Karl Vilips Wins First For First Time on PGA TOUR With Qi35 LS and TP5x
Entering the final round of the Puerto Rico Open, Karl Vilips clung to a one-shot lead with a host of players hot on his tail. But in just his 4th career PGA TOUR start, he was cool, calm and collected as he carded a birdie at the 3rd, an eagle at the 6th, a birdie at the 8th, and birdie at the 9th to go out in 5-under, 31 to take a two-shot lead.
Throughout the week, Vilips' Qi35 LS driver and TP5x golf ball proved the perfect potion in what were at times trying, windy conditions.
TaylorMade's Jason Hause details the jounrey to Vilips' Qi35 driver below.
"We visited Karl at TPC Sawgrass in late January to test drivers. It was a perfect day with a slight left-to-right breeze which was perfect for the flat cut Karl likes to hit. He loved the shape of the Qi35 LS driver so we knew that was the model we'd be testing. He landed in 9.0° turned down one with a 5g toe weight, 3g heel weight, and 8g back weight. The setup with a slightly more open face (due to lower loft) gave him the ball flight he was looking for and allowed him to aim slightly farther left and trust his natural cut."Jason Hause, Senior Tour Representative
KARLS'S Qi35 DRIVER SPEC:
- HEAD: Qi35 LS
- LOFT: 9.0°
- FCT SLEEVE: 1 Toward Lower
- WEIGHTS: 5g Toe, 3g Heel, 8g Back
- SHAFT: Ventus TR Blue 6 TX
- GRIP: Tour Velvet 58 Round Grip
- LENGTH: 45.5"
Vilips has been a TP5x player since he started working closely with TaylorMade's Tour Team. A high-spin player since he was a junior, the 2024 TP5x he was immediately comfortable with the TP5x golf balls low-spin characteristics and exceptional feel and control around the green.
Let's have a closer look at Karl's entire WITB:
A METORIC RISE
If we rewind to late June of 2024, Karl Vilips was a name we were familiar with as a world-class amateur. After a standout career at Stanford, he made his first start as professional start at The Ascendant presented by Blue on the Korn Ferry Tour where he finished T-13. Just a few weeks later, he captured his maiden professional at the Korn Ferry Tour's Utah Championship.
While the win secured status on the Korn Ferry Tour, he had his eyes set on earning a PGA Tour card, which he did early September, 2024.
“The journey has been crazy since day one. You always dream of getting to the PGA TOUR, but need to make a choice at some point if you’re ready to dedicate most of your time to doing it. Once we made that decision, it was all systems go. My Dad has been the driving factor especially through my early success with creating the YouTube channel. Getting the exposure I needed I was able to get my name out there which gave me the opportunity to thrive in the U.S. junior and college systems. To become a member on the PGA tour is a result of the hard work as a team and resilience to battle through way more lows than highs.”Karl Vilips
Less than a year later, he's a PGA TOUR winner with brightest of futures ahead.
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