Titleist 915 Metals

Titleist launch their new metals with the release of the 915 family

By David Keywood, published on Sky Sports

For the eagle eyed among us, you may have noticed Titleist tour players with some new equipment in their bags over the past few months. In particular Geoff Ogilvy who claimed his first victory since 2010 at the Barracuda Championship using the new 915 D2 Driver.

"I just unscrewed my 913 shaft and put it in the 915, and after two shots I was sold"
Geoff Ogilvy

After he won Ogilvy said “I just unscrewed my 913 shaft and put it in the 915, and after two shots I was sold”. Nearly 100 players across worldwide professional tours have already switched to the new 915 driver since the tour seeding and validation process began in late June – including Adam Scott (915D3), Zach Johnson (915D2),Jimmy Walker (915D2), Brett Rumford (915D3), Bill Haas(915D2), and Bernd Wiesberger (915D3). 

It may have been two years since Titleist last launched a group of metals, but these clubs have been in production for a lot longer, and it shows. The main difference to this family, which you will notice straight away, is the patented Active Recoil Channel. The ARC, as it’s known, is a long, wide and deep sole channel that actively flexes at impact and recoils to launch the ball off the face with higher speed and lower spin.

Adam Scott is a big fan of the ARC and said, “Some things are gimmicks and Active Recoil Channel is not. The fact is it’s producing more miles per hour off the club for my ball speed. That’s massive. … Picking up 10 to 15 yards carry is a big deal. It makes a huge difference if I’m hitting a wedge in instead of maybe an 8-iron or if I’m hitting a 5-iron instead of a 3-iron.”

The big selling point for the 915 family is the improved ball speed created for shots which don’t quite find the middle of the club. It’s no secret that golfers of all abilities don’t find the middle of the club every time and Titleist have added a Radial Speed Face, which is a high-speed forged face insert which works with the ARC to increase ball speed on these off-centre hits. The 915’s also have a precise high-MOI design with a low and deep centre of gravity location; this delivers stability and forgiveness that preserves the ball speed for more distance, more often.

USA Ryder Cup player and three time PGA Tour winner Jimmy Walker said “The golf ball comes off more consistent. We don’t always hit it in the centre of the club, and I think mishits are coming off with a lot more control than they used to. When you mishit shots that the ball is still coming off with ample amount of speed whereas before in previous driver versions, if you hit one off the centre of the club face a little bit, you were seeing a dramatic drop in speeds and increases in spin

"Some things are gimmicks and Active Recoil Channel is not."
Adam Scott

Titleist are very thorough with their testing and the 915 D3 has gained an average of 9 yards extra carry compared to their 913 counterpart, in some cases, gaining an extra 15 yards onto drives!

The 915 driver comes in two different head choices, the 915 D2 and 915 D3. Like D2 models over the years, this is your more forgiving head and higher spinning due to its longer profile. The D3 has a deeper face and shorter profile, which makes this lower spinning. This produces a lower flight with no draw bias for tour-inspired workability.

915D2 is available in 7.5º, 8.5º, 9.5º, 10.5º and 12º lofts. 915D3 is available in 7.5º, 8.5º, 9.5º, and 10.5º. (7.5º lofts are RH only).

This high performance product wouldn’t be complete without a high performance stock shaft and Titleist are offering five different options to suit golfers of all abilities. The stock lineup includes the Aldila Rogue Black 70 (mid-launch) and Aldila Rogue Silver 60 (lower-mid launch); and the Mitsubishi Diamana D+ White 70 (low launch), Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Blue 60 (mid launch), and Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Red 50 (high launch).

The shaft and head can also be adjusted using the SureFit Tour hosel to offer 16 different settings to help your game.

It’s not just the drivers that are getting rave reviews either. The fairways and hybrids have been designed with the same technology. The new models made their debut in August at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, where 15 new 915 fairway metals and nine new hybrids were immediately put in play. At the following week’s USPGA Championship, 29 new 915 fairways and 13 new 915 hybrids were in players’ bags including former World number 1 Adam Scott (915F 15º) and Ryder Cup players Jordan Spieth(915F 15º, 915 Hd 20.5º), Webb Simpson (915Fd 15º) and Victor Dubuission (915F 13.5º).

Jordan Spieth is a big fan of the 915 fairway woods and the SureFit Tour hosel, he had this to say “The Active Recoil Channel on the 915 really feels like the ball shoots forward even faster… You can see the ball jumping a little more and spinning less. … I’m able to adjust my 3-wood to an A•4 (SureFit Tour hosel) position to where it’s knocked up a degree in loft so when I’m hitting off the fairway it just looks like it’s easier to get it up in the air.”

"I’m able to adjust my 3-wood to an A•4 position to where it’s knocked up a degree in loft so when I’m hitting off the fairway it just looks like it’s easier to get it up in the air."
Jordan Spieth

I attended the launch day for the new 915 metals back in August at The Belfry, where I had a chance to be fitted for all the new 915 metals. Before the fitting, I spoke to Product and Fitting Manager Richard Temple about the fitting process and he explained how being custom fitted for any club is extremely beneficial to anyone’s game and that at Titleist they prefer to get everyone fitted for the right club, rather than give you what you think you need and hope!

I also had time to chat to five time European Tour winner Brett Rumford about the new metals, he too big fan, and has seen an extra 10 yard carry to his drives. He talked in depth about the head feeling faster and how forgiving the club was. Like Geoff Ogilvy, he kept the same shaft and just changed the head.

I have never been fitted for woods before so the process was new to me. After reviewing my results on the trackman I saw what I had been missing. At the end of the fitting I was launching the ball with a high consistent trajectory and had found an extra 20 yards carry from my previous driver, which, as Adam Scott says, is a two-club distance. I was really impressed with how solid the club felt and the sound it makes. You can really feel the ball fly off the face which made me feel more confident with the club in my hands. I did hit some shots out the heel and noticed I only lost a small amount of ball speed and gained little spin, which meant that I was still getting good distance. The trajectory didn’t change too much from my well-struck shots either.

In conclusion, the 915 metals can take anyone’s game to the next level. They look, feel and sound exceptional. Titleist have really revolutionised its metals with the 915 range and I recommend everyone to give them a try

Available from 14th November 2014.

Prices:

915 D2 & D3 Drivers RRP £379
915 F & F-d Fairway woods RRP £220
915 H & H-d Hybrids RRP £205

For more information on Titleist products visit www.titleist.co.uk

Titleist launch their new 714 irons

As you may have read in the Titleist seeding article, the new 714 irons are currently being used by tour professionals around the World and have been getting excellent reviews. Jason Dufner used 714 AP2 irons to win the US PGA Championship and Gregory Bourdy won the ISPS Handa Wales Open with a combination of 714 CB & MB irons.

For Titleist to improve the AP range of irons, they have removed weight from areas of the club head and replaced a high density tungsten weight into the heel of the mid and long irons. This has helped to improve ball flight, increase forgiveness and give maximum feel to each and every player

Gregory Bourdy with his 714 CB/MB irons

The longer irons create a higher launch angle for more carry and a flatter launch angle for shorter irons which give you outstanding control around the greens.

The new AP1 irons are the longest, most forgiving iron Titleist has ever made, with a multi-material, dual cavity design for players that want maximum distance, forgiveness and solid feel in a great looking progressive game improvement chassis. The new AP2 models are multi-material, forged irons that offer distance with trajectory control and forgiveness with workability in a solid feeling, great looking tour proven chassis.

Both AP1 and AP2 feature a satin polish playing position with bright polish cavity highlights for superior appearance at address.

The new Titleist CB and MB irons are designed for maximum shot control with improved address profiles and enhanced feel through the turf.

The CB and MB irons are forged from 1025 carbon steel and feature tour-preferred constant blade lengths with minimal progressive offset for maximum workability.

The new CB irons feature an optimised shallow cavity-back design with an inner cavity muscle behind the impact area for solid blade iron feel. MB is a classic muscle back forged iron, delivering great feel from muscle back weighting positioned behind the sweet spot.

I got a chance to speak to European Tour Professional Paul Waring at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in August. Paul, who uses the CB range, was very impressed with the subtle changes to the irons. He talked in depth about the new sole design which has added camber. This stops the clubs digging into the ground as much, therefore divot depth is improved for a better strike. His switch to the new irons saw him make his first cut in his past four attempts, while maybe conincidental, I'll be fascinated to follow his form as he continues to get to grips with the new technology.

The new 714 range are available in golf shops worldwide from November 8th, I cannot recommend these irons enough, I have hit shots with the AP2, CB and MB and the feel I get from each iron is better than any feeling I have had from any other iron I've hit. The trajectory of the ball is very consistent throughout the bag too.

But don't take my word for it, go to your nearest golf shop to try them out for yourself let me know how you get on.

For more information on Titleist products please visit www.titleist.co.uk

The Trilby Tour

If you are a regular watcher of Sky Sports you may have seen adverts or watched episodes from the William Hunt Trilby Tour.

The William Hunt Trilby Tour is an amateur golf tournament which is now in its seventh year. Regional championships are played across the UK with a Grand Final played at the end of August at Rockcliffe Hall.

The format is an 18 hole stableford off three quarters handicap. The top ten players make it to the Grand Final with the top four players fighting it out in a three hole play-off to be crowned the regional champion.

All events are broadcast on Sky Sports and it’s officially the largest Amateur golf television series in Europe.

This year I was offered the chance to play at one of the events in the UK and after checking the venue line up the Championship I chose was at the Nottinghamshire Golf & Country Club.

As you might have guessed by the name of the tournament all players are to wear a “trilby”, which is chosen at the Championship venue when signing in. You’re also asked to wear William Hunt’s own Saville Row clothing range and you must have a caddy who wears a Masters style boiler suit.

You are asked to arrive at the venue at least an hour before your scheduled tee time and to be on the tee at least twenty minutes before you tee off. This is to ensure you go through the formalities of local rules, swapping cards, identifying golf balls and giving a little information about yourself to the starter.

My playing partners for the day were Trevor, a Nottinghamshire member and former Manchester United footballer Lee Sharpe who is a Trilby Tour regular.

I have played in big amateur events before so playing in front of people has never been a problem for me, but I must admit that standing on that first tee with over a hundred pairs of eyes plus the TV cameras on you, it’s hard not to feel a little nervous.

The first hole is a reachable par 5, with all these eyes on me I wanted to hit my driver, mainly as it’s the club with the largest head, however with a water hazard in range I opted for a 3-wood for safety. My first tee shot was straight out the heel and into the fairway bunker, at least it went forward!

After the first shot nerves I calmly settled into the round and after making a decent par on the first hole I followed up with a birdie on the second. A second par followed on the third and when we arrived on the fourth hole to play our approach shots, a camera man was following our every move.  I missed the green right but managed to play a shot that Phil Mickelson would be proud of to secure my par.

After 9 holes you give your scores to the officials who are regularly updating the leader boards and I was pleased to be on 20 points (two under par) with my shot to come in on the 13^th.

A par net birdie on 13 and another birdie on 15 saw me standing on the final hole at four under par. As I was in the second to last group of the day, I had already seen some scores which had been posted so I was fairly confident that if I made par on the last hole I would make the play-off.

The 18^th is a short par 5, however, if you hit driver you’ll run out of fairway and finish in the lake. I hit an awful 3 wood off the tee which meant I had a full 3 wood to the green. I managed to safely make it to the front in two.

As I was lining up my putt I had a look at the leaderboard to see that no matter what I did I would make the play-off. The pressure was lifted and a two-putt birdie saw me post 41 stableford points (five under par).

After checking and signing my card I was rushed off to do a quick interview, which I have no recollection of now, as I was full of adrenaline and trying not to say anything stupid!

The play-off was between four players who posted the best scores on the day and the holes to play were the 1^st, 2^nd and 18^th, winner takes all!

I again hit 3 wood off the first tee but this time the crowd and cameras didn’t faze me and I managed a perfect shot down the left hand side of the fairway. This left me 190 yards to the flag on a par 5, one of my opponents had already made the green in two so I had to go for hit. I was in between clubs as I needed to carry over a water hazard but was conscious that a shot which flew to far would be in a tricky bunker to the back of the green or worse in the lake behind it.

I opted for a 4 iron rather than a 5 and caught the ball thin. My ball ended up in the hazard and a drop was needed. I made a bogey on the first and one of my opponents made birdie.

When we arrived on the second tee, each of us had a short interview about the first hole. The second is a par 3 which I had earlier birdied, however this time I made par and we moved on to the final play-off hole. The par 5, 18^th.

I was two shots behind at this stage and the only thought I had in my head was to make an eagle. I wanted to hit my driver over the trees to take the water out of play but my caddy (AKA Dad) wouldn’t entertain it. So I hit a 5 wood into a perfect position. At this stage the play-off was between myself and Ben, who had posted 42 points earlier in the day. He hit two irons to the green and was just short of reaching.

I decided to go for hit by hitting a high 5 wood right at the flag, I executed the shot perfectly but my ball ended up 30 foot past the flag with a tricky downhill putt for eagle. Ben chipped up to around 4 feet which meant my putt was a must hole. I gave it a good try but had to settle for birdie and finished in second place.

The experience of playing in the William Hunt Trilby Tour is nothing I have ever experienced before and I can’t wait to do it all over again in the final at Rockcliffe Hall at the end of August.

The Trilby Tour episodes will be on Sky Sports in the Autumn so if you’re interested in watching what you’ve just read look out for the Nottinghamshire episode. 

Quinta do Lago

It's been three years in the making but 2014 Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley has recently opened his new Golf Academy at the family resort of Quinta do Lago in the Algarve region of Portugal.

Paul has worked with Taylor Made Golf for most of his career and they have joined forces again at one of the top golfing resorts in Europe to ensure you get the most out of you game.

At the new fitting centre at Quinta do Lago you can get custom fitted with the latest Taylor Made equipment (putter, irons and driver) by using state-of-the-art technology and expert professionals who are second to none when it comes to finding the right club for you.

I was lucky enough to visit Quinta do Lago to witness the fitting centre in action and was there when McGinley turned up to open his new golf academy. He talked in depth about his relationship with Taylor Made and how getting fitted for clubs is essential to helping your game.

As Paul said: "You wouldn't go and buy an expensive Italian suit without having it measured for you so why should buying golf clubs be any different."

There are a wide variety of golfers on the planet. Some want to be the best they possibly can and some play the game for pure enjoyment. But Quinta do Lago caters for everyone.

The resort is home to three fantastic golf courses. North, South & Laranjal. I managed to play all three on my short trip and my favourite was Laranjal.

Laranjal was voted the best golf course at the Portuguese Travel Awards which is an amazing feat for a course that only opened in 2009 and is up against all the other top class golf courses Portugal has to offer.

The course is built on an orange grove and is situated in the Ludo valley two kilometres east of the resort. I decided to test my skills from the black championship tees which made the course 7,086 yards.

There are five lakes on the course and finding the right position off the tee and on the greens is a must. The greens are undulated but fair. I was told that they could make the greens even faster than the 11 on the stimpmetre but keeping the ball on the putting surface would be near impossible on some holes.

The course is made up of five par 5s, eight par 4s and five par 3s. The par 3s are not for the faint-hearted especially off the black tees where the 7th is over 250 yards. Even the pros in the US Open at Merion struggled with those distances!

Quinta North and South are situated next to each other and just across the road from the golf academy. Both courses are surrounded by some of the most gorgeous looking villas I have ever set my eyes on. I heard that many footballers own villas on these courses as they are given a lot of privacy in the resort.

Both courses offer a real test.

The North is slightly shorter than the South but the bunkers and water hazards are well positioned so you have to ensure you play for the correct position off the tee. I found the course to be quite tight so blasting your driver was a risk.

The South course is known as the jewel in the Quinta do lago crown. The Portuguese Open has been played here eight times. The course is set amongst umbrella pines, lakes and wild flowers and overlooks the spectacular scenery of the Ria Formosa National Park.

I only played the back nine of the South course and the three holes which stood out were 14, 15 and 17. The 14th for the scenery as you tee off from an elevated tee, the 15th is a par 3 which is around 210 yards from the back tee and a carry all over the lake, while the 17th is a par 5 - you tee off over the lake from the 15th but you are faced by some beautiful looking villas at the same time.

After you've finished your round there is nothing better than sitting outside the club house with a nice refreshing drink and a bite to eat.

However, if you prefer to get yourself sorted out and go out for a meal, look no further than Casa do Lago restaurant. Casa do Lago is located on the water's edge with fresh fish brought in daily. I ate some of the biggest tiger prawns I have ever seen and they were cooked to perfection.

Casa do Lago also have a floating green in the middle of the lake. You can hit balls from the lakeside to try and hit the green but it's impossible to keep the ball on there as it's made of wood. It makes a loud bang when you're successful, usually greeted by applause from the spectators who are there for food or drinks.

During my stay in Portugal I stayed in the Conrad Algarve. This superb hotel only opened in September 2012 and fully deserves its 5-star status from the staff down to the rooms and the detail which has gone into them.

The hotel is situated on the doorstep of Quinta do Lago so is a perfect location for a golf holiday.

This was the first time I'd ever travelled to Portugal so I didn't really know what to expect. After visiting I would definitely return - especially for a golf trip.

I can't recommend the Quinta do Lago resort enough and if you are a keen golfer like myself, check out the Golf academy, I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

For more information on Quinta do Lago visit http://www.quintadolago.com

Mizuno Swing DNA

As a keen golfer I am always on the lookout to improve my game. I've visited fitting centres for a couple of brands but never before have I tried Mizuno irons. When I was asked if I wanted to try out their new Swing DNA system I jumped at the chance.

Mizuno state that finding the right shaft for golfers can add an extra 10-30 yards to every iron in the bag along with improving shot dispersion. All it takes is three shots with the shaft optimiser to find your unique swing DNA which consists of:

Head Speed - How fast the club head and shaft are moving during the swing.

Tempo - How quickly the player transitions from the backswing to the downswing.

Toe Down - A measure of the bowing of the shaft in a downward direction during the downswing.

Kick Angle - The amount of shaft forward bending during the downswing motion.

Release Factor - How and when the club head and shaft are releasing during the downswing motion.

When the results are in the software recommends the best three shafts to test.

I visited my nearest Mizuno fitting centre at Oakdale Golf Club in Harrogate and was met by head professional Clive Dell. After using the swing optimiser my results came out as:

Using a 6 iron and ranked between 1 - 9.

	David Keywood	Luke Donald
Headspeed	84 mph	92 mph
Tempo	4	4
Toe down	4	4
Kick angle	2	5
Release factor	7	5

Compare me with Luke Donald and I'm pleased to say our swing DNA similarity is high.

Clive then fed my results into the Swing DNA software to find out which shafts matched my swing: the shafts recommended were the FST KBS Tour (Stiff), Dynalite Gold XP (Stiff) and Nippon NS Pro 950GH (Stiff). I then chose the MP59 and MP63 heads to accompany the shafts and down to the range we went.

After hitting a number of shots with each shaft it's easy to see that having the right shaft in your club can really make a difference to the shots you play. I was hitting the ball a lot lower with the KBS tour and hitting the Nippon out to the right. I found the Dynalite Gold was the closest to what I have in my current irons and the performance matched, with a high draw my preferred shot and could replicate my trajectory with this shaft.

I found that the MP-59 was a lot more forgiving that the MP-63 head. Being told Luke Donald uses the MP-59 also swung me in the favour of this iron. It's a beautiful looking club and if it's good enough for the World number 1 then it's good enough for me.

I found the Swing DNA fitting extremely useful and next time I'm in the market for a new set of clubs or woods I'll definitely be making sure I get the right shaft for my swing before purchasing.

A big thanks to Clive Dell and Oakdale golf club for helping me with the fitting.

To find your local Swing DNA Centre go to http://golf.mizunoeurope.com/store/fitting-centres.php

Fairway to Furlong - Sky Sports Team Play at Celtic Manor

Well, there was to be no Celtic Manor glory for the Sky Sports golfers down at the Fairway to Furlong golf day, but it was still another brilliant day out for another lucky competition winner. 

Although our Nathan Richards did not taste the glory of 12 months earlier, again it turned out to be a day to remember with a fun-packed round of golf on the Roman Road course followed by a charity dinner with some of racing's big-hitters.

It's a long way down to Celtic Manor from Sky Sports HQ up in Leeds, but a trip well worth it as the venue remains an iconic one with Ryder Cup memories still fresh in the mind.

After running our competition again on Sky Sports, lucky Nathan won the exclusive place in our team of champions for the day's golf, followed by a trip to Cheltenham for the first day of the Festival.

A foggy start in the morning cast a few doubts on how the day would go, but a solid Celtic Manor breakfast and a few hits on the range melted those away - although the fog lingered a little while longer.

Having covered the Ryder Cup, the place is still a great one to visit and there's always a raw tinge of anticipation when you drive up that big hill, travel past the brilliant hotel and enter the club house lodge - everything about it all is well and truly five star.

A spot of bacon, a drive away in our buggies and a massive firework, which almost gave me a heart attack, later and we're underway, starting the defence of our title on the 14th hole - a tough start in the fog with a second shot over water.

We start well though, and hopes are high that myself, competition winner Nathan, Dave Keywood and Jamie Watson can bring home the bacon and keep hold of that trophy.

Armed with the VPar live scoring system, we are able to keep track of how we're getting on, another good feature that you don't get at your usual golf competition.

The fog slowly started to burn away, but sadly so did our chances. Despite being there or thereabouts throughout the contest perhaps a lack of scoring on the par threes cost us and we ended up finishing in sixth place - still a creditable effort though.

We did manage to scoop one prize for the day as Dave landed the nearest the pin contest thanks mainly to his team-mates for a showing him the club and wind to take into account to knocking it two feet from the flag.

Finally the sun emerged and into the splendour of the clubhouse lodge we went for a welcome pint and some of the brilliantly tasty Welsh cakes to refresh ourselves before checking into the Celtic manor hotel - which is always a pleasure.

Onto the evening - a charity auction hosted by Derek 'Tommo' Thompson and the giving of prizes, sadly not for us this year which was a huge shame as the overall winners from the day also got an unbelievable prize of a trip to American for the Breeders' Cup and a round at Pebble Beach!

Star trainer David Pipe and former jockey Mick Fitzgerald were also on hand to offer their advice for picking out some winners at the Cheltenham Festival - both men seemed to enjoy their night tremendously and proved great company.

The night drew on and on and plenty were still going strong when we called it a night in the early hours, eager to be in some sort of condition to enjoy 'the best breakfast in the world' according to Dave - and it's hard to disagree.

Fuelled up and ready to go, Nathan gets on his way to Cheltenham to hopefully pick out a few winners to cap off a great prize all round, while we start the long journey back to work!

If you fancy being a lucky winner then stay tuned to Sky Sports for out next competition...

Alternatively, for more golf trips and special packages go to www.yourgolftravel.com, or view more of the special golf/racing events coming up this year and book your place at Fairwaytofurlong.com.