Equipment

GolfWRX Insider: Odyssey White Hot OG – “A good idea then is still a good idea now”

Published

5 years ago

Apr 9, 2021

It started in the late ’90s as a random thought by Ely Callaway: How can we make an insert that has the sound and feel of a golf ball? Seems like a logical pursuit, considering the sound of the strike has as much influence over a player liking or disliking of equipment as anything else.

In the case of putters, it made a ton of sense to match the experience of the putter face to the feel of the golf ball. This led to the development of a new insert based on the Callaway Golf Ball at the time, the Rule 35.

The actual development process didn’t go through a ton of iterations—the recipe came together rather quickly. It was only the question of how to make them that posed the biggest work through.

From a performance standpoint, Odyssey was already on a serious roll with its Stronomic inserts. The soft, lightweight material gave R&D new ways to distribute weight (stability) across the putter head, and the impact experience was one most responded favorably to.

There was one catch, however, for better players, Stronomic inserts were too soft compared to the metal faces they were used to, and in addition, once you peeled back the onion a bit, it actually didn’t transfer energy as well as one would want. At that level, “softer” means “less roll out,” apples to apples, against metal.

Engineers asked: How can we replicate the feel but make it play firmer?

Enter the creation of the White Hot in 2000. In simple terms, “ball on ball” contact. The urethane blend gave Callaway the ability to create a face that was not only soft but also had the crispness of strike that milled steel faces had. The recipe was an instant hit on tour.

From the time it was introduced at the professional level across the globe, it saw immediate adoption. To be fair there was one element beyond the White Hot insert that cranked up the numbers a bit—the best-selling putter of all time, the 2-Ball. Nonetheless, White Hot hit the ground running and saw great success in year one and beyond with LPGA Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam being the first to really win big with her Odyssey White Hot 2-Ball in late 2001 and into 2002.

700 worldwide wins later, it’s easy to say Mr. Callaway’s instinct paid off.

If you have paid close attention to Odyssey over the years, you know White Hot has been the bedrock of future developments. The company has done impressive work in the insert game—the below timeline (courtesy of Odyssey) gives you a slice of the history.

2020-2021: Odyssey Introduces the White Hot OG

This brings us to today and the White Hot OG. We had the opportunity to chat with Senior Director of Product for Odyssey Luke Williams, and this is what he had to say about the return of White Hot.

GolfWRX: What inspired you to bring back White Hot, and why was now the best time?

LW: We decided to bring White Hot back because people kept asking for it. On tour, even though it was not an inline offering, it was still our most popular insert. Whenever we would launch a new putter or new insert, golfers would ask us about White Hot and tell us how much they love their White Hot. Finally, we just felt that it was time to give the people what they wanted. Based on the early reaction, we think the timing was perfect.

GolfWRX: How do you compare the feel/benefits of an insert like White Hot vs milled faces, etc?

LW: Relative to milled faces, White Hot is definitely softer and it has a more consistent sound and feel. In terms of ball speed, it is very similar to a milled face, so it is easy for players to adjust to in terms of how the ball rolls out.

GolfWRX: How has Stroke Lab technology enhanced the performance of the White Hot Insert?

LW: Stroke Lab is a significant enhancement to the White Hot OG line. Stroke Lab technology helps golfers by making their strokes more consistent from one to the next, and this new version is lighter, stiffer, and more stable than the original.

GolfWRX: We have to ask: Any plans to bringing back Tri Hot?

LW: I’d never say never!

The thing about White Hot we find the most fascinating is the loyalty to it by certain players over the years. Below are some pictures of a few Callaway staff and others that have lived and died with an Odyssey White Hot for a long time—all these putters are still in the bag, with the only exception being Phil Mickelson, who swaps between his WHXG and milled model.

Graeme McDowell’s Odyssey White Hot XG Insert #7

Henrik Stenson’s Odyssey White Hot Pro #7

Steve Stricker’s Odyssey White Hot #2

5-time major champion Phil Mickelson’s Odyssey WHXG PM Blade

Joe Toulon (yes, Sean’s son) is the man in charge of the tour, and this is what he had to say on the strong connection to the White Hot.

“Tour players still love White Hot, and when they first started testing OG the response was positive right away. We did a soft launch during the Fall season, and there were a few models that went into play right away. On the European Tour, there were eight in play the first week it was out there, and on the PGA Tour, we’ve seen a consistent increase in adoption. We still had a few players that were loyal to that insert, and we would do one-off putters for them so the momentum never really left.”

“Players just really trust the sound and feel, and they know what to expect with it on every putt. That’s so important to players of that caliber. Nostalgia and good memories in regards to equipment is still a powerful thing, and the White Hot insert is just one of those things that a ton of players had success with in the past so bringing it back in a big way was kind of a no brainer.”

There have been over 700 worldwide wins and over 100 PGA Tour wins to go with 48 majors. Check out this list of the major championships won with White Hot.

LPGA majors

2002 Kraft Nabisco – Annika Sorenstam
2003 McDonalds LPGA – Annika Sorenstam
2004 McDonalds LPGA – Annika Sorenstam
2004 US Womens Open – Meg Mallon
2005 Kraft Nabisco – Annika Sorenstam
2006 U.S Women’s Open – Annika Sorenstam
2007 Kraft Nabisco – Morgan Pressel
2008 US Womens Open – In Bee Park
2009 Ricoh Womens British open – Ji-Yain Shin
2009 US Womens Open – Eun Hee Ji
2010 LPGA Champ – Christie Kerr
2013 Ricoh Women’s British Open – Ji Yai Shin
2014 Kraft Nabisco – Lexi Thompson
2015 KPMG Womens PGA – In Bee Park
2015 Ricoh Womens Britihs Open – In Bee Park
2016 ANA Inspiration Lydia Ko
2018 Ricoh Womens British Open – Georgia Halltonytoulon

PGA Tour Champions majors

2003 US Senior Open – Bruce Lietzke
2004 Senior British Open – Pete Oakley
2006 Jeld Wen Tradition – Eduardo Romero
2007 Senior British Open – Tom Watson
2008 US Senior Open – Eduardo Romero
2010 Senior British Open – Berhard Langer
2010 US Senior Open – Bernhard Langer
2011 Senior PGA – Tom Watson
2013 Senior PGA – Kouki Idoki
2014 Senior Players – Bernhard Langer
2014 Senior Open – Bernhard Langer
2015 Senior Players – Bernhard Langer
2016 Regions Tradition – Bernhard Langer
2016 Senior Players – Bernhard Langer
2016 US Senior Open – Gene Sauers
2017 Regions Tradition – Bernhard Langer
2017 Senior PGA – Bernhard Langer
2017 Senior Open – Bernhard Langer
2019 Regions Tradition – Steve Stricker
2019 US Senior Open – Steve Stricker
2019 Senior Open – Bernhard Langer

PGA Tour majors

2005 U.S. Open – Michael Campbell
2006 Masters – Phil Mickelson
2008 British Open – Padraig Harrington
2009 PGA Championship – YE Yang
2010 Masters – Phil Mickelson
2010 U.S. Open – Graeme McDowell
2011 PGA Championship – Keegan Bradley
2016 British Open – Henrik Stenson
2018 Masters – Patrick Reed
2019 British Open – Shane Lowry

C/O Golf Avenue

It’s comforting to know that in all the buzz and chase for the next big thing, there are still things in our game that stand the test of time. A good thing then is still a good thing now. Great ideas in golf, like White Hot 2-Ball, have a long shelf life. With the direction the game is going as a whole and any potential tweaks the rule gods put in to play, these stubbornly good ideas will keep us going.

Whats in the Bag

Christiaan Maas WITB 2026 (June)

Published

8 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D LS (8 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 6 X

3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9 TX

Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3), TaylorMade P7CB (4), TaylorMade P7TW (5-PW)
Shafts: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 10 X, True Temper Dynamic Gold X100

Wedges: TaylorMade Prototype (50-SB09), TaylorMade MG5 (56-HB12, 60-LV07)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

Putter: TaylorMade TP Juno

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord

Check out more in-hand photos of Christiaan Maas’ clubs here.

Equipment

TaylorMade MySpider Tour and Tour X: More customizable build options now available

Published

9 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

TaylorMade Golf’s MySpider program underwent a substantial overhaul over the last month. Firstly, the company launched the option to customize the Spider ZT model, and now the program has returned with the MySpider Tour and MySpider Tour X.

The revamped page now gives golfers complete control over every visual and functional detail of their putter on the popular Tour and Tour X head, with every cosmetic idea thought of. In MySpider Tour, golfers can choose from four head finishes, 16 paint fill colors, nine Surlyn face insert colors, three aluminum insert options, six sightline configurations, and four hosel options — L-neck, small slant, double bend, center shaft. Six sightline options are available in MySpider Tour, including the optically engineered True Path alignment system. MySpider Tour X gives builders the option of four head finishes, four hosel configurations, and five sightline options, also including True Path alignment.

One of the more interesting features of the new MySpider program is the availability of three distinct face insert options. Along with the usual Surlyn Pure Roll insert trusted by Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, which can be customized from nine colors, golfers can now also select firmer options. Two are offered with the black aluminum Pure Roll insert, slightly firmer than the traditional insert, or for the firmest feel, golfers can choose from two colors of milled aluminum inserts.

Another fun addition to the MySpider Tour is the ability to use the “Tommy Sightline.” The custom alignment aid design, which was first drawn onto Tommy Fleetwood’s putter by PGA Tour Rep James Holley, is based on the milled sightline on his Spider ZT head. There are five shorter lines on the left and right of a longer central line serving as the traditional short line alignment aid.

See below for the full specifications sheet for MySpider Tour and Tour X:

MySpider Tour

MySpider Tour X

Equipment

Then and now: Comparing Rory McIlroy’s current setup to his record-breaking 2019 Canadian Open victory

Published

11 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

In Rory McIlroy’s first appearance at the 2019 RBC Canadian Open, he crushed the record books to earn his 16th PGA Tour title in dominating fashion, winning by seven shots over Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson.

McIlroy’s score of 22-under-par 258 is the lowest 72-hole score to date at the Canadian Open, and his closing 61 is also the best final-round score in the history of one of golf’s oldest tournaments. Finally, with his win in 2019, McIlroy became only the sixth player to win the career Triple Crown, adding to his victories at the U.S. Open in 2011 and The Open Championship in 2014, joining Tommy Armour, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tiger Woods in a coveted list.

So, with that, why not compare his current setup to the clubs he used to break all the records?

Driver

2019: TaylorMade M5 (9 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D (9 degrees @8), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7X (45 5/8 inches)

McIroy led the Tour in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee in 2019; he’s doing the same in 2026. Between now and then, McIlroy has switched from the Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX (a shaft with slightly more feeling in the tip) to the original Fujikura Ventus Black 7X, having just made the change to the heavier version from playing the 60X.

What’s interesting about McIlroy’s 2019 setup is that the weighting on his driver is actually set in the high-draw setting, using the T-Track weighting system, whereas in the Qi4D, he’s currently using a heavily rear-weighted setup. (Two 13-gram weights in the rear and only two 4-gram front weights.)

The TaylorMade M5 driver he played in during his Canadian Open win was the company’s first head that they claimed to design to initially exceed the USGA’s COR limit, and then injected with tuning resin to bring it back in bounds.

Fairway woods

2019: TaylorMade M6 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX; TaylorMade M5 5-wood (19 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 90 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8X; TaylorMade Qi4D 5-wood (18 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9X

The TaylorMade M6 fairway wood that McIlroy was using during the 2019 season is still in the bag of some of the best golfers on Tour in 2026. Just check out Justin Rose’s winning setup from the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. This year, though, McIlroy has still been searching for his top-end-of-the-bag setup, having played both the new Qi4D and the Qi10, which he won the Masters with.

The same shaft swap can be seen in the fairway woods as the driver, along with slightly less loft on the 5-wood.

Irons

2019: TaylorMade P750 (4) Buy here, TaylorMade P730 (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0
2026: TaylorMade P760 (4), TaylorMade Rors Proto (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0

The biggest difference between McIlroy’s custom set and the stock P730s is the groove design. While the P730s were constructed with 14 MX-9 grooves on their milled faces, McIlroy’s proto heads instead use the higher-spinning, 16-groove layout of the TW2 grooves. Other big differences between the sets are that McIlroy’s 7- and 8-irons have thinner toplines, are 1 degree stronger in loft, and are 1/4 inch longer than the original P730 builds.

With McIlroy’s 4-iron, the switch from P750 to P760 sees a transition to a two-piece construction with Speed Foam in it, which allows McIlroy to launch the ball slightly higher, with more workability.

Wedges

2019: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48-09SB), TaylorMade MG Hi-Toe (52-09SB, 56-09SB, 60-LB09), Shafts: Project X Rifle 6.5
2026: TaylorMade MG5 (46-09SB, 50-09SB, 54-11SB, 60-08LB @61), Shafts: Project X 6.5 (46-54), Project X 6.5 Wedge (60)

Between 2019 and 2026, McIlroy’s focus on his short game has been much more apparent. It was the reason why he switched back to the TP5 golf ball, to help with launch, spin and control with his wedges leading up to his career Grand Slam victory in 2025. The most apparent changes to McIlroy’s wedge setup are his lofts and bounce. He’s slowly delofted his pitching to a sand wedge, but has increased the loft on the lob wedge, bending his current 60-degree to 61. With that, adding more loft to his lob wedge also slightly increases the bounce and leading-edge sit point, so, as a result, he plays a lower-bounce lob wedge compared to 2019. The MG5 wedges are also softer than the first Milled Grind option from 2019. McIlroy also no longer plays the full-face grooves found on the Hi-Toe.

Putter

2019: TaylorMade Spider X
2026: TaylorMade Spider Tour X

Notice anything similar. Yes, the copper finish on Rory McIlroy’s Spider X putter in 2019 is a slightly more reflective finish than the recently released torched PVD finish. McIlroy was using the True Path alignment system, but now uses only a single white sightline.

Ball

2019: 2019 TaylorMade TP5 (#22)
2026: 2025 TaylorMade TP5 (RORS)

As mentioned above, McIlroy had transitioned from the TP5 to TP5x golf ball since his victory in Canada in 2019, but now is black with the same style of golf ball as his victory at Hamilton Golf & Country Club.

Grips

2019: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
2026: Golf Pride MCC

Interesting, McIlroy actually used Golf Pride’s Tour Velvet Cord grips during his victory in 2019 (it was during a 2+ year switch to the corded TV) as opposed to his usual MCC grips, which he has played for most of his career.