Notebook: Golf ball makes a difference in foursomes pairings

By Jennifer Gardner
Tour Van

Every year, in either the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup, pairs play in foursome competition and need to make a big decision - which partner's golf ball to play.

Some pros struggle to use a ball other than their own, while others say it's no big deal.

"Now all of the golf balls are all hard and all going a long way. Not a whole lot of difference between the golf balls," Tiger Woods said.

But still, practice rounds with players at this year's Presidents Cup still involved a lot of tinkering, to see whose ball was best suited for both partners.

"I played a round with Geoff (Ogilvy) and we were messing around with the two different golf balls, I play Nike and he plays Titleist so we were just seeing which ball we were going to hit," said Charl Schwartzel before competition got underway. "I found no difference in the balls. Geoff... was struggling with the irons a bit so I think we'll just go with his."

Turns out that in the 22 foursomes partnerships at the Presidents Cup, just five pairs used the same ball. Those teams seemed to fare better than the mixed-ball pairs, as those five teams with the same ball claimed 3.5 points.

KBS WINDS DOWN 2011: Six players competing in the Presidents Cup used KBS Tour shafts - five from the International team and one from the U.S. team.

"This year's President's Cup highlights the growth of our brand among the world's best golfers," said shaft designer Kim Braly. "Despite being introduced in early 2008, KBS Tour shafts have already racked up over 40 Tour wins and are regularly trusted by many of golf's best players."

RUN FOR COVERS: Did you notice the special head covers that the U.S. Presidents Cup team used? Those were custom made by AB Golf Designs in Scottsdale, Ariz., and featured an embroidered U.S. flag and Presidents Cup logo on a blue background.

"When Freddie first saw the design and materials, his reaction was 'these are awesome,' and he couldn't wait to give them to the team," said AB Golf Designs co-owner D.J. Langer.

Steve Pate, Christina Kim, Yani Tseng, Maria Hjorth and Paige McKenzie are among the pros who use AB Golf head covers in competition.

TITLEIST BALL DOMINATES LPGA: Of the 23 LPGA events played in 2011, 15 of them were won by Titleist Pro V1 or Pro V1x players. Yani Tseng, who plays a Pro V1x, earned seven of those victories, including two major championships. She captured the LPGA money title with nearly $3 million in earnings.