Nike VR Pro Combo Irons - Forum Testing Review

[Canadan]

Canadan, fantastic stuff. Great video! I need to do something similar to that.

I saw these beauties in the shop the other day and couldn't quite looking at them. Absolutely fantastic.

I really recommend getting your swing on video... You probably think you're doing a handful of things during your swing that you aren't. I'm not pro, but it's really opened my eyes to a couple of the things I thought I was really exaggerating or not accomplishing during my swing which has helped me to correct them.

Great looking swing Canadan! Looks like the Pro Combo's are working out well for you. This has probably been asked already, but does the set progression affect you at all when hitting through the set on the practice range?

Thank you!! I wouldn't say it has botherred me at all, but I have started to expect a slightly different feel between the 5 and the 4. I imagine my swing is slightly different with the full cavities and I have seen a couple faded balls, rather than the splits which almost always have a slight draw.. I think it has more to do with the way I am swinging, but I'll certainly say the feel is different, and maybe that's causing me to strike the ball differently between the club types? They are just so much different from one another I think, that anyone hitting them is bound to feel, hear, and see a difference in the swing.

I have still yet to see a significant difference between the 8 and the 7 iron. I was expecting a big gap there, but I really don't think there is one.

 

[Canadan]

Are the grips getting damp from your hand sweat and not allowing you to grip the clubs well in the extreme humidity?

Not to the point where they were slipping, but they were retaining a bit of the sweat from my hands.. I found that carrying a wet towel and wiping my hands down made all the difference in the world, and that carrying the sweat from club to club was more of a user error than a grip error.

It may be different to those who play in climates like Florida, but for me in Ohio, I have a number of solutions to guarantee these grips won't negatively change my game.

 

[Chunkylover77]

So my son had a play date with a young girl in his class. The dad came over and I knew that he played golf. We started talking and I told him I was going to the range later. He decided to come also. When we got there he said lets play 9. No range balls or practice putts as it was already 7:30. I'm not expecting too much

10th hole—377--Short dogleg left par 4. Driver goes left and short. I’m in some deep rough with about 150 left. Pull 7I and hit a nice shot to the front of the green. Left with a long putt uphill I lag to 4 feet and sink that for 4

11th hole—336—Really tough hole. 2 separate fairways with bunkers all around the fairway and green. Hit driver to the right fairway. 100 left and hit PW to 15 feet. Just miss the putt and tap in for 4

12th hole—121—Short par 3 with a big pond sitting between you and the green. Hit a ¾ 9I right over the flag onto the back fringe. Lag down to 3 feet and sink that for 3

13th hole—397—Another difficult hole with bunkers placed in the landing area and surrounding the green. Hit driver in the middle of the fairway right past the 150 stake. Have to decide between ¾ 7 and full 8. Take the 8 and should have hit 7I. 8 goes into the front bunker. Hit a decent bunker shot that leaves me 10 feet. Just miss the putt and tap in for 5

14th hole—523—Tough driving hole with a stream on the left side and bunkers in the landing area. Hit 3W to the fairway. Chunk a 5I to the 140 mark. Hit 8I to 10 feet. Birdie putt just slides right at the end and tap in for 5

15th hole—405--Tough uphill par 4. Hit driver to the left rough. Try to muscle a Mashie through the rough and it gets stuck and I pull Mashie left and into a bunker. My ball is in mud at the bottom of the bunker. Hit it a little thin to the back of the fringe. Nice chip to a foot and tap in for 5

16th hole—298--My favorite hole. Short dogleg left par 4 with so many options. You can take it over the trees and try for the green. You can take 3W and cut the corner and leave a short chip. I take Mashie and hit to the 80 yard mark. ¾ PW to 8 feet. Just leave the uphill putt short and tap in for 4

17th hole—138—Shor t par 3 with some trouble left and front bunkers. Hit ¾ 9I to 13 feet. Putt veers left at the end and I tap in for 3

18th hole—492—Great finishing hole. Big pond between you and the fairway. Take driver to the middle of the fairway. Hit Mashie to the left of the green in the rough. Hit LW to the right fringe. Lag putt just breaks right at the end and I tap in for 5

Well not so bad. No warmup and I was not prepared at all for the round but I still go a solid +2. I am hitting these irons great. Feels like almost all of my shots are solid contact. Hit a shot or 2 that were a little chunky but I will do that from time to time with any club. So far really happy. The blades are surgical. That is simply the best word for them. I am so confident in them right now that I am angry if I don’t hit it inside 10 feet. My plan for tonight is to go to the practice green and practice my chipping with the PW.

 

[#Cookie]

Nice writeup CL! Surgical is a great term for the blades - oh so fun to hit!

 

[Hawk]

Another excellent round, Chunky!

Have to reiterate how well you guys are doing with this testing. Very impressive.

 

[MikeF]

Another excellent round, Chunky!

Have to reiterate how well you guys are doing with this testing. Very impressive.

+1, it was partially down to them that I just bought my set

 

[Hanks]

That's a serious statement...and probably very fitting for these clubs based on everyone's thoughts so far.

Well not so bad. No warmup and I was not prepared at all for the round but I still go a solid +2. I am hitting these irons great. Feels like almost all of my shots are solid contact. Hit a shot or 2 that were a little chunky but I will do that from time to time with any club. So far really happy. The blades are surgical. That is simply the best word for them. I am so confident in them right now that I am angry if I don’t hit it inside 10 feet. My plan for tonight is to go to the practice green and practice my chipping with the PW.

 

[mikedean441]

So my son had a play date with a young girl in his class. The dad came over and I knew that he played golf. We started talking and I told him I was going to the range later. He decided to come also. When we got there he said lets play 9. No range balls or practice putts as it was already 7:30. I'm not expecting too much

10th hole—377--Short dogleg left par 4. Driver goes left and short. I’m in some deep rough with about 150 left. Pull 7I and hit a nice shot to the front of the green. Left with a long putt uphill I lag to 4 feet and sink that for 4

11th hole—336—Really tough hole. 2 separate fairways with bunkers all around the fairway and green. Hit driver to the right fairway. 100 left and hit PW to 15 feet. Just miss the putt and tap in for 4

12th hole—121—Short par 3 with a big pond sitting between you and the green. Hit a ¾ 9I right over the flag onto the back fringe. Lag down to 3 feet and sink that for 3

13th hole—397—Another difficult hole with bunkers placed in the landing area and surrounding the green. Hit driver in the middle of the fairway right past the 150 stake. Have to decide between ¾ 7 and full 8. Take the 8 and should have hit 7I. 8 goes into the front bunker. Hit a decent bunker shot that leaves me 10 feet. Just miss the putt and tap in for 5

14th hole—523—Tough driving hole with a stream on the left side and bunkers in the landing area. Hit 3W to the fairway. Chunk a 5I to the 140 mark. Hit 8I to 10 feet. Birdie putt just slides right at the end and tap in for 5

15th hole—405--Tough uphill par 4. Hit driver to the left rough. Try to muscle a Mashie through the rough and it gets stuck and I pull Mashie left and into a bunker. My ball is in mud at the bottom of the bunker. Hit it a little thin to the back of the fringe. Nice chip to a foot and tap in for 5

16th hole—298--My favorite hole. Short dogleg left par 4 with so many options. You can take it over the trees and try for the green. You can take 3W and cut the corner and leave a short chip. I take Mashie and hit to the 80 yard mark. ¾ PW to 8 feet. Just leave the uphill putt short and tap in for 4

17th hole—138—Shor t par 3 with some trouble left and front bunkers. Hit ¾ 9I to 13 feet. Putt veers left at the end and I tap in for 3

18th hole—492—Great finishing hole. Big pond between you and the fairway. Take driver to the middle of the fairway. Hit Mashie to the left of the green in the rough. Hit LW to the right fringe. Lag putt just breaks right at the end and I tap in for 5

Well not so bad. No warmup and I was not prepared at all for the round but I still go a solid +2. I am hitting these irons great. Feels like almost all of my shots are solid contact. Hit a shot or 2 that were a little chunky but I will do that from time to time with any club. So far really happy. The blades are surgical. That is simply the best word for them. I am so confident in them right now that I am angry if I don’t hit it inside 10 feet. My plan for tonight is to go to the practice green and practice my chipping with the PW.

nice freaking round CL, sounds like you got the new clubs dialed in....already

 

[drewwood]

Great stuff from all you that are testing the Nikes.

 

[SFCoach]

Chunky, great stuff! Glad to see you're having success.

 

[arydolphin]

Great 9 holes Chunky! I'm sure that handicap will be dropping soon with scores like that.

If I wasn't getting a new set of irons for the Morgan Cup, I'd be in serious ponder mode on these irons. I've looked at them and thought that they were a little too demanding for my skill level, but seeing the feedback from the mid-handicappers in this thread has been enlightening to say the least. To the testers, keep up the great feedback!

 

[BamBooBender]

I really recommend getting your swing on video... You probably think you're doing a handful of things during your swing that you aren't. I'm not pro, but it's really opened my eyes to a couple of the things I thought I was really exaggerating or not accomplishing during my swing which has helped me to correct them.



Thank you!! I wouldn't say it has botherred me at all, but I have started to expect a slightly different feel between the 5 and the 4. I imagine my swing is slightly different with the full cavities and I have seen a couple faded balls, rather than the splits which almost always have a slight draw.. I think it has more to do with the way I am swinging, but I'll certainly say the feel is different, and maybe that's causing me to strike the ball differently between the club types? They are just so much different from one another I think, that anyone hitting them is bound to feel, hear, and see a difference in the swing.

I have still yet to see a significant difference between the 8 and the 7 iron. I was expecting a big gap there, but I really don't think there is one.

Thanks for the thorough reply. I've often wondered what a progressive set would be like, but it's hard to tell anything from just hitting the usual 6i demo club.

 

[JConn]

Thanks for the thorough reply. I've often wondered what a progressive set would be like, but it's hard to tell anything from just hitting the usual 6i demo club.

Try to find a Nike Demo day. The one I went to (happened to be at my work) had all three types of clubs. They had the 4i, 6i, and PW, with many different shafts to try.

 

[BamBooBender]

So my son had a play date with a young girl in his class. The dad came over and I knew that he played golf. We started talking and I told him I was going to the range later. He decided to come also. When we got there he said lets play 9. No range balls or practice putts as it was already 7:30. I'm not expecting too much

10th hole—377--Short dogleg left par 4. Driver goes left and short. I’m in some deep rough with about 150 left. Pull 7I and hit a nice shot to the front of the green. Left with a long putt uphill I lag to 4 feet and sink that for 4

11th hole—336—Really tough hole. 2 separate fairways with bunkers all around the fairway and green. Hit driver to the right fairway. 100 left and hit PW to 15 feet. Just miss the putt and tap in for 4

12th hole—121—Short par 3 with a big pond sitting between you and the green. Hit a ¾ 9I right over the flag onto the back fringe. Lag down to 3 feet and sink that for 3

13th hole—397—Another difficult hole with bunkers placed in the landing area and surrounding the green. Hit driver in the middle of the fairway right past the 150 stake. Have to decide between ¾ 7 and full 8. Take the 8 and should have hit 7I. 8 goes into the front bunker. Hit a decent bunker shot that leaves me 10 feet. Just miss the putt and tap in for 5

14th hole—523—Tough driving hole with a stream on the left side and bunkers in the landing area. Hit 3W to the fairway. Chunk a 5I to the 140 mark. Hit 8I to 10 feet. Birdie putt just slides right at the end and tap in for 5

15th hole—405--Tough uphill par 4. Hit driver to the left rough. Try to muscle a Mashie through the rough and it gets stuck and I pull Mashie left and into a bunker. My ball is in mud at the bottom of the bunker. Hit it a little thin to the back of the fringe. Nice chip to a foot and tap in for 5

16th hole—298--My favorite hole. Short dogleg left par 4 with so many options. You can take it over the trees and try for the green. You can take 3W and cut the corner and leave a short chip. I take Mashie and hit to the 80 yard mark. ¾ PW to 8 feet. Just leave the uphill putt short and tap in for 4

17th hole—138—Shor t par 3 with some trouble left and front bunkers. Hit ¾ 9I to 13 feet. Putt veers left at the end and I tap in for 3

18th hole—492—Great finishing hole. Big pond between you and the fairway. Take driver to the middle of the fairway. Hit Mashie to the left of the green in the rough. Hit LW to the right fringe. Lag putt just breaks right at the end and I tap in for 5

Well not so bad. No warmup and I was not prepared at all for the round but I still go a solid +2. I am hitting these irons great. Feels like almost all of my shots are solid contact. Hit a shot or 2 that were a little chunky but I will do that from time to time with any club. So far really happy. The blades are surgical. That is simply the best word for them. I am so confident in them right now that I am angry if I don’t hit it inside 10 feet. My plan for tonight is to go to the practice green and practice my chipping with the PW.

Great round Chunkylover! Good write up too. You had six birdie ops, a hot putter would have put you under par, fantastic! It's interesting that you're liking the blades so much coming off the di 11's. Its been my experience that a good set of blades, especially in the scoring clubs, are hard to beat.

 

[Canadan]

Thanks for the thorough reply. I've often wondered what a progressive set would be like, but it's hard to tell anything from just hitting the usual 6i demo club.

Yes, definitely.. I think this is one of the few sets that tells a very SMALL tale when only striking the 6.

 

[Canadan]

@nikegolf

AK might add a 2 iron to the bag for #TheOpen..We built him a VR Pro Combo (pocket & split cavity) to try http://twitpic.com/5pkzk9

..That is sick!! For all the wind that has been prevalent overseas, I don't blame him for giving one a shot!!

 

[Super Tuna]

@nikegolf


..That is sick!! For all the wind that has been prevalent overseas, I don't blame him for giving one a shot!!

I believe Casey also had one made up for him that he was showing off on twitter

 

[JConn]

Played nine holes this morning and played alone with no one in front or behind me, it was wonderful. I played two balls. One with my full set, the other with irons only (just 3-PW). What a blast. I enjoyed the different shots I had into greens and all the different strategy not having any wedges. I played the back nine of a course that is rated 71.4/124, and is 6615 yards, par 72 (36/36) I actually shot better with my irons only, as I had a few errant driver shots that cost me.

Irons only: 39
Birdies - 1
Pars - 5
Bogeys - 2
Double - 1

I have come to really enjoy the 3 and 4 irons, which were a large part of this round. I was averaging about 220 with the 3i give or take about 10 yards. The only double came from fading a three iron when I was setting up for a draw. I had a draw on the ball all day other than that shot.

Full set: 41
Birdies - 1
Pars - 3
Bogeys - 4
Double - 1

I didn't really drive the ball very well at all. I was forced to punch out or scramble most of the round. Thus, many bogeys.

I am really loving this set, especially now that I have dialed in the 3 and 4 irons. The 8-PW are still my favorite part of this set, but all of the clubs are absolutely wonderful. I've never been more confident standing over the ball.

Any questions or suggestions, let me know. I keep wanting to update, as I've played the last 5 days, but I don't want to sound like a broken record. Thanks again Nike and THP for this awesome opportunity.

 

[#Cookie]

Good stuff Jeff - interesting to see what happens to scoring when playing irons only. Beowulf shot lower I believe and I could have easily carded 40 without one stupid shank (ended with 42 instead). Definitely opens your eyes to playing differently (at least for me)!

 

[Chunkylover77]

I'm loving the irons only rounds guys. I'm going to have to try that. I'm looking for a handheld camcorder so that I can take some video. You guys are really stepping it up.

 

[Chunkylover77]

So my chipping practice got rained out. So I'm sitting here thinking about the blades in this set and why am I hitting them so damn good. For me I think it's because I am really focusing when I step up to hit these. I actually am thinking the word focus every time I hit them. I will be getting the Swing Thought focus band very soon. How is it for you guys? Do you guys find that your concentration ramps up for these irons?

 

[JConn]

So my chipping practice got rained out. So I'm sitting here thinking about the blades in this set and why am I hitting them so damn good. For me I think it's because I am really focusing when I step up to hit these. I actually am thinking the word focus every time I hit them. I will be getting the Swing Thought focus band very soon. How is it for you guys? Do you guys find that your concentration ramps up for these irons?

I completely agree. They forced me to think I had to focus more by the sheer looks of them. Now that I've gotten such good results out of them, I try to focus so I can take full advantage of how accurate these clubs are. Does that make sense?

As for your other post, I have the Kodak Playsport and enjoy it quite a bit. Full HD, waterproof, and easy to use. I should be uploading a couple videos very soon.

 

[#Cookie]

So my chipping practice got rained out. So I'm sitting here thinking about the blades in this set and why am I hitting them so damn good. For me I think it's because I am really focusing when I step up to hit these. I actually am thinking the word focus every time I hit them. I will be getting the Swing Thought focus band very soon. How is it for you guys? Do you guys find that your concentration ramps up for these irons?

I definitely focus better on the course than I do on the range and that was evident in the execution of my 3 iron testing yesterday. I would not attribute it only to focus but also confidence and the fact that the clubs are easy to hit.

I have been thinking about the ST band as well but that's for another thread. I took tonight off practice or playing but will be practicing again tomorrow after work. May do a short range session and then spend quite a bit of time on chipping, etc. I have had some really good experiences with the PW around the greens so far.

Was not planning to video tomorrow but if there is anything that anyone wants to see, let me know and I will gladly get it done!

 

[INgolfer]

I noticed that once when I hit the 9 iron from the set, I just seemed to be more focused. It makes me feel like I would actually play better with a combo set like this because I would be more focused. Let us know if that focus continues or if it runs out after the newness of the set goes away.

 

[Beowulf]

Do you guys find that your concentration ramps up for these irons?

Without a doubt. That may be some what attributable to the "honeymoon" phase, because we really want to see what these sweeties will do, but the more I hit, the better they are. Your adjective "surgical" is spot on. My focus is much more dialed in I think because with a really good swing and aim point, the results are marvelous.