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Some Wedge companies swear by face milling while others don't give it the time of day. There is no shortage of opinions on the web when it comes to the effects of wedges with milled faces.  Some say it allows for maximum allowable draft angles which in turn produces more consistent shots.  Other companies claim the surface roughness maximizes spin.

The truth is most professional players across all tours have traditional non milled faces choosing not to adopt milled faces.  I wanted to find out what you guy's have experienced and think of this in an anonymous poll.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

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We thought the ViQ had left us...

Earlier this year when Tourstage announced 5 new X-Blade models in a one time release including newly designed and forgiving X-Blade GR models, many of us in the golf industry thought it signaled the end of the ViQ line. The largest segment of golfers in Japan is comprised of the "average golfer" or as players in the West call it the mid to high handicapper. The ViQ line has long been a mainstay at the top of the sales charts for the average golfer battling perennial rival XXIO.

However in the last few years of ViQ models, we saw more tweaking of models rather than new innovation and the ViQ line's popularity waned a bit as companies like ONOFF, Fourteen, PRGR and of course American brands like Taylormade and Callaway ate into the ViQ's average golfer market share with new designs and awesome performing clubs. Tourstage was quiet since its most previous ViQ launch back in early 2008 but it turns out they were in fact taking the time to completey revamp the lineup with a visual, technology, and design overhaul.

But it is back with a new look and purpose...

So I received the new ViQ iron which looks nothing like the 2008 model. This is a very flashy iron and Tourstage boasts a lot of performance from all the new featueres it has put into this design.  With the X-Blade GR C-1 and P-1 comfortably satisfying most mid handicap players in Japan, it looks to me as if the ViQ has shifted its focus toward the high handicapper head in the average golfer group. The 2010 ViQ is designed as an automatic iron for maximum forgiveness and maximum distance.  I don't mind high tech looks but I find the new ViQ a bit too shiney and a bit too busy for my eye. Let's see if this high tech pays off where it really counts, feel, performance and forgiveness.

Inverted co-- .... no it's Super Turbo Rubber.

The 2010 ViQ utilizes several features to improve feel and forgiveness including a badge like emblem in the center of the cavity right by the sweet spot. I cannot help but be reminded of Taylormade's Inverted Cone at least visually from the outside. On the inside it is different as that badge covers Tourstage's Super Turbo Rubber which is meant to increase ball speeds at impact through its rebound characteristics and also improve feel but dampening impact. Feel is subjective and some people might like this and some might say it takes away too much feedback.  For the high handicapper its probably a good thing to minimize vibrations on miss hits and create any extra ball speed.

In front of the Super Turbo Ruber is a 1.85mm thick (or you could say thin) Hyper Maraging Steel face. There has been a huge shift in Japan when it comes to use of materials in average golfer irons and fairway woods from Titanium faces to Maraging steel faces.  Many manufacturers are finding that Maraging steel provides great feel and performance results. Maraging steel is supposedly stronger than Ti so it can be made thinner for a more explosive impact. Makes me wonder when it will show up in a driver. Many of the top average golfer ions in Japan, including models from ONOFF and PRGR all use maraging faces now and the feel is excellent.  The 2010 ViQ also feels very good or should I say feels like almost nothing when you pure the sweet spot. The Super Turbo Rubber is at work here.

Automatic distance at your calling...

The new ViQ places a lot of weight down low in the sole for a very low CG helped by two tungsten weights, one in the toe and one in the heel of the sole. Both these weights also have Super Turbo Rubber under them to again help enhance, or for some take away feeling. There is a an undercut cavity here which progresses higher towards the toe and towards the heel to widen the sweet spot on typical average golfer misses towards the toe and heel. Because the tungsten weights are so big the number indicating the iron is actually right in the middle of the sole. So with all the new design features and a wide sole, mid size top line and definite offset, is this an easy iron to hit? Yes it is. It sure fits the bill as an automatic iron. The low CG and strong lofts (24* 5 iron and 44* PW) provide some serious distance and is very easy to hit straight. The ViQ is not a shovel like some GI irons in the West but it is definitely larger than other mid sized irons and will give that higher handicapper enough confidence at address. It's size does make it easy to hit.

Another thing that made the demo I had so forgiving is that it is shafted with a Tourstage graphite.  Tourstage uses ultra light 55g mid kicking graphite which really help those slower swingers pick a a few miles per hour. The 5 iron weighs only 357g total weight. Thanks to the strong lofts the shots do not balloon but climb steadily reaching an apex and finishing with a rather soft landing especially in the short irons.

It does what it supposed to do...

So in conclusion, while I am not thrilled with the iron's overall look and I'm not a fan of too much offset and bigger head, the truth is, looks aside, the ViQ does what it is supposed to do. Be an easy iron to hit and give the higher handicapper the automatic performance they are looking for. Many traditionalists and better players may doubt the use of the Super Turbo Rubber (especially those who are always playing forged irons) but I think for the higher handicapper which this iron targets, the rubber works.  So if you haven't been playing golf long or are stuck shooting in the 90's and 100's or simply need irons that can go very far very easily, then the 2010 ViQ is your calling. If you are an improving player who already is a decent ball striker and looking to add control to your game as you break into the 80's and lower go read the X-Blade 703 review.

I've got the new ViQ Driver here as well and boy it looks.... interesting.  Before that though here are the rest of the new 2010 ViQ pics:

Tario (aka gocchin) joined Tourspecgolf back in 2008 after spending over a decade in technology and business operation roles at a major Canadian financial institution. Before joining TSG and following his dream of moving to Japan, Tario and Chris (aka Tourspecgolfer) hit it off though their similar passions for Japanese culture. Chris hired Tario to manage TSG online operations, sales and marketing. While those are Tario's primary responsibilities, he has also taken up the role of blogger and custom club tester and fitter along the way. Tario's hobbies include golf (of course), gadgets and technology, cars, Japanese pop culture and idols, photography, sweets and walking the dog.

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There will of course be debate when it comes to this topic, people on both sides of the coin believing adamantly that their side is correct, that the other side is wrong and that nothing will convince them otherwise.  It's always been like that when technology enters a sport, the use of that technology redefining what is and is not possible.  Just look at what happened when Major League Baseball decided to abandon tradition and allow instant-replay for home runs?  So now, how do YOU feel about the use of technology like the Wii to help hone your golf swing?  Does it help?  Can it help?  Should it help?

Leadbetter and Wii Combine Forces

That's right, there is a new Wii program coming out that famed golf swing coach and amazing instructor David Leadbetter has actually helped create.  As you know, he's helped with thousands of golf swings and most recently has tackled the Michelle Wie project.  Now, he's going to the Other Wii and hopes that his new game "My Personal Golf Trainer" will help thousands more golfers fine tune and correct their swings.

According to reports:

"My Personal Golf Trainer, a game designed for the popular Wii platform, will incorporate Leadbetter's 7 Steps to a Better Golf Swing, says maker Data Design Interactive of Sarasota, Fla. It will also feature the Wii Balance Board, which can analyze the swing in three dimensions, giving feedback about weight transfer, swing path, and other crucial swing markers you can't see while you're busy swinging. Suggested retail will be about $50 for the game itself; the Wii equipment is sold separately."

October Launch Date

I don't know about you, but I want to try it, and I want to try it now.  Unfortunately, looks like we'll have to wait until about October to really get to try this, but nevertheless, it does bring up an issue as to how this will work, if it will work, and technology's role in golf instruction.

Your Thoughts?

Personally, I believe whatever helps, helps, and there shouldn't be any issues whatsoever.  What about you?

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Pro Gear recently featured a report done in collaboration with top designer Ryo Yashiro from the Yokohama Rubber Hiratsuka factory.

The massive R&D department that PRGR ( Pro Gear )  features has every top swing analysis system including their own PRGR science fit. The PRGR science fit is a unique system and the only one of it's kind that measures grip speed and torso turn which creates power and speed from the large muscles instead of the end resut which is club head speed and spin rates.

Over the years Yashiro san has accumulated data from Professional and Amatuer golfers who visited as part of the R&D program. This lead to the creation of their newest line the GN502 series. Please keep in mind this is not the GN502 Tour Driver or GN502 Forged Model.  This is the standard GN502 that is aimed to help improve the game of 70% of all golfers.

Ryo Yashiro goes on to say:

First I aimed to monitor the golfers grip speed.  There isn't much data that explains the body turn type and where the hands are in relation to the torso. The type of golfer that has an early and loose release type increases the side spin left to right creating a slice and losing carry. The ball flight is also very unstable and inconsistent. What kind of club should be designed for such a player to be able to meet the face with the ball square at impact?  I then began working on a plan that includes the visual effect as well as the shape, function and Technology.

The Goal:
Creating a club that is square more often at impact than others for all types of golfers from Professional to Amatuer.  Let's face it many golfers even after decades of playing the sport we love so much are still unable to square the face at will.  So PRGR started from the pure basics  of the body before working their way to the design of the club.

The Design:
The weight location of the GN502 driver was produced to be longer from front to back. The volume in certain areas needed to be increased to get tht golfer with an Early release more force, the combonation of those fine adjustments show a substantial aid in making the club head square at impact.

Fairway Woods:
So the question was asked " What kind of 3 wood helps the 70% of golfers who have an early release tendency? Based on thousands of questionares the most desired attributes of a 3W is ease of getting the ball into the air, pull's, slices, and weak or missed shots.  Yashiro based the design of the GN502 Hit Fairway wood on the ability to lift the ball with ease off of the ground and helping the head square at impact for the early release player. These are the two largest complaints found on the questionare direction and trajectory.  The end result was a shallow face for increased height, Maraging steel face and light weight thin crown saving 12 grams. The implementation of a heavy tungsten sole was added setting the center of gravity location to 23mm which is very low for a 3W.

GN502 Irons:
When 70% of golfers share a similar swing pattern the technology shared in the woods will also help the irons.  The feedback report showed that the majority of Japanese golfers desire a forged material. Considering the average ball's center of gravity is about 21mm the iron should be designed to meet and match it with it's own center of gravity placement  to enhance the result and create the proper amount of spin and height on the shot.

The GN502 Iron design uses a resin structure inserted under the top blade of the ( 3-9I ) This gave Yashiro a margin of 5 grams which was exactly the amount needed to create a more desired result during play. In the standard version GN502 iron geared more to the average golfer they used a maraging steel face like the FW and combined with the resin insert you gain velocity and a sense of soft feel.

Yashiro says:

"It's also the weight (the distance) flow design which is made inside the cavity set thickness deviation while keeping height of the gravitational centre as the whole gage at 20mm.  The head tends to be returned to a long iron, and a ball can be caught dead center more frequently.  While the short iron is designed without that feature for a more intentional result.

So there it is in a nutshell guy's and gal's A breif but fairly informative breakdown of PRGR's design philosiphy with regards to the GN502 Series of Clubs.  Sounds to me like they are trying very hard to fix the issue of an early release in the golfers swing. Please keep in mind this isnt the same design used in the GN502 Tour/Forged Model. The Tour Model is designed for the better player.  To learn more about the product please visit the TSG ProShop by Clicking Here...