DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Rory McIlroy birdied his last hole to keep the lead to himself halfway through the Dubai Desert Classic on Friday.

Meanwhile, playing partner Tiger Woods carded a 1-over 73 to drop into a tie for 44th. He kept his humour, at least.

In joining fellow Masters champions Mark O’Meara and Fred Couples in hosting a junior golf clinic on the Emirates Club practice range, Woods told a large crowd, “I was on so many parts of the golf course today that I got to meet so many people, signed so many autographs out there, and gave a lot of balls away.

“But seriously, I was just hitting it sideways.”

While Woods was at 3 under, two above a cut line which removed Ernie Els, John Daly, Jose Maria Olazabal and O’Meara, McIlroy was riding an adventurous round of five birdies against three bogeys to finish on 11 under.

His lead was cut in half to one shot over European Tour-based American Brooks Koepka, who birdied his opening three holes in a 65 to move to 10 under.

Three players – England’s Danny Willett (65), Ireland’s Damien McGrane (70) and Frenchman Julien Quesne (70) – share third place on 8 under.

Pointe Claire, Que. – PUMA Golf Canada and Golf Canada have announced a three-year partnership in which PUMA will become the official apparel sponsor of the CN Future Links junior development program in Canada.

Committed to ensuring the future of the game through affordable and accessible programs, CN Future Links is a joint initiative of Golf Canada, the PGA of Canada and Canada’s provincial golf associations which offers a full suite of programs for boys and girls ages 6-18, from first timers to those with a high degree of experience and playing ability.

CN Future Links junior programs help young golfers develop the technical skills, appropriate attitude and self-confidence to succeed on the course, while teaching them the positive life lessons to succeed off the course.

“The CN Future Links program has had a long and successful history with junior development in Canada and we are extremely happy to support this great initiative” said Dave Burgess, Senior Marketing Manager, PUMA Golf Canada. “We are excited to enter into this partnership and honoured to work alongside such a great and professional organization.”

Burgess goes onto mention, “Some of our athletes such as Rickie Fowler and newly adopted Canadian, Graham DeLaet have had a strong influence towards golf fashion in the past few years. We are happy that juniors will now have access to some of these products through their involvement in the CN Future Links”.

”We are thrilled with PUMA Golf Canada’s decision to align their vibrant brand with Canada’s national junior golf program,” said Golf Canada CEO Scott Simmons. “Without question, PUMA Golf brings excitement to golf fashion and represents a tremendous opportunity to help CN Future Links engage more youth in quality golf activities.”

PUMA Golf will support the CN Future Links by providing registration incentives, program prizing and staff apparel.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – From the moment Phil Mickelson set foot at TPC Scottsdale early Thursday morning, it was clear that the back pain that sidelined him last weekend was gone.

It also was quickly evident that his game was a little off.

“My back is fine. My game was a little rusty,” Mickelson said after opening his Phoenix Open title defence with an even-par 71.

After effortlessly hitting his opening drive 300 yards down the middle on the par-4 10th, Mickelson dumped a 90-yard wedge shot into the left greenside bunker. He blasted 10 feet past the hole and sighed in relief when his par putt slid in.

A few minutes later on the par-3 12th, Mickelson found the water hazard along the right side of the green. His chip from the fringe stopped about 15 feet short and he two-putted for a double bogey. He three-putted twice, once for par and another for bogey.

“I threw away a lot of shots,” Mickelson said. “I made some careless swings. Hitting it in the water on 12 was just pathetic.”

He was seven strokes behind leaders Bubba Watson and Y.E. Yang.

“I got off to a poor start, played a couple over, and finished poorly,” Mickelson said. “In the middle of the round, though, I hit a lot of good shots and had a good little run, but it just wasn’t quite sharp. I wasn’t quite focused on every shot the way I need to be and let way too many shots slide.”

Mickelson first felt soreness in his back two weeks ago in Abu Dhabi, and pulled out of his hometown event in San Diego after making the 36-hole cut at Torrey Pines. He flew to Georgia to see back specialist Tom Boers and was told his facet joints locked up.

“It’s fine. Honestly, it’s no big deal,” Mickelson said. “It was a five-minute fix. I just have to be careful for a week or two as it heals up. It’s fine. Mobility is back. It’s just not a big deal. … It happens every now and then. Last time was about four years ago.”

After the double bogey on 12, he rebounded with 20-foot birdie putts on the next two holes, but three-putted for par on the par-5 15th after hitting a hybrid pin-high from 245 yards.

“Fifteen really stung,” Mickelson said. “It was only a 12- or 15-footer, and I am thinking eagle. I roll it 6 feet by and I miss it coming back. That was costly.

Mickelson got to 3 under with birdies on Nos. 17, 1 and 4, then bogeyed three of his last five holes. He three-putted the par-4 fifth – missing from 5 1/2 and 3 1/2 feet – and failed to get-up-down for par after finding greenside bunkers on Nos. 7 and 9.

“Playing the last five holes at 3 over … that was really bad,” Mickelson said.

He hit five of 14 fairways, 11 greens in regulation and had 30 putts.

“I wasn’t as sharp as I need to be, for sure,” Mickelson said.

In his victory last year, he opened with a 60 _ lipping out a birdie putt on the final hole – and matched the tournament record at 28-under 256. The 43-year-old former Arizona State star is making his 25th appearance in the event that he also won in 1996 and 2005.

“It’s fun to be back here,” Mickelson said. “I love playing here.”

Watson and Yang shot 64.

Watson birdied four of the final six holes. The 2012 Masters champion had eight birdies and a bogey in the afternoon session.

“This golf course, if your ball-striking is good, you can shoot some good numbers here,” Watson said after hitting 17 greens in regulation. “Hit a lot of greens, didn’t make too many mistakes, didn’t miss too many fairways. Just played solid.”

Yang birdied the final two holes. The 2009 PGA winner also had eight birdies and a bogey, playing the back nine in 6-under 30 in his morning round.

“I think you have to be aggressive,” the South Korean player said through a translator. “At the same time, you can’t be too aggressive. … You have to really balance it out, but you still have to be a little bit more aggressive than other tournaments.”

Scottsdale residents Pat Perez, Kevin Stadler and Matt Jones were a stroke back at 65 along with Harris English, William McGirt, Greg Chalmers and Chris Kirk.

English birdied Nos. 12-15 to top the leaderboard at 8 under, but bogeyed the par-3 16th – the rowdy stadium hole – and the par-4 18th.

He hit an 8-iron over the green on the 178-yard 16th.

“I guess I was a little juiced up on that tee,” English said. “I left myself with an impossible up-and-down.”

Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., fired a 4-under 67. David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., is another shot back at 68. Amateur Ki Taek Lee of Vancouver shot a 2-over 74. Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., carded a 75, and Calgary’s Stephen Ames had a 76.

The crowd was estimated at 88,113, a record for the first round.

SEA ISLAND, Georgia. – Five Canadians will take on an elite field of amateur golfers from across North America as the Jones Cup Invitational gets underway Friday at Ocean Forest Golf Club.

First contested in 2001, the Jones Cup is a 54-hole individual stroke-play event. It has become one of the most popular events on the amateur circuit due to the strength of the field.

The three-day event runs January 31 to February 2 and is being held at Ocean Forest Golf Club – a Rees Jones design which opened in 1995. The club, which has been ranked in the top 100 in the world, previously hosted the 1998 Georgia State Amateur Championship, the 1999 Southern Amateur Championship and the 2001 Walker Cup Match.

Canadians in the field this year include: Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont.; Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C.; Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont.; Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont. and Kevin Carrigan of Victoria, B.C.

Also among the many notable players in the field is Eli Cole of Beverly Hills, Calif., the reigning Canadian Amateur champion.

Past participants read like a who’s who of PGA Tour stars. They include Luke Donald, Rickie Fowler, Lucas Glover, Dustin Johnson, Chris Kirk, Jeff Overton, Webb Simpson, Brandt Snedeker, Bubba Watson and Gary Woodland as well as past champions DJ Trahan, Gregg Jones, Nicholas Thompson, Luke List, Kyle Stanley, Patrick Reed and John Peterson.

Click here for opening-round pairings and start times.

TaylorMade has announced the release of Tour Preferred and Tour Preferred X – two tour-caliber golf balls that provide complete tee-to-green performance.

After a decade of prototyping and testing with the world’s best players, the company believes the new Tour Preferred franchise is the best performing ball the company has released to date.

“Golf ball innovation doesn’t just happen overnight. Rather, it is a series of ongoing conversation with our Tour players,” said Dean Snell, vice president of golf ball R&D for TaylorMade. “These conversations have led to the introduction of breakthrough technologies including low drag aerodynamics for ultimate wind resistance, a five-layer construction for superior control throughout the club set and now our softest and most durable cover.”

A new technology featured in the golf balls is Soft Tech™, TaylorMade’s softest and most durable cover to date. Made of a cast urethane, the new cover provides an even softer feel around the greens than previous TaylorMade offerings.  The Soft Tech cover will also provide higher resistance to shearing and will last longer.

What separates Tour Preferred and the Tour Preferred X from each other is spin. The Tour Preferred is designed for players who desire more spin in the mid-to-long iron shots. The additional spin will also promote a higher trajectory on approach shots.

Tour Preferred X maintains the same spin and trajectory into the green as its predecessor Lethal. Unlike Lethal, Tour Preferred X promotes better green side control because of its new Soft Tech cover.

TaylorMade anticipates that more than 80% of its tour players will gravitate to this model as they are seeking controlled iron spin, for a more penetrating ball flight.

Since their introduction on Tour earlier this year, players have quickly made the switch to both models including Sergio Garcia who has already won twice with the Tour Preferred X (Thailand Golf Championship in December and Qatar Masters in January). Emerging LPGA star Jessica Korda also played the Tour Preferred X in her season-opening win at the Pure Silk Classic.

Tour Preferred and Tour Preferred X will be available at retail on March 1st at $49.99 per dozen. For more information, please visit www.taylormadegolf.ca

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Rory McIlroy took another step toward regaining his form Thursday with his lowest score in more than three years, a 9-under 63 while playing with Tiger Woods to take a two-shot lead in the Dubai Desert Classic.

McIlroy played bogey-free in ideal scoring conditions on the Maglis course at Emirates Golf Club, picking up six birdies and an eagle during a 10-hole stretch in the middle of his round. He easily upstaged Woods, who was five shots behind after a 68.

Edoardo Molinari made an eagle on the par-4 second hole on his way to a 65. The group at 66 included Stephen Gallacher, the defending champion who also played in the feature group with Woods and McIlroy.

McIlroy had his best score since a 63 in the Hong Kong Open in November 2010.

The 24-year-old from Northern Ireland was No. 1 in the world at this point a year ago, but went through a troublesome season adjusting to new equipment and coping with his first prolonged slump. He didn’t win a tournament until the Australian Open in December. In his 2014 debut two weeks ago, McIlroy finished one shot behind in Abu Dhabi, where he was given a two-shot penalty in the third round for not taking proper relief.

McIlroy said he was “very close” to playing his best and that this was “another step up from Abu Dhabi” the way he controlled his irons.

“I played the ball really well from tee to green, drove the ball really well again,” he said. “You can see how well I am driving it that I am leaving myself a lot of wedges into the green. So that’s going to help.”

McIlroy ran off three straight birdies early in his round and made the turn on the back nine in 32. He made eagle on the par-5 third hole with a 5-wood into 8 feet.

Woods managed to hit just half of the fairways in regulation, but taking only 25 putts helped him. The world’s No. 1 player also made his first birdie of the year on a par 5, his opening hole at No. 10. Woods did not birdie any of the 12 par 5s he played last week at Torrey Pines, where he missed the 54-hole cut.

“I felt like it was a good day,” Woods said. “I could have got a couple more out of it, just by making a couple putts from about ten feet or so but I hit a lot of good putts which was nice. Last week I didn’t do it and it was nice to actually play well again.”

Woods is a two-time winner in Dubai, which is celebrating its 25-year anniversary. McIlroy won his first European Tour event at Dubai in 2009. Among the past champions, Fred Couples, Mark O’Meara and Colin Montgomerie each shot 70, as did Race to Dubai winner Henrik Stenson.

Molinari, who took a bogey on the par-5 18th, bounced back on the short second hole when he hit a big drive to just short of the green and then chipped in from about 35 yards for an eagle.

“It was a good day,” Molinari said. “I’ve been hitting the ball very well lately, and especially off the tee.”

But the day belonged to McIlroy, who has a chance this week to build some momentum. He called it his best round since a 66 to beat Adam Scott in Australia at the end of last year, and while McIlroy shot 64 in Boston last September, “it’s definitely the lowest round I’ve shot in a while.”

Gallacher said he was happy with a 66, especially playing alongside two of the biggest stars in golf. He played an 18-hole exhibition with Woods and Couples earlier this week.

“I played alongside Tiger on Tuesday, so I knew what to expect, and it was just a matter of getting on with my own game,” Gallacher said. “So Tiger’s been fine, but then Rory’s been brilliant.”

Most people wouldn’t see golf as a team sport, but maybe that’s what separates Jeff Overholt apart from the rest.

Turns out the PGA of Ontario Coach of the Year for 2013 is a real team player who believes it’s one of the key ingredients for growing the game as the sport moves forward.

“Developing a team concept for junior golfers is important to keep the kids engaged in the game,” says the 31-year-old who co-owns Golf Performance Coaches which runs coaching programs at several locations such as Carrying Place & Coppinwood Golf Club. “You look at other major sports like hockey or soccer and players don’t practice and play in isolation, they’re part of a team, with their friends and having fun together and that is what has been missing from golf in the past. It’s a key piece to keeping them in the game and continuing to progress and improve to a higher skill level.”

Over the last few years Overholt, who started his own family team when his wife Amy gave birth to their first child this past June, has been busy designing and implementing coaching programs at club, regional and provincial levels. From 2009 through 2013, Overholt was the strength and conditioning coach for the Golf Association of Ontario’s Team Ontario High Performance Program. He’s taking on new duties for 2014 and just started working with the best under-17 players as head coach of the York Regional Team, one of three feeder teams leading towards the GAO’s provincial team.

“As a coach I really enjoy the relationships I build with the athletes I work with and the time we spend together working both on and off the course,” he says. “I really try to spend time with athletes out on the golf course, watching them compete and then working with them to improve their overall game and strategies as a result of what I observed in competition.”

Over the past three years, Overholt – a Class A member of the PGA of Canada for the past eight years – has been involved in the creation of the Junior Golf Development Centre (JGDC) initiative through the GAO which was adopted as a National program through Golf Canada in 2012. Extensive time was spent creating the “New Competitor” program handbook template and supporting resources, which is now available to all JGDC coaches.

As a Lead Coach for Golf Performance Coaches, Overholt and 2012 Coach of the Year, Jon Roy provide holistic junior golf coaching programs for introductory and competitive junior golfers between the ages of 10 to 18 years of age – the PGA Junior League, New Competitor Team and Developing Competitor Team. The goal of the year-round program offered at locations such as Coppinwood GC, Carrying Place GC, Wooden Sticks GC, The Golf Lab and the Metro Golf Dome is to deliver comprehensive support in the four pillars of performance – technical, physical, mental, and tactical – in all aspects of development for junior golfers and provide guidance to families on navigating the competitive junior golf landscape. He has also worked with the Crescent School Golf Team on player development and feels working with private schools will be one of his major opportunities for growth in the future.

He also offers a “Mid-Am” coaching program: This year-long program is designed for the competitive amateur golfer between the age of 20 to 45. This program offers a holistic approach to golf skills development for amateur golfers which have already had established careers in competitive golf and would like to continue to compete and train at a high level while working a full-time job.

Oakville, Ont. – Longtime golf volunteer Barbara Allan of Kingston, Ont. as well as the late Norm Woods of Kitchener, Ont. – founder of both GolfScene magazine and the former GolfScene Junior Tour – will be honoured for their contributions to the game of golf as the 2014 co-recipients of Golf Canada’s Distinguished Service Award.

Golf Canada’s Distinguished Service Awards will be presented to Allan as well as Woods’ son Steve, Saturday, February 8^th as part of the National Sport Organization’s Annual General Meeting to be held at the London Hilton Hotel in London, Ont.

“Golf Canada is proud to acknowledge Barbara Allan and Norm Woods and celebrate their outstanding contributions to the game of golf as our 2014 Distinguished Service Award recipients,” said Golf Canada CEO Scott Simmons. “In their own unique way, Barbara and Norm have made a significant impact on the game within their communities and across Canada. Their commitment and passion for our sport makes each of them a truly deserving recipient.”

Created in 1993, Golf Canada’s Distinguished Service Award has been awarded annually to recognize individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the game of golf in Canada.

Recipients of Golf Canada’s Distinguished Service Award are traditionally selected from within the province of the organization’s incoming president. On Saturday, February 8^th, Doug Alexander of London, Ont. will be sworn in as Golf Canada’s 111^th President.

As President-elect, Alexander will succeed 2013 President Mike Carroll of Vancouver.

Golf Canada’s Annual General Meeting and presidential appointment will conclude four days of meetings, February 5-8, at the London Hilton Hotel in London, Ont.

BARBARA ALLAN

Barbara Allan has devoted over 20 years of her adult life to the game of golf in Ontario and across the country. Allan’s passion for golf began in the 1980’s when her husband encouraged her to get into the sport.

Allan had an immediate connection with the game and began volunteering in the early 1990’s where she first served as the District Teams Assistant for the (former) Ontario Ladies Golf Association (OLG). She would later become the District Chair for the Association from 1998-2002. From 2001-2006, Allan served as a board member for the Golf Association of Ontario (GAO) and was welcomed as the President of the Association in 2005.

With a strong passion for women’s golf, Allan was invited to join Golf Canada as a volunteer Governor in 2006, serving as the Women’s Division Vice-Chair before becoming the Women’s Division Chair in 2007. She has served Golf Canada in numerous capacities since the (former) Canadian Ladies Golf Association’s amalgamation with Golf Canada in 2005, sitting on the Executive Committee from 2006-2008; the Board of Directors from 2009-2012 and also on the Governors’ Council from 2009-2013 where she served as the Chair from 2009-2012.

In addition to serving as a past Chair of the Women’s Fund, Allan’s volunteer efforts with Golf Canada will continue in 2014 as a member of Governors’ Council as well as Chair of both the Amateur Championships and Heritage Committees.

As well, she currently volunteers at the club, provincial and district level and is also a past Ladies Captain of Garrison Golf Club in Kingston where she serves as the Chair of Handicap and Rules.

Highlights from her time volunteering include becoming Level 4 Rules certified with Golf Canada in 2012; serving as the non-playing captain at the Five Nations Cup in South Africa in 2007; acting as a Tournament Chair at numerous Golf Canada championships and also being a member of the duty roster of officials at each of Canada’s National Open Championships – the RBC Canadian Open and Canadian Pacific Women’s Open.

NORM WOODS (1944-2011)

Norm Woods is remembered as a passionate sport enthusiast who strived to give individuals the opportunity to experience the game of golf. He was devoted to the benefits of health and fitness, receiving a Physical Education degree from the University of Waterloo in 1967 as well as a Masters degree in Physical Education from the University of Oregon in 1971.

He spent considerable time affiliated with the YMCA, first working as the Physical Education Director of the Kitchener-Waterloo YMCA before later becoming a program coordinator with the Regina Saskatchewan YMCA where he spearheaded programs such as KinderSwim and KinderGym. In 1975, he was one of eight Canadians selected by Concordia University to travel to Russia to experience how Russian athletes trained and would later be named Director of Preventative Health for the Saskatchewan Government.

He returned to Ontario in 1976 and while working as Vice-President of the Institute of Canadian Advertisers, was involved in the launch of the national PARTICIPACTION program as well as the building of PARTICIPARKs.

He would also become an advocate for providing scholarships to student athletes and in 1991 he purchased the regional franchise for College Prospects of America, opening the door for many student athletes across the country. His College Prospects franchise provided upwards of $5 million in scholarships for Canadian athletes including numerous competitive golfers and many others who would go on to work in the golf industry.

In 1999, he was instrumental in bringing some of the top U.S. golf coaches to Angus Glen Golf Club to showcase 144 of Ontario’s top golfers and coaches. His showcase provided many players with scholarships to U.S. universities including David Hearn as well as Sean Foley, who later went on the write his first series of instruction articles in GolfScene – a regional golf publication Woods launched in 2000 serving southwestern Ontario.

The GolfScene publication originated as a tabloid that was hand-delivered throughout the golf community. In 2008, the publication evolved into a magazine and continues to be delivered to over 340 courses and facilities.

Woods’ passion for junior golf lead to the development of the GolfScene Junior Tour, a recreational tour dedicated to providing fun golf competitions for juniors that instilled values such as integrity and fair play. The junior tour – which also encouraged parents and grandparents to play – saw Woods become a mentor, father figure and friend to countless golfers including the 2014 LPGA Tour rookie Jennifer Kirby, Team Canada members such as Corey Conners and Garrett Rank, Web.com TOUR rookie Cam Burke and PGA TOUR Canada players such as Michael Gligic.

Before his passing in 2011 at the age of 67, Woods – a past member of the Golf Journalists Association of Canada – was a social golfer who most enjoyed health benefits of walking the golf course, along with the camaraderie of friends. A mentor to many and lifelong proponent of health and wellness, Woods taught by example and provided opportunity to many enthusiasts who may have never been introduced to the game of golf.

SAN DIEGO – J.B. Holmes made another return from surgery at San Diego, this time with far less fanfare.

Then again, tennis elbow doesn’t sound nearly as bad as brain surgery.

What kept Holmes off the PGA Tour for the longest spell of his career was surgery on his left elbow. He had not played in nearly a year – a 78 to miss the cut in the Honda Classic last March – but is finally feeling as healthy as he has been in four years.

In a roundabout way, the elbow might have been connected to the brain.

Holmes had been dealing with vertigo symptoms in 2011 when he eventually was diagnosed with structural defects in the cerebellum known as Chiari malformations. He had surgery twice in 2011, once to remove a piece of his skull, another because of an allergic reaction to the adhesive on the titantium plate at the base of his skull.

He was trying to get ready for the Shark Shootout at the end of 2011 when he started hitting balls – too many, too hard, too soon.

“I pushed it too hard that day, and I’ve been fighting the tennis elbow ever since,” Holmes said Sunday after he tied for 19th at Torrey Pines.

The blessing in disguise might have come last March when he was on roller blades as part of his fitness routine and broke his left ankle after an awkward fall. Holmes wasn’t sure he could have played anyway, because his arm was so sore. While recovering from the ankle, he figured he should take care of his elbow.

“The ankle was not that big of a deal,” Holmes said. “I had surgery on my arm. It was more getting past that.”

At least this time, Holmes is taking it slow.

He was able to chip and putt as the FedEx Cup playoffs were getting started (he failed to qualify for the first time). He was taking easy swings in the fall, and then waited until the Farmers Insurance Open to return. He is playing this week in the Phoenix Open, where he won as a rookie fresh out of Q-school in 2006.

“I want to get out there and beat balls, but I want to make sure it doesn’t come back,” he said.

Holmes said he was at 95 per cent strength. He is playing this year on a major medical exemption and believes he’ll be back on track in no time. The last time he was healthy?

“Probably the year before brain surgery,” he said.

“If it’s good enough, then we must make it better.” – Cindy Davis, President of Nike Golf.

That approach is rooted in every product crafted at The Oven, Nike Golf’s research and design facility. The company’s new VRS Covert 2.0 irons are no exception.

Golf club engineers and designers built upon the performance benefits of the first generation of Covert irons and improved specific design elements in the 2014 model to make it easier for golfers to hit the ball farther and higher with superior stability and feel.

“What’s impressive about the VRS Covert 2.0 set is that golfers can be aggressive and confident with these irons,” says Chris Savage, Nike Golf Irons Innovation Engineer.  “This set utilizes our largest cavity and thinnest perimeter to deliver higher ball speed and greater distance.  We have also refined our leading edge bevel to make it easier for these irons to go through the turf. Throughout development, these irons have proven to be the best distance irons we have created to date.”

The Nike Golf club team shifted the centre of gravity behind the centre of the face, which provides a more solid impact where golfers hit the ball most, resulting in more distance with great feel. Nike’s club engineers also lowered the centre of gravity by modifying the mass in the back of the club head and shifting that weight lower and more towards the toe for a higher and more stable ball flight.

A larger cavity in the VRS Covert 2.0 irons moves more metal to the perimeter of the club head and allows for a larger face, which amplifies the ‘trampoline effect’ and produces more ball speed at impact. Coupled with a larger cavity, Nike’s proprietary NexCOR variable face thickness technology allows for greater ball speed off the face, resulting in more distance.

A new leading-edge bevel provides more sole area to hit through the turf. The design delivers an additional, effective bounce to the golf club, which is a crucial benefit especially in soft conditions.

The VRS Covert 2.0 irons feature Dynalite 105 Steel and Kuro Kage graphite shafts with Golf Pride 2G wrap grips.

Nike’s new VRS Covert 2.0 irons will be available at Canadian retailers January 31, 2014. A steel set will set you back $749, while the graphite version will set you back $849.