Why Titleist made a surprise club release at the Players Championship

Titleist is about as reliable as it gets with club releases. With an every-other-year cadence on hard goods, you can guarantee new metalwoods and irons, for example, won’t launch in the same season.

But even reliable brands have been known to throw a curveball on occasion.

With pros prepping for a demanding test at TPC Sawgrass, Titleist trotted out a special Tour-only TSR club for pros who might need an alternative off the tee. Even if the course is soft at the moment, that doesn’t mean it’ll stay that way through the weekend.

This brings us to the mysterious TSR making an appearance this week. With four TSR drivers and fairway woods already in the current lineup, Titleist isn’t short on options at the top of the bag.

So where exactly does this new TSR fit? Based on photos GOLF.com obtained while on-site at TPC Sawgrass, this one isn’t a driver — and it’s too big to be a fairway wood. It falls right between the two, making it a glorified “mini driver.”

Look at the history behind previous mini drivers and you’ll find March and April have been popular release months for the club. Phil Mickelson deployed Callaway’s Phrankenwood at the 2013 Masters, and a 13-degree X Hot 3Deep as his “driver” en route to winning the Open Championship later that year. TaylorMade’s BRNR Mini played a role in Jake Knapp’s maiden PGA Tour title last month, and Tommy Fleetwood swears by the club.

While the mini isn’t for everyone, it’s had enough success along the way to stick. The mini driver DNA is designed for greater variability of launch and extra spin when compared to a 460cc driver, with a larger profile than a smaller-headed 3-wood for additional off-center forgiveness.

Some say it looks like the late ’90s and early 2000s driver, but Titleist’s TSR is anything but a throwback.

At 13 degrees, per the USGA conforming list, and boasting a deeper face than even the larger TSR2+ fairway wood, the 2-wood is meant to slot in between the driver and the next longest club in the bag, making it a strong secondary option off the tee on courses where fairways are at a premium. (We’re looking at your, TPC Sawgrass.)

Titleist TSR2+ Custom Fairway Wood

$349

When driver isn’t the play, Titleist TSR2+ Fairway is ready. With a larger profile, taller face, and a low, deep CG, it plays like a longer, more forgiving, tee-biased 3W. It gives any player yet another way to gain strokes from the tee and fairway.
Benefits

High, Consistent Flight
Maximum Forgiveness
Optimized Distance
Player-Preferred Shape, Sound & Feel

Features

Deep, Face-Centered CG (Center of Gravity)
Larger, Confidence-Inspiring Profile
High-Strength Carpenter Stainless Steel
SureFit Adjustability

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With adjustable front and rear weights, the TSR setup is similar to the 430cc TSR4 driver — down to the sole cosmetics. Where the two diverge is when it comes to the face construction. The TSR4 boasts a multi-plateau VFT face construction, while the TSR features the long white lines found on every TSR fairway wood.

Titleist has yet to comment on the club’s construction, but it’s safe to assume TSR blends the best bits of the drivers and fairway woods to make the ultimate mini product.

With another day of practice and testing ahead at TPC Sawgrass, we’ll have to wait and see if anyone in the field chooses to give TSR a shot on one of the toughest layouts the Tour has to offer.

Want to overhaul your bag for 2024? Find a fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

Jonathan Wall

Golf.com Editor

Jonathan Wall is GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com’s Managing Editor for Equipment. Prior to joining the staff at the end of 2018, he spent 6 years covering equipment for the PGA Tour. He can be reached at jonathan.wall@golf.com.