Cleveland Golf Blog

This week marks the first full-field PGA Tour event of 2012 – the Sony Open in Hawaii at Honolulu’s Waialae Country Club. It’s always a pleasure to start the season off at one of the most amazing places on Tour.

This year, Cleveland Golf and Srixon have a tremendous staff of professionals competing on the PGA Tour. It’s a great mix of accomplished veterans, some youngsters that have already more than proven themselves, and an extremely talented group of young rookies eager to show what they can do.

It’s always a blast to see rookies prepare for their debut as PGA Tour members, and this week is no different. I dare say this class has the potential to do some amazing things – even right out of the gate during the West Coast Swing. This is an important time for rookies to do well since the first “reshuffle” occurs right after the West Coast events, meaning enough prize money before the reshuffle gives them better entry status into tournaments as the year progresses.

Keep an eye on these rookies representing Cleveland Golf/Srixon inside the ropes:

Charlie Beljan: The 28-year-old resident of Mesa, Ariz., first made headlines by winning the 2002 U.S. Junior Amateur, and after dominating the Gateway Tour in Arizona the last few seasons, he gained PGA Tour exempt status by tying for 13th at Qualifying School. The University of New Mexico graduate hits it forever and has great touch around the greens. Look for Charlie playing the Srixon Z-STAR Tour Yellow golf ball. He’s a tremendous believer in its benefits.

Russell Knox: A 25-year-old native of Inverness, Scotland, Knox is a phenomenal ball striker who finished 12th on the 2011 Nationwide Tour money list to earn his card. Russell, now a resident of Jacksonville, Fla., won last year’s Chiquita Classic and ranked inside the top 10 for the year in both driving accuracy and greens in regulation. Waialae sets up great for Russell’s precision game, so don’t be surprised to see him get off to a great start here.

Jason Kokrak: Expect the 25-year-old Kokrak to contend for the PGA Tour’s driving distance title. The Charlotte, N.C., resident powered his way to a fourth-place finish on the 2011 Nationwide money list with victories at the Albertsons Boise Open and Miccosukee Championship. There just aren’t many people that will ever hit it by Jason, who had a Nationwide-leading driving average of 318.9 yards. He simply overpowers most golf courses and combines that with some great putting.

Ted Potter, Jr.: When Ted gets in his groove, he’s a lot of fun to watch. The 28-year-old Ocala, Fla., native nearly won the 2011 Nationwide Tour money title, winning the South Georgia Classic and Soboba Golf Classic to finish second. The left-hander might be the most aggressive player you’ll ever see – there’s rarely a pin he won’t shoot at. And, get this – Russell Knox says Potter is the best he’s seen play in person.

It’s hard to believe that at this time last year, Keegan Bradley was in the exact same position as the above foursome. Now, Bradley is a star, joining David Toms and Vijay Singh as Cleveland Golf/Srixon major champions on the PGA Tour.

Keegan and Toms began their years at Kapalua last week for the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. A closing 65 and an impressive week of ball striking netted Bradley a 16th-place finish, and he’s excited for what’s to come. “Ball-striking wise, it was one of the best four days combined I’ve had in my professional career,” he said.

D.T. is a little down after his LSU Tigers laid an egg in Monday night’s BCS National Championship Game, but playing two events in Hawaii is always good medicine. He won the Sony Open back in 2006 and always feels he has a chance to win at Waialae.

Vijay says he’s healthier than he’s been in quite a few years and is really excited about this season. He switched up his practice routine a little bit this offseason, incorporating more time playing golf on the golf course – something he’s never done very much of. He was in great spirits this week and looking forward to playing a course where he won in 2005.

Singh is one of many Cleveland/Srixon players gaming the new Classic driver at Sony. Players are raving about the look, feel, and performance of our latest offering. We’ve been blown away by some of the numbers we’ve seen in testing, and the guys are seeing similar results on the course.

The new 588 Forged wedges and irons have been phenomenal as well. Almost every staffer has already switched into the irons, and the wedges have been adopted by more players in a shorter amount of time than any wedge we have ever introduced.

Needless to say, the word “feel” has been uttered a lot lately. While most players have some experience with forged irons, our guys have been blown away by the difference our Precision Forging process can make in the feel of a wedge. The equipment lineup for 2012 is simply phenomenal, and our players’ early adoption of the products is proof.

Check out some pics below of our players’ new equipment and their 2012 staff bags, and check back next week for another Tour Report.

–Michael Jolly, Cleveland Golf/Srixon Tour Representative

Til Next Week…

Charlie Beljan’s Bag:

Jerry Kelly’s Bag:

Jeff Overton and Ted Potter, Jr.’s Bags:

Cleveland Golf would like to congratulate Keegan Bradley on being named the 2011 PGA Tour Rookie Of The Year! The award was announced Tuesday from PGA Tour Headquarters in Florida by PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem.

Keegan’s rookie campaign is sure to be talked about for years to come. The clear highlight of his season – and of his career to date – was the dramatic come-from-behind PGA Championship win at Atlanta Athletic Club in August. Being five shots down with just three holes to play didn’t rattle the 25-year-old St. John’s University alum, as he made stunning birdies on holes 16 and 17 to hold a share of the lead at the end of regulation. When the dust settled following the ensuing three-hole playoff, Bradley was indeed the PGA Champion, becoming only the third player ever to win in his first major start.

Before the PGA Championship, Keegan broke through with a playoff triumph at the HP Byron Nelson Championship in May for his first career PGA Tour victory. The native of Woodstock, Vt., capped his two-win regular season with a pair of off-season wins, one at the PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda in October and another this month at the Franklin Templeton Shootout in Florida.

All told, he ranked 13th on the money list with $3,758,600. Not bad for someone who had never competed in a PGA Tour event prior to 2011.

“I’m thrilled to win the Rookie of the Year,” Bradley said “it’s an award you can only win one time, that you only get one chance to win. It’s a huge honor.”

Because of his accolades inside the ropes, Bradley, a devout New England sports fan who now resides in Jupiter, Fla., was selected to throw out the first pitch at Fenway Park prior to a Boston Red Sox game and handle the pre-game coin toss for a New England Patriots game at Gillette Stadium. Keegan even received a congratulatory text from Patriots Super Bowl MVP quarterback and childhood hero Tom Brady, who said he’d like to tee it up with Bradley following the NFL season.

So congrats on a great year, Keegan!  May it be the first of many!

How does Keegan Bradley build on the success of his breakthrough 2011 PGA Tour season?

He keeps on winning.

The 25-year-old Cleveland Golf staffer teamed with Brendan Steele to capture the Franklin Templeton Shootout by three shots over the weekend at Tiburón Golf Club at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in Naples, Fla.

Bradley, a Tour rookie who has also won the PGA Championship, HP Byron Nelson Championship and PGA Grand Slam of Golf in 2011, notched his fourth victory of the year by relying on the proven performance of new 588 Forged Wedges and the amazing distance technology of the new Classic Driver.

The Classic Driver, which takes on the look of an old persimmon wood, has some serious style to it. The dark mahogany and gold finish allows for easy alignment off the tee, and an old-fashioned RetroBarrel headcover is sure to make the rest of your foursome extremely jealous. However, the Classic is not all about aesthetics. The 460cc club head has an incredibly deep face and MaxCOR2 technology, which promotes a hot, penetrating trajectory – even on off-center shots. It’s fueled by Ultralite Technology and the inclusion of a premium graphite shaft from Miyazaki, giving the golfer increased swing speed with the same swing effort for more distance off the tee.

Needless to say, Bradley is enamored with Cleveland’s newest driver offering.  We were able to catch up with Keegan last week, here is what he has to say about the club:

Keegan was also gaming 52- and 58-degree models of Cleveland’s new 588 Forged Wedges. Originally introduced in 1988 as Cleveland’s fifth wedge design, the 588 has a versatile, confidence-inspiring shape that’s the standard by which all other wedges are judged. The new 588 Forged maintains that shape while adding the soft, solid feel made possible by Precision Forging and increasing spin thanks to Tour Zip Grooves, Laser Milled technology and the Tour Concept Wedge Shaft.

The 588 Forged Wedge is available now at leading retailers and at clevelandgolf.com. It’s also available as a completely customizable club via the interactive My Custom Wedge website.

What do you think of the new products? How excited are you to see what Keegan can do in 2012?

Readers,

As announced earlier this fall, the 588 Forged wedge is coming to the marketplace on November 25th.  The wedge, which is forged from 1025 carbon steel, is one that is particularly exciting for us here at Cleveland Golf.  The 588 wedge was originally introduced to the world in 1988 as a cast design, and has since become the highest selling wedge of all time with over 3 million clubs sold.

Along with it’s commercial success, the original 588 also saw a massive amount of success on tour over the past 20+ years, winning  over 300 PGA Tour events and 25 Majors.  The new wedge, which also features Laser Milled Face Technology for maximum spin, has already seen success on the Tour level.  Jason Kokrak was the first to get a professional win with the forged wedges, winning the Nationwide Tours Miccosukee Championship earlier this month.  Keegan Bradley’s bag also featured the wedges when he won the PGA Grand Slam of Golf event in Bermuda to cap off a phenomenal rookie campaign.  In fact, the majority of our professional staff has already switched into the 588 Forged wedges in only three short weeks.

“When the 588 wedge was introduced in 1988, it raised the bar significantly with its timeless design and versatility. To this day, the 588 shape remains the standard by which all competitors’ wedges are judged. Not too many golf clubs have that kind of longevity. Now, we’ve managed to make the 588 even better than it was before. The 588 Forged will have immensely improved feel thanks to the advanced Precision Forging process, as well as the ability to generate incredible spin thanks to Tour Zip Grooves and Laser Milled Technology on the face.” -Brand Manager, Adam Sheldon said.

The new 588 Forged will be available on November 25th in both Satin and Chrome finishes, you can place your Pre-Book order today!

Beating the field by seven shots in professional golf almost never happens, but don’t you dare say that to Jason Kokrak. The Nationwide Tour standout dominated the field at the Miccosukee Championship this week in Miami, FL where he was the leader after all four tournament rounds. This is the second Nationwide Tour victory for Kokrak in the last 5 weeks, and one that he will not soon forget. Kokrak led the field in birdies and Greens in Regulation, as well as ranking inside the top ten in driving distance and Putts per GIR. Kokrak relied on rounds of 63, 66, 69, and 66 to get him to a four day total of -20, seven shots removed from the runner-up.

“I would never have dreamt this. At the beginning of the year you set goals that you want to meet and then you set some that maybe are a little out of reach. I’ve already exceeded all the goals that I set for myself this year.”

By virtue of this tournament, Kokrak moves into fourth place on the Nationwide Tour Money List with only two events left in the season. Cleveland Golf/Srixon currently holds three of the top four places on the money list, including money leader J.J. Killeen and Ted Potter, Jr. Kokrak currently ranks number one on tour in driving distance at 320 yards.

In Kokrak’s bag this week was:

Ball: Z-Star XV

Driver: Cleveland Launcher SL290 with Miyazaki Kusala 83 Shaft

Fairway Wood: Cleveland Launcher FL with Miyazaki Kusala 83 Shaft

Irons: CG16 (3-PW)

Wedges: 588 Forged, 52, 56 and 60

This week was an exciting one for us on Tour! Our staffers were introduced to our new 588 Forged line of wedges and irons. Although our staffs are involved throughout the design process, this was their first opportunity to see the finished product. The feedback was nothing short of spectacular.

Common words used this week to describe the wedges were: pure, money, sweet, sooo soft, classic, and SIIICCCKK! Players got what they expected in the shape, after all, it is a 588. While we knew the Precision Forging would bring an unprecedented feel to this classic shape, we could not have predicted the amount of positive comments regarding the feel compared to its predecessor and competition!

We also introduced two sets of 588 Forged irons to our staffers this week. The comments on these pretty much mirrored those about the wedges. Staffer and 2010 Ryder Cupper Jeff Overton was the lucky recipient of the very first set of 588 MBs, and put them in play right away! He commented repeatedly about the feel and flight of this set–we are excited to get his thoughts following his first competitive tourney with them.

Finally, we also debuted a couple additions to our Mashie Family this week. Our staffers got the opportunity to test the brand new Mashie Fairway and re-designed hybrid for 2012. They both feature Gliderails on the sole and time and time again players were amazed at the lies they were able to hit solid shots from with both the Fairway and Hybrid.

Overall, it was a successful week of product debuts. 17 new 588 Forged wedges, 1 set of 588 Forged MBs, and 3 new Mashies were put into play for this week’s event.

Next week, we will do more testing with the rest of our staff and gather some feedback from those that put new product in play this week!

One last note: Greame McDowell put his new 588 Forged wedges into play in Europe this week and finished T3rd at the Dunhill Links Championship!  Congrats on a great week, GMac!

Are you on twitter?  Are you itching for more Cleveland Golf Tour related news?  Do you like seeing what equipment PGA Tour players are using?  Do you own a 1994 Ford Taurus?  If you answered yes to at least two of those questions you should probably start following @GCSrixonTour on twitter!

As you may know, Cleveland Golf and Srixon have both maintained their own twitter handles for a while now.  However, we thought one thing we could improve on was giving you, our loyal customers and fans, an inside look at our Tour happenings, hence the launch of @CGSrixonTour.  This account will be your behind the ropes live feed of all things Tour related from PGA Tour, to Nationwide Tour and even some Hooters Tour.

This isn’t just us reporting, either.  The man who will be doing the majority of the tweeting (lets call him Sebastian) is one of our actual Tour Representatives.  He is a grizzled vet, who knows these tour players well.  He has spent years building clubs and establishing relationships on tour and he is anxious to share this information with you.  Sebastian is out in Vegas this week, reporting live and building clubs, anxiously awaiting followers!

So, if you want the inside scoop on Tour equipment (who knows, we might actually release some never before seen product if you are lucky) then you should definitely be following @CGSrixonTour!

Ted Potter, Jr. has locked up his second win of the year on the Nationwide Tour, and this time in very dramatic fashion.  Potter won the three man playoff  on the second hole of the Country Club of Soboba Spring yesterday, taking down Andres Gonzalez and Miguel Angel Carballo.  The win moved Potter into 3rd place on the Nationwide Tour Money List (a list, by the way, that Cleveland Golf/Srixon is dominating.  We currently boast 6 of the top 12 money winners on the Nationwide Tour.  Great job, Nationwide staff!)

Potter switched this week to a TL310 driver with a Miyazaki Indigo shaft and lead the field in both eagles and greens in regulation.

In Potter’s bag was:

Driver: TL 310—10.5 Miyazaki Indigo 61X

Fairway: FL 15 deg Miyazaki Indigo 83X

Hybrid: Launcher 20.5

Irons: CG-1 tour 4 thru PW

Wedges: CG-16—52-56-60

If you are a sports fan and someone mentions Boise, ID to you during the fall, what first comes to mind?  Most likely it is a bunch of future NFL standouts running around a blue astroturf field.  However, this weekend the Nationwide Tour stole the show, and Cleveland Golf staffer Jason Kokrak received top billing.

Well, Jason Kokrak is proud to call himself the most recent champion on this event after sealing a two stoke victory yesterday at the Hillcrest Country Club.  The win moved Kokrak to 13th on the Nationwide Tour money list, virtually guaranteeing him a spot on the PGA Tour next season.

“It hasn’t really set in yet, maybe it will on the plane tomorrow, I have no words to explain it. I honestly have no idea what was going through my mind out there. I just tried to stay calm and keep my heart from racing.”

Kokrak relied on all facets of his game this week, finishing 2nd in the event in driving distance at nearly 318 yards.

The Cleveland Golf/Srixon family now claims 8 of the top 25 money winners on the Nationwide Tour this season, including 6 of the top 13.  Remember that the Top 25 all take up PGA Tour membership in 2012.

In Jason’s bag was:
Driver: SL 290 (9.0), Miyazaki Kusala 83X black
Fairway: 14 deg FL Tour Miyazaki Kusala 83X black
Irons: CG-16 Tour 3-PW
Wedges: CG-16 (52 and 56), 588 (60)
Ball: Z-Star XV

Gary Christian has never played a PGA Tour Event.  That is about to change.

Christian has all but locked up a 2012 Tour Card after winning this weeks Nationwide Tour event, the Mylan Classic at Southpointe Golf Club.  The win moved Christian to number 4 on the Nationwide money list with the Top 25 advancing to the PGA Tour at the end of the season.

Christian shot 67 on Sunday to finish one shot ahead of John Mallinger for his 2nd career victory and his first of the season.

“Deep down, you know you got a shot at doing it. You keep trying to knock that door down.” Christian said after his win. “I think it was meant to be this week,” Christian said. “I kept saying to myself as I walked down the fairway, it’s my time. The chip-in on 14. My last drive [on 18] stopped 6 inches from going in the water. It was my time.”

Christian played a Cleveland Launcher DST Ultralite driver (8.5°), a HiBORE XLS™ fairway wood (13°), a Cleveland CG1™ Tour iron (5), Cleveland CG TOUR™ irons (6-9), Cleveland CG16 wedges (48°, 54°, 60°), and a Srixon Z-STAR™ XV ball.