Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
Check out the bold statement Nationwide Tour player Martin Piller made recently with some stunning, custom FJ ICON Asymmetricals featuring the hibiscus print! And he wore them right into the winner's circle when he captured his first Tour victory earlier this year at the Stadion Athens Classic in Georgia. On that day, Piller began the day one back and was locked in a battle until the final hole where he stuffed an 8-iron approach to 8 feet and secured his maiden victory.
Piller's done it again.
After making the cut by one shot at the recent Cox Classic, Piller roared into contention with a 62 on Saturday and followed that with a final round 7-under 64 to win the tournament by two shots and secure his PGA Tour card for next year. En route to victory, Piller reeled off a birdie-birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie streak that matched the best birdie-eagle streak in tournament history.
"(This win) was a lot different than Athens, where par was good," said
Piller. "I knew that par was not going to be good and I knew that
I was going to have to go out and make something happen. I didn't have
a number in mind. The only number I had in mind was one."
In winning tournaments in different styles, both battling with other players and then storming from behind, Piller proves he's deserving of a promotion to the big stage next year.
"I was very determined, I was very focused and I was very aggressive," said Piller. "I didn't want to be back here next year, in a good kind of way."
To learn more about Martin Piller, check out this video on pgatour.com.
Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
WGC-Bridgestone Invitational
Hunter Mahan won for the second time this year, coming from four shots back to start the day to win the World Golf Championship - Bridgestone Invitational. Mahan ran off five birdies on the front nine to take the lead, then had three clutch par saves down the stretch to finish off a 6-under 64 and a two-shot victory over fellow FJ player, Ryan Palmer (FJ ICON style #52005). While both players wore FJ ICON golf shoes, Hunter went with a custom design through the MyJoys program. Hunter also wore a StaSof glove while Palmer opted for SciFlex.
Mahan's victory locked up a spot on the United States Ryder Cup team as he is now No. 2 in points with only this week's PGA Championship remaining before the top eight Americans qualify. Hunter has played on the last three U.S. teams as a Captains Pick.
"That was my goal at the beginning of the year, to make the team on my own," Mahan said.
Hunter shot a final round 6-under 64 to finish with a 12-under 268 total. He became the third American with multiple victories on the PGA TOUR this year, and likely will move to a career-best No. 12 in the world.
Turning Stone Resort Championship
Meanwhile at the Turning Stone Resort Championship, it was a major accomplishment of a different sort for FJ player Bill Lunde (FJ ICON). Less than five years after he quit competitive golf, he earned a spot in next week's PGA Championship by winning the Turning Stone Resort Championship. Lunde shot a final round 6-under 66 to rally for a come-from-behind victory with a 17-under 271 total.
"All these guys out here, you're never far from playing good. You can sit here and say, 'I'm playing awful, I don't know how I'm going to break 80 today,' but you're never that far off."
Lunde made the weekend cut by one stroke and but trailed by only four heading into the final round following a 64 on Saturday. Lunde climbed to the top of Sunday's leaderboard with six birdies and a 30 on the front side.
None of the success seemed possible to Lunde in 2005 when he stopped playing after a tough year on the Nationwide Tour. He went to the PGA TOUR's Q-School in November and didn't qualify for the second stage so found a job in real estate in Las Vegas. He returned to the Nationwide Tour in 2008 and took advantage of his second chance. He won the Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational that year and finished fifth on the money list, which earned him a spot on the PGA TOUR in 2009.
"I tried to make an agreement with myself when I started playing again to ... if I could just have a better attitude right off the bat, I'd become a better player than I ever was before," he said. "And that was kind of my goal. Obviously it doesn't happen every day, but it's definitely better than it was and something I'll probably battle for the rest of my life. I'm just so competitive. I can't handle not playing well or bad breaks. It gets me down."
Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
Paul Goydos (FJ ICON black smooth calfskin bicycle toe, SciFlex glove) became just the fourth person to fire a 59 on the PGA Tour when he scorched TPC Deere Run yesterday during the first round of the John Deere Classic. Goydos birdied every hole on the back nine except for No. 15, where he holed a six-foot par putt to keep a sub-60 in sight. He finished off with three birdies, the last one from seven feet to join the most exclusive club in golf. You can read all about the round on pgatour.com or hear about it from Goydos himself in the video below (click here if video does not appear). One of the most amazing aspects of the day yesterday, in addition to Goydos' feat, is that it was nearly matched by the man who previously help the course record, Steve Stricker (Custom all-white DryJoys MyJoys, Pure Touch Limited glove). Needing an eagle at the last to reach 59, Stricker's approach appeared headed for the cup but curled around at the last second, leaving him a 2-footer for birdie and a first round 11-under 60. With a morning tee time on Friday, Stricker will have first crack at a repeat performance and also the opportunity to set the tone heading into the weekend. Stay tuned, this could get pretty wild!
Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
Check out these beautiful FJ ICON MyJoys that were recently built for the Commander in Chief. Notorious for hitting the links to relax or entertain foreign dignitaries, this world leader has been wearing FJ golf shoes for some time, but we decided it was time for an upgrade. Keep an eye out for pictures of him in his new shoes and let us know if you see these show up in any photographs.


Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
Luke Donald eagled the 16th hole on Sunday to shoot a 5-under 67 and win the Madrid Masters by a single stroke.
Donald, who wore a stunning pair of custom FJ ICON MyJoys, finished at 21-under 267 at Club de Campo and collected his third European Tour victory. The Englishman won twice in 2004 on the European Tour and twice on the PGA Tour, but Donald hadn't made it to the winner's circle anywhere since the 2006 Honda Classic on the PGA Tour.
"It's definitely a weight off my shoulders," said Donald. "I felt a little frustrated that I hadn't won in the last four years. I tried to stay positive today."
This was also sweet retribution from last week. Donald was tied for the lead last Sunday at the BMW PGA Championship, but double-bogeyed the 17th hole to lose by a stroke.
"Last week was very disappointing," acknowledged Donald. "To put it behind me and come out here and win this week, I'm very proud of the way I played. It feels really good."