GEAR TOP TEN 100s more reviews atwww.todaysgolfer.co.uk
FITTING
HOW BIG IS MY
SWEET SPOT?96 ISSUE 367 TODAYSGOLFER.CO.UK
Benross HTX Compressor Type R £420 (s) £490 (g) I http://www.benrossgolf.com
Our verdict: The cup face is clearly doing a job, though remember
the loft’s pretty strong, too. KBS shafts and Golf Pride grips are
components you’ll find in other top brands.Callaway Apex CF 16 £879 (s) £1,099 (g) I http://www.callawaygolf.com
Our verdict: If how irons look is important to you, but your game
demands good forgiveness, you must look at the Apex. They are a
beautiful set and prove game improvement tech doesn’t have to
mean irons look like shovels.Cobra King F7 £549 (s) £649 (g) I http://www.cobragolf.co.uk
Our verdict: There’s little not to like, especially when you consider
the price. The fact Cobra has invested in CNC milling each groove
at this end of the market demonstrates how seriously they take
every last detail.MD Golf Superstrong STR £299 (s) £399 (g) I http://www.mdgolf.co.uk
Our verdict: MD are not as widely available as they once were and
they’re not quite as keen to offer custom fitting on their 2017
line-up, either. But that doesn’t take away from the STR being a
decent proposition, especially at this price.Mizuno JPX900 Forged £120 per club I Golf.mizunoeurope.com
Our verdict: A cracking looking iron that sits beautifully between
a GI and better player model. You’ll need to be a more consistent
ball-striker to hit them as well as some of our other favourite
game improvement models.Ping G400 £110 (s) £120 (g) per club I http://www.ping.com
Our verdict: Astunning set of game improvement irons, which
Ping has made feel really premium. Our testing backs up Ping’s
performance claims, by hitting shots higher they fly further and
increase accuracy.Srixon Z 565 £770 I http://www.srixon.co.uk
Our verdict: Srixon makes some very solid forged irons right now,
and if your game demands the extra feel and control they offer,
the 565s are one of a handful that legitimately can be called
“forgiving”.TaylorMade M1 £849 (s) £1,049 (g) I http://www.taylormadegolf.com
Our verdict: Iron designers will tell you that combining good
forgiveness in a more compact head is a real challenge. So while
the M1 is more compact than the M2, it wasn’t quite as long. But
it didn’t stop gear ed Simon really wanting a set.Wilson Staff C200 £525 (s) £609 (g) I http://www.wilson.com
Our verdict: The C200 did absolutely fine, without being
exceptional. If you’re attracted to the tech, have a good look at
Wilson’s D300, too. Their stronger lofts meant a decent increase
in ball speed and carry over the 200s.Yonex EZONE Elite £399 (s) £559 (g) I http://www.yonex.co.uk
Our verdict: Even if the Elite is a bit plain, it’s well worth a look,
particularly if you consider the price. There might not be lots of
visible tech, but across the board it’s solid and will do a good job
for a club golfer.FIVE WINTER GOLF HATS THAT LOOK C OOL ...
TOP 10 GAME IMPROVEMENT IRONS
Availability: 4-GW
Stock shaft: KBS Tour 90 (s)
Kuro Kage (g)
7i loft/length: 30° / 37inAvailability: 3-SW inc AW (stock
set 4-PW) Stock shaft: Tr u e
Temper XP 95 (s) UST Mamiya
Recoil (g) 7i loft/length: 31° / 37inAvailability: 4-PW, GW, SW
Stock shaft: True Temper King F7
(s) Fujikura Pro 63i (g) 7i loft/
length: 30° / 37.25inAvailability: 4-PW
Stock shaft: Precision Rifle (s)
Mitsubishi Rayn JAVLN (g)
7i loft/length: 30° / 37inAvailability: 4-GW
Stock shafts: Project X LZ 5.5 (s)
Project X LZ (g)
7i loft/length: 31° / 36.75inAvailability: 4 - LW Stock shaft:
Ping AWT2.0 (s) Ping Alta CB (g)
5 upgrades at no cost.
7i loft/length: 30° / 37inAvailability: 4-PW (stock set
4-PW) Stock shaft: Nippon NS
Pro 980 (s) Miyazaki Kaula 8 (g).
7i loft/length: 31° / 37inAvailability: 3-PW, AW, SW
Stock shaft: True Temper XP 95
(s) Mitsubishi Kuro Kage (g).
7i loft/length: 30.5° / 36.75inAvailability: 4-PW
Stock shaft: KBS Tour 90 (s)
Aldila Rogue Pro (g)
7i loft/length: 32° / 37.50inAvailability: 5-SW
Stock shaft: FST 115 (s).
Yonex M60 (g)
7i loft/length: 29° / 37.25inIt’s a common misconception in golf
that different clubs have larger or
smaller sweetspots depending on their
design. “In fact a sweet spot is singular,
literally just a point” says Chris Voshall
Golf the top Club Engineer at Mizuno.
“This is the spot where the club
delivers maximum energy to the ball.
Impacts anywhere outside this single
spot leads to twisting at impact and
loss of energy” he adds.
Extra MOI performance is built into
game improvement irons (think wider
soles, thicker top edges and tungsten
weighting etc) so heads twist less
at impact, meaning less lost energy.
And it’s these features that increase
MOI performance and create a larger
sized “sweet zone”, which improves
forgiveness on miss hits. So how much
bigger is the “sweet zone” of a blade
or muscle back compared to game
improvement cavity back?
Sweetspot comparisons
Mizuno MP-18 MMC
19% larger than the MP-18 MB
Mizuno JPX 900 Forged
43% larger than the MP-18 MB
Mizuno JPX 900 Hot Metal
55% larger than the MP-18 MBGalvin Green Dan
£24.95
http://www.galvingreen.com
Insula fabric traps warmth
from your body.adidas peaked beanie
£17.95
http://www.hatsandcaps.co.uk
A modern beanie which looks
the part on and off the course.Puma Chambray Drive
£25
http://www.golfposer.com
A favourite of PGA Tour star
Bryson Dechambeau.Mizuno bucket hat
£19.99
golf.mizunoeurope.com
The wide, waterproof brim
helps keep rain off glasses.Galvin Green Boo
£34.95
http://www.galvingreen.com
Windstopper lining cuts
out the biting breeze.SUBSCRIBE TO OUR
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WWW.TODAYSGOLFER.CO.UKThe sweetspot
is literally just
a pinprick.