Latest Golf News

COVINGTON, Ga. – (December 19, 2018) - Bridgestone Golf, the #1 Ball-Fitter in Golf, announced today that in 2018 its TOUR Team achieved the most victories in one calendar year in company history. In addition, Bridgestone Golf had more wins per Tour Team member than any other golf ball company.

Bridgestone’s hallmark Tour year totaled an incredible 8 PGA TOUR wins with just 4 staff players. Of the 8 victories, 7 were won with Bridgestone’s acclaimed TOUR B X Golf ball. The exceptional win for the TOUR B XS came in perhaps the most exciting and anticipated win of the season, marking Tiger Woods return to the winner’s circle at the season-ending TOUR Championship. The final win of the year gave Bridgestone its 2nd season-ending championship, when Lexi Thompson relied on the TOUR B X in her triumph at the 2018 CME Group Tour Championship.

Bridgestone’s TOUR B X and TOUR B XS are designed for players with greater than 105 mph driver swing speeds. Both the X and XS were softened over their predecessors and provide more spin and greenside control due to their softer urethane cover formulation, while increased distance comes from enhanced aerodynamics and an improved 330 Dual Dimple design. The X is for those players looking for more power and ball speed off the tee, while the XS provides extra spin control and slightly softer feel greenside, while still maintaining low driver spin off the tee.

Callaway also announced a number of new products for 2019 on Thursday. The new products include Apex 19 hybrids, Apex 19 and Apex Pro 19 irons, PM grind wedges, Odyssey Stroke Lab putters, Odyssey Toulon putters, ERC Soft golf balls, Supersoft and Supersoft Magna golf balls.

Below, we take a look at all of the new Callaway clubs, technologies, pricing and release dates.

Apex 19 hybrid

The Apex 19 hybrid, described as a “players hybrid” due to its compact shape and design, now comes with Jailbreak technology. That means along with offering workability and spin control similar to an iron, compared to larger hybrid shapes, the Apex 19 also has the benefits of two stiffening bars behind the face for increased ball speed. The heads are made from 455 carpenter steel and come with a dark PVD finish.

They come stock with True Temper Catalyst shafts, will sell for $269.99 apiece, and they hit retail on January 25.

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FACT SHEET

2019 WASTE MANAGEMENT
PHOENIX OPEN

PRESENTED BY
THE AK-CHIN INDIAN COMMUNITY

DATES: Tournament Week: January 28 – February 3, 2019

72-hole PGA TOUR event: Thursday, Jan. 31 – Sunday, Feb. 3

Part of the PGA TOUR's FedExCup (84th annual event that was first played in 1932 – 5th oldest on PGA TOUR)

TITLE SPONSOR: Waste Management, Inc. (WM)

PRESENTING SPONSOR: The Ak-Chin Indian Community

SITE: TPC Scottsdale

TPC Stadium Course designed by Jay Morrish and Tom Weiskopf (1986), Redesigned by Tom Weiskopf in 2014.

Par: 35-36--71, Yards: 7,261

PGA TOUR event also co-honored as “Most Fan-First Event”

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLORIDA – The Waste Management Phoenix Open (Scottsdale, Arizona) was honored by the PGA TOUR at the TOUR’s Tournament Meetings on December 6.

For the third time in five years, the Waste Management Phoenix Open was named PGA TOUR “Tournament of the Year.” The 2018 event also tied with the Safeway Open for “Most Fan-First Event.”

“On behalf of the PGA TOUR, I am pleased to congratulate the Waste Management Phoenix Open for these special recognitions,” said PGA TOUR Chief Tournaments and Competitions Officer Andy Pazder.

“The Thunderbirds and Waste Management worked tirelessly to continue and raise the bar across all facets of the event, and the fans responded. With the TOUR’s renewed focus on the fan experience onsite at TOUR events, we are excited to recognize the Waste Management Phoenix Open on its efforts to improve and innovate the experience at PGA TOUR events.”

The 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open, won by Gary Woodland in a playoff, saw record attendance, social media engagement and charitable impact. Held at TPC Scottsdale and known for its famous coliseum-style 16th hole, the Waste Management Phoenix Open continues to shatter attendance records, with the 2018 event drawing a weekly total of 720,000 fans, nearly 63,000 more than the previous year. As part of a four-day concert series, nearly 10,000 fans attended a sold-out performance by Florida Georgia Line after Thursday’s opening round, and fans took to social media to share their experience. Tournament channels saw an influx of more than 20,000 followers, a 36-percent increase.

As fan numbers increased, so did the charitable impact, with the 2018 event raising a record $12.2 million for local charities, eclipsing $12 million for the first time.

“It’s an honor to be recognized by the PGA TOUR for our commitment to our fans, sponsors and communities,” said Carlos Sugich, 2018 WM Phoenix Open Tournament Chairman. “The Thunderbirds and our title sponsor Waste Management work tirelessly to make each WM Phoenix Open better than the last, not only in overall fan experience, but also in charitable giving and innovation. We’re extremely proud of these acknowledgements, and we look forward to setting the bar even higher in the years to come.”

2018 Tournament Retains “GEO Certified®” Accolade

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (Nov. 8, 2018) - The 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open recently received the highest international award for sustainability in golf for its efforts to balance environmental impacts, conserve natural resources and benefit the local community as Scotland-based GEO Foundation (GEO) again named the event as a “GEO Certified® Tournament.”

To become “GEO Certified®” the Waste Management Phoenix Open, the largest attended tournament on the PGA TOUR, completed a custom-built program for golf tournaments, that was both streamlined and robust, including: document and evidence submission, a third-party verification carried out by the Council for Responsible Sport (the official verification body for GEO Certified Tournaments in North America), a thorough review by GEO, and agreement to a range of Continual Improvement Points. In conjunction with the GEO announcement, Waste Management published the 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open Sustainability Report with detailed metrics and program explanations.

Sustainability highlights from the 2018 tournament include:

100 percent landfill diversion through recycling, composting, donation, reuse and waste-to-energy.

75 million gallons of water restored to the Verde River through the Waste Management Phoenix Open Water Campaign with Bonneville Environmental Foundation and Change the Course.

Approximately 6,353 gallons of grey water captured for reuse from kitchens across the course and hospitality bars on the 16th hole.

To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, purchased 100 percent renewable electricity from Arizona Public Service, used the sun to solar-power smart energy compactors and some light fixtures around the course, fueled generators and some shuttle buses with  biodiesel. In addition, most of Waste Management’s trucks used to haul materials from the tournament were fueled by compressed natural gas.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Asking Davis Love III, John Daly and Greg Norman a few questions about driving the golf ball is a no-brainer. After all, each of the three have impressive credentials in that area.

Love led the TOUR in driving distance (measured drives) in 1986 and 1994 and ranked inside the top 10 in that category a dozen other times.

Norman ranked inside the top 10 in driving distance for nine seasons during his heyday.

Daly, of course, goes down as one of the PGA TOUR’s biggest hitters, leading in driving distance 11 times during a 12-season stretch. In 1997, he was the first player to average 300 yards in a single season.

All three players are in this weekend’s PNC Father/Son Challenge and were gracious enough to weigh in on a few driving questions.

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PORT ST. LUCIE – Rylan Porter birdied his last three holes to shoot a 5-under 67 Thursday and lead Event No. 5 of the PGA Tournament Series at PGA Golf Club.

Porter, an Assistant PGA Professional at Brickyard Crossing in Indianapolis, weathered the rain during the middle of his round and closed in style on the Wanamaker Course to position himself for his first PGA Tournament Series win. He leads by two shots.

“It was nice to finally roll some putts in the last three holes,” Porter said. “It was tough when the rain was coming down just trying to survive. I knew I would have a few birdie opportunities coming in.”

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Brooks Koepka used a 9-iron on consecutive full swings in the final round at Shinnecock Hills. One led to birdie, the other led to par. Both were crucial in making him the first back-to-back U.S. Open champion in 29 years.

Tiger Woods showed glimpses of being back on his game with a long iron and a short one. Tony Finau hit one of the luckiest shots in Ryder Cup history.

They were among the memorable shots using all 14 clubs in the bag, from driver to putter, that helped shape 2018 on the PGA Tour.

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Check out the top 5 shots of the week from the 2018 QBE Shootout, Web.Com Tour Qualifying, featuring Patton Kizzire, Graeme McDowell, Andy Zhang, Steve Stricker, and Gary Woodland.

The QBE Shootout is a three round team event contested at Tiburón Golf Course in Naples, Florida. Defending champions Sean O’Hair and Steve Stricker join top ranked players in the world that includes team 'Bryson DeChambeau - Kevin Na' and team 'Harold Varner III - Bubba Watson.' Tony Finau and the LPGA's Lexi Thompson will pair up again after finishing tied for fourth in 2017.

Check out the top 5 shots of the week from the 2018 Hero World Challenge, 2018 PGA TOUR Champions Qualifying School, featuring Hideki Matsuyama, Patrick Reed, Gibby Gilbert III, Tony Finau, and Alex Noren.