Ryoma + Crazy combo feedback

[Craig]

Hi Guys

I have a Ryoma V-Spec 9.5^ with a Crazy Longest Yard 02 Noir 6.7 flex which I got several weeks ago for my birthday.

Was a total surprise to me and Tario has asked me to write a review from a hackers perspective with my opinion on this setup.

I have been a lurker on this forum as I do not have the abilities or know how of so many of the guys that post here and feel out of my depth.

Have been fortunate to meet Stew thru here and he has helped feed my habit for good quality JDM gear. A habit which is both dangerous and expensive. Lots of fun though

I think that all he has said about the Ryoma is exactly how I find it

It is not what i would have chosen as I have the old cricketers swing and battle the right consistantly.

I had an Epon AF 101 9.5^ with a Quaddra 65 stiff as my number one driver and yes battle the right.

Was looking at the Ryoma Premia due to its closed face but apparently Tario put this together with advice given to him by my workmate and playing partner.

He has chosen very wisely.

The Ryoma goes high, it goes l long, it goes straight and it does this consistantly. Not as much roll as the Quaddra but much more carry.

Have not hit it in the wind or any adverse conditions so cant comment on that.

As mentioned it looks closed at address (but not off putting) and its head shape gives the feeling of both confidence and power.

The shaft feels made for the club whereas the Quaddra feels like I really have to give it a whack

I do not battle the right with it and in fact would say that it mostly for me will hit a slight draw.

Occasionally when I have hit it straight it just keeps soaring like it has also been mentioned. Takes off like a plane. Never had that before and certainly dont get it all the time(Only once or twice so far) . Wish I was a better player to really give this thing a workout.

Is it the longest driver I have hit- probably yes. Distance gains over the Epon i guess in the region of 5-10 metres ( no more than that). Certainly not the gains some people have experienced.

Is it the straightest- probably not as accurate as my Yonex Nextage Type 430 with Tour AD EV-6S but that is at least 20-30 metres shorter. But boy it is nice to be in the middle most of the time. My playing buddy hits a long drive and most times with the Epon I am just behind him but often on the right hand edge hitting over a tree or something and a lot of times in the rough. With this I am closer to him but on the fairway. Interestingly he has a second hand Ping driver from e bay and he cannot get the Epon to hit the fairway and he cannot get the Ryoma off the ground???. When he did get it off the ground (once from about 20 drives) he was 2 fairways left.

I have used this driver 0n 45 holes and missed the fairway only twice. Have not hit it the last week as our course is an absolute bog and it is raining and windy most days. Using an OnOff (from Stew) as I think it suits better but Am hitting less fairways with this so may have to rethink my strategy.

Is it the best feeling driver- to me nothing beats the feel of the Epon when you hit it in the screws. Nothing feels like that except maybe in Grade 9 I remember down the back of the movies with a girl called Grace. But thats another story (short story) and not for this forum!!!!

Is it my number 1 driver - Hard to take the Epon out of the bag but that is purely on feel. If i could only have 1 driver then this would be it purely on its consistancy. Could almost leave my 4,5 and 6 irons at home.

Seriously when I have played it more I can see the Epon getting the old flicko

Is it worth the money- cant answer it as I baulked at the price and probably would have still been looking at it. Thank god for birthdays. Wish we had 2 a year. Maybe I could try it??

Overall I would have to rate this one hell of a Driver and if I could only have a single Driver then this would be it.

Am hioping to snaffle A Yamaha driver at some stage to hopefully complete my collection so my quest continues

Hope this post has not put any or all to sleep and even better helped someone to make up their mind about the Ryoma either for it or against it.

Craig

[gocchin]

Craig thanks for the feedback and I'm glad that you are still getting along with the driver.

I thought you deserved your own topic as the other one is getting long and harder for people to sift through when looking for feedback.

I have asked others who will review the Ryoma as well to start new topics.

I have to admit we were lucky in getting your driver done so well considering you were not involved in the fitting and selection process.

45 holes and only 2 missed fairways with the Ryoma is superb. Even though you "only" gained 5-10 meters in distance, considering you are always in the fairway that equals even more net distance overall.

For the wind though perhaps you need a second one like I have made for lower launch (^_^).

[supo]

hey welcome the forums, and very good stuff..., great piece.

there is somehting about the crazy shafted clubs IMO that just seem to make the ball end up longer than most others. they are a bit trickier than most but when u get them wired they are worth every cent i reckon.

that noir shaft is DEFINATLY a draw shaft bec im a pretty good slicer ,NO, thats wrong im a great slicer, and this shaft just goes left in such a nice way.

as for just one driver in the arsneal this would be a definite contender in my book but i still think the epons got it covered over all.

this has jumped up a peg tho for sure. top 3 , yea def top 3.................,

[Eca]

Nice review Craig and sounds like you're getting so much consistency and some yardage gain.

It is the head along with the Epon 102 that im dreaming about. My wife just gave me an incentive to sell her car as she doesnt need it and buy my 'head' but i think i'll sit this out for a bit until I can try the quadra shaft 1st.

[+TourSpecGolfer]

I did well with the LY series, still play it the LY01 HOT craziest highest launching long distance monster used on the long drive circuit. Went with the 6.9 it's perfect for me, just need to fit myself for a good mid trajectory shaft now.

I agree totally with what stew says about the Crazy shafts being more tricky to fit. It's worth the extra performance when dialed in though. I ordered a 9.5 Ryoma non V-Spec, gonna stick the NOIR in it see how it goes next week.

[supo]

chris thats my club,

you will love it, its a draw ball. it s long its gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood...!

[FrankThong]

Craig, I think I need to hear more about Grace to know exactly how good the Ryoma feels heh. ;) Nice review.

[Bunker18]

Another killer review for the Ryoma + Crazy. Forget the stock shaft, i'm going with the Crazy. I wanna see what it is all about!

[FatMan]

Another killer review for the Ryoma + Crazy. Forget the stock shaft, i'm going with the Crazy. I wanna see what it is all about!

You won't be disappointed!

[Craig]

Hi Guys

Further to this post i have been doing some numbers on the Ryoma V Epon driver where I have been measuring distance and fairways hit.

I play most days after work and get usually 7-12 holes in and have been using only these 2 drivers and measuring them with my Sureshot GPS.

play the same course all the time and pick the driver the night before so there has been no preference as to conditions, wind etc. I also only take the 1 driver out each time.

The reason being is i wanted to see what was better.

The Ryoma averages for me 8.5 metres further and hits almost 7% more fairways.

These were total metres driven divided by number of drives not by averages etc.

I was surprised as i thought the distances would be much closer but I thought the Ryoma would hit far more fairways.

However the numbers dont lie.

My personal opinion is that the epon feels better and that the Ryoma is not as good for me if it is quite windy. I think it struggles in the wind. This is only guesswork and if I get bored I may test them out in windy times and compare. But I dont think I will ever get that bored.

Hope some of you find this interesting.

[supo]

ur a lucky fella.

im bit surprised by that actually.

i thought the ryoma would have been clearly superior for accuracy

but then agn if ur misses are just on the fringe of the first cut.

i thinkthast just as importnat as being fariways hit . if ur first cut then thats perfectly fine, if ur misses are in the trees then thats a huge thing.

i find total dispersion with the ryoma is very hard to beat. my misess are pretty much alway good misses.

th distance difference doenst really shock me, u can get the epon cranked up pretty nicely. and yes its the better feeling club IMO as well.

u got 2 pretty good clubs at yr disposal there.

in the wind i find the ryoma NOW withthe SW corrected is fabulous.

very punchy and still super straight.

oveall misses with both what do u think is the better club i clearly think th ryoma is my best overal drive bec of this fact the misses with it dont kill me

[Chanaa]

Stats dont lie. I have been using my epon 8.5 deg with crazy black LY 46 for last 6 mths & switched to Ryoma 9.5 with a craz black 46 7.2 in my last 12 rounds. Epon crazy combo i was hitting 63% fairway and the ryoma crazy 69% ( golfshot on iphone to track ). The big difference is the bads hits in ryoma are very much playable but the mis**ts on my epon gets me into serious trouble. Dispersion definitely better on ryoma.

Length wise, ryoma crazy gives me a clear 15-20 yards over epon crazy. Thats 1-2 iron lofts easier to hit in the second shot. Another big difference here. Again, mis**ts are much much longer in ryoma compared to epon. I topped the ryoma the other day and flew 220 yrds...on a wet day !!!

Short shape, agree the ryoma just flys off and flys high - fantastic in cutting doglegs over pine trees. Its a plug and play head. On windy days i go back to my epon 8.5 as its much lower & much more roll.

Feel wise, nothing beats the epon - cuts & draws are much easier. Feedback can be harsh though for mis**ts. Soundwise, i actually like the ryoma - solid muted thud.

Overall the Ryoma stays in my bag unless its a windy windy day. I dont have to use my long irons on second shots anymore....which is a big plus for me !!!

[nudgeegolf]

Guys I am salivating at these comments as I have a Ryoma with Quadra Fire express being built as we speak!! will be testing this beast on friday......so excited and hope I get the same "benefits" that you guys are getting

[Spoon]

Guys I am salivating at these comments as I have a Ryoma with Quadra Fire express being built as we speak!! will be testing this beast on friday......so excited and hope I get the same "benefits" that you guys are getting

It's a win win scenario with that combo! No reason why itnshouldnt top your current driver

[gocchin]

ur a lucky fella.

im bit surprised by that actually.

i thought the ryoma would have been clearly superior for accuracy

but then agn if ur misses are just on the fringe of the first cut.

i thinkthast just as importnat as being fariways hit . if ur first cut then thats perfectly fine, if ur misses are in the trees then thats a huge thing.

i find total dispersion with the ryoma is very hard to beat. my misess are pretty much alway good misses.

th distance difference doenst really shock me, u can get the epon cranked up pretty nicely. and yes its the better feeling club IMO as well.

u got 2 pretty good clubs at yr disposal there.

in the wind i find the ryoma NOW withthe SW corrected is fabulous.

very punchy and still super straight.

oveall misses with both what do u think is the better club i clearly think th ryoma is my best overal drive bec of this fact the misses with it dont kill me

Stew, I think you misread what Craig said... he said he hits 7% MORE fairways with the Ryoma. I think when he said he "thought" the Ryoma would hit more fairways he was confirming that it does and not that it didn't.

I have to agree though, I can hit a poor drive with the Ryoma and bare lose distance and still go straight. In the end thats why it stays in the bag.

[TMMike]

Stew, I think you misread what Craig said... he said he hits 7% MORE fairways with the Ryoma. I think when he said he "thought" the Ryoma would hit more fairways he was confirming that it does and not that it didn't.

I have to agree though, I can hit a poor drive with the Ryoma and bare lose distance and still go straight. In the end thats why it stays in the bag.

Gocchin, what shaft are you currently using in your Ryoma?

[gbs]

Another killer review for the Ryoma + Crazy. Forget the stock shaft, i'm going with the Crazy. I wanna see what it is all about!

Yes don't even think about the stock shaft. although its not bad but kinda lacking a lot of things.... maybe i am too spoilt. :)

[nudgeegolf]

OK 3 rounds down and after some fine tuning, I now have the ryoma V spec 10.5* with quadra FE 65 SX working absolute bombs - big high draws (well about 3 metre draw). It did take a good round to work out how to get the best of this driver/shaft combo.

No doubt this combo is one of the longest I have hit but where it shines is in the mis**ts - pretty much confirming what everyone else is saying. I have found it to be a bit more workable than others which is great. The sound and feel of this head is fantastic - definately a 9/10.

Whilst I love this head/shaft combo, I do have a TP7HD sitting in the cupboard and I really want to test it with this head.............I really like the Quadra but it feels a bit whippy even with the SX flex - I guess option is to tip it - but I dont want to cut it just in case it doesn't work as well.

I know what you are thinking why change if it seems to work but that TP7HD is just calling really loudly - anyone ever played this shaft/head combo???

The one thing I hate about this driver is the bloody headcover - whilst it is not as bad as some think, it has a freakking zipper???? why not magnetic cover.

Also for a $950 head, I would have expected better quality with the durability of the paint at the base between sole and face - I am getting some paint finish stripping even after only 3 rounds and I have played all 3 rounds off perfect tee blocks. I was warned about this so no probs here but I did expect better from such a $$$$$ beast. Thankfully the performance outshines the durability of the paint.

[supo]

Yea a cpl of things the finish is pretty ordinary ive got a cpl of these and they aint holding up too well finish wise

but what do u say when the quality of the ball striking is so good and consistant

fhe driver cover is pants i dont even bother with it i i use a jbeam magnetic one on It its so much nicer

tphd well thats ur thing

I dont like that shaft at all

love the f7 m2 tho weird huh?

If my ryoma gets any more beat up im gonna have a word to them i cant complain abt the result but the quality control is pretty ordinary . I got a chip on the top of one from god knows what , never happened before.

If u find the 65sx a bit soft try the 75 sx pretty

sure that wont be !

Itll be

HAMMER TIME!

Edited July 10, 2011 by supo67

[Eca]

OK 3 rounds down and after some fine tuning, I now have the ryoma V spec 10.5* with quadra FE 65 SX working absolute bombs - big high draws (well about 3 metre draw). It did take a good round to work out how to get the best of this driver/shaft combo.

No doubt this combo is one of the longest I have hit but where it shines is in the mis**ts - pretty much confirming what everyone else is saying. I have found it to be a bit more workable than others which is great. The sound and feel of this head is fantastic - definately a 9/10.

Whilst I love this head/shaft combo, I do have a TP7HD sitting in the cupboard and I really want to test it with this head.............I really like the Quadra but it feels a bit whippy even with the SX flex - I guess option is to tip it - but I dont want to cut it just in case it doesn't work as well.

I know what you are thinking why change if it seems to work but that TP7HD is just calling really loudly - anyone ever played this shaft/head combo???

The one thing I hate about this driver is the bloody headcover - whilst it is not as bad as some think, it has a freakking zipper???? why not magnetic cover.

Also for a $950 head, I would have expected better quality with the durability of the paint at the base between sole and face - I am getting some paint finish stripping even after only 3 rounds and I have played all 3 rounds off perfect tee blocks. I was warned about this so no probs here but I did expect better from such a $$$$$ beast. Thankfully the performance outshines the durability of the paint.

Hi J,

Dont tip lol.. that is exactly the problem with you said you had the tp7hd sitting.. I thought there is no way you'd be able to help yourself not trying this to see how it performs vs quadra. I know I would be tempted. You need to give it a few more games then reflect back to how your driving game was before this combo. You did tell me it was bad. The whippy you might be describing is the kick? One other thing that could firm it up a little is to have it at 45" (did Perci butt trim further? it would have played around 46")

I agree with the cover and i think most do. I'm not having too much complaint about the paint job as yet.

[nudgeegolf]

Eca - one more round under the belt and I love this combo!! will not worry trying the tp7hd.

[Eca]

Great! It does take a few rounds to adjust. There is definitely a kick/timing that needs adjusting to & the beauty of this high carbon is that I find this feel/kick timing so consistent. When you're in the groove & swinging well, it gets boring very quickly in a good way, always in the fwy. Its boring because u will get ur longest drives with this grooved swing. I find stepping on it hardly achieves anything.. If any u hit shorter.

Just watch out for the off driving day.. That will be like the sultry tp7hd doing the strip number on you haha.

[supo]

well played this with the diamana stinger 70x today.

44.875 x d2.5 x 325

finalising my bag to hawaii tonight as u can imagine lots of potential selection headachesfor clubs, limiting this time to 3 drivers only.

this is no 1 in the bag driver from now.

gold ...... seriosuly gold.

ball fight. low/ mid uber piercing striaght as an arrrow.

roll 30 yards+ on some holes after fabulous carry.

on 18 hit a career drive. number irrelevant but was in awe.

that alone sold me completely, and unreservedly.

these two belong together.

daylight over the crazy noir .

gold.

[gocchin]

Like Stew I can only play the Ryoma at the moment as well... its been the number one in my bag for 6 months. I have one with a CB46 and the other with the stock shaft and yes the stock shaft is actually not too bad at all. For many average golfers and slower swingers it will do a good job.