"Winning today, I feel has got me closer to being able to compete a lot better in the Major tournaments. My next goal is, of course, to win a Major and I'm going to do all that I can to prepare well for that.”

These comments were made by Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama following his victory in last week’s WGC-HSBC Champions event.

The four majors aside, there’s nothing quite like winning a World Golf Championships event. Many see it as a sign that the winner is ready to compete at the highest level, and this is certainly the case for Matsuyama.

The 24-year-old carded 29 birdies over the week to finish seven clear of Henrik Stenson and Daniel Berger on 23-under-par. To put this achievement into perspective, only Tiger Woods has managed to win a WGC event by seven shots or more – something he’s done on four separate occasions. Not bad company to hold for the new world number six.

You may have seen our earlier blog post on Rory’s switch to the TaylorMade M2 driver and metal wood (click here to read) for the event in China; well it certainly didn’t hamper the Northern Irishman as he finished in T4 to move up to second in the World Rankings. In fact, McIlroy’s average driving distance for the week was a measly 300.5 yards – putting him 4th in the field that week.

But even McIlroy was no match for Matsuyama last week, I truly impressive performance that puts him in good stead for the 2017 Majors.

What equipment did Matsuyama use?

• Driver – Callaway Great Big Bertha (9 degree)
• Fairway wood – TaylorMade RBZ (15 degree)
• Irons – TaylorMade M2 Tour (3-iron); Srixon Z945 (4-PW)
• Wedges – Cleveland RTX 2.0 (52, 56 & 60)
• Putter – Scotty Cameron Newport

What do the world’s top three golfers have in common?

Well apart from the obvious - that they're all professional golfers at the very top of the game - there’s a couple of things:

1. Jason Day, Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy are all immensely powerful golfers and hit it an absolute mile
2. They all have the TaylorMade M2 driver and metals in their bag

We’re sure you’re aware that Nike Golf will stop producing hardware and balls from 2017, focusing on apparel and footwear instead. Well this has left all of their contracted players with a tough choice - ‘which clubs do I play next?’

Arguably this biggest Nike Staffer is the mega-talented Northern Irishman (McIlroy) so it was always going to be interesting to see which direction he went in. It hasn't taken him long to decide as in this week’s WGC-HSBC Champions event in China - his first since the Ryder Cup - Rory has put the TaylorMade M2 driver and 3-wood straight into play at the top end of his bag.

Why did McIlroy choose the M2?

Well it probably isn't to do with the dual coloured crown on the head, although it does help significantly with alignment and it's also vitally important that you are confident over the club at address.

The M2 is such an easy club to hit with boosted forgiveness meaning that no matter where you hit the ball on the club face, you know you won't be too far from your Sunday best. This is equally as important for the world’s elite as it is to the average club golfer as even these guys - believe it or not - have bad days where their ball striking isn't 100%.

But the most important factor for many is distance and this will be one of the key reasons why McIlroy opted for TaylorMade’s most trusted. The thin club face is just within legal limits and, together with the redesigned Speed Pocket, produces faster ball speeds and more powerful shots than all previous models. Take a look at McIlroy’s stats this week, we can guarantee you that he won't be sacrificing in distance off the tee.

So back to the first point we made in this blog post about what Day, Johnson and Rory all have in common: they hit it a mile with the TaylorMade M2 range.

Coincidence? Probably not.

Click on this link and learn more about the TaylorMade M2 range - you won't be disappointed.

Click below to watch our overview: 

Callaway Staff player Alex Noren has been in fantastic form of late and this week secured his third European Tour victory since the start of summer at the British Masters.

The Swede started the rain-delayed final day with a three-shot lead and made the perfect start with birdies at his opening two holes. At this stage things looked like a mere formality until a little wobble around the turn – bogeys at the 8th and 11th holes – saw Noren’s lead reduced to a solitary stroke. With just four holes to go, Noren showed his class with two birdies over the closing stretch to win by two from Bernd Wiesberger in second place.

The win propels Noren inside the top 20 of the world golf rankings for the first time in his career; not bad for someone who ended the 2014 season down at 653rd!

What equipment did Noren use?

• Driver – Callaway XR 16 (8.5 degrees)
• Fairway wood – Callaway XR (3-wood)
• Hybrid – Callaway Apex (18 degrees)
• Irons – Callaway Apex Pro 16 (4-9)
• Wedges – Callaway Mack Daddy 2 (47, 52, 56 & 60)
• Putter – Odyssey Works

Across the other side of the pond all eyes were fixed on the Safeway Open. Tiger Woods’ imminent return to the game was pencilled in for last week’s PGA Tour event, but a late withdrawal by the former world number one left many wondering if he will ever return to his formidable best.

Whilst reflecting, think back to last year’s Safeway Open when wire-to-wire leader Brendan Steele fell apart down the closing stretch. It’s not often that you get the chance to make up for what went before, but the American birdied his final three holes en-route to a seven-under-par 65 in California. This left Steele one clear of overnight leader Patton Kizzire and gave him his second PGA Tour victory of his career.

What equipment did Steele use?

• Driver – TaylorMade M2 (9.5 degrees)
• Fairway wood – TaylorMade M2 (15 & 21 degrees)
• Irons – Wilson FG Tour 100 (4-PW)
• Wedges – Wilson FG Tour (50 degrees); Titleist Vokey SM5 (58 & 60)
• Putter – Scotty Cameron Futura

The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship is an event like no other. It’s a week where a little bit of fun is injected into the European Tour as each pro is partnered with a celebrity in a team event, which runs alongside the pros individual.

In the latter, it was a man who made a late charge for a wildcard spot in the European’s Ryder Cup team that stole the show. Englishman Tyrrell Hatton equalled the course record at St Andrews on Saturday (62) before closing with a 66 to finish four ahead of the chasing pack. Hatton’s 23-under-par matched the tournament record whilst propelling the 24-year-old into the world’s top 50 for the first time following his maiden victory on the European Tour.

In the team event, it was two men at the centre of much of the Ryder Cup controversy who came out on top. Danny Willett and ‘Smartie’ (Jonathan Smart – Willett’s full-time caddy) finished the four-day event on 38-under-par following their final-day 60, snatching the title by one shot from their closest competitors.

It didn't disappoint

Apart from the comfortable 17-11 score line in the Americans' favour, the 2016 Ryder Cup didn't disappoint. From the USA's Friday morning whitewash to McIlroy and Reed's enthralling ding-dong encounter on Sunday, we were treated throughout the three days.

"I've never seen golf of this quality before"

"We are watching golf you can only dream about"

These were just a couple of plaudits from the commentators during Sunday's play, one of which was from Ryder Cup veteran and 2014 Captain Paul McGinley. The level of golf really was that good. Take Garcia and Mickelson's titanic battle for example; they were a combined 14-under-par for their round - that's a scintillating 58.

Pressure? What pressure?

In what can only be described as a cauldron of emotions, the atmosphere was on the edge all week. Fist-pumps, heckling and shushing aside, the players' ability to produce their best golf in that situation was amazing and is something we can all learn from. Let’s look at Thomas Pieters for example. He was Darren Clarke’s final wildcard pick and really showed he is at home on the big stage, claiming four out of five points to be the highest points scorer across both teams.

It’s hard to argue that the Americans didn’t deserve this one, besides our dominance has got a little boring over the last eight events! With six ‘rookies’ in the European Team at Hazeltine, this transition can only bode well come two years’ time in Paris.