What Equipment Have You Tested?

[Rob Person]

9 hours ago, BLD7 said:

Interesting concept. Do they seem durable? Or more durable than a wood tee? Curious how long they hold up? Seems the string might outlast the plastic.

The tops are a hardened rubber composition. The cup teeth are flexible. The bottoms are hard plastic. The string is just a cheap nylon molded into it and tied to the bottom. The anchor is a hard plastic.

I swept the ground a bit too hard and it caught it once. Pulling out the base from the ground.

They seem durable enough though.

 

[warrenator8]

Got to test one of the new Adams drivers on Sunday and I loved it. I wish they had had it in the head I would want (It was a used one) but for the price it was great.

[golferannasmith]

I am happy to share that my mom recently gifted me Mizuno JPX923.

How many of you using it? Any suggestions are always welcome.

[Josh Ross]

Hoping to get out this week to test the new Bridgestone Prototypes that I was sent! Played Bridgestone for years and still do if I'm not using my Maxfli's. Always love supporting Georgia based companies and have been fortunate to visit their testing facility before which is a couple hours away. 

[Bang60]

On 12/16/2023 at 10:53 PM, golferannasmith said:

I am happy to share that my mom recently gifted me Mizuno JPX923.

How many of you using it? Any suggestions are always welcome.

I've got a Mizuno 923 JPXHybrid iron 29deg, I think it's a 7 Hybrid just going on the 29deg loft. It feels ok but not played much yet, what's yours and do you like it?

[Randy C]

Mizuno 923HL irons w/ standard flex graphite Reflex shafts.  Just got complete fitting thinking Ping 430's.  After fitting tested a Callaway Paradyme 2, Ping 430, and Mizuno 7 iron extensively against each other, both on the simulator and on the range.  Bought the Mizunos as a result.   Very noticeable improvement over my prior Callaway Razers w/ steel shaft.  Primary difference was Mizunos felt better and produced significantly more solid, flush hits.  Definitely live up to their increased forgiveness and  accuracy claims.  Higher trajectory as well.  Chip beautifully.   Using them for a month now with zero regrets

[mtaxter]

I tested both Sub 70 drivers and did not like them. I bought a Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond from Callaway pre-owned instead. My gamer at the time had been the Epic Max LS for two years.
I moved the heavier weight up front and really like it. I am a Sub 70 fan with their irons and wedges in the bag. Just not impressed by the drivers. 

[SA_Andre]

Just tested and have put into the bag a set of Haywood Golf's MBs. Probably one of the best set of irons I have hit for many years. Soft and forgiving with and excellent ball flight. Have been a Titleist and Mizuno player for most of my life but these would rival and surpass those. (Most recent set was mizuno mp-20's) 

For the price and being able to customize on their site was pretty easy. Thought they might take a few weeks but they showed up within about 4 days. Canada to Canada shipping. Price was outstanding considering the performance. Pure shots feel like literal marshmallows coming off the face yet distances are surpassing my previous sets.

I'm 54 playing off a +1

[Owengeorge13]

I just hit srixon zx5 mkii’s for the first time.  They were awesome, I never hit a srixon iron before, I never had the opportunity.  Just a solid great set of irons.  I have Callaway apex 21 (which are now over three seasons old).  I may have to look into finding a set of the zx5’s to put on ice until I can get them retro fitted.  I know they were ranked first by mgs for players distance.  Rightfully so…

[GolfSpy_APH]

Newton Shaft is on its way along with a few other toys coming! Going to have some fun testing and building clubs here!

[Samuel09152]

17 hours ago, Josh Ross said:

Hoping to get out this week to test the new Bridgestone Prototypes that I was sent! Played Bridgestone for years and still do if I'm not using my Maxfli's. Always love supporting Georgia based companies and have been fortunate to visit their testing facility before which is a couple hours away. 

Hey Jeff we have an unofficial testing page if you want to add to it. This is it:

I’ve been doing the second hand test on the Paradym and it has been amazing and fun, I’ll also be adding results from test a stiff shaft with it and an xstiff shaft with it. Hopefully this insight will help others. I want to test some new irons before buying some since my irons seem to be dying on me 1 at a time.

[Josh Ross]

3 minutes ago, Samuel09152 said:

Hey Jeff we have an unofficial testing page if you want to add to it. This is it:

I’ve been doing the second hand test on the Paradym and it has been amazing and fun, I’ll also be adding results from test a stiff shaft with it and an xstiff shaft with it. Hopefully this insight will help others. I want to test some new irons before buying some since my irons seem to be dying on me 1 at a time.

I get called John every day but Jeff is a first, haha. But yeah, I had planned on joining in once I'm able to get some golf in with them. We've got snow on the way so hopefully I can get out before this weekend!

[Samuel09152]

11 minutes ago, Josh Ross said:

I get called John every day but Jeff is a first, haha. But yeah, I had planned on joining in once I'm able to get some golf in with them. We've got snow on the way so hopefully I can get out before this weekend!

Jeez, that’s a great job by me on first impressions lol I’m sorry Josh, I’m not even sure where Jeff came from lol but now all I can think of is 22 jump street scene now…. lol so sorry again but awesome can’t wait to see you review! 

[Maverick]

Some of the guys I play with putt with Ray Cook Silver Ray SR 500.  I Putt with a Scotty Cameron Phantom X 7.5....

During the Holidays 4 of us decided to play an extra day. Three of them had RC's, so they challenged me to share their Putters for 18 Holes.  I went along to be sociable,  but I came away impressed with the $69.99 Putter!

The face balance was awesome on toe or heel strikes and distant control was an easy adjustment. The shaft bend took some getting used to visually, seem to be set up for a up strike. But after a few putts that was forgotten. Midsized grip was very comfortable and slightly tacky. Overall I came away IMPRESSED!!....

Not ready to give up my Scotty X, but pleasantly surprised at a low priced Putters performance!

Definitely would recommend to anyone seeking to save money on a putter to upgrade somewhere else in the bag.

[Rob Person]

10 minutes ago, Maverick said:

Some of the guys I play with putt with Ray Cook Silver Ray SR 500.  I Putt with a Scotty Cameron Phantom X 7.5....

During the Holidays 4 of us decided to play an extra day. Three of them had RC's, so they challenged me to share their Putters for 18 Holes.  I went along to be sociable,  but I came away impressed with the $69.99 Putter!

The face balance was awesome on toe or heel strikes and distant control was an easy adjustment. The shaft bend took some getting used to visually, seem to be set up for a up strike. But after a few putts that was forgotten. Midsized grip was very comfortable and slightly tacky. Overall I came away IMPRESSED!!....

Not ready to give up my Scotty X, but pleasantly surprised at a low priced Putters performance!

Definitely would recommend to anyone seeking to save money on a putter to upgrade somewhere else in the bag.

I own a SR500, and it took me a few practices to get used to it coming from a blade. It is my first mallet putter. I do tend to push it low though at times.  Now the AI-ONE DB I'm testing is a whole new ballgame in putting for me.

[Erin B]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

A couple of months ago I pulled the trigger on a BRNR Mini 11.5* loft driver. I was concerned that I would regret the purchase initially, but those concerns changed to excitement when the club was unpacked. TaylorMade did an amazing job with this club. It looks old school, and the headcover keeps with that tradition. The only thing that disappointed me with TaylorMade is that you cannot order the BRNR with an X-stiff shaft. More on that later. Out of the box I adjusted it to 9*. That's because I hit a high shot, then I threw it in the bag. Little did this baby know was that she was gonna be broken in on a real PGA course. (I know, inanimate object) I was playing TPC Colorado! So, back to the BRNR and the shaft. I ordered a Jupiter x-stiff shaft, (I know, Jupiter right??? Well, they are better now than a few years ago) but it wasn't going to be shipped in time so I played with the stock stiff shaft that day. I must say, the stock shaft was impressive. I don't know if you guys will recall feeling the release point of the older shafts, but this stock shaft reminds me of those older shafts without the bad MOI and dispersion. (I did try it with the Jupiter shaft later, but changed back to the stock shaft because I really love the feel of it.) Hitting the BRNR off the tee was great. It was long, though ten yards or so shorter than my driver. It did all the shots I wanted it to do off the tee, but the real impressive thing it did was absolutely crush shots off the deck. Even with it set at 9* the ball came off like it was shot out of a cannon! The ball flight was low to mid and down the fairway. Out of the rough it was just as good! It's taller face profile than most hybrids and fairways helped with that. Anyway, I have had numerous rounds with the BRNR and it has performed exceptionally well. I use it off the tee on shorter par 4 and 5s or when my driver just "isn't there". Depending on the course, I have all the confidence of carrying it and leaving out the driver and 3 wood altogether to make room for other clubs that would be more useful on said course. I would absolutely recommend this club. It is easy to hit, the shorter shaft makes it more forgiving, and honestly, if your swinging 110 MPH or less the stiff shaft should be just fine for you. Thank you for your attention and happy birdie hunting!!!

P.S. The Jupiter shafts are pretty good now. I have three driver shafts (Cobra, Ping, and TaylorMade) and two three wood shafts. Give them a try if you're looking at shafts, just know that they are like a + shaft so a stiff stock shaft would be a stiff+ Jupiter shaft. (My humble opinion)

 https://www.taylormadegolf.com/BRNR-Mini-Driver/DW-TA111.html?lang=en_US 

[Donn lost in San Diego]

A simple one.  I needed a hi loft wedge for use on dirt/hard pan around the greens.  I have a Mizuno T7 60 deg 6 bounce but wanted a tighter attack  Local Golfmart said "Vokey T grind".  Yep.  They even had a used SM9, T grind, and it does exactly what I need.  It will get me up and over a bunker or hill where I can't use my low loft chipper. 

 

Now, somehere, I read somebody say that Vokeys are basically blade wedges.  Are they forged, or cast?   

[Donn lost in San Diego]

I went on the Titleist website and did the 6 minute video of Bob Vokey.  Turns out he was a one man store club maker and fitter way back, here in San Diego north county, and eventually was hired at Titleist and then took on the job of specializing in designing and grinding wedges.  They are cast.  But they are pretty close in feel to forged. 

[cksurfdude]

1 hour ago, Donn lost in San Diego said:

San Diego north county

Nice area - spent a few years there was, waaaay back .. was around Del Mar and Cardiff. Kinda miss it. A close friend's kid is there now in PB living the life

[Donn lost in San Diego]

1 hour ago, cksurfdude said:

Nice area - spent a few years there was, waaaay back .. was around Del Mar and Cardiff. Kinda miss it. A close friend's kid is there now in PB living the life

Golf club HQ heaven.  Titleist, Callaway, Taylor, Cobra, Honma, Evnroll, Indi golf, KBS, and more are all right here.

[cksurfdude]

26 minutes ago, Donn lost in San Diego said:

Golf club HQ heaven.  Titleist, Callaway, Taylor, Cobra, Honma, Evnroll, Indi golf, KBS, and more are all right here.

Strangely enough I wasn't yet golfing back then! Not until many years later after I'd moved back East.

[Syks7]

God help me.  I met @GolfSpy SAM at Rustic Canyon today.  He had a PXG fitting and I was just hitting balls.  The fitter had a look at my clubs and put a 0317 ST in my hand with Modus 105 shaft....  It was outstanding from the first swing, great turf interaction, highly accurate, and shockingly forgiving for a blade type iron.  The feedback off the club was also amazing.   I was hitting the ball as far with the 0317 ST at 33 º as my Z585 7 iron at 31º.   With a nice flight.  I also tried the 0317T & 0317 CB.  They're supposed to be more forgiving, but I just didn't get along with them like the ST.   Go figure.   

I've got something else to covet now.  

[Bang60]

Looking at testing a Ping eye 2+ black dot 3iron head that I bought, if possible please comment on what I'm hoping to try with some knowledge I've aquired with my tinkering after watching lots of utube videos and reading what others have posted. 

1st question is is this a 3 or 5 iron based purely on the lofts used 40ish years ago, I'm going with 4-5 iron and using a ping zing 3iron shaft butt cut to 5iron and hope it works as a utility club. I have a number of shafts I can try depending on what results and what it feels like, I bought the head for $10 for experiments and to have a reason to tinker

[chris_]

I have avoided buying a 7 wood, because every time I tested it in PGASS, I would barely get over 200 with a pure strike. This confused me pretty badly because I can hit my 23.5* 4 iron 240 when I really lean on it. Finally scored a very cheap one last week, took it home and hit it on my Skytrak, then again to a course to hit on a TopTracer, to find that I hit it about 250 which is what I would need out of it. Immediately returned the used one I bought and picked up a new Ping G430. Super easy to hit, averaging high 230's for carry and 250 or so on the roll. Perfect club for me for this distance. 

Edited January 22 by chris_

[CorporateGolfRat]

On 1/22/2024 at 12:14 PM, chris_ said:

I have avoided buying a 7 wood, because every time I tested it in PGASS, I would barely get over 200 with a pure strike. This confused me pretty badly because I can hit my 23.5* 4 iron 240 when I really lean on it. Finally scored a very cheap one last week, took it home and hit it on my Skytrak, then again to a course to hit on a TopTracer, to find that I hit it about 250 which is what I would need out of it. Immediately returned the used one I bought and picked up a new Ping G430. Super easy to hit, averaging high 230's for carry and 250 or so on the roll. Perfect club for me for this distance. 

I've been looking into a 7-wood, I actually took my 3 wood out of my bag because it rarely was used to cover what I need. Why try and squeak out 15-20 more yards when you can get more accuracy right? My 5 wood is about at that 250ish carry. If I put the 7-wood in play that would mean my 3iron iBlade would be getting retired!  How high do you launch it? I think that would be the showstopper for me if it spins up too much.

[chris_]

2 hours ago, CorporateGolfRat said:

I've been looking into a 7-wood, I actually took my 3 wood out of my bag because it rarely was used to cover what I need. Why try and squeak out 15-20 more yards when you can get more accuracy right? My 5 wood is about at that 250ish carry. If I put the 7-wood in play that would mean my 3iron iBlade would be getting retired!  How high do you launch it? I think that would be the showstopper for me if it spins up too much.

Hard to say. My Skytrak says 110', but the Top Tracer I hit on yesterday showed 140' Either way it's showing about a 45* descent angle. Spin shows about what it should be, maybe a touch high. But it will hold a green from 230-240. This is a discussion about it I'm having somewhere else- This is a discussion on another forum that I'm having about. 

Edited January 30 by chris_

[Fred Mitchell]

On 12/27/2023 at 6:03 PM, Samuel09152 said:

Jeez, that’s a great job by me on first impressions lol I’m sorry Josh, I’m not even sure where Jeff came from lol 

Sheesh, people from Huntsville 

[Parshooter36]

After my lesson yesterday I hit a few demo fairway woods they had outside my bay.  The QI10 Max did not work for me for some reason, but the AI Smoke Max 5 wood I hit was very nice.  Then I picked up a Mizuno ST-Z 230 3 wood and it was on another level, I could not believe how well I was hitting it.  I will defintely give it another look when I go back for my next lesson in 2 weeks if I don't buy one betweeen now and then.

[Rob Person]

just completed the AI-ONE putter testing. Review is up!

 

[OdinSnipes414]

Everything in my bag is new with in the last two years so everything is a test:

OdinX1 ball in the bag for good

Sub70 clubs (Driver,3W,2H,2I,5-pw,putter)

WedgeFX wedges (52,56,60)

Tag Towel in the bag

Side Street Back9 backpack bag

Butterfly divot tool

Snowman golf/kewl duck polos

Many gloves (Snowmangolf,pelican,pinners)