In many cases, 10 years doesn’t sound that long. However, when it comes to golf equipment, it can seem like another era.
With the CJ CUP Byron Nelson back on the PGA Tour schedule, it’s a good time to look at the bag Sergio Garcia used to win the 2016 AT&T Byron Nelson. WITB comeback stories are fun because they show what was available, what tour players believed and how much the set-up plan has changed.
Several details in Garcia’s bag stand out, including an 80-gram driver shaft, a traditional 3-PW iron set, and a simple two-wedge setup.
Sergio Garcia’s Byron Nelson Bag 2016 at a Glance
Garcia defeated Brooks Koepka in a playoff that week. The bag worked, but compared to many modern winning structures, it also shows how much the Tour fit has changed.
| Club | Sergio Garcia’s 2016 winning setup |
|---|---|
| Driver | TaylorMade M2, 9.5°, Mitsubishi Kuro Kage S TiNi 80X |
| 3-wood | TaylorMade M1, 15°, Mitsubishi Kuro Kage S TiNi 80X |
| 5-wood | TaylorMade M1, 19°, Mitsubishi Kuro Kage S TiNi 80X |
| lattice | TaylorMade PSi Tour, 3-PW |
| wedges | Favorite TaylorMade Tour EF, 52° and 58° |
| Putter | TaylorMade Monte Carlo Prototype |
| BALL | TaylorMade Preferred X Tour |
The 80-gram steering shaft stands out
Garcia used an 80 gram Mitsubishi Kuro Kage S TiNi X shaft in his driver, 3-wood and 5-wood.
Garcia’s 80 gram driver shaft stands out next to many current bag winners. Several winners this season are listed with 6X drivers, which are typically in the mid-60 gram range, while Gary Woodland is one of the few listed with an 8X driver, a weight class much closer to Garcia’s 2016 setup.
The pickup issue isn’t that Sergio’s axle was too heavy. It suited him. The main thing is that modern Tour bags are more specialized than the club. The driver, fairway woods, and long game clubs are each equipped for a specific launch window, spin window, and shot pattern.
The 3-iron may be the biggest difference
Garcia’s TaylorMade PSi Tour irons ranged from 3-iron wedges to pitching. To me, this was the most clearly “10 years ago” detail in the entire bag.
A 3-iron hasn’t disappeared from professional golf, but it’s no longer the default choice. The current winning purses show much more variety at the top. You’ll see utility irons, 7-woods, 9-woods, hybrids, mixed iron sets and long iron replacements.
Scottie Scheffler had a Srixon ZU85 4-iron before switching to P7TW irons from the 5-PW. Collin Morikawa used a TaylorMade PDHY 4 iron before his mixed iron setup. Alex Fitzpatrick won with 7-wood and 9-wood options over a Titleist T100 set that started with a 5-iron.
Placing the wedge was simpler
Garcia carried TaylorMade Tour’s favorite EF wedges at 52 and 58 degrees. EF stands for Electroformed, a TaylorMade face and groove design used to help maintain spin performance.
Compared to many modern bags, two specialty wedges seem simple. Today, it is common to see three or four wedge setups with narrower openings and more attention to the interaction of bounce, grind and terrain.
Main photo caption: Sergio Garcia drives during the 2016 Byron Nelson. (GETTY IMAGES/Scott Halleran)
