Cobra S9 2008 Men’s Iron Set

The 2008 version of Cobra’s S9 irons feature an expanded 3 piece polymer topline and a urethane sole insert. This is designed to create a lower Center of Gravity and a higher Moment of Intertia than the original model. The result is higher launch, more distance and greater accuracy. That’s a good result for a club that already was a 2007 Golf Digest Editor’s Choice.

I find these multi-materials clubs fascinating. It surely takes an incredible amount of metals and plastics engineering to get it all to hold together.

Cleveland CG14 Chrome Men’s Wedge

Cleveland Golf is justifiably famous for it’s wedges, which for years have been a favorite of Tour players and amateurs alike.

The new CG 14 wedges offer Zip grooves, which is supposed to improve ball stopping ability. The sole was sculpted to provide consistent impact, while the “tour designed offset” is supposed to help control ball flight on full shots.

They also offer a multi-material approach, with a “Gelback” insert designed to soften the feel.

I find it interesting how club companies combine a variety of materials into their products. There are clubs with different types of metals, carbon fiber crowns, elastomer, surlyn, and many other substances. I’m waiting for the one that combines ceramics.

Mizuno MX-950 Men’s Iron Set

I used to think that Mizuno clubs were just for “players,” probably because the guys who played them seemed to regularly kick my butt. Even so, when I went to try a Mizuno driver at a local demo day, I also spent some time with their irons.

As it turns out, there IS a Mizuno Iron for the rest of us. It’s the MX-950, a hybrid design set that features Mizuno’s grain flow forgings. The three and four irons are pure hybrids with tungsten weighting. The five, six and seven are hybrid irons, with hollow core forged steel. Meanwhile, the eight through LW are forged steel cavity backs, with wide soles. The entire set is designed to transition seamlessly from club to club.

I hit these and was really excited about the results. They were easily the most consistent set I’ve played, in terms of hitting good shot after good shot after good shot.  I’d be really interested in seeing how these play out for me over the course of a round.

If I ever had the money to get a new set of irons, these would be a top choice.

C9 c455 Metals

The new Cloud Nine fairway woods from GigaGolf feature a forged variable face thickness design executed with Carpenter Steel’s justifiably famous c455 steel. Compared to similar designs from Ping, these are a good value, with price starting as low as $39.

Mizuno MX-560 Men’s Driver

Regular readers will know that the GolfBlogger has been spending some time at demo days this spring looking for a replacement driver. An analysis of my swing shows that my launch angle is too high, and that there’s too much spin on my ball—both of which cost me yards off the tee.

Thus far, I’ve tried Nike, TaylorMade, Cleveland, MacGregor and Mizuno. My favorites have been the TaylorMade Tour Burner (way too expensive for this teacher’s salary, though) and the Cleveland XLS (good performance, better price).

To that short list, I can add another club: the Mizuno MX-560. In fact, it may be my current choice.

The MX-560 is another one of those “geometrically driven” clubs. Like the Burner and the XLS, the crown swoops down away from the face, rather than curving up as with a traditional driver shape. The effect is not as severe as the XLS with its scoop back, but the thought is the same. What it’s supposed to do is increase the moment of intertia, both heel to toe and crown to sole.

After hearing my (very sad) clubtest angle, spin and swing speed numbers, the Mizuno rep gave me a 8.5 degree, stiff shaft model. It turned out to be just the right fit. I absolutely bombed those shots out past the 250 marker with those terrible yellow range balls. For half an hour, I hit ball after ball after ball, and almost every one was straight and long.

I also tried a 9.5 degree, regular shaft for a while and liked that also, although I think the shots were less straight and noticeably higher.

So here’s what Mizuno says about the clubs:

The MX-560™ driver achieves two major design goals: EXTREME DISTANCE and EXTREME FORGIVENESS. In creating a unique H.E.M.I. geometric head shape, Mizuno engineers increased the heel-toe and up-down MOI of the driver for massive forgiveness, while maintaining a low spin rate and high launch angle for massive distance. Furthermore, the H.E.M.I geometric shape provides the perfect balance of a low-deep COG and a COG with proper distance from the shaft axis. This also aids greatly in “Bombing” long and straight drives. In addition, the CNC milled plasma welded CORTECH ™ face insert delivers the maximum USGA allowable ball speed across the entire area of the face for explosive distance.

H.E.M.I Geometric Head Design for Extreme Distance and Extreme Forgiveness.

Features

* Unique H.E.M.I geometric head shape delivers maximum heel-toe and up-down MOI and a precisely placed C.O.G. for EXTREME FORGIVENESS.
* CNC milled, plasma welded CORTECH™ design utilizes multiple face thicknesses for EXTREME DISTANCE.
* Maximum allowable USGA 460cc volume delivered in a unbelievably large head shape for a “can’t miss” driving attitude.
* Solid, Explosive, and Powerful sound.

The best part about this very good club is the price. Mizuno has it set at $299. I’ve always thought of Mizuno as a premium club (probably because the guys who play them kick my butt regularly; the brand has a reputation for “players” clubs).

Its going to be a very tough decision for me. When I get a club, its got to be right because I won’t be able to purchase another for several seasons. TaylorMade? Cleveland? Mizuno? There’s more thinking to be done.