KAPALUA, Hawaii – Brandt Snedeker starts a new year in golf with hopes of avoiding an old problem – staying healthy.

The Tournament of Champions, which starts Friday, is his first event since a freak accident in Shanghai two months ago. Snedeker was on a Segway scooter during a corporate outing at Sheshan International when he took a tumble and injured his left knee.

“I had been on one all day in this pro-am,” Snedeker said Wednesday. “I was going down the last hole, seeing how fast I could get it going. I hit a sprinkler head, lost control a little bit and jumped off. I landed on my knee and my knee popped.”

He feared he had torn his anterior cruciate ligament. Just his luck, he only suffered a small tear, along with a cracked tibia and a deep bone bruise. It was enough to keep him out of the Australian PGA, World Challenge in California and the Franklin Templeton Shootout in Florida. Harris English replaced him as Matt Kuchar’s partner in the Shootout, and they went on to win.

Snedeker said the knee feels good, though the real test starts Friday.

He spent last week playing at Hideaway in the California desert, walking 18 holes a day and carrying his own bag. The good news at Kapalua is that he has his caddie. Not so good is that the Plantation Course was built on the side of a mountain, featuring some of the steepest climbs he’ll face all year.

“I’ve had a few aches and pains of playing again, but nothing that concerns me,” Snedeker said. “The only thing I’m worried about is walking 18 holes here. Palm Springs is dead flag. Walking this golf course is a little different.”

And the last time the six-time PGA Tour winner carried his own bag?

“It’s funny, I got into this routine of doing it after injuries,” Snedeker said.

Not so funny is that it has become a routine. In his seven years on tour, Snedeker has had surgery on both hips to correct a degenerative problem. He missed the 2012 U.S. Open because of a rib injury. After one of the hottest stretches of last year – second to Tiger Woods at Torrey Pines, second to Phil Mickelson in Phoenix and then a victory at Pebble Beach – Snedeker had recurring problems with his ribs and missed the next month.

Snedeker said his rookie season was his only injury-free year.

“It’s very concerning,” he said. “I don’t consider myself that, but the evidence bears out that I am injury-prone. Over the course of your career, you’re going to have injuries. I’m hoping all mine are in a five-year stretch.”

He’s been taking medication and paying close attention to his diet to stay on top of his fitness, but just like most people, Snedeker will stray on occasion.

“You get healthy and you forget about it,” he said. “You get injured and you start worrying. I’m no different from anyone else.”

Now, he can hope that’s all behind him. Snedeker believes the best part of his career is ahead of him, and he’s excited about the major championship venues, with Pinehurst No. 2 among his favourite course in America. He was tied with Angel Cabrera going into the final round of the Masters last year, and he has come to love links golf at the British Open, with strong showings the last two years.

His biggest goal for 2014?

“I’m looking forward to playing an injury-free year,” the 2013 RBC Canadian Open champion said with a grin.

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Rory McIlroy is claiming his first win of the new year – his engagement to tennis star Caroline Wozniacki.

One of the top power couples in sports announced their engagement Tuesday night on Twitter, which was Wednesday morning in Australia. A spokesman for McIlroy confirmed he popped the question in Sydney, where Wozniacki is starting to prepare for the Australian Open in Melbourne.

“Happy New Year everyone! I have a feeling it’s going to be a great year!! My first victory of 2014,” McIlroy tweeted. He added a hash tag, “She said yes!!” Wozniacki sent out a similar tweet a few minutes earlier that said, “Happy New Year everyone! Rory and I started 2014 with a bang! … I said YES!!!!”

They included a collage of three photos – her engagement ring, a photo of them together and fireworks over the Sydney Harbor.

Happy New Year everyone! I have a feeling it’s going to be a great year!! My first victory of 2014 #shesaidyes!! pic.twitter.com/gxO7rDDyPY

— Rory Mcilroy (@McIlroyRory) December 31, 2013

That should put to rest two reports out of Ireland at different times this year that they were splitting up. One of those reports was in August, even though McIlroy and Wozniacki had dinner in New York the following night ahead of the U.S. Open in tennis.

They first began to see each other in the summer of 2011, shortly after McIlroy won his first major with a record-setting performance in the U.S. Open at Congressional. They confirmed they were dating a few months later, and they were never shy about sharing their relationship on social media.

He changed his avatar on Twitter of the couple when Wozniacki was No. 1 and McIlroy was No. 2. That changed within six months, when McIlroy first ascended to No. 1 in the world and Wozniacki began a steady decline down the WTA ranking. She now is No. 10, while McIlroy goes into the 2014 season at No. 6.

McIlroy is coming off a rough season in which he failed to meet enormous expectations while changing golf equipment. He also left his management company in a nasty split that is to be settled next year in an Irish court. The 24-year-old from Northern Ireland did not win a tournament until the Australian Open in December.

It was his first year of serious criticism, and McIlroy said it only got to him when it involved his personal life.

“I don’t care what people say about my golf,” he said. “It’s when people start digging into my personal life, that’s where it starts to annoy you – whether it’s Caroline, whether it’s management, all that stuff shouldn’t be a consequence to how I play my golf.”

When he was asked jokingly whether they broke up five or six times this year, McIlroy gave a hearty laugh and said, “Something like that.”

Wozniacki joined him at the World Challenge in California, and then they headed to south Florida and his new home for the first part of the holidays. He later when to Northern Ireland before heading Down Under.

Tweets of congratulations about their engagement began pouring in from Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter and Francesco Molinari.

McIlroy makes his 2014 debut on Jan. 16-19 in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Four years later, the words of Jack Nicklaus resonate even louder.

“If Tiger is going to pass my record, this is a big year for him in that regard,” Nicklaus said at the start of 2010.

Nicklaus was referring to his record 18 majors, and the major championship venues that favoured Woods – Augusta National, Pebble Beach and St. Andrews, all courses where he had won before. Woods never had a serious chance on the back nine of any major that year. His tally remains at 14.

And that makes 2014 even bigger.

Woods is facing another favourable menu of major championship sites. He already has won majors at Augusta, Royal Liverpool (British Open) and Valhalla (PGA Championship). The U.S. Open is at Pinehurst No. 2, were Woods was third in 1999 and runner-up in 2005.

“I’m trending in the right way,” Woods said recently. “I’ve finished third, second … you get the picture, right? OK.”

A new year begins Friday at the Tournament of Champions at Kapalua, and while Woods is among PGA Tour winners who chose to sit this one out, his performance in the majors this year figures to be a major topic of conversation over the next eight months.

“I always think that the Masters signals a lot with Tiger,” NBC analyst Johnny Miller said during a conference call. “If he doesn’t win the Masters, I think it gives a great, big ‘Uh-oh,’ because that course is so perfect for his game. I’ll leave it at that. But if he wants to get off on the right foot, I think he needs to get off at the Masters.”

There’s a big difference with Woods the last time he faced such a tantalizing rotation of majors.

Nicklaus spoke of a “big year” when Woods was more of a mystery than ever. No one had seen Woods in more than a month going into 2010 and didn’t even know where he was. His personal life at home, his mystique in golf and his appeal in the corporate world were crumbling in spectacular fashion.

Now, he is No. 1 in the world. He won five times last year against some of the strongest fields. He won the Vardon Trophy for the ninth time, the PGA Tour money title for the 10th time and was voted PGA Tour player of the year for the 11th time.

Still, there remains an uncertainty about Woods, mainly because he hasn’t won a major since 2008 and he hasn’t broken 70 on the weekend of any major since the 2011 Masters. That’s a startling statistic for a guy who has built a reputation as golf’s greatest closer.

“It’s getting much harder for Tiger because guys are not wilting on him,” Miller said. “So he’s got a double whammy in that he’s not able to close as well as he used to, and then the guys are more heroic against him like they never were before. … Guys are saying, ‘Yeah, you’re Tiger Woods and you’re the greatest ever, but now at your age, I can beat you.’ He needs to do it in the majors.”

Will familiar venues help?

Not necessarily.

Woods forever is linked with Augusta National because of his record score (270) and margin of victory (12 shots) in the 1997 Masters, his back-to-back wins (2001-02) and that magic moment with his chip on the 16th hole that led to his playoff win in 2005. But he has not added to his wardrobe of green jackets in eight years, his longest drought in any major. Who saw that coming?

And while he is trending in the right direction at Pinehurst No. 2, the Donald Ross design has gone through a restoration project that eliminated rough and replaced it with sandy dunes, pine straw and wire grass.

Woods won the 2006 British Open at Royal Liverpool when it was firm and fiery, a links that was more yellow than green because of a dry summer. Woods hit only one driver the entire week. It might not be the same course if England gets a wet summer – and yes, it does rain in England – and players see Hoylake green, lush and longer.

Valhalla is where Woods made what he considers the biggest putt of his career, a 6-footer on the final hole for birdie to force a playoff that he won over Bob May in the PGA Championship. It gave Woods his third straight major in that amazing summer of 2000.

If that seems like a long time ago, it was. Woods will not have seen Valhalla in 14 years when he returns this summer.

The best gauge of Woods and his pursuit of Nicklaus is more about him than the course he is playing. More than St. Andrews or Pebble Beach, more than Hoylake or Valhalla, it’s best to consider Southern Hills. That’s the course that supposedly gave Woods fits because of its tight, bending, tree-lined fairways. Woods won the 2007 PGA Championship that year, proof that when he’s on his game and in the right frame of mind, he can win any major on any course.

More significant than where the majors are played in 2014 is the fact Woods turned 38 on Monday.

By age alone, Woods has been ahead of Nicklaus’ pace in the majors since winning his seventh major in 2002 Masters at age 26. They are tied now. Nicklaus also had 14 majors when he turned 38, and then he added his 15th major that summer in the British Open.

That’s what makes this a big year for Woods.

KAPALUA, Hawaii – The Tournament of Champions has all the PGA Tour winners from the previous year, but that doesn’t translate into the strongest field. Only six of the top 20 at are Kapalua to start the new year, led by Masters champion Adam Scott at No. 2.

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are sitting this one out, as they have for years now. Henrik Stenson, Justin Rose and Graeme McDowell also stayed home because they are members of the PGA and European tours and played deep into 2013.

The field is a better reflection of just how hard it is getting to win on the PGA Tour.

The list of those who failed to qualify is nearly as impressive as those who did – Rory McIlroy, Steve Stricker and Sergio Garcia from the top 10 in the world, along with Jason Day, Ian Poulter, Luke Donald, Charl Schwartzel, Jim Furyk and Keegan Bradley to round out the top 20.

Also missing is Hunter Mahan, Bubba Watson and Nick Watney.

Only nine players who were in the field at Kapalua have returned this year, starting with defending champion Dustin Johnson.

This is worth keeping in mind going into a Ryder Cup year.

The strength of a team is not always who’s playing, but who is not. Europe was at its strongest in the mid-2000s when players like Rose, Poulter, Casey and Garcia were not locks to make the team. That led Colin Montgomerie to suggest that Europe was deep enough to field two teams.

To consider the strength of the Americans right now, consider the Presidents Cup three months ago. The team featured the usual suspects of Woods, Mickelson and Stricker. But look at who didn’t make that team – Furyk, Watson, Dustin Johnson.

That could shape up as one of the top story lines for 2014 as players try to make their respective Ryder Cup teams. It won’t be easy.

“You’ve got to look at 10 guys vying for seven spots,” McDowell said of Europe’s team. “There’s going to be two or three guys who miss – good players, quality players. I would assume (Captain Paul) McGinley’s wild cards are going to be very hotly contested. No doubt it’s going to be a tough team to get on.”
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THE KING PAYS TRIBUTE: In his final “State of the Game” published on Golf Channel’s website, Arnold Palmer offered poignant tributes to some of the golf personalities who died in 2013. He also wanted to set the record straight that Frank Stranahan had as much to do with invigorating the British Open as Palmer did.

The British Open didn’t always get the best players, mainly because it cost more money to get there than players made in the tournament. Palmer went over in 1960, having won the first two majors that year, and he won the claret jug in 1961 and 1962.

“I am often given credit for ”salvaging“ the British Open in the early 1960s,” Palmer wrote. “We can argue whether or not the game’s most historic championship really was in danger of sinking, but it is safe to say that after World War II, many American competitors simply found it easy and more profitable to compete here in the United States. Frank never quit on the Open. He continued to compete there on a regular basis, and finished second in 1947 and 1953.

“His devotion to the Open Championship is what inspired me to go over in 1960. I won the following year, and I’ve been credited ever since with ”saving“ the Open, but it was Frank who paved the way.”
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MILLER TIME: No other golf announcer gets under a player’s skin like Johnny Miller, who has developed his own style – and vocabulary – in his 20 years with NBC Sports. Could the two-time major champion take it as well as he can dish it out?

Miller will never know.

He said on a conference call leading to the Tournament of Champions that he played in a different era of TV commentary.

“In my era, nobody said anything but namby-pamby stuff,” Miller said. “Nobody ever said anything that would make you upset. As Dave Marr said, we were just gilding the road back then, just making everybody look good.”

Miller does believe in compliments. He’s not afraid to praise. But he believes golf is much bigger than it was in the 1970s, and viewership expects more.

“It’s not just a cute little sport, or an awesome game,” he said. “Now it’s sort of a world sport, and in the public view, they want more than, ‘That was a fantastic wedge shot 30 feet right of the hole.’ That’s not what they want to hear.

“I hate to say it, but I’m probably the guy that got announcing a little bit more real, sort of an ‘X Games’ type of announcer,” he said. “And sometimes I wish I wasn’t the way I am, but that’s the way I talk about my own game, so it’s just the way I viewed it. I wasn’t trying to rip anybody, but I have a high standard, and I feel like the best players in the world should perform. And if they don’t, I’m not going to just say, ‘Oh, that was a bad break’ or something.”
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GOLF CHANNEL ON RADIO: Golf Channel no longer will just be seen. Starting this year, it also will be heard.

Golf Channel is expanding to radio for the first time in a broadcast agreement with SiriusXM. Programming will start Monday on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio (XM channel 93, Sirius channel 208).

The programming that will be featured on radio includes “Morning Drive” hosted by Gary Williams, which is a natural fit. When “Morning Drive” began, its studio looked like it was built for a radio talk show. The only problem was it could only be seen on television.

“Radio is a natural extension as Golf Channel continues to expand,” said Mike McCarley, president of Golf Channel.

SiriusXM already has beefed up its programming this year with shows hosted by the likes of Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson and Ben Crenshaw.
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MR. CLUTCH: Jack Nicklaus is regarded as golf’s most clutch putter during his generation. That apparently included playing against his sons.

Jack Nicklaus II was asked recently if he could recall the first time he beat his father.

“I had a putt to beat him or Dad had a putt to miss or whatever, he seemed to always make it, and I seemed to always miss,” Jackie Nicklaus said. “Honestly, I don’t know if I recall the first time I beat him. It doesn’t happen very often. It still doesn’t happen very often.”

Nicklaus said all four of his sons have beaten him in casual games. But he never let them win.

“If I had a 30-foot putt to keep one of them from beating me, I probably made it,” Nicklaus said. “And the reason for that is that I’ve always felt like I don’t want to ever give them anything. If they’re going to beat me, they’ve got to beat me, and I think when you do that, then they feel like they’ve really earned it.”
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DIVOTS: More than just PGA Tour winners are at Kapalua this week. In the days before tournament week starts, the Plantation Course featured Rory Sabbatini, Scott Piercy and Scott Verplank, all of whom are on Maui for vacation. Verplank is taking an exemption for career money and will make his first start next week in the Sony Open. He said he last played Waialae in 1987. … Ryo Ishikawa, who earned his PGA Tour card back through the Web.com Tour Finals, moved to the top of the priority ranking in the first reshuffle on the strength of a runner-up finish in Las Vegas. … The 30-man field at Kapalua includes 13 first-time winners.

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STAT OF THE WEEK: Tiger Woods is the only player to win the Tournament of Champions and a major in the same year since it moved to Kapalua in 1999.

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FINAL WORD: “It’s hard to predict golf. It was pretty easy to predict Tiger there for a while.” –  Johnny Miller.

CORAL GABLES, Florida – Team Canada’s Brooke Henderson saved her best round for last at the Junior Orange Bowl, firing a final round 4-under 67 in Coral Gables, Fla., on Monday to take home individual honours.

The Smiths Falls, Ont., native’s final round on the Biltmore Hotel course was highlighted by six birdies and a closing 2-under 34 back nine. Her 4-under 280 total (68-72-73-67) left her five strokes ahead of Megan Khang of the USA who finished at 1-over for the championship after a 3-under 68 final round.

“It’s an awesome feeling,” Henderson said about her win to media in Florida. “I came here with this in mind and I’m really pleased. Today I was finally able to get my putting working, compared to the first three days. I felt very comfortable on the greens all day.”

The victory marks the 16-year-old’s fifth title of 2013 after she captured the South American Amateur, CN Future Links Pacific Championship, Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship and Spirit International medalist honours earlier in the year.

In the junior boys division, Team Canada Development Squad member Tony Gil of Vaughan, Ont., finished in 26th place at 12-over par. Italy’s Renato Paratore took home individual honours at 9-under 275.

For complete scoring from the Junior Orange Bowl click here 

ST. CATHARINES, Ontario – Former Golf Canada governor and Golf Association of Ontario past-president Harry J. Daniel passed away peacefully at his home Tuesday December 24 at the age of 82.

Daniel, who was actively involved with Golf Canada – formerly the Royal Canadian Golf Association – between 2007 and 2010, served as president of the Golf Association of Ontario in 2006 after a number of years as an active volunteer and board member. He was also a past president of the St Catharines Golf and Country Club.  He will be missed by the golf community in Ontario and across Canada.

Daniel was the loving husband of the late Dorothy Anne (2012), and beloved father of Scott and Janet, Glen and Michele, Blair and Meri Elen and Heather and Andrew Mitchell. Much loved Grandpa of Michael, Jason, Ryan, Alexa, Ava, Brooke and Jack. Dear brother of Bob and Sylvia Daniel. Harry practiced civil litigation in St. Catharines from 1960 to his retirement. He was bestowed the Queen’s Council and was a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers as well as being called to the New York State Bar.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand –Teenage golf star Lydia Ko has split with the only coach she has had since she took up the sport as a 5-year-old.

Ko told Television New Zealand on Monday that she was sad to have ended her partnership with Guy Wilson, whom she called a great coach and friend. But she said she and her family had decided it would be impossible to continue the relationship because she will be based in the United States and he in New Zealand.

“It doesn’t really work, him being here and him coming on the weeks that I’m not playing a tournament means I’ll only see him like 10 times a year, and to me that kind of situation didn’t work out,” Ko said.

Wilson, who worked with the 16-year-old Ko for 11 years, issued a statement saying he was “incredibly disappointed” the partnership is over.

Michael Yim, her agent at IMG, said Monday that Ko worked with various teachers at the Leadbetter Academy in Florida before going to Taiwan for the Swinging Skirts tournament, an event she won two weeks ago in her second start as a professional. Kim said Ko plans to meet with other teachers before deciding on a full-time coach.

Ko has won five professional tournaments –four as an amateur — while coached by Wilson, who said it had “been an honour to help develop Lydia into the No. 4 golfer in the world.”

“When I first met her the golf clubs were taller than she was and she didn’t know the first thing about a driver or a putter, but now she has one of the most envied swings in the women’s golf world,” Wilson said.

Born in South Korea and raised in New Zealand, Ko won the Women’s Canadian Open at 15 last year to become the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history and successfully defended the title this year.

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. – Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont., and Nicholas Ross of Dundas, Ont., finished T7 and T9 respectively at the 83^rd Dixie Amateur Championship at Heron Bay Golf Club in Coral Springs, Fla.

Rank, a member of Team Canada’s National Amateur team, fired four consecutive rounds in the red (69-71-71-70—281) on his way to a tie for seventh at 7-under par. Ross, 18, finished one stroke behind Rank at 6-under (70-74-69-69—282) boosted by his strong final rounds to close out the tournament.

Curtis Thompson, a native of the host city, Coral Springs, Fla., defeated Jack Maguire with a birdie on the second extra hole of a sudden death playoff. They were deadlocked at 15-under par heading into the playoff before Thompson pulled away to earn his second title at the Dixie Amateur, he also won it back in 2011.

The story was very similar on the women’s side with Shannon Aubert of Reunion, Fla., defeating Simin Feng of Windermere, Fla. in a one-hole playoff. They were tied at 8-under par heading into extra play.

For the men’s leaderboard click here

For the women’s leaderboard click here

Other Canadians in the field at the Dixie Amateur

Men:

Alexis Gemme-Piacente, Montreal, Que. – T36
Nicholas Powell, Toronto, Ont. – 77^th
Paolo Addona, Montreal, Que. – T78
Jordan Bakhsh, New Market, Ont. – MC
Mario Vachon, Ste-Claire, Que. – MC
Carl Pelletier, Pont-Rouge, Que.— MC
Claude Pelletier, Donnacona, Que. – MC
Tyler Pope-Ferguson, Amherstbury, Ont. – MC

Women:

Jenna Hague, Burlington, Ont. – T35
Claire Hernandez, Palgrave, Ont. – MC
Kate Alty, Edmonton, Alta. – MC

Brooke Henderson and Tony Gil to tee-it-up at the Junior Orange Bowl Championship

Brooke Henderson and Tony Gil will be representing Canada this week at the upcoming Junior Orange Bowl Championship from Dec. 26-30 at The Biltmore Golf Course in Coral Gables, Fla.

Henderson, a member of the National Amateur team, will be representing the girls side whereas Gil, 15, will be participating in one of his first events as a new member of the Development Squad for the boys.

The Orange Bowl is an international invitational for the top amateur golfers from around the world. Past champions include Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson and former Team Canada athlete Maude-Aimee Leblanc.

For more information on the upcoming tournament, click here

Get to know Augusta James of the National Amateur Team

Hometown: Bath, Ont.
Age: 20

Q: What are some of your nicknames?
A: “Gus”, “AJ”

Q: What is your best golfing moment? (i.e. Tournament finishes, first eagle, hole in one etc..)
A: My two hole-in-ones and playing at the World Amateur in Turkey

Q: What is your worst golfing moment, and the lesson you learned from it?
A: Bogeying the last six holes of Regionals to miss Nationals by one. I learned how to breath better and pull myself aside to realize what’s happening so I can control/stop it

Q: Who is in your dream foursome?
A: Stacey Lewis, Annika Sorenstam, Tiger Woods

Q: What is something most people don’t know about you?
A: I am born on the opening Monday of the Masters tournament!

Q: Do you have a favourite athlete?
A: Tiger Woods

Q: What is the best thing about your hometown?
A: The support from everyone and the beautiful views of downtown as well as the lake

Q: Favourite type of shot to hit?
A: 2-yard draws and low hooks under trees

Q: What is the most surprising thing in your golf bag?
A: A warmup schedule

Three alumni capture Web.com Tour cards

Three graduates of the Team Canada program finished inside the top 45 at last week’s Web.com Q School at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.

Albin Choi of Toronto (2009-2012), Nick Taylor of Abbottsford, B.C. (2010, 2009, 2008, 2006), and Cam Burke of New Hamburg, Ont. (2010), all earned full playing status through to the second periodic re-order of the Web.com Tour’s 2014 season.

Read the full story and see how other Canadians fared here

Meet Carter Simon of the Development Squad

Hometown: Sutton, Ont.
Age: 17

Q: What is your best golfing moment? (i.e. Tournament finishes, first eagle, hole in one etc..)
A: Making eagle in a playoff to win the CN Future Links Ontario Championship

Q: What is your worst golfing moment, and the lesson you learned from it?
A: Making a 10 on the 8^th hole of the final round of a tournament I was leading. Quickly learned how to hit it in the fairway after that.

Q: Who is in your dream foursome?
A: My grandfather, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer

Q: Do you have a favourite athlete?
A: Joe Sakic (former NHL player)

Q: What is the best thing about your hometown?
A: No traffic and very few people!

Q: Favourite type of shot to hit?
A: Has to be the high cut, I hate the high draw.

Q: What is the most surprising thing in your golf bag?
A: My White Teddy Bear (pocket sized)!

Q: If you could have a walk-up song on the first tee box, what would it be?
A: “Hells Bells” by AC/DC

TaylorMade Golf Company announced this week the release of the SLDR 430 – a more compact version of the SLDR 460, currently the No. 1 driver on the PGA Tour. Packaged in a stunning 430cc club head with a modern-classic shape and rich charcoal-gray crown, the company expects better players to flock to the 430 version, which features a smaller tour-inspired head to promote improved workability.

“We put low forward CG in a smaller head to make a driver that tour pros love,” said Brian Bazzel, TaylorMade’s Senior Director of Product Creation for Metalwoods. “SLDR 430 makes it easier to shape shots without sacrificing distance.”

The 430 model features the same distance-producing technology found in its big brother: low and forward center of gravity placement that promotes a hotter launch, lower spin and faster ball speed.

In addition to the low-forward CG benefits, SLDR 430 also incorporates the same innovative sliding weight mechanism TaylorMade introduced with the SLDR 460. A blue 20-gram weight slides on a track located on the front of the sole. Movable weight shifts the clubhead’s CG horizontally toward either the heel, to promote a draw, or toward the toe, to promote a fade.

SLDR delivers six millimeters of movement – that’s 50% more than R1 – promoting a shot-dispersion range of up to 30 yards. The SLDR weight slides on a 21-point track system and never comes loose from the clubhead. To position the weight in any one of them simply loosen the screw, slide the weight to the point selected, then tighten the screw. Golfers can adjust for a “draw” or “fade” by sliding the weight across the slider track into the appropriate position in as little as 10 seconds.

Nearly 10 years ago, TaylorMade brought to market its first movable weight driver, the r7 quad –which featured four small weight cartridges that could be used to change the head’s CG location and influence ball flight. Since that release, TaylorMade’s R&D team has been searching for a way to improve and simplify MWT. The company believes SLDR’s new sliding system is a significant leap forward in its quest to engineer a driver that offers outstanding performance with simple and intuitive technology.

SLDR also incorporates TaylorMade’s Loft-sleeve Technology, which allows the golfer to easily adjust the loft. Golfers can choose from 12 positions within a range of plus-or-minus 1.5 degrees of loft change. The more loft added, the more the face closes and vice-versa.