Matrix White-Tie 6×3 Shaft Review

There are certain brand names that cause me to instantly think of words like “quality” and “performance”. As a hopeless gear-head when it comes to anything golf, one such company for me has always been Matrix.

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The White-Tie 6×3 is an evolution of the Ozik XCON platform for Matrix, a wildly popular shaft that was one of the first true low-spin and high-launch shafts brought to market. With this evolution, Matrix claims to have found a way to take that original platform and improve on not only its stability, but also its transfer of energy to increase ball speed. To most golfers, low-spin and high-launch is the holy grail of golf shafts, so I was naturally intrigued to try this one out.

FROM THE COMPANY:

“The OZIK X3 White Tie generates from the highly successful OZIK XCON, performing with the same high launch, low spin characteristics. The Matrix R&D team took the designs of the XCON and found a way to increase the stability and provide a tighter feel through the shaft in the OZIK X3, without having to increase the overall weight. The OZIK X3 has a progressively linear graduation at impact, making it more efficient in energy, travel and transfer, resulting in higher ball speed.”

TECH:
The White-Tie makes use of many different R&D capabilities that Matrix has developed over the years and continues to evolve and adapt today, including:

AVF – Angular Velocity Fulcrum

  • The purpose of AVF is to allow the butt section to serve as a literal fulcrum to transfer energy from the large/strong butt section to the tip of the shaft allowing increased force into the ball and more launch/spin control.

CFI – Circumferential Flexural Integrity

  • This is a staple of Matrix golf shafts ensuring that the flexing is uniform and consistent 360 degrees around the shaft.

GEF – Gradient Energy Flow Tip Design

  • The GEF is a method to ensure that the energy during the swing actually transfers all the way down the shaft to the tip. This aids in the development of high-launch and low-spin golf shafts like the 6×3.

TTR – Torsional Tip Resistance

  • The TTR by Matrix is intended to reduce the amount of twisting of the tip section and therefore allow more energy to be transferred all the way through the shaft and into the ball upon contact leading to improved dispersion and spin.

The White-Tie X3 series is actually available in five different profiles. However, the focus of this particular review is on the 6×3 model. The 6×3 comes in five different flexes: Regular, Firm, Stiff, Strong, and Extra Stiff. The weights range spans the mid 60g to low 70g range. It certainly appears that Matrix has maintained their tradition of offering multiple options for a varying section of golfers.

LOOKS
No matter the model, Matrix is a company that always hits the nail on the head in the looks department. They always seem to put out something that fits my eye from an aesthetics standpoint, so it was no surprise I found the 6×3 attractive.

When you hear the name “White-Tie”, you have a solid idea of what to expect – white. However, Matrix didn’t just go simple white with this shaft. In fact, it is actually more of a matte and pearlescent tone of white that looks fantastic out in the sunlight. In addition, the text and branding on the White-Tie gives a nod to its Black-Tie cousin, with a similar emboldened Matrix logo in light gray that also has tiny “The Matrix” like text inside of the letters themselves. The rest of the labeling on the shaft is done in black, gray, and red, which really makes each portion stand out. For me, Matrix really did nail this one – simple, clean, and incredibly good looking.

PERFORMANCE
As mentioned previously, I received the Matrix 6×3 White-Tie in stiff flex and the shaft was in its raw state of 46” and 67g. I trimmed and installed it to play at my preferred length of 44.75” in a 10.5* Callaway RAZR Fit head. The weight was 65g upon installation. All settings on the head were left at stock/neutral for the purpose of putting this one through its paces.

Testing a shaft is a tricky situation. Every single one of us possesses different swings that undoubtedly fit some shafts better than others. With that in mind, my simple goal here is to discuss what performance traits I saw during my time with the 6×3.

I’ve traditionally shied away from “high-launch” shafts for the fear of higher spin (despite what shafts like the 6×3 and XCON claimed) and also because I thought I hit the ball too high off the tee already. This review was an interesting one for me because it actually happened right at a time when I finally realized I don’t hit the ball nearly as high as I believed.

The flight of the White-Tie was not as high as I had anticipated. In fact, I would classify it deeply into the upper limits of a mid-high flight. The launch itself got the ball up in a hurry, yet still on a climbing line. I never witnessed ballooning or loss of that penetrating ascent. My main fear of a high-launch shaft was that the winds in Oklahoma can be quite bad and really affect my game off the tee. Several of the rounds I played with the 6×3 had winds that were upwards of 20mph. Though I did tee the ball lower from time to time, the wind really did not alter my flight too much at all. This was an eye opener for a guy that had been obsessed with low and away from the wind. For me, the 6×3 was extremely stable through the swing and transition, but without giving up any sense of “feel” or making me believe I was swinging a piece of lumber. Additionally, on heel and toe misses I could tell where the miss was, but the vaunted shaft “shudder” really was not there for me.

In my time with the White-Tie, I was consistently seeing subtle fades from the tee. Other than my patented snap-hook, the only other thing I saw was a bit harder and accentuated fade. This did occasionally put me into some trouble, but it was nowhere near what I would call a slice. In my rounds with the 6×3 I wound up averaging 9.87 fairways hit per round, a number that I would be happy with day-to-day for my game. As far as distance is concerned, it was there and then some, as I consistently reached areas off the tee that were 5-10 yards farther than normal. I honestly think the added distance was a combination of the higher launch and the increased ball speed that it gave me. The time with the 6×3 has pushed me to further realize that my notions of avoiding shafts like this were unfounded.

CONCLUSION:
The White-Tie 6×3 is nothing less than I have come to expect out of Matrix and the golf shafts that they produce. Quality shines through the entire package, from the aesthetics all the way into the vast amount of R&D technology packed in. The fact that Matrix is willing to take a shaft that has already been incredibly successful for them and openly try to improve it says a lot to me. Matrix believes in what they do and that their products will achieve the claims that they make, and in my experiences they do. Will the White-Tie 6×3 be for everyone? Likely not, as we all have different fitting needs, but I certainly believe there is a large group of golfers out there that could benefit from what the White-Tie brings to the table after a proper fitting.

For more information about the Matrix x3 White-Tie series, check out their website at www.matrixshafts.com.

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James Miles
James is a staff writer for The Hackers Paradise along with being a professional educator. With his background in education James seeks to broaden his own knowledge while also sharing it with all those who share his passion for the game.
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