There were so many stories to come out of the weekend’s Hero World Challenge, but there’s only one place we, as golf enthusiasts, can possibly start…Tiger Woods’ eagerly-awaited return.

The 14-time major champion was playing in his first PGA Tour event since the summer of 2015 and didn’t disappoint. Having undergone two back operations during his time on the sidelines, as well as a failed comeback just a few months ago, it was always going to be intriguing to see how golf’s biggest superstar fared in the Bahamas.

Arguably Tiger picked the perfect tournament to return – he hosts the event each year, was playing amongst friends and was guaranteed to play 72 competitive holes (as long as his back held out, which it did). On the other hand it was an 18-man field made up of the world’s best golfers – Stenson, Spieth, Dustin - so it wasn’t exactly ‘easy competition’.

Nevertheless Tiger caused a media frenzy with the vast majority of Sky’s coverage focused on Tiger during the four days – not surprising really given he was the guy everyone wanted to see. So how did he get on? Well, on the plus side he made 24 birdies over the four days which was the most in the field. Unfortunately for the American, he also carded the most double bogeys out of everyone - six to be exact.

So overall a pretty good week for Tiger, all things considered. But the real shining light was Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama. If you read our weekly round-ups then you’ll be familiar with the 24-year-olds name from recent weeks. He’s been in phenomenal form of late and he carried this on, winning the Hero World Challenge by two shots from Henrik Stenson. That is four wins his last five starts, with his other result being a lousy runner-up finish. Not bad.

2017 is going to be a very interesting year.

What equipment did Matsuyama use?

• Driver – Callaway Great Big Bertha (9 degrees)
• Fairway wood – Callaway Big Bertha Fusion (15 degrees)
• Irons – TaylorMade M2 Tour (3-iron); Srixon Z945 (4-PW)
• Wedges – Cleveland Golf 588 RTX 2.0 (52, 56 and 60)
• Putter – Scotty Cameron
• Ball - Srixon Z-Star XV

The World Cup of Golf doesn’t have the same glamour as football or rugby’s equivalent, but it’s certainly a welcome break from the 72-hole individual strokeplay events that we’re accustomed to.

It’s a pairs’ competition whereby two golfers from each nation join forces to represent their country over four days at Kingston Heath GC, Australia. Playing a mixture of alternate shot and fourball betterball golf, winning the World Cup of Golf requires two in-form golfers who seamlessly dovetail throughout the 72 holes.

This is exactly what Søren Kjeldsen and Thorbjørn Olesen managed to do, including a scintillating 60 (12-under-par) in Friday’s fourballs which propelled them to the top of the leaderboard before the weekend’s play. The Danes held a four-shot advantage heading into Sunday and, although this was cut to just a single stroke at one stage, six birdies on their back nine was more than good enough to claim Denmark’s first World Cup of Golf victory.

French duo Victor Dubuisson and Romain Langasque led the chasing pack four strokes back, with China’s Wu Ashun and Li Haotong and America’s Rickie Fowler and Jimmy Walker also finishing on the same score. How did the English team fare? A T13th finish for the little and large duo of Sullivan and Wood – respectable but not what they were hoping for at the start of the week.

The Turkish Airlines Open was a mere formality with one round left to play as Denmark’s Thorbjørn Olesen opened up a seven-shot lead thanks to some sublime golf over the first three days.

However it was a slow start to Sunday for the 26-year-old: level-par through 11 holes saw his lead reduced to just the solitary shot as England’s David Horsey found himself six-under after 12 and hot on Olesen’s heels. It’s at times such as these when you find out what a person is made of; and three birdies in the following four holes all but secured the Turkish Airlines Open for the talented Dane – even allowing him to drop a shot on the closing straight.

Having made just three of his last 12 cuts, this triumph was a welcome relief for Thorbjørn Olesen and means it is his third consecutive season with victory on the European Tour.

What equipment did Olesen use?

Driver: TaylorMade M1, Mitsubishi Kuro Kage XT 70 TX

Fairway Woods: TaylorMade M2, Tour AD 8X Black

Irons: TaylorMade PSi Tour, Project X 6.5 shafts

Wedges: TaylorMade TP EF, Project X 6.5 shafts

"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.

This week’s Ryder Cup is one of the most eagerly-anticipated match-ups of all time. Nine of the top 12 golfers in the Official World Golf Rankings descend upon Hazeltine National to do battle over three hotly-contested days.

We’ve known the DNA of the European Team for quite a few weeks now, as Captain Clarke opted for Westwood, Kaymer and Pieters as his wildcard selections. It’s certainly a combination of experience (McIlroy, Stenson, Garcia and Westwood) and youthful exuberance (Willett, Pieters, Sullivan and Fitzpatrick) as six players make their Ryder Cup debuts this time round. We’re not going to use the term ‘rookie’ here as players like Willett – who is one of those making his first bow – have tonnes of tour-level experience and in Willett’s case, is a Major champion!

On the other hand, the American Team contains only two newbies as Captain Davis Love III has assembled the ’best team ever’ in his own words – and that was before his fourth and final wildcard pick was announced! Love III had already chosen Kuchar, Holmes and Fowler as three of his four wildcard picks before last week’s FedEx Cup finale, with Ryan Moore’s play-off defeat to McIlroy enough to see him make the team over the likes of two-time Masters Champion Bubba Watson. Having not missed a cut since mid-May, can anyone really question Moore’s inclusion in the US Team?

So, the teams are in, but who will come out on top? USA will be keen to exact revenge on their European counterparts, having lost six of the last seven Ryder Cups and eight of the past 10. In all honesty, the United States’ line-up is superior. They have home advantage. More players based on the PGA Tour. They’ve been humiliated at Gleneagles and suffered the Miracle of Medinah last time the event was played in the States. Many people expect them to triumph.

However, given that Love III is claiming this is the best team ever assembled, the pressure will be heaped upon the Americans’ shoulders. And should they lose, well, the criticism they will face will be painful. The Europeans will be happy to be underdogs this time round, but it’s not going to be a one-sided demolition – that’s for certain.
Let the battle commence.

When the stakes are at their biggest and tension is high, it takes a special type of character to stay calm and produce their best golf. So when there’s a cool $10 million bonus up for grabs, this is the exact situation that many of the world’s best encountered this week at the TOUR Championship.

Home favourite Dustin Johnson was in the lead after 54 holes, with both the tournament and the FedEx Cup in his control. Europe’s best hope was Rory McIlroy and the equation for him to secure the jackpot was quite simple – win the tournament with Johnson finishing in T2 or worse.

So onto the final round and no-one saw what happened coming. Big-hitting Johnson had been a model of consistency in recent weeks so many thought it was a mere formality that the American would waltz to victory. However, a worst-of-the-day 73 saw him plummet down the leaderboard, blowing the TOUR Championship and FedEx Cup wide open again.

McIlroy, starting the final round just two shots off the lead, carded a magnificent six-under-par 64 to join Moore and Chappell in a three-way play-off. Being three behind the leaders with three holes left to play, things weren’t looking great for the Northern Irishman. Rory found himself on the left-hand side of the 16th fairway off the tee. 137 yards was the number, an eagle two was the result. A truly magnificent feat when it was needed the most. He then went on to follow this up with a birdie at the 72nd hole to join the two Americans at the top of the leaderboard.

An eagle lip-out at the first extra hole for McIlroy secured an easy birdie, but it wasn’t until the fourth extra hole when McIlroy rolled in a 15-footer to take golf’s biggest (monetary) prize. Perfect timing to find some form ahead of this week’s Ryder Cup.

What equipment did Rory use?

• Driver – Nike Vapor Fly Pro (9.5 degrees)
• Fairway woods – Nike Vapor Speed (15 & 19 degrees)
• Irons – Nike VR Pro Blade (4-9)
• Wedges – Nike Engage (47, 52, 56 & 59)
• Putter – Scotty Cameron