After months of speculation as to which golf clubs he will use in 2017, Tiger Woods announced Wednesday morning that he will play TaylorMade equipment.
Woods tweeted the news: “After several months of testing and all brands to choose from, the choice is clearly @TaylorMadeGolf. Proud to join the family! ”
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When Woods’ former equipment company, Nike, decided to get out of the hard goods side of the golf industry last year, that effectively made Woods a free agent to choose which equipment he will play and endorse in 2017 and beyond. He had been with Nike since turning pro in 1996.
The TaylorMade deal is for all clubs except the putter.
Woods will play rounds 1 and 2 this week in the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, a course he has won on eight times as a professional, with fellow TaylorMade stablemates world No. 1 Jason Day and No. 3 Dustin Johnson. But there has been no announcement that Woods will have TaylorMade irons in his bag this week.
In December, Woods signed an endorsement deal to play Bridgestone golf balls. Because he is still a Nike endorser, Woods is expected to still wear the famous swoosh on his clothing.
There has been speculation in the industry that Woods would seek an ownership stake in his next equipment company. TaylorMade spokesman Jory Mendes told ESPN’s Darren Rovell that the deal with Woods does not include equity in the company. Mendes said that Adidas, TaylorMade’s parent company, has expressed interest in selling TaylorMade, but no announcements are imminent.
