“Joining the Nike family is a dream come true," Williams said. "They have the most talented athletes and I am excited to be a part of this elite group,” Williams said. “I am especially impressed with my new equipment and with the engineers at The Oven. Their passion and knowledge is amazing. I am excited about taking my game to new heights at the professional level with Nike Golf.”

Williams isn't the first high-profile amateur to make his professional debut at the Travelers Championship. Last year, Patrick Cantlay, who was the top-ranked amateur in the world at the time, turned pro at the very same event. 

Lee Westwood used an Aldila Rogue shaft on his PING G25 driver at Merion. (Cannon/Getty Images)

By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider

Equipment changes the week of a major championship are usually few and far between. However, that didn't stop Jason Day from pulling his TaylorMade RocketBladez 2-iron — built to 1-iron specs — and replacing it with a TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC 2-iron. Day used the MC 2-iron at the Masters en route to a third-place finish. He also opted for a 54-degree TaylorMade ATV wedge that he felt was better suited for Merion's course conditions.

Phil Mickelson has used a blade-style, heel-shafted putter for years. (Kinnaird/Getty Images)

In this week's U.S. Open edition of the Equipment Report Mailbag, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider Jonathan Wall discusses Phil Mickelson's Odyssey Versa putter, players switching to TaylorMade's R1 Black at the U.S. Open and KBS's C-Taper shaft. 

Have a question about the latest golf equipment or what the pros are playing? Send a tweet to @jonathanrwall.

Credit: Getty Images

By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider

Lee Westwood likely won't win his first major championship this week after posting 7-over 77 on Friday. But when it comes to equipment, there's no question the Englishman wins the award for having the most unique item in the U.S. Open field.

In search of a tip stiff driver shaft that could produce a flatter ball flight at Merion, Westwood swapped out the Aldila Tour ATX 65 3.0TX in his PING G25 driver — 11.5 degrees instead of his standard 10.5 degrees — and went with a prototype Aldila Rogue shaft.

Shaft manufacturers have experimented with different materials over the years in an effort to change, among other things, kick point, torque and ball flight. While there are plenty of high quality shafts on the market, Aldila's Rogue could be the most advanced.

According to John Oldenburg, Aldila's Vice President Engineering/Product Development, the shaft uses a very expensive, extremely stiff petroleum based carbon fiber that is typically used for aerospace applications — like satellites, where extreme stiffness and ultra-lightweight materials are required. 

The material used to design the shaft is nearly twice as stiff as any material Aldila has used in the past. The tensile modulus (stiffness) is 125 million pounds per square inch (msi); typical carbon fibers historically used in shafts have ranged from 33 msi to 65 msi. 

"In terms most people can understand, the material is four times stiffer than steel but less than a third of the weight," Oldenburg said. "The Rogue shaft is built on our ultra-successful new “TOUR” platform (same tooling and technology as the Tour Green and Tour Blue).  By incorporating this new material we are able to make the shaft stiffer and lower torque without adding weight."

By placing the material in the top third of the shaft, Aldila was able to slightly counterbalance the shaft to work with heavier driver heads and the longer length of today's drivers.  

The low torque and increased stiffness of Rogue makes it the preferred shaft for players with high swing speeds looking to control launch angle and reduce spin — something Westwood wanted when he made the switch.

The company only made 24 Rogue shafts and brought them all out for the first time to the U.S. Open. The shafts were serialized (1 through 24) with a laser engraved number on the shaft. Westwood was the first player to put the shaft in play and received the shaft marked “1 of 24”.

At the moment, the shaft is a TOUR-only model, but Oldenburg said if there's sufficient demand for Rogue, there could be a limited commercial run. The price tag for one of these shafts would likely be around $1,000 each.

Rory McIlroy says he will hit driver around seven times on Merion's short layout.

By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider

ARDMORE, Pa. — Firm and fast. It's a term oft-used to describe U.S. Open courses in the past, but following several days of torrential downpours at Merion Golf Club that delayed play on numerous occasions Monday and nearly put the par-4 11th under water, the mindset of every player in the field changed.

"It's a real shame that we've had so much rain," Luke Donald said on Tuesday. "I think that most people would really like to see this course play firm and fast. And I don't think we're going to get that this week. But it's a good challenge, this course. I think if it was firm and fast this course, even despite the length, would hold up just as well as any other U.S. Open course."

At just under 7,000 yards (6,996 yards, to be exact), Merion is the shortest course in major championship history since Shinnecock Hills Golf Club (6,996 yards) hosted the U.S. Open in 2004. While length and lightning-fast green may not be an issue this week, players will have to contend with a number of other hurdles — namely the potential for mud balls in the narrow fairway, the course's diabolical rough and three lengthy par-3s over 230-plus yards.

"I've been saying this is the longest short course I've ever played," Steve Stricker said. "Everybody's told me how short it is and I've been wearing out 3-irons and utilities into some of these holes. So it's fairly long and it's still going to be very difficult."

Given the current conditions at Merion, players have been working with a number of different clubs in preparation for Thursday's first round. Here's a look at what they could have in the bag.

Driver, fairway woods and hybrids: Forget about getting a couple extra yards of rollout on tee shots; players will have to worry about mud balls more than anything else off the tee, which likely means you want see many players going with extra loft to keep the ball in the air, or less loft to get additional roll.

Of course, that's assuming the driver even makes it out of the bag. Luke Donald, one of the shorter hitters on the PGA TOUR, said he only hit five drivers during a recent practice round.

"I think there's only a couple of holes I probably only hit five drivers out there this week," Donald said. "Looking at the course, 5, 6 and 18, holes where I'd like to get a little bit of roll after my tee shots, because they're very long and I'm going to have long shots in. I'm going to lose that roll."

As far as fairway woods go, they could be the go-to club for a number of players in the field like Phil Mickelson, who went back to using his Callaway X Hot 3Deep fairway wood off the tee in Memphis in preparation for the U.S. Open. Mickelson can work the club in both directions and was averaging over 300 yards last week, two things that could come in handy at soggy Merion.

On the flip side, there's always the chance you could see players be a little more aggressive and go with just a driver or long iron like 2011 U.S. Open winner Rory McIlroy.

"I imagine I'll hit seven drivers out here," McIlroy said. "So I'll still play quite aggressively off the tee. But it's funny, there's seven drivers and then there's a lot of irons. So it's sort of there's not really many where you're hitting a 3 wood or 5 wood, it's sort of like driver or iron and that's sort of weighing how most guys will approach it this week."

And then there's the group considering higher lofted fairway woods and hybrids. Bubba Watson and Hunter Mahan tested PING G25 7-woods on Tuesday as an option for shots out of the thick rough — the wider sole helps get the ball out the rough — and to fill a specific yardage gap.

Irons: When it comes to irons, you won't see many players tinker with the setup the week of a major. You will, however, see some consider different long iron options as an alternative to the standard fairway wood or hybrid.

Rory McIlroy goes between a Nike VR Pro Combo 2-iron and 19-degree Nike VR_S Covert, depending on the course conditions. McIlroy confirmed he'll likely stick with the 2-iron this week, but he was going to make a final decision following his practice round on Tuesday.

Jason Day could use his TaylorMade RocketBladez 1-iron with a 125-gram UST Mamiya Recoil Proto shaft, or go back to his go-to long iron — a TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC 2-iron.

Other players might opt to go with a driving iron at Merion. Titleist's 712U or Adam's DHy have more forgiveness than the traditional long iron with a similar ball flight.

There's also a select group that could pull their long irons for easier to hit options like Cleveland's 588MT. Keegan Bradley is currently using a 588MT 4-iron — he said it goes the distance of a standard 3-iron — instead of a carrying a 588TC 3-iron. He was also testing a 588MT 2-iron in the run-up to the U.S. Open to potentially use as a "bullet" iron off the tee.

Wedges: Fresh grooves have become almost become a prerequisite at the U.S. Open — when the greens are playing firm and fast. Dustin Johnson picked up a new set of face plates for his TaylorMade TP xFT wedges, and Sergio Garcia added new TaylorMade ATV wedges (50, 58 degrees) with fresh grooves. Holding the green is crucial at the second major of the year.

However, with soft conditions around the greens, players could opt to pass on extra bite and add more bounce to their wedges or go with a different grind that has wider sole and a prominent trailing edge that prevents digging.

Putter: Depending on the weather between now and Thursday morning, Merion's greens could be rolling slower than usual. The USGA went out to the 14th green on Tuesday and confirmed it was rolling 12.4 on the Stimpmeter.

While that's not exactly slow by TOUR standards, Tiger Woods hinted players are already adding lead tape to the putter head to help them adjust to the the slower-than-usual greens.

"The mindset coming into a U.S. Open is they're going to be hard and fast and crusty," Woods said. "But that's obviously not going to materialize this week with this weather. Some of the guys are already throwing lead [tape] on their putters, and getting a little more weight behind it to try and adjust."

By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider

The U.S. Open logo from TaylorMade points to a funny story from Merion's past. (Courtesy: Taylor Made)

By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider

For the past 10 years, TaylorMade has unveiled a unique logo at each major to commemorate the event. Each item in the logo has a special meaning, and this year's U.S. Open logo is no different.

Here's a guide to the U.S. Open logo:

1. Merion Golf Club has been the site of some memorable U.S. Open moments over the years. The iconic image of Ben Hogan hitting a 1-iron to the 18th green during the 1950 U.S. Open is without a doubt the one the course is remembered for.

So why did TaylorMade make the snake the central figure in the logo? You have to go back to the 1971 U.S. Open at Merion for the answer. Tied after 72 holes, Lee Trevino and Jack Nicklaus returned to the course the following day for an 18-hole playoff. Prior to the start of the playoff, Trevino's daughter put a rubber snake in her dad's golf bag as a joke and, as the story goes, Trevino tossed the snake in Nicklaus' direction.

Contrary to some reports, Trevino tossed it Nicklaus' way not to unnerve him, but because he had asked to see the rubber snake. The lighthearted moment drew a chuckle from both players and the gallery on the first tee.

The snake wound around the bell evokes the universal symbol for medicine — a snake wrapped around a staff — which, according to TaylorMade, is a reference to the 1934 and 1950 U.S. Open winners at Merion. Olin Dutra came back from Amoebic Dysentery the year before winning the 1934 U.S. Open, and Ben Hogan returned from a horrific car accident in 1949 to win the 1950 U.S. Open.

2. The snake's rattle is shaped and colored like Merion's red wicker baskets that rest atop the flag sticks on Merion's East Course — site of this year's U.S. Open — and are the official symbol of the club. The course architect got the idea from English sheepherders, who put round wicker baskets on their staffs to protect their lunch from wildlife.

3. The Liberty Bell is an icon of American independence and the city of Philadelphia. The bell is located 10 miles from Merion Golf Club in Independence Hall.

4. The letters MMXIII at the top of the bell are the Roman numerals for 2013.

Titleist's 712U driving irons are forged with a hollow body, which makes them easier to hit. (Courtesy: Titleist)

In this week's edition of the Equipment Report Mailbag, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider Jonathan Wall discusses Titleist's 712U driving iron, PING's 2013/14 lineup and TaylorMade's R1 Black driver.

Have a question about the latest golf equipment or what the pros are playing? Send a tweet to @jonathanrwall.

Question: Any idea if/when the Titleist 712U Driving Irons will be available to the public? More specifically Canadian public?!

@jonathanrwall any idea if/when the Titleist 712U Driving Irons will be available to the public? More specifically Canadian public?!

— Kyle Dixon (@kyldxn) June 5, 2013

Answer: I actually wrote something up on Titleist's 712U back in April when the company officially announced it was coming to retail. For those of you unfamiliar with the club, it's a forged utility iron that boasts a forged, hollow-body 1025 steel construction with a high-speed 455 carpenter steel face insert; a deep center of gravity that's positioned for a higher MOI that delivers increased stability and playability when compared to a traditional long iron; and a wider, camber sole design that promotes clean turf interaction.

Adam Scott had a 712U 2-iron in the bag when he won the Masters, and I've seen Geoff Ogilvy and Tim Clark using it as well. The club is a great option if you're looking for an easy-to-hit long iron.

As far as the release date, the 712U is currently available via custom order and comes in three lofts (18, 21 and 24 degrees). You can also order one if you live in Canada, so have at it, Kyle!

Question: Typically PING follows a 2 year rotation on equipment. Any news on the 2013/2014 iron line up?

@jonathanrwall typically Ping follows a 2 year rotation on equipment. Any news on the 2013/2014 iron line up?

— Jason Hodkowski (@jphodko) June 5, 2013

Answer: Great question, Jason. There are a couple equipment manufacturers out there that usually don't release new equipment on a yearly basis. PING happens to be one of them, releasing a new lineup about every 18 to 24 months.

I had a chance to talk to Pete Samuels, PING's Director of Communications, and he said the company doesn't normally comment on the timing of new products. So while I'd love to give you a timeframe, you'll just have to keep watching this space for information in the future.

However, if I was a betting man, I'd guess you may see something from them later this year. The Anser and G25 lines came out recently, so your best bet is probably the new i25 lineup.

PING's i20 line was unveiled on January 1, 2011, which means we could see something in the not too distant future. Again, that's pure conjecture on my part, but it would make sense if PING was going on the usual release cycle.

Question: Black or white TaylorMade R1?

@jonathanrwall Black or white R1?

— Nick Rozga (@NickRozga) June 5, 2013

Answer: To be honest, it all comes down to personal preference. The two drivers have the same specs and features — 168 possible adjustment settings, 12 loft-sleeve settings and 7 face-angle positions — so you're not going to an advantage using one over the other.

I was in Memphis this week at the FedEx St. Jude Classic and had the opportunity to watch Dustin Johnson, Boo Weekley, Peter Hanson, Casey Wittenberg and a number of other players try out R1 Black on the range.

Some guys like Dustin and Casey loved the driver from the get-go and put it in play right away. Others tried it out and liked the club's performance but decided to stick with the white R1. Boo Weekley even mentioned the black version looked a little shut to him at address. Mind you, that's Boo's personal opinion.

My answer to your question is to try both and see which one suits your eye.

Photo credit: @GregSabellaCG

By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider

To commemorate the 2013 U.S. Open at Merion Golf Club, Odyssey is releasing a USA-themed Versa #7 putter, limited to 250 pieces. The limited-edition version performs the same as the standard white-black-white Versa #7, however, Odyssey decided to make this one unique by adding a blue line to the bottom and white White Hot insert.

The insert and line on the standard white-black-white model are usually black. Each putter is individually stamped on the sole and comes with a custom Odyssey USA putter cover.

The putter measures 35 inches and has a head weight of 343 grams. It carries a suggested retail price of $249 (right-hand only).

The Versa #7 has been a popular model this season. Rickie Fowler switched to the putter at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard and still has it in the bag; Dustin Johnson, Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson Ernie Els and Freddie Jacobson have also worked with the #7 at some point in the past few months.

(Photo courtesy Kentwool)

By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM Equipment Insider

For the second straight year, KENTWOOL will release a limited edition sock for the U.S. Open. The Tour Profile sock is slated to be worn by Bubba Watson during the week at Merion.

The 2012 Masters winner wore these exact same socks at last year's U.S. Open at Olympic Club. Crafted from a blend of merino wool and high-tech fibers that create a micro-climate system for superior moisture wicking and odor control, it comes in a red, white and blue version that's currently available for $19.95 per pair.