Paul Casey Joins Nike Golf Tour Staff
13 January 2005 - 2:03AM
PR Newswire (US)
Paul Casey Joins Nike Golf Tour Staff Young Brit Shares Nike Golf's
Passion to Compete and Win BEAVERTON, Ore., Jan. 12
/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- When golfer Paul Casey first visited Nike
Golf's 28,000 square foot research and design facility in Ft.
Worth, Texas last November to determine if golf's newest leader
could help him contend in 2005, he expected a manufacturer's
typical short menu of marketable clubs and balls to play next
season. (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20020719/NKGOLFLOGO ) Instead,
Casey was overwhelmed with an array of performance equipment and
the uncommon promise to help him win by designing him any club, any
ball, any time. Nike Golf is proud to announce the addition of
golfer Paul Casey to its professional Tour Staff. Needless to say,
the 27-year-old Casey had a good visit. "More than anyone else in
golf, Nike puts its golfers first and treats them like athletes,"
said Casey, beginning his first year with full exemption on the PGA
Tour. "They truly care about helping us compete and will get us the
equipment we need. This is not a common approach in our industry
and also the reason Nike will dominate golf some day." Ranked 29th
in the World Rankings to begin 2005, Casey will play a full
complement of Nike clubs and the Nike One Gold golf ball. He was
introduced to the latest technical styles from Nike Golf's apparel
and footwear teams during a recent visit to Nike's World
Headquarters in Beaverton, Ore. Footwear will initially be included
in the multi-year relationship. Casey joins fellow Tour Staff
players Tiger Woods, Stewart Cink, Stephen Ames, Justin Leonard,
Paul Azinger, John Cook, and 21 other top professionals playing the
Nike Ignite Driver for its unmatched distance and forgiveness.
Casey will play the 410cc Ignite while Cink and Woods have moved to
the 460cc Nike Ignite for proven distance control. The 460cc driver
is the largest allowed by the USGA. "Right now I am hitting the
ball farther than ever. Technology, or the lack thereof, has held
me back the past couple years. With the combination of the Ignite
and the Nike One ball I feel like I have not only caught up but I
will leap-frog a lot of players because of the innovation that
Nike's given me," said Casey after a recent test in his hometown of
Phoenix. "Nike Golf is going to get me back among the Tour leaders
in distance and consequently, contending on a weekly basis." Nike
Golf introduced NexTi, the strongest form of titanium used in a
driver, with the debut of the Ignite last spring. This first-time
face material is so strong that it allowed club maker Tom Stites to
create a driver face that is incredibly thin with a sweet spot that
practically reaches to the edges around the face. In addition to
the Nike Ignite, Casey will play an Ignite T60 3-wood, Nike Golf's
Forged Pro Combo irons and the new Spin Velocity (SV) Wedges in 52,
56 and 60-degrees. Nike Golf's Tour Staff has proven to prefer the
precision and performance of forged clubs versus cast. More than 30
professionals are currently using Nike Golf's Forged Blades, Forged
Pro Combo irons or forged prototypes developed for their specific
needs. The Nike One Gold golf ball in Casey's bag, the same ball
played by Tiger Woods and Stephen Ames, is the most sophisticated
and innovative ever introduced by Nike Golf, featuring three covers
for distance, control and responsiveness on the greens. There is no
other ball like it on Tour. Casey will play in the U.S. and Europe
leading up to the Masters. He will begin the new season at the Sony
Invitational this week. The young Brit proved in 2004 that he has
an affinity for pressure situations. His best finish came at, of
all places, his first Masters appearance where he tied for 6th
place. His second best finish, a tie for 10th, came amongst an
equally competitive field at THE PLAYERS Championship. To close out
2004, Casey partnered with countryman Luke Donald to win the WGC
World Cup event in Spain firing birdie after birdie on the final
day amidst a swirl of controversy over false quotes and quotes
taken out of context and attributed to Casey in a British tabloid
just days before. In 2001, Casey earned the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie
of the Year honor on the European Tour. He won the English Amateur
and the Pac-10 Championship at Arizona State University in
back-to-back years ('99 and '00). His victory in the 2000 Pac-10
Championships broke the previous scoring record held by Tiger Woods
(18-under par) with a 23-under-par, 265. By winning, Casey also
became the first player to win three successive Pac-10
Championships. While at ASU, he broke the school scoring average
previously held by Phil Mickelson. Nike Golf, located in Beaverton,
Oregon, is passionately dedicated to honoring and respecting the
traditions and heritage of the game, and to providing committed
golfers with the absolute best equipment in the game in every
product category. For more information on Nike Golf, visit our Web
site at http://www.nikegolf.com/. Editors and journalists seeking
editorial information and downloadable images, visit
http://www.nikegolf.com/presscenter.
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20020719/NKGOLFLOGO
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Nike Golf CONTACT: Dean
Stoyer of Nike Golf, +1-503-532-6018 or Web site:
http://www.nikebiz.com/
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