Finau Makes It Back-to-Back Wins On Tour with Rocket Mortgage Classic Victory

By Zack R., Team Titleist Staff On 1 August 2022 Balls Tour Clubs

PGA TOUR | Rocket Mortgage Classic

Tony Finau (Pro V1 Left Dot) made it back-to-back wins on the PGA TOUR, closing with a 5-under 67 to reach 26 under and complete a near-flawless performance at Detroit Golf Club.

  • Now a four-time PGA TOUR winner, Finau got his Pro V1 Left Dot up-and-down 100 percent of the time while making only one bogey over 72 holes, leading the field in Scrambling and Bogey Avoidance.
  • He also topped the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (+13.841) and Greens in Regulation (66 of 72, 91.67%).
  • Only two players have hit more GIRs in a 72-hole PGA TOUR event since 1980.
  • The victory caps off a dominant run, as Finau became the first player to win back-to-back weeks on TOUR by three or more shots since Titleist Brand Ambassador Justin Thomas in 2017 and is now 49 under in his last nine rounds.
  • Titleist Brand Ambassadors Patrick Cantlay (Pro V1x) and Cameron Young (Pro V1 Left Dot) finished in a tie for second at 21 under, as six Titleist golf ball players finished in the Top 7.

TONY FINAU ON HIS PRO V1 LEFT DOT

  • “I think equipment starts with the golf ball, not with the clubs, not with the woods, not with any other piece of equipment. It starts with the golf ball. I’ve always been a believer in that.
  • “The Left Dot golf ball is right for me because I’ve always put a lot of spin on the golf ball, so it’s the lowest spinning Titleist Pro V1 that is out on the market, and right away, it caught my eye because of the ball flight. I think if you can control your ball flight, you can control the distance. And it’s been such a reliable ball flight for me from the first time that I hit it. I think the best word I can use is just reliable. I can count on the golf ball in crosswinds, into the wind, downwind. I know how far the golf ball is going to go. And that’s a great feeling to have as a professional golfer. Distance control is up there probably with the most important things when it comes to striking a golf ball and playing golf.”

HOW TONY FINAU MARKS HIS PRO V1 LEFT DOT

  • “I actually mark my Pro V1 golf ball with my kids’ initials. I have five kids. I’ll throw my wife in there sometimes as well. So the determining factor for me is if they make a couple bogeys, power lip out, whatever the case, they’re out, and I’m ready for the next kid to come into play and see if they’ll perform. And that’s pretty much it. I’m not crazy superstitious, but there does come a time where, if my kids are a little scared of the dark that day, they want to go swimming, they want to play in the beach, I’ve got to let them go and bring somebody else in that’s ready to score for me.”

NINE STRAIGHT WINS FOR VOKEY WEDGE PLAYERS ON PGA TOUR

  • The winner of the Rocket Mortgage Classic played a NEW Vokey Design WedgeWorks 60T wedge, becoming the ninth-consecutive winner on the PGA TOUR to have at least one Vokey wedge in the bag.
  • Overall, Vokey wedge players have combined for 28 wins on the 2021-22 PGA TOUR, compared to eight for the nearest competitor.

WINNER, RUNNER-UPS PLAY VOKEY 60T

  • Three of the top-4 finishers at the Rocket Mortgage had a NEW Vokey Design WedgeWorks 60T wedge in the bag, including the winner and Titleist Brand Ambassadors Patrick Cantlay and Cameron Young, who tied for second.
  • For the week, the Rocket Mortgage champ finished first in Scrambling, going 6-for-6 in up-and-downs, and was ninth in Strokes Gained: Around the Green (+2.503).
  • “He has told me many times that max versatility is important to him,” said Vokey Tour Rep Aaron Dill. “He has the ability to be steep or shallow when he wants and, one thing’s for sure, he makes great contact with lots of spin on most of his wedge shots. Since his first T grind he has been loyal to this club, occasionally testing some other higher bounce options but always returning to the T.”
  • Inspired by Master Craftsman Bob Vokey’s work with one of the game’s all-time best wedge players, the T Grind was designed for great hands and a vivid short-game imagination.
  • Available in 58- and 60-degree lofts, it is ideal for a shallow angle of attack in firm conditions, with low bounce and a narrow crescent surface.
  • Compared to Vokey’s L grind, it has a wider back flange which allows for lower measured bounce.
  • Titleist Brand Ambassador Cameron Smith played a 60T in winning The Open at St Andrews, where the Vokey T grind was such a popular choice that Dill ran out of heads on the Titleist Tour Van.
  • The T is also a favorite of Titleist Brand Ambassadors Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Will Zalatoris.
  • Cameron Young, who plays his 60T bent to 62 degrees, finished second this week in SG: Around the Green (4.289). 
  • “I’ve had players say they feel like they can hit any shot with the T,” said Will Harvey, Vokey’s European Tour Rep. “The combination of the forward bounce for low pitch shots and the grind for the soft control shots is something needed with the vast amount of shots required on links or firmer course set ups.” 

TSR MOMENTUM CONTINUES AT ROCKET MORTGAGE

  • Titleist was the most played driver at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, with more than half of the Titleist drivers in players’ bags being NEW TSR2, TSR3 and TSR4 models.
  • One of the TOUR’s best drivers, Titleist Brand Ambassador Cameron Young finished the week third in SG: Off the Tee (+5.269) with his TSR3 10.0° model, the same club he used to drive the 18th green at St Andrews, setting up his 72nd-hole eagle at the Open Championship. 
  • “I’ve loved it. I put it right in play,” Young said. “It feels very much like the [TSi], but just a little faster. And I feel like especially the toe miss for me, I haven’t gotten as much curve out of it, which is obviously a good thing. It seems to be a little bit more consistent on my misses. I’ve put it right in play and it’s been great.” 
  • Titleist Brand Ambassador Joohyung Kim, who shot Sunday’s best round (9-under 63) on his way to a seventh-place finish, jumping to 34th in the World Ranking, plays a TSR3 9.0°. 
  • “I had been playing the TSi3 for the longest time and I thought I wasn't going to change it, but after trying it at TPI, it was just so good that I had to put in the bag, and it’s been working out really well. My percentage in the fairway has gone up and, yeah, it’s a keeper. Missed hits, solid hits, it just stays in the wind so well for me, that’s what I’ve had trouble with before and I thought I was going to use the ‘i’ for the rest of the season, but I put it right in the bag because I gained ball speed, gained swing speed, smash factor went up and holds it really into the wind. So it was great.”
  • Both Kim (TSR3 13.5°) and Young (TSR3 16.5°) also had NEW TSR fairways in the bag, with a total of 27 TSR2, TSR2+ and TSR3 fairways in play.
  • Said Kim: “In the wind, downwind, when you want to hit it up, it goes up. In the wind when you keep it low, it goes low. So it's really the perfect club for a 3-wood. 3-wood’s the hardest club to fit and they did it perfectly.”

SUNSHINE TOUR | FNB Eswatini Nkonyeni Challenge

Titleist Brand Ambassador Jaco Prinsloo completed a wire-to-wire victory at the Nkonyeni Lodge and Golf Estate, closing in 3-under 69 for a three-shot victory.

  • Prinsloo, playing a Pro V1 golf ball and full bag of Titleist equipment, was the only player to finish the three days in double-digits under par (12 under).
  • He topped a leaderboard that featured Titleist golf ball players in the top-five positions.

What’s in Jacob Prinsloo’s Titleist Golf Bag?

Golf Ball: Titleist Pro V1
Driver: TSi
Fairway Metal: TSi
Irons: T100
Wedges: Vokey Design
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom X 12

PGA TOUR CANADA | Ontario Open

The winner of the Ontario Open, playing a Pro V1x golf ball, closed in 4-under 67 on his way to a seven-shot win in just his fifth start on PGA TOUR Canada.

  • The champion shot 17 under for the week, getting his Pro V1x up-and-down 89.13 percent of the time and making four eagles, including a hole-out on the 413-yard ninth hole on Sunday.
  • Thomas Walsh (Pro V1) and Lee Detmer (Pro V1x) finished at 10 under in a tie for second place, as Titleist golf ball players finished 1-2-3-4 in Ontario.

AMATEUR | U.S. Junior Championship

Playing a Pro V1x golf ball, the winner of the U.S. Junior Amateur made 11 birdies and one eagle on his way to a 3-and-2 victory in Saturday’s 36-hole final match at Bandon Dunes.

  • The 17-year-old – who became the first male USGA champion from China and just the fifth international winner of the U.S. Junior – added his name to an illustrious list of U.S. Junior champs such as fellow Titleist golf ball player Jordan Spieth.  
  • He is now exempt into the 123rd U.S. Open next summer at Los Angeles Country Club and the next two U.S. Amateur Championships at Ridgewood Country Club and Cherry Hills Country Club, provided he remains amateur.
  • Pro V1 and Pro V1x golf balls were used by three of the four semi-finalists.

TITLEIST SWEEPS EQUIPMENT COUNTS AT BANDON DUNES

  • Titleist was the #1 choice of players in all major equipment categories this week at the U.S. Junior Amateur.
  • Out of the 264 players competing at Bandon Dunes, more players trusted Titleist golf balls, drivers, fairway metals, hybrids, utility irons, irons, wedges and putters than any other brand: 
    • A total of 198 players teed up a Pro V1, Pro V1x, Pro V1x Left Dash or AVX golf ball, including the champion (Pro V1x) and the stroke-play medalist (Pro V1).
    • At 75% of the field, the total number of players trusting Titleist balls was more than five times the nearest competitive brand.
    • Titleist was the most played driver at Bandon Dunes with more than 100 players (103/39.9%), reflecting the momentum and performance of Titleist drivers at every level of competitive golf. Eighty-five players teed it up using a TSi3 driver, more than double the nearest competitive model.
    • Titleist was top choice in fairway metals (114) and hybrids (20), with TSi3 being the most popular model for Titleist players in both categories.
    • More than half of the utility irons in play were Titleist models (87), more than triple the nearest competitor (26). The most popular model was T200 (Utility Build).
    • There were 101 Titleist iron sets in play (38.3%), compared to 58 (22%) for the nearest competitor. The most played model: Titleist T100.
    • Vokey Design gap, sand, and lob wedges accounted for 56.8% (448) of the wedges in the field and more than all other brands combined.
    • Scotty Cameron (117/44.3%) was the field’s most trusted putter brand, more than double the nearest competitor (49). The most popular models in play: Newport, Newport 2 and Phantom X.

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