GEAR SHORTS: Koepka’s new clubs, Rickie’s high-tops

Plenty of new gear was put into play at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Maui and, by all accounts, it went rather smoothly.

With a number of equipment manufacturers showing off their new tour staff last week, the event was the chance of the viewing public to see just how quickly the world’s best got on with their new gear.

Sure, it was a limited field and it was only the first PGA Tour event of 2016, but here are the big gear headlines from the week.

Nike’s newest signing

One of the most exciting prospects America has on tour this year, Brooks Koepka kicked off his PGA Tour season in style with an impressive third place finish behind champion Spieth and runner-up Patrick Reed.

It was a performance made all the more impressive by the fact Floridian has just signed a multi-year deal with Nike to play and wear its gear after leaving Titleist.

His flawless third round of 63 on Saturday suggested he likes his new Nike gear, too. Koepka is still using his Scotty Cameron Newport 2 SLT T10 prototype putter, though.

Everything was clicking today @HyundaiTOC! Looking forward to one of many final round Sundays with my good buddy @JordanSpieth. #HyundaiTOC

— Brooks Koepka (@BKoepka) January 10, 2016

Asked Koepka if he was concerned going to new equipment this year. “We picked up a little distance w/ the driver,” he said. So, no.

— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) January 10, 2016

Read more – Nike unveils first new ball collection since 2013

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Meet the #PXGTroops

The biggest movers and shakers in the equipment world this year are, without a doubt, PXG. The fast-growing brand only started in late 2014, but Zach Johnson and Chris Kirk were amongst 12 top-level pro signings in the off-season and both had solid starts.

James Hahn is another who gamed PXG clubs for the first time, but he appeared to struggle, finishing in a tie for last place.

Read more – PXG unveils tour staff line-up for 2016

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High-top heaven

There go those high-tops again. Fowler had a few different pairs over the week. We’re still unsure of the style ourselves but it appears you guys are not big fans. In our 24-hour Twitter poll last week, 71% of you said you would not wear Fowler’s new sneaks, with only 29% voting in favour of the style.

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New driver alert!

Bubba let the cat out of the bag last week as he put Ping’s newest driver in play for the first time. Watson is clearly already a big fan, using it en route to a T10 finish. His average driving distance for the week reached 320.9 yards with the tour average currently sitting at 287.7 yards. Wow!

#GDriver #Stance pic.twitter.com/a7bV9nH2eR

— bubba watson (@bubbawatson) January 4, 2016

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And finally…

It may not be new gear, but Jordan Spieth’s trusty Scotty Cameron 009 prototype was on fire once again this week. Don’t just take our word for it, though. Check this out!

20-under. The hard way. Jordan Spieth makes it look easy. #QuickHits. https://t.co/s9atkOAOPs

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 9, 2016

And this!

Jordan Spieth rolls in another birdie at No. 10. He knew it the whole way. #QuickHits https://t.co/NT2w39iBIp

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 11, 2016

And this!

At 30 under par, @JordanSpieth just won the @HyundaiTOC by EIGHT. #QuickHits https://t.co/ImxZdOusHv

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 11, 2016