Henry

My ERC sets up or feels square at impact. I believe I ordered it this way. I agree with 808hack that I tend to hit my 9.5 degree loft much higher than other Japan drivers I had. Although the initial launch angle is much higher, it definitely is a boring trajectory and not ballooning. I am not sure about spin. I have the Stock SR flex shaft that may be a touch light for me. Overall, you cannot go wrong with this club.

Last year, I had the Tourstage X-405 Driver. I have played the Epon Driver and now I play with ERC Hyper Driver (is a very expensive hobby!). While I love my ERC, it seems all my good drives start out with an extremely high trajectory. They do not baloon at all and overall, have a good roll when landing. However, I am wondering if this is a characteristic of a Japan driver and new technologies or is it possibly due to the wrong shaft. I think if I can lower the trajectory a little bit, I would get that little extra distance and roll. Also, do you reduce trajectory by getting a stiffer or heavier shaft?

I liked the Epon but Callaway Hyper was a little easier for me to hit. Still have the Epon in original foil. PM me if anyone is interested. Thanks!

Nice looking grips. Just a quick question regarding grips. Is there a difference between a stock Japan grip vs a stock American grip. It seems my ViQ forged irons grips are a little smaller.

Great post and great comments from everyone! I will throw my 2 cents in.. Ultimately, as Chris rightfully points out, you still have to have a swing no matter what equipment you purchase. Maybe some equipment may improve a swing flaw but I don't think it really matters if it is US or Japan. I also agree with Gocchin. Whether JDM is better than American or vice versa, it is of course all subjective and personal. I have been playing with Japan brands for 3 years now and will never go back to domestic. Is my handicap lower now? No. Am I hitting the ball farther now? A little bit (still looking for correct shaft/head combo). For me, my Tourstage irons have a better feel at impact compared to my previous domestic irons. My ERC Hyper Driver feels like I can hit it just about anywhere on the face and it still goes far and straight. I definitely do notice a difference with my Fourteen wedges as they do produce more spin than my US Cleveland models. Finally, my Zomo putter definitely rolls better than my Scotty Cameron. Again this is subjective but imo, I feel that the Japan brands I play are something special. I played my first round with some new people last week and one guy looked at my Hyper ERC Driver and thought it was a knockoff. He then looked at my irons and thought I purchased them at K-Mart. What a great feeling I had knowing that I have something that very few peolple know about or understand. For me, a Japan only brand provides satisfaction to me knowing that I am playing with clubs that look better, feel better and play better.

Chris, thanks for the insight. I have been told these clubs are geared for the same player as one who would use the Tourstage ViQ Forged irons but the only difference is that the younger player in there 20's and 30's use the Tourstage products while the older player likes the Mizuno products better. Any truth to that?

I recently purchased the Fourteen V3 after having Cleveland 900 series for a long time. Only reason I got the Fourteen was from the information on this sight. I can say without a doubt these wedges rock and are far superior than Cleveland. I have the Fourteen in 52, 56 and 60 and find the spin is incredible ( if that is what you are looking for). Even on downhill shots did I find the ball to spin a little. Not sure where you would classify them as either game improvement or players but I find them not that difficult to hit. Cannot go wrong purchasing these wedges!

I have to say the honeymoon period has started with my Hyper ERC Driver. By far, the easiest club I have ever hit. You can hit it just about anywhere on the face and the ball will fly. Incredible distance as well. I am hitting it just as far as if it was mid summer at the course I play which is wet now so I anticipate hitting my drives farther. It does have a "hollow" bang at impact which you have to get use to. When you hit it square, the sound at impact is louder than if you hit it off center. As I said, very little distance loss on off center hits but the sound is a little more muted. My swing fault is swinging a little too much inside out so my mis**ts will be either a duck hook or push way to the right. With the Hyper Driver, my push shots tend not to be as far right as the ball wants to draw. Have not ducked it yet so I am very pleased with the performance of this driver. I also have the Epon 460 Driver that I have hit as well. For me, The Hyper Driver works better. I agree with Blader-X that the Epon has many "upgrades" as the look and grip is better in the Epon but imo, the Hyper Driver is more forgiving and goes farther (at least for me). If anyone is interest in the Epon, please IM me. Still a great club but my vote is Callaway!

Chris, thanks for the pics. I am still not computer savy when trying to add pics to a reply. I got my Hyper ERC Driver and posted the following in the Driver Review section of the forum last week: Just received the Callaway Hyper ERC Driver. I got it in the stock SR shaft. This shaft is much lighter compared to my current drivers which I have (Tourstage x-405, Epon 460) It will be interesting to compare the Callaway to the Epon. I got the Epon a few months ago and have only hit it a limited number of times. I was able to hit a few balls with the Callaway and first impressions are as follows: 1. Stock shaft is interesting as near the grip end of the shaft, it is an off white color leading to a darker shade. Looks cool. 2. Head size more like what I saw on in pictures of the ERC 3 compared to the US version of the Callaway 460 X or FT-5. The Hyper Driver imo, is deeper face but not as deep as the Epon or Tourstage. 3. Sound at impact is much, much different than Epon and Tourstage. It has a louder "bang" and definetly not as muted as Epon or Tourstage. 4. Very easy driver to hit, imo. To early to tell distance but feel at impact and looks is very good and pleasing. Suppose to snow again so I won't be able to provide any further information for a few weeks.

I recently had a discussion with a manufacturer's rep stating the same US and Japan golf manufacturers are 2 completely seperate companies under a license agreement for the use of the name in the other country. For example, he said Callaway USA and Callaway Japan are two completely seperate entities under a license agreement for a Japan company to be able to use the name Callaway. Just curious, if that is true, would that mean Callaway Japan makes clubs in other parts of the world than Callaway USA? Does this hold true on the flip side (ie. Bridgstone USA has a license with Bridgstone Japan to use its name but be able to produce clubs in other parts of the country?) Would this answer the question why there are different Japan brands on the market that are not available in the US market?

Anyone try the new Fourteen V3 Wedges?

I see a mini review listed in Inpakuto. Can anyone advise me if they have hit this club and can give a review.

Curious to find out if the New X Blade GR is a forged iron and how it would compare with the ViQ Forged irons in terms of who best it is suited for. Is the X geared for the low handicap golfer? Is it for the better player? You get the picture! Any thoughts are welcomed.

Which Japanese Clubs have you received that have given you the WOW!!!, OH MY feeling after hitting them that have stuck even after the honymoon period is over? For me, it has to be my first Tourstage X-405 Driver. My Epon Driver is still in the honymoon period but still has the WOW with it.

Chris, is this club available now? It looked like the club is not available until February 2007. Can you give us a synopsis of what the press release says? My translated version seems to indicate this club may be for higher handicappers who want to draw the ball. Can you shed some light? Thanks always.

I have had a further opportunity to play with my Epon/Axiv combo driver and can honestly state the following: Impact with head: extremely smooth feeling, no vibration at all even on miss hits. Sound at impact is very different and very pleasing. Shaft: Best shaft on the market. It does have a kick to it and my ball flight is lower with more roll. Distance: I do notice a about a 5 yard increase compared with my Tourstage X-405 with probably more distance that will be noticed in the summer months for increased roll that will result. Conclusion: It is a very good driver shaft combo and would recommend it to anyone interested in this driver. Now, if I could only compare it to the x-460 or the new Callaway Hyper Driver coming out!! Hmm!!

Was able to hit about 6 shots with my Epon 460 with Axiv 6064M shaft in about 40 degree weather today and without any practice. I certainly cannot give a review but I did notice a considerable difference with the shaft. First, it certainly felt different than anything else I ever hit. Second, the ball did penetrate (lower ball flight compared to my stock Tourstage X Drive 405 SR shaft) and would have had substantially more roll but for the wet conditions. Finally, the ball flight felt like it wanted to stay straight. I did notice I was hitting the ball more on the lower center of the club face than on the upper side that I normally do. I do not know if it was my swing or lack thereof in the morning or if I have to just tee it up higher since this is the first 460 head I have hit. I am anxious for some warmer days ahead but welcome any comments from ones that tried this club for the first time.

Ok guys, just received my Epon 460 with Axiv 6064M shaft!! I got it at 44.75 length with square face. Hopefully will be able to hit a few shots tomorrow. I will give my initial impressions after that!!

On a prior post, someone mentioned the new ViQ Forged irons are a tad larger in size compared to last years version. Any truth to that?

great comments from everyone so far but let me throw my two cents in. My belief is you should not get club fitted based upon your swing characteristics as much as you should get fitted based upon your physical characteristics. Although shaft fitting may be different, I would want to be fitted based upon height, lenght of arms, etc. I would not want to be fitted based upon my swing. If I have a faulty swing, my personal view is I do not want to be compensated based upon a fault. My swing would never improve and if it did, my club fitting would be wrong. In general, I would rather be fitted based upon characteristics of a good solid swing as opposed to compensation for a bad swing.

I was looking at the Korean Web Site and noticed these offerings from Callaway. Anyone play these and how they compare to ERC3 and Hot Fairway Woods? As an aside, I simply do not understand why manufactures offer different selections for different parts of the world but that is a subject for another discussion.

Anyone have this shaft? Thoughts and comments are appreciated. I have been told that Japanese shafts are a little softer so a stiff flex may feel more like a SR flex. Correct?

I noticed the Epon Driver has a shaft length of 45.25 inches. Could that be a reason why distance is so good?

My Tourstage X-405 Driver is becoming a little dated. Looking for the longest legal Driver on the market. Suggestions are welcomed!

Has anyone tried the Callaway Hot Fairway Woods? Looking for a brief review and description of head size compared to the Steelhead Plus Fairway Woods which I presently play. I like the smaller head size of the Plus woods and I cannot tell by the picks if the Hot Woods are same size or slightly bigger. Any help would be appreciated.