Google Phrase Match changed?

It's not working as it used to...

[Sweezely]

I've noticed something odd happening with Google's phrase match. We're bidding on "Brand XX" (phrase matched) in a campaign with loads of terms like "Brand AB" and "Brand YZ" (again, all phrase matched) and with the keyword as a dynamic title.

So we search for Brand XX and our ad is show fine. We search for Brand XX Test and we're not show at all. We search for Brand XX Widgets and we are shown, but the title says 'Brand XX Widgets' not just 'Brand XX'. We're not bidding on "Brand XX Widgets" at all!

Also strange, we're bidding on "uk wodgets" and "last minute uk wodgets" yet searching for last minute uk wodgets shows the ad for uk wodgets (again, it's a dynamic title, and this time it's a different ad anyway so it's definately shown for the wrong term). So maybe it's to be expected that this might happen, but we've been bidding on "last minute uk wodgets" for longer than "uk wodgets" and it has a higher CTR, so you wouldn't think the newer, poorer-performing ad would show in place of the older, better-performing ad.

The Ad Diagnostic Tool is of little help, and most of the time says that the ad isn't showing, even when it is. Is this to do with the new changes that Google are making, or are we doing something wrong?

[Sweezely]

One other thing. I checked the ad tool for the term "Brand AB Widget" and it says the ad is showing normally, in the ad group the keyword "Brand AB Widget" is in. So all is well? No. It says the ad isn't showing in another ad group, an ad group which has the keyword "Brand AB Widgets" in it. It says "Another ad in your account is showing for this keyword." Notice how that last keyword is plural.

It's extremely important for us to able to differentiate between the singular and plural, but on this basis it looks like Google are treating plurals and singulars the same, at least with phrase match on. The fact that the ad isn't showing for the plural term is good, but the fact that the Tool is even picking up the plural, when it's the singular term is checking, well, it's bad. Certainly if at some point Google decides the plural term is doing better than the singular, well, it'll be bad.

Even stranger, we have the exact match [Brand AB Widgets] in a different ad group to the above two and that wasn't displayed in the Tool. Has phrase match become broad match?

Help?