Bridgestone Blades And A Prototype Golf Ball: Chris Gotterup’s Sony Open Winning WITB

In a tense final day at Waialae Country Club, it was Chris Gotterup who got over the line, wrapping up a third PGA Tour title and a second in just eight starts.

Claiming a two shot victory at the Sony Open in Hawaii, via a six-under-par final round 64 that included seven birdies, it now means the American has secured PGA Tour wins in 2024, 2025 and 2026.

Although he signed with Bridgestone in 2023, Gotterup still has the freedom to mix his bag up and, in Hawaii, that's exactly what he did, as his bag set-up included brands like Ping, TaylorMade and Bridgestone.

Looking over his bag, the main stand-out comes in the form of the golf ball, which happens to be a prototype model from Bridgestone, with Gotterup putting it in-play towards the end of the 2025 season.

Read more about it, as well as his full what's in the bag set-up, below.

Driver

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Beginning with the driver, in which Gotterup uses the Ping G440 LST, a model that made its way into the bag at the start of 2025, where it has primarily remained.

Occasionally being swapped out for the slightly older Ping G430 LST, and even the TaylorMade SIM2 in February 2025, the newer G440 model has been in-play since the middle of that year, when Gotterup used it for his Sony Open win and Genesis Scottish Open victory.

Possessing a 9° head, which appears to be set 1° lower at 8°, Gotterup has kept his Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX 70 TX shaft in the set-up for a significant amount of time.

Mini Driver

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Mini drivers have continued to grow in popularity on the professional circuits and, after claiming victories in the hands of Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood in 2025, Gotterup adds his name to the illustrious list.

The model preferred by Gotterup is the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper, which is set at 13.5° and has a Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX 80 TX shaft.

TaylorMade make some of the best mini drivers money can buy and, in terms of Gotterup's BRNR, he used it on the course several times at Waialae Country Club, with it finding its way into his set-up at The Open Championship in July 2025.

Ranking seventh in terms of Driving Distance on the PGA Tour in 2025, Gotterup possesses immense ball speed, hence why the addition of a mini driver makes sense, with the American using it as a more controlled option in his set-up.

Fairway Wood

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A club that is regularly switched in-and-out of his bag, Gotterup had the TaylorMade Qi35 in-play for Hawaii, with it set at 18° and featuring a Mitsubishi Diamana WB 83 TX shaft.

This section of the bag is changed frequently and, previously, we've seen Gotterup using a TaylorMade P770 3-iron at the Hero World Challenge in December and even a TaylorMade RSi TP UDI 1-iron.

TaylorMade's Qi35 range was recently replaced by the Qi4D but, for Gotterup, he has kept with the standard model, which he also used for his Scottish Open win last July.

Irons

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Gotterup joined Bridgestone in February 2023 and extended his contract in 2025, with the three-time PGA Tour winner using the brand's irons ever since.

Previously, he had the 221 CB, which is a forged players cavity back clubhead design; however, since the beginning of 2025, he has opted for the Tour B 220 MB in a 4-iron to 9-iron configuration.

We believe he is the only player on the PGA Tour to use this model, which was released at the backend of 2024 and designed for the elite ball striker.

Players like Rory McIlroy have moved away from the blade-design in 2026, but Gotterup has remained in the set-up, which features a compact and muscleback clubhead design. Shaft-wise, the 26-year-old uses KBS C-Taper 130 X.

Wedges

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Being an equipment-free agent, Gotterup has experimented with a few wedges previously, opting to put the TaylorMade MG5s into play at the end of 2025.

At the Scottish Open, he had the MG4s in-play, but changed to the more recent MG5 shortly after, with Gotterup using them in a very traditional 46°, 52°, 56° and 60° set-up.

Like many professionals, the American has slightly softer flex in his wedge shafts, using the True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 Black Onyx. Although they're softer flex, they provide more weight which, in-turn, means more feel.

Putter

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TaylorMade's Spider putter range is one of the best on the market and, in 2025, was extremely popular among the winners on the PGA Tour, being used by Scottie Scheffler, McIlroy and Fleetwood.

Gotterup is another player to opt for the Spider range, specifically the X Tour version in an L-neck configuration, which has been in-play for around 18 months.

Ranking seventh in Strokes Gained Putting and second in Putts per GIR for the week in Hawaii, Gotterup used it to good effect. There have been some personal touches added to his flatstick including the addition of lead tape on the sole, which helps increase the weight and balance.

Golf Ball

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The majority of his golf clubs may have remained the same, but one recent key change has come in the golf ball department, with Gotterup changing to a prototype Bridgestone model back in September.

Using the VS Black prototype, which Matt Kuchar also had in-play for his PNC Championship win in December, little is known about the model, which was teased to us back in November 2025.

Previously, Gotterup had the Bridgestone Tour BX in his bag, so we can only imagine the swap to the VS Black proto model means it provides a similar feel to that of his former gamer.

What we do know, is that Gotterup is one of the few Bridgestone staffers to use the Mindset version of the golf ball.

For those who don't know, the idea of Mindset is to create a three-step system that is designed to aid golfers with a pre-shot routine - Identify, Visualize, and Focus.

The red circle prompts the player to identify their target and gather information, the yellow circle encourages visualization of the shot's path, and the green dot provides a final, focused point of concentration before execution.

Chris Gotterup WITB: Sony Open In Hawaii Winning Clubs

• Driver: Ping G440 LST (8°) with a Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX 70 TX shaft
• Mini Driver: TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper (13.5°) with a Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX 80 TX shaft
• Fairway Wood: TaylorMade Qi35 (18°) with a Mitsubishi Diamana WB 83 TX shaft
• Irons: Bridgestone Tour B 220 MB with KBS C-Taper 130 X shafts
• Wedges: TaylorMade MG5 (46°, 52°, 56°, 60°) with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 Black Onyx shafts
• Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour X
• Ball: Bridgestone VS Black Mindset Prototype