TourSpecGolfer

RomaRo in Japan is well known for producing quality products using only the best materials combined with outstanding design. The company survived the long global recession while maintaining market share in Japan as a top 5 component brand but just recently numbers were announced showing a big jump to tie for first place. These numbers don't take into consideration the sales of the newly released TYPE-R so to say the least now is a very exciting time for the company. The Type-R is spot on. The entire series is based on making clubs that look good to the better player yet pack more forgiveness and RomaRo also claims that not only are the Type R's easier to hit but they also have a more penetrating trajectory equalling more carry & roll in the woods. In this post I wanted to highlight a product we first hit back in February but has just been released recently. The Ray SX I-S Sole. So what is the I-S Sole? It's a multi bounce design so the heel area features a higher bounce that blends into a lower bounce in the sole center. This eliminates the phenomenon of the floating leading edge that we sometime see in some wedges. The IS sole also helps keep the face from opening up while the club rests in your hands. In the real world after spending some good time with the wedge I can say that it delivers in most areas with ease. I've always liked RomaRo wedges but my only gripe was how firm they felt at impact. We recently saw them soften things up a good bit with their Alcobaca wedge and now with the Ray series they have done the same. So how do they feel now? Soft & Sticky! How has RomaRo improved the feel of their wedges this time around? With the use of a thick copper under plating and new trapezoidal groove angle for higher even more spin than before. Another trick feature is it's top line. They went with a thicker top line but on the back of it CNC milled it to be invisible. I thought that was a fantastic way to raise CG, and spin yet keep it looking clean. With offset next to nil its one of the most attractive wedges available today. It's feature rich from its face milling to being soft forged of S20C then a layer of copper under it's beautiful black IP finish. The only drawback I see is that it's not available in 60*. It does have a good range though and I suppose a 58* could be bent. The new SX IS Sole comes in 48/50/52/54/56/58. This and the Alcobaca are my two favorite RomaRo wedges and both for different reasons. I've had a little time with this wedge in play and it's got everything that RomaRo advertises. It's trajectory is strong even with the stock shaft. The feel is softer than RomaRo's past models yet still has good feedback. I had it along side a Yamaha for a few days both same loft and shaft and noticed the Raw was the straighter shot and just easier to hit from fluff & the bad lie.

RomaRo Barque Center Shaft for me.

Thought this was a cool article I found on twitter: Last November, when Luke Donald won the Dunlop Phoenix tournament in Japan, he won the usual trophy and the winner's check of course, but he also won a cow. The tournament is in Miyazaki, which has a breed of cattle with the same qualities as the ones found in Kobe, and the meat is similarly heralded. The cows get names, are rumored to drink beer and get massaged with sake, and have a high amount of fat that is prized by those who can afford to eventually eat it. Against all odds, Donald collected his meat prize on Tuesday, nearly a half a year after he won it. What actually arrived at his house in Chicago and the story of all the wrangling it took to get it, involves one long game of telephone. Thanks to Donald being known to be quite the foodie, he quickly realized what he had won, but was told soon after that it would be impossible to get the physical cow back to the United States. So he contacted Nick Kokonas, a partner with celebrity chef Grant Achatz at Alinea, one of the most universally acclaimed restaurants in the country. "I said, 'You got a whole freaking Miyazaki cow?" Kokonas said. "We gotta get this." Alinea had imported Miyazaki, famous for its meaty flavor and bacon-type fat, into its restaurant before the USDA banned the importing of Japanese beef most recently in 2011. Restaurants pay about $160 a pound for the beef, Kokonas said, but diners, who obviously eat in in smaller pieces, typically pay at least double that. In the weeks that followed, Kokonas said he was asked through an importer if he wanted the whole cow. "Yes, we want the whole cow," Kokonas said. "Luke won the whole cow, didn't he?" The next communication from Japan was that the cow was actually still alive, so the meat wasn't available. Kokonas then brought in Shane Lindsay, who runs a food importing company called Northwest Earth & Ocean. Lindsay became the point person between Donald's cow acquisition team and those in Miyazaki. Then, the story changed. It wasn't actually one cow. Donald's group needed to specify the cuts that they wanted and how many pounds of each they were requesting. After way too many emails, over a period of months, an agreement was finally reached. Donald would get about 200 pounds of Miyazaki beef. Lindsay would receive the shipment at his warehouse, cut it up into individual portions and flash freeze it until the golfer was ready to take delivery. Tuesday was that day. Donald received the package that contained about $80,000 worth of beef at retail, cracked it open and threw some of it on the grill. "It's very marbled and the knife just eases through the meat," Donald told us. "Definitely the best beef I've ever had." It better be for all the trouble he and a team of others went through to get it. For what it's worth, skier Lindsey Vonn also took the cow option when she won a World Cup Downhill event in France in 2005. The cow was given to Vonn by the local cheese farmers with the hopes of immediately exchanging the cow for cash. Vonn wanted no part of it. Eventually a deal was worked out and Vonn's pet cow went to reside in Kirchberg, Austria.

I think your on the right track. For used there are a ton of them everywhere, you never know what your gonna get. Sometimes you go to the good spots and they don't have anything worthy. Golf Partner, Golf Kids, Tsuruya, are all good used shops. Victoria golf Shinjuku is always fun.

Steve that's great feedback, I'm even more excited now to hit them than before. Will be posting my review after getting a few rounds in. The Type-R FW and UT look beautiful as well.

It's all good, I wouldn't call any of the WBQ's low, they are all mid kick even the soon to be discontinued 75g version. I just noticed the 55g version flies a bit higher than the heavier ones. Some hit it high, some hit it low. It's no biggie. All about finding the proper shaft and build for you and even after that who's to say our swings don't change enough for an adjustment in specs. With the Ryoma i had a little trouble getting softer tipped shafts to work. The boron which I absolutely love in the XV & 388 plays a bit wild in the Maxima. That said some people got better results by tipping it 1/4" and some with no tip are loving it. lets keep this thread on target please.

Since when was the WBQ especially the 55 version a low/low shaft? Mid kick, mid - mid/high trajectory and low spin. Of all the WBQ models this one flies the highest.

We are keeping all warranty cards on file for our customers. This is better so you don't have to worry about losing it.

How about the 200 dollar Black Ops Shaft that has Japanese 4000T carbon..lol Only 219.00!

One of the biggest issues with 80T is how the shaft feels. Brands work around this by design but I'm curious how they make 125T feel good. Also is it full length 125t?

Yup just bore it out, don't mess with the shaft tip imo. I have a set of Srixon blades being shafted up with MCI 120g Stiff also the Srix players CB in MCI 100 Stiff.

The face angle is prob square but the face and bulge makes it appear closed. I've seen them actual open yet looking closed as well. T can chime in here about this. Not sure if it's the case with your driver.

It's a head from back in February so im not sure how or if its changed from then till now in its final release but yes it's easy to get up yet not too shallow, good distance yet not as much as the egg or Ryoma but its for sure straighter, sexier, more compact. I'd take it over the Yamaha 3 and I love that thing. I'm waiting for mine now, it's being reahafted at Crazy with the FW80. Now the XV iron, not the prettiest in fact it's down right ugly but plays like a champ! Sits in between the 503 & 702.

I would say go with the Ryoma for now and down the road rotate a used 388 or XV.

The face isn't all that deep. I'll post pics soon. If you like the Egg this one will work. Face depth is similar to the 2013 Yamaha FW. Feels awesome, distance is good, nice setup and matte finish and most importantly to me it flies straight with the FW80.

For me the Maxima is longer all day. Right now my Maxima has a DI-6, it's 9.5 Type V. The flight is not as penetrating as the 388 but pretty close to the XV for me. I've had a couple of people ask me if the Maxima launches too high, not for me it doesn't especially in 9.5V and I've tried 4 different shafts in it so far. Only 1 of them launched high and it was a Royal Deco Deep Impact. Longest drive of the season though. The XV's flight seems a bit more stable and straight which I really really like, no matter what shaft I tried with the Maxima it always had a little more movement than the SYD's. I found shafts play a bit stiffer in the SYD's compared to the Maxima, most likely due to the distance of hosel from the head. I can't choose between the 388 & XV. Size obviously 388 but shape as stew said XV. All I need is these 3 drivers in rotation. It would be hard to shed one. XV is a very solid driver, so are the new XV fairways

I love this FW.

Many TSG'ers are getting their Maxima's delivered now so it's an exciting time for everyone who had waited patiently. I was thinking about writing a blog post with my Review of the Maxima but then I thought wouldn't it be cool to compile the opinions of everyone good or bad and share whats been working, not working, or perhaps even whats missing. So please share your thoughts, questions, reviews, pics etc.. of the Ryoma Maxima in this thread to help us build a web special around it.

Released back in 09 along side the GT-S irons. It's a K.K design and still available. Nothing fancy just an all around solid wedge. I think Gocchin can chime in here as he has one in the bag.

No Srixon love? That's all about to change when you see the players CB & limited MB...

I agree, finding really good results with the DI-6's stiffer tip. Tried BB was a little much for me.

We will have them in the pro shop in a day or two. If you need one now just PM me.

We have and the same reason mentioned in the marketing blurb was given which I still don't believe, and that's what made me bench this wedge for so long.

Here is the spec sheet.

Yes the more mass on the heel should promote left but my result is different. It would be silly to make a design to combat shaft droop on a wedge dont you think?