Nineteen-Year-Old Yuka Saso Wins the 2021 U.S. Women's Open

By Zack R., Team Titleist Staff On 7 June 2021 Balls Tour Video Clubs

LPGA | U.S. Women’s Open

Playing a NEW Pro V1 golf ball, 19-year-old Yuka Saso rolled in a 10-footer for birdie on the third playoff hole to become the second teenager to win the U.S. Women’s Open and the first person from the Philippines to win a major championship.

  • After a slow start to her final round, Saso played the final 15 holes at Olympic Club in 2 under, including consecutive birdies on Nos. 16 and 17, to force the playoff.
  • Titleist golf ball players have now won 11 of the first 12 LPGA Tour events to start 2021.

SASO’S NEW PRO V1

  • Yuka Saso switched to the NEW Pro V1 following a pair of victories on the JLPGA in 2020 while playing the prior generation Pro V1 model.
  • Saso, who currently leads the JLPGA in driving distance prefers the softer feel of the 2021 Pro V1 and has seen improved distance control with better short-game performance.

PGA TOUR | The Memorial Tournament

Clutch putting down the stretch propelled Titleist Brand Ambassador Patrick Cantlay to his second victory at The Memorial in three years.

  • Cantlay – playing a Pro V1x golf ball and bag full of Titleist equipment, including a NEW Scotty Cameron Phantom X 5 putter – dropped a 24-footer for birdie on the 17th hole to ultimately force a playoff, which he won with a 12-footer for par on the first extra hole.
  • For the week, Cantlay ranked fifth or better in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (3rd), Approach to the Green (5th) and Around the Green (5th).
  • He hit 75 percent of greens in regulation (54 of 72), which tied for first, and led the field in par-4 scoring (3.83).
  • With the win, Cantlay becomes the fourth player this season with multiple victories on tour, following his first title at October’s Zozo Championship at Sherwood, and jumps to the top of the FedExCup Standings.

WHAT’S IN PATRICK CANTLAY’S BAG?

Golf Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
Driver: TS3 9.5° | Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 60 TX
Fairway Metal: 915F 15.0 | Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 70 TX
Hybrid: 816 H2 21.0° | Fujikura Ventus HB Black 10 TX
Irons: 718 AP2 (4-9) | True Temper Dynamic Gold 120 Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Vokey Design SM7 (46.10F, 52.08F, 56.08M) & SM8 (61° Proto) | True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S300
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom X 5

CANTLAY’S NEW PHANTOM X

The Memorial was Patrick Cantlay’s fourth event gaming a NEW Scotty Cameron Phantom X 5 tour prototype, which he first put in play at the Zurich Classic.

  • Cantlay worked with Scotty Cameron Tour Rep Drew Page on building the mid-mallet model, which provided Cantlay added stability through its compact wingback construction.
  • Cantlay’s prototype features a double bend shaft and is without any alignment features.
  • Said Page: “The Phantom X 5 gives Patrick the stability he was looking for and without any lines he feels freed up to be more athletic with the putting stroke.”

TITLEIST SWEEPS MAJOR EQUIPMENT COUNTS

Titleist swept every major equipment category at The Memorial Tournament, the second week in a row that Titleist has been the top choice of players in golf ball, drivers, fairways, hybrids, utility irons, irons, wedges and putters .

  • It marks the 21st time since the start of the 2019 calendar year that Titleist has topped every major equipment category on the PGA TOUR, a feat that has never been matched by another brand.
  • Titleist also led every major equipment category at the Korn Ferry Tour’s Rex Hospital Open. 

JUSTIN THOMAS SWITCHES TO TSi2 DRIVER

Justin Thomas had a Titleist TSi2 driver in the bag at The Memorial, having put the new model in play for the first time at last week’s Charles Schwab Championship. 

  • “JT had been really intrigued by the forgiveness of TSi2 – he’d been working with the team the last couple of weeks and wanted to give it a run on what was a very difficult driving golf course in Colonial,” said Titleist Tour Rep J.J. Van Wezenbeeck. 
  • In testing the new model – a TSi2 9.0° with Mitsubishi Diamana ZF 60 TX shaft – Thomas immediately saw increased launch and forgiveness with 2 mph faster ball speed.
  • A tweak of the SureFit hosel setting, moving from B•1 to C•1 (decreasing loft 0.75 degrees), produced slightly lower spin and optimal launch conditions.
  • “Justin has always gravitated to a driver with a more traditional shape (like TSi3), but as he started testing TSi2 he really liked how easy it was to launch and the extra forgiveness he was getting. TSi2 has slightly larger and more modern look, but for a high-MOI driver it’s still fairly traditional and not a huge departure from what he’s used to. He was seeing such good numbers across the board that it was an easy decision to give it a real run.”
  • Thomas finished 9th at Colonial and 2nd at Memorial in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee. 

AMATEUR | NCAA Men’s Championship

At the NCAA Men’s Championship, 89% of competitors at Grayhawk Golf Club played a Titleist golf ball with all five members of the winning team trusting a Pro V1 or Pro V1x model to win the school’s second men’s golf title.

  • All five of the champions also played Titleist irons, four played Vokey Design SM8  wedges, while three used Titleist TSi drivers, Titleist fairways and Scotty Cameron putters.
  • The individual NCAA Champion played a Pro V1 golf ball, TSi3 driver, T100 irons and Vokey Design wedges.
  • NEW Pro V1 (65) and NEW Pro V1x (49) were the top golf ball models of choice, while 92% of the Titleist drivers in play (57 of 62) were TSi models.
  • Fifty-one players teed up a TSi3 driver, more than double the nearest competitive model.
  • The most played iron models at the NCAA Championship were T100 irons (28), while U•500 (42) was the top utility iron.
  • More players gamed Vokey Design SM8 wedges (233) than all competitors combined.
  • This follows last week’s NCAA Women’s Championship, where 97 percent of the field, including all five members of the title-winning team and the individual champion, played a Titleist golf ball. 

KORN FERRY TOUR | Rex Hospital Open

Mito Pereira, playing a NEW Pro V1 golf ball, earned his second Korn Ferry Tour title with a birdie on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff.

  • Pereira – who moved to No. 2 on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List, securing his first PGA TOUR card for next season – followed an opening 9-under 62 with three-consecutive 67s to make the playoff.
  • On the first extra hole, he hit wedge to 4 feet to set up the winning birdie.
  • Pereira’s win is the third in a row by a NEW Pro V1 golf ball player on the KFT, following back-to-back, wire-to-wire wins by Titleist Brand Ambassador Cameron Young. 

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS | Principal Charity Classic

Playing a NEW Pro V1 golf ball, the winner closed in 5-under 67 to earn his second PGA TOUR Champions victory.

  • Hitting 87 percent Greens in Regulation (47 of 54), the winner overcame a seven-shot deficit entering the final round to win by one shot.
  • Titleist golf ball players have won all eight events played this year on PGA TOUR Champions.

KOREAN TOUR | DESCENTE Munsingwear Match Play

DongMin Lee outlasted fellow Titleist Brand Ambassador Richard T Lee, rolling his NEW Pro V1 golf ball in for birdie on the 18th hole to win, 1 up, in the championship match and claim his second KPGA Tour title.

  • InHoi Hur (NEW Pro V1) won the third-place match with a 2-and-1 victory over EunShin Park (NEW Pro V1). Nine of top 10 relied upon Titleist golf balls for their success.
  • Titleist was the top choice in golf balls (50/78%), drivers (32/50%), fairways (34/46%), irons (34/53%), wedges (138/76%) and putters (50/32%), sweeping every major equipment category.

WHAT’S IN DONGMIN LEE’S BAG?

Golf Ball: NEW Titleist Pro V1
Driver: TSi3 8.0°
Fairway Metals: TSi2 15.0° & 18.0°
Utility Iron: U•500 (3-4)
Irons: 620 MB (5-9) irons
Wedges: Vokey Design SM8 46.10 F, SM8 54.14 F, 58.06 K
Putter: Scotty Cameron Select Golo S5 tour prototype 

CHINA TOUR | Zhengzhou Classic

Seventeen-year-old Guxin Chen earned his first China Tour title with a one-shot victory over fellow Titleist Brand Ambassador Xuewen Luo.

  • Chen, 17, topped a leaderboard that featured 10 Titleist golf ball players in the top 11 positions.

WHAT’S IN GUXIN CHEN’S BAG?

Golf Ball: NEW Titleist Pro V1x
Driver: TSi3 9.0° driver
Fairway Metals: TSi3 (15.0°, 18.0°)
Utility Irons: U•510 (3)
Irons: T100 (4-PW)
Wedges: Vokey Design SM8 (50°, 56°, 60°)

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