Phil Thanks the USGA For that Shaft Rule

On The 19th Hole a few weeks ago, we had chief designer for Nicklaus Golf named Clay Long on our show. We were talking about limit dimensions and interchangeable shaft technology. He said that it really would not help the average player much because they wouldn't understand how it could help their game. He did say, though, that it was very likely that this would actually be used on Tour because of the ease of changing clubs. You know what? He was right. And OF COURSE it was Phil Mickelson that became the first high profile example...at the Masters.

Phil Mickelson, known for tinkering with his equipment and winning the 2006 Masters with two drivers in his bag, is experimenting again. In addition to carrying two drivers in Tuesday's practice round, he has also been using the I-Mix system.

"I did have two drivers in the bag today," Mickelson said in his press conference Tuesday. "The nice thing about that is I have been able to interchange shafts and put a longer shaft in if I want to get more distance. I'm hoping I only need one driver because I want to put an extra wedge in. But if I feel like distance is going to be a bigger factor, I'll stick a second driver in. I don't know. It will be day-to-day. I have two or three different game plans."

Mick is not to be outdone, though. In a week where Els announced that he has been working with Butch Harmon because all of the cool kids are doing it (or have done it), he is also tinkering with some more parts of his golf game.

"We've been working on an FT-I square head driver, and I'm actually using the square head but the old shaft," he said Tuesday during his press conference. "If you don't like a certain shot, you can pull it out on the range and put another shaft into the head." He said he was "still working on getting the perfect fit."

Remember, the rules say you cannot change in the middle of a round. But, conditions are always subject to change from day to day at Augusta.