CARLSBAD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 13, 2003--Callaway Golf Company (NYSE: ELY) equipment was used to shoot the three lowest scores of the week at the Mercedes Championships, the first PGA Tour event of the season. The low round of the week was a tournament-record 11-under-par 62, shot by K.J. Choi using a CTU 30 Red golf ball. Choi finished in a second-place tie with Callaway Golf Staff Professional Rocco Mediate, who used 14 Callaway Golf clubs and the CTU 30 Red golf ball to record a final-round 63. One other player carded a 63 in the final round at the Plantation Course at Kapalua, using a driver and fairway wood made by Callaway Golf to do so.

Mediate's four-round total of 23-under-par 269 was shot using a new set of irons and a new putter. Mediate used Callaway Golf's new Steelhead X-16 Irons for the first time in competition at the Mercedes Championships, and the results were impressive. He hit all 18 greens in regulation during his final-round 63 and tied for first in that category for the week. "I hit the ball really close to the hole," Mediate said. "Probably three-quarters of the birdies I made were 5 or 6 feet."

Mediate also switched to a new Odyssey DFX 2-Ball Putter with a Stronomic(TM) insert, and he rolled the ball well enough to finish sixth in putts per green hit in regulation. The putter was a conventional-length model instead of the long Odyssey 2-Ball Putter he used in 2002. "I made almost everything inside 10 feet," Mediate said. "It just got better and better as the week went on." Mediate played a full bag of Callaway Golf clubs, including a Great Big Bertha II Pro Series Titanium Driver, a Big Bertha Steelhead III Strong 4-wood and three Callaway Golf Forged Wedges. He finished tied for first in driving accuracy at 76.7 percent for the week.

Charles Howell III was another Callaway Golf Staff Professional who drove the ball extremely well with his Great Big Bertha II Titanium Driver. Howell led the field in total driving (driving accuracy and driving distance combined). He tied Mediate for first in driving accuracy at 76.7 percent and was third in driving distance at 295 yards. Howell also tied for first in greens hit in regulation at

• 77.8 percent. Howell also used 14 Callaway Golf clubs, including a Steelhead III 3-wood, Big Bertha 2-iron, Steelhead X-16 Pro Series Irons, two Callaway Golf Forged Wedges and an Odyssey White Hot 4 Putter. Howell also used the HX Red golf ball. Overall, Callaway Golf balls were No. 2 in usage at the tournament featuring PGA Tour winners from 2002.

Callaway Golf equipment was also used by the winner on the PGA European Tour yesterday. The winner of the South African Airways Open used a Big Bertha 2-iron and an Odyssey Putter to win in a playoff. The second-place finisher used a Great Big Bertha II Titanium Driver, two Callaway Golf fairway woods and an Odyssey White Hot 2-Ball Mid Putter. Callaway Golf won the driver count at the event with 74 drivers in play, compared with 60 for the nearest competitor, according to data from Sports Marketing Survey Ltd. Callaway Golf also led the way in fairway woods and putters in play at the South African Airways Open. There were 98 Callaway Golf fairway woods in play at the event, compared to 62 for the nearest competitor. Odyssey Golf dominated the putter count with 83 putters in play, while the nearest competitor had just 32 putters in play.

Callaway Golf Company makes and sells Big Bertha(R) Metal Woods and Irons, including Great Big Bertha(R) II Titanium Drivers and Fairway Woods, Big Bertha Steelhead(TM) III Stainless Steel Drivers and Fairway Woods, Hawk Eye VFT Tungsten Injected(TM) Titanium Irons, Big Bertha Stainless Steel Irons, Steelhead X-16(TM) and Steelhead X-16 Pro Series Stainless Steel Irons, and Callaway Golf Forged Wedges. Callaway Golf Company also makes and sells Odyssey(R) Putters, including White Hot(R), TriHot(R), DFX(TM) and Dual Force(R) Putters. Callaway Golf Company makes and sells the Callaway Golf(R) HX(R) Blue and HX Red balls, the CTU 30(R) Blue and CTU 30 Red balls, the HX 2-Piece Blue and HX 2-Piece Red balls, the CB1(R) Blue and CB1 Red balls, and the Warbird(TM) golf balls. For more information about Callaway Golf Company, please visit our Web sites at www.callawaygolf.com and www.odysseygolf.com.

 

CONTACT:
Callaway Golf Company, Carlsbad
Larry Dorman/Mike Galeski/Millie Speirs, 760/931-1771