Ask a hundred regular golfers to name a shaft brand and it’s safe to say that Fujikura would come out on top. The Japanese brand, which started out as a rubber company over a hundred years ago, has been at the forefront of design and development to produce the world’s best driver shafts since arriving in America in 1994. Today, the brand enjoys success on Tours across the globe on a weekly basis.
There’s a reason why Fujikura is trusted by many of the world’s leading players, as well as club golfers of all levels. Using proprietary technology - such as enso, its revolutionary motion capture system that provides a detailed analysis of how a shaft behaves during the golf swing - Fujikura shafts have set the benchmark in the golf shafts category. It's the reason why it has become one of the leading choices for some of the world's best players.
TOUR DOMINANCE
Fujikura often dominates the field at PGA Tour events when it comes to shaft usage. At the 2023 World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play in March, for example, Fujikura took the number one spot in both the driver and wood shaft counts. Well over a third (39.1%) of the field used a Fujikura driver shaft, with another 31.8% using a Fujikura wood shaft.
Sam Burns, who knocked out world number one, Scottie Scheffler en route to victory in Austin used VENTUS driver and wood shafts - more specifically: the VENTUS Blue 7-TX in his driver and the VENTUS Black 8-X in his 3-wood and hybrid. Elsewhere, Rory McIlroy, who finished third at the event, played with a new VENTUS, making the shift from his usual set-up of the VENTUS Black 6-X into the VENTUS Blue TR profile. The four-time Major champion was looking to work the ball more off the tee, while aiming for additional spin and a higher launch angle.
After testing numerous shaft variations in both his TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus driver and TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus fairway, the world number two settled on the VENTUS TR Blue 6-X in his driver shaft. With its slightly softer profile and increased stability, the VENTUS TR design provided the desired spin and feel.
McIlroy also uses the VENTUS TR Blue 8-X in his 3-wood shaft and remained in the VENTUS Black 8-X in his 5-wood shaft. It was clearly a winning recipe - the Ulsterman went deep into the tournament and won six of his seven matches. His driving, which has so often been his biggest strength, made the headlines again, with one particular 375-yard effort that found the green on 18th being described as "one of the greatest drives".
TRUSTED BY THE WORLD'S BEST
Through the opening 25 events of the PGA Tour 2022/23 season, 13 winners have used a Fujikura shaft. As it stands, seven out of the top 10 male players in the world are currently using Fujikura shafts in their bag, with six of them using Fujikura in their driver, which also includes Scheffler, the world’s number one player, who plays a combination of the VENTUS profiles in his driver and wood shafts.
The dominance is mirrored on Tours around the world. At the Drive On Championship on the LPGA Tour, Fujikura claimed the number one spot in the driver shaft count, with a total of 30.8% of the field using a Fujikura driver shaft during the tournament.
Fujikura is the go-to shaft for a host of other Tour players. Other big names to have played with VENTUS at the 2023 World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play, include Max Homa, Jordan Spieth, Billy Horschel and Will Zalatoris. Meanwhile, world number nine, Viktor Hovland, has opted for the Speeder TR 661 TX in his Ping G425 LST driver.
And although Tiger Woods only makes fleeting appearances these days, when he plays, his TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver is equipped with the Fujikura Ventus Black 6-X shaft. Given that Fujikura doesn't pay any players to use its products, there is surely no greater endorsement for a brand than arguably the game's greatest ever player choosing its product.
