Wilson Staff FG Tour V2 Review Thread

[Hawk]

Good thoughts Hawk, I like hear that the 5 irons is a club you like, as that is almost always the longest iron I carry. What do you attribute the toe shots to with the 3 iron off the deck?

Dude, I don't know, but I wish I did. It was almost the same exact spot each time. I had a ball mark that was thick. I think I'm sweeping the turf a bit more with the tee shots and trying to dig down on the turf. Maybe I'm getting steeper?

Hawk really nice writeup! I was shocked about the comparison to the redlines! Im sure this wont happen everytime, but it just shows a good swing with these produces great distance.

It was nice! To be 100% clear, I'm just saying that I was hitting the distance. I'm sure I would have been even longer with the Redlines. I just think the fact that I've hit so many freaking iron shots recently has helped me out.

 

[Howzat]

Since you guys are talking about your favorite clubs I thought I would discuss mine for a minute. The PW in this set is great. I can really control my distances with it on full swings yet it also works great for me to chip or bump and run. I will normally hit it 110-115 yards carry but can give the club a little more to get 120 plus or pull it back with an easy swing to hit 100 with ease. Around the green as long as there is some room the let the ball rollout, I have tremendous confidence hitting little chips from 30-40 yards out to delicate shots from the fringe.

 

[Hawk]

12 holes of golf - shortened due to a sick boy
60's with moderate winds


This was an interesting day. I ended up getting called off the course and left my scorecard with all my notes, but I do remember some things.

Par 5's

I've mentioned before that par 5's were always my worst holes, which goes against everything that makes any sense. I think that's because I always played them forwards. Try to hit it as far as possible to get close to the green. That doesn't work when you miss fairways. You give up your extra shot. Since I took the irons out for a round w/out woods, I realized I didn't need to hit a driver off the tee to reach the hole. It is not uncommon for me to go +4 or worse on par 5's on any given day.

I played three par 5's in this rounds and forced myself to tee off with an iron. Here are the results, minus exact yardages (in spoilers):

Spoiler

Hole 1 - 476 yards

Neat double doglegging hole that has a fairway bunker straight away around 200+ yards out. You have to go a little right if you can't carry it (I can't), which forces you to play the dog leg. I hit 3 iron sort of crappy, but was just short of the bunker in the fairway. I then hit a 5 iron, which was perfectly placed on the right side of the fairway. I had a 150 yards uphill left and hooked a 6 iron a bit. I was pin high about 5 feet off the green in the rough. Chip and two putt for bogey.

Hole 9 - 505 yards

Another very neat hole that beats me up. The landing area for tee shots is generous, but I miss it often. I teed off with a big 3 iron that GPS'd over 200 yards with roll in the center of the fairway. The next shot is sort of blind due to a dogleg and the need to be on the right side of the fairway for the approach. I hit a perfect 5 iron over some small trees and end up right around where I was hoping - 125 yards out. I pulled 9 iron and put the ball just short of the pin. Miss a makeable birdie putt and tap in for Par

Hole 11 - 527 yard

I love this hole. It's hard, but it appeals to me. Big, sweeping dog-leg right with giant bunkers and water to contend with. The tee shot is down a big hill, so I was amped to hit it in the fairway. I hit a crappy 3 iron (hook) to just off the fairway left. I had a horrible lie with the ball way below me feet and my second shot is basically a topped 5 iron to the bottom of the hill. I'm looking at a 210 yard shot to the green, uphill and across water and a bunker. I grabbed 3 iron and went for it knowing I wouldn't make the green. I ended up 15 yards short, right in front. Beauty of a pitch shot to less than two feet for a par.

The condensed version is that I ended up +1 on the three of them, even with a few poor shots. I'm enjoying that I can hit fairways more than not with the V2 long irons and that I can hit accurate layups and approaches with the mid/short irons. ALso, when I'm missing fairways, I'm not missing by much.

I have some more thoughts, but they will have to wait for a bit.

 

[TRyan]

Nice writeup Hawk! Looks like when you make good contact these irons just flat out work for you. I have read a bit about the toe digging, are you going to get the lie angles checked?

 

[Hawk]

Nice writeup Hawk! Looks like when you make good contact these irons just flat out work for you. I have read a bit about the toe digging, are you going to get the lie angles checked?

Eventually, but I'm always finding a way to just go play or hit the range instead. I feel like my time is limited and I want to get as much golf in as humanly possible. Right now, it's only with the long irons and when I hit them off the grass. I don't notice any of the other signs of needed an upright lie with the other irons.

 

[Buckjob]

interesting hitting irons off the tee on a par 5. ive started to play more conservative since ive been hitting my irons well and my scores have shown improvement. Glad to see your hitting them well Hawk! still some sweet looking irons. only concern would be glare from the chrome but so sexy looking i might just have to wear shades if the glare was bad! lol

 

[Hawk]

12 holes of golf - shortened due to a sick boy
60's with moderate winds
Continued


Missing Long

Ironically, I had a day where I was feeling pretty accurate, yet 1) I had to leave early and 2) I missed long a few times. This was sort of frustrating coming from a guy that never misses long and also doesn't hit a ton of greens.

Spoiler

155 yards - 5 iron

This was an approach on the 2nd hole. I had hit a 3 wood to center of the fairway. The back of the green was 175, so I took the 5 iron. I hit a great ball that was headed straight for the flag. Hit behind it and bounced off the back of the green, which is down a small hill. Set up a really horrible chip shot and two putt for a bogey. The greens here are usually soft, but have really dried out.

150 yards - 6 iron

This was the approach on the 3rd hole. I put the driver a bit into the left rough. Normally, I would have clubbed up a bit here as the flag was in the middle, but I was thinking about the previous hole, so I went with the club that should have gotten me to the flag. Again, hit it just past the flag and bounced to the fringe. Putt from fringe for par.

130 yards - 7 iron

This was my 3rd shot on a par 4 that is around 415 yards. It's a hole that normally destroys me since you have to hit an accurate drive and I'm still usually looking at a long approach. I didn't get as close as I wanted when playing to a number and was left with 130 yards uphill to a back flag. I picked the 7 iron since it would have been enough to cover the change in elevation. Hit it past and ended up on the back fringe, above the hole. Bad spot for a chip shot, which I wussied to nowhere. 2 putts for a double.

Basically, the point of all this was that 1) I'm hitting these farther more often than I was at first, which I'm going to attribute to not hitting them fat and 2) the greens were freaking hard. I still should have been able to stick those shots, but the e6 + hard greens isn't a great combo.


Missing Short


I figured I might as well highlight a couple of these to give an idea of what a fat shot or mishit can do to you with the V2's.

Spoiler

145 yards - 7 iron off the tee

This is a fairly straightforward par 3. Bunkers to the left and right at the front of the green. The flag was up front and I normally would have clubbed up, but I was still a bit confused by the long misses. I fat a shot and it goes a little left and is short. Not in the bunker, but right on the slope leading to one. I have the ball WAY below my feet, Blade a wedge across the green. Then I fat another one barely onto the green. Two putt double. Lame.

143 yards - 7 iron off the tee

I'm actually not going to recap since the it is the same iron, but I fatted it a bit, missed short, but center. Chipped and two putted for bogey.

This really shows that good contact is key to bringing out the best in these irons. Good club selection to minimized bad misses is important if you aren't a good ball striker.

 

[Hawk]

interesting hitting irons off the tee on a par 5. ive started to play more conservative since ive been hitting my irons well and my scores have shown improvement. Glad to see your hitting them well Hawk! still some sweet looking irons. only concern would be glare from the chrome but so sexy looking i might just have to wear shades if the glare was bad! lol

I was going to write about that tonight! The topline glares pretty bad if the sun is overhead. I think it's definitely something W/S should look at going forward.

 

[Griff]

Hope your boy gets better quick, Hawk!

Again I have some catching up to do in this thread. Looking forward to it!

 

[War Eagle]

I really like how you put that, Hawk. "Good contact is the key to bringing out the best in the irons." That could not be any more true. I know a lot of time, people want and need forgiveness in irons, but what I have learned since I began putting these in play a few weeks back, is that I have had no choice but to learn how to strike the ball better, I know that if I do not get a good swing and make solid contact, I will not hit these well at all. There has been quite an adjustment period, and I am still adjusting, but I have learned a lot about things that I thought was doing right when it came to hitting my irons.

 

[Hawk]

Testing Date: 10/9/2011
9 hole executive (2,300 yards)
10-15mph winds

I headed out for a quick 9 hole round Sunday afternoon. Just wanted somewhere that I could hit irons, so I went to a short course. Par 4's ranging from 240-350, which gave me a chance to hit every iron in the bag. Tried to do some phone video, but it wasn't great.

V2's in the wind
I had the chance to hit balls in crosswinds, headwinds and tail winds during this round. Only one hole was in a tailwind, so I won't really touch on that. Results were pretty typical of what you'd expect anyway.

Headwinds
I'm hitting these irons high enough now that headwinds can really be bothersome. I'm definitely clubbing up - it seems like one club for about 10 mph of wind - or trying to hit the ball low.

*Shot 1 - Tee shot with 5 iron
This was a short par 4 and I was playing to a number, so I went 5 iron. Hit it clean into a headwind that was coming slightly left to right. Ball just went sky high and got knocked down about 3 feet off the right side of the fairway. Left me with a fine shot in, but I lost a good club or two in distance. Actually did this twice since I was hitting two balls. They were within a couple yards of each other and set up the next two shots.

*Shots 2 and 3 - 110 yards - 9 iron and 7 iron
This is copied from what I wrote yesterday:

I normally would take a PW from the distance I was (110), but I clubbed up to a nine with one ball. Hit the green almost pin high. In retrospect, I learned yesterday that the wind I was playing in was probably enough to take two clubs off on full shots, but it worked out fine.

For the second ball I tried the 7 iron knockdown and stuck it about 10 feet from the pin. Gripped down and held off my finish with a partial swing. Really low, cut through the wind, and stopped fast. I liked it! It's something I plan to keep working on, but you can really keep the ball low with these if you need to.

The synopsis is that if you are hitting these high, they will be shorter in a head wind. That's pretty much a given. I'm losing about a club for every 10 mph of wind. The knockdown shot really works well and is something I plan to continue working on. You can really keep the ball low with these irons if you want to, which is not something that I was really able to do with the Redlines I played in the past.

Crosswinds
A high ball is going to get moved by a crosswind and these irons are not an exception to that rule. I did hit some greens in a stiff crosswind during this round by purposely aiming right. The good example I'll use is a 9 iron shot I had from the rough and the poor example on a 175 yard par 3:

*Shot 1 - 9 iron - 120 yards - right to left wind, just a little back towards me
This was definitely the shot of the day. I hit my tee shot into a pond (due to a hooked 4 iron) and had to drop behind it. I was left with a clear view to a pin that was right in the center of the green. Due to the crosswinds I aimed at the right edge of the green. Ball flight was really high and almost looked like an intentional draw. Really, it was a straight ball that just got moved by the wind. I ended up 3 feet from the pin, directly above it. Actually made the par putt.

*Sort 2 - 4 iron - 175 yards from the tee - left to right wind
This was the first hole and it's a par 3 of decent length. I basically walked from the car to the tee, so I hadn't thought much about the wind. The flag was in the center of the green, so I aimed at it and I hit a great shot - that is until the wind grabbed it and it went right. The ball was fairly high and just sort of lazily drifted right on me. It took a bounce and I ended up pin high, about 10 feet off the green. Chipped on and made a putt for par.

I was pretty happy with the results I saw in windy conditions. I know what it takes to get certain distances into a headwind now, which should be valuable going forward. High full shots lose distance and go higher, but I'm able to keep the ball low with the V2's. I still prefer the full shot with extra club(s), but I'm going to keep practicing keeping the ball low as I think it will be a valuable shot to have.

 

[Hawk]

I really like how you put that, Hawk. "Good contact is the key to bringing out the best in the irons." That could not be any more true. I know a lot of time, people want and need forgiveness in irons, but what I have learned since I began putting these in play a few weeks back, is that I have had no choice but to learn how to strike the ball better, I know that if I do not get a good swing and make solid contact, I will not hit these well at all. There has been quite an adjustment period, and I am still adjusting, but I have learned a lot about things that I thought was doing right when it came to hitting my irons.

That's sort of what I've seen, mainly with fat shots. It became apparent within a few days that I was going to really struggle if I hit the ball fat at all with these.
I'm lucky that I had some time with a pro earlier in the year working on that exact swing flaw, so I had some drills to help me.

 

[Damaikis]

I like the reviews Hawk, especially when you talk about performance in the wind as that is a factor not always talked about. These irons seem epic all around.

You guys have talked about tempo a fair amount, and I'd like to hear a bit more if I could: how does quickening your tempo take away from the overall performance of these clubs compared to other sets? I assume a nice smooth tempo is the best way to get a good strike with these?

Thanks!

 

[War Eagle]

I like the reviews Hawk, especially when you talk about performance in the wind as that is a factor not always talked about. These irons seem epic all around.

You guys have talked about tempo a fair amount, and I'd like to hear a bit more if I could: how does quickening your tempo take away from the overall performance of these clubs compared to other sets? I assume a nice smooth tempo is the best way to get a good strike with these?

Thanks!

At first, I was dead set on needing to slow my tempo down and keep it smooth. The more that I hit the V2s, and the more I reduce hitting fat shots, the better I feel that I can speed it up a bit. My issues with speeding the tempo up, is that my swing will get too steep and I will dig in under the ball, and have very poor results. Ive said it multiple times, with my Burner 2.0s, I can "grip and rip" and not have to worry too much as I get good forgiveness from them. With the V2s, I feel I need to have a more concentrated swing, and keep my tempo nice and smooth (not much forgiveness to speak of).

 

[Damaikis]

At first, I was dead set on needing to slow my tempo down and keep it smooth. The more that I hit the V2s, and the more I reduce hitting fat shots, the better I feel that I can speed it up a bit. My issues with speeding the tempo up, is that my swing will get too steep and I will dig in under the ball, and have very poor results. Ive said it multiple times, with my Burner 2.0s, I can "grip and rip" and not have to worry too much as I get good forgiveness from them. With the V2s, I feel I need to have a more concentrated swing, and keep my tempo nice and smooth (not much forgiveness to speak of).

Thanks for the response WE! These sound like they could really help in the ball striking/tempo aspect of one's game. They interest me a ton.

 

[Howzat]

I like the reviews Hawk, especially when you talk about performance in the wind as that is a factor not always talked about. These irons seem epic all around.

You guys have talked about tempo a fair amount, and I'd like to hear a bit more if I could: how does quickening your tempo take away from the overall performance of these clubs compared to other sets? I assume a nice smooth tempo is the best way to get a good strike with these?

Thanks!

I think WE said it very well. For me it is a slower tempo on the back swing or I will come down to steep and hit it fat. If I am smooth through that back swing I can then swing a little harder to get a bit more out of the club if needed at least w/ the short irons.

 

[the_paulo]

This is going well guys, great work so far.

Sounds like these irons are quite similar in some ways to the ones I've been tasked with testing - especially in as much as they put a premium on consistent ball striking. A smooth tempo and clean hit on the ball seems to give results. I guess learning to smooth it out and hit it clean can't be a bad thing if it's working!

 

[Howzat]

This is going well guys, great work so far.

Sounds like these irons are quite similar in some ways to the ones I've been tasked with testing - especially in as much as they put a premium on consistent ball striking. A smooth tempo and clean hit on the ball seems to give results. I guess learning to smooth it out and hit it clean can't be a bad thing if it's working!

Thanks Paulo! For me that was kind of the plan this year. Playing at a 14 HC I likely should have been playing more of a GI club than a GE club. I decided to go with the MP 53's, have some lessons, change my swing, and work on my ball striking this year and not worry too much about the score. For me the "players" irons force me to concentrate a bit more on each swing and I am a much better player because of it. Testing the V2's has me using longer irons than I normally would and attempting shots and would not have tried if I wasn't testing the club. This has also made me more comfortable with some partial shots that I would not normally attempt and improved my course management.

 

[Hawk]

I like the reviews Hawk, especially when you talk about performance in the wind as that is a factor not always talked about. These irons seem epic all around.

You guys have talked about tempo a fair amount, and I'd like to hear a bit more if I could: how does quickening your tempo take away from the overall performance of these clubs compared to other sets? I assume a nice smooth tempo is the best way to get a good strike with these?

Thanks!

Compared to others, I would say not much different to be honest. This year I have really worked hard on slowing down my backswing and ensuring that I actually complete it before coming down on the ball. I was doing that prior to this testing and I think it's helped me during it.

Bad things happen to me with every club in my bag when I'm too short on my backswing.

This is going well guys, great work so far.

Sounds like these irons are quite similar in some ways to the ones I've been tasked with testing - especially in as much as they put a premium on consistent ball striking. A smooth tempo and clean hit on the ball seems to give results. I guess learning to smooth it out and hit it clean can't be a bad thing if it's working!

I think the biggest thing for me has been working on hitting the ball first. I cannot hit a good shot with the V2's unless I do that. I don't know that I'm approaching any shot with a different mindset or level of focus, but I've practiced harder on that miss, which has helped me minimize it. I still get some, but it's getting better.

 

[Howzat]

Test Date: October 11, 2011
Location: Blackduck Golf Course – 3029 Yard 9 Hole
Conditions: 70* and 10-15 MPH winds
Ball Used: Bridgestone B330 RX, B330 S, Titleist Pro V1
Focus: 3 Iron vs. TM3 Mashie
Test Clubs: Wilson Staff FG Tour V2 (KBS tour shafts)

I wanted to do a direct comparison between the 3 iron from the Wilson Staff FG Tour V2’s and the club I typically use which is the Cleveland Mashie Hybrid Tour Version 20.5*. This may not be a fair matchup but I wanted to know what I am missing by not typically carrying a 3 or 4 iron.

Off the tee: The 3 iron shinned my last time out hitting only irons and did not disappoint today. When well struck I am getting 200 yards carry. It is very straight and accurate. The Mashie is not quite as accurate for me but very close. It seems to launch at a similar angle but end up getting a bit higher and carries about 20 yards farther.

I tested the two clubs on a 200 yard par 3. First shot with the 3-iron, I took my eye off the ball and got it very fat. Ball went straight about 100 yards. 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] attempt was a well struck shot that was on the left edge of the green towards the front. First shot with the Mashie I was pin high but about 20 yards right of the green. 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] shot was landed towards the back of the green and rolled off.

I tested the clubs again on a short 300 yard par 4. Both performed very well splitting the fairway but the Mashie was again about 20 yards longer.

Winner: Mashie TM3, launches higher, lands softer, and goes longer.

From the deck: Results were similar to those off the tee with a bit lower launch as expected without the aid of a tee. I also had a slight down hill lie making the shot a little more difficult. I was expecting the lie to maybe give the iron an advantage to get under the ball a bit better.

The test shot for this was a 240 yards shot to the flag with a river cutting across the fairway which needed 175 yards carry to clear. The V2 3-iron was a mid/low trajectory bullet that carried about 200 yards and rolled out another 5. The Mashie was a mid trajectory rocket that carried 220 with basically no rollout.

Winner: Mashie M3, tough to argue how easy it is to hit and the extra distance doesn’t hurt either.

Overall: I was really excited about how the 3-iron in this set performed for my in my all iron round. So much so that I wanted to see how it performed against the club that normally has that spot. I don’t think I was comparing apples to apples but since we can only carry 14 clubs these are competing for similar spots in my bag. A better comparison distance wise would have likely been my Mashie TM4 but I did not have it with me.

The biggest difference I noticed besides distance was that if I took my eye off the ball or didn’t have my best swing the Mashie still performs where the 3-iron will lose a bunch of distance. For me the forgiveness of the hybrid makes more sense than carrying a long iron.

 

[TRyan]

I like this test Howzat. Figured the mashie would win, but nice to see your hitting the 3-iron so well

 

[War Eagle]

Like that idea Howzat, very interesting. I am similar to you, would definitely go hybrid over a 3iron, if not for any other reason than feel at impact.

 

[Tadashi70]

Howzat I like the test, and the results are what I expected. Keep up the good work.

 

[Hawk]

That was a neat little thing to do, Howzat. I'm actually carrying both right now, but had to pull a wedge to accommodate the extra club.

 

[the_paulo]

Paulo, hit the range and got some feedback from the rough for you.

I dropped a few balls down in the thick stuff on the side of the range and hit a few difference clubs. I hit the 8 iron first, as I know my distance with the 8 quite well and am comfortable here. I choked down a bit and put a good swing on it. The V2 cut through the rough nicely, got the ball up in the air quick and had a nice distance on it. I was short of my target but about 20 yards. Hit a few more shots and was consistently short of the target. I switched to the 7 from the 8, same swing and was getting the distance that I wanted. It really was effortless on the swing to get through the rough, and I was making good contact with the ball. I feel that I may have been hitting a bit high on the face, and if so, I was consistent with it.

I hit the 9, then the PW from the rough, and was consistent with distance as I saw with the 7 and 8. What I take away from this is simple, club up when in the rough with the V2s. I was choking down on the grip a bit to get through the rough, so I knew there would be some distance loss. But when I clubbed up, I was hitting my target area consistently.

So, with that said. I would say the V2s performed quite well for me out of the rough. I didnt feel like I was getting "caught" up in the thicker grass, as I was able to get the club through it nicely. I have often had to club up with the V2s, so having to do that from the rough didnt come as a surprise to me.

Sorry it has taken me so long to respond, but thanks for this w.e

Pretty good results then. Sounds like the distance from all types of lies is quite predictable once you get used to irons. A little distance loss like you were experiencing is what I'd expect from all irons - just that I've been surprised by my experience from testing the Nikes.

As some of the other guys have mentioned recently, getting used to just clubbing up a little might be an adjustment for some but making sure you keep that smooth swing going really is worth taking time to think about.

So the V2's seem predictable and consistent from a variety of lies, and the turf interaction is pretty good? Not a bad thing at all!

I am happy to see people put Wilson Staff on their list of irons to try. I was in the same boat before the testing and likely wouldn't have given Wilson Staff much thought.

+1 to this. I have a set of fg59s, which I got for a real good price, and as a result ended up trying out all sorts of Wilson products that I had never previously considered hitting. Wilson Staff are putting out some real good equipment at the moment. There are threads on the DXI line on THP with some great testing and results which made me sit up and take notice.