Las Vegas, Nev. – Little did anybody know in October 2000 that the Titleist Pro V1 golf ball would become one of the most revolutionary products in golf equipment history. Fifteen years ago this week, at the Invensys Classic at Las Vegas (now the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open), 47 players switched to the multi-component, solid technology Pro V1 the first week it was available, representing the single greatest pluralistic shift in equipment usage ever at a PGA TOUR event. Las Vegas was the first event in which Tour players could play Pro V1 in competition after it was added to the Fall 2000 Edition of the USGA Conforming Golf Ball List.

Today, Pro V1 and Pro V1x are the most played and best-selling golf ball models around the world. Two out of every three players across the worldwide professional tours tee up a Pro V1 or Pro V1x, and the percentages are even higher at major men’s and women’s global amateur events, the NCAA Championships and competitive boys’ and girls’ junior championships.

Bill Morgan, Senior Vice President for Titleist Golf Ball R&D, was on site at the 2000 Invensys Classic at Las Vegas to introduce the new Pro V1 to players. He described the almost universal feedback he received from those who put the new ball to the test early in the week:

“While we expected early adoption, we weren’t certain what the ball count would be, because players only had a day or two of practice rounds,” said Morgan. “Forty seven players, or over half of all the Titleist players in the field, immediately put the new Pro V1 in play. We heard from players, that for the very first time, they didn’t sacrifice anything in a golf ball. The Pro V1 provided total performance by delivering exceptional distance gains off the tee while providing incredibly soft feel and what we called ‘drop-and-stop’ short game control. It also had a durable cover that wouldn’t cut or shear the way the traditional balata-covered balls did.”

The Pro V1 was an exciting addition to Titleist’s high performance golf ball line, further accelerating Titleist’s position as the industry leader in innovative technology, best-in-class process quality and manufacturing capabilities. It was the first time Titleist had applied its expertise in large-core technology, multi-component technology and elastomer urethane technology into one product.

Mary Lou Bohn, Vice President, Golf Ball Marketing and Titleist Communications, was also in Las Vegas that week.

“The Pro V1 responded to the changing nature of the game,” said Bohn.  “The arrival of the power game on the tour necessitated golf balls that delivered very low spin in the long game, while maintaining the spin, feel and control of the premium liquid center, wound technology golf balls. We walked the fairways with players during their practice rounds, and it was amazing to hear so many great players effusive over Pro V1’s performance.  If you look at the early success of players who achieved record-setting performances, the results spoke for themselves.”

One such player was Billy Andrade, who won the Invensys Classic the first week the new Pro V1 was available, and recently recalled how it “resurrected his career.”

“I remember I was not having a very good year entering that event,” said Andrade. “I think I was around 160th on the money list and there were only a few events left. I was desperate. I vividly remember the first time I put it into play during a practice round. The ball was 20 yards longer than the Tour Prestige that I was playing at the time. I chalked some of it up to altitude, but the distance, in addition to the overall performance of the ball, was like nothing I had ever played.”

Andrade fired five consecutive rounds in the 60’s to win by one shot. Not only did players transitioning to the Pro V1 finish 1-2 on the leaderboard, they finished 1-2 in driving distance. The victory was the fourth of Andrade’s career and vaulted him from 159th to 43rd on the 2000 PGA TOUR money list. Another Pro V1 player tied for third after fashioning a closing 10-under par 62, the event’s lowest single round score.

To put things into perspective, Titleist Brand Ambassador Jordan Spieth, recently named PGA TOUR Player of the Year, was seven years old when the Pro V1 debuted in 2000 and is among several young Titleist golf ball loyalists who have never played anything but Pro V1 or Pro V1x in competition.

“I’ve been playing the Pro V1 or Pro V1x since I was 12 years old and started playing competitively,” said Spieth. “That is when I made golf my number one sport and wanted to shoot the lowest scores possible. I haven’t played another ball in competition since then. I think everybody that took the game seriously, at least my peers at the time, all wanted to play the Pro V1 or Pro V1x.”

The immediate success of the Pro V1, beginning with the Las Vegas event, created a demand for a golf ball among all golfers not previously seen before. Due to the considerable momentum the Pro V1 gained as a result of tour player usage and success, media coverage and word-of-mouth communication, Titleist accelerated its market launch from March 2001 to December 2000. After just four months in golf shops, Pro V1 was the best-selling golf ball in the market place. At the 2001 Masters, 42 of 45 Titleist players in the field teed up a Pro V1.

Not only did the Pro V1 allow tour players to reach new heights, but it also allowed golfers at every level to enjoy a better game. Previously, golfers had to make sacrifices and prioritize distance over scoring performance. They could choose a 2-piece ball that would give them distance off the tee, but that meant a loss in short game control into and around the green. With Pro V1, golfers now had one ball that delivered unmatched distance as well as the short game performance demanded by the best players in the world.

Why the name“Pro V1?”: One of the questions Bill Morgan got most after the launch of Pro V1 – and still gets to this day – is, “What does Pro V1 mean?”

“We didn’t know what to call it,” said Morgan.  “The leading tour-played ball at the time was the Titleist Professional.  We were coming up to the USGA deadline for getting balls on the conforming list, so I just put an interim stamp on for submission and I figured we would work out what to officially call it later. I wrote Pro for Professional, V for the ‘Veneer Project’ that it was called in R&D, and the number 1. I absolutely thought we would change the name but the players said they loved it – so it stuck.”

BY THE NUMBERS:

– Billy Andrade won the Invensys Classic at Las Vegas on October 16, 2015.

– Two out of every three golfers across the major worldwide professional tours play the Pro V1 or Pro V1x, more than five times the nearest competitor.

– The Titleist Pro V1 franchise has accounted for 406 wins and 56,881 players on the PGA TOUR entering the 2015-16 season since its debut at the 2000 Invensys Classic in Las Vegas.

– The Titleist Pro V1 franchise has accounted for 2,374 worldwide wins and over 304,000 players across the worldwide professional tours since its debut.

– According to Golf Datatech through September 2015, the Pro V1 has been the best-selling golf ball in the marketplace for 175 consecutive months.

Cabot Links announced today that PGA of Canada member Ted Stonehouse will be joining their team in early November in the role of Director, Golf Operations.  Ted will join Cabot’s existing management team with a focus on the golf services and golf retail operations.

“I am very excited to join Cabot’s dynamic management team.”  Stonehouse says. “I am looking forward to reuniting with Ben Cowan-Dewar, Joe Robinson and Ryan Hawley, and to working closely with Adam Calver. This golf operation does so many things right; I hope to add to the already great experience.”

Joe Robinson will take on the new title of Golf Professional Emeritus and will continue in his current work capacity.

Ted comes to us from Clovelly, in St. John’s Newfoundland, where he worked as Director of Golf for the past 4 years. Prior to Clovelly, he had a 13-year tenure at Bell Bay, where he introduced many successful initiatives and his junior program was considered second to none. Previously, he worked at private, semi-private and resort style courses across Canada.

Over the years, Ted has been recognized by the PGA of Canada for his outstanding contributions to the game. He has received numerous awards, including PGA of Canada National – Club Professional of the Year (2002), Merchandiser of the Year (2003), and the Jack McLaughlin Junior Leader of the Year (2007).

“I could not be more excited that Ted is joining the team here at Cabot,” says Ben Cowan-Dewar, Managing Director at Cabot. “In the decade that I have known Ted, he has embodied what a true professional is and we are lucky to have him.”

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., – The Symetra Tour announced today that Symetra has committed to a four-year extension as the exclusive title sponsor of the Symetra Tour — Road to the LPGA. The Bellevue, Washington-based life insurance company will continue its role as the umbrella sponsor of the Symetra Tour and two events on the tournament schedule — the Symetra Classic held in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the season-ending Symetra Tour Championship Presented by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida.

In addition to its sponsorship extension, which will run through the 2021 season and represent a decade of partnership, Symetra also has pledged incremental dollars to a purse subsidy fund that provides a financial match to tournaments that raise their purses starting in 2016. As part of this program, the 2016 purses of the Symetra Classic and Symetra Tour Championship will increase to $150,000 and $200,000, respectively; the latter to a level that would have made it the second-highest purse on the 2015 schedule.

Symetra began its partnership with the Road to the LPGA in 2010 as the title sponsor of the Symetra Classic in San Antonio, Texas — an event that moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2012. The company then secured naming rights for the Symetra Tour in November 2011. Formally known as the LPGA Futures Tour, the Symetra Tour has served as the LPGA’s official developmental tour since 1999.

NAPA, Calif. – Emiliano Grillo of Argentina won his PGA Tour rookie debut Sunday at the Frys.com Open by holing a 25-foot birdie putt on the 18th for a 3-under 69, and then making the most out of a second chance in the playoff to beat Kevin Na.

Nearly as impressive as his closing birdie was the way the 23-year-old Argentine bounced back from a shocking miss.

Grillo had a 3-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to win and was stunned when it caught the left lip and spun away. Then, he drove into the fairway bunker on the 18th on the second extra hole with Na in the fairway.

The next mistake belonged to Na.

He used driver off the fairway for the second time and hooked it behind a tree, leaving him little chance of getting his third shot on the green. Na wound up with a bogey. Grillo hit a bold approach shot over the edge of a bunker to just inside 10 feet. Needing two putts for the win, he made it for birdie.

Earlier this year, Grillo missed a short birdie putt to win the Puerto Rico Open, and wound up losing in a playoff.

“The difference was I hit this one good,” Grillo said. “My caddie said, ‘Are you OK?’ I said, ‘Yeah, sure. Third time a charm.’ I stayed positive and hit a great shot in there.”

Grillo has won his last two tournaments in thrillers. He made a 25-foot birdie putt on final hole of the Web.com Tour Championship two weeks ago and earned $180,000. This one was worth a lot more.

Not only did he earn $1.08 million, he’s going to the Masters next April.

“You say Masters, I can’t believe it,” Grillo said. “When I got the (PGA Tour) card after the Web.com Championship, I saw I was 71 or 72 in the world and said, ‘We got a chance of getting top 50 by the end of the year, let’s try to get it done.’

“Maybe we can play the tournaments we always wanted to play.”

Grillo moves to about No. 36 in the world ranking, which puts him in the HSBC Champions in Shanghai and the Bridgestone Invitational, two World Golf Championships. He’s also in the PGA Championship and The Players Championship, both offering $10 million purses.

Na, who got up-and-down with a 6-foot putt on the 18th in regulation for a 70 to force a playoff, told Golf Channel after the playoff ended that he rarely misses driver off the tight fairway grass and that maybe the fact it was getting dark and the ball was slightly above his feet caused him to hook it.

Na, who earned $648,000, declined to come to the media room for interviews.

Jason Bohn (70), Justin Thomas (69) and Tyrone Van Aswegen of South Africa (68) all finished one shot out of the playoff.

Grillo was the first to reach 15-under 273 with his 25-foot birdie putt. Thomas and Bohn each had birdie chances on the par-5 18th hole. Thomas, who closed with five pars, narrowly missed a 30-foot putt. Bohn sent his fairway metal into a concession area, pitched across the green to 15 feet below the hole and missed it on the low side.

Bohn’s bigger mistake was earlier in the round. He was leading at 15 under and was 50 yards from the hole on the par-5 16th hole when he chunked a wedge. His next wedge slid 8 feet by the hole and he two-putted for a bogey.

“I was fairly focused on 16 where I just kind of laid the sod over it and chunked it,” Bohn said. “There’s times when you think that – trust me – when you’re out there, ‘Oh, don’t chunk this one.’ But this wasn’t one of those times. Kind of rattled me a little bit. To make a bogey from 40 yards short of the green is pretty unacceptable when you’re trying to win a golf tournament.”

But then, just about everyone could look back at lost chances.

Nine players had at least a share of the lead at some point during a final round at Silverado that was up for grabs until the very end. It started with Brendan Steele, who was trying to go wire-to-wire and was still in position until he hit a poor fairway bunker shot on No. 12. Steele made five bogeys over the next six holes and closed with a 76.

Justin Rose was tied for the lead at the turn and was poised to rely on his experience until he missed a 3-foot par putt at No. 12 and dropped two more shots coming for a 72. He wound up three shots out of the playoff.

Thomas, coming off a strong rookie season, holed a 45-foot birdie putt on the 13th to get into position. But he missed a 7-foot birdie chance at No. 14 and never got a closer look at birdie the rest of the way, including the par 5s at Nos. 16 and 18.

Van Aswegen birdied two of the last three holes to at least have a chance at a playoff until Grillo and then Na each made birdie. The South African woke up to the room spinning, was taken in an ambulance to the emergency room and treated for dehydration, and narrowly got back to the golf course in time to warm up. He was helped by morning fog that led to a 20-minute delay.

Canada’s Graham DeLaet fell 28 spots down the leaderboard Sunday with a final-round 77. The Weyburn, Sask., native finished at 7-under.

SAN ANTONIO – Bernhard Langer rallied to win the San Antonio Championship on Sunday for his second victory of the year and 25th overall on the Champions Tour.

The 58-year-old German star birdied the final two holes – making an 18-footer on the par-4 18th – for a 7-under 65 and a three-stroke victory over Scott Dunlap.

Langer won on TPC San Antonio’s AT&T Canyons Course after losing playoffs in the event to David Frost in 2012 and Kenny Perry in 2013. In June in Massachusetts, Langer successfully defended his Senior Players Championship title for his fifth senior major victory.

Three strokes behind defending champion Michael Allen and Scott McCarron entering the round, Langer had eight birdies and one bogey Sunday to finish at 12-under 204.

Dunlap shot a 68. Allen and McCarron, making his seventh start on the tour after turning 50 in July, each shot 70 to tie for third at 8 under.

Langer earned 270 Charles Schwab Cup points to pull within 66 points of leader Colin Montgomerie with two events left. Montgomerie tied for 15th at 3 under after a 72. Jeff Maggert, 39 points behind Montgomerie, withdrew during the second round because of a lingering left calf injury.

Canada’s Stephen Ames tied for 15th at 3-under after a 71.

INCHEON, South Korea – Lexi Thompson broke out of a crowded pack Sunday to win the LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship for her second victory of the year and sixth overall.

The 20-year-old American closed with a 3-under 69 to beat Taiwan’s Yani Tseng and South Korea’s Sung Hyun Park by a stroke on Sky 72’s Ocean Course.

“It’s very satisfying.” Thompson said. “I always look forward to coming back to South Korea and playing in front of these amazing fans. I love Sky 72. It’s a great golf course. Getting a win, it means so much.”

Lydia Ko missed a chance to take the top spot in the world from South Korean star Inbee Park, finishing with a 72 that dropped the 18-year-old South Korean-born New Zealander into a tie for fourth at 13 under with South Korea’s Amy Yang and American Gerina Piller.

Yang birdied the final nine holes for a 62. She became the first player in tour history to close with nine straight birdies, tied the record for consecutive birdies set by Beth Daniel in 1999, broke the nine-hole mark for relation to par at 9 under and matched the record for the lowest total at 27. Yang also tied the course record set by Sung Hyun Park on Thursday.

“I don’t know what just happened. Just can’t believe,” Yang said. “Shots were great. Early in the week I was shaky, but I don’t know, this back nine was crazy good.”

Thompson took a two-stroke lead with a birdie on the short par-4 15th. She drove to the right of the green and hit a flop shot to 8 feet.

“When I went for that green and I saw my ball bounce over, I’m like, ‘Probably not going to be the best chip shot, or the easiest,” Thompson said. “But I love hitting flop shots out of the rough. I just opened the blade wide open and just took a big swing at it. I figured, at worst, it would run through the fringe but have a straight uphill putt.”

On the par-5 18th, she hit a 290-yard drive, put her 190-yard second shot into deep rough left of the green and lashed another flop to 12 feet to set up a two-putt par.

“I’m overall a very aggressive player,” Thompson said. “So, if I have 190 front, I’m not laying up. But it’s good to play aggressive and know that I can get up-and-down.”

Thompson opened with rounds of 68, 67 and 69 to enter the final round a shot behind Ko and Sung Hyun Park. The 6-foot Florida player birdied the final three holes on the front nine to take the lead. She bogeyed the par-4 11th, and got the stroke back with the birdie on 15.

Thompson finished at 15-under 273, earned $300,000 and is projected to jump from fifth to fourth in the world ranking. She also won in July in Michigan.

Sung Hyun Park birdied the 18th for a 71 in her first start on the LPGA Tour.

Playing the group ahead of Thompson, Tseng birdied the final two holes for a 68. The former top-ranked player won the last of her 15 LPGA Tour titles in March 2012.

“Getting closer and closer,” Tseng said. “I’m very feeling good about my game.”

Ko ended up needing to win or finish in a two-way tie for second to regain the top spot in the world. Inbee Park shot a 69 to tie for 15th at 8 under in her home event.

“It was great to just see family, my niece and nephews out here,” Ko said. “It’s just really good to be able to play in front of them. Doesn’t matter if I shoot even par, under par, over par, you don’t get to play in front of family or relatives that often.”

VILAMOURA, Portugal – Andy Sullivan of England easily won the Portugal Masters on Sunday after extending his lead to finish nine strokes ahead.

Sullivan had a five-stroke lead as he entered the final round at the Oceanico Victoria course, which started late due to heavy overnight rain. He increased that margin by hitting five birdies for a flawless 5-under 66 to finish with a total of 23-under 261.

It was the 28-year-old Sullivan’s third European Tour win after victories at the South African Open and the Joburg Open earlier this year.

Fellow countryman Chris Wood finished second, followed one more stroke back by a three-way tie for third of Anthony Wall, Trevor Fisher Jr. and Eduardo de la Riva.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Thailand’s Sherman Santiwiwatthanaphong won the Symetra Tour Championship on Sunday, and Brianna Do finished second in the season-ending event to earn an LPGA Tour card.

The 18-year-old Santiwiwatthanaphong birdied the par-5 18th for a 5-under 67 and a one-stroke victory.

“I’m very happy to win this tournament,” Santiwiwatthanaphong said. “It means a lot to win the last event and win my first event in the United States.”

She had a 14-under 274 total on LPGA International’s Jones Course and earned $22,500 to finish 20th on the money list with $40,614. The top 10 on the money list earned LPGA Tour cards.

Do closed with a 69. The former UCLA player earned $13,840 to jump from 12th to third on the money list with $64,877. Last week, she also finished second to go from 18th to 12th.

“I’m overwhelmed with all kinds of different emotions,” Do said. “I’m excited. I’m relieved. It’s just a crazy moment right now and I’m trying to soak it in.”

Annie Park topped the money list with $68,673 in only 11 starts. The former University of Southern California player won three times and swept the player of the year and rookie of the year awards.

“It has been a lifelong dream to play on tour and to finally get status is unbelievable,” Park said. “I still can’t believe that I got my card, but I’m going to have to believe it next year.”

Giulia Molinaro was second at $68,632, followed by Do, Daniela Iacobelli ($62,692), Dani Holmqvist ($62,160), Lee Lopez ($61,731), Alejandra Llaneza ($61,289), Vicky Hurst ($57,814), Casey Grice ($55,621) and Rachel Rohanna ($53,867).

Rohanna edged Haruka Morita-WanyaoLu by $284 for the final LPGA Tour card. Augusta James, ninth on the list entering the week, dropped to 12th. The Canadian missed the cut.

NAPA, Calif. – Brendan Steele did just enough to keep the lead Saturday at the Frys.com Open, even though he missed a chance to do more.

As one player after another was piling up birdies on the closing three-hole stretch at Silverado, Steele managed three pars for a 3-under 69 and a one-shot lead over Andrew Loupe and Kevin Na.

Loupe had five straight birdies early and four straight birdies late for a 63 and was one shot behind. Na played the closing stretch in 3 under for a 64.

Canada’s Graham DeLaet sits at 12-under, 2-back of the lead, after a 69 Saturday.

The PGA Tour season opener is wide open going into the final round. Sixteen players were separated by only four shots.

Steele was at 14-under 202 as he tries to go wire-to-wire.

Rory McIlroy never got anything going and was eight shots behind.