RLL33

Not sure. Maybe Ash or C or Stew could tell us...

thanks, A & C --Richard

Honma TW-U Tour World driving iron 24-deg 4-iron with Vizard UT850 S shaft Honma's premiere utility driving iron perfect shape, used one round $189 paypal net of shipping PM me with any questions

Dog lover here too... ?

Thanks, Ash. I saw where you asked how it compared to the Honma TW. It's a way softer feel, easier to get up in the air, and I'd say longer. Really fun and interesting club.

Thanks, man. Got to love me those cats! ;=]

I didn't really dislike it -- just didn't really like it. UST shafts often feel a little board-y to me. Just a personal thing...

My thanks to Chris for letting me review the new iBrid Chapter 2 from RomaRo. To begin with, I should say that over the years I’ve hit so many hybrids that they threatened to take over my garage at one point. I grabbed the very first one I ever saw (from TaylorMade…) and have had an on/off, love/hate relationship with them ever since. I love my long irons and I love my fairway woods, so although the concept of a hybrid made sense to me, it was always a tough sell. Like many golfers, I found a lot of them to be hook machines, especially off the tee. And the ones that seemed to work well off fairways didn’t seem to be right on the tee, or sometimes from the rough. And with virtually all of them, the hooks would return no matter how promising the feel when new. After endless experimenting, I finally settled on an 18-deg 2-iron and the Miura HB3 20-deg for my bag. I consider the Miura to be the perfect hybrid for me. It sets up like a long iron, is very small in profile, has the dense solid feel of a driving iron that I like, and most of all it goes straight like a long iron. So, I was more than a little curious to hit the iBrid. First test, out of the box and my two cats gave the immediate paws up to this beauty. It’s a gorgeous little club. (see Chris's pics for that) My black and white cat, whose name is Kobayashi Maru (interesting story that involved Tario, but I’ll save that for another time…) especially fixated on the head. Some clubs she immediately hisses at, and I usually find them to be unappealing at address later… As I said, they were both good to go on this baby. So off to the range. First thing I noticed was exactly what Chris describes in the blog. The face of this club, which is a forged cup, has more spring than I’ve ever felt in a hybrid. That same coefficient that measures time on the face -- which I love to be long on drivers and fwy’s -- is there in spades on this club. The ball is sucked in and then ramped out with a delicious feel. And the sound is also unique in my experience for a hybrid. There is a loud audible pop when you hit this thing on the sweet spot – not like an iron, not like a fwy, but like a new kind of weapon. It sounds almost copper-y, if that makes sense. The face shape is more iron-like than many hybrids, and I’d say the center is pushed out slightly toward the toe, making the club very forgiving on off-center hits. Open the face a little, and you get a more muted sound for a fade. Close it slightly and the sound is more staccato, kind of like a bullet firing into a nice draw. For me, sound is a big part of the equation, and this club definitely has its own unique sound which drew inquiring looks at the range, and later at the course. And definitely a forgiving, workable club, this thing, not a hook machine. Two rounds at the home course right next to my HB3 only reinforced the uniqueness of the iBrid. I found I could easily pick shots off the Kikuyu fairway, and when I took it into the rough, it went down for the ball with a growling authority that gave confidence. Off the tee on a couple of long Par 3’s, I also found the club in its own class. I haven’t said yet, but the iBrid is LONG. I wasn’t nuts about the ATTAS EZ shaft, but then I tend to not get along with UST Mamiya shafts so well (except for the Freq Filtered putter shaft…). I’ll say this, the shaft is beautiful to look at – a kind of smooth gunmetal grey – but like Chris, I’d love to try this thing with the new TRPX UT shaft when it’s out... For now though, when you catch this club and shaft right, it blows out shots with a strong piercing trajectory more common to fwy’s that have good run out than a soft landing hybrid. And oh yes, that sound stays equally interesting off of grass. The thing pops (and rocks). It brings smiles to those looking on as well as to you when the ball flies. I remain faithful to my driving iron, as nothing beats the feeling for me of puring a shot with one of those off the tee. But as far as hybrids go – and I would call this more of a hybrid than a driving iron -- the iBrid wants a place in the bag, insisting on its own distinct quality and range advantage. I’m still not giving up my Miura, but this club is a contender, and I applaud RomaRo for introducing something new, unique, and fun into the hybrid family.

Wow, those are drool-worthy...! True beauties, Chris! Having never hit Crazy's, can I ask how they might compare to the Yamaha RMX MB's I'm playing? Thanks.

Caught an article today about a some new putters coming from Bobby Jones. The adjustability sounds interesting... "Bobby Jones Golf is about to add limited-edition adjustable putters to its lineup of golf clubs. At least six new putters will be unveiled at the PGA Merchandise Show in January. The putter project is a partnership between Bobby Jones, headquartered in New Columbia, Pa., and putter manufacturer Dogleg Right, located in Plano, Texas. “If Mr. (Bobby) Jones were alive today, what would he putt with? That’'s the question we constantly ask ourselves,” said Dave Billings, co-founder, president and chief executive of Dogleg Right. One answer: Jones would take advantage of the latest technology and choose a putter featuring independently adjustable loft, lie and toe hang. “We are making these putters in-house in our machine shop,” Billings said. “There is a lot of custom-milling and hand-shaping.” All this adjustability and precision comes at a cost. The retail price of the stainless-steel Silver Anniversary Series is $699.99 for each of the Modern Classic putters. The carbon-steel Grand Slam Series sells for $799.99 per putter with four models available. The putters are completely customized for individual golfers. All carry the Bobby Jones name and are co-branded with Dogleg Right."

Beautiful work! Enjoy this one (and all the others...), Craig!

Cool -- look forward to it.

If you like, I'd be glad to do this as well, Chris.

Thanks, Stew and Craig, for your feedback on this early on. I do find that the shaft IS a Baby Draw machine for me per some of your first observations, and yeah, that's the shot I love and want most of the time! Bull's-eye!

I did it via email. The questionnaire and then consultation with Chris about a couple of details. I should also mention that with the club came a very nice owner's booklet with my stats and build process (including charts) nicely detailed and printed for me. The whole operation is first class and very specific. As I told Chris the other day, I don't know when it will be, but I hope to get over there one day and do a full fitting with these guys. I do think they're onto something.

You know, I think so, Daniel. I still love the TRPX Messenger, and I can imagine days when I'd still go with that. I sometimes have back problems, and I think I might prefer it when I feel more limited in range. Or if I'm not feeling my oats... But in wind, definitely the 7D. We had Santa Ana's here yesterday, and it bored right through wind like it wasn't there.

Time varies according to demands on their schedule, but as I understand it, it can take anywhere from 6 to 10 weeks. In a fluke of timing, mine happened to arrive on my birthday.

<<Torrey...?>> Nope, a little farther north at my home club in LA. But it's also a Billy Bell design.

Thanks, M. Would def be curious to hear your comparison if you do try the D.

Sorry, Chuck... <g> But, hey, India's a good place for dreaming, no...? And yes, the 7D rules the bag now, mos def.

Thanks, Ash. every now and then something new DOES come along. Big thanks to Chris for bringing it to us. (I've kind of retired the S-Yard bag to my office "golf corner," as I think all of the last generation S-Yard stuff is now officially collectors item.) I see you have a new bag in progress lately. Good luck, as always! --Richard

Eight Dreamers doesn't sound quite as good, but add at least one more dreamer here... I'm finally ready to talk about this amazing shaft that I had built after conferring with Chris and the boys over there. First off, it arrives in its own special vault and you look at it feeling like the apes at the beginning of 2001, almost afraid to touch the black monolith sitting in your office corner. Honestly, I just stood there looking at the box for a good ten minutes before even opening it. But then you do open it. And the stealthy looking shaft slides out with its finely checkered raw finish feeling almost grainy to the touch, and you know you're in for something very different. I had mine assembled on my spare T.388 head by the Dreamers, and to say it's a good match would be like saying the stealth bomber is a fairly good looking airplane. This thing practically vibrates just standing still. Oh, and I decided on the Distance version of the shaft as I was quite happy with the control of the TRPX Messenger 1st on my primary. I've waited a decent amount of time to talk about it because I didn't want to come up here and say that when I took it to the range for the first time, I hit the longest, most spectacular drive of my life with my very first swing. Even though that's exactly what happened. It literally scared me. The ball not only rose up in a sweet baby draw -- it cleared the 80 foot screen at the end of the range that I've hit high up on a scattered few times, but never waved at from the other side. Basically... gulp... I hit about a dozen more balls and then slid the thing back in my bag, almost afraid to use up any more of the hits it obviously had in it. I guess I should say that I'm not one for batting out dozens of balls to know if I like the feel of a golf club. In fact, I'm the opposite. If I don't like something in the first three hits, I'm not interested. With this, I was definitely interested. Next test, take it to the course. Opening hole is an elevated tee hitting down to a fairway that ends in an arroyo between the fairway and approach to the green about 280-300 yards out. The fairway also tilts to the right, where a big oak will block your approach to the green if you roll over that way. Preferred shot is a draw toward the far left corner of the fairway just short of the arroyo. Which is what the 7D+T.388 delivers for me as if I was talking to it on cockpit headphones. Another gulp (and a smile). The rest of the first day kind of went like that. Worst shot was a push that went so far I lost it on another planet... I took the thing home with me and my wife rolled her eyes as I placed it in the corner of the bedroom to sleep with it that night. (And yes, I had some good dreams... <g> ) I've now played three rounds with it, and feel I can talk safely about it without honeymoon (or at least ridiculous) exaggeration. The Distance shaft is, needless to say, long. It is as light as my TRPX, but feels heavier, or at least denser. Whatever the material is, it has more heft to it. Not just stiff, or less torque, but denser. The T.388 has that long time on the face feel that I like in a driver head, and with the 7D attached, you connect to the ball differently. A smooth tempo delivers even more punch without more effort -- the key thing I'm always looking for in a driver shaft. Can't quite describe it, but it imparts a heavier feel to the hit and a heavier sound even. And yeah, the ball goes even further. My average drive with the TRPX on the T.388 flies between 240 and 260. With the 7D, after three rounds, my average hits are more like 260 to 280. And on a dry day yesterday, with the T.388's run out, I popped one drive 304. Shortcomings? None really. I do find that my miss with it -- aside from the push to the moon -- is a low burning draw that finds the left rough occasionally. But hey, I like even these misses. They're like missiles that go off target but still create fear in the aimed at... So, overall, whatever this thing is made of, I'm glad I decided to give it a chance. It's unlike any driver shaft I've hit before in the solid feel, even at its very light weight. Recipe for success, IMO. Worth the $$$$$...? What's the worth of a dream...even on a golf shaft...?

Happy indeed. Nice -- all of them!

Yes, this baby is sweet!!!

Cool looking club, cool idea. And I thought the t388 was a small head driver... <g>