Lauren Coughlin and Andrew Novak teamed up to win the 2025 Grant Thornton Invitational, behind their record-setting performance was a pair of finely tuned golf bags, each tailored to their unique playing styles. From forgiving hybrids to low-spin drivers, every club had a purpose. Let’s dive into how two very different setups came together for one shared result: victory.

All WITB information is courtesy of GolfWRX.

Andrew Novak's WITB

Driver: PING G440 LST (9 degrees)

Shaft: Project X Denali 60 Black TX

PING G440 LST (9°) – A low-spin head built for players with high swing speeds who want a penetrating flight. Its compact profile and adjustable weighting system is great for higher speed players to dial in their shot shape.

Fitting Insight: Novak’s Denali Black TX shaft complements the head’s low-spin design, this shaft is something we use in fittings when someone wants a firm feeling the tip of the shaft plus low spin. 

Fairway Woods: PING G440 Max (15 degrees, 19 degrees)

Shafts: Project X HZRDUS Black 80 TX (15 degrees), Project X HZRDUS Smoke Green RDX 85 TX

PING G440 Max (15° & 19°) – Same forgiving head, but Novak adds a second wood for versatility. The maraging steel face delivers consistent speed and distance from any lie.

Fitting Insight: His HZRDUS shafts are low-torque and stout, they are built for players who have a higher swing speed and more aggressive transitions.

Irons: Srixon ZXi5 (4-6), Srixon ZXi7 (7-PW)

Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Srixon ZXi5/ZXi7 Combo Irons – ZXi5 long irons provide forgiveness, while ZXi7 short irons deliver precision and workability. This combo is a tour favorite for blending distance and control.

Fitting Insight: Novak’s X100 shafts give a heavy, stable feel for penetrating trajectories and shot-shaping confidence. This combo is one of our favorite combos in the fitting bay, blending this extremely quick and consistent iron line up is extremely common. Begs the question, if the Tour players are putting a ‘bigger’ profile in the top half of their irons, why are more of us not?

Wedges: Cleveland RTZ (50, 54, 60)

Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Cleveland RTZ (50, 54, 60) – Known for exceptional spin and soft feel, these wedges excel in short-game precision. 

Fitting Insight: Novak’s S400 shafts provide added heft for stability and touch around the greens. He is a player that likes to play relatively square face chip shots which is reflected in his set up and grind profiles. 

Odyssey Ai-One Seven T – AI-designed face milling ensures predictable speed and roll, paired with a forgiving mallet shape.

Fitting Insight: Novak’s choice reflects a focus on consistency and alignment from True tour tested head design.

Lauren Coughlin's WITB

Driver: PING G440 Prototype (9 degrees)

Shaft: KBS TD 50 3

PING G440 Prototype (9°) – A forgiving, high-MOI driver designed for stability and straighter ball flight. Its deep CG helps keep shots online, even on off-center hits. 
 
Fitting Insight: Paired with a lightweight KBS TD 50 shaft, Coughlin maximizes forgiveness in her G440 Prototype driver head but can maintain speed and stability with the KBS TD shaft. KBS are not known for their wood shafts, but it is a lighter weight make up has a stable feeling like their award-winning iron shat line up. 

3-wood: PING G440 Max (15 degrees)

Shaft: KBS TD 60 3

PING G440 Max (15°) – Forgiving and easy to launch, this fairway wood is ideal for attacking par 5s. Its large footprint and tungsten weighting boost stability through impact. 

Fitting Insight: The KBS TD 60 shaft adds control and a smooth feeling. When we move into the fairway woods, we want to make the shaft heavier to give you more stability and control, hence why she plays the 60 in the fairways and the 50 in the driver. 

Hybrid: PING G440 (20 degrees @18.5), PING G425 (22 degrees @21, 26 degrees)

Shaft: Ping (20, 26 degree), Shaft: KBS Tour Hybrid Prototype 75 S (22 degree)

Three hybrids (18.5°, 21°, 26°) – PING G440 and G425 hybrids offer high launch and forgiveness, making them perfect gap-fillers to her I240 iron set. They are money from the rough and tough lies on the golf course.
 
Fitting Insight: Coughlin’s hybrid-heavy setup reflects a strategy for consistent launch and versatility. We will typically replace someone’s long irons with hybrids when we start to see the ball speed gap begin to shrink. So, for Coughlin she likes the hybrid set up because it gives her the right descent angles, ball speeds and forgiveness that she would look for in the top end of her bag. 

Irons: PING i240 (6-PW)

Shafts: KBS Tour C-Taper Lite 110 S

Wedges: PING Blueprint S (PW/48.5), PING S159 (54-S, 58-H)

Shafts: KBS Tour CT Limited S

PING Blueprint S & S159 – Tour-inspired wedges with sharp grooves for spin and multiple grind options for versatility. Perfect for tight lies and firm bunkers.
 
Fitting Insight: KBS CT Limited shafts add more weight for better feel, giving Lauren control on delicate scoring shots.

PING PLD Milled Oslo 4 – A high-MOI mallet with premium milling for consistent roll and alignment confidence. 

Fitting Insight: Ideal for players who want forgiveness and stability. The OSLO is great for players who struggle with their speed control due to the consistent ball speeds that the ball comes off across the face. 

Two players, two different philosophies: Lauren leans on forgiveness and versatility, while Novak opts for precision and control. Both prove that the right fitting choices can lead to one shared result—a winning scorecard.