Equipment
Spotted: Nippon “Graphite On Steel Technology” hybrid prototype shafts
Steel vs. graphite shafts, which is better for your game? It’s a question as old as the invention of graphite shafts for golf clubs.
Well, it appears that Nippon is combining steel and graphite with its new hybrid prototype shaft, with technology called “Graphite On Steel.” Based on the nomenclature and the photos we captured at the 2018 AT&T Byron Nelson on Monday, it seems that there is a layer of graphite surrounding a steel hybrid shaft.
And for what purpose? GolfWRX Members are guessing that the design could be for reduced vibration, or for great stability, but we’re yet to know for sure.
We’ve reached out to Nippon representatives and will update this story with more information as it becomes available. For now, click here for more photos and discussion.
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- Daniel Berger what’s in the bag accurate as of the Farmers Insurance Open. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X
6-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 Tour (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8 X
Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3), TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC 2011 (4-PW)
Shafts: Project X Denali Blue 105 TX (3), Project X 6.5 (4-PW)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (50-12F), Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (56-14F), Callaway Jaws Raw (60-08C)
Shafts: Project X 6.5 (50), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (56, 60)
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Mini DB
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy PistolLock 1.0
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Wrap
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
Check out more in-hand photos of Daniel Berger’s clubs in the forums.
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What are the driver and shaft combinations of the best golfers in the world? For gearheads, it’s an endlessly interesting question — even if we can only ever aspire to play LS heads and 7 TX shafts.
At this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, GolfWRX got in-hand looks at the driver setups of a wealth of players.
Check out some of the most interesting combos below, then head to the GolfWRX forums for the rest, as well as the rest of our galleries from New Orleans.
Rory McIlroy
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (9 degrees @8.25)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride MCC
Alex Fitzpatrick
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride MCC
Daniel Berger
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees @9)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Wrap
Rasmus Hojgaard
Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Blue 60 TX
Grip: Golf Pride MCC
Alejandro Tosti
Driver: Srixon ZX5 Mk II LS (9.5 degrees @10.5)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS T1100 75 6.5
Grip: Golf Pride MCC Plus4
James Nicholas
Driver: Titleist TSR3 (8 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Kevin Streelman
Driver: Titleist TSR3 (10 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Sang-moon Bae
Driver: Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond (9+ @8)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Russ Cochran
Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke (9 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD TP 6 X
Grip: Golf pride MCC Align 
MJ Daffue
Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max (10.5 degrees @9.5)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Green RDX 65 TX
Grip: Golf Pride ZGrip Cord Align
Check our more photos from the Zurich Classic here.
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- Rasmus Højgaard what’s in the bag accurate as of the Zurich Classic.
Driver: Callaway Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Callaway Ai Smoke Triple Diamond Prototype (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Utility: Callaway Apex UW (21 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei AV Raw White 85 TX
Irons: Callaway Apex Pro (3), Callaway X Forged (4-PW)
Shafts: KBS $-Taper 130
Wedges: Callaway Jaws Raw (52-10S, 56-10S, 60-06C)
Shafts: KBS Tour 130 X
Putter: Odyssey Ai One Milled Eight T DB
Grips: Golf Pride MCC
Check out more in-hand photos of Hojgaard in the forums.
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Daniel Berger WITB 2024 (April)
Daniel Berger what’s in the bag accurate as of the Farmers Insurance Open. More photos from the event here. Driver:...
Rasmus Højgaard WITB 2024 (April)
Rasmus Højgaard what’s in the bag accurate as of the Zurich Classic. Driver: Callaway Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (10.5 degrees)...
Rory McIlroy WITB 2024 (April)
Rory McIlroy what’s in the bag accurate as of the Zurich Classic. Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (9 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus...
Sam Burns WITB 2024 (April)
Sam Burns’ what’s in the bag accurate as of the RBC Heritage. Driver: Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond S (9 degrees...
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19th Hole2 weeks agoDave Portnoy places monstrous outright bet for the 2024 Masters
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19th Hole3 days agoJustin Thomas on the equipment choice of Scottie Scheffler that he thinks is ‘weird’
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19th Hole3 days ago‘Absolutely crazy’ – Major champ lays into Patrick Cantlay over his decision on final hole of RBC Heritage
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19th Hole1 week agoNeal Shipley presser ends in awkward fashion after reporter claims Tiger handed him note on 8th fairway
Dave Bryce
May 19, 2018 at 1:52 pm
In the 90s I reshafted the bimatrix shaft for many customers. That shaft incorporated the same principles and proved to be more hype then substance! With that shaft I found the swingweights to be too high!
KenW
May 16, 2018 at 9:56 pm
I too have a set of the Aerotech SteelFiber shafts which have steel thread wrapped around a graphite core and they were great, but a couple years ago I put Fujikura’s Metal Composite shafts (MCI) on my Calloway Apex irons and Wow! they are terrific shafts. Like the Nippon shafts, they have a graphite sleeve over a steel core shaft. Don’t know there’s a ton of difference but the Fujikura seem to have the perfect Flex and torque for my swing.
~j~
May 16, 2018 at 12:43 pm
A side from perhaps the steelfibers (never tried), has anyone even had much success intertwining steel and graphite?? Would think the extra labor/technology involved would largely go unnoticed by many and likely to be not worth the production cost.
Buck Futter
May 16, 2018 at 12:22 pm
Graphite Hybrid On Steel Technology or GHOST for short
Should make them in white
Really Big Mike
May 16, 2018 at 12:00 pm
This technology looks to be very similar to Aerotech Steelfiber, who advertises that their shafts are longer and straighter with less effort and they avoid injury or aggravating previous injury.
cinch bugs
May 15, 2018 at 8:34 am
Don’t knock it till you’e tried it…. just kidding knock away!
Deadpool
May 15, 2018 at 2:21 am
Lets just go back to hickory. I like wood. My wood is good.
steve
May 15, 2018 at 3:53 pm
so yer regressing back to woodies and abandoning stiff steel and floppy graphite?
steve
May 14, 2018 at 6:08 pm
SteelFiber shafts have filament-wound steel fibers over and internal graphite shaft… and now Nippon is putting the graphite over the steel shafting. Why are they doing this expensive solution to compensate for the failings of plain graphite shafts with floppy soggy tips with a sloppy dynamic response going through final release and impact?
For SteelFiber: https://aerotechgolfshafts.com/
steve
May 14, 2018 at 6:15 pm
Furthermore.. most graphite shafts are oven-cured to harden the epoxy mix holding the graphite fibers. Not with Seven Dreamers graphite shafts which are autoclave cured that sucks out the excess epoxy plastic that causes the tip instability of other graphite shafts.
Seven Dreamers: http://www.golfwrx.com/489200/a-qa-with-seven-dreamers-about-its-1200-shafts/
Deadpool
May 15, 2018 at 2:22 am
Yeah I am so intelligent and knowledgeable too, that Google lets me know everything too, steve
steve
May 15, 2018 at 3:50 pm
go back to the main WRX forum with all the gearheadbaters…
steve
May 15, 2018 at 10:01 pm
Yer the Google gearheadbater who can only tap twitter-sized blurts from yer shrunken brainlet.. so sooo obvious …. ????
Dan
May 15, 2018 at 3:59 pm
Does this guy just copy paste this app the time?
steve
May 15, 2018 at 10:00 pm
I remember all that scientific stuff because my smart brain is not ruined with a twitter blurting mentality…. just go to the main WRX forum and look at the juvenile comments in less than 140 characters… sooo pa thetic…
Not Steve
May 15, 2018 at 11:14 pm
Your smart brain and scientist stuff is on the wrong site for that you will incurred a stroke penalty and another for slow play
Josh
May 14, 2018 at 11:29 pm
Steelfiber convert here… I agree why put the graphite on top of the steel? Doesn’t make as much sense as the steel-fiber-weave wrapped around a traditional graphite shaft…