Lead Titleist Players to Seven-Win Week Across Worldwide Professional Tours
Fairhaven, MA (November 1, 2010) – Competing in the first PGA TOUR-sanctioned event in Southeast Asia, Titleist Brand Ambassador Ben Crane relied upon the Pro V1x golf ball, new 910D2 driver and a bag of Titleist clubs to capture the inaugural CIMB Asia Pacific Classic Malaysia. Crane topped a list of seven Titleist players who won across the worldwide professional tours this week, including fellow Titleist Brand Ambassador Brendan Steele, who made his first career win count, earning a promotion onto the 2011 PGA TOUR with a victory at the season-ending Nationwide Tour Championship. Additional victories on the LPGA, Champions, Japan, Australasian and South African Tours increase Titleist’s 2010 Golf Ball Win Count to 133, more than five times the nearest competitor with 23.
TITLEIST HIGHLIGHTS FOR WEEK ENDING OCTOBER 31, 2010
– Crane won the CIMB Asia Pacific Classic Malaysia by one shot after eagling the par-4 15th and making an 8-foot birdie putt on the final hole. He closed with a 2-under 69 to finish at 18-under 266.
– The win marks the second of the season for Crane, who captured the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in January for his third career PGA TOUR victory.
– What’s in Ben’s Bag?: Pro V1x, 910D2 driver (9.5/C-2 setting), 909H hybrid (21), AP2 irons (5-P), Vokey Design gap (51), sand (56) and lob (60) wedges.
– Crane’s win, along with Jean Hugo’s victory this week in South Africa, marks the 10th and 11th titles across the worldwide tours by players trusting Titleist’s new 910 driver. The new 910 drivers begin shipping to the marketplace mid-November.
– Titleist was the overwhelming golf ball of choice at the event with 27 of the 40 players trusting Titleist, more than six times the nearest competitor (4). Eight of the top 10 finishers relied upon Titleist for their success.
– Titleist also tied for first in drivers (12), including nine new 910 drivers in play; and was first in iron sets (15); and sand,lob and approach wedges (38).
LPGA TOUR:
– Na Yeon Choi (Pro V1x) rallied to defend her Hana Bank Championship crown, closing with a 3-under par 69 for a two-shot win in South Korea. Song-Hee Kim (Pro V1) finished solo 3rd, three shots back.
– Choi, who celebrated her 23rd birthday on Thursday, finished at 10-under 206 for her fourth career LPGA Tour title, including her second this year (Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic).
– Choi has posted seven top-three finishes in her last 10 starts, and took over the top spot on the LPGA Tour’s 2010 money list with the winning check.
– Titleist was the overwhelming golf ball of choice at the event with 49 players, more than four times the nearest competitor with 11.
CHAMPIONS TOUR:
– Monday qualifier Rod Spittle won the AT&T Championship for his first Champions Tour victory, topping fellow Pro V1 loyalist Jeff Sluman with a par on the first playoff hole. Spittle, a 55-year-old Canadian, and Sluman closed with 4-under 67s to finish at 12-under 201.
– Larry Nelson (Pro V1) and Chien Soon Lu (Pro V1x) were among three players tied for 3rd, one shot back.
– Spittle is the 11th player to win on the Champions Tour as a Monday qualifier and the first in six years.
– Titleist was the golf ball of choice with 57 players, more than seven times the nearest competitor with 8.
– Nine of the top 10 finishers trusted a Titleist golf ball for their success.
NATIONWIDE TOUR:
– It was a Titleist Brand Ambassador playoff at the Nationwide Tour Championship as Brendan Steele topped Colt Knost with a birdie on the fourth extra hole. Steele, who began the week No. 30 on the money list, and Knost, who started the week at No. 36, both punched their tickets for the 2011 PGA TOUR.
– What’s in Brendan Steele’s Bag?: Pro V1x, 907D2 driver (8.5), 910F fairway metal (15), MB irons (5-P), Vokey Design approach (52) and lob (62) wedges, Vokey TVD sand wedge (58).
– What’s in Colt Knost’s Bag?: Pro V1x, 910D3 driver (8.5), 910F fairway metals (13.5, 17), CB irons (4-P), Vokey Design sand (52) and lob (60) wedges, Scotty Cameron Newport Fastback putter.
– Joe Affrunti (Pro V1, 910D2 driver, 909F2 fairway metal, 910H hybrid, AP2 irons, Vokey Design wedges, Scotty Cameron Newport Fastback putter) made it a Titleist Brand Ambassador 1-2-3 finish.
– 16 of the Top 25 players who graduated to the 2011 PGA TOUR relied on a Titleist golf ball for their season-long success: Chris Kirk (2), Hunter Haas (3), Daniel Summerhays (5), Brendan Steele (6), Martin Piller (8), Fabian Gomez (12), David Mathis (13), Colt Knost (15), Bobby Gates (16), Steven Bowditch (17), D.J. Brigman (18), Jim Herman (19), David Hearn (21), Joe Affrunti (22), Peter Tomasulo (23) and Justin Hicks (25).
– Titleist was the overwhelming golf ball of choice at the event with 41 players, more than four times the nearest competitor with 9. Titleist also was first in iron sets (16); sand,lob and approach wedges (60); and putters (21). Titleist was second in drivers (14), including 7 new 910 drivers; and fairway metals (15).
JAPAN TOUR:
– Titleist Brand Ambassador Kyung-tae Kim (Pro V1x, 909D3 driver, 909H hybrid, ZB/ZM irons, Vokey Design Spin Milled wedges) earned a one-stroke win at the Mynavi ABC Championship.
– Kim finished at 13-under-par 275 to collect his third win of the season and career on the Japan Golf Tour.
– Titleist was the golf ball of choice at the event with 38 players, and was also first in hybrids (22) and sand,lob and approach wedges (62).
SOUTH AFRICAN TOUR:
– Titleist Brand Ambassador Jean Hugo (Pro V1x, 910D3 driver, 909F2 fairway, MB irons, Vokey Design wedges) captured the Sunshine Tour’s Platinum Classic by two shots over fellow Pro V1x loyalist Michiel Bothma.
– It was the third win of the season for Hugo.
– Hugo is the first player to win twice on the worldwide tours with the new Titleist 910 driver. He captured the Vodacom Business Origins of Golf at Stellenbosch in September with the same 910D3 model (D-4 setting).
– Titleist was the overwhelming golf ball choice at the event with 52 players (72%) in the 72-player field, more than three times the nearest competitor with 16.
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