Max Homa on changing to Titleist TS4 driver, switching equipment, and why he marks his golf ball with a '25'

The 2019 Wells Fargo Championship wasn’t just a breakthrough win for Max Homa, but for Titleist’s new TS4 driver, too. Titleist launched its new, lower-spinning TS4 driver to the PGA TOUR at the 2019 Valero Texas Open last month, and Homa used it to win his first ever PGA TOUR title at the Wells Fargo.

Following his victory, PGATOUR.COM caught up with Homa to speak on his experience with the new Titleist driver, as well as his club testing process, advice for amateurs on switching equipment, how he uses Trackman, playing a shaft because Tiger Woods plays it, the new Pro V1 2019 golf ball, and why he marks his golf ball with a “25.”

Enjoy the full Q&A below!

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PGATOUR.COM: When did you start using the TS4 and why’d you switch?

Homa: At the Valero, the week it came out. I was not planning on switching because I really liked the TS3, but when we did the numbers on Trackman, they were just… the only thing that changed was spin and the smash factor was up. It wasn’t that big of a change. I really liked that the spin came down because I tend to over-spin it. We used it in the first practice round and it didn’t go as well as it went on the range, but I had some faith in it. Wednesday came around and I hit it a lot better on the course and threw it in the bag. It helped me out obviously for the last couple weeks.

On Trackman, exactly what spin reduction were you seeing?

I guess it’s hard to say. It wasn’t crazy, but I’ve always strived to be between 2200 and 2400 [rpm] if I’m hitting one normal. And it was down there around 2300-2400. The big thing for me is most times when I get a driver that’s lower-spinning it gets way crazy, like 1800-1900, and I need a little more spin to keep it on line. So it was more so my misses changed a lot. My misses went to like 2800-2900 instead of like 3200.

What’s your typical testing process like, whether it’s driver, fairway woods, irons, etc.? Do you spend a lot of time on Trackman? Does it take you a long time typically to make a change?

No, I’m pretty easy. I’m very visual, so as long as I like what it looks like and how it feels and what the ball flight is I’m pretty good. Now that I can use Trackman I do look a little bit at numbers just to see, more so the misses. I think golf clubs these days are so good that a good shot is always going to look pretty good on Trackman. But I like when I heel it or toe it or something I can see how the dispersion is minimized. That’s what I use as my process. Obviously you still have to go on the course and it’s got to still work because numbers are great on the range, but it has to work on the course. But so far everything I’ve had with Titleist I’ve been able to put in the bag fairly quickly.

When did you start using Titleist products?

Starting in high school, maybe senior year of high school going into college. I think Jim Ahern helped me out and get some stuff. But I’ve been a Titleist guy through the bag pretty much my whole… since I can remember. I would guess senior year of high school, maybe 2009.

So you’ve had a long history with Titleist. How would you say the new TS drivers in general stack up against the previous Titleist drivers you’ve played in the past?

They’re definitely the hottest, for sure. The other ones I’ve always loved because they look great and they felt great. I didn’t think they went maybe quite the farthest, but it sure was consistent and predictable. But ever since the TS came out, I finally got my ball speed up quite a bit, which is obviously good. And it still has the traditional look, which I love. These drivers are easily the longest I’ve played, so that’s obviously been a huge bonus.

Aside from the TS line, what’s been your favorite Titleist driver since you started using the equipment?

Oh my gosh, that’s hard. I loved the [983K] driver back in the day. Man that’s a hard question. I really don’t have one. To be honest, they’re all built so similarly as far as the look goes and I’m very visual. So they’ve all been similar in that regard so it’s hard to differentiate. I didn’t have a Trackman until last year so it wasn’t easy to be able to tell the differences in all these numbers. So in the past year-and-a-half or so that’s why I’ve been able to see the TS has been great, because it’s been a lot easier for me and more tangible to be able to see what the benefits are with the driver.

You said you just got a Trackman last year, would you say that Trackman has helped you improve your game?

Yeah, for sure. I don’t use it a ton with my full swing; I do here and there. Obviously it’s great for testing product and ball and whatnot. I use it mostly for my short irons for distances. But yeah it’s helped a lot. It’s so much easier when you’re trying a new Titleist product or whatever because I can grab it and put it on Trackman and I can see very quickly, ‘OK, this one’s better here.’ There’s your benefit right there. So it has been very helpful. Obviously I’ve been playing well ever since I got it so I don’t think that’s a major coincidence.

Would you say you were a feel player before this data-driven movement?

Yeah, I’m a feel player as far as I play a lot of golf with my eyes, but I’m technical with my golf swing. When it comes to clubs, like I said, it’s a lot of feel. It’s a lot of being on the course and knowing I can hit the shot with it: low, high, draw, cut, whatever. Trackman hasn’t made me much different in that regard, it just has helped me validate and prove to myself how the ball needs to be hit to get it to do what I want it to do, and the ideal numbers for me to get the ball to do what I want it to do.

What advice would you have for amateurs who maybe switch too much, or not switch enough? When do you know is the right time to make a big club change?

I think even for an amateur golfer, if you make a swing that feels good and on balance, just generally tight -- I know it’s different at every level, but I feel like everyone knows when it feels good – and the ball still doesn’t fly right, I feel you should take a peak at switching something out. For me, I knew my good swings were fine, it wasn’t the golf club’s fault. I don’t switch too often; it’s hard to make me switch. But I would say in general, if I do make a great swing and I see the ball float, or do something funny, that’s when my ears perk up and I will tend to go look around and see if there’s something that I can change with my Titleist equipment to make it more… I guess everyone’s looking for something more repeatable or more predictable. That’s my general advice.

Shaft-wise, you’re playing the counterbalanced [Mitsubishi] Tensei Orange, which was a pretty popular shaft last year and continues to be, but what do you like about that shaft?

Well Tiger used it, so I pretty much copied him (laughs). It feels tight; it’s very stiff. I think I switched to it in Omaha, the first time I switched a shaft in a while, and it was the first one that I could swing really hard and not lose it. I felt like before I had to swing in perfect rhythm or it would kick at a funny point. I felt like this one was more of a telephone-pole type feel where it didn’t really have much kick at the bottom. So if I went at it really hard I didn’t have to be so worried about it being a little bit late and having a big right miss for me. Ever since I switched to that it felt like I’ve had a little bit more room for error if I wanted to give it a little extra.

You made a recent switch with the golf ball, too? You switched to the new 2019 version?

Yeah, I think whenever it came out. I tested it for a couple weeks and I love that ball because I feel like it’s a bit of a hybrid ball between the X and the regular Pro V1. I feel like it’s quite soft. I’ve always liked the soft feel of Titleist golf balls, especially the black. I use to play the red just because the spin came down, which has always been my thing. I feel like this ball does not spin a lot with the long stuff, but around the greens it’s soft enough where you still have that nice feel with the chips and the putts, which is probably the most important thing to me. So it was nice to switch to that ball. Before I tried that left-dot Pro V1 and was bouncing around between the red and the black, but this ball really does feel like an in-between golf ball that blends a bit better.

Do you mark your golf ball in any special way?

Yeah, I put a black line on it and I put a 25. If I’m playing a No. 2 ball I’ll put a 5 next to the 2, and if not I’ll put a 25 over the Titleist if it’s not a No. 2.

What’s 25 mean for you?

My buddy passed away in college and it was his high school basketball number, so I just put it on my golf ball as a little reminder.