Three-win Weekend Solidifies Odyssey Golf As The #1 Putter Brand On Combined Five Tours In 2001
Three-win Weekend Solidifies Odyssey Golf As The #1 Putter Brand On Combined Five Tours In 2001
April 18, 2001 at 12:00 AM EDT
CONTACT(S): Larry Dorman, Mike Galeski, Millie Speirs (760) 931-1771
CARLSBAD, CA., April 18, 2001 – Odyssey Golf, a brand of Callaway Golf (NYSE: ELY), registered another three putter wins last weekend. This outstanding performance underscore’s Odyssey Golf’s position as the leader in putter usage and putter wins on the world’s five major tours combined through April 15, 2001. A total of 21 tournaments have been won on the PGA, Senior PGA, LPGA, Buy.com and PGA European tours combined this year using Odyssey® Putters. Overall, Odyssey Golf has a 32.2 percent share of all putters put in play on those tours this year, compared with 25.9 percent for the nearest competitor according to figures from the Darrell Survey Company and Sports Marketing Surveys Inc.
Leading the victory march for Odyssey Golf last weekend was Annika Sorenstam, who won her fourth consecutive LPGA Tour event using an Odyssey Dual Force® Rossie® 2 Putter. Sorenstam holed a clutch 12-foot birdie putt on the final hole of regulation play at The Office Depot, then two-putted to win on the first playoff hole. Sorenstam credits her putting confidence with playing a major role in her superb season – which includes four victories and two second-place finishes in six events. This weekend, Sorenstam will attempt to tie the LPGA Tour record of five consecutive victories.
Fifty-nine of the 144 players in the field at the Office Depot, including 8 of the top 13 finishers, relied on Odyssey Putters. Year to date, 40.6 percent of the putters used on the LPGA Tour have been Odyssey Putters, compared with 24.7 percent for the nearest competitor.
Elsewhere, Odyssey Putters were also used by the winners of last week’s Senior PGA and PGA European tour events. The winner of the Countrywide Tradition used an Odyssey Dual Force 440 Putter in winning the second senior major championship of his career. Five of the top nine finishers at the event used Odyssey Putters, and Odyssey Golf now has seven Senior PGA Tour victories this year – no other putter brand has more than one.
The PGA European Tour’s Moroccan Open was dominated by Odyssey Golf. The event’s winner used an Odyssey White Hot® 3 Putter, while nine of the top 11 finishers at the event used Odyssey Putters. More than half the field at the Moroccan Open used Odyssey Putters – a total of 77 players in all, compared with 39 for the nearest competitor. For the season, 41.6 percent of all putters put in play on the PGA European Tour have been Odyssey Putters, compared with 28.6 percent for the nearest competitor.
Tour usage of the new Odyssey TriHot™ Putters is on the rise. A total of 32 TriHot Putters were put in play last weekend across the four major tours that held events. To date, the most popular Odyssey Putters on tour this year have been the Odyssey White Hot line of putters. Odyssey White Hot and TriHot models all feature a unique insert made from the cover material of the Callaway Golf “Rule 35®” ball. This insert combines exceptionally soft feel with consistent rebound properties, which helps to give golfers a pleasing feel at impact without sacrificing distance control or accuracy.
Callaway Golf Company makes and sells Big Bertha® Metal Woods and Irons, including Big Bertha ERC™ II Forged Titanium Drivers, Big Bertha Hawk Eye® VFT™ and Big Bertha Hawk Eye VFT Pro Series Titanium Drivers and Fairway Woods, Big Bertha Steelhead Plus™ Stainless Steel Drivers and Fairway Woods, Hawk Eye Tungsten Injected™ Titanium Irons, Steelhead™ X-14® and Steelhead X-14 Pro Series Stainless Steel Irons. Callaway Golf Company also makes and sells Odyssey® Putters, including White Hot®, TriHot™, and Dual Force® Putters. Callaway Golf Company makes and sells the Callaway Golf® “Rule 35®” Firmfeel™ and Softfeel™ golf balls, and the CB1™ Red and CB1 Blue golf balls. For more information about Callaway Golf Company, please visit our Web sites at www.callawaygolf.com, www.callawaygolfball.com and www.odysseygolf.com.