Equipment
What you need to know about Tiger Woods’ new Graphite Design Tour AD-VF driver shaft
Tiger Woods is making his PGA Tour return at the 2023 Hero World Challenge this week, which marks the first time we’ll see him tee it up in competition since the 2023 Masters.
On Tuesday, we spotted Woods in the Bahamas using a new, unreleased TaylorMade Qi10 LS driver prototype equipped with a new Graphite Design Tour AD-VF 6 X red and black shaft.
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— GolfWRX (@GolfWRX) November 29, 2023
Back in September, if you remember, Justin Thomas switched into a Graphite Design Tour AD-VF 5 X shaft in his Titleist TSR3 driver. Thomas wanted a longer driver option, and he found 15 more yards thanks to the new 45.625-inch driver.
This week, Woods showed up with the same shaft model (just slightly heavier and stiffer, due to the shorter length compared to Thomas).
So, what is it about this AD-VF shaft that’s attracting top names such as Thomas and Woods?
According to Graphite Design’s website, the AD-VF metalwood shafts have a “FIRM+” butt section, a “STIFF” mid-section, and a “VERY STIFF” tip section.
The “VF” stands for “Victory Force,” and the design promotes a low/mid launch, with low spin. The shafts, which are designed and manufactured at the Graphite Design Japan Factory, use “TORAYCA M40X” pre-preg material in the butt section, and “TORAYCA T1100G” pre-preg in the mid/tip sections to produce better control, stability, and feel.
Here’s how the AD-VF shaft compares to other shafts in the Graphite Design family, according to the company’s website, and as you can see, it’s as stiff as anything Graphite Design offers across the butt, mid, and tip sections. Reductively, you could call it the “stiffest shaft in the lineup.”
As a reminder, Woods most recently gamed the Fujikura Ventus Black with a TaylorMade Stealth Plus head at the Masters in April.
Woods is set to tee off on Thursday at 11:52 a.m. EST alongside Justin Thomas.
Neal Shipley was the first to admit that he enjoyed his food while in college. But since his days at Ohio State, he’s slimmed down and earned a PGA Tour Card.
That hasn’t stopped him from having fun with his wedge stampings, though it’s led to some misunderstandings.
On the 54 (degree), we have ‘Big Fudge,'” Shipley told GolfWRX. “It was supposed to be ‘Big Fridge,’ so this happened a little while ago. ‘Big Fridge’ was a nickname between my college teammates and I, with ‘fridge’ meaning stomach, a big stomach.
“We told the Ping guys to put … ‘Big Fridge’ on it, and I think maybe some bad cell service or something, and they thought I said ‘fudge,’ so they put fudge on it.”
On Shipley’s 50-degree he also continues the food theme, this time with his go-to order at the “Golden Arches,” and his stamping “DONS 7.”
“The number 7 meal, the two cheeseburger meal, that was my McDonald’s order, back when I would have McDonald’s frequently,” Shipley shared.
At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.
It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.
Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @raw10628 has a L.A.B. DF3 putter and Masters putter cover up for grabs.
From the listing: “Some great items here today, time to thin out and make room for next set of gear. All prices include shipping.
LAB DF3 Purple 33.5” 68° lie with TPT – $725. LAB Masters release DF3 cover – $150.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules
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Putter: L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i
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Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
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Shaft
Nov 29, 2023 at 10:09 pm
What you need to know is it’s like the orange ADDI with a lot lower trajectory.