Brooks Koepka had been one of the most highly-coveted equipment free agents on the market since Nike stopped producing golf equipment and balls in 2016. A former world No. 1 and the winner of two U.S. Opens and two PGA Championships, the American is known as a fierce competitor and for playing his best golf on the biggest stages, something that brands love being associated with.
The first sentence of that last paragraph is written in the past tense because Srixon announced on Monday that it had signed Koepka, 31, to an endorsement deal.
“I am very excited to join my good friends Shane Lowry, Graeme McDowell and Hideki Matsuyama as a Srixon and Cleveland Golf Tour Staff member,” he said in a release. “I’ve been an equipment free agent for the past few years, so it will be fun to be involved with a company on a daily basis and be able to contribute to the development of their future equipment.”
The financial details of Koepka’s signing were not disclosed, but he is now being paid to use a Srixon driver and irons, play Cleveland wedges, use a Srixon ball and carry a Srixon bag.
“We’re extremely proud to have Brooks come on board as our newest staff member,” said Rodney McDonald, Srixon’s vice president of tour operations. “He’s one of the best players in the world and brings his major championship pedigree and validation to our brands. We’re excited for Brooks to join the Srixon and Cleveland Golf family and look forward to supporting him out on tour.”
According to Srixon, Koepka plans to use a Srixon ZX5 driver (From $499 at Carl’s Golfland and Dick’s), Srixon ZX7 irons (From $162.50 at Carl’s Golfland and Dick’s) and Cleveland RTX ZipCore Tour Rack wedges (From $149 at Carl’s Golfland and Dick’s). It is anticipated that he will use a new Srixon Z-STAR prototype ball as well.
Over the last two seasons, Koepka has used a few different drivers but has played Srixon’s ZX7 irons. The ZX7 is a better-players cavity-back iron that is forged from 1025 carbon steel. It features a thin topline, narrow sole and only a small amount of offset. A small amount of tungsten has been positioned in the toe to counteract the weight of the hosel and pull the ideal hitting area into the center of the face.
The timing of the announcement is likely no accident. Koepka will be playing in Capital One’s The Match on November 26, a televised match-play event against Bryson DeChambeau on Friday in Las Vegas.
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Source: Golfweek https://ift.tt/2V95qPJ