Matt Wallace rolled his NEW Pro V1x golf ball in for 24 birdies over the four days at the Corales Puntacana Championship – including four in a row from Nos. 13-16 coming down the stretch Sunday – to claim his first PGA TOUR victory. The 32-year-old Englishman and four-time DP World Tour winner closed in 6-under 66 on a windy Corales course to win by one shot, topping a leader board that featured five Titleist golf ball players in the top six positions.
Wallace’s victory came in just his fourth start playing the NEW Pro V1x golf ball, and just his sixth start since making the switch to a Titleist golf ball after playing all of the 2021-22 season and the first six events of this season with a competitive model.
Wallace teed up a Pro V1 to start the new year at the WM Phoenix Open. Two weeks later, at the Honda Classic, Wallace made the move to 2023 Pro V1x after a testing session with Fordie Pitts of Titleist Golf Ball R&D on the range at PGA National.
“Matt was looking for a bit more traj and spin in certain parts of his game and ’23 X checked those boxes,” Pitts said. “He loved the flight and overall playability and put it right in play that week after testing it. He’d never considered himself a good candidate for Pro V1x, but it’s been a great match.”
Wallace ended 2022 at 98th in Strokes Gained: Approach and 11th in Strokes Gained: Around the Green. After switching to a Titleist golf ball, he has improved to 31st in SG: Approach and 2nd in SG: Around the Green. (The jump doesn’t include this week’s victory, as Shotlink wasn’t used in Punta Cana.) He finished last season 142nd and 146th in those categories, respectively.
* The winner of the Corales Puntacana Championship, in addition to his NEW Pro V1x golf ball, gamed a TSR3 driver, three Vokey Design SM9 wedges (50.08F, 54.10S, WedgeWorks 60A | NS Pro Modus3 Tour 120 X) and a Scotty Cameron P5 GSS tour prototype putter. The champ put all four clubs in play to start 2023 after playing with competitive models last season.
Titleist Brand Ambassador Cameron Young, playing a NEW Pro V1x golf ball, TSR driver and 14 Titleist clubs, earned his best finish of ‘23, making a run to the finals that featured 83 consecutive holes without a bogey. In his first six matches at Austin Country Club, Young went 6-for-6, playing those 100 holes in 39 under. In the semi-finals, Young rallied from 2 down with 3 holes to play, to beat the World’s third-ranked player on the 19th hole. In his opening match Wednesday, Young started with nine consecutive 3’s to make the turn in 27.
Vokey Design SM9 48.10F, 52.12F, 58.08M, WedgeWorks 60T (@62) wedges | Nippon NS Pro Modus3 Tour 130 X
– Three of the four semi-finalists played a Scotty Cameron putter, including the top two ranked players in the Official World Golf Ranking. The World No. 1 plays a Special Select Timeless Tourtype GSS; the World No. 2 this week made the switch to a Scotty Cameron 009•M tour prototype. Cameron Young plays a Scotty Cameron Phantom X 5 model. Six of the top 10 players in the world are currently gaming Scotty Cameron putters.
Celine Boutier, playing the NEW Pro V1x golf ball, birdied the first hole of an all-Pro V1x playoff with Georgia Hall to claim her third career LPGA title. Boutier, 29, closed in 4-under 68, getting up-and-down for birdie on the par-5 18th at Superstition Mountain to force the playoff at 20 under par. It was the same story on No. 18 in the playoff, with Boutier hitting a clutch pitch to 5 feet and rolling in her Pro V1x for the clinching birdie.
• THREE-IN-A-ROW FOR NEW PRO V1 & PRO V1x: NEW Pro V1 and Pro V1x players have now won the last three events on the LPGA Tour:
Last week on the Ladies European Tour, Titleist Brand Ambassador Pauline Roussin-Bouchard – playing NEW Pro V1x – posted a final round 64 and 15-under total in Singapore to earn her second career LET victory. The 22-year-old, who also plays a TSR3 driver and fairway among her Titleist setup, made eight birdies in Saturday’s final round on her to way to a four-shot victory at Laguna National Resort Club.
Nick Bachem (Pro V1x) claimed his first DP World Tour title with a four-shot victory in Johannesburg, closing things out with a flawless 8-under 64. Bachem, 23, of Germany, played his first six holes Sunday in 4 under before pulling away with a final-nine 32. He made only one bogey over the weekend on his way to a winning total of 24 under.
David Skinns (Pro V1x) earned his third career Korn Ferry Tour victory, carding a birdie on his 71st hole en route to a one-shot victory at The Landings Golf & Athletic Club. Skinns was the only player to post four rounds in the 60’s (67-68-68-68).
Playing a NEW Pro V1x golf ball, David Toms went wire-to-wire at Mission Hills, carding a final round 7-under 65 to earn his second win in three starts and the fourth of his PGA TOUR Champions career. Since putting the 2023 model in play to begin the season (5 events), Toms is a combined 60 under par and has not finished outside of the top 15.
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Titleist, Golf’s Symbol of Excellence, is the game's leading performance equipment brand, having earned the overwhelming trust of tour professionals, club professionals, competitive amateurs and dedicated golfers worldwide. The Titleist golf ball embodies superior performance, innovative design and technology, precision manufacturing and unmatched quality. It is the unequivocal #1 ball in golf, and has been for 70 years and still counting. Titleist also sets the standard for golf clubs through an unwavering commitment to performance, meticulous attention to detail, and as the game’s preeminent golf club fitter. Titleist golf gear, comprising golf bags, headwear, travel gear, accessories and golf gloves, also delivers the performance and quality excellence promised in every product that bears the Titleist Script.
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- James Savage
- PR and Communications Manager at Acushnet Europe Ltd
- james_savage@acushnetgolf.com