Ping Rapture V2 Series Is Worthy

There were shouts from hole marshals and tournament volunteers, and kudos from fellow tour players.

"I've thought a lot about what he did," said Justin Leonard, who has more in common with his friend Furyk than their similar playing styles. He is a major championship winner approaching his 40th birthday and closing in on two years since his last victory, just as Furyk was a year ago.

Ping engineers have captured the hot face of the G10 and the solid sound and feel of the original Rapture and put it into the ping rapture V2 series. By expanding the height of the face and elongating clubhead dimensions, Ping has enlarged the sweet spot on the clubface and provided a very hot face, providing tremendous ball velocity regardless of player skill level.

And I have to say, it is definitely an improvement from the old Raptures. The ball comes off the face like a rocket, as in the old Raptures but this time the feel and control was more inherent. Balls hit were fast, high and consistently straight with perhaps just a slight draw once in a while. The launch angle was just right for me, with great distance, good control and the much sought-after soft landing. I also found I could fairly easily work the ball left or right.

The first noticeable difference from the original Rapture driver is the racy lime green color on the shaft and the soleplate. But the changes aren't merely cosmetic. In what Hollywood might call a plot twist, Ping has equipped the rapture V2 driver with a super lightweight stock 939 shaft in L through X flexes. With a shaft weight of 47 grams and a 45.75-inch finished length, this makes the V2 one of the lightest and longest drivers on the market.

This is what Furyk's victory here last year meant: More than the end of a 30-month victory drought - the longest of his career - it also was the beginning, as he neared 40, of his best season. It was an inspirational year in which he won three tournaments for the first time, was voted the PGA Tour's player of the year by his peers and earned a total of $14.8 million - including a $10 million bonus for his FedEx Cup win.

If you remember my face after the win at Transitions, it was more relief than anything else. Being able to play well and kind of get over the hump, even though I was leaking a little oil coming down the stretch. I can't say I let my hair down, but mentally it was a big relief. I relaxed and it allowed me to play better the rest of the year.