Mizuno Golf isn't the first name that comes to my mind when I think of fairway woods. Not that they haven't been making them for quite some time, it's that they don't quite have the same or really anywhere close to the following they get with the irons (and if you've ever hit a Miznuo iron flush, you know the feeling). For a company that makes outstanding irons, their woods have always left a little something to be desired.

The Mizuno MX-700 line looks to change that history with offering some serious technology and what I can only describe as one of the hottest faces I've ever hit on a fairway wood. While the MX line traditionally has been geared to the mid and higher handicap range, the MX-700 certainly won't scare away anyone who has one goal in mind, hit the ball long and straight. Regardless of your handicap, that is a good thing.

Does the MX-700 fairway wood live up to it's billing as "the perfect combination of power, accuracy, and ease of use?" Read on to find out.

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Mizuno has long been a "name" in the golf industry. The irons they produce have been the gold standard for many tour players and can be found in the bags of quite a few good players at clubs around the world. I've owned a set and been a fan for a long time.

One area that they have struggled in market share is woods. Whether it's drivers, fairway, or now hybrids, Mizuno hasn't quite captured the hearts of golfers in this category quite as much as their irons have. That hasn't stopped Mizuno though. Over the past few years they have started showing up in bags of players of all skills.

The new MX-700 Hybrid is one of those clubs. I put a hybrid in my bag over three years ago and have loved it. More players than not sport at least one hybrid in their bags and Mizuno wants that market share. Their latest introduction, the MX-700 Hybrid, is aimed at a mid-level player looking for some more forgiveness but not sacrifice the feel and feedback that most Mizuno players have come to love. Will it do the job? Read on to find out.

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A TaylorMade Rescue has been in my bag for the past three years and I haven't found one to replace it during that time. I've tried nearly half a dozen that all had decent results but none could beat the overall performance of the TaylorMade.

When the chance came to review the latest offering from TaylorMade, I jumped on it. My older-generation Rescue has been in the bag since 2005 and has seen better days. While I've admired Mizuno and Titleist in the iron area, I've had a TaylorMade driver and Rescue or fairway metal in my bag for many years. Their dominance in this area has been the result of superior products, not just marketing.

The TaylorMade Rescue '09 offers some improvements that are hard to pass up, especially if you're like me and have skipped a few generations. The question is, though, will this new version be good enough and retain the qualities that I've come to love and appreciate about my old Rescue? Read on to find out.

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Mizuno claims that "the MX-700 possesses the lowest and deepest COG, has the largest MOI, and is by far the longest and most forgiving driver in Mizuno's history."

After reviewing Mizuno's MP-600 last year, I was very interested in seeing what the company would do with their "average player" follow-up to the MX-560. The knock (and the only knock in a lot of people's minds) against the 560 was the sound. It had a very loud and unpleasant impact sound.

As the "MP" implies in Mizuno's lineup, the MP-600 is intended as a driver for better players. It features a neutral to open face angle at address and little or no slice correction (other than Mizuno's Fast Track weighting system, that is). The MX-700, with its "MX" moniker, is aimed at any golfer looking to maximize distance, get a little help launching the ball, and reduce, if not eliminate, a slice.

So does the MX-700 live up to its billing? Read on to find out.

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Nike's latest line of irons, Victory Red, comes in muscleback, split cavity, and full cavity versions. The Split Cavity set appealed most to me with its promise of workability coupled with a little more forgiveness than the muscleback.

I like to move the ball a fair amount when I play. In fact, that's one of the things that I find most enjoyable about golf: picturing a shot and then executing it. While I don't always pull off the shot that I've envisioned, when I do it's a feeling as good or better than shooting a low score. So when I'm in the market for irons, I'm looking for a set that I can work when I want to. Still, I'm a realist… I need some forgiveness, too.

The Nike Victory Red Forged Split Cavity irons (aside from having way too long of a name) are designed to help players work the ball, positioned squarely in the middle of the Victory Red workability-forgiveness continuum. Common sense would tell you that the muscleback blades offer far more workability and less forgiveness than the full cavity irons. All of that perimeter weighing in the cavity backs helps reasonably well struck shots go straight, forcing the player to make more of a concerted effort to purposefully move the ball left or right. It's reasonable then to expect that the Split Cavity irons would offer a nice blend of workability and forgiveness.

Nike makes a point of emphasizing Tiger Woods' role in developing the VR irons. The obvious assumption is that if the world's number one golfer had a hand in creating the clubs, then they must be very good clubs, indeed. Let's find out if that's the case.

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It's fun to see some new up-and-coming equipment companies come out with some pretty innovative products designed to help lower your golf score.

One of those companies is Roenick Golf, who have come out with a pretty ingenious idea for a putter that not only incorporates some nice customization features but also an alignment-aid system that should help you drop a few more putts per round and give you some added confidence every time you stand over a putt.

I'm not the biggest mallet guy in the world, to put it mildly so even with the above features, I was pretty skeptical that the Crossbow had any chance of securing a spot in my very small putter rotation, yet alone make to my bag.

Read on to find out if I had to eat a little crow about my thoughts in using a mallet putter.

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We've all seen the ads. We've all seen the large number of TaylorMade staffers with "R9" sewn on the sides of their hats or visors. We've had it beaten into our heads that TaylorMade owns the tee box. Oh, wait, that was a few years ago. What are they saying these days?

"Until now."

That's their new slogan. "Until now, you've never had a customized driver." Or something like that.

Logic aside (I've had customized drivers because I've gone to get fitted for my drivers), the message is clear: TaylorMade is big on customization, and the R9 not only offers "MWT" for "Movable Weight Technology" but their new hosel adjustment feature, dubbed "FCT" for "Flight Control Technology."

Suffice to say even if TaylorMade doesn't own your tee box, they own the most acronyms. Does all of this FCT and MWT make a difference in the R9 driver? Read on to find out.

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