The top three finishers at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial couldn't have been more different. The winner, Rory Sabbatini, is a younger South African who uses mostly Nike equipment. Runner-up Jim Furyk is third in the world and prefers Srixon equipment. Bernhard Langer, who also tied for second, is 49 years old, hails from Germany and is an Adams Golf Staff Professional.
The thing they all had in common: Adams hybrids.
Sabbatini carried an 18-degree Idea a2 hybrid and has used Adams' Idea Pro hybrid for the past season and a half - since the beginning of 2006. Furyk uses a 19-degree Idea Pro, while Langer's bag had several Adams clubs including Idea Pro irons.
"These three players, some of the best on tour, put on a display of precision shot-making that The Colonial demands," said Chip Brewer, Adams Golf CEO and president. "The wet conditions called for extra distance and accuracy that our golf clubs are designed for and I think each player benefited from that. It was an exciting finish to a terrific tournament."
Adams hybrids have been popular on the U.S. men's professional tours.
Last week, Adams announced that the hybrids were No. 1 in the Darrell Survey's equipment counts on the PGA, Champions and Nationwide Tours.
In all, 1,587 Adams hybrids have been in play on the three tours this year alone.
Hybrids have been growing in their use on tour. The clubs are intended to be a mix of iron and wood, good for getting the ball out of trouble spots and also a bit easier to control than a fairway wood. They hold the interesting distinction of growing quickly among both the best in the game and the worst - tour pros and beginners are the players who've been quickest to adopt the clubs.
Two weeks ago, at the AT&T Classic, six players even carried more than one Adams hybrid. Of the hybrids used, about 30 percent on the PGA Tour and between 40 and 50 percent on the Nationwide Tour choose Adams.
"I've been at Adams Golf since the early days of us begging players to put our clubs in their bags, now it's just an awesome feeling to have so many of these elite players asking for our products," said Max Puglielli, director of tour operations, after 86 Nationwide Tour players used Adams hybrids in early May. "It's great to see all the yellow and black Idea Pro headcovers in the bags at each Nationwide Tour event. Our hybrids are superior to the competition and when you combine that with the professional service our tour team provides the players, it's not surprising to see such high numbers."
