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Woods reportedly will switch to a different
version of the Scotty Cameron Newport II he has used for most of
his career. He played a nine-hole practice round on Wednesday at
TPC Harding Park, and U.S. Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker
witnessed Woods trying out a different Cameron putter.
"I asked him about the putter switch," Stricker said. "It's
basically the same putter with a bit more flexibility. He's able
to change the weights around a little bit, but the length is the
difference.
"He's got a little more length on there, and that's just so he
can practice a little bit more without back pain. That's what
excites him the most is that he was able to put in a lot of time
with this putter, and watching him putt, it looked exactly the
same to me. He rolled the ball great."
Woods reportedly has had the putter since last summer and often
practices with it while gauging green speeds.
Woods played an 18-hole practice round on Sunday and nine more
holes on Monday. He practiced on the putting green and range on
Tuesday before Wednesday's round with Stricker. He went back to
the putting green after the round.
Woods reportedly used the Newport II during 14 of his 15 major
victories. The exception was the 1997 Masters, as Woods first
used the model in 1999.
Woods won the 2019 Masters for his first major victory since the
memorable 2008 U.S. Open when he outdueled Rocco Mediate in 91
holes at Torrey Pines. He is three behind Jack Nicklaus' record
of 18 Grand Slam victories.
Stricker said he is interested in seeing how Woods fares this
week.
"I expect good things from him if he can keep his body
playable," said Stricker, referencing the back issues Woods
often faces. "With this weather, it's a challenge. It's cool,
it's damp, and so I imagine that will probably be the biggest
challenge for him this week is to be able to feel like his body
is 100 percent and give it a rip."
--Field Level Media
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