Wilson Staff FG Tour V2 Review Thread

[Howzat]

Wilson Staff FG Tour V2’s - One Month Update:

Can’t believe I have only had these clubs for a month. It feels like I have played a lot of golf with these clubs. I wanted to give a recap of my testing so far as much to give me perspective on where to go from here and catch anyone up who needs it. With the snow approaching please get your questions in on any aspects of the club you would like to know more about as I will only be able to be outdoors with these irons for a couple weeks or so.

My preconceived notions: Wilson to me was a baseball glove maker. I have used a Wilson baseball glove since I was a kid and one of my dad’s favorite possessions is an A2000 glove that he used in high school. Wilson’s latest marking campaign sums it up quite well, Wilson Staff, seriously? After only a month of testing I am convinced Wilson Staff makes great golf clubs and I will make sure to hit some when comparing new sets in the future.

Pros:

Looks: Wilson has hit a homerun in the category in my opinion. The piano black finish on the badging is somehow understated and eye-catching at the same time. I think the MP 53’s look a bit dull in comparison. The only gripe is the shiny chrome on the top line that does seem to catch a bit glare.
Feel: The biggest thing I want from an iron is to know when I have struck the ball well and get feedback as to where I missed when I don’t get it in the middle. The FG Tour V2’s do this very well and the feedback on mishits is not overly punishing. We will see if that holds with the cooler temps.

Versatility of the PW: This club just works for me. I feel very comfortable using this club for full swings, short chips and almost anything in between. In comparison to the MP 53 PW it just feels a little more “substantial” and a can control my distance a bit better. I feel very comfortable with the short irons in this set as a whole.

Numbers don’t lie: I put the FG Tour V2’s up against my current set of Mizuno MP 53’s, TM Burner 2.0’s, and Ping Anser irons on the launch monitor at GolfTEC and the Wilson’s came in at #2 just behind the Mizuno’s.

Cons:

Long irons forgiveness: These have been a struggle for me to make solid contact on a regular basis. My typical miss is fat with these and it is likely more of a swing flaw on my part than the clubs themselves. My swing gets a bit too steep and I take too much turf causing a huge distance loss. I do not see the same issue with my MP 53’s so I am assuming the issues may be one that fitting can correct. My Mizuno’s are bent 2 degrees up and I have yet to bend the Wilson’s. This will be a main focus during my testing this weekend.

Missing right: Again this seems to be a fitting issue. The shots are straight but seem to start a bit right and stay right which is an indication that I need to have the lie angle corrected.

Overall:

Going into this I expected my Mizuno’s to be a far superior club. So far that has not been the case. The only negatives with the FG Tour V2’s I have found are either very minor or something I think can be resolved with adjustments at my next fitting. Between the hard numbers from GolfTEC and shooting some of my lowest rounds of the year using these irons, I think Wilson Staff has an iron that will compete very well as long as people are willing to give it a shot.

 

[the_paulo]

Nice recap Howzat. Seems like you're still settling into this set too, with just minor issues arising. The numbers don't lie, and it looks like these irons are working so far, with only better things to come. A pretty good start I reckon.

 

[Howzat]

Nice recap Howzat. Seems like you're still settling into this set too, with just minor issues arising. The numbers don't lie, and it looks like these irons are working so far, with only better things to come. A pretty good start I reckon.

Thanks, I have been plesantly suprised by these so far am looking forward to getting back out there with them.

 

[the_paulo]

Thanks, I have been plesantly suprised by these so far am looking forward to getting back out there with them.

I like the sentiment of this whole thread, it's a bit like the VR Pro Combo testing too in that there were a few testers a bit wary of the lack of forgiveness, or how difficult the irons would be to hit - but as time goes on, they really start to settle in and enjoy the irons, as they're not scary at all.

 

[Hawk]

Thanks for the recap, Howzat! I think it's pretty telling that these can compete with some of the most popular forgings out there. I definitely think it sounds like a little bending might get those misses to the right corrected.

 

[War Eagle]

Howzat, great recap on your month with the V2s. We have similar issues with the long irons, like you, my swing can get too steep at times. This problem doesnt carry through the whole set though, mainly just with the longer irons.

Are you thinking these could permanently replace your Mizunos?

 

[Howzat]

Howzat, great recap on your month with the V2s. We have similar issues with the long irons, like you, my swing can get too steep at times. This problem doesnt carry through the whole set though, mainly just with the longer irons.

Are you thinking these could permanently replace your Mizunos?

I think it is possible. I forgot to mention hitting off the toe on the review and I am currently trying to decide if I want to extend the KBS shafts in their now or possibly replace the shafts all togther with something else. After I get them properly fitted I will be able to make a decision one way or the other as far as if the V2's will be able to kick the 53's out of my bag.

 

[Howzat]

Test Date: October 21, 2011
Location: Blackduck Golf Course
Conditions: 55* and light winds
Ball Used: Various Shag Balls
Focus: Long iron ball striking and forgiveness w/ all irons - Wilson Staff FG Tour V2 (KBS tour shafts)

Today my goal was to get some video of some of the versatility of the PW. Also wanted to take a closer look at forgiveness and try to get along with the longer irons. I was hitting the ball well today and had quite a few birdie opportunities. Couldn’t convert a single one but will leave that for another thread.

Turf Interaction: The course was very dry, as we have not seen rain for several weeks. I didn’t hit a single ball fat today (my typical miss) and the V2’s really performed well for me in these conditions. I think a thicker sole would have bounced on me a bit today but the V2’s got through the harder soil just fine.

Forgiveness: Here are some videos to give you an idea of how forgiving these irons can be:

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]v-_WfGzUnlA[/YOUTUBE]

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]iIMlIo1yuXU[/YOUTUBE]

My favorite club: The PW has been my go to club and I wanted to demonstrate a few of the shots that make this club so versatile. A got some video of a 60 yard shot, a full 120 yard shot, and a short chip:

60 Yard Pitch (3 Videos)

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]gRpZ2mAXcCs[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]HyIqAAqbwss[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]xojlZO1_8wQ[/YOUTUBE]

120 Yard Full PW (2 Videos)

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]sxz1EzkXM4s[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]SaFVR5EmMHw[/YOUTUBE]

PW chip just off the green (1 Video)

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]vHs3n2BEJXk[/YOUTUBE]

Overall: The V2’s performed well again today. This is a shorter course and not well suited to give the long irons a proper workout but the shots I did hit were improved as the conditions didn’t allow the club to dig too far in when my swing got steep. The short irons are rock stars and the more greens I hit in regulation the more fun the game seems to get.

 

[Hawk]

Howzat, I really enjoyed those videos. The first set was particularly good and gives a really good idea of the forgiveness. Excellent job!

I played today and will have some thorough writeups in the next day or two. Hit one out of the fairway bunker. I thought I hit the lip, but looking at the video, I think I was fooled due to the cloud of dust. This was from 155 and I ended up about 3 feet off the front of the green, right in line with the pin.

 

[Wicked Cool Bearded Man]

Test Date: October 21, 2011
Location: Blackduck Golf Course
Conditions: 55* and light winds
Ball Used: Various Shag Balls
Focus: Long iron ball striking and forgiveness w/ all irons - Wilson Staff FG Tour V2 (KBS tour shafts)

Today my goal was to get some video of some of the versatility of the PW. Also wanted to take a closer look at forgiveness and try to get along with the longer irons. I was hitting the ball well today and had quite a few birdie opportunities. Couldn’t convert a single one but will leave that for another thread.

Turf Interaction: The course was very dry, as we have not seen rain for several weeks. I didn’t hit a single ball fat today (my typical miss) and the V2’s really performed well for me in these conditions. I think a thicker sole would have bounced on me a bit today but the V2’s got through the harder soil just fine.

Forgiveness: Here are some videos to give you an idea of how forgiving these irons can be:

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]v-_WfGzUnlA[/YOUTUBE]

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]iIMlIo1yuXU[/YOUTUBE]

My favorite club: The PW has been my go to club and I wanted to demonstrate a few of the shots that make this club so versatile. A got some video of a 60 yard shot, a full 120 yard shot, and a short chip:

60 Yard Pitch (3 Videos)

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]gRpZ2mAXcCs[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]HyIqAAqbwss[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]xojlZO1_8wQ[/YOUTUBE]

120 Yard Full PW (2 Videos)

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]sxz1EzkXM4s[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]SaFVR5EmMHw[/YOUTUBE]

PW chip just off the green (1 Video)

Spoiler

[YOUTUBE]vHs3n2BEJXk[/YOUTUBE]

Overall: The V2’s performed well again today. This is a shorter course and not well suited to give the long irons a proper workout but the shots I did hit were improved as the conditions didn’t allow the club to dig too far in when my swing got steep. The short irons are rock stars and the more greens I hit in regulation the more fun the game seems to get.

Good to hear the greens in reg are going up! Nice write up and videos!

 

[Damaikis]

Nice vids Hawk and Howzat. I loved the section on the PW! Thanks!

 

[Hawk]

Testing Date 10/21/2011
18 Holes
Conditions: 40-50° with 5-10mph winds


I didn't hit nearly as many iron shots as I would have liked during this round. Lots of hybrids and wedges it seemed. Also, didn't feel like I had a great swing going. I was pulling or strong-drawing at first, but was able to dial that back after some adjustments. Continued to make pretty good contact, but wasn't entirely happy with my accuracy.

I continued to have some long misses with the V2's and I feel like I'm hitting them as far as I ever have. I think I'm going to up my distance by 5 yards and see what that does.

Here are a couple examples of missing long with explanations.

Shot 1 - Uphill 130 yards - 8 iron

This is a little uphill, so I'd normally club up, but I thought the wind would make it about even. I went with the 8 iron and ended up about 5 yards past the hole. Note: The green is behind and above the short red tree and yes, it's in the middle of the fairway. Weird hole.



Here is the result of the shot. Ignore my general dorkiness.



Shot 2 - Downhill 155 yards - 7 iron



I clubbed down here, but obviously not enough. I was actually off the green right against the collar of fringe/rough. I know the ball runs out more with a downhill shot like this, but it was urethane and still basically went 165 yards (7 iron would be my 140 club in normal conditions, I think).


I'm seeing less and less fat shots. Most of my other misses are directional. Either the pull-hook/draw or the push when I overcompensate. The video I put in the hole of the day thread was a good example of both actually. Both were hit well, but just not quite on target. I don't think it's a club issue as much as a Ryan issue, but I'd like to see it improve.

 

[War Eagle]

Hawk, great videos and update. The swing is looking nice, solid tempo. Good to hear the fat shots are now being seen less and less, that has been one of my biggest struggles with the V2s, and I feel that when I slow my game down a little bit and keep myself under control, I hit much better shots.

Lately, the fat shots have gone down, but I am struggling with pushing the irons to the left now, kind of like what you said, that's on me, not the clubs.

 

[#Cookie]

Nice update Hawk! Glad to see you getting acclimated to these and those fat shots slowly going away. Really enjoyed the videos in the hole of the day thread also.

I may have missed a discussion about it and if so I apologize.....but do you feel that these clubs are helping/making you become a better ball striker? I know that was a discussion we had with the Nike's considering they are GE irons so interested in how the testers here feel about that subject. Thanks!


Tappin' from my iPad!

 

[War Eagle]

Nice update Hawk! Glad to see you getting acclimated to these and those fat shots slowly going away. Really enjoyed the videos in the hole of the day thread also.

I may have missed a discussion about it and if so I apologize.....but do you feel that these clubs are helping/making you become a better ball striker? I know that was a discussion we had with the Nike's considering they are GE irons so interested in how the testers here feel about that subject. Thanks!


Tappin' from my iPad!

I'll go ahead and answer as well Cookie. Ive said it many times, that adjusting to these clubs have without a doubt made me concentrate on being a better ball striker. With the V2s I can not get away with those fat shots and mis-hits that I can with a GI iron. Since I have been gaming these, I have really had to work on my swing, and force myself not to swing too steep and dig under the ball. It's been a difficult, but fun transition from a GI to a GE iron, and one that I first thought would be nearly impossible to do.

 

[#Cookie]

Thanks war.eagle! I started the question at Hawk and then tried to phrase it to all testers so thanks for reading into that.

Your thoughts are very similar to mine so good to hear...these clubs sound very similar set to set against the Nike's.


Tappin' from my iPad!

 

[War Eagle]

Thanks war.eagle! I started the question at Hawk and then tried to phrase it to all testers so thanks for reading into that.

Your thoughts are very similar to mine so good to hear...these clubs sound very similar set to set against the Nike's.


Tappin' from my iPad!

From following the Nike testing thread, I think you have it right, they are similar. But, I do find myself wondering how well a Combo set would work for me, especially as of late when I have been struggling with the long irons.

 

[Howzat]

To answer Cookie's question. That was my thinking behind getting the MP 53's in the first place even though I am a 14 HC. I wanted to improve my ball striking this year and felt going to a GE club would be a good way to do that. I think I have learned to take a little more time on each shot and concentrate on tempo getting ball first. I think it has helped my game. If I can get my act together in the putting department I should be able to get close to the single digits next year and I am not sure that would have been possible without improving my iron play.

At this point I am very interested in a combo set. I really like the 8-PW w/ this set but could see adding a more forgiving 5-7 possibly from Wilson or even another brand all together.

 

[Hawk]

Nice update Hawk! Glad to see you getting acclimated to these and those fat shots slowly going away. Really enjoyed the videos in the hole of the day thread also.

I may have missed a discussion about it and if so I apologize.....but do you feel that these clubs are helping/making you become a better ball striker? I know that was a discussion we had with the Nike's considering they are GE irons so interested in how the testers here feel about that subject. Thanks!


Tappin' from my iPad!

I think the testing process has done more to help me make solid contact than anything. I've spent sometimes as many as 5 days a week hitting balls during all this. I think the V2's did expose an issue with hitting the ball fat, so I practiced on that miss quite a bit. I don't think the irons themselves have made me better as much as they have made me realize my biggest flaws when it comes to making good contact.

 

[#Cookie]

Thanks for the responses testers!

And Hawk; that is another good point. When testing, we find ourselves on the range MUCH more which will naturally lead to better ball striking.


Tappin' from my iPad!

 

[War Eagle]

Had a great round this morning with the V2s. I believe this is the best day of ball striking I have had with them yet. I can only recall 2 misses, 1 fat and 1 caught thin. Going to put my thoughts together and post a full review in a while.

 

[Wicked Cool Bearded Man]

Had a great round this morning with the V2s. I believe this is the best day of ball striking I have had with them yet. I can only recall 2 misses, 1 fat and 1 caught thin. Going to put my thoughts together and post a full review in a while.

Glad to hear it war.eagle! always nice when things go as planned! Looking forward to the write up.

 

[War Eagle]

10/23/11 - Bent Tree County Club, Sarasota, FL
62*, Slight Wind

Got the V2s out for a full round this morning at one of my favorite courses down here. I shot a 42/42; 84. I had 12 bogeys, no birdies. Really struggled with keeping my driver in the fairway on the front 9, ended up hitting 8/14 fairways, some of those misses were only by a few feet and in the first cut so I will still in position to hit a nice shot. Not the best putting day by any means, had 34 putts, I left some strokes out there today. On the brighter side, today was one of the best ball striking days I have had yet with the V2s. I was hitting some great iron shots, and can only remember 2 mis-hits that I had, one thinned, and hit one a bit fat, both still got me decent results though, which was nice to see.

Biggest thing I took away from the day today was the distance I was seeing, as well as seeing good consistency with my distances. Was really hitting the ball clean, and the distances I was seeing showed that. I still say that the 8-PW of this set are some of the best short irons I have ever hit. If I am within 150ish yards from the green, I feel very confident with my shot, and know exactly what I need to do. I am finally starting to be able to control the distance on my shots without the fear of suffering from a nasty mis-hit, I feel that I can swing a bit harder when needed for a few more yards, or take a bit off the swing for an easier shot. I am still having an issue with pushing the ball to the left, I struggled with this a lot early in my round, but as I adjusted myself and my aiming points during the round, got it straightened out.

I did have a couple of times that I needed to punch out from the trees, this is a shot that I have really liked hitting the with the V2s. Choke down on the grip, and have an quick, exaggerated swing will get good results. Low line drive, straight on target. This is a must have shot when you miss fairways like I was today.

Didnt have the need for too many long irons today, I didnt hit below the 5iron today, and only hit that once. My round today was made up of a handful of 6iron shots, and a lot of 7-PW shots.

Here are some featured shots that I took note of. These shots really show that my distance with the V2s is finally coming around, and that I am seeing good consistency with the irons (all distances measured with GPS);

*Hole 1- Par 5- My third shot, 122 yards to the pin. I hit the PW, nice high ball flight, slightly pushed left. I was perfect on the distance, but on the left edge of the green, pin high.

*Hole 2- Par 4- Second shot, 177 yards to the pin. I hit 7iron and landed on the front of the green, measured it at 168 yards. Nice high ball flight, and my ball mark was about 5 feet in front of my ball.

*Hole 3- Par 4-* Second shot, 145 to the pin. Hit 9iron, missed to the left of the green, but nice distance. Checked the distance at 141 yards.

*Hole 4- Par 4- Dogleg left, after a hybrid shot off the tee I was sitting about 130 yards. I went with the PW, was going directly at the flag, landed about 5 yards in front of the flag and the ball checked and rolled back about 5 feet, leaving a myself inside 10 yards.

*Hole 7- Par 3- 122 yards from tee to pin. Wind was blowing at my back, so I took a lazy PW and just tried to get it up in the air with an easy swing. Nice high ball flight, landed about 20 feet behind the pin, checked up and stopped. Measured it at 127 yards. Really liked the feel of being able to just swing easy and put a nice clubface on the ball. In the past I would have tried to “muscle” up on a 50* wedge to get it there.

Hole 13- Par 4- Second shot, sitting at 127 to center green. Had been hitting my PW well so I go with it again. Hit it pure, and it was a beautiful shot. Landed middle of the green, about 10 yards past the hole. Measured it at 133 yards.

Hole 14- Par 4- Second shot, center of the green is 149 yards. It was an elevated green, Pin was up front protected by a greenside bunker. I went with the 9iron, and tried to get a few more yards out of it with the wind coming at me. I would call this a high risk shot, as it was a large green and I could have easily just hit it to the center of the green with an 8 iron here, but really wanted to test myself by hitting the 9. I hit a great shot, and was hoping I got enough on it to get over the bunker. It landed just on the greenside of the bunker and rolled on to the front edge of the green.

Hole 15- Par 4- This was a memorable miss for me. I was sitting on the left side of the fairway after my tee shot, with 156 yards to center green. Pulled the 8iron from the bag and caught it thin, very very thin. It was a line drive and was screaming, cleared the greenside bunker, skipped across the green and down the back side of it. When all was said and done, I was on the backside hill of the green, measured at 163 yards. It was a significant miss, but I did not suffer too bad for it. One of the guys I was playing with commented and said “How did it even get that far?” It sounded bad, looked bad, but went straight and long, although it was just a line drive screamer.

Hole 16- Par 4- 180 yards to the dogleg right, tee’d off with a 7iron and was left with 151 to the pin. I pulled the 8iron (which i thinned very bad on the previous hole). So, 151 yards to the green. A trap in front of the green, and a creek crossing in front of the trap. I hit well under the ball and got it fat, but again did not suffer too badly. I left it short of the green in the trap, measured it at 142 yards, even though it was a mis-hit fat shot, it went straight and was just lacking the distance. Was really surprised at the outcome here, as I figured it was going to be wet.

Hole 18- par 4- Dogleg right at 188 yards, almost impossible to try to cut the dogleg with driver or a fairway wood as there is water on both sides of the very tight fairway. I hit the 6iron of the tee, and hit it great and got a ton of roll out. Measured it to 192 yards, I got all of this one, and it could have been the smoothest feeling iron shot I had all day. It was almost like I hit through the ball, and set myself up great for a second shot just past the dogleg turn.

Overall thoughts on my round with the V2s: I feel that I am getting a better clubface on the ball now than I have been previously. I am really concentrating on hitting ball first, then the ground, and with this I have seen some very nice distance gains. The misses thin and misses fat are becoming less and less, and with that I am seeing much ore consistence with the V2s. Early in my round I felt that I was pushing everything left, but I adjusted my aiming focus point, and was then hitting everything on my targeted area. During setup, I set my focus point slightly in front of the ball, and this has led to much better ball striking. I had said previously that one of my concerns with the V2s was that my distances are very inconsistent. That wasnt the case today, I felt that I could put a little more on my swing or take a bit off to control my shot to the distance I was looking for. One of my other biggest challenges with the V2s has been hitting them fat and getting too steep and digging in to the ground. I can only recall the one fat shot today, and even with it being fat, I still did not pay for it too much. It was still on line with my target, just coming up short of where I wanted to be.

Looks after a month in the bag: I know a lot of people love the looks of these irons, as they should, they are a stunning looking iron. Wanted to write this up and let everyone know that after a month of being in my bag, they are just as shiny and clean looking as the day they came to me. Only thing I have noticed is that I do have some “dents” in them from bag chatter, but no chips or scratches in to them. Here are a few pictures of the 8iron, easily my most used club of the set.

Spoiler

 

[Hawk]

Very nice, war.eagle!

I had a really enjoyable time with the V2's this weekend. Shot my lowest score at a local course that beats me up and had one of those aha moments at the range. Have some really good videos to share sometime today as well that show ball flight. Also did a little comparison with the Redlines that I'll talk about.

A really fun weekend of testing irons

 

[Hawk]

Testing Dates 10/22 and 10/23
Range and 18 holes
Conditions: 60-70° and not windy to very windy

Here's a quick 8 iron video so you can hear again how nice these irons sound when you hit them well. Also, gives a good picture of how they cut through the turf:



This was a fun weekend. I had some real success with my swing on both the range and the course and generally just loved golf. I've been working very hard on my swing and I felt it paid off this weekend (aside from my first four holes today). I felt like I was hitting the ball higher, longer, and more accurately than ever. That showed since I hit 6 GIR's today and barely missed 3 more. That may not seem like much to you, but it's really big for me! Enough about me, let's do a few videos and then I'll update my thoughts on many things over the next day or so.

Here are a couple specialty shot videos. If you choose the HD option and go to full screen you can see the ball flight:

5 iron punch shot followed by a full shot:



This is an important shot for me to have and it's very nice that the V2's can help me keep the ball so low with it.

8 iron 'knockdowns':



I'm going to be perfectly honest and say I'm not sure if this is what others would be considered a knockdown shot, but it's how I keep the ball low with lofted clubs. It's a shot that I'm liking more and more in windy conditions.


I'll have much more coming in the next day or so. Lots of stuff to talk about, but it's late on Sunday night