Golfing News & Blog Articles

Spirit of the Game: William Wright

Sept. 15, 2021

Note: This piece first appeared on usga.org on February 20, 2012

Not long after receiving the trophy for his historic U.S. Amateur Public Links triumph in 1959, William Wright received a phone call at the Wellshire Golf Course in Denver from a Seattle reporter.

The first question asked of Wright was, “How does it feel to be the first black to win a national tournament?”

Angered that the first inquiry involved race, not his performance, Wright immediately slammed down the phone and walked away.

Bryson DeChambeau said his hands are "wrecked" from intense training as he prepares to compete in both the Ryder Cup and the world long drive championship.

Golf's offseason lasted ... 11 days. From Bryson and Brooks, to Phil and Rahm, a look back at the longest season in golf history and a look ahead to a new season that starts right now.

Henrik Stenson, who at 45 has played in five Ryder Cups, was selected by European captain Padraig Harrington as the fifth and final vice captain.

Don’t get fitted for golf clubs using range balls. It’s something we say all of the time. To some extent, the reasons are obvious. Even if you’re not immediately aware of the performance differences between a range ball and premium offerings, you’ve almost certainly figured out that range balls feel hard as rocks, are uncomfortably loud off the driver and are often in trash condition.

Save the occasional uncomfortable water carry where risking a Pro V1 just doesn’t make sense, most of us would never think of playing golf with a range ball.

So, at the risk of asking the obvious: If you don’t play golf with a range ball, why would you get fitted using one?

The idea that you should get dialed in with the ball you actually play is exactly why we recommend you get fitted with the ball you play. When that’s not possible, we’d suggest using a ball that’s like the one you play. And, yeah, if it happens that a range ball is like the ball you play, we’d politely suggest getting a new ball.

With four wins this season, including the FedEx Cup, Patrick Cantlay was voted PGA Tour player of the year.

There is a lot of cool gear in the golf equipment world that doesn’t always fit neatly into Most Wanted Tests or Buyer’s Guides. You still want to know how it performs. In our We Tried It series, we put gear to the test and let you know if it works as advertised.

What We Tried

The MNML Golf MV2 stand bag.

Product Expert

Hi, I’m Harry and I am a professional golf equipment tester. (Yes, they exist.) I actually test a lot of things at MyGolfSpy and play professionally when I’m not checking and comparing specs on gloves, rangefinders, bags, ball retrievers, etc. You can call me the Director of Product Testing here at MGS. You can also just call me Harry. That’s fine, too.

What is MNML Golf?

MNML Golf is a relatively new golf bag company based in Manhattan Beach, Calif. As you can imagine, owner Sam Goulden is a super laid-back, easy-going guy. However, his passion for his golf stand bag is anything but laid back. He wants to get rid of all the clutter that golf bags have and strip it down to the essentials. Enter the MNML MV2 golf stand bag.

The MNML MV2 golf stand bag might seem like another everyday golf bag. However, with a few hidden surprises, that isn’t the case. The MV2 comes with three magnetic pockets which isn’t unusual but they’re stronger than any magnetic pocket I’ve come across. This makes it incredibly easy to get into the pockets without messing around with jammed zippers. It also comes with a Bluetooth speaker and solar panel portable charger to ensure you don’t lose your phone’s battery—or music for that matter. Neat, huh?

PGA Tour golfer Gary Woodland surprised his friend Amy Bockerstette in a video Monday with the news that she was selected to represent Special Olympics Arizona in next year's USA Games in Orlando.

For the first time in two decades, a golfer who is not a full member of the PGA Tour has been named PGA Tour rookie of the year. Will Zalatoris, 25, finished the season with eight top-10 finishes, including a runner-up finish at the Masters.

Mizuno Golf announces the new T22 wedge line.The T22 wedge features a smaller profile and is geared toward the better player.The T22 wedges are available in four grinds, three finishes, and thirteen loft/bounce optionsMSRP is $159.95 – Available 10/14

Today, Mizuno Golf unveiled a new wedge line, the T22. While Mizuno’s buttery-forged irons cause much of the golfing public to view Mizuno as the iron company, many of these same golfers do not approach Mizuno’s other club offerings with the same adoration. It’s tragic, as having such a myopic view of Mizuno could cause you to miss some of the best wedges in the marketplace.

The sad irony in the Mizuno story is that, for a run of years, its success in the iron category, left it pigeon-holed as only iron company. It’s the classic beloved actor who wants to be a musician story. People want actors to only be actors. It’s tough for fans to accept recategorization, especially when the excellent actor proves to be only an average musician.

With every non-iron release, Mizuno must prove to the golfing consumer that they are more Jamie Foxx than Lindsay Lohan.

The truth is that Mizuno is one hell of a wedge maker, having one of the most impressive Most Wanted Wedge pedigrees. In 2017, the Mizuno T7 wedge placed first overall, then the S18 and T20 wedges placing second overall in 2018 and 2019 respectively. It’s shocking (shocking, I say) that a company known for producing the best forged irons in the business would also produce the best forged wedges. Yes, that was sarcasm.

Key Takeaways

Mizuno to release a new ST-G 220 Driver with adjustable weightsAvailable at retail in OctoberMSRP $500

Chasing higher ball speeds across a driver face using adjustable weights to control spin and shot shape sometimes gets accomplished at the expense of a sacrificial lamb: FEEL. No getting around it.

Impact feedback can get altered dramatically with a couple twists and tweaks of a driver wrench. Try for a slightly different launch window and that nice dense sound/feel you’re accustomed to, well, it can turn kind of foreign. Especially on off centre strikes.

Mizuno’s new ST-G 220 driver is designed with more wrench torques in mind. Actually, a lot more. Engineered with a trio of shorter lateral weight tracks and a pair of moveable center/back weight ports the next generation ST model maintains impact feel however it is set up. You could never say that about adjustable Mizuno drivers of the past. Still plenty long but some…..well, let’s just say they weren’t exactly a concert hall of sound/feel dynamics. Or at the very least they were inconsistent in that department.

Not this one.

Sound/Feel Profiling

Sound profile and innovation has made quantum leaps from where it was even a decade ago. Computer acoustics software is as integral to driver design these days as looks in the address position and game improvement technology. That, of course, is due not only to modern driver volumes (460cc max) but also the (multi) materials used for construction, head shape, and adjustability function.

David Toms beat Dicky Pride with a par on the first hole of a playoff Sunday in the PGA Tour Champions' inaugural Ascension Charity Classic.

Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Shane Lowry were picked by European captain Padraig Harrington on Sunday to fill out the team for the Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits.

American Billy Horschel birdied the 18th hole to claim the BMW PGA Championship title in a tense finish on Sunday in a tournament with huge implications for Europe's Ryder Cup team.

Ken Tanigawa had two front-nine eagles in a 6-under 65 for a share of the second-round lead with Doug Barron in the PGA Tour Champions' inaugural Ascension Charity Classic.

Italy's Francesco Laporta shot three birdies and an eagle en route to a solid three-under 69 that gave him a one-shot lead after the third round of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth on Saturday.

Want a chance to test this years MOST WANTED winner?

Odyssey White Hot OG brings back the iconic White Hot Putter face insert! Classic models such as the Odyssey #1 and Odyssey #7, as well as the legendary Odyssey 2-Ball model are available with the White Hot insert, along with numerous others to fit the preferred putter style of each golfer. With the most decorated putter insert of all time, comes a rich silver PVD finish on the putter head, along with a fine milling across each White Hot OG putter face.

The renowned urethane cover played by countless Tour pros will undoubtedly improve the feel and touch of the putter on the golf course. Multiple shaft options are available within the Odyssey White Hot OG Putter Family, including the multi-material Stroke Lab putter shaft to ease the difficulty of making a solid putting stroke every time. Roll in more putts on the greens, and circle eagles and birdies on the scorecard with a new Odyssey White Hot OG Putter!

TESTERS WANTED

We’re looking for 4 testers to try the Odyssey White Hot OG and report back.

Any OG Model is up for testing, including Stroke Lab variants.

Paul Goydos, Doug Barron and Marco Dawson are tied for the first-round lead at the PGA Tour Champions' inaugural Ascension Charity Classic in St. Louis.

Thailand's Kiradech Aphibarnrat maintained his lead at the BMW PGA Championship with another impressive round at Wentworth as the battle for last-ditch automatic qualification for the European Ryder Cup team intensified.

For some, the “golf trip” is an annual circle on the calendar they plan their year around and for others rare opportunity to combine golf and travel. Either way, the change to get out and play golf away from everything, together with friends and family is something all golfers should experience. That said, planning a golf trip can be a monumental task with many questions:

Where to go?What courses to play?Where to stay?How much is this all going to cost?

That last question is of great importance to a lot of people. To simplify the process and help golfers create a memorable trip without breaking the bank, we’ve asked Golfbreaks, the official golf travel partner of the PGA Tour, for the best deals for top golf destinations. Here are the top five trips and the best times to get your golf trip deals.

1. La Quinta Resort & Club at PGA WEST, Palm Springs

3 nights and 3 rounds at PGA WEST (1 x Stadium, 1 x Norman, Mountain or Nicklaus, 1 x Dunes)

2nd half Sept prices from $499 (35% discount from October rates)

Officially, golf in Palm Springs can be played year round, but the summer heat can it unbearable for much of June through August. Late September can provide lower temperatures but still avoid the peak rates in October. While the Stadium course at PGA West is the headliner, all courses provide great golf trip deal experiences and the La Quinta Resort a comfortable place to come back to after the round.

$769 / $499 (35% OFF)