Latest Golf News

The game’s two biggest stars commit to helping Bridgestone win on the course and in the R&D lab for years to come.

(AUGUSTA, GA) – Bridgestone Golf – The leader in golf ball technology and innovation continued its significant investment into R&D by re-signing the biggest stars in the game, Tiger Woods and Bryson DeChambeau, to long-term contract extensions. Both players have won major championships with Bridgestone TOUR B golf balls (Tiger at the ’19 Masters with TOUR B XS, Bryson at the ’20 US Open with TOUR B X) and will continue to play their respective models of choice and contribute to the development of new designs for the foreseeable future.

“These two players are not only the biggest names in golf today, but also happen to be extremely discerning and analytical when it comes to equipment,” said Dan Murphy, President and CEO of Bridgestone Golf. “Tiger’s involvement in the R&D process was critical to the development of our breakthrough REACTIV cover technology, and Bryson is just as enthusiastic about participating in R&D as any one of our engineers. That’s the difference with Bridgestone,” said Murphy.

US Open champ Bryson DeChambeau commented, “I’ve seen a lot of other guys sign up just to be spokesmen for a brand and collect a check. I have a much deeper role in mind with Bridgestone. I want to be a bigger part of their R&D process and help develop golf ball technology for the future of the game while pushing the limits of golf ball designs to benefit the full spectrum of players. I feel at home there because of their genuine commitment to science and technology.”

In this video, Joel Tadman tests out the new Cobra King Supersport-35 putter made from 3D printing! It also features the same Descending Loft Technology found on the SIK putter of Bryson DeChambeau. Does this represent the future of golf club design? We took this limited-edition concept model out on the golf course to give it a thorough run out and assess the looks, sound, feel and performance.

In this video, Neil Tappin and Joel Tadman look at the coolest Masters gear 2020. They look at the special edition shoes and bags for this year's tournament plus they discuss some of the leading equipment stories of the week. 

In this video, Neil Tappin is joined by European Tour player Eddie Pepperell to look at how the Englishman builds a strategy on the course. Eddie plays the par 5 3rd at Frilford Heath and talks through his gameplan and the shots he hits. It is a fascinating insight into how a tour player thinks and there are some useful tips that could help your game too!

Kevin Sutherland makes birdie on 9th playoff hole at Schwab Cup Championship

PHOENIX — Kevin Sutherland made a 4-foot birdie putt on the ninth playoff hole to beat Paul Broadhurst on Monday in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

Sutherland and Broadhurst were forced to return to Phoenix Country Club to finish the final PGA TOUR Champions event of the year after playing to a stalemate over six playoff holes in near darkness on Sunday. They continued to match each other through two playoff holes on a chilly morning in the desert, the second with dueling birdies.

Sutherland finally broke through on the ninth playoff hole, hitting his 163-yard approach shot from the fairway to 4 feet. He made the putt to win his fourth PGA TOUR Champions title after Broadhurst got up-and-down for par from short of the green.

Sutherland won at Phoenix Country Club to clinch the season title in 2017. His win this year was only for the tournament title. The season champion won't be crowned until next year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

After returning to the course Monday morning, Sutherland two-putted from 30 feet on No. 17, the seventh playoff hole. Broadhurst had it a little tougher after pulling his approach shot, but he chipped to about 4 feet and made the putt to extend the playoff.

Continuing with The Thunderbirds In the Community Conversations, last year’s WM Phoenix Open tournament chairman Tim Woods held a virtual discussion with Dr. Wayne Franklin, accomplished cardiovascular surgeon, Co-Director of Phoenix Children’s Heart Center and Director of Adult Congenital Heart Disease at Phoenix Children’s Hospital (PCH). The two leaders discussed healthcare challenges surrounding the current pandemic and how PCH modified its operations to stay safe while providing world-class healthcare here in the Valley of the Sun.

The Thunderbirds – hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open – and PCH have a long-standing friendship. To date, The Thunderbirds have provided more than $2.6 million in donations to PCH from monies raised from the popular golf event including a $500,000 donation in 2015 and a $400,000 donation in 2019 which was used to double the size of the hospital’s cardiovascular intensive care unit and fund new, state-of-the-art equipment.

Dr. Franklin spoke about how COVID-19 has impacted the hospital and the cardiovascular unit.

The Thunderbirds – hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open – unveiled a new tournament logo today that will be used in all event messaging, marketing and branding beginning with the 2021 WM Phoenix Open, scheduled to be played Feb. 1-7 at TPC Scottsdale, and beyond. The new moniker features the most iconic hole in golf – the 16th hole stadium at TPC Scottsdale – and partner Waste Management’s distinctive WM.

“We’re extremely excited to unveil our new tournament logo, which we feel reflects the modern look and feel of our event,” said 2021 WM Phoenix Open Tournament Chairman Scott Jenkins. “The new logo is recognizable and fitting for our world-class tournament and representative of an outstanding partnership with Waste Management – one of the very best on the PGA TOUR.”

In 2019, Waste Management extended its title sponsorship of the Phoenix Open through 2030, which replaced a 10-year agreement endorsed during the 2016 tournament. Since Waste Management became title sponsor in 2010, the WM Phoenix Open has raised more than $95 million for Arizona charities, while Waste Management’s zero waste approach – which began at the 2012 event – has diverted tournament waste through recycling, composting, donation, reuse or energy creation, making the WM Phoenix Open the largest zero waste sporting event in the world.

Arrive:

If caddies are available:

Remember caddie programs are an excellent way for young people to earn some money and be exposed to a - sport that they can enjoy and might help shape their character.

A good caddie can make the round more enjoyable by giving you hints that might lower your score.

A good caddie can provide information on yardage, club selection, reading the greens and the layout of the course.

Warm Up:

Try to arrive soon enough to give yourself time to warm up properly.

Work your way though the bag, beginning with the short irons, moving onto the mid-and long irons and then the woods.

It's often a good idea to finish warming up by hitting a few soft wedge shots before heading for the practice green and hitting a few putts.

Don't hit hundreds of balls and leave your game on the practice tee.

In this video Neil Tappin and Joel Tadman test out two trolleys from Motocaddy. The Motocaddy M7 Remote offers all the freedom of a remote control trolley. The M5 GPS provides the convenience of distance measurements on the central console. The question is, which of these high tech options is best and which one might be right for you?

The Thunderbirds began nearly a century ago with the mission to promote the Valley of the Sun through sport. These days, the primary sport used to raise money for charity and create Scottsdale tourism interest from all over the world is golf, specifically the Waste Management Phoenix Open. But, as we see in this installment of In the Community Conversations, the impact of The Thunderbirds – and their charitable giving arm Thunderbirds Charities – is a positive impact on all kinds of sports, coaches and youth in our communities.

Scott Jenkins, 2021 WM Phoenix Open Tournament Chairman, recently sat down with Rich Tomey, Executive Director of the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) to discuss the impact of the current health crisis on their organization and youth sports in general and how they’ve continued their mission of creating positive, character-building youth sports environments without direct, in-person contact.