Titleist Brand Ambassador Robert Karlsson continues his return to form, having recently won the Commercialbank Qatar Masters on the European Tour. After a successful 2008 season during which Robert captured the European Tour Order of Merit and rose to number six in the Official World Golf Rankings, the lanky Swede missed four months during the heart of the 2009 season due to an eye injury. With the win and several other strong results since returning to competition late last year, Robert is back inside the top 20 of the OWGR. Always looking to improve, he worked with the team from the Titleist Tour Van during the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship on an adjustment to his set composition resulting from the new groove regulations.

Titleist Brand Ambassador Robert Karlsson looks on as Chris Tuten from the Titleist Leadership Team checks Robert's irons on the loft and lie machine.
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Practicing and playing with the new 2010 conforming grooves in his wedges over several months, Robert has found that his Vokey Design Spin Milled C-C 60° produces a higher trajectory and shorter carry distance than did his previous Vokey 60° wedge. With four wedges in his bag as well as a long game yardage gap between his 18° 909F3 and MB 4-iron, Robert and the team decided it was time to fit him into a set composition with tighter yardage gaps while allowing for the requisite short game versatility.

Robert had been playing his MB irons with 1° strong lofts (6-iron at 30°). To bridge the gap between his 18° fairway and 4-iron, the team built him an MB 3-iron at standard 21° loft and adjusted his 4-iron back to standard at 24°. The remainder of Robert's irons were adjusted to 1° weak, with his pitching wedge at 48°.

Next, the team built Robert several sets of wedges to help him determine the correct models, lofts and bounce angles to meet his short game needs. Robert worked with all of the wedges in the short game practice area, hitting the various shots he needs for his game, and determined that a 53° and 58° set-up was ideal. Robert previously carried 49°, 55° and 60° wedges in addition to his strong pitching wedge.

Details on the Titleist equipment in Robert Karlsson's bag:

Ball: Pro V1x
Driver: 909D2 (9.5°, Aldila RIP 80X, 45")
Fairway: 909F3 (13°, Grafalloy ProLaunch Red X, 43.25" tipped to length)
Fairway: 909F3 (18°, Grafalloy ProLaunch Red X, 42.25" tipped to length)
Irons: MB (3-P, 1° weak loft (5-P), True Temper Dynamic Gold SL X100, +1" length, +2° lie)
Wedge: Vokey Design Spin Milled C-C TVD 54 (at 53°, True Temper Dynamic Gold SL X100, 37" length, 66° lie)
Wedge: Vokey Design Spin Milled C-C TVD 58 (True Temper Dynamic Gold SL X100, 37" length, 66° lie)
Putter: Scotty Cameron Tour Newport 2 GSS (4° loft, 37" length, 71° lie)
Grips: Golf Pride New Decade Multi-Compound 60R (Red/Black, 2 extra wraps)

To learn more about the fitting opportunities available for your Titleist equipment, be sure to visit FittingWorks.com.

The LPGA, founded in 1950, tees off its 2010 season this week in Chonburi, Thailand. This year the Tour boasts members from 29 countries who will compete in 24 events in 10 countries. And Titleist looks to once again be the most played ball. The 2009 final LPGA ball count numbers were: Titleist 2,139 Nearest Competitor 635. With an impressive rookie class (http://www.lpga.com/entertainment_content.aspx?pid=23031) and a host of talented young players returning for 2010, the LPGA Tour stands to challenge its record of 11 Rolex First Time Winners in a single season. 2009 Rookie of the Year Jiyai Shin starts the 2010 season ranked #2 in the Rolex Women's World Golf Rankings. We caught up with Jiyai and a number of her fellow Pro V1 and Pro V1x loyalists on the LPGA Tour during the LPGA Tour Championship in Houston, click here to watch the video.

Hello Everybody,
I'm just getting ready to head out to dinner but wanted to post a quick blog entry. I flew to Tucson on Sunday afternoon after the AT&T. I really enjoyed being back in Monterey and playing the three courses. It is a very well run event given there are three courses we are playing on throughout the week. There is something very magical about Pebble Beach and it felt great to be back there. I'm really looking forward to the US Open. The course conditions will be quite different in June then what we faced last week. Pebble and Spyglass were pretty saturated with all the rain they've had. Pebble Beach will be a good test for us June but there's a lot of golf to focus on before then!

Match Play begins tomorrow. I had a good practice round today, played 18 this afternoon and the course is in pretty good shape. I did some filming for CNN Living Golf yesterday at The Gallery Course at Dove Mountain with Justin Armsden. It should air soon, check the CNN Living Golf website for airtimes in your area. The weather here is ideal, warm and not too much wind. I play Angel Cabrera for my first round and we tee off at 8:23am local time. Competition is tough this week so every match will be competitive, have to play really well for 5 days straight. Looking forward to the challenge and it's always an interesting week.

I gotta run but take care and I'll be in touch soon.
-Adam

Adam Scott plays Pebble Beach during the 2010 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

With all of the recent news about equipment in the golf press, one might think that the Titleist Tour Van has been a hub of non-stop activity in the opening weeks of the 2010 PGA Tour season. The truth, though, is that Titleist equipment players were prepared for the new season well in advance, and most of the Tour Van visits so far this season have been for minor set composition or equipment specification tweaks rather than major changes.

One player who is not generally known for making equipment changes is Titleist Brand Ambassador Steve Stricker. The world number two golfer did, however, win the recent Northern Trust Open with a new Titleist 909H hybrid in his bag.

Strick arrived in Hawaii for the SBS Championship in January and asked the guys on the Titleist Tour Van to build him a 21° 909H (bent to 20°) to replace his 3-iron (he also has a 19° 909H (bent to 17°) in the bag). He indicated that the 909H would provide him with a more playable trajectory and perform better out of the rough than his 3-iron. Looking forward to April, he also felt that the hybrid would work well for the second shot into 15 at Augusta National.

During his two weeks off at home in Wisconsin after returning from Hawaii, Strick worked with the new hybrid to get all of the critical shots dialed in. The new club made its way into the bag in Los Angeles, and Steve went on to collect his fourth PGA Tour title in his last 14 events.

Titleist Brand Ambassador Steve Stricker with a 909H hybrid during the
Northern Trust Open at Riviera Country Club.

Steve Stricker
Model: 909H
Loft: 21° (bent to 20°)
Shaft: UST Mamiya Proforce V2 Hybrid 100X
Length: 41"
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord Ribbed .580 (+2 wraps left hand, +1 wrap right hand)
Swingweight: D4

With the sea level golf courses and cool, wet California winter weather in effect at Torrey Pines, Riviera and Pebble Beach, a few players have adjusted their driver specs to increase spin and launch for more carry. Titleist Brand Ambassador D.J. Trahan was fit into a 909D3 (8.5°) with the new Graphite Design Tour AD DI-7X to replace his previous 909D3 (9.5°) with the Aldila VooDoo XPP7. Despite the lower loft, the new driver provides D.J. with more launch and spin due to the new shaft's more responsive tip section.

D.J. Trahan
Model: 909D3
Loft: 8.5°
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI-7X
Length: 44.5"
Grip: Lamkin Tour Black Cord .580 (+3 wraps)
Swingweight: D3

Titleist Brand Ambassador Jeff Klauk, on the other hand, switched back to a previous driver/shaft combination to combat the cold, heavy air encountered on the seaside courses. The 909DComp (8.5°) with Mitsubishi Diamana Blue 73X that worked its way back into Jeff's bag provides him with more carry than the 909DComp (8.5°) with Matrix Ozik F6M2X he was fit into last year for more roll.

Jeff Klauk
Model: 909DComp
Loft: 8.5°
Shaft: Mitsubishi Rayon Diamana Blue 73X
Length: 45"
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord .580 (+1 wrap)
Swingweight: D3

Lefty Titleist Brand Ambassador Greg Chalmers has been working with his swing coach recently on technique changes. Swing changes often lead to a need for equipment spec changes, and the technique Greg and his coach are working on calls for an additional 1/2" in length to his CB irons, which were already 1/2" over standard. Greg will likely continue to game the 1/2" over standard set while working into the swing changes and new set.

Properly fit equipment is essential for optimal performance on the PGA Tour and for everyday play. To learn more about the fitting opportunities available for your Titleist equipment, be sure to visit FittingWorks.com.

Hello Everybody, I just got back from a practice round at Spyglass and also my media conference. I got to Monterey on Saturday, Tony and I drove over from LA.  

I haven't been here for a long time and I guess I forgot how amazing this place is. The views from all three courses are spectacular....each course has it's own unique charm and postcard views. I was able to play all three courses during practice rounds so I've had an opportunity to get a feel for them. Monterey Peninsula is probably draining the best out of the three so it's in pretty good shape. I feel good and have been working hard so I'm hopeful for a good result. Even though I missed the cut last week I still felt like things were right on track given it was my first week back in the new year. It's been a cold and damp week in Monterey but it's supposed to dry out by the weekend. The sun was actually out this afternoon so that's a good sign! I don't really have too much to report this week. It's been a positive time this week preparing for the tournament and just looking forward to teeing it up in the morning at Spyglass! Have a great weekend and will touch base next week from Tucson.

-Adam

The European Tour is in India this week for the Avantha Masters, contested at DLF Golf & Country Club in New Delhi. Golf's popularity is growing quickly in India, thanks in large part to the recent success enjoyed by world-class Indian players like Pro V1 loyalist Jeev Milkha Singh (who hails from Chandigarh) and Titleist Brand Ambassador Gaganjeet Bhullar (of Kapurthala). The 39-year-old Singh, a two-time Order of Merit winner on the Asian Tour, boasts 12 worldwide tour victories, including wins on the European and Japan Tours. In 2007 he became the first player from India to compete in the Masters, where he finished tied for 37th place. He followed that performance up with a T-25 finish in 2008 and later that year shared the first round lead at the 90th PGA Championship with Titleist Brand Ambassador Robert Karlsson. He eventually finished T-9 at the PGA, his best-ever finish in a major. Though lesser known here in the U.S., the 22-year-old Bhullar has already made a name for himself on the Asian Tour where he has two victories including this year's season-opening win at the Asian Tour International. The Avantha Masters is an event co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour, affording us a great opportunity to see a number of Titleist Brand Ambassadors from an emerging corner of the golfing world. Check out some images from New Delhi below.

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