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now that i have been back from my RBZ fitting experience in DORAL (SOUTH BEACH FITTING EXPERIENCE) and things around home/work are settling down - i wanted to share my thoughts and answer any questions regarding TAYLORMADEs new RBZ TOUR FAIRWAY WOOD line. honestly, after the driver fitting and build on the tour van the fairway wood almost went unnoticed. well... that was until my first round on familiar territory.
first let me set the stage... last year after spending some time on TRACKMAN i was sold hook line and sinker on the TAYLORMADE SF2.0TP fairway woods. great ball speed, spin, launch, flight - everything that i was looking for in a fairway wood. at the time it edged out the comparable ADAMS, CALLAWAY, and NIKE offerings. i also found that the KAI'LI 80x worked very well with this head. over the season i hit some of the best fairway wood shots of my life. the ball flight was consistent - very hot - and i could hit them relatively straight. there were times where i could get my three wood out there with some of my playing partners driver.
when we invited to the RBZ FITTING EXPERIENCE, we were told to bring fw's, wedges, and putter - leave everything else at home. at the driver fitting DAVE CORDERO opened a box and there sat 5 brand new RBZ fairway woods waiting for us. instantly my eyes caught a RBZ TOUR 14.5 with KAI'LI 80x... sure enough, they had built one perfectly to my specs (43" D3). during the trip - i pulled three wood off the tee about three times and killed it. however, not being on a course that i was familiar with, or with the weather being 40* warmer than at home i wanted to hold off on making an assessment.
back to now...
the rbz tour fairway woods are simply amazing.
>LOOKS
i love the foot print of the TOUR head much better than the standard head. it is just a little more compact and similar in shape to the SF2.0TP. i prefer a slightly deeper fairway wood - this isn't too deep or too shallow. in comparison to my gamer - it aspired more confidence in all situations. i do prefer the color scheme of the SF2.0TP better than the RBZ. if i could change the aesthetics - i would remove the slime green from the top of the club. i don't mind the slime green at all on the sole of the club - it looks great.
the return to OEM shaft graphics is a drastic change from the TMAG TP paint scheme on the SF2.0TP. i go back and forth on what i prefer. i like everything to match... in that respect i like how the TMAG TP paint scheme looked. the KAI'LI looks great in the ION finish it just doesn't match perfectly like the SF2.0TP KAI'LI.
>FEEL
the RBZ feels deeper and hotter than the crisper feel of the SF2.0TP. initially i would have described "crisper" as hotter, but the hearing the slightly lower pitch off the face of the RBZ is music to my ears. THIS IS WHERE I FEEL THE MARK WAS MISSED WITH THE RBZ TOUR DRIVER. if it sounded like the fairway woods - it would be outstanding in every category.
many times when a club is made more forgiving across the face you lose the feel of a miss hit. i like to know if i hit it off the heel (haven't found the toe in years!). the RBZ TOUR accomplishes this. it still sounds and feels great, but you know if you miss hit it. very important!
>PERFORMANCE
this is where there is no comparison... it is incredible. i can hit it off any lie. the slot on the bottom need not worry you - it accepts every condition and does not get "hung up". off the tee it is insane. 20 yards past my playing partners well struck tee shot. we are usually neck and neck with three wood. not anymore - i flew his ball like it was moving backwards. in fact there were many times where there were forced carries of 270. no problem. he pulled driver - i was within three yards of him with a three wood. almost everyone that has hit this three wood is 10 yards longer EASY some up to 20. i could go on and on with performance and distance... but it's straight too. straighter than the SF2.0TP - yet i feel as if i could work it both directions easier.
i could see a sole modification in future designs. currently the sole towards the trailing edge is inset about 1mm. i would suggest they keep the inset in the same location - just make it more aerodynamic by running it out the entire trailing edge. in other words - no pocket.
>BOTTOM LINE - YOUR MONEY MY MONEY
would i buy one? remember this was given to me... YES! actually i bought a RBZ TOUR 5 / KAI'LI 80x to match the TS when i got home. why is it worth the money when the SF2.0TP was so good? i can work it both ways much easier. it is straighter on my miss hits. it is much longer. why do i want longer? i can hit three off the tee more often without a significant distance loss, which also increases my chance of hitting the fairway and controlling the flight. i can hit five wood into the green instead of a three wood in some cases. this allows three wood like distance with five wood like flight. you can land the ball softer and hit the ball straighter.
CONCLUSION
the RBZ TOUR and RBZ fairway woods are game changers. one quick story about a friend of mine on WRX - IMP (keith). IMP can hit fairway wood off the tee MUCH better than the driver. he like most of us - just lack the confidence with the driver. many times he was forced to hit driver because he didn't want to give up the yardage that the driver could POTENTIALLY give him. the RBZ changed his game. on the first hole at DORAL all of us took driver - with the exception of IMP. i didn't see what club he hit at the time, in fact i thought it was driver. he killed his three wood - in fact it probably was longer than he could hit his driver. he did this over and over. since he has returned home we have kept in contact. his confidence is skyrocketing along with his distance off the tee... with his three wood. his stock RBZ three wood. he is NOT sacrificing distance vs. his old driver with the RBZ three wood. he is hitting the fairway. he is scaring the guys in his league. he is taking their money.
i don't want my words to be discounted because i am a TMAG guy... i'm not a TMAG guy - i'm a golfer, an equipment guy that doesn't buy the latest and greatest just because it's new and shiny. i don't have the disposable income that i use to have. my purchases now are very calculated. this club performs and it is something i feel you should try.
feel free to ask questions
first let me set the stage... last year after spending some time on TRACKMAN i was sold hook line and sinker on the TAYLORMADE SF2.0TP fairway woods. great ball speed, spin, launch, flight - everything that i was looking for in a fairway wood. at the time it edged out the comparable ADAMS, CALLAWAY, and NIKE offerings. i also found that the KAI'LI 80x worked very well with this head. over the season i hit some of the best fairway wood shots of my life. the ball flight was consistent - very hot - and i could hit them relatively straight. there were times where i could get my three wood out there with some of my playing partners driver.
when we invited to the RBZ FITTING EXPERIENCE, we were told to bring fw's, wedges, and putter - leave everything else at home. at the driver fitting DAVE CORDERO opened a box and there sat 5 brand new RBZ fairway woods waiting for us. instantly my eyes caught a RBZ TOUR 14.5 with KAI'LI 80x... sure enough, they had built one perfectly to my specs (43" D3). during the trip - i pulled three wood off the tee about three times and killed it. however, not being on a course that i was familiar with, or with the weather being 40* warmer than at home i wanted to hold off on making an assessment.
back to now...
the rbz tour fairway woods are simply amazing.
>LOOKS
i love the foot print of the TOUR head much better than the standard head. it is just a little more compact and similar in shape to the SF2.0TP. i prefer a slightly deeper fairway wood - this isn't too deep or too shallow. in comparison to my gamer - it aspired more confidence in all situations. i do prefer the color scheme of the SF2.0TP better than the RBZ. if i could change the aesthetics - i would remove the slime green from the top of the club. i don't mind the slime green at all on the sole of the club - it looks great.
the return to OEM shaft graphics is a drastic change from the TMAG TP paint scheme on the SF2.0TP. i go back and forth on what i prefer. i like everything to match... in that respect i like how the TMAG TP paint scheme looked. the KAI'LI looks great in the ION finish it just doesn't match perfectly like the SF2.0TP KAI'LI.
>FEEL
the RBZ feels deeper and hotter than the crisper feel of the SF2.0TP. initially i would have described "crisper" as hotter, but the hearing the slightly lower pitch off the face of the RBZ is music to my ears. THIS IS WHERE I FEEL THE MARK WAS MISSED WITH THE RBZ TOUR DRIVER. if it sounded like the fairway woods - it would be outstanding in every category.
many times when a club is made more forgiving across the face you lose the feel of a miss hit. i like to know if i hit it off the heel (haven't found the toe in years!). the RBZ TOUR accomplishes this. it still sounds and feels great, but you know if you miss hit it. very important!
>PERFORMANCE
this is where there is no comparison... it is incredible. i can hit it off any lie. the slot on the bottom need not worry you - it accepts every condition and does not get "hung up". off the tee it is insane. 20 yards past my playing partners well struck tee shot. we are usually neck and neck with three wood. not anymore - i flew his ball like it was moving backwards. in fact there were many times where there were forced carries of 270. no problem. he pulled driver - i was within three yards of him with a three wood. almost everyone that has hit this three wood is 10 yards longer EASY some up to 20. i could go on and on with performance and distance... but it's straight too. straighter than the SF2.0TP - yet i feel as if i could work it both directions easier.
i could see a sole modification in future designs. currently the sole towards the trailing edge is inset about 1mm. i would suggest they keep the inset in the same location - just make it more aerodynamic by running it out the entire trailing edge. in other words - no pocket.
>BOTTOM LINE - YOUR MONEY MY MONEY
would i buy one? remember this was given to me... YES! actually i bought a RBZ TOUR 5 / KAI'LI 80x to match the TS when i got home. why is it worth the money when the SF2.0TP was so good? i can work it both ways much easier. it is straighter on my miss hits. it is much longer. why do i want longer? i can hit three off the tee more often without a significant distance loss, which also increases my chance of hitting the fairway and controlling the flight. i can hit five wood into the green instead of a three wood in some cases. this allows three wood like distance with five wood like flight. you can land the ball softer and hit the ball straighter.
CONCLUSION
the RBZ TOUR and RBZ fairway woods are game changers. one quick story about a friend of mine on WRX - IMP (keith). IMP can hit fairway wood off the tee MUCH better than the driver. he like most of us - just lack the confidence with the driver. many times he was forced to hit driver because he didn't want to give up the yardage that the driver could POTENTIALLY give him. the RBZ changed his game. on the first hole at DORAL all of us took driver - with the exception of IMP. i didn't see what club he hit at the time, in fact i thought it was driver. he killed his three wood - in fact it probably was longer than he could hit his driver. he did this over and over. since he has returned home we have kept in contact. his confidence is skyrocketing along with his distance off the tee... with his three wood. his stock RBZ three wood. he is NOT sacrificing distance vs. his old driver with the RBZ three wood. he is hitting the fairway. he is scaring the guys in his league. he is taking their money.
i don't want my words to be discounted because i am a TMAG guy... i'm not a TMAG guy - i'm a golfer, an equipment guy that doesn't buy the latest and greatest just because it's new and shiny. i don't have the disposable income that i use to have. my purchases now are very calculated. this club performs and it is something i feel you should try.
feel free to ask questions
