Alright, buckle up folks, because I’m about to spill the beans on my little experiment: trying to recreate Patrick Cantlay’s WITB (What’s In The Bag). I’m no pro golfer, hell, I’m barely even decent, but I was curious to see if even a sliver of his magic could rub off on my game just by switching up the gear. Spoiler alert: it didn’t, but the journey was… enlightening.
First things first, I needed to figure out what the heck Cantlay even carries. I spent a solid hour or two scouring the internet, poring over lists and forum posts, trying to piece together the exact specs. Turns out, it’s not always easy to get the exact details, but I got a pretty good general idea.
The Driver Dilemma:
- Cantlay rocks a Titleist TS3. Okay, easy enough to find a used one. I snagged one off eBay for a decent price. The shaft, though? That’s where things got tricky. He uses a Mitsubishi Diamana White Board. I ended up going with a similar profile shaft from Fujikura, since finding the exact Diamana was proving to be a pain.
Fairway Woods:
- Two Titleist 915F woods. Yep, older models. Thankfully, these were actually pretty affordable. Got ’em both pre-owned in decent condition. No fancy shaft swaps here, just stuck with the stock ones.
Irons: This is Where I Started to Sweat
- Titleist AP2 718s. Now, these are beautiful irons, no doubt. But finding a full set in good condition that didn’t cost me a kidney was a challenge. After what felt like endless searching, I found a set on a golf forum. Haggled a bit on the price, and boom, they were mine. The shaft, Project X LZ, was thankfully stock, so no extra headaches there.
Wedges:
- Titleist Vokey SM7s. Okay, this was relatively straightforward. I just bought the lofts Cantlay uses (56 and 60 degree), nothing too crazy. Standard Vokey feel, nothing to complain about here.
Putter: The Holy Grail (Almost)
- Scotty Cameron Phantom X 5. This is Cantlay’s gamer, and finding the exact same model proved impossible without spending a fortune on a custom build. I settled for a slightly older Phantom X model. Close enough, right?
The Moment of Truth (and Humiliation):
I finally had the bag assembled. Looked pretty darn good, if I do say so myself. I headed to the range, feeling like I was about to unleash my inner Cantlay.
The reality? My swing was still my swing. The fancy clubs didn’t magically transform me into a PGA Tour pro. I still sliced it into the woods, chunked a few iron shots, and three-putted more often than I care to admit.
What I Learned:
Having good equipment can make a difference, but it’s not a substitute for practice and a solid swing. I did notice a slightly better feel with the AP2 irons, and the Vokey wedges were definitely an upgrade over my old ones. The putter… well, let’s just say I’m still working on it.
Final Verdict:
Recreating Cantlay’s WITB was a fun experiment and a good excuse to upgrade some of my gear. Did it make me a better golfer? Nope. But hey, at least I look a little cooler on the course now, even if my score doesn’t reflect it. Maybe I will get golf lessons instead haha.
