Here’s what the 15-time major champion has in the bag this week.
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — Tiger Woods is scheduled to return to the PGA Tour this week at the Genesis Invitational. Here is a complete list of the golf equipment he is expected to be using this week at Riviera Country Club:
We occasionally recommend interesting products, services, and gaming opportunities. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. Golfweek operates independently, though, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.
Gear: Scotty Cameron Super Select putters Price: $449 each Specs: Milled 303 Stainless steel with 6061 aluminum sole plate and adjustable sole weights. Lengths: 33, 34 or 35 inches. Available: March 17 for the Newport, Newport Plus, Newport 2, Newport 2 Plus, Newport 2.5 Plus and Squareback 2; May 19 for the Del Mar, Fastback 1.5, GoLo 6, GoLo 6.5
Who They’re For: Golfers with deep pockets who prioritize feel but want the performance and looks of classic heel-toe-weighted blades and mid-size mallets.
The Skinny: Modifications to stalwarts such as the Newport and Newport 2 will make purists happy, but the Plus versions for golfers who like a beefier blade and new milling technology could make this a popular option for a larger number of players.
The Deep Dive: Over the last few years, a lot of plans had to be, shall we say, adjusted to meet the demands and changes taking place in the world. Golf equipment has not been immune to this, and the Scotty Cameron Special Select line of putters, released in 2020 and intended to be in the marketplace for two years, wound up at retail for three instead.
However, now the update to the Special Select putter family is out: the Scotty Cameron Super Select putters.
Aesthetically, no significant changes were made to the base models. The Newport and Newport 2 are still heel-toe-weighted blades with a low profile, and the Fastback 1.5 blends a Newport and a mallet. Cameron aficionados will notice those putters have a modified neck that Cameron refers to as an “I Beam” that reduces weight.
What is new, however, is the addition of Plus versions of Newport and Newport 2, along with the addition of the Newport 2.5 Plus.
The Super Select Newport 2 Plus (left) has a wider back flange than the Newport 2. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
The Plus versions of each putter have the same blade length as the standard models, and they also have adjustable weights in the heel and toe area of the sole to allow fitters to adjust the club’s swing weight easily. What makes them different is a wider back flange, which gives them a more solid look in the address position. They also have some 303 stainless steel removed from the center of the sole, with the hole being covered by a 6061 aircraft-grade aluminum plate. Removing steel and putting aluminum in its place shifts more of the overall weight to the perimeter, so the Plus models are not only larger, they have a significantly higher, mallet-level moment of inertia and stability.
The company said the Plus putters debuted on the PGA Tour in 2022.
A second milling on the Super Select putters flattens the points created by the first, deeper milling. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
The other change Cameron has brought to the Super Select putters involves the face milling. Like previously released deep-milled putters, a computer-controlled bit spins over the face and shaves off tiny ribbons of steel. This is what creates the circular pattern. But in the Super Select putter line, a second milling takes place that shaves off the peaks formed between the circular grooves the first milling left behind. The result is the deeper sound and softer feel of a deep milling pattern with more consistency strike after strike because the ball hits the flattened areas between the mill marks instead of points.
For several years, when PGA Tour pros asked for customized Scotty Cameron putters with deep milling for a softer feel, this is what the folks in the Cameron Studio have created for them.
The Super Select putters have Cameron’s distinctive three dots in the back, this time toned in silver. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Six models are dropping in the initial release.
Super Select Newport, Newport Plus. These heel-toe-weighted blades have rounded bumpers, a compact size and a plumber’s neck hosel.
Super Select Newport 2, Newport 2 Plus. Similar to the Newport putters, the Super Select Newport 2 and Newport 2 Plus have a slightly longer blade length and narrower topline than the Newport putters, along with squared-off back pieces.
Super Select Newport 2.5 Plus, Squareback Plus. These putters were designed to appeal to golfers who like a larger, squared look at address and desire the stability of a full-sized mallet in a blade-style putter.
Four additional models should be in stores in mid-May, including the Del Mar, GoLo 6, GoLo 6.5 and Fastback 1.5.
After several new drivers were added to the USGA and R&A’s Conforming Driver list before the start of the first PGA Tour event of 2023, stars like Collin Morikawa, Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele were free to drop all-new clubs into their bag.
As Golfweek reported earlier this week, several major golf equipment makers had new clubs added to the USGA and R&A’s Conforming Driver list before the start of the first PGA Tour event of 2023, the Sentry Tournament of Champions. That included the now-released Callaway Paradym drivers, as well as the yet-to-be-released Cobra Aerojet drivers and the TaylorMade Stealth 2 drivers.
That allowed players in the field, including several marquee names, to make equipment changes and drop new gear in their bag. Next week at the Sony Open in Hawaii, the PGA Tour’s first full-field event of the year, more players will assuredly tee it up with new drivers and irons, too.
Here is a quick look at some of the golfers who have made equipment changes already.
Six years ago, at the conclusion of the PGA Tour’s 2015-2016 season, Jason Day finished No. 1 in Strokes Gained: Putting and achieved something that no other golfer, before or since, had accomplished. The Australian, who used a TaylorMade Spider Tour Red putter that year, ended a PGA Tour season with a Strokes Gained: Putting average of 1.13, making him the first player to end a season with an average over 1.0.
Strokes Gained: Putting (SG:P) is the best statistic to use to compare golfers and see who is a better putter, measuring that advantage in strokes. For example, if a player has a SG:P average of 0.4 and another golfer has an average of 0.1, that 0.3-shot edge over 72 holes of a tournament translates to a 1.2-shot swing and on the PGA Tour, averaging one shot better than translates to a lot of money.
Jason Day lines up a putt on the 2nd hole during the first round of The Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. (Photo: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports)
So back in 2016, over 54 measured rounds of golf that season, Day gained more than a full shot advantage over the average player (who would average 0.0), every 18 holes, based exclusively on his putting. That’s 4.52 shots over 72 holes.
No one scared Day’s record-setting performance last year, but with the PGA Tour’s wrap-around 2021-22 season now concluded, we can look back and see which golfers finished in the top 10 in SG:P and what putters they used.
It’s not every day that the world No. 1 changes his equipment, let alone his putter, but this week he shall.
RIDGELAND, S.C. – The world No. 1 and reigning PGA Tour Player of the Year plans to insert a new putter in the bag this week at the CJ Cup at Congaree Golf Club.
Scottie Scheffler, who had been using a Scotty Cameron Newport 2 model, will be rolling his rock with a Cameron T-5.5 Proto mallet this week.
“I typically don’t like changing equipment at all, but I’ve been using it now for probably two, three weeks,” Scheffler said. “Late in the year I putted what felt like to me pretty poorly, I was really streaky. I was trying a few different things and that’s not really a way to improve when you’re kind of, felt like I was kind of blindly throwing darts just trying to find something. Sometimes I was lining the ball up, sometimes I wasn’t.”
Scheffler actually enjoyed his best putting year statistically last season. He improved from 117th in Strokes Gained: Putting (-.0.53) his rookie season in 2019-20 to 107th (+0.23) in 2020-21 to 58th last season (+.202). But when asked to name the last tournament he putted up to his high standard, he mentioned the Masters, where he won his first major despite a four-putt at 18.
“Obviously the results there were good,” he said. “My memory for stuff like that isn’t really good, I have a very short memory, so the Masters is obviously one that sticks out in my head. I’m sure there’s a few throughout the year where I putted pretty good.”
Scheffler’s putter went cold in the final round of the Tour Championship – he shot 74 and squandered the lead – in his last start and he struggled so much so at the Presidents Cup that he was seen putting under floodlights on Saturday night and getting tips from U.S. Assistant Captain Steve Stricker, who is regarded as an outstanding putter and trusted as a second set of eyes by no less than Tiger Woods.
“Sometimes it’s good to have a kind of different voice in your head,” Scheffler said. “Randy (Smith) and I have been working together for so long that it was kind of nice just to hear some different thoughts on how Steve approached putting, because I definitely was frustrated with how I was rolling it at the Presidents Cup. I wasn’t hitting my lines, I couldn’t get comfortable over the ball. If it was a stroke-play tournament, I would have been fine, I still would have been able to play good, but with it being match play, you’ve got to make those putts toward the end of the matches and I wasn’t able to do that. It was very helpful kind of picking his brain and just kind of learning from him.”
Scottie Scheffler appears to be making a putter change this week.
How did Scheffler settle on this particular model, which has done wonders for Max Homa, who has made it his gamer of late?
“I remember in junior golf I used kind of a mallet type putter head and I think it was the putter I used when I won the U.S. Junior and I won the (Sage Valley) Junior Invitational, which at the time were kind of like the two biggest junior tournaments. I grabbed this putter that I had at home that I tested a while ago. I set it up and I was like, man, this thing’s really easy to line up, I don’t feel I really have to work a lot to line the ball up correctly,” Scheffler explained. “I fooled around with that model, figured out what I liked and didn’t like and I talked to the guys at Titleist and they were able to get a putter to me in like a day from California. I kept using this one. For me it’s just really easy to line up, I feel like I’m more consistent with it. I feel like my ceiling’s still the same. I can get hot with the putter and make a ton of putts, but I felt like my floor was a little too low last year, so hopefully this will be one of those deals that will kind of raise the floor.”
To be determined if the sky is the limit for Scottie’s new Scotty.
Monoblok putters feature a semi-circular shape and perimeter weighting to maximize feel and stability.
Gear: Scotty Cameron Monoblok 6.0, Monoblok 6.5 putters Price: $650 each Specs: Milled 303 stainless steel with 6061 aluminum sole plate and steel weight screws Available: Oct. 7
Who It’s For: Golfers with deep pockets who look to a mallet putter that enhances feel but also is forgiving on off-center hits.
The Skinny: Milled from one block of solid steel, both Monoblok putters feature a semi-circular shape and perimeter weighting to maximize feel while also increasing the moment of inertia and stability on mis-hits
The Deep Dive: The Scotty Cameron GoLo putters from the early and mid-2010s were updated several times and available in sizes ranging from the compact GoLo 3 to the extra large GoLo 7, with the GoLo 5 sitting in the middle. They had a flowing, semi-circular shape, and the larger models featured perimeter weighting that made the heads more stable than golfers might expect on off-center hits.
With the release of Monoblok 6.0 and Monoblok 6.5, Cameron is returning to the familiar shape and trying to offer players a pair of putters that deliver outstanding feel and touch on the greens and better performance on putts hit outside the sweet spot.
The Monoblok 6.5 is milled from a solid piece of 303 stainless steel. (Titleist)
As the name implies, each of the Monoblok putters starts as one block of 303 stainless steel. The block is positioned in a milling machine, and a computer controls a fast-spinning bit that passes back and forth over the metal, shaving off tiny ribbons of material until Cameron’s desired shape is produced. Milling putters this way improves quality control and ensures the same shapes are produced every time.
The faces of the Monoblok 6.0 and Monoblok 6.5 are also milled to help create a sound and feel that Cameron thinks will be pleasing to many golfers.
A large portion of the sole of the club is removed during the milling process, then covered with a 6061 aluminum plate. The aluminum weighs significantly less than the steel that was in the head, so more of the overall weight naturally shifts to the perimeter, which boosts the moment of inertia for more stability. There are also weights in the heel and toe area that can be changed by custom fitters to increase or decrease the Monoblok 6.0 and Monoblok 6.5’s swing weight based on the club’s length and the golfer’s preferences.
The face-balanced Monoblok 6.0 has a curved neck and single alignment line. (Titleist)
While both clubs feature a single black alignment line in the cavity of the head, the neck and hosels are different. The Monoblok 6.0 has a mid-bend shaft and is nearly face-balanced, so it should appeal to golfers who make a straight-back, straight-through putting stroke. The Monoblok 6.5 has a short, curved neck that creates more toe hang, so it is better suited to golfers who like arc in their putting stroke.
Want a piece of Tiger Woods memorabilia? Be prepared to write a big check.
Want a piece of Tiger Woods memorabilia? Be prepared to write a big check.
Owning a piece of Tiger’s collection comes with a steep price. Look no further than when one of his backup putters sold for nearly $400,000 a year ago. Now, another one of his putters has been sold at a hefty cost.
Woods’ backup putter from circa 2005 was sold for $328,577 on Golden Age Auctions. There were 47 bids for the putter, which had the starting price set at $5,000.
The signed Scotty Cameron ‘Red Dot’ Newport 2 is the same model as the putter Woods used to win 14 of his 15 majors. This putter is said to have been made as a backup for Woods’ gamer around 2005. Woods usually tested the backups to ensure they were to his liking, but confirming that he used them is difficult because he did so in private, according to the PGA Tour.
This putter, which comes with a certificate of authenticity from Scotty Cameron, is said to have been signed by Woods during a 2005 auction for the Tiger Woods Learning Center.
Four new limited-edition, all-black putters are a stylish way to make a statement on the greens.
Gear: Scotty Cameron limited edition Special Select Jet Set putters Price: $650 each Specs: Milled 303 stainless steel with adjustable sole weights and aluminum sole plate Available: Aug. 19
Who it’s For: Golfers who want a traditional blade with a soft feel in an all-black, non-glare finish.
The Skinny: The limited-edition Special Select Jet Set Newport and Newport 2 are all-black versions of the previously released Special Select putters, while the Plus versions are new, wider offerings that should provide more stability.
The Deep Dive: If you are ever in Encinitas, California, and have a chance to stop by the Scotty Cameron Gallery, it will be easy to see what inspires Titleist’s putter guru. For decades, Cameron has loved Southern California beach culture, American muscle cars and industrial designs.
Recently, more and more pros who use a Scotty Cameron putter have opted to use a Phantom X or Futura X mallet – players such as Justin Thomas, Max Homa and Patrick Cantlay – but most golfers associate Cameron with heel-toe-weighted blades such as the Special Select putters. With the release of the limited-edition Special Select Jet Set putters, Cameron is building on the Special Select lineup that was released about two years ago and blending his most popular blade offerings with a styling that sets them apart.
[afflinkbutton text=”Limited Edition Special Select Jet Set Putters – $649.99″ link=”https://www.linkconnector.com/ta.php?lc=160251000012006787&atid=productrelease&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pgatoursuperstore.com%2Fsearch%3Fq%3DScotty%2BCameron%2Blimited%2Bedition%2BSpecial%2BSelect%2BJet%2BSet%2Bputters”]
Specs: Milled 303 stainless steel and 6061 aluminum. Available in seven head styles. 33-, 34- and 35-inch options
Price: $429
Available: April 15
Who It’s For: Deep-pocketed golfers who love blades and have an arched stroke but want the forgiveness and sightline options of a mallet.
The Skinny: The Phantom X mallet putters for 2022 are designed to provide the feel and sound of Scotty Cameron’s premium heel-toe weighted blades, but their added size created room for bolder alignment features and a higher moment of inertia for increased forgiveness.
The Deep Dive: The way that Scotty Cameron tells the tale, mallet putters from a generation ago were nearly all face-balanced, which means that if you rested the shaft of one in your palm and let the head hang loosely, the hitting area would point to the sky. That was fine for golfers who aspired to make a straight-back, straight-through stroke, but those putters were poorly matched for golfers who naturally made an arched stroke. Instead, arched-stroke players used less forgiving blade-style putters, and that was that.
Then, about a decade ago, new materials started finding their way into putter designs. They allowed weight to be shifted more easily, and putter makers like Cameron started crafting mallets with different hosel designs and weight systems that gave them toe-hang. Instead of being face-balanced, they could be used by golfers who made an arched putting stroke.
The 2022 updated Phantom X putter lineup is filled with mallet options for golfers who want forgiveness coupled with the feel of Cameron’s Newport and Newport 2 blades.
While only 1,250 putters have been made, Cameron hopes that people who buy a My Girl will use it.
GEAR: Scotty Cameron My Girl putter (2021) PRICE: $850 SPECS: Milled 303 Stainless Steel with aluminum sole plate and adjustable sole weights. AVAILABLE: Nov. 12
Scotty Cameron putters are used by stars like 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama, 2021 FedEx Cup champion Patrick Cantlay, and the world’s No. 2-ranked female player, Nelly Korda. While they are expensive, Scotty Cameron putters are also very popular with amateur golfers, too. There is even a market for collectible Cameron putters, with most limited-run putters fetching thousands of dollars each.
Since 2002, Cameron has annually designed a limited-edition putter around the theme My Girl, with the actual head and style changing each time. The idea started as a way for Cameron, who is married and has two daughters, to make something for the women in his life and women golfers. Now the 2021 My Girl is here.
“My wife likes girly things, and I like to design girly things for my girls,” Cameron said.
Instead of red “Cherry Bombs,” the My Girl has blue dots ringed in chrome. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
The theme for this year’s putter was inspired by the classic blue boxes and bows from Tiffany’s. The headcover features a bow design that wraps around the outside, with another bow inside. There are robin’s egg blue bows on the sole, the face’s heel area and the topline. Instead of his trademark red “cherry bombs” on the back of the head, Cameron designed the My Girl with three blue dots, then made the rings around them chrome to make them pop like a picture frame.
The 2021 My Girl is a Phantom X 7, a mid-size mallet with wing-like extensions in the heel and toe areas. The body is milled from 303 stainless steel, but a large part of the sole has been removed and covered by a plate made from 6061 aluminum. The aluminum is lighter than the steel, so this design shifts more weight to the heel and toe areas to help the putter resist twisting on off-center hits. Like other Cameron putters, there are adjustable weights in the heel and toe areas in the sole. A fitter can use different weights to adjust the putter’s swing weight based on its length and a player’s preferences.
A blue bow acts as an alignment aid on the My Girl. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
And that’s the thing, while only 1,250 have been made, Cameron hopes that people who buy a My Girl will use it.
“All the My Girl putters have been colorful, and there have been different styles, but a guy could play with it,” Cameron said. “I don’t want it to be a wall hanger.”
