What will Rose’s WITB look like? Here are a few clues

UPDATE (June 11, 2020) - Here's what Justin Rose said about what was in his bag in Thursday's first round of the Charles Schwab Challenge when he grabbed a share of the lead with a 7-under 63. It appears to be very similar, if not identical, to what the Englishman had with him at The PLAYERS Championship in March.

“Kept it pretty simple, I suppose. I spent a lot of years at TaylorMade, so I felt like I needed just to get a bit of a baseline on my game,” Rose said. “I’m using the SIM driver, SIM 3-wood, got a little Cobra 5-wood in there, which has been a nice find.

“It's amazing out of the rough and obviously I can fade it up and draw it, so that's a nice little versatile club. And then P730s through the bag and Vokey wedges, and then my Axis1 putter, which has been a staple for me the last couple of years.”

The buzz started earlier this year around Bay Hill when it was noticed that Justin Rose, the 2018 FedExCup champ and former No. 1 player in the world, was testing new drivers, among other things. Yes, PGA TOUR players test equipment all the time, so what's the big deal? This time was a bit different, though, as Rose was in year two of a well-publicized relationship with Japanese club maker Honma Golf.

The theories started to fly and speculation ran thick in all corners of the golf equipment world. The “why” and the “how” of Rose's equipment status with Honma was just that -- speculation. But a four-start stretch in which Rose missed three cuts (and finished T56 in the only cut he did make at The Genesis Invitational) helped fuel it. Maybe he just couldn’t find a driver that matched up.

In a sport with no teammates, every detail matters. It not only has to be dialed in, but more importantly, feel right to each and every player. With a player like Rose, who has seen the pinnacle and aspires to get back there, with his 40th birthday around the corner in July, the last thing he wants is uncertainty in his equipment.

The last 18 months have brought some success with the initial win at the Farmers Insurance Open in 2019, but to Rose's standards, the rest of the year didn't fit. Having an off-year can do a few things to a player, depending on his personality: it can send him down a swing rabbit hole, it can make him more patient and continue on the path, or it can make them become a bit more open-minded and less rigid in old routines.

That's what I think it did to Justin Thomas; got him to look at things differently.

No doubt, Honma Golf makes phenomenal equipment. Make no mistake. It just didn't work for this particular player, and that can be said about any equipment manufacturer out there. The split – which became official with a joint statement last month -- was handled with pure class by both parties and both will be fine.

“I am hopeful that during our time of partnership, we have laid the groundwork for Honma to continue to expand their brand,” Rose said in the statement. “We both feel it is the right time to pursue our own paths.”

The other aspect that I think gets overlooked in this day and age is freedom. Players such as Tommy Fleetwood, Patrick Reed, Paul Casey, and Brooks Koepka are all experiencing success without club contracts. There is something to be said for having the option to put the exact 14-club bag together that fits your eye, with no reference to contracts or club count obligations.

I don't believe Rose will ever sign another club contract, and it's not because the last experience was bad. It’s a case of a world-class player who sees a window to get back on top and wants to do it on his own terms. Who can argue with that?

That said, let's take a look at a few Justin Rose WITBs from the past to see if we can gain any insights about what his setup might look like in the future.

Current Justin Rose WITB

As of THE PLAYERS Championship in March

Driver: TaylorMade SIM (10.5 degrees @ 8.5)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Kuro Kage XTS 70 TX

3-wood: TaylorMade SIM Max (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Kuro Kage XTS 80 TX

5-wood: Cobra SpeedZone Tour (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 80 X

Irons: TaylorMade P730 (4-PW)
Shafts: Project X 6.5

Wedges: TaylorMade MG2 (52, 56 degrees), Titleist Vokey Design Prototype K Grind (60 degrees)
Shafts: Project X 6.5 (52, 56), Proto Hi-Rev 135X (60)

Putter: Axis1 Rose

Grip: Flat Cat Svelte

Ball: TaylorMade TP5 ‘19 (No. 1)

2018 FedExCup WITB

Driver: TaylorMade M3 440 (9 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei CK Pro Orange 70 TX

3-wood: TaylorMade M4 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei CK Pro Orange 80 TX

5-wood: TaylorMade M3 (19 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei CK Pro Orange 80 TX

Irons: TaylorMade P790 (4-iron), TaylorMade P730 “Rose Proto” (5-9)
Shafts: KBS Tour C-Taper 125 S+ shafts

Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48, 52 and 56 degrees, TaylorMade Milled Grind Hi-Toe (60 degrees)
Shafts: KBS Hi-Rev 2.0 135X

Putter: TaylorMade TP Red Ardmore 2

Ball: TaylorMade TP5 (Gold 99)

2013 U.S. Open WITB

Driver: TaylorMade R1 (9.25 degrees)
Shaft: Matrix Ozik Black Tie 6M3 X

3-wood: TaylorMade RBZ Stage 2 Tour HL (16.5 degrees @ 14.5 degrees)
Shaft: Matrix Ozik 8M3 X

Irons: TaylorMade RocketBladez Tour (3-6), TaylorMade Tour Preferred MB (7-PW)
Shafts: KBS C-Taper 130 X

Wedges: TaylorMade ATV (52,56, 60 degrees)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: TaylorMade Spider Blade Prototype

Ball: TaylorMade Lethal

So … what may change?

That's where it could get interesting. What Rose will show up with at next week’s Charles Schwab Challenge is anybody's guess.

Rose obviously has had plenty of time to test and get comfortable. My hunch tells me his bag will be a mix of some old and some new. I don't think the bag will be all that different then he had at THE PLAYERS Championship, maybe some tweaks here and there. If you look at the bag setup he had at TPC Sawgrass, it was back to his TaylorMade roots (in many parts of the bag) where he seems to be comfortable.

This all gives us just one more thing to follow and to be excited about as the TOUR gets back to action in Fort Worth.