Kurt Kitayama shot par-72 to win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, his first victory on the PGA Tour on Sunday, March 5. He defeated Rory McIlroy and Harris English by a one-shot margin.
Here is a list of equipment Kitayama used to win the title at Bay Hill Club.
DRIVER
TaylorMade Stealth (10.5 degrees) with Graphite Design Tour AD UB 7 TX shaft
FAIRWAY WOODS:
TaylorMade Stealth 2 (21 degrees) with Graphite Design Tour AD UB 9 TX shaft
TaylorMade Stealth 2 HL (16.5 degrees), with Graphite Design Tour AD UB 9 TX shaft
IRONS:
TaylorMade P•7MB (7-PW), P•7MC (4-6), with True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 shafts
WEDGES:
Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (60 degrees), TaylorMade Milled Grind 3 (52, 56 degrees) with True Temper Dynamic Gold S400 shafts
PUTTER: TaylorMade Spider X Hydro Blast
BALL: TaylorMade TP5x
GRIPS: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
"'It’s pretty amazing,"- Kitayama after winning the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational
A first PGA Tour win is always special for every golf professional, and Kurt Kitayama is no different. It took him several runner-up finishes to eventually cross the line and that too at the prestigious Arnold Palmer Classic.
"You know just to get your first one, I think it's unbelievable and I'm lucky enough to have it at a very special place so that's you know a bonus," Kitayama was quoted in a press conference after his victory at Bay Hill.
He further said it wasn't easy, given there was a five-way tie for the lead until the last hole. The final day wasn't any less dramatic as the lead kept on swinging from Kitayama to Spieth and Rory.
A triple bogey on the ninth hole by Kitayama meant it was now Spieth in the lead. The only difference was that Spieth hit three bogeys in the last five holes, and McIlroy also lost his rhythm on the 14th and 15th but Kityama kept himself calm and didn't make any errors on the inward nine holes.
“I’ve always dreamed of winning on the Tour and to finally do it, yeah, it’s pretty amazing," said the 30 year old. "It’s pretty unbelievable, really.”
Kitayama aggregated at 9-under-279 with a final day par 72. Rory Mcllroy and Harris English were tied for second with an 8-under 280. Rory was all praise for Kitayama after the victory:
"I know Kurt more from European tour stuff. But he's done really well. He's persevered and played wherever he could get starts and all of a sudden he's won one of the biggest events on the PGA Tour. So good for him."
Jordan Spieth, Patrick Cantlay, Tyrell Hatton and defending champion Scottie Scheffler finished at 7-under 281 with a tied fourth-place finish. Had Scheffler defended his title at Bay Hill, he would have been back at No. 1.
World No. 1 Jon Rahm had a forgetful outing at Bay Hill as he finished at T-39 with 1-over 289. On Saturday, he shot 76, his highest score since last year's PGA Championship.