If today's pro-am is any indication of this week's success, count Titleist Brand Ambassador Brad Faxon among the favorites. As we mentioned in yesterday's blog note, Brad put the New AP2s in the bag at Milwaukee and posted his best finish of the year. Today, he fired a 4-under 68 on his own ball, which included long birdie putts on Nos. 9 and 18. The team, which also consisted of Detroit Red Wings forwards Kirk Maltby and Dan Cleary, finished at 14-under 58.

Be sure to check out Wednesday's image gallery, which includes more shots of players testing equipment on the practice tee.

Brad Faxon following through with his New AP2 4-iron on the 187-yard Par 3 third hole.

Hello Everybody, I'm in London this week and will head over to the US over the weekend. It's been a good couple of weeks and I've been getting some good practice in. I can hardly believe we have 8 weeks left in the regular season. I know it's a cliche but I really don't know where the time goes! Once the Masters is over the year seems to fly by and before we know it it's time for our last major of the year.

When Adam played the 2002 PGA Championship at Hazeltine he used a 7.5° Titleist 975JVS driver, with a STEEL shaft! I'm looking forward to getting back to Hazeltine for our last major of the year. It is an old fashioned style golf course and it's very tough and long! It actually opened in the 1960's so it's not really that old. It has gone through various changes throughout the years but it still has the feel of a classic design. I finished T23 in 2002 so I'm hoping for a better result! My game is feeling good so you never know how things will unfold the next couple of weeks. I know one thing for sure in order to win at Hazeltine my short game will have to be in peak form and there should be great rewards for accurate driving. Anyway, it's going to be a fun and exciting next couple of weeks. Our next Clubhouse Newsletter will be sent out on August 1st so just want to remind everyone to sign up in the Clubhouse Section of my website before August 1st. We will have some announcements regarding the Foundation activities being planned at the end of the year and also another fun contest you can enter. I'll be at the Bridgestone next week and I look forward to seeing everyone then. -Adam

Titleist.com is on-site at Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club in Grand Blanc, Michigan for the 51st edition of the Buick Open, a tournament that dates back to 1958. The Titleist Tour Van has been buzzing with even more activity than usual, as this is the first week that it is carrying the next generation AP1, AP2, CB and MB irons that are scheduled to be introduced to the marketplace this fall.

Several players (Greg Chalmers, Derek Fathauer, Bill Haas, Stephen Leaney, Marc Leishman, Darron Stiles, Kevin Na) worked with the new irons on the range for the first time, while others, including Tom Pernice, Jr. (New AP2), Colt Knost (New CB) and Johnson Wagner (New CB) played a practice round with them and decided to put them in the bag this week.

Longtime Titleist Brand Ambassador Brad Faxon, who is also in the field this week, was actually the first to play the New AP2 irons in competition two weeks ago, when he posted his best finish of the year at the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee. A set of the New AP1 irons were also played in competition for the first time in Milwaukee, and will also be in that player's bag this week in Michigan.

Improvements to the new AP2 irons have resulted in better feel as well as improved shot control and ground contact. The new AP1 irons offer better feel, more forgiveness, and an improved shape, particularly in the short irons. Look for more sets to be put into play in the coming weeks, and be sure to check back here and on Titleist.com for the latest information on all Titleist products.

For now, be sure to check out the slide show for more information from the Buick Open.

A lot of activity is taking place this week in the Titleist Tour Van.

Hello Everybody,

I'm in Europe this week and just enjoying a few days before I head back to the US next week. I'm getting some practice in and working specifically on my short game. I was disappointed with missing the cut at Turnberry by one stroke. I felt like things were coming together but unfortunately my putter let me down. What an exciting tournament to see Tom Watson do so well. He's a legend in our sport and it was inspirational to watch him. I read an article and the headline was "Watson gains more from Losing than Winning", I felt like that said it all. It would have been a remarkable accomplishment for Tom to win but all of us were in awe of how well he played. Similar to how well Greg Norman played last year! Needless to say, there's something special about the Open Championship.

Our next Clubhouse Newsletter will be sent out on August 1st so just want to remind everyone to sign up in the Clubhouse Section of my website before August 1st. We will have some announcements regarding the Foundation activities being planned at the end of the year and also another fun contest you can enter.

Until next time, take care.
-Adam

The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship Trophy (photo courtesy of USGA)

Titleist was well represented in the 36-hole championship match of the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship at the 7,289-yard, par-71 Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club in Norman, OK.  The 22-year-old winner relied upon the Pro V1x golf ball, 909D3 (9.5-degree) driver, 909F (15.0-degree) 3-wood, 909H (19.0-degree) hybrid, 695CB (4-P) irons, Vokey Design approach (52-degree) wedge, Spin Milled sand (56-degree) and lob (60-degree) wedges and a Scotty Cameron Newport Studio Select putter, while the runner-up also trusted the Pro V1x golf ball, as well as a Titleist 907D2 driver, 906F2 3-wood and a Scotty Cameron Newport Studio Select putter.   The winner, who hails from Rockford, Illinois, led 4-up after 18 holes in the scheduled 36-hole final. He closed out the match 7 and 6 by hitting his tee shot at the 164-yard par-3 12th hole to within 8 inches of the hole. The story was very similar for Titliest at the 2009 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship, which was contested in Devens, MA at the 6,267-yard, par-72 Red Tail Golf Club. Both the winner and the runner-up relied on the Pro V1 golf ball for their success. The winner also trusted a Titliest 906F4 fairway metal and a Scotty Cameron Newport Slant Neck Teryllium-10 putter in her 7 and 6 victory. As the country's top public-course amateur men competed for the national championship, 126 players, or 81 percent of the field of 156, made Titleist their overwhelming #1 golf ball choice, compared to just 13 players for the nearest competitor.  On the women's side, 130 players, or 83 percent of the field of 156, made Titleist their #1 golf ball choice, compared to just 10 players for the nearest competitor. The U.S. Amateur Pulic Links Championship and U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship continue the golf ball momentum Titleist has enjoyed on the 2009 PGA Tour and across all of the worldwide professional tours, the PGA Professional National Championship, and at every level of competitive amateur golf. At the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, Titleist was the tee-to-green favorite among more players across every major golf club category, including drivers, fairway metals, utility metals, iron sets, wedges and putters. Below are the Titleist equipment counts and percentage of players versus the nearest competitor at the 2009 U.S. Amateur Publinks:

EQUIPMENT CATEGORY	TITLEIST	NEAREST COMPETITOR
GOLF BALLS:	126 (81%)	13
DRIVERS:	60 (39%)	30
FAIRWAY METALS:	62(37%)	25
HYBRIDS:	49 (39%)	20
IRON SETS:	60 (39%)	25
WEDGES:	219 (54%)	54
PUTTERS:	67 (43%)	27

In addition to being the top choice in golf balls at the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship, Titleist was also the top choice in the wedge (125) and putter (56) categories.