Y.E. Yang Wins PGA Championship

TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff Professional
Y.E. Yang Wins PGA Championship

Does What's Never Been Done – Overtakes Third-Round Leader
Tiger Woods to Win a Major Championship

Carlsbad, Calif. (August 17, 2009) – In winning the 2009 PGA Championship, TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff professional Y.E. Yang completed one of the most difficult and daunting challenges in all of sports, one that no golfer had ever successfully completed: He overtook third-round leader Tiger Woods in the final round of a major championship and held him off. Playing steady, occasionally spectacular golf, Yang showed tremendous courage and control in the face of the largest gallery he'd ever competed before.

Highlights of Yang's final round included a deft chip-in for eagle on the drivable par-four 14th and, with a one-shot lead on the final hole, a laser-like Rescue® TP 3 hybrid to eight feet. He played a TaylorMade® TP Red™ ball and TaylorMade driver, hybrids and irons, and wore a TaylorMade TP glove and adidas Golf TOUR360 3.0 footwear.

It was a stunning, thrilling and popular victory for the affable Yang, who lives in Dallas and is completing his first full year of competition on the PGA Tour. Perhaps he himself delivered the best explanation for the tournament's remarkable outcome during his press conference Saturday after the third round when he said: "You never know in the world of sports and the game of golf. So I'll just try to make every shot, just focus on every shot that I have. And then tomorrow I may end up inside the top 10, top three and even win the PGA Championship. You never know."

The win made Yang the first Asian-born player to win a major championship, elevated him 76 spots in the World Golf Rankings to No. 34, and earned him a berth on the International team in the 2009 Presidents Cup Matches.

"You never know in life," Yang said. "This might be my last win as a golfer, but it sure is a great day. It's going to be a big foundation for me to continue playing at the top level, which is the PGA Tour, and golf in America. And it just means the world right now. It hasn't really sunk in, but I do know the significance of it."

Yang struck the ball particularly well from tee to green throughout the week, and on Sunday found fairway after fairway and green after green on the long, difficult track. He controlled his emotions and golf ball beautifully throughout the day, especially on his final approach, a shot certain to go down in one of the finest under pressure in the history of major championship golf. And after he'd holed his final putt for birdie and the win, Yang exuberantly hoisted his staff bag above his head in a joyous and uplifting expression of emotion and celebration that should go down as one of the most memorable sports images of this or any year.

Additionally, TaylorMade-adidas Golf professional Greg Bisconti of Saint Andrew's in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, earned medalist honors among the 20 PGA Professionals who competed at Hazeltine. It was the third time Bisconti has qualified for the PGA Championship and his best finish. He played a full compliment of TaylorMade equipment, including the TP Red golf ball, R9™ driver and Itsy Bitsy Monza® Spider putter.

For the eight consecutive year, TaylorMade was the No. 1 driver at the PGA Championship.

TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff Professionals

TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff Professionals
Christian Cévaër and Kevin Johnson Notch Wins
on the European and Nationwide Tours

Ranked No. 449 in the World, Cévaër Plays R9 Driver and TP Black Ball
En Route to Surprise Victory at The European Open

Johnson Claims Fifth Career Win; Plays TP Red Ball

Carlsbad, Calif. (June 1, 2009) – TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff Professionals Christian Cévaër and Kevin Johnson both relied on TaylorMade and adidas Golf equipment in their victories on the European and the Nationwide Tours yesterday.

Cévaër, No. 449 in the Official World Golf Rankings, hung tough at the demanding London Golf Club and gutted out a one-shot win in The European Open, one of the most prestigious events on the European Tour Schedule.

While several of his challengers fell victim to the 471-yard par-four 18th hole on the final day, which played to an average of almost 4.7 for the week, Cévaër negotiated it in par, par, birdie, par. His four on 18 on Sunday was particularly critical: Tied for the lead with two others, Cévaër, playing a TP Black LDP, drove safely with his R9 driver then used a Rescue TP hybrid to hit the green safely in regulation. His pursuers, meanwhile, drove off-line and failed to make four.

Cévaër's two-putt par gave him the title, which carries a five year exemption on the European Tour. With the win, Cévaër moved up more than 300 spots in the world rankings to No. 129.

In Raleigh, North Carolina at the Rex Hospital Open, Johnson bested fellow TMaG Tour Staffer Jeff Gallagher on the first playoff hole to earn his fifth career win. Like Cévaër, Johnson too played a TaylorMade TP golf ball.

TaylorMade's LDP technology promotes improved distance on the most common driver off-center hits and helps make TaylorMade TP balls (including TP Black™ and TP Red™) exceptionally resistant to the effects of headwinds and crosswinds. Learn more.

The wins were the 12th worldwide for the TaylorMade TP golf ball and the 16th for the Tour Preferred irons in 2009.

In Cévaër's winning bag*:

Driver: R9™ 9.5°
Fairway wood: Tour Burner® 13° 3-wood
Hybrid: Rescue® TP 17° and 21°
Irons: Tour Preferred® 3-9
Ball: TaylorMade TP Black golf ball with LDP Technology
Footwear: adidas Golf

In Johnson’s winning bag**:

Driver: r7® SuperQuad™ 8.5°
Fairway wood: Tour Burner® 14.5° 3-wood
Hybrid: Rescue TP 16° and 21°
Irons: Tour Preferred® 4-9
Wedge: rac™ 48°
Ball: TaylorMade TP Red golf ball with LDP Technology
Footwear: adidas Golf

* Sports Marketing Survey model count at The European Open
** Darrell Survey model count at Rex Hospital Open

Sean O'Hair wins the Quail Hollow Championship

CARLSBAD, Calif. (May 4, 2009) - TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff professional Sean O'Hair won the Quail Hollow Championship yesterday, one of the premier events on the PGA Tour. Using TaylorMade's new R9 driver and TP Red LDP ball, O'Hair combined excellent distance, ranking 7th with an average of 312.6 yards, with exceptional accuracy, ranking T19th at 51.8%. He also ranked T3rd in greens in regulation, rounding out an outstanding tee-to-green performance on the exceedingly challenging Quail Hollow Club, in Charlotte, N.C.

O'Hair was one of 29 competitors in the field to use an R9 driver*, extending the R9's streak to 13 consecutive PGA Tour events as the No. 1 driver model. So far the R9 has been put in play on the PGA Tour more often than any other driver, and has ranked as the No. 1 driver model at a total of 17 events. Other competitors who played the R9 at Quail Hollow included Sergio Garcia, Justin Rose, Robert Garrigus, Paul Goydos, Pat Perez and Vaughn Taylor.

O'Hair was the only player in the final nine groups to break 70 in the final round, and his three-under 69 came despite the tough course set-up and brisk winds in the afternoon. TaylorMade TP balls, the TP Red and TP Black, are renowned for their stability and ability to hold their line through the wind. O'Hair's Quail Hollow win was the TP balls’ fourth victory on the PGA Tour this year and the 10th worldwide.

The win elevated O'Hair to 12th on the World Golf Ranking and into 4th place on the U.S. Presidents Cup team points list. It also makes him, at 26 years old, the only player in the world under 30 with three PGA Tour victories.

In O'Hair's winning bag:

Driver: R9™ 10.5°
Fairways: R9 3-wood 13°, r7 5-wood 17.5°
Irons: Tour Preferred® 4 – 9
Wedges: rac™ 48°, 50°, 54°
Putter: Rossa® Monza® Corza
Ball: TP Red™ LDP
Shoes: adidas Golf TOUR360 Limited
Apparel: Ashworth

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