What's in My Bag: Max Homa

AGE 28

LIVES Valencia, Calif.

STORY Won the 2019 Wells Fargo Championship, his first PGA Tour title.

NO TEE REQUIRED I hadn't hit driver off the deck in more than a decade, but I did it three times at the Zurich Classic and Wells Fargo. That said, I hope I don't have to use that shot too often. It gives me anxiety.

A WAY TO CONNECT Twitter has been great for me. People have become fans of mine because of my tweets (@maxhoma23) or because I've interacted with them. It gives me support.

DRIVER

SPECS Titleist TS4, 9.5°, 45 inches, Mitsubishi Tensei CK Orange 70 TX shaft, D-4 swingweight

This went in play in April at the Valero Texas Open, and it's a keeper. The head is a bit smaller than the TS3 I was playing, and it spins less. That lets me hit my preferred cut without it ballooning. I also can play a little chip driver that rolls out a long way.

FAIRWAY WOOD/HYBRID

SPECS Titleist TS3, 15°, Aldila Rogue Black 80X shaft; Titleist 818H2, 19°, Graphite Design Tour AD DI-105X shaft. Both D-3 swingweight

My 3-wood is great off the ground, but I don't find much opportunity to hit 3-wood. I've never liked hybrids much, but this one works. The shaft is a bit shorter and softer so I don't get that crazy hot shot that goes too far. It's more versatile than a utility iron, too.

IRONS

SPECS Titleist 718 MB (4- through 9-iron), KBS Tour S-Taper, Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord grips

I used to do the combo-set thing where my 4-, 5- and 6-irons were some sort of cavity-back, but I've always preferred blades. I tend to have a high ball flight, so I have no problem launching the long irons and feel like I can control my short irons better.

WEDGES

SPECS Titleist Vokey SM7 (46°, 50°, 54°, 60°), KBS Tour S-Taper (46°), KBS Hi-Rev 2.0 shafts

The pitching wedge matches the rest of my wedges, not my iron set. I also made a change to my lob wedge before the Wells Fargo, going with a different sole grind and only 4 degrees of bounce instead of 8. That helped shallow out my angle into the ball. It's helped me greatly on pitch shots.

PUTTER

SPECS Scotty Cameron T5 W, 35 inches, 3.5° loft

I had never used a heavy, mallet-style putter before. I like it because it feels low to the ground and kind of swings itself. There's very little face rotation with it. That means if I can get the stroke on plane, it will have a nice flow into the ball. I also love the topline. I feel like it's easy to align, and I can find the middle of the face with consistency.

IN MEMORIAM

I switched to the new Pro V1 at the Desert Classic in January. The 25 honors a friend who passed away when I was in college. It's his high school basketball number.

GOOD TIMES

This yardage book reminds me of my college days when I won the Pac-12 and NCAA titles as a senior at Cal in 2013. In the Pac-12, I shot a course-record 61 at Los Angeles Country Club (North).

BACK, BACK, BACK

I use a ball marker from the Madison Club, which is where I play in California. The telescope logo is taken from the tee markers they use for the very back tees, which measure 7,426 yards.

“The ball I finished with at Wells Fargo? No idea where it is. I'm not into that sort of thing.”

WITH E. MICHAEL JOHNSON