WINNERS! – 2011 MYGOLFSPY “FRINGE” AWARDS

2011 MYGOLFSPY “FRINGE” AWARDS

With 2012 equipment steadily rolling in for review, we thought it was a great time to ask our testers to take a look back at the 2011 equipment season. Looking back through our reviews, we have some absolute standout performers, we’ve had occasions where our testers totally missed the boat, we’ve also had clubs that far exceeded expectations, and well, we’ve had a couple of total duds.

Rather than give a handful of medals to every manufacturer that’s worked with us over the last season, or make sure that our sponsors come away from this feeling all warm and fuzzy, we decided we’d come up with 5 categories, and simply ask our testers to nominate some clubs. After the initial round of voting to trim the field we asked our testers to vote one more time. We provided them little more than a list of everything we’ve tested over the last year. We didn’t ask them to separate drivers from irons, or hybrids from wedges. We simply said “here are the awards, this is what they’re for, now tell us what you think”…and that’s what they did.

• “CLUB OF THE YEAR” – Given to the club our golfers felt was the best they’ve tested all season.
• “HINDSIGHT 20/20” – Given to the club for which the actual review results most differed from perceptions (AKA: Boy did I get that wrong award).
• “THE SHOCKER AWARD” – Given to the most surprising or “shocking” club of the season.
• “FOND MEMORIES AWARD” – Given to the club our testers remember most fondly.
• “THE BEAST AWARD” – For the club where distance far exceeded expectations.

+ (WINNER!) – Callaway RAZR Hawk

Given to the club our golfers felt was the best they’ve tested all season.

We’ve reviewed 9 other drivers since the Callaway RAZR Hawk arrived for testing, and this is still the one driver, and in fact, the one club, most of our testers still talk about. As much as we love the standard model, the Tour model is held in even higher regard. Given some of the negativity we’ve heard towards Callaway and its composite drivers, we wondered how the RAZR would rate against other driver brands our testers love (Titleist, Adams, and Cobra). I’d say it held its own quite well.

+ “Head and shoulders above everything else in its category” – Dan R.

+ “Bag it, Bang It, and enjoy the walk” – Mark C.

+ (2ND PLACE) – Adams Idea Pro A12 Hybrid

One of the longest, and according to our testers, the best feeling hybrid of the 2011 equipment season. The Adams Idea Pro A12 Hybrid actually got my vote for club of the year. There’s nothing I don’t love about this club, and it’s the reason why I don’t carry fairway woods anymore. Comparatively minimal distance loss, with a night and day difference in accuracy. It’s the perfect hybrid.

+ “My 18 degree gets more play off the tee than my driver” – Tim S.
+ “I put 3 in my bag…wish I had room for a 4th” – GolfSpy T

+ (WINNER!) – Nike VR Pro Hybrid

One of the rare cases where the manufacturer actually contacted us and asked us to review a specific product. Though there was close to zero buzz surrounding the product, I got a sense that the team at Nike felt that had something really special on their hands. And while we certainly heard some complaints about the sound and feel, when we looked at the raw numbers, the Nike VR Pro Hybrid had proven to be the longest hybrid we tested all season. That’s more than a little special. Unfortunately, our testers assumed otherwise…that is until they saw the data.

+ “I don’t like Nike clubs, but I like this one” – Lou Y.

+ “Unpleasant feel led me to remember it being much shorter than it actually was” – Tim S.

+ (2ND PLACE) – PING K15 FW

A typical PING Club I suppose, the Ping K15 fairway wood was absolutely workman like in its efficiency. Not a single tester raved about it during our tests, and yet nearly everyone was shocked when the data came back. While on one shot or another, another fairway wood bested it for distance, when we look at the averages, the K15 is among the most consistent clubs we’ve tested all season – and proved to be much better than our testers initially thought.

+ “Longer and more accurate than I thought it would be” – Dan R.

+ (WINNER!) – Dynacraft Prophet Tour

A clear victim to brandwashing on the subjective side (and part of the reason we now place less weight on our subjective surveys), the Dynacraft Prophet Tour was on the tip of everyone’s tongue when we asked for nominations in this category. When you consider that most of the forged cavity backs we test are in the $800+ range, it’s damn near impossible not to appreciate a sub $400 alternative that arguably performs every bit as well. Identical performance for half the price…now that is shocking.

+ “I had low expectations…but the feel and performance changed my mind entirely” – Dan R.

+ “Took me totally by surprise…you can’t go wrong for the price” – Mark C.

+ (2ND PLACE) – TourEdge CB4 Fairway

TourEdge has the stones to guarantee the TourEdge CB4 is 20 yards longer (than other fairway woods we presume). So much so that they put a sticker saying as much on the face. While the averages didn’t completely support the 20 yards thing, when we looked at the absolute best shots our testers hit, it turns out they were 20 yards longer than their longest with anything else. To put things in their proper perspective, after hitting the CB4, some of our testers weren’t talking about replacing their fairway woods with it, they were talking about dumping their drivers!

+ “How the TourEdge CB4 isn’t club of the year is beyond me!” – Tim S. {irrate at the results}

+ (WINNER!) – Adams MB2 Irons

Nominated in 2 other categories (including club of the year), the Adams MB2’s were a runaway winner for the Fond Memories award. Looks, feel, or the outstanding performance, it’s hard to say which our testers appreciated more. For better or worse, the MB2s managed to convince our testers that maybe anybody can hit blades…and hit them well. And if it turns out not everyone can, the MB2s are as much fun to miss with as any club we’ve ever tested. It’s a truly special iron.

+ “Best feeling clubs ever!” – Nick B.

+ “A tryst that should have been a marriage” – Mark C.

+ (2ND PLACE) – Mizuno MP-T11 Wedges

We tested some great wedges for the 2011 season (Miura Series 1957, Nike VR Pro, Callaway Jaws) but none rated as highly as Mizuno’s MP-T11. As you’d expect, they offer outstanding feel, the sole grind is as versatile as they come, and they simply look great. One of our testers ended up bagging them…most of the rest of us wish we had.

+ “There were times even after hitting perfect shots with my own wedges that I longed for the softer feel of the Mizunos” – Tim S.

+ (WINNER!) – Callaway RAZR Hawk

It seems almost unfair that the Callaway RAZR Hawk could take home a 2nd award, but our testers were nearly unanimous in their selection here. While it wasn’t the longest club for all of our testers – and wasn’t our “on average” longest driver of the year, more than half of our testers hit their longest (and in once case) 3 longest drives of the test season with the club. We did our formal testing with the standard model, but I’m absolutely convinced that the Tour model is longer still. So while you could make a case that neither the TourEdge CB4 or Nike VR Pro Tour got the attention they probably should have in this spot, I can’t disagree with the selection of the RAZR Hawk either.

+ “Unbelievable raw distance” – Mark C.

+ (2ND PLACE) – Cobra S3 Irons

The most shocking nomination, and runner up winner of the bunch. In a category we assumed would be dominated by drivers, the Cobra S3 irons managed to take 2nd place honors. While we’ve said countless times that iron distance is inconsequential, we still came away from our tests of the S3 impressed (and frankly a little scared by the distance). When you consider that all of our testers hit a shorter club than they have with any previous or subsequent iron test, it really is possible that Cobra has engineered a longer iron.

+ “Even when shaft length and loft are considered, the Cobra S3 is still at least half a club longer than any iron we’ve ever tested” – GolfSpy T