Popular Post RollingGreens Posted June 18, 2021 Popular Post Share Posted June 18, 2021 (edited) Nippon Regio B+ Driver Shaft 65s– Official MGS Forum Review by Drew Intro Hey guys I’m Drew! I started playing golf about 2 years ago seriously. I messed around on the course over the summer in high school but never anything too serious My love at that time was the baseball diamond. Fast forward to 2 years ago, 28 years old and a recent grad and wanted to take up a hobby to bond with my father in law. I always assumed since I was decent at baseball and good with my hands that I could figure it out. I became hooked on the game, with a background in physics and a doctorate in biomechanics it didn’t take much. I’ve been able to piece things together with my athletic abilities and overall understanding of body mechanics to put what I believe is a game where I can play with just about anyone. Last year my goal was to break 100, this year I am consistently breaking 90 . The course I play on has a slope of 141 at 6700 yards, currently my handicap is ~13. The course I play is quite challenging in Cleveland, OH, https://www.stonewatergolf.com/course/. It’s semi-private, but the best part is it’s 5 minutes away from my house so I’m always there. A nice range, chipping and putting practice area. Plus the best part is they just got a Trackman, which I plan to use for objective measuring. My strength this year has been my driver, since changing to a heavier shaft Tensei White Raw 65s my dispersion has significantly improved. Last year I fought a 30 yard slice, @discipleofpennick can vouch for that one. Since practice and putting a lot of focus into my driver I play a slight fade if not a straight shot. It’s all about my tempo, I have a very slow loading phase, with a moderate transition. If I get quick I tend to stand up causing a high trajectory spinning shot. It doesn’t occur much but the big left miss is always lurking if I come across my body, but that is directly related to me setup being left of my target line. My style is that of a swinger. My swing speed is about 105mph and I average 250-260 carry distance. My irons have dipped a but over the last couple weeks but are usually a strong point. My short game is coming along but typically in the past along with my driver was holding my game back. This year I also have a new set of irons, the first clubs I was ever fit for. Mizuno Jpx Hot metals with nippon modus tour 120s. I came close to getting the pros, but ultimately wish right now I would have gotten a mixed set of the pros with the regular hot metals as my game is improving relatively quickly. During the fitting process I learned I need my irons 2 deg upright, I always played off the rack clubs. Having my clubs fit for me have made a huge difference. I no longer have the toe chunks that are unexplainable I’ll get a few videos posted on my swing this weekend!! Current Bag Setup: My current driver is the TS3 9.5 with Tensei Raw AV white 65s playing at 45.5 inches. I was fit at a local club where my in laws are members and at the time I was new to golf so it wasn’t an in-depth fitting as making quality strikes was more important. I usually choke down playing it to about 44.5 inches. I’m a Titleist guy when it comes down to the woods section. I respect their quality control process too much and really enjoy the classic look of the driver heads. In the future I will be upgrading to either the TSi3 or TSi2. I was previously playing the Hzrdus Smoke Black shaft which felt like a pole to me. I gave the Graphite Tour AD XC a try, it felt like a toothpick, the kick was way to pronounced for me. I decided to give the Raw White 65s a try, it’s been great low launch/low spin and heavy enough to help me with my tempo. As you can tell I like to tinker, but better yet I love the feel of my iron shafts. After speaking with the Nippon shaft Rep we decided that the Regio B+ would be the best shaft for me to try, it matched my style as a swinger and was the closest in profile to the Modus 120s. Taking a look it has a stout tip at 2.9 for the torque, which should give me a tighter dispersion, and be relatively low launch with the kick point by the grip. The one concern I do have is the weight. When looking at the shaft weight for the stiff shaft options it is 55g or 66.5g which in my opinion sits at the far end of the lighter and heavier spectrums. While 66.5g should work for me, I think a lighter shaft in the lower 60s would fit the modus 120s profile better from a numbers standpoint. It’s unfortunate that if you go with the lower weighted shaft you lose the torque numbers 4.3 vs 2.9 I’m really hoping this shaft allows me to build consistency between my irons and driver as the profiles will be similar. I hope to see tighter dispersion that my Tensei Raw white as I would label this more of an exotic/premium shaft. Hopefully this will allow for more distance than 260 carry with a 14 deg launch angle, but I’m not sure how much more distance I can squeeze out of my swing. I can be an aggressive player an enjoy taking on aggressive lines for the reward! On short par 5s and can be on in 2 95% of the time, my local course doesn’t allow for the par 5’s to be taken advantage as two of them are target holes and the third is a monster at just shy of 600 yards from the one up tees. I play in the Midwest, so early in the spring wind is a big factor, it can help or hurt you off the tee box. My course drains well so we get good roll, but they leave the rough very thick so hitting fairways is a priority. Testing Setup: I will be testing the Regio Formula B+ 65S shaft with Titleist TS3 9.5deg. The driver is going to play at 45”. My grip will be either the Golf Pride Grey MCC+4 or Tour Velvet 360 First Impressions I got out on the driving range today, wasn’t sure the weather was going to hold off but the sun came out just in time for a first test!! I’ve recently been gaming the Tensei Raw White AV 65s which has been working out well, it’s a heavier shaft that allows me to really keep my tempo in check. For me tempo is everything The Tensei does not have much feel. The bottom line is it performs it’s low launching, low spin as advertised and it really tightened up my dispersion. My worst misses have become playable. Today I took out the Tensei and threw in the Regio B+ 65s in the TS3, it didn’t disappoint. This shaft is all about the feel, just like the modus 120s iron shafts. From the start you could feel the energy, it has a mild kick point I would say, not huge where it feels like a large whip like effect, but enough to feel the driver head release towards the ball. The shaft loads incredibly and really fits well with my tempo. I don’t feel that this shaft would work well with a fast tempo. I think you would miss out on feeling the shaft throughout transition to impact. The performance of this shaft was great, ball flight was phenomenal from the start. It was incredibly easy to find the club face. The shaft played well, with the extra feel I had a small problem towards the end of my session turning it over leading to a pull fade. I should consider though that I did hit about 25 drives which typically for me right now during a practice session is closer to 10. Some of it was really wanting to get used to the shaft, and the other part was trying to get some good videos. First time using my selfie stick in a while and hitting off mats today didn’t leave me with much room to film. Ball flight played low to medium, spin seemed low but I don’t have any launch monitor numbers to confirm. Today’s temperature was in the 50’s and we were hitting into a head wind so distance was hard to asses. The Regio B+ shaft has a little more energy and feel with the kick point than the modus 120s, but I would say it is very complimentary as a driver shaft. If the weather holds off tomorrow I will be playing 9 after work, and am scheduled to play 18 Sunday morning, but at this time it doesn’t look like the weather will cooperate. Best Day of the weekend is Saturday, I will be doing the ping demo where I plan to put my TS3 with the Regio B+ shaft against the G425. Mark from Nippon fit me for the shaft based upon the Modus iron model I play and speaking about my driver swing style. He thought the B+ 65s would be the best for me. What I’m looking for in this shaft to stay in my bag is tightening up my dispersion taking out the big right miss which occurs every maybe 1-2x a round. I want to have the ability of better feel for my club head releasing prior to impact. Currently I need to warm up to feel prepared to play a round with 20-30 balls in the range. I realize this involves my game as a whole but with the chance of having less time I want to be able to head to the first tee without a doubt that I can hit my driver soundly. I want it to bring confidence whether I have warmed up or not. Lastly the ability to hit the fairway finder and the missile. Currently I have one gear and it falls between more so in the fairway finder category, as a controlled swing. I want to have the ability to go for max distance and pick up some yardage on those big par 5s. Initial testing has just begun so I look forward to seeing how the Regio B+ can hold up to stay in my bag I had the chance to go through one demo with Ping but I also took it to the local indoor facility where I occasionally go to practice on the trackman, I originally had to take pictures of my results but they arrived in my email a week later. I had originally thought it was the nippon shaft that contributed to my high spin numbers, but it the TS3 head itself. No matter the combo of the shaft and TS3 and the TSi3 spin numbers didn’t change much. I did a lot of testing on the course and at the practice range, it really never left my bag since I received it. Grading Looks (8 out of 10 points) Describe the following: Coloring / Graphics- I really like the black coloring with the blue lettering but the accents surrounding the font I could do without. It doesn’t strike me as a modern look. How does the overall look come together? What does it remind you of? This just reminds me of a basic driver shaft with the coloring and script. Except the styling around the lettering reminds of a ‘90’s tattoo. Is the coloring likely to match a variety of clubs? Yes because it isn’t very flashy. It sticks with basic colors that can essentially match all drivers. Other unique details – The shaft is durable. I didn’t find any paint chips. It withstood normal bag chatter. None of the lettering is fading. Feel (10 out of 10 points) Describe how the club sounds and feels How is the weight? Balance? Can you feel the clubhead in your swing? The weight is perfectly balanced. The shaft is balanced evenly as described by the manufacturers specifications online. Yes, I can feel the clubhead release in the swing. The best part is there is no drop off between playing this and the Modus 120S lineup. How does it load? What is the kick like when swinging? It loads relatively through the grip. There is a minimal kick point. Stiffness, flexibility, and stability. For stiffness it plays towards the higher end, has a very low torque. The shaft is very stable without a high kick. It feels like it keeps the driver head in a neutral position. IMG_0088.mov IMG_0083.mov Basic Characteristics ( 18 out of 20 points) Describe the following compared to your current gamer: Trajectory - I am able to adjust the height of each shot accordingly independently of the shaft. I have been able to hit low runners, medium trajectory shots (which are my ideal) and also high trajectory shots when taking aggressive lines going over trees and bunkers for extra carry. Accuracy –– I am able to consistently hit my target 75% of the time, the worst case for me is the big right miss (slice) Distance – Roughly 250 yards, which is on par with my previous gamer. Side note: with the trackman numbers listed above the loss of distance I have is more so due to spin which is related to using the TS3 head, unfortunately the B+ shaft did not improve my numbers. Ball speed, distance (carry/total), launch angle, backspin, sidespin, dispersion Ball speed: Tensei White: 144 mph B+: slightly under 144 mph Distance: Tensei White: roughly 248 yards B+: 246 yards Backspin: Both slightly under 3700 Dispersion: Roughly pretty close for all combos tried on the trackman Pressure –– I feel that I am able to execute most shots when needed, when I do miss I don’t feel it is because of the shaft. 75-85% of the time this shaft performs. One round I even hit every fairway with this driver combo. The yellow is the TSi3 with Nippon B+ shaft On-Course / LM Performance (28 out of 30 points) Final Performance Comments: Overall, how did it perform? - The results overall have been awesome. The shaft hasn’t left my bag since I’ve received it. It has been great for performance. It has made practicing with my driver a nonfactor. The driver has turned into the strongest part of my game. The unfortunate part is that the current set up I have has shown that it isn’t the right one for me because of the high spin characteristics. It will be interesting to see if the shaft continues to perform with a low spin technology driver head, such as the Ping G425 LST to help lower spin. How, if at all, did this product change your overall impression of Nippon? - Overall it is a positive outlook on the brand Nippon. It shows that not only can they make good iron shafts but they are also stepping into the fairway wood shafts with great success and promise. What feature would you change or eliminate from the next generation of this model? – I would make the product more available. I would have it as an option in fitting carts for other drivers as well. I would say the worst part about the shaft is that you can’t find it anywhere. It is truly a unicorn right now. What feature do you really like, and would most like to see continued or evolved in future models? – I like how there isn’t a drop off between the iron shaft and the driver shaft. They’re not two distinct profiles. This hasn’t really been done before. Did it help improve your scores? By how much? – I would say that it did improve my scores by about 2 or 3 strokes. The last time I played was on a 7:30 tee time and I didn’t hit the range. I was able to transition to hitting driver on the second hole (which was my 5th swing of the day) with ease. The biggest thing is I went from going OB 2-3 times a round and losing balls off the tee to maybe 1x a round when I am really testing this shaft out on a tough aggressive line over water. Miscellaneous (10 out of 10 points) Starting from the beginning, Mark (the shaft expert) was a wealth of knowledge in helping to choose the right shaft for me. He seemed to ask all the right questions to make sure we had the most optimal set up going forward. Upon receiving the shaft, it was nice to see the custom headcover to match the shaft. Multiple times on the range and during rounds, I have had some wandering hands peeking into my bag to check out my driver shaft because no one had ever seen it before. Everyone had lots of positive comments. Play it or Trade it? (19 out of 20 points) I would play it because this is the best I’ve ever hit a driver, regardless of the spin numbers. It has made it easy for me to get out of my car and head right to the course (without hitting the range first) and play with consistency. I know what it takes to hit a fairway finder and it also has the ability to be consistently loaded to take on an aggressive line and shave off some distance. I would say the shaft does help me play my best currently but I am very interested to see how it would perform with a low spinning driver head. I would say the asking price is a hard question to answer because they aren’t readily available for purchase online yet. They don’t necessarily show up with a simple google search. Unfortunately it seems Ebay may be the easiest place to find one. I wouldn’t change any of the specs that I chose at all. Again, Mark was a great help in ensuring I had the best setup. I would say this would fit any golfer who has success playing the Modus 120S profile iron shafts. Conclusion This shaft does wonders for those who have success playing the Modus 120s profile iron shafts. The way the iron and fairway shafts release the head are very comparable. The shaft performs when on the course, fairway finders vs missiles, it doesn’t disappoint. It’s given me some of the best results on the course in my short 2+ years of playing golf and it’s a great looking shaft that will turn heads. It’s helped me turn my driver into the strongest point of my game. Final Score: (93 out of 100 points) Edited June 18, 2021 by RollingGreens Adjusted pictures JohnSmalls, edingc, MattF and 7 others 7 3 Quote Stealth 2 Plus 9deg Kai' li Red Stealth 2 13deg Aldilla Rogue Silver Stealth 2 15deg Aldilla Rogue Silver JPX 921 Hot Metal 4-PW Nippon Modus 120s SM8 54 and 58deg Dynamic Gold Wedge Flex Scotty Cameron Newport 2 Titleist ProV1 Hoofer Stand Bag Stewart Q Follow Electric Caddie 300 PRO Rangefinder Official Nippon Regio B+ Driver Shaft Review Official Stewart Q Follow Review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaxEntropy Posted June 18, 2021 Share Posted June 18, 2021 Great review @RollingGreens! RollingGreens 1 Quote Driver: Epic Speed 9* (set -1) MMT 70X 3W: Tour B JGR Recoil 760ES 3H, 4H: Tour B JGR 19*, 23* Recoil 780ES 4-AW: Tour B JGR HF2 Modus3 Tour 105 SW: RTX Zipcore Black Satin 54* LW: TAIII Black 58* Putter: Scottsdale TR Senita Bag: BigMax Dri Active Lite Ball: TP5x or AVX (yellow) Pushcart: BigMax iQ+ Testing Complete, Final Review Posted: Sub70 TAIII Forged Wedges Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBandit Posted June 18, 2021 Share Posted June 18, 2021 The Review 6/14/2021 [Nippon Regio Formula MB+ Shafts] – Official MGS Forum Review by [James Corujo] Intro I have been golfing for the past 17yrs, started after leaving the military and moving to San Francisco, I never expected to play golf. Everyone in my office played golf and they took me to a par 3 course in San Francisco and I remembering making par on the 4 hole (easy game, LOL) have been hook since. Once I moved back to NYC, I began to play more and become more competitive and really get hooked on the game. Now living in Texas, my game as become more consistent as I get the play year-round vs 6 months a year when I was in NYC. Started playing in some of the US AM Tour tournaments again, and this has help my confidence and concentration since every shot counts and cannot just waste a shot if I was just playing around with friends. My game – Currently at 7.4 HC, up and down, struggle with concentration in the middle of the round causing silly mistakes, which escalates those numbers quickly. Hence my scores fluctuating from 77 to 87. Chipping and putting has help keep my rounds under control, getting up and down from around the greens. Which I considered that my strength of my game. I struggle at times with my mid irons, but I compensate with my wedge game and putting. My driving accuracy has improved when I switch over to the PING G410 LST last year, which help keep the ball in the fairway and eliminating one side of the fairway. The downside has been total distance am still not getting what I can from my swing as I tend to cut the ball and I have a lower penetrating ball flight. So, I recently switch over to TourEdge EXS Pro Driver 10.5 with the same shaft Mitsubishi Tensi CK Orange 60 Stiff, after reading some reviews and people raving about how straight the driver was and how much longer it was. Unfortunate I only had It for a couple of weeks and until last weekend I have not been able to swing a full speed as I was dealing with a bad back. I have gained more distance, a little higher ball trajectory and is keeping my ball in the fairway even better than the PING G410 LST. Hoping I will be playing from the shorter grass more often and it should help me improve my mid iron game hitting, 9, 8 7 irons into greens, instead of 6 ,5, 4 or 3Hybrids, and I don’t have to relied heavily on my chipping and putting. Because now am more often in the short grass, this has allowed me to get to Par5 in 2 at times, still need a little bit more length to make that second shot a lot easier swing then trying to give it my all, which at times works great or am doing my scrabble around the greens as usual. Taken aggressive swings on Par4 not worrying about is going to balloon out of control and get into the forest or the water, having that feeling that you don’t have to lay up with a hybrid or 3 wood because you are not sure where your driver may end up. First Impressions The shaft looks very nice , black and gold branding and it comes with a nice head cover Look pretty simple and not flashy with the TourEdge Pro Driver and the CP2 Grips. Nippon is already a popular iron shaft, and it is used my many players in the PGA, LPGA, and amateur tours alike. This from my understanding is their first venture into the Driver/Fairwood platform, and their claim per their site is that this shaft model will show Higher Ball Speeds, Ball Control, Traditional Feel but with stunning acceleration. My current shaft is a Mitsubishi Tensi CK Orange 60 Stiff, this has been my favorite shaft because of its feel and consistency, and I was able to control my driver /ball better than I have before. So, this new shaft would have to outperformed. What am hoping to gain is higher ball speed, more control of my driver and ball and feel like I can turn on the driver without the fear of losing the ball right or left. Even thou this shaft is heavier at 68.5 (for the 65S) I will used base numbers with my current setup and then compare with the new shaft and see if the numbers are really different. Next is taking to the course, you really don’t know how it will performed until you are actually swinging it during a round or competition. Here is what I have found so far after some range and course playing. This was not my original head as it was being repaired at the time but it is in the same brand /model family. Average club speed 100Mph, balls speed 137.9Mph, carry 224.3, total yds, 246.8 and smash factor 1.375. Now doing the same testing but with the Nippon shaft as you can see the numbers increase in each category which I didn’t expect. Average Club Speed 100Mph, Balls Speed 145Mph, Carry 240Yds, Total Yds 261.6, Smash 1.437 Now testing with my regular TourEdge EXS Pro head and the Nippon combination resulted some dramatic club head speed and increase in Ball Speed, Carry and Total yards, the only thing that went down was the smash factor, but that shows that I kept even the low ones there so the numbers would be lower. I did not notice the added weight of the shaft on my swings, if anything it felt lighter. Average Club Speed 104Mph, Balls Speed 147Mph, Carry 245Yds, Total Yds 265.9, Smash 1.398 Of course, in the range work is one thing but taking it to the course is different. Have played about 6 rounds now with the new Nippon Shaft and TourEdge EXS Pro Combination, I notice the ball flight was a little higher than my normal flight, but I was really hitting more Fairways. Because I normally was playing a cut with my old setup, now is more of a straight to baby fade trajectory, so I had to adjust my target lines to accommodate the new directions. I really feel I can turn of the driver and not worry about a ball ballooning right or left, the more I have play with it the more confidence am getting that the line am taking is where the ball is going. Found myself at new approach yardages that I was not seen before, it’s a lot easier to hit GW, PW, 9, 8 Irons into greens now, making golf fun. Previous and current Driving Accuracy. Looks (8 out of 10 points) Describe the following: Coloring / Graphics – Black and Gold Overall color should work with any driver. Feel (10 out of 10 points) Describe how the club sounds and feels. Weight 68.5 for the 65S but it did not feel heavier but actually lighter. It was balance and always. The shaft appears to keep the load longer, which shows in the increase balls speeds. I was expecting it be stiffer because of the weight, but it was very sturdy feel, comfortable to swing and you feel like you can be very aggressive. Basic Characteristics (19 out of 20 points) Compared to my current gamer: Trajectory – Just a little higher than before, which is perfect since am a natural low-ball hitter. Accuracy – This is the one area that has dramatically improve and was not expecting it. Went from 44% Fairways hit to 77% Distance – Went from average of 246.8 total yds to 265.9 total yds. That is almost 20yds again. Used a PRGR unit to compare and get base numbers on the following statics: Club Speed, Ball Speed, Carry Yds, Total Yds and Smash Factor. As I shown above on the testing between by current setup and the new one with the Nippon can notice the difference right away. Pressure – This shaft has giving me confidence to go for the tight fairways, carry bunkers and feel like am going to hit my spots consistently. Again, we are just amateurs, and we are going to miss our targets more times but it will be a lot less. On-Course / LM Performance (29 out of 30 points) Played a few tournaments and regular rounds with the new Nippon / TourEdge EXS Pro combination, and it was evident to my playing partners that have commented over and over, “well there is another fairway hit” and “you have smashed that drive”. The fear of not hitting a few of those tight fairways have gone as I play more and gain more confidence. At times I found myself too close to the green or water hazard that I was not expecting to be near before or in the position to hit a wedge at times. I feel I can still tweak my setup even more to get the most out of this combination. Final Performance Comments: Overall, how did it perform? This shaft performed better than advertised, numbers do not lie. How, if at all, did this product change your overall impression of Nippon? First I only heard of them with irons shafts, and not the first name that comes up when looking for Driver/Fairwood shafts, but it has definitely made the impression and would considered replacing my 3wood shaft with a Nippon. What feature would you change or eliminate from the next generation of this model? I would have the graphics on both sides What feature do you really like, and would most like to see continued or evolved in future models? Load, Balls Speed and accuracy. Did it help improve your scores? By how much? I think I gain a stroke so far, probably would be more as I continue to fine tune and play to the new yardages. Miscellaneous (10 out of 10 points) Talking with the rep about the shaft before they send it over, he wanted to know how I was hitting my irons and to compare that transition from wood to irons. I first I was going to get a lighter shaft because it would have been closer to my current shaft, but after talking about it and assuring me the weight would not be a factor (which was true) makes you feel they really know their product. Play it or Trade it? (20 out of 20 points) 100% Play it, it’s already a keeper in my current gamer setup. No reason to go back. As stated above the numbers do not lie and the confidence it has provide me to hit driver on every hole instead of using a 3 Wood is huge. Asking price could be steep, hoping it comes down, but if you are in the market for a new shaft, I would add this one to the list of strong candidates. This shaft is great from mid to low HC, they should see big gains from their current setup. Conclusion Am glad I was able to use a PRGR unit to get numbers that I could compare, keeping track of your fairway hits, left or right and distance. Once you put it all together and you then play at the course where it matters you really can notice the difference and reference back to the numbers and get that AHHHHHH Moment. Final Score: (96 out of 100 points) edingc, RollingGreens, MaxEntropy and 1 other 3 1 Quote Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 MAX - 8.5 with Fujikura Speeder NX TCS 50 (Terra Forza White Shaft Testing) 3 -Wood: Sub70 949x 3 Wood 15 with Hrdz RDX Black Stiff 5-Wood: Sub70 949x 5 Wood with Hrdz RDX Black stiff 4-Hybrid: Sub70 949x 4 Hybrid with Project X 5.5 Hybrid Stiff Irons: Mizuno Pro 225 - 6-PW , w/Nippon Modus 105 Stiff Wedges: Sub70 TAIII w/Nippon Modus 105 Stiff - 50 ,56, 60 Putter: L.A.B Mezz1, 34 in Balls: MaxFli Tour X, TaylorMade Tour Response, TaylorMade TPx GPS: Shot Scope X5 with Tracking TESTED: SUB70 949X 5 Wood TESTED: NIPPO N.S. Regio Formula MB+ 65 Stiff. TESTED: SkyCaddie LX5 GPS Watch TESTED: Bag Boy ZFT Bag Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TR1PTIK Posted June 18, 2021 Share Posted June 18, 2021 2 hours ago, MrBandit said: The Review 6/14/2021 [Nippon Regio Formula MB+ Shafts] – Official MGS Forum Review by [James Corujo] Intro I have been golfing for the past 17yrs, started after leaving the military and moving to San Francisco, I never expected to play golf. Everyone in my office played golf and they took me to a par 3 course in San Francisco and I remembering making par on the 4 hole (easy game, LOL) have been hook since. Once I moved back to NYC, I began to play more and become more competitive and really get hooked on the game. Now living in Texas, my game as become more consistent as I get the play year-round vs 6 months a year when I was in NYC. Started playing in some of the US AM Tour tournaments again, and this has help my confidence and concentration since every shot counts and cannot just waste a shot if I was just playing around with friends. My game – Currently at 7.4 HC, up and down, struggle with concentration in the middle of the round causing silly mistakes, which escalates those numbers quickly. Hence my scores fluctuating from 77 to 87. Chipping and putting has help keep my rounds under control, getting up and down from around the greens. Which I considered that my strength of my game. I struggle at times with my mid irons, but I compensate with my wedge game and putting. My driving accuracy has improved when I switch over to the PING G410 LST last year, which help keep the ball in the fairway and eliminating one side of the fairway. The downside has been total distance am still not getting what I can from my swing as I tend to cut the ball and I have a lower penetrating ball flight. So, I recently switch over to TourEdge EXS Pro Driver 10.5 with the same shaft Mitsubishi Tensi CK Orange 60 Stiff, after reading some reviews and people raving about how straight the driver was and how much longer it was. Unfortunate I only had It for a couple of weeks and until last weekend I have not been able to swing a full speed as I was dealing with a bad back. I have gained more distance, a little higher ball trajectory and is keeping my ball in the fairway even better than the PING G410 LST. Hoping I will be playing from the shorter grass more often and it should help me improve my mid iron game hitting, 9, 8 7 irons into greens, instead of 6 ,5, 4 or 3Hybrids, and I don’t have to relied heavily on my chipping and putting. Because now am more often in the short grass, this has allowed me to get to Par5 in 2 at times, still need a little bit more length to make that second shot a lot easier swing then trying to give it my all, which at times works great or am doing my scrabble around the greens as usual. Taken aggressive swings on Par4 not worrying about is going to balloon out of control and get into the forest or the water, having that feeling that you don’t have to lay up with a hybrid or 3 wood because you are not sure where your driver may end up. First Impressions The shaft looks very nice , black and gold branding and it comes with a nice head cover Look pretty simple and not flashy with the TourEdge Pro Driver and the CP2 Grips. Nippon is already a popular iron shaft, and it is used my many players in the PGA, LPGA, and amateur tours alike. This from my understanding is their first venture into the Driver/Fairwood platform, and their claim per their site is that this shaft model will show Higher Ball Speeds, Ball Control, Traditional Feel but with stunning acceleration. My current shaft is a Mitsubishi Tensi CK Orange 60 Stiff, this has been my favorite shaft because of its feel and consistency, and I was able to control my driver /ball better than I have before. So, this new shaft would have to outperformed. What am hoping to gain is higher ball speed, more control of my driver and ball and feel like I can turn on the driver without the fear of losing the ball right or left. Even thou this shaft is heavier at 68.5 (for the 65S) I will used base numbers with my current setup and then compare with the new shaft and see if the numbers are really different. Next is taking to the course, you really don’t know how it will performed until you are actually swinging it during a round or competition. Here is what I have found so far after some range and course playing. This was not my original head as it was being repaired at the time but it is in the same brand /model family. Average club speed 100Mph, balls speed 137.9Mph, carry 224.3, total yds, 246.8 and smash factor 1.375. Now doing the same testing but with the Nippon shaft as you can see the numbers increase in each category which I didn’t expect. Average Club Speed 100Mph, Balls Speed 145Mph, Carry 240Yds, Total Yds 261.6, Smash 1.437 Now testing with my regular TourEdge EXS Pro head and the Nippon combination resulted some dramatic club head speed and increase in Ball Speed, Carry and Total yards, the only thing that went down was the smash factor, but that shows that I kept even the low ones there so the numbers would be lower. I did not notice the added weight of the shaft on my swings, if anything it felt lighter. Average Club Speed 104Mph, Balls Speed 147Mph, Carry 245Yds, Total Yds 265.9, Smash 1.398 Of course, in the range work is one thing but taking it to the course is different. Have played about 6 rounds now with the new Nippon Shaft and TourEdge EXS Pro Combination, I notice the ball flight was a little higher than my normal flight, but I was really hitting more Fairways. Because I normally was playing a cut with my old setup, now is more of a straight to baby fade trajectory, so I had to adjust my target lines to accommodate the new directions. I really feel I can turn of the driver and not worry about a ball ballooning right or left, the more I have play with it the more confidence am getting that the line am taking is where the ball is going. Found myself at new approach yardages that I was not seen before, it’s a lot easier to hit GW, PW, 9, 8 Irons into greens now, making golf fun. Previous and current Driving Accuracy. Looks (8 out of 10 points) Describe the following: Coloring / Graphics – Black and Gold Overall color should work with any driver. Feel (10 out of 10 points) Describe how the club sounds and feels. Weight 68.5 for the 65S but it did not feel heavier but actually lighter. It was balance and always. The shaft appears to keep the load longer, which shows in the increase balls speeds. I was expecting it be stiffer because of the weight, but it was very sturdy feel, comfortable to swing and you feel like you can be very aggressive. Basic Characteristics (19 out of 20 points) Compared to my current gamer: Trajectory – Just a little higher than before, which is perfect since am a natural low-ball hitter. Accuracy – This is the one area that has dramatically improve and was not expecting it. Went from 44% Fairways hit to 77% Distance – Went from average of 246.8 total yds to 265.9 total yds. That is almost 20yds again. Used a PRGR unit to compare and get base numbers on the following statics: Club Speed, Ball Speed, Carry Yds, Total Yds and Smash Factor. As I shown above on the testing between by current setup and the new one with the Nippon can notice the difference right away. Pressure – This shaft has giving me confidence to go for the tight fairways, carry bunkers and feel like am going to hit my spots consistently. Again, we are just amateurs, and we are going to miss our targets more times but it will be a lot less. On-Course / LM Performance (29 out of 30 points) Played a few tournaments and regular rounds with the new Nippon / TourEdge EXS Pro combination, and it was evident to my playing partners that have commented over and over, “well there is another fairway hit” and “you have smashed that drive”. The fear of not hitting a few of those tight fairways have gone as I play more and gain more confidence. At times I found myself too close to the green or water hazard that I was not expecting to be near before or in the position to hit a wedge at times. I feel I can still tweak my setup even more to get the most out of this combination. Final Performance Comments: Overall, how did it perform? This shaft performed better than advertised, numbers do not lie. How, if at all, did this product change your overall impression of Nippon? First I only heard of them with irons shafts, and not the first name that comes up when looking for Driver/Fairwood shafts, but it has definitely made the impression and would considered replacing my 3wood shaft with a Nippon. What feature would you change or eliminate from the next generation of this model? I would have the graphics on both sides What feature do you really like, and would most like to see continued or evolved in future models? Load, Balls Speed and accuracy. Did it help improve your scores? By how much? I think I gain a stroke so far, probably would be more as I continue to fine tune and play to the new yardages. Miscellaneous (10 out of 10 points) Talking with the rep about the shaft before they send it over, he wanted to know how I was hitting my irons and to compare that transition from wood to irons. I first I was going to get a lighter shaft because it would have been closer to my current shaft, but after talking about it and assuring me the weight would not be a factor (which was true) makes you feel they really know their product. Play it or Trade it? (20 out of 20 points) 100% Play it, it’s already a keeper in my current gamer setup. No reason to go back. As stated above the numbers do not lie and the confidence it has provide me to hit driver on every hole instead of using a 3 Wood is huge. Asking price could be steep, hoping it comes down, but if you are in the market for a new shaft, I would add this one to the list of strong candidates. This shaft is great from mid to low HC, they should see big gains from their current setup. Conclusion Am glad I was able to use a PRGR unit to get numbers that I could compare, keeping track of your fairway hits, left or right and distance. Once you put it all together and you then play at the course where it matters you really can notice the difference and reference back to the numbers and get that AHHHHHH Moment. Final Score: (96 out of 100 points) Great review bud! MrBandit 1 Quote Driver: ST190 9.5* Fujikura Atmos Blue 5S Fairway Wood: ST190 15* Fujikura Atmos Blue 6S Hybrid: CLK 17* Fujikura Speeder EVO HB Irons: J40 CB (3-PW) Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 Wedges: Milled Grind 2 54* & 58* Dynamic Gold S200 Putter: Tri-Hot 5k Two 34" Bag: Players 5 Stand Bag Ball: Maxfli Tour Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bens197 Posted June 18, 2021 Share Posted June 18, 2021 Nice reviews fellas. I love the Nippon love and by the looks of it, you guys do as well. Great job! edingc, RollingGreens and MrBandit 3 Quote Titleist TSi3 Fujikura Speeder NX Blue 60X TaylorMade SIM2 3 wood Fujilkura Ventus Blue 7-X Titleist U505 2 Tensei 1K Black 85 X Titleist T100 4-P Nippon Modus 3 120X PING S159 50-S 55-H 59-T DG X100 Vokey SM8 50, SM9 54 & 60 Nippon Modus 3 120s L.A.B. MEZZ Max Broom Accra 47" 79.5* Srixon Z-Star XV Currently testing the 2024 PING S159 wedges… https://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/63483-testers-announced-ping-s159-wedges/ Was testing, still loving the 2023 Titleist T100 Irons 4-P https://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/60456-titleist-t-series-irons-2023-forum-review/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBandit Posted June 21, 2021 Share Posted June 21, 2021 Talk about consistency last 5 round hitting alot of fairways. bens197, GolfSpy BOS, edingc and 1 other 4 Quote Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 MAX - 8.5 with Fujikura Speeder NX TCS 50 (Terra Forza White Shaft Testing) 3 -Wood: Sub70 949x 3 Wood 15 with Hrdz RDX Black Stiff 5-Wood: Sub70 949x 5 Wood with Hrdz RDX Black stiff 4-Hybrid: Sub70 949x 4 Hybrid with Project X 5.5 Hybrid Stiff Irons: Mizuno Pro 225 - 6-PW , w/Nippon Modus 105 Stiff Wedges: Sub70 TAIII w/Nippon Modus 105 Stiff - 50 ,56, 60 Putter: L.A.B Mezz1, 34 in Balls: MaxFli Tour X, TaylorMade Tour Response, TaylorMade TPx GPS: Shot Scope X5 with Tracking TESTED: SUB70 949X 5 Wood TESTED: NIPPO N.S. Regio Formula MB+ 65 Stiff. TESTED: SkyCaddie LX5 GPS Watch TESTED: Bag Boy ZFT Bag Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morningteesheet Posted June 21, 2021 Share Posted June 21, 2021 (edited) Moved my full review to the start of the thread! Edited June 22, 2021 by morningteesheet bens197, MrBandit and GolfSpy BOS 3 Quote Driver: Mizuno ST200 10.5 w/ Nippon Regio Formula MB+ 65X (backup is a Wishon 919 F/D mini driver w/ UST V2 Black 6F5) Fairway Wood: Callaway X2 Hot Pro 18.5* w/ UST V2 Black 7F5 4 Hybrid: Callaway X2 Hot Pro 23* w/ Modus 125X (soft stepped) Irons: 5-PW Maltby TE Forged w/ Modus 125X (soft stepped) Wedge: 52* and 58* Maltby TSW Forged w/ Modus 125X (soft stepped) and DG Wedge Flex Putter: Tommy Armour Impact 3 CB Bag: Shapland Stand Bag Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
03trdblack Posted June 22, 2021 Share Posted June 22, 2021 I was hoping to have tested the Taylormade SIM driver with this shaft this past weekend before posting my review on the main page but unfortunately we were rained out by a tropical storm. I'm hoping to have the SIM head tested this week though and you can read my initial main review here. GolfSpy BOS 1 Quote My bag is a revolving door! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RollingGreens Posted September 8, 2021 Share Posted September 8, 2021 If anyone is interested in the B+ 65s shaft let me know, I am willing to pass it on at the cost of only shipping since I won't be using it in my G425. Please send me a message if interested. Quote Stealth 2 Plus 9deg Kai' li Red Stealth 2 13deg Aldilla Rogue Silver Stealth 2 15deg Aldilla Rogue Silver JPX 921 Hot Metal 4-PW Nippon Modus 120s SM8 54 and 58deg Dynamic Gold Wedge Flex Scotty Cameron Newport 2 Titleist ProV1 Hoofer Stand Bag Stewart Q Follow Electric Caddie 300 PRO Rangefinder Official Nippon Regio B+ Driver Shaft Review Official Stewart Q Follow Review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RollingGreens Posted October 28, 2021 Share Posted October 28, 2021 @MGoBlue100 how has the shaft performed for you so far, have you noticed any differences between the nippon and your previous gamer? MGoBlue100 1 Quote Stealth 2 Plus 9deg Kai' li Red Stealth 2 13deg Aldilla Rogue Silver Stealth 2 15deg Aldilla Rogue Silver JPX 921 Hot Metal 4-PW Nippon Modus 120s SM8 54 and 58deg Dynamic Gold Wedge Flex Scotty Cameron Newport 2 Titleist ProV1 Hoofer Stand Bag Stewart Q Follow Electric Caddie 300 PRO Rangefinder Official Nippon Regio B+ Driver Shaft Review Official Stewart Q Follow Review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MGoBlue100 Posted November 2, 2021 Share Posted November 2, 2021 Hey! Apologies, been OTR for work & swamped otherwise. So, it took me forever to obtain the PXG adapters (finally was in ATL for work & went past the PXG store; it's VERY COOL!) and then to get one swapped out on the shaft. Long story short, it's in my car, but I haven't had any opportunity to get a range session in with the Nippon. I've played a couple work related events, but didn't want to swap out the shaft with no swings on it at all. Hoping to get it swapped at the end of this week, and play a couple actual rounds to see what's what. Did you ever get the Venmo deal squared away?? RollingGreens 1 Quote "Where'd it go?" "Right in the Lumberyard..." Gen 2 0811 XF 10.5* Graphite Design Tour AD DI-6x Gen 2 0211 15* 3W Mitsubishi Tensei Raw Blue 65-S Tour B JGR 15* Fairway UST ProForce V2 7F5 76g X-Flex (These two are gonna fight it out in early "24 to see who stays in the bag...) Tour B JGR 19* & 22* Hybrid UST ProForce V2 90g X-Flex Tour B JGR HF-2 irons (5i - PW) KBS Tour 130x CBX Wedges (50, 54, 58) TT Dynamic Gold 115 Wedge Shaft MATI Mamo Putter 33" Super Stroke Football League 3.0 Slim Hoofer Camo Stand Bag Precision Pro Nexus Rangefinder FAN! PRO Member Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MGoBlue100 Posted November 10, 2021 Share Posted November 10, 2021 I took my first swings in "competition" with the Nippon N.S. Regio Formula MB+ yesterday. Once I finally had the PXG adapter installed, it took me some time just to be able to get to the range ("Shank's", we've discussed this before... ). I didn't have any launch monitor equipment, just my eye & "feel". I only had a bout a half an hour, so took 3-4 swings with the HZRDUS Yellow that came with my 0211 XF, and then slipped the Nippon into the head. I wasn't in love at first, and TBH, even now I'm not sure the shaft is a perfect match for me. I kept adjusting the loft (10.5*) on my driver down, as I didn't like the ball flight with the new shaft. I finally brought it down to 9*, (or at least -1.5* per the adapter, I have not had the loft verified) and started hitting these super straight, not exceptionally high bullets. I kind of dug that ball flight, so I left things alone and played in a team scramble event yesterday. The Nippon is about 1/2" longer than my HZRDUS, so I'm still adjusting to hit the center of the club face, but I've pretty much got that figured out, and I'm hitting the new combination at least as far, if not farther than the previous setup. I'll have to figure out some launch monitor time somewhere over the Winter to see where the numbers really stack up, but after one short range session and one day in competition, I'm a FAN! RollingGreens, sirchunksalot and 03trdblack 3 Quote "Where'd it go?" "Right in the Lumberyard..." Gen 2 0811 XF 10.5* Graphite Design Tour AD DI-6x Gen 2 0211 15* 3W Mitsubishi Tensei Raw Blue 65-S Tour B JGR 15* Fairway UST ProForce V2 7F5 76g X-Flex (These two are gonna fight it out in early "24 to see who stays in the bag...) Tour B JGR 19* & 22* Hybrid UST ProForce V2 90g X-Flex Tour B JGR HF-2 irons (5i - PW) KBS Tour 130x CBX Wedges (50, 54, 58) TT Dynamic Gold 115 Wedge Shaft MATI Mamo Putter 33" Super Stroke Football League 3.0 Slim Hoofer Camo Stand Bag Precision Pro Nexus Rangefinder FAN! PRO Member Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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