysia this week for just the eighth event of his European Tour Rookie season and does so off the back of two fifth place finishes in his last three starts. Oscar is certainly high on confidence following strong performances at the Sicilian Open and at the Trophee Hassan II which have elevated him to 48th position in the current Race to Dubai rankings. Given his strong start to the season we thought this was an opportune moment to tell our Blog readers a little bit more about Oscar Floren.
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April 15th, 2011
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