PGA of Canada

30  | PGA PRo:FoRMANCE pRO:geaR "Rory McIlroy puts the 2-iron in his bag and wins the British open," she says. "We then put 40 MM Prototype sets on- line and sell them in less than 30 seconds and sell them for $1,500. We thought we'd sell them fast, but maybe not that fast. ere is a connection point and that's an example." With Woods on the shelf, Nike leaned on McIlroy to launch the new Vapor lineup, which the company says is a revo- lution when it comes to player irons. Commenting on the age-old expression that "a blade is just a blade," Nike says the new clubs—which include a muscle back set, a "speed" set for higher handicap golfers, and a combo grouping that in- clude clubs from both sets—show that iron technology can still make some sig- nificant advancements. e club maker says the clubs are a "modernized" take on the club aimed at a stronger golfer, with Nike saying its Vapor Pro, its blade set, is its most precise to date, while the Pro Combo offers the workability of a blade with the power of a distance iron and the Vapor Speed offers pure power and for- giveness. e clubs use what Nike is calling "modern muscle" technology, and the company says the result is a more bal- anced iron. In the Pro Combo set the long irons (2i-7i) feature a forged chassis with a thin, high-strength machined face and a lightweight RZN insert to promote faster ball speeds, higher trajectory, and in- creased stability. e short irons (8i-W) feature a forged construction with a shal- low cavity that promotes a penetrating flight. "We're moving the mass to where the player is trying to hit it," says Taylor, adding that Woods oen felt the centre of gravity was towards the heel of the club. e Vapor irons adjust that. e result of the new technology is a 10% better moment of inertia, six yards less on the dispersion pattern, and 0.8 miles per hour of ball speed. Players from the likes of Nick Watney to David Duval and Jamie Lovemark all put versions of the clubs in play, though Nike says a majority of its staff players uses some form of mixed set. e clubs were developed to suit the eye of Woods, says Nike Golf Design Di- rector Andrew oldknow, who said shi- ing the weight for a more precise centre of gravity yielded significant results. ough Woods didn't put the new irons in play—he was hurt before he could—he did test them. And he was a big fan of what he felt. at shouldn't be a surprise since Nike designers admit that most of their irons start with a design based on Woods' likes and dislikes. He has very spe- cific elements he wants to see in irons, and designers work within those parameters. McIlroy, they say, is less particular and has preferences similar to those that Woods expects. Woods raved about the results. "It is a heavier hit," he says. "It is the same swing weight, but the hit feels heav- ier. If you go down the range and watch guys hit balls there's a sound difference of someone who is flushing it that day. Some guys flush it every day—but there are only a handful of guys who do it every day. And that's the feeling I had when I hit these. "e ball was holding its line better in a crosswind and that shocked me because I'm used to seeing the ball dri in that par- ticular wind," he continues. "But it was. It If I want to put something in my golf bag it is because it is better than the previous. " "

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