USA TODAY International Edition
Tiger set to play new irons, says, ‘It’s not a big deal’
CHARLOTTE – There’s no need to be alarmed that Tiger Woods has put a new set of irons in his golf bag.
He isn’t.
After taking a three-week break following the Masters, Woods showed up Tuesday at Quail Hollow Club for this week’s Wells Fargo Championship with a set of TaylorMade prototype irons, named, for now, TW Phase 1. The muscle-backed blade irons — which he showed the golf world with an earlymorning tweet — replace his Nike VR Pro irons he’d used for years.
“It’s not a big deal to me because I’ve been working on this for months and now I can hit the ball the correct numbers and the correct shape,” Woods told USA TODAY before heading to the first tee for a nine-hole practice round. “It’s just a nice transition and a nice fit.”
Woods said he understood people questioning the timing of the move, seeing as it’s midway through the 2017-18 season and he’s played well in his comeback following spinal fusion surgery last April that gave him a new back and a new lease on life.
Woods also is well aware of the many horror stories of players losing their games after making major equipment changes.
But this is Tiger Woods we’re talking about, the best player of his generation that counts 14 majors and 79 PGA Tour titles on his résumé. The guy knows his lies, lofts and shafts as well as he knows Augusta National Golf Club.
His new weapons — the 3-iron through pitching wedge — certainly aren’t an off-the-rack set Woods came across in a golf superstore. And he wouldn’t put chopsticks in his bag no matter how many dollars he’d get paid.
This is just the latest step forward in his comeback at age 42 as he’s looking to end a winless stretch that dates to 2013 and a major-less drought that reaches back to 2008.
The genesis of the switch began in January 2017 when Woods signed on with TaylorMade. The move especially took hold last year when he finally got the green light to go full bore following his fourth back surgery.
That’s when long hours and days of meticulous testing began in December as Woods sent one ball after another toward the horizon as he searched for the exact specifications he required. With TaylorMade’s techs on hand, Woods was involved in the development and refinement of the new irons, which involved details such as the metal used and groove configurations.
Some prototypes didn’t work, so Woods kept working.
“It’s taken a while for us to make small, subtle changes,” said Woods, who almost put the new irons in his bag for the Masters but decided against it. There was no hesitation after the fourtime winner of the green jacket finished in a disappointing tie for 32nd in the first major of the year.
“After the Masters, my irons were getting a little worn as it was, so it’s good timing,” Woods said. “But more than anything, we finally got to the point where they are responding. I am hitting the ball the correct numbers, the correct shape. It just took a little time.”
The new set allows Woods to spin the ball a bit more and he has a higher ball flight. He has more control over the ball without losing distance. He said the top line of each iron is the same, the bottom of the club is slightly different, and, obviously, the back of the club features the most visible difference.
Woods is confident the new irons will make a difference, starting in the Wells Fargo Championship, which he won in 2007 but hasn’t played since 2012. He said he feels great and is ready to get back after it again and continue the process of trying to get better with each tournament.
And he’s in a good mood judging from his practice round with Justin Thomas, Bryson DeChambeau and Dru Love, the four exchanging one-liners, laughs and superb shots on the front nine as Woods got acquainted with a golf course that features drastic changes from the last time he played.
This will be his seventh start on the PGA Tour this year. His best finishes have been a tie for second in the Valspar Championship and a tie for fifth in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. His world ranking has quickly improved; he’s up to No. 93 after starting the year No. 656.
“All is good,” Woods said. “I’m ready to go.”