Nike VR Pro Combo Irons - Forum Testing Review

Those are some great pics and comparisons thank you for posting them for us, I think it's great to see them compared to so many different clubs.
 
I know I'm going on a bit, but there's one thing that my pic taking really highlighted to me and I wanted to show it in one post. It has been mentioned time and again in the testing by everyone, and that is the X3X grooves. Nike tells us that the X3X grooves are designed to ensure better contact and consistency, as well as maximise spin (especially from the rough) under the new R&A/USGA regulations on grooves.

I'm not speaking about performance here. The Trackman stats I posted a while ago tell you that this technology works for this comparison. I have posted before that the grooves don't cause me any problems to clean, and this is still true. But when put up against the Wilson fg59, you can really see the difference in groove pattern.

For reference, there are 13 grooves on the face of my Wilson fg59 PW. On the Nike VR Pro Combo wedge, there are 19. That's quite a difference, so Nike must really believe in this tech.

Here are the comparison pics -

3 iron -
3ironface.jpg


5 iron -
5ironface.jpg


PW -
pwface.jpg


I must admit to even now being surprised when I put both club faces up against each other. It really is quite a difference. It's not something I notice when on the course, or putting the club behind the ball, but it's worth highlighting the different tech that Nike has incorporated into these irons to make them top performers.
 
wow paulo. some great pix and thoughts. surprising the pro combos are almost as compact the the blades, but yet offer way more forgiveness!! yet another iron set thats on my list for 2012

Awesome stuff Paulo, very impressive write ups.

Those are some great pics and comparisons thank you for posting them for us, I think it's great to see them compared to so many different clubs.

Thanks guys, these irons really do stand up to a comparison with every other iron I can find! :D
 
Great stuff Paulo. The thing that really sticks out to me in those pics is the grooves. I don't know why but I instantly got comfortable with the look of the Nike face with all those grooves. Now I try other clubs and they just look weird to me
 
that is alot of grooves! but the tech works so why not
 
PGA tour average is around 14*, LPGA around 17*, so you are on the high side there, although you did say that the simulator was giving different numbers all over the place, so I don't know if I'd take that as gospel.

It's saying you are launching at an average of 18*, and coming down at 42*. To contrast, on my first Trackman session I was launching the 6 iron at 12.8*, and landing at 44.3* with quite a bit more roll out than you're seeing. Obviously I had wind conditions to take into account, but that strikes me as strange given your launch and distance numbers. I don't really know what I'm looking for though!

Yeah, admittedly I play a pretty high ball, but I am becoming less and less concerned about it because I don't seem to be losing much distance, and frankly, having 6 irons and 5 irons landing and stopping in their tracks is kind of awesome.

I also play the x100 shafts which I would think are one of the lowest launching shafts on the market. I had changed my swing a bit midway through the year which I feel like did bring my launch down, but I began fighting big draws and resorted back to my standard swing because of it.
 
Also Paulo, great comparison pics man!!! They really are sleek, and the groove variable is perfectly displayed which I love.

Standing over a non x3x groove pattern at this point is just awkward for me.
 
Great stuff Paulo. The thing that really sticks out to me in those pics is the grooves. I don't know why but I instantly got comfortable with the look of the Nike face with all those grooves. Now I try other clubs and they just look weird to me

Also Paulo, great comparison pics man!!! They really are sleek, and the groove variable is perfectly displayed which I love.

Standing over a non x3x groove pattern at this point is just awkward for me.

Thanks guys. I agree with your thoughts here too. If anything, you'd think that the X3X grooves would look shallow and too much, but actually, even looking at the pics, I find the regular grooves looking out of place and too far apart now...weird!
 
Going by all posts by the testers it seems that you are all more then happy with the blade-splits sections of this set but NONE of you are completly sold on the pockets. So will any of you be keeping the 3-4 irons in the bag long term? or be going with hybrids?
 
Going by all posts by the testers it seems that you are all more then happy with the blade-splits sections of this set but NONE of you are completly sold on the pockets. So will any of you be keeping the 3-4 irons in the bag long term? or be going with hybrids?

I really think the only struggle I'm having with the pocket cavity is an adjustment. I've had ups and downs with them since the start, but I think I'm more consistent with them than I was with my previous irons. I do hit them well generally, and I'm starting to understand them a little better, so they'll stay in the bag for now. I can see me having an experiment with a hybrid to replace the 3 iron, but one of the motivating factors of that is the fact that I just love buying new clubs! :D

The 4 iron is pretty solid in my bag. I've found one or 2 shots on my home course that the 4 iron is just perfect for.
 
Going by all posts by the testers it seems that you are all more then happy with the blade-splits sections of this set but NONE of you are completly sold on the pockets. So will any of you be keeping the 3-4 irons in the bag long term? or be going with hybrids?

I think the 4 iron will be staying. 3I will have to fight for it. I've gotten a lot better with the PC's but they are still very hit or miss
 
Going by all posts by the testers it seems that you are all more then happy with the blade-splits sections of this set but NONE of you are completly sold on the pockets. So will any of you be keeping the 3-4 irons in the bag long term? or be going with hybrids?

That is true for me. 4 iron is pretty solid off of the tee for me and will give me about 190 or so. I am still not great with it off of the deck but it will be staying in the bag.

The 3 iron will be dropped for a hybrid. I struggle immensely with it off the tee and deck (video on Monday night of me trying it on the course). For some reason, the 3 and 4 iron feel like completely different clubs even though that is not supposed to be the case.

I did have early success with the 3 iron off of the tee but I was practicing it quite a bit. I enjoy practicing but hard to keep going after it when there are better options in a hybrid for your game.


Tappin' from my iPad!
 
Going by all posts by the testers it seems that you are all more then happy with the blade-splits sections of this set but NONE of you are completly sold on the pockets. So will any of you be keeping the 3-4 irons in the bag long term? or be going with hybrids?

Thanks for the question.

I agree with cook here.

The 3i has already been replaced with a hybrid for actual rounds, but I think the 4i will be staying in the bag. I am more confident off the tee than the deck, but have had recent success in both cases. I will keep testing the 3i and hope to get it figured out. I posted a video on Sunday that had some signs of struggles with the long irons.
 
So I just saw mcooks update and man what an update. Great stuff! Glad to see your really dialing the clubs in.
 
I just want to say, the testers have been providing outstanding feedback on these. I really liked these irons the couple of times I test drove them at a local golf shop. I found I hit them better than the x22's I'm gaming now, which despite being a less forgiving iron the results were better than when I was swinging the x22 side by side.
 
I just wanted to tell you guys that you have been rocking this thread. Great job. Cool vids, nice pics and great reviews! I still haven't hit these, but REALLY want to! I love the look, and the way you guys rave about these bad boys, I am itching to compare them to the 2.0's. Once again, thanks, and great job guys!
 
Going by all posts by the testers it seems that you are all more then happy with the blade-splits sections of this set but NONE of you are completly sold on the pockets. So will any of you be keeping the 3-4 irons in the bag long term? or be going with hybrids?

I'm not an offcial tester but yes, the 3/4 have both been ditched. The 3 and I didn't get along while the 4 was inconsistent. If I'm grooving on the club at the range there's no problem with it but for the 3 or 4 random shots it sees on the course, it's not grooved and bad things happen. I also find at that club length, I like to feel the weight of the club head more which is something the hybrid gives me that the iron doesn't without dumping some powder down the shaft. If I'm tired, I'll get quicker on my transition along side of having no idea where the head is in my swing which usually leads to topped balls or a beaver pelt flying with the ball.

Those issues are my personal ones though so I'm not prepaired to call the 3/4 bad, they just don't do what I need.
 
I'm not an offcial tester but yes, the 3/4 have both been ditched. The 3 and I didn't get along while the 4 was inconsistent. If I'm grooving on the club at the range there's no problem with it but for the 3 or 4 random shots it sees on the course, it's not grooved and bad things happen. I also find at that club length, I like to feel the weight of the club head more which is something the hybrid gives me that the iron doesn't without dumping some powder down the shaft. If I'm tired, I'll get quicker on my transition along side of having no idea where the head is in my swing which usually leads to topped balls or a beaver pelt flying with the ball.

Those issues are my personal ones though so I'm not prepaired to call the 3/4 bad, they just don't do what I need.

What a great way of saying it. I think the 3/4I are getting some bad press in here and I am one of those guys saying some somewhat negative things about them. But, at least what I say should be read in the perspective of a mid capper who probably should be playing GI clubs. The PC's are nice irons that do offer some forgiveness that a lot of irons in the Players category do not. They just don't offer what I need them to offer. ST that is a great way of stating it!!
 
What a great way of saying it. I think the 3/4I are getting some bad press in here and I am one of those guys saying some somewhat negative things about them. But, at least what I say should be read in the perspective of a mid capper who probably should be playing GI clubs. The PC's are nice irons that do offer some forgiveness that a lot of irons in the Players category do not. They just don't offer what I need them to offer. ST that is a great way of stating it!!

I don't think you guys have been negative about the 3/4 irons, I think you have simply been saying that those irons have been difficult to hit, which is true, there is a reason most of us are playing hybrids. The fact that they are harder to hit is a function of the design of the long iron, not the design of the Nike club. I have to say, I will probably never again play an iron lower than a 5 iron, and I think most people feel the same way I do.

Keep up the great work Canadan and Chunky, I've really enjoyed reading your perspectives on these irons.
 
I don't think you guys have been negative about the 3/4 irons, I think you have simply been saying that those irons have been difficult to hit, which is true, there is a reason most of us are playing hybrids. The fact that they are harder to hit is a function of the design of the long iron, not the design of the Nike club. I have to say, I will probably never again play an iron lower than a 5 iron, and I think most people feel the same way I do.

Keep up the great work Canadan and Chunky, I've really enjoyed reading your perspectives on these irons.

I appreciate that man. I think I wrote it poorly though. IMO these irons are a players iron. A "player" IMO would have a different perspective on the difficulty level of the Pocket Cavs. I think they would find them forgiving since when they miss, they miss by very little as opposed to my miss which is way out on the toe/high or off the heel/shank which kills the distance. Still not sure I'm saying it correctly.
 
Cheers CL. I know I've been a negative nelly against them for some time in this thread and I really thought I should touch on that point. Just because they aren't for me, doesn't mean they don't do what it says on the tin. I just have personal quirks that get in the way of them performing their function.

When I hand them over to friends, they murder the things so it's not the iron's fault.

Now aside from that mush gushy stuff, I still stand by the fact that I don't think they match up feel wise to the rest of the set on even slight misses. When I miss with a blade or split, I know I did from the feeling and the ball flight but when I miss with a pocket that reverberation goes all the way up my arm. Not exactly an indearing feature to me since the irons I miss with are the 3/4's of the world.
 
Cheers CL. I know I've been a negative nelly against them for some time in this thread and I really thought I should touch on that point. Just because they aren't for me, doesn't mean they don't do what it says on the tin. I just have personal quirks that get in the way of them performing their function.

When I hand them over to friends, they murder the things so it's not the iron's fault.

Now aside from that mush gushy stuff, I still stand by the fact that I don't think they match up feel wise to the rest of the set on even slight misses. When I miss with a blade or split, I know I did from the feeling and the ball flight but when I miss with a pocket that reverberation goes all the way up my arm. Not exactly an indearing feature to me since the irons I miss with are the 3/4's of the world.

Completely agree on the feel part. It is insane the difference. Even when hit well, I think the PC's have a weird feel to them. Trampoliney if I can make up a word
 
Completely agree on the feel part. It is insane the difference. Even when hit well, I think the PC's have a weird feel to them. Trampoliney if I can make up a word

Absolutely. It kinda feels like the ball melts into the face just a bit and springs off kinda like the ball was shot from a slingshot. Given Nike runs with the slingshot/power bow tech, I guess that might be the point?

I've still got my eye on the new split set and hope their the same as the splits in the combo's. I'm quite interested to see if a split 4 iron would perform/feel any different.
 
Absolutely. It kinda feels like the ball melts into the face just a bit and springs off kinda like the ball was shot from a slingshot. Given Nike runs with the slingshot/power bow tech, I guess that might be the point?

I've still got my eye on the new split set and hope their the same as the splits in the combo's. I'm quite interested to see if a split 4 iron would perform/feel any different.

That is exactly how I would describe it. Man it is like you took the jumbled stupid thoughts in my head and wrote them down legibly. Could it be from the open cavity?
 
I'm not an offcial tester but yes, the 3/4 have both been ditched. The 3 and I didn't get along while the 4 was inconsistent. If I'm grooving on the club at the range there's no problem with it but for the 3 or 4 random shots it sees on the course, it's not grooved and bad things happen. I also find at that club length, I like to feel the weight of the club head more which is something the hybrid gives me that the iron doesn't without dumping some powder down the shaft. If I'm tired, I'll get quicker on my transition along side of having no idea where the head is in my swing which usually leads to topped balls or a beaver pelt flying with the ball.

Those issues are my personal ones though so I'm not prepaired to call the 3/4 bad, they just don't do what I need.

I completely agree with this as well. I have said numerous times in this thread that testers that are "pure ball strikers" are not having as much difficulty as I am. These are definitely players irons in my opinion but offer just enough forgiveness in the splits and blades that they can be played by a decent ball striker.
 
Back
Top