In capturing the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, Gary Woodland became the first golfer to win a major championship with Wilson clubs since 2008. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesGary Woodland’s breakthrough win at golf’s U.S. Open was especially rewarding for an iconic sporting goods brand with more than 100 years of history and a legacy of champions that includes Arnold Palmer, Sam Snead, Gene Sarazen and Walter Hagen.
When Woodland held off a final-round challenge from two-time defending U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka at Pebble Beach, he became the first golfer to win a major championship with clubs from Wilson Sporting Goods Co. in the bag since Padraig Harrington in 2008. Wilson Golf President Tim Clarke was one of the first people to wrap Woodland in a celebratory hug after he came off the 18th green.
“He has the heart and values of the Wilson brand and a competitive nature and determination to win,” Clarke said of Woodland, a former college basketball player from Kansas.
Gary Woodland holds the U.S.Open trophy after his three-shot victory at the Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, California. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesThe 35-year-old Woodland is known as one of the longest hitters on the PGA TOUR, averaging over 309 yards off the tee this season, but it was his steady iron play (with Wilson Staff Model Blades) that helped him rank second in the field at Pebble Beach in greens in regulation.
This may be hard to believe, but Woodland’s victory was the 62nd major win involving Wilson Staff irons, more than any premium irons manufacturer in the game’s history. Brand ambassador heavyweights like Palmer, Snead, Hagen and Sarazen contributed a healthy chunk of those wins, as did players such as Nick Faldo, Payne Stewart, Ben Crenshaw and Vijay Singh.
Woodland today is the most high-profile tour staffer on Wilson’s roster, which also includes Harrington, Kevin Streelman, Brendan Steele and Ricky Barnes. The company, under Clarke’s leadership, has sought to rebuild its brand awareness and increase its reach with a younger generation in recent years, with initiatives that included a sponsorship of the Driver vs. Driver reality series on “The Golf Channel.”
Wilson Staff's new C300 Gun Metal line of irons, which went on sale at retailers earlier this month.
Wilson GolfWoodland’s win came just over a week after the release of Wilson’s newest clubs, the new look C300 Forged Gun Metal Irons. And while the timing was perfect for Wilson, it was even more rewarding for Woodland, who pocketed a record payout of $2.25 million by tying a U.S. Open record with only four holes of bogey or worse all week at Pebble Beach.
“People probably growing up said U.S. Open wouldn't suit me, because I'm a long hitter, I'm a bomber. Coming to Pebble Beach, on top of that, it's a shorter golf course,” said Woodland, who joined Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Tom Kite, Tiger Woods and Graeme McDowell as players to win the U.S. Open on California’s famed Monterey Peninsula. “I went out and proved to everybody else what I always believed, that I'm pretty good.”
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikmatuszewski/2019/06/18/woodlands-us-open-win-delivers-first-major-title-for-wilson-golf-clubs-since-2008/
2019-06-18 10:00:08Z
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