gocchin

No shots here my friend, some good points... it's great how you can take the time to put all that together!! Like you said there are many different opinions on this topic. For me the bottom line is I try and choose what I like and what works for me. Personally the word "Tour" doesn't carry too much weight for me when it comes to equipment. I do believe in quality and workmanship though and in JDM products that includes retail products. In the end does quality equal performance? Maybe. Does paying for quality equal feel which is important to many golfers. In my opinion and experience yes, to a certain extent. (No I will not pay for a 5 star Honma driver). Will I visit a Tourstage Tour Van if I get the chance? Probably? I may even be tempted into buying a "tour" wedge but it probably won't do anything for my game... I'd just waste my money and collect it. (^_^) But I stick mostly with Japanese gear and the Tour Issue moniker is not a common for Japanese gear. You rarely see any tour issue JDM equipment even pop up on this forum. It's all about being custom fit these days and tolerances as you say. The great thing is that many JDM brands allow custom shafts and club adjustments, even on retail clubs which is definitely a positive. I think they have higher tolerances and stick to all the best materials. At least my wallet hopes so. (^_^) And actually your answer being "Cultural" above is actually pretty accurate. While the $10,000 purchase of honma irons is no longer as common as it used to be, the differences in cultures and lifestyles are evident in the golfing world. Everything from customer expectations, to quality, to specs, to price points, the thinking is different in Japan. Which is why the JDM golf market exists and why it is different from the rest of the world. (and why we have TSG)... ^^

Prices have been released for this beast... around $750... I'd try it if it wasn't flourescent green! (^_^)

Great feedback B. It is the most amazing feeling FW I've hit, just ahead of the GFT in feel. Good advice on getting the right shaft. I went with a low kicker in mine to help me get the ball up and it was the right choice...

Actually the new Hibore does use axiv as stock too... as does the original Hibore: and the hibore FW:

Here it is but it's a pretty bad site... not much info... http://www.clevelandgolf.co.jp/ I've seen many of the Cleveland Japan clubs use axiv and GD.

The Hi-Bore line in Japan was using Mamiya Axiv shafts for their drivers, FW's, hybrids and irons for a while... before the Hi-Bore XL.

That's a good strategy Matt. I think I will give that a shot. Plus it would subtract 547g from my bag... (^_^)

Ah that would be my site (^_^) Yamaha does make golf clubs and the 460D is also a pretty forgiving driver. Epon is not on that list because like Honma it is not quite so mainstream. Epon is like Japan's best kept secret, except on TSG of course. Endo who Epon belongs to does not heavily market or distribute the product, though that may change in the future.... As for feel on the XXIO I meant on impact. It was a little harsh and yes metallic sounding. The Epon 10.5 has been in my bag most of the season and it is still the most unique soft feel I've ever felt in a driver.

The G-Field #2 is 18*, has a small and compact head that's similar to their FW and is actually good from any lie including off the tee. Rare as heck and hard to get but a favorite of many here. I think Chris as one with a stiff shaft and one with head only in the clearance sale.

The X-Drive is not the most forgiving driver. It's meant for the lower handicap player. It is however a very solid driver that plays true to loft usually. You should see good results paired with the Axiv. Remember when you first get it to realize that it WILL be a different feel from your J33R. If you can strike the ball well and hit the sweet spot consistently, you should be pretty happy with it's performance. Of all the new 2007 line X-Drives the 460 does launch the lowest so that should be promising. (^_^)

Thanks S, I'm going to get her to make a few more for me... that was her first try at knitting a cover. (^_^)

R is on to something too, the XXIO and XXIO prime are geared towards higher handicappers. The reason I didn't recommend them though was I recently hit a XXIO and I just wasn't that fond of the feel. There wasn't as much feedback for me and it felt very metallic. The Tourstage, Epon and Callway will definitely give more feel. R is almost 61 and he still kills his Epon 460 so perhaps your dad can handle a 10.5 Epon with the right shaft since it is a higher launching head anyway.

230-250 yards is still pretty fantastic for your father at 64 years of age!! A bad shot as a slice could also indicate that the shaft is too stiff for him. If he's not a power player, definitely the more loft the better. He's fighting gravity here so the right shaft combined with the right head will give him optimal trajectory. The star system on the Honma's won't really affect performance I think, they are just ratings based on quality standard and level of master doing the install of that shaft.

I had both in the bag at the same time. Very different designs. The Fourteen is very forgiving and considerably larger than the G-field. I prefer the small compact FW like face that the G-Field's have. That's not to say the Fourteen was not good. If you want forgiving, that is it.

Hello and welcome to the forums! New technologies in driver materials and shafts can definitely help an older golfer like yourself even out the playing field. The Honma MG611 is actually a very good recommendation. It is geared towards the Senior golfer with a softer shaft and higher loft. I'd recommend you go for something in the 11.5* range which would automatically eliminate the X-Drive and Epon which are only available up to 10.5*. The X-Drive is considered an "Athlete" model in Japan, deep faced for the good ball striker so not forgiving for the higher handicapper. The Epon is more forgiving but is still deep faced. Are you able to consistently hit the sweetspots on your driver? Do you have a rough idea on your swing speed or current driver distance? A very very important factor will be shaft. Any given driver head will perform differently depending on the shaft. You could gain or lose 20 yards alone on shaft choice. That said, popular drivers in Japan among higher handicapers or older players are the following: Tourstage ViQ MX 460 - Tourstage's most forgiving driver and pretty long too... made for the mid to higher handicapper Honma MG611 - Made for the Senior golfer and higher handicapper Honma MG712 - Made for the mid handicapper Mizuno JPX E500 460cc - High Moi type driver, very popular among mid to high handicappers, said to be very forgiving PRGR 502 Silver 460cc, smaller faced but hot and forgiving Callaway Hyper ERC 460cc, this driver is very unique in that it is used by anyone from pros to high handicappers which must mean something... it's hyperbolic face technology has made it the best callaway driver ever and hint hint, it's made by Endo (who makes Epon) I think Bridgestone Tourstage's ViQ MX might be a good pick for you. Also depending on your swing speed, even though it's not listed in the pro shop always, TSG can get senior flex shafts which may also help with distance gains.

Isn't the #2 GFT-UT also 18*? All the hybrid classifications are pretty funky. My XXIO 17* is a U5... ViQ 19* is a U3, UT-106 21* is a 4i. I think the 18* was a 3i.

It's actually not that heavy R. It's about the same weight as my Tourstage stand carry bag. I think I need one of those push/pull carts... gonna look for one hopefully on sale at the end of the summer...

Hi Mojoman, Welcome to the forums! What kind of hybrid do you prefer? An iron type or wood type utility? What are you looking at replacing with it? Loft? Also what's your handicap? There are hybrids that suit lower handicap players all the way up to game improvement types. Popular hybrids include, Tourstage's X-UT and ViQ as well as Fourteen's UT-106 and Royal Collection's TD+...

The MP Craft 425 and 460 while similar in some design aspects, namely sole and look are geared towards different players. Then 425 is the Athlete model, for better players and ball strikers while the 460 is the more forgiving slightly shallower face model made more for mid cappers.

So the TSG WITB contest is on. I can't enter but I thought I would kick things off by posting an example of a contest WITB post by doing my own. I decided to take pictures using my new Paradiso bag that I got from my wife for my birthday and I chose clubs that I have been using frequently this year. Hardest choice was irons but I decided to go with the CCB-1's for this picture shoot thanks to their unique look. I figured most of my pics I post here are usually in the back yard so why not take some shots in the front garden this time around. With Hydrangeas, Japanese Mugo Pine, a Japanese Maple and natural stone as a backdrop... here's my WITB! We start of with some complete shots. Love the white orange and yellow Paradiso bag. At first I was worried the color might not be manly enough but it looks great and goes awesome with the headcovers. The bag is nylon so weight is actually down close to 3kg which is awesome for a caddy bag. I will use this when I ride, which is most of the time! Lots of pockets to store stuff as you will see later on! Typical Bridgestone quality with great workmanship just like my white Tourstage Stand bag, it has paradiso zippers and divots and a very nice padded easily removable strap. 9" top makes storing clubs nice and easy with lots of room to spare! Head covers are from Como!Come! the Comera line and the T headcover was made for me by my cute wife. Now on to the good stuff... clubs time! My strength is irons and short game play, I've been fiddling around with the woods and utilites and still haven't come to set gamers there except for probably my driver. As I said above I'm still experimenting with the right combo of woods and utilites except for the driver which remains the Epon Technity 460ZR 10.5* custom face angle and lie with Roddio W5BA at 45". Still a rocket launcher for me. I'm small at 5'4" and 120 pounds so I need all the help I can get. This club helps me out a lot. Some people have said they have a hard time getting roll with their Epon combo but this is where I can make up ground. My bad shot is a slice so I had Epon make me a 1.5* closed and 1* flat head which has worked out great! The Epon Technity 3 Wood 15* has superb feel. I sometimes have a hard time getting the ball up in the air with this club as hitting fairway woods is the week part of my game. I know I probably should have my G-Field FW in here as it is more forgiving but hitting a good shot with the Epon is so rewarding as nothing compares to it in feel. It's shafted with a Axiv 5052L. Yeah I like the clubs light and soft. The XXIO U5 is a 17* strong 5 wood utility I use in the rough or if I'm not feeling comfortable hitting the Epon. It has a super shallow face and at 41" long is easy to control. XXIO is great for game improvement and this club definitely helps. On par 3's that are around 180-200 yards or so, I like to take this off the tee. Shafted with the ever popular Graphite Design Tour AD UT series... this one is 55g. The G-Field GFT-UT #4 is a 22*, very easy to hit hybrid. It's sole design is just like the FW and cuts through most kinds of lies very easily. It's compact head is very accurate and has a nice sound and feel to it. This is my club between 170 and 180 yards. Also shafted with a Tour AD UT-55. My short game weapons are ones I rely on the most to get my score down. I pray I can make it to the green with two or three shots using the driver, woods and utilities then rely on these guys to get it to the hole. I have an abundance of irons to chose from to play including Type-X, Gekku, Yamaha 460D, ViQ Forged and these CCB-1's. Honestly I like them all, I'm playing the CCB-1's right now as I continue my all graphite bag experiment so I took pics of them for this but they do not feel quite as pure and soft as the other irons which are all forged. I could probably have a close to all Epon bag if I played the Type X which I absolutely love, feel and performance wise. CCB-1's are shafted Axiv 758M graphite which I have been very happy with, smooth and very tight. Fantastic feel! I only stick to one Pitching Wedge no matter what set of irons I'm using. I find that the since the PW is a scoring club it's good to be consistent and stick with one so I still have my Scratch Inpakuto PW. It's soft and beginning to show signs of rust through it's raw finish and is also shafted with an Axiv 758M. All my wedges are shafted with the stiffer Graphite Design Tour AD AD-75 graphite irons shafts. I'm the opposite of many members here on the board, I just cannot play heavy clubs, I end up feeling like I'm swinging a log with no feel. My style of play calls for feel and accuracy because power is not my game. My two wedges are the trusty 52* Epon Copper X which is still the softest most versatile wedge ever. Nothing has knocked it out of my bag yet. Play it 2* flat and good from any lie. I love it and still chip around the house with it every day... NO fulls swings of course... no more divots in the carpet! Second is the 58* Sky Dream Jump wedge. Usually I also have a Copper X here but I wanted to try something new and the D-Tour Sky Dream Jump has been pretty good. Milled face and very forgiving grind help a smaller more compact head. It actually uses the same forged head as the Royal Collection 6150 if any of you are wondering about the similarities. I also carry around a chipper occasionally since I don't always bag 14 clubs. It's the PRGR 35 Wedge which is a 547g wedge with 35* loft designed like a putter allowing you to take straight aim at the hole. I'm still getting used to this one but results have been promising! I do have a lot of putters as you guys know. I'm using a Gauge Japan Type 0-SP right now and I'm very happy with it's feel and I simply love it's design. When my putting is suffering I usually switch back to a Premium Zone #1. All the clubs use a variety of Iomic grips... I like color!! What else is in my bag?? Now we all carry some kinds of doodads inside our bags. All my stuff is pretty much golf related. I do use lots of different Japanese balls. I was using Tourstage and Mizuno Cross Eight but a friend of mine in Japan recommended that I try the Wilson Staff model "Fifty". It is a super soft distance ball with a 50 compression rating!! It has panhead dimples as you can see in the picture and is soft and long. So far so good! It's been hot as hell lately so I always pack a second shirt and cap sometimes to change over between the front and back nine. I'm a Tourstage and Paradiso clothing guy. That's all I have, even the shoes. (^_^) Carry a variety of tees for all occasions and situations. Lucky charms are common in Japan, I have a few including my charm from Narita Temple and a couple of golf ones including the "Practice Demon" charm and "Golf Kamisama (God)" charm. Always have some extra gloves. Fit39 is the way to go! Srixon bottle holder. This Paradiso bag doesn't have a bottle holder like my Tourstage so when I'm riding I attach the srixon insulated bottle holder.... There you have it! Hope you enjoyed what's in my bag.... for now!

You're probably going to get a lot of different answers on this one but for me, the longest combo is my Epon/Roddio combo. Shaft gives me a good kick, Epon is hot off the face with good feel and together I get some nice roll.

AJ it's great like you said to find 3 drivers that you could bag in one season. That is just fantastic when most people can't even find the one!!

The have a new series coming out too, slightly lighter weight and narrower for slender hands or ladies. They have Tadd up on their site right now sporting the green 50 series.

Yes sir R there eventually will be all flexes available....

They are pretty much meant for the older higher handicap player. Lofts on the driver are 10, 11 and 12 and is considered to be a forgiving high launching driver.