Tiger Woods finds success with familiar equipment setup

The magnitude of Tiger Woods' win at the TOUR Championship cannot be understated. Last April, it was unclear the 14-time major winner would ever return to the course following L5-S1 spinal fusion back surgery that clouded the future of his golf career — one that had been marred by numerous back procedures over the previous three years.

“One of the things I think I've really done over the years is that I've been pretty ardent about playing a product that is better than what I'm using, and all of the companies I've been with, they all know that," Woods told PGATOUR.COM during an exclusive interview after the testing session. "I will give it my best efforts to try and put it in, but it's going to take a little time sometimes."

The brief time away seemed to be exactly what Woods and his putter needed, as he finished the season ranked second in Strokes Gained: Putting at East Lake en route to taking home the TOUR Championship for the third time in his career.

The driver shaft proved to be the final piece of the puzzle for Woods, who rotated between numerous models during the season before settling on a familiar profile in Mitsubishi's Diamana D+ White Board. The move came on the heels of a significant change for Woods, who opted for a counterbalance Tensei CK Pro Orange part over a non-counterbalance part to gain more club head speed.

What Woods found out, in the end, was that accuracy, in his case, mattered more than distance. With Diamana, Woods found the center of the fairway and still managed to average over 300 yards during the final event of the season while ranking no worse than T27 in driving accuracy during the FedExCup Playoffs.

"It's a feeling that I know and I used to use it for a number of years," Woods said of the shaft. "I know the graphics have changed a little bit but it's basically the same shaft. Went back to something that I knew and had success with, and it's turned out pretty good."

From an equipment perspective, Woods' season will be remembered for all of the changes he made over the course of 10 months — some many never expected to see from Woods (mallet putters and graphite driving irons).

New technology no doubt helped Woods make strides on the course, but in the end, it was two reliable products from his past that helped push the 42-year-old over the top and produce a storybook finish for the ages.