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11D AGO

Rory McIlroy's ball swap, Robert MacIntyre’s 'stolen' Scotty among notable gear stories at AT&T Pebble Beach

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    Written by Alistair Cameron @ACameronPGATOUR

    With the biggest stars battling the links on the Monterey Peninsula at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and Rory McIlroy claiming his 27th victory on the PGA TOUR, it’s a perfect time to take a moment and go through all the major equipment updates that you might have missed.

    McIlroy debuted a different golf ball during his emphatic victory, but there were plenty of talking points from a busy week for gear stories on the TOUR. Check out the full report from Pebble Beach Golf Links.

    McIlroy’s ball swap not the only difference-maker

    Even for McIlroy’s emphatic victory, there was an element of luck that went into winning. His 27 PGA TOUR victory came partly off the back of a ball swap sparked from stumbling upon the TaylorMade TP5 golf ball while “messing around” at Michael Jordan’s Grove XXIII golf club.

    “I just started to hit some chips with the (TaylorMade) TP5 instead of the TP5x and I really loved how I felt,” McIlroy said after the first round. “... I loved how it was reacting around the greens. And then I started hitting some like 60, 70-yard shots with it and it was coming off much lower launch, but spinnier.”

    McIlroy put the TP5 to the test at the AT&T Pebble Beach, where he ran away with things on the final nine to collect his first victory of the season. But it wasn’t just a new ball that helped him to victory. McIlroy switched to a different lob wedge to start the season in hopes of getting more comfortable around the greens.

    “I went from a 59-degree to a 61-degree,” McIlroy said after winning. “I went two more degrees on my lob wedge … just a little bit of loft just for some of those short-sided chips and a little bit better out of the rough. … It’s my go-to, but two more degrees, it just makes a little bit more of a difference.”

    McIlroy previously played a 59-degree Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks lob wedge before transitioning back to a TaylorMade MG4, this time with added loft, with his primary focus on improving consistency.


    A look at Rory McIlroy's TaylorMade MG4 60-degree wedge which is bent to 61 degrees. (TaylorMade)

    A look at Rory McIlroy's TaylorMade MG4 60-degree wedge which is bent to 61 degrees. (TaylorMade)

    A look at Rory McIlroy's TaylorMade MG4 60-degree wedge which is bent to 61 degrees. (TaylorMade)

    A look at Rory McIlroy's TaylorMade MG4 60-degree wedge which is bent to 61 degrees. (TaylorMade)

    A look at Rory McIlroy's TaylorMade MG4 60-degree wedge which is bent to 61 degrees. (TaylorMade)

    A look at Rory McIlroy's TaylorMade MG4 60-degree wedge which is bent to 61 degrees. (TaylorMade)


    “My short game last year was a little up and down,” McIlroy said. "I would have a good week, then I'd have a bad week. There wasn't a ton of consistency in it. The up-and-down on one for example today, it's a big up-and-down just to get things going. The up-and-down on four, same sort of thing.”

    The 61-degree also helps McIlroy with his pitching, an area of the game he struggled with last year. He ranked 134th on the TOUR on approaches from 50 to 75 yards in 2024. The added loft and different leading edge allow McIlroy to be more confident on swings, which he has been trying to do with his shorter clubs.

    “The 61-degree also makes hitting the 40-70 yard shots much easier,” said Keith Sbarbaro, TaylorMade vice president of Tour operations. “He can put more of a hit on it to get the lower launch and spin than he could at 59-degree.”

    MacIntyre’s 'stolen' Scotty

    Despite being one of the better putters on TOUR last season, ranking 35th in Strokes Gained: Putting, Robert MacIntyre admitted he’s struggled on the greens to start the 2025 season. So, like most pros do, he went searching for something new. But even for the 16th-ranked player in the world, it’s difficult to find clubs being a lefty.

    “It was actually a funny story,” MacIntyre said jokingly prior to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. “It’s (the new putter) one of the Tour reps in Europe ... I'd been struggling a little bit, and yeah, he was the only left-handed putter in the Middle East, and yeah, I've stolen it.”

    The only putter he could find was a Scotty Cameron T5.5 Prototype in a black metal finish and the Tour-style welded small-slant neck. Arguably, the best part, though, is the bright pink grip that the Tour rep uses that MacIntyre kept equipped.

    “It's got a nice pink grip just to almost give me a bit of a laugh when I'm out there,” MacIntyre joked. “I'm sure I'll get some people shouting at me.”

    Glover finally finds replacement

    Lucas Glover’s T3 finish at Pebble Beach was a return to the form that saw him win back-to-back in 2023. Glover’s better play was helped by switching into the new Srixon ZXi LS driver. It’s been a searching game from Glover, who has been trying to find a replacement for the older Srixon Z785 that he used for both his wins, which had unfortunately cracked.

    Lucas Glover using the Srixon ZXi LS driver at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

    Lucas Glover using the Srixon ZXi LS driver at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

    “He had used the previous Srixon driver in his recent wins," said Michael Jolly, Srixon's director of Tour operations. “That one cracked and he struggled to find a replacement. With this new one, he saw some faster ball speeds than what he was using. He needs to be able to draw it and was able to do that with ease.”

    It’s no surprise that Glover played well with the new Srixon ZXi LS head, as the previous Z785 promoted lower spin rates than other drivers when released in 2018. Glover sits 25th in Total Driving for the season after being below the TOUR average at 92nd for 2024.

    Other noteworthy notices

    With four rounds guaranteed and a mixture of different greens to putt on with the two-course rotation of Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill Golf Course, AT&T Pebble Beach proved to be a popular spot for new putters to be tested.

    Most noteworthy was Tom Kim, who, after using the new Scotty Cameron Studio Style Newport 2 in his TGL debut match alongside Jupiter Links teammate Tiger Woods, stuck with the blade putter at Pebble Beach for a T7 finish. While the return to the blade from the mallet was a big change for Kim, a main talking point regarding the new putter was the interesting topline design.

    Two white lines are painted on top of the putter head: one parallel to the head and the other perpendicular. The new design helps with Kim’s change after he stopped using a line on his ball to line up similar to his good friend Scottie Scheffler.

    Also at the top of the leaderboard was Justin Rose, who, after using an all-new Axis1 prototype putter head that he helped co-design at the Farmers Insurance Open, returned to the Scotty Cameron T-5 mallet putter for Pebble Beach and finished tied for third. Fellow TGL star Adam Scott raced up the leaderboard with a final-round 64 after making the switch Sunday to the new L.A.B Oz.1 putter in his custom blue color scheme. Scott gained over three strokes on the greens in Round 4.


    Adam Scott holes 21-footer for birdie at AT&T Pebble Beach

    Adam Scott holes 21-footer for birdie at AT&T Pebble Beach


    Tommy Fleetwood debuted a new look on the California coast. Don’t worry, his locks were still flowing, but the Englishman sported a new paint job on the custom TaylorMade TP Soto Truss TF Prototype putter. The putter uses TaylorMade’s Truss neck technology to create multiple contact points along with the top line of the putter to help reduce the amount of unsupported torque and twist during the stroke. At Pebble Beach, it had a black paint makeover along with Fleetwood’s signature engraved onto the sole.


    A look at Tommy Fleetwood's custom TaylorMade TP Soto Truss TF Prototype putter with his signature engraved on the sole. (GolfWRX)

    A look at Tommy Fleetwood's custom TaylorMade TP Soto Truss TF Prototype putter with his signature engraved on the sole. (GolfWRX)

    A look at Tommy Fleetwood's newly-painted custom TaylorMade TP Soto Truss TF Prototype putter. (GolfWRX)

    A look at Tommy Fleetwood's newly-painted custom TaylorMade TP Soto Truss TF Prototype putter. (GolfWRX)

    A look at Tommy Fleetwood's newly-painted custom TaylorMade TP Soto Truss TF Prototype putter. (GolfWRX

    A look at Tommy Fleetwood's newly-painted custom TaylorMade TP Soto Truss TF Prototype putter. (GolfWRX


    Another week, another putter for Hideki Matsuyama. Despite debuting a center-shafted Scotty Cameron 009M Tour Prototype and setting the scoring record with his win at The Sentry, Matsuyama switched to a different model at Pebble. The newest Matsuyama model combines the same center shaft and black metal head but with a Craftsman Squareback model and dot sightline, which he previously used to win during the 2024 FedEx St. Jude Championship. Matsuyama finished the week 44th in SG: Putting, so don’t be surprised to see a different flatstick in Phoenix.

    A detailed view of the new Scotty Cameron putter used by Hideki Matsuyama. (Keyur Khamar/PGA TOUR)

    A detailed view of the new Scotty Cameron putter used by Hideki Matsuyama. (Keyur Khamar/PGA TOUR)

    Finally, while on-site in California, GolfWRX also spotted Akshay Bhatia testing a new putter before competition started. An avid user of the broomstick putter, Bhatia was trying out an Odyssey Ten head, which he has used in the past, but with a center shaft. Odyssey recently released their Square 2 Square face-balanced range, and from photos captured by GolfWRX, it looks like Odyssey was testing the same technology in a long putter, with the shaft angled further back in the head and towards the center.


    Akshay Bhatia's prototype broomstick-style Odyssey Ten putter at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (GolfWRX)

    Akshay Bhatia's prototype broomstick-style Odyssey Ten putter at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (GolfWRX)

    Akshay Bhatia's prototype broomstick-syle Odyssey Ten putter using a center shaft at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (GolfWRX)

    Akshay Bhatia's prototype broomstick-syle Odyssey Ten putter using a center shaft at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (GolfWRX)

    Akshay Bhatia's prototype broomstick Odyssey Ten putter head at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (GolfWRX)

    Akshay Bhatia's prototype broomstick Odyssey Ten putter head at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. (GolfWRX)


    Special mentions

    For the 40th anniversary of AT&T’s sponsorship at Pebble Beach, Jordan Spieth and Maverick McNealy showed off custom bags for the event. Each bag featured a colorful image of the scenic 17-Mile Drive, the famous gopher from “Caddyshack” and embroidery displaying AT&T’s “Birdies for Students” campaign, which raises money for birdies made at Pebble Beach’s iconic par-3 17th. Spieth’s bag also featured patches to commemorate his 2017 win.

    A look at Jordan Spieth's custom AT&T bag for Pebble Beach. (GolfWRX)

    A look at Jordan Spieth's custom AT&T bag for Pebble Beach. (GolfWRX)

    Alistair is a senior staff member at the PGA TOUR covering equipment. Born and raised in England, he played golf professionally on the European Alps Tour before joining the PGA TOUR. Follow Alistair Cameron on Twitter.