Picturesque Valderrama is regarded by most as one of the best golf clubs this side of the Atlantic; a true test of golfing ability. The 1997 Ryder Cup venue played host to the Open de España last week and did not disappoint. Lightning fast greens and tricky conditions meant that scoring was always going to be tough, with a one-over-par total enough for Englishman Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston to claim his maiden European Tour title – the first regular Tour event to be won with an over-par score in 20 years. 27-year-old Johnston went into the final round one shot back from overnight leader Mike Lorenzo-Vera, but a stellar one-under-par 70 was good enough to see him lift the trophy by one, despite a final-day charge from locals’ favourite, Sergio Garcia. Titleist brand ambassador Johnston’s final round exploits saw him rank first in both driving accuracy (78.6%) and greens in regulation (70.8%) on the day – truly impressive golf when the pressure was at its greatest.

What equipment did he use?

• Driver – Titleist 915D3 (10.5 loft)
• 3-wood – Titleist 915F (15 loft)
• Irons – Titleist 716 MB irons; 3-9
• Wedges – Vokey SM6 wedges (46, 50, 54 & 58)
• Putter – Scotty Cameron Tour Only Newport 2
• Ball – Titleist Pro V1x

Over in the States, the PGA Tour arrived at Harbour Town Links, South Carolina, for the RBC Heritage. Many of the world’s best golfers take a break following a Major, but there were still a few stand-out names amongst the field. World number one Jason Day pegged it up at the start of the week, as did Bryson DeChambeau who, after finishing top amateur in the 2016 Masters, was playing in his first event as a professional. But come Sunday it was Callaway Staff player Branden Grace who grabbed the spotlight, a five-under-par 66 propelling him above overnight pacesetter, Luke Donald, to claim his second title of 2016.

What equipment did he use?

• Driver – Callaway XR 16 (8.5 loft)
• 3-wood – Callaway Big Bertha Alpha (16 loft)
• Utility Iron – Callaway Apex UT
• Irons – Callaway X Forged (4-PW)
• Wedges – Callaway Mack Daddy 2 Tour Grind (52, 56 & 60)
• Putter – Odyssey Versa V Line
• Ball – Titleist Pro V1x

To see the options we have available on our golf shop, head tohttps://www.foremostgolf.com/. If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to give us a call on +44 (0) 800 500 3194.

What makes the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball the pick of the bunch?

Simply put, the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball is a golfing icon. Other balls have come and gone, trying to accomplish the lofty heights of Titleist’s premium offering, but have consistently come up short.

In this blog post, Foremost Golf looks at the reasons behind the dominance of the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball whilst trying to answer one simple question:

What makes the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball so special?

The golf ball is the only piece of equipment that is used for every shot on the golf course, so it’s vitally important that you can trust what you’re using. And trust is something that is synonymous with the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball.

Anyone who plays golf will know that the Pro V1 has dominated the ball market over the last decade. There’s no arguing it. The fact that the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball has been at the top for such a long time, without any drastic changes, speaks volumes for what Titleist has been able to achieve.

Never ones to rest on their laurels, Titleist undertook unparalleled research and comprehensive testing with both professionals and amateurs before releasing the 2015 version of the ball. When asked how the Pro V1 could be improved, the pros were adamant in their response:

“Don’t change anything, just add some more control around the green”

We don’t want to delve too much into the technical side of things, but the way Titleist has achieved this is quite remarkable. Now urethane covers aren’t new, but Titleist’s version certainly is. They’ve built their patented Elastomer cover in-house so that they’re in control of the characteristics it provides, rather than adding a pre-made urethane cover that isn’t necessarily designed for a golf ball. All this means that they have created an extremely soft ball offering premium feel off the clubface.

So what can you expect from the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball?

• Extra distance
• Softer feel
• Enhanced durability
• Greenside control
• Optimum trajectory

Most golfers would take one or two of these characteristics in a ball if it was going to improve their performance. So when you get all five in the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball, you can see why it’s the number one ball across worldwide tours.

But this ball isn’t just for professionals. The exceptional tee-to-green performance makes the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball a firm favourite for golfers of all skill levels.

How can added distance and increased greenside control not be beneficial?

Our rating?

Quite simply: 5 out of 5. Unbeatable.

There’s no truer test of shot-making ability and imagination than links golf; one of the reasons so many top players choose to compete in the Scottish Open the week prior to The Open. From gale-force winds to devil-like pot bunkers, you’ll certainly know when you’re out on the links.

Sweden’s Alex Noren coped best with the conditions at Castle Stuart, a 14-under-par winning total giving him his fifth European Tour title. All four of Noren’s previous victories had come when he held the lead heading into the final round, a record which he maintained thanks to a closing two-under-par. An early birdie at the par-5 second calmed any Sunday jitters, before the 33-year-old fought off strong challenges from a congested leaderboard at the Inverness Links.

As alluded to previously, there’s no type of golf that examines so many parts of a player’s game more than links. For once, hitting the ball a country mile doesn’t necessarily give you an edge; it’s all about plotting your way through the valleys and mounds on the fairways, hitting the correct part of the severely undulating greens before holding your nerve on the slick carpets.

Noren did exactly that last week. The Callaway Golf staffer was third on Driving Accuracy, hitting 84% of the fairways over the four days, whilst being just 47th on Driving Distance at a measly 275 yards. It’s a method that all the players will be adhering to at Troon this week for the 145th Open Championship.

What equipment did Noren use?

• Driver – Callaway XR 16 driver (8.5 degrees)
• Fairway wood – Callaway XR 3-wood (15 degrees)
• Hybrid – Callaway Apex (18 degrees)
• Irons – Callaway Apex Pro (4-9)
• Wedges – Callaway Mack Daddy (47, 52, 56 and 60 degrees)
• Putter – Odyssey Works

Travelers Championship

Russell Knox boosted his credentials for a place in the European Ryder Cup team after securing his second win of the season at the Travelers Championship in America. Having started the day three back from the overnight leader, the Scot carded his fourth sub-70 round of the week - including a clutch par-save from the greenside bunker at 18 – to win by one from American Jerry Kelly.

It’s not often that the main talking point from a Sunday has nothing to do with the winner, but Jim Furyk’s final-round exploits rather overshadowed Knox’s success. Starting the final round at one-over-par, Furyk went on to make 10 birdies and an eagle for a sensational 12-under-par 58. The 46-year-old American is the first player to achieve such a feat on the PGA Tour.

With the Ryder Cup taking place on American soil next month, both Furyk and Knox are looking like they’ll be dependent upon a captain’s pick to make their respective teams. As far as the European team goes, Knox could prove pivotal to the team’s chances having been based on the PGA Tour in recent years and winning twice this season. Watch this space.

What equipment did Knox use?

• Driver – TaylorMade M2 (10.5 loft)
• Fairway wood – Callaway Big Bertha (16 loft); Cleveland Launcher (19 degrees)
• Hybrid – Cleveland Launcher (20.5); Cleveland Mashie (23)
• Irons – Srixon Z-545 (5-iron); Srixon Z-745 (6-9)
• Wedges – Cleveland 588 RTX 2.0 (54 & 60)
• Putter – SeeMore

Aberdeen Asset Management Paul Lawrie Matchplay

To win one European Tour event is a dream to many, and the reality is that most golfers won’t even achieve that. But back in 2000 when Anthony Wall won his first event at the tender age of 24, many assumed he’d go on to win several more. Well, roll on 16 years and the Englishman has just clinched his second title at the 2016 Aberdeen Asset Management Paul Lawrie Matchplay event.

After driving into the trees at the first during the final, Wall subsequently found himself two down through the first two holes. But the 41-year-old battled hard to overcome the favourite, Noren, on the final green of this taxing tournament. On what must be a welcome break for many players, matchplay golf always throws up a few surprises and not many would have predicted Wall to get to the latter stages, let alone go on to win the event.

But the Wilson Staff ambassador mixed 29 birdies with two eagles over an enthralling week to capture his second European Tour victory.

Any avid golf fan knows that things really start to hot up stateside come September as the FedExCup nears its conclusion. It’s when the PGA Tour’s best and most consistent golfers from the past 12 months battle it out across a series of playoff events to win golf’s biggest (monetary) prize.

Let’s get right to business – McIlroy stormed through the field on Monday’s final day to win his first PGA Tour title in 16 months; something which seemed so unlikely four days ago. Rory had a nightmare start to the tournament as he found himself four-over-par through three holes, only to play the following 6 holes in an incredible 19-under-par.

The Northern Irishman started the final round six shots behind tournament leader Paul Casey, but a closing 65 saw him close out the Deutsche Bank Championship two shots clear of the Englishman. This victory comes just a week after reverting back to a Scotty Cameron putter – see below – instead of Nike’s short stick which seemed to be the cause of so many of McIlroy’s recent woes.

With Europe’s best now finding his form once again, bring on the Ryder Cup!

What equipment did McIlroy use?

Driver – Nike Vapor Fly Pro (10.5 degrees)

Fairway wood – Nike Vapor Speed (15 & 19 degrees)

Irons – Nike VR Pro Blade (4-9)

Wedges – Nike Engage (47, 52, 56 & 59)

Putter – Scotty Cameron Concept M1 Prototype

The DP World Tour Championship in Dubai not only signalled the end of the European Tour season, but was also the final event of this year’s Race to Dubai. For those of you unaware, the Race to Dubai is the European Tour’s order of merit which rewards the most consistently good golfers throughout that season.

Heading into the event there were only two possible winners: Masters champion Danny Willett and Open Champion Henrik Stenson. Willett had held top spot in the Race to Dubai for much of 2016 following his Green Jacket back in April, but the inspiring form of Stenson – including his first Major title and a silver medal at the Olympics – saw the Swede leapfrog Willett with just a few events left to play.

The Englishman needed a good week – a top-five finish to be exact – to have any chance of ending 2016 top of the tree, but a disappointing week saw him finish runner-up for the second year running. On the other hand, a top 10 finish for the ice-cool Swede cemented his place as Europe’s most consistent golfer for the second time, having won the Race to Dubai once before in 2013.

A little mention must go to Alex Noren who had a breakthrough year to finish in the rankings. Noren was ranked at 653rd in the world just two years ago but four wins in 2016 has seen him gate-crash the world’s top 10.

There’s something all three of the above have in common – they’re Callaway Golf players. Coincidence? Probably not.

Click here to view Callaway’s current range

It’s been a memorable year for golf. 2016 has seen first time winners in each of the four majors, USA dispatched Europe with consummate ease in the 41st Ryder Cup, and it heralded the sport’s first inclusion in an Olympic Games for over a century. We’ve had a household brand quit the industry, other brands seemingly dominate across tours, and bums were on the edge of seats as arguably the best golfer to ever pick up a club made his eagerly-awaited comeback.

But before we recap all of this, 2016 also saw the passing of two World Golf Hall of Famers in Christy O’Connor Snr and Arnold Palmer. O’Connor played in 10 consecutive Ryder Cup matches, finished T2 in the 1965 Open Championship, and won the PGA Seniors Championship on six occasions. Palmer, nicknamed ‘The King’, was part of the Big Three (alongside Nicklaus and Player) who took golf’s popularity to a whole new level. He won seven major titles, racked up 62 PGA Tour titles, and participated in seven Ryder Cups. Two golfing greats whose impact on the game of golf should never be forgotten.

Another man in this bracket is Tiger Woods. He’s done it all. World number one year after year, 14 major victories and over 100 professional wins worldwide. Heck, he even had the sport’s video game named after him. But it hasn’t all been plain-sailing for the American as persistent back problems put Tiger out of action for 15 months before his return at December’s Hero World Challenge.

His comeback was met with rife intrigue as no one quite knew how he was going to fare. During his time in the wilderness, Nike Golf, Tiger’s equipment company, made the brave decision to pull out of the hardware market, choosing to focus solely on apparel and footwear. With several of the world’s best players on their books, it was going to be fascinating to see which brand these guys navigated towards. Nobody expected what was to follow…

Not only did Tiger put TaylorMade’s metals in his bag for his return, but Rory, Olesen and Molinari also opted for the M family too. Nearly all of Nike’s contracted players made the decision - a decision void of any money or obligation - to put at least one TaylorMade club in their bag. There can be no bigger testament to a product’s quality than when the world’s best choose to play that product. This is exactly what happened this year.

At that same moment in time, TaylorMade already had the world’s two best players - according to the rankings - on their books in Jason Day and Dustin Johnson. Jason has been World Number One for the majority of 2016, whilst Dustin finally overcame his major duck by winning the U.S. Open. But, as mentioned above, Johnson was not the only first-time major winner of 2016. Danny Willett’s Masters triumph, Henrik Stenson’s unforgettable Open Championship win and Jimmy Walker’s USPGA victory were all maiden major titles, too.

However, the one title that possible eclipsed all of the above was Justin Rose’s Gold Medal in the Rio Olympics. Golf’s inclusion in the Games was met with widespread negativity as many household names forwent the opportunity to win a medal for their country. Yet the one person who seemed genuinely pleased at the chance to compete for the Gold Medal was Britain’s Justin Rose, how fitting that he went on to produce some brilliant golf en-route to adding a Gold Medal to his trophy cabinet. Thoroughly deserved.

As much as it pains us to say it, another deserving victory came in the 41st Ryder Cup at Hazeltine this autumn as the Americans waltzed to a convincing 17-11 win over their European counterparts. With all but one of Team USA inside the top 30 in the world, it was always going to be an uphill battle for the Europeans, and so it proved. After losing the first morning’s foursomes 4-0, Europe’s hopes were quickly dashed as Team USA secured their first Ryder Cup victory in eight years.

And there you have it. Our trip down memory lane ends there as our review of 2016 comes to a close. Let’s hope 2017 offers us more of the same.