Time and again I am offered opportunities to play Nike Equipment, and the mixed feelings I have towards their equipment never ceases to amaze me. I never found a Nike Driver I was comfortable putting in the bag, though The Sasquatch/Sumo line of drivers remains their claim to fame. Despite the many different iterations of the Nike One Ball, a ball many people feel is the true challenger to The Pro V1, I still remain somewhat unimpressed. (I did enjoy playing their Power Soft Ball for a while though. A ball many insist is a hacker special.) The new series of irons and wedges that are drumming up such fanfare, because "Tiger helped design them" are already out of Tiger's bag. He was so unimpressed he threw them out of his bag in favour of an older design. Nike putters are often considered mediocre at best. Funny thing, I have a Nike TC 130 that stays in my bag year after year despite constant side by side shootouts with more expensive and supposedly "better makes and models." So it goes with me and Nike.
Still---these CCI Forged Irons remain an anamoly to me. They were a superior design when they first came out, but never really caught on. Nike threw all their state of the art technology into these, and now, almost three years later, people are finally realizing what a great design they really are. It's just that 3 years ago, it was definitely not a market for player's clubs--and these are player's clubs to the NTH degree. (We had already past the phase where clubmaker's realized the midcappers needed a better club, and super game improvement for beginners--due to hybrid mania, was definitely the order of the day.) These clubs sport thin top lines, thin soles, minimal offset, and a piercing trajectory. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that they also have minimal forgiveness to match that minimal offset. Still--they have a certain feel to them, that only a forged club can bring to the table, and the composite insert on the back helps add to that feel in a most unexpected way for a player's club. Miss hits are still penalized, and hands will still get rattled a bit, but there's nothing here to shake the fillings loose from your back molars if you miscue on a side hill lie.
BALANCE--5 Stars
This is usually Nike's weak spot. Most of their clubs are well balanced, it's just very rare that I ever pick one up that gives me that ultimate Zen-Like Club Head Awareness throughout the swing. Such a feel is usually reserved for Titleist, Maruman, Honma, etc. These are the closest to perfect balance I've ever felt in a Nike Iron. When one combines this with the aforementioned smooth forged feel at impact, these things start landing into some pretty heady territory. They aren't quite Japanese Forged Feel, and they're still just a shade under Mizuno's in this territory, but they are light years ahead of any cast club, and almost hold their own with the famous Hogan Apex Series.
APPEARANCE--5 Stars
These ae definitely cool looking clubs. I think their racey look was a touch ahead of the times when these clubs first came out, but the look has grown on me. The top lines are very very thin, and the soles are ever so slightly wider than the blades of old. (If you take a healthy divot, you may not like these clubs. Even so, I've been known to be followed around the course by real estate agents slapping "For Sale" signs on some of the chunks of earth I've left behind, yet I still enjoyed these clubs tremendously). The real traditionalist will like the boxy squared off toe on the heads. It's a handsome look for a handsome. club. The composite inserts run the full length of heel to toe in the back of the club, but the cavity was carved tastefully to allow this to happen and still have the club looking sporty. The tungsten weighting is also achieved without "clunkifying" the club's profile. This allows mid-cappers such as my self to get the ball airborne easily enough, without destroying this club's natural tendency to a more piercing ball flight.
PERFORMANCE--5 Stars
These clubs are very easily worked. They steer like a real sports car. Let's face it..if a mid-capper like me can work them left and/or right, they are very maneuverable clubs. Distance wise they are quite good--"FOR A PLAYER'S CLUB." In other words, if you know how to hit the ball and have a fairly repeatable swing--these will go far. Their rather piercing trajectory helps in this department. Conversely, a miss-hit--especially off the toe--will cost you. Don't expect a super juiced up loft to help your new 7 iron go like your old 5 iron. These aren't that kind of club. The lofts are ever so slightly stronger than traditional lofts, and not the 2 and 3 club strengthening of lofts that the industry has been engaging in as of late. The clean crisp grooves of the CNC Milled faces will put more spin on the ball than most will ever need. I was backing up the ball using these short irons and a Wilson PX 3 golf ball. (A rather interesting combination actually, and most notable as these clubs really do have a more piercing trajectory.) Not only are the lofts more traditional, but you can even get a 2 iron. That's almost unheard of in this day and age of hybrid mania.
When these first came out, I doubt I would have rated them so highly. The forging on them is not as soft as some other brands, and they wanted top dollar for these. The look was a little too racey at the time, and I couldn't quite bring myself to get used to them. Since that time, both the look and feel have grown on me, and the price has dropped precipitously. A club making friend of mine had a set he was trying to sell for $225 and Golfsmith was trying to blow brand new sets out the door on Father's Day for a mere $299. Were I not desperately in need of the distance I am getting from my current set, and able to play with more irons and less fairway metals, I might very well be toting this set around the course on a regular basis. (Sadly, I carry nothing lower than a 6 iron anymore. I've had to retire my old 2 iron as well.) They perform exceptionally well. Any mid-capper in need of a workable club, and desirous of a forged feel needs to at least try these. As they are 2/3 years old they are going for roughly 33 cents of the Original MSRPdollar, and represent a real sleeper of a bargain in today's marketplace.
With 39 iron wins on the PGA Tour and having won the iron count at the Masters two years running, there is no doubt that Nike knows irons. The CCi (Co...More at Golfio.com
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