As club golfers we often think, maybe it’s not me, maybe it’s the club. So we pick up an alternative, something that has all the latest marketing slogans and wizardry. Problem solved? Perhaps. Maybe for a short time, but usually we go back to what we were originally playing… The old faithful.
Tiger is not playing well off the tee at the moment. In fact, he has been quite erratic. His chipping and putting as good as ever. But surely that is because that was all he could practice during his break from golf. But his driving has missed the mark. Time to try something new?
Tiger has been almost religious about the Mitsubishi Diamana White Board over the years. It’s almost as if the shaft were made for him! However, at The Quail Hollow Championship this week we saw him trying out some alternatives.
On Wednesday, during his practice round, Tiger was trying an 89 gram Aldila Voodoo XPP8 Prototype. This shocked thousands of industry experts across the world. Tiger without a White Board? Never!
Well that wasn’t the end of it. On Thursday, he was seen with an Oban Mach 4 85 Gram Prototype. What’s going on?
Rick Nichols, Nike Tour Field Manager, explained that Woods recently tested eight new shafts at his home in Windermere, Fla., as part of his annual equipment review.
“Tiger has been off for nine months,” Nichols explains. “So there were several shafts out there that he had not had an opportunity to test. We said to him, ‘Let’s test them and confirm that what you’re playing is right, or if there is something better for you, let’s look and see.’”
So what we saw at Quail was merely the shortlist of a long test program which Tiger has been through. And apparently his specs have remained consistent throughout testing. He has continued with a driver of 8.5 degrees loft and a face angle of 1.5 degrees open.
Maybe Tiger is searching for more consistency to get him round the long tight Bethpage Black next month.
Believe me, all this inconsistency in Tiger’s shaft really got people in the industry talking. But it wasn’t for long. By the end of the tournament Tiger was back with his trusty White Board. Just goes to show that maybe it wasn’t the club after all Tiger.
