R7 limited

[bbedell]

I'm considering picking up an R7 limited at a great deal of $199 before they go out of stock. My question is regarding the shaft options. I have heard very good things about the Matrix Ozik 5.5 stock shaft that it comes with. However, I have heard people say that due to the low kick point of the shaft, the stiff flex tends to feel a bit like a regular flex.

I am wondering if anyone here has experience with this club and if they can give me any feedback here. I'd love to go hit the club in person, but none of the golf shops around here carry it since it is last year's model. I tend to fluxuate between regular and stiff flex depending on how my game is going. I'm thinking of picking up the stiff shaft due to the rumors i've heard about it as well as the fact that it will allow me to grow into the shaft as my game improves further and my swing speed improves. Also, I generally play a 10.5 degree with a regular flex shaft. Would it be smart to stick with the 10.5 degree if I pick up the stiff shaft, or should I move down to a 9.5 degree as I've seen a lot of people do with the stiff shaft on this club? Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

[WUTiger]

I'm not familiar with that shaft line, so I located the Matrix web site. M produces quite a few varieties:
http://www.matrixshafts.com/ozik_xcon.html

If I've located your shaft correctly on the Matrix grid, it appears to be a high-launch (low flexpoint / kickpoint) shaft. See if you can find out if the Matrix 5.5 shaft is a firm rather than regular. See if their firm is a step between Regular and Stiff. (This would be similar to the Project X 5.5 flex for steel shafts)

Anyway, you need a baseline of how high or low you hit your current driver. If you hit it high, a high launch plus R flex might generate too high a launch angle. A somewhat stiffer shaft in high launch won't pop the ball up as much. Too bad you can't check this out on a launch monitor.

[bbedell]

I would say that currently I hit my driver the appropriate height. On mishits it does tend to go high, but on good swings when I make good contact I like the height. As you can see from my signature I currently play a Nike driver with a Diamana graphite regular flex shaft. However, as I said I have hit plenty of drivers with stiff shafts (most notably my brother's R7 Quad with a stiff shaft) and I can hit those just fine as well. I see on the link that you posted that the Ozik XCON 5 does come in a regular and firm flex. The website that I am most likely going to be ordering from only lists "stiff" and "regular" as options. I'd love to find a "firm" flex also as I think this is currently the category that I fit into, but I dont think that is doable since these clubs are almost sold old in most locations.

[kurtwainwright]

I own the particular club you are inquiring about. However, I'm a poor specimen to judge the shaft since I'm a horrible driver to begin with.
I will say this, before I picked up the r7 Limited, I owned an Adams Insight with R-flex, and I've noticed a considerable difference in the whippiness of the shaft on the downswing. My Adams R-flex always gave me the feeling that the club head was being whipped out in front of the shaft. Whether that was happening or not, I'm not sure. Overall, I'm happier with my r7 than I ever was with the Adams.

[bbedell]

so you went with the R-flex R7 and you feel that it feels LESS whippy than the R-flex of your old driver?

Edit: oops I see from your profile that you went with the stiff flex r7...did you find that this transition worked out for you? I think we may be in the same boat here. Also, did you always play a 9.5 degree launch or did you move down from a 10.5 to a 9.5 when you got the r7 with the stiff shaft...this is another decision i'm trying to make.

[goin_low]

I have the R7 Limited 10.5 in a stiff shaft. I swing just under 100 mph and the stiff flex is perfect for it.

[Crey23]

Here again ...we are talking about suggesting a club/shaft combination, without really knowing the stats that drive this decision.....

I just bought this driver on Saturday, and took it to the course on Sunday....bottom line Best damn driver I have hit!!!!!

My Stats: (with the 9.5* Reg below)
SS: ~ 94 mph
BS: ~ 135 mph
Launch Angle: ~ 12* - 14*
Ball Height :~ 27 Ft.

I was suffering from a very high ball height, and mean slices. I was gaming an r7 CBG Max with a 45g regular shaft, want to talk about whippy....I left like Indiana Jones playing with this thing....every once in a while you could hear the "splat"at the end of the whip....All kidding aside, I was reddy to get the Aldila NV65-R shaft as it seemed to fit what I was looking for in shaft...so did the Matrix Ozik X-Con 6, but at $300 you can imagine the NV65 was far more appealing.

I tried the Nike 5900 with UST V2 stiff, and didn't like it my ball spin with this setup was averaging 5900 rpm. I then found the r7 Limited and tried the following setups:

- 9.5* Stiff - did not really match my ss. I was getting good stat, except for distance and some noticeable slices.

- 9.5* Reg - Matched my ss perfectly!! I got rid of slices, with the head set to neutral I was hitting straight and slight draws. I was able to reduce my ball spin to average 3700 rpm.

- 10.5* Reg - I was getting similar results to the 9.5*, but with about 2* higher launch angle, and this was specifically what I wanted to lower.

I played on Sunday in Ft. Lauderdale area in Florida, with wind of 20 mph, and gusts of 30 mph, and I have never had as many fairway hits as I did yesterday. This may not be great for you, but I hit 8 out of 14 fairways. I usually landed as near as the fringe right of the fairway, or occasionally on the far right of the fairway. Yesterday I was well within the fairway, not always on the center, but closer to were I wanted to be. The other 6 mis hits were even split 3 left, 3 right. I only lost 2 balls due to wind, and both were high fliers....

I got my club at Golf Galaxy by my house, and paid $150 for it. At this price, I has been the best purchase I have made for my game.

For the price, It's a great club.

[duffer888]

Another data point here. Unlike Crey23, a 10.5* r7 Limited in Reg flex has not been working for me and my SS is roughly 90. It was turning my slight fade into a big fade/slice. I considered trying a 9.5*, but they are fairly hard to find in Reg flex. Instead, I picked up a 10.5* r9 with the Reg Motore 65. I have a r9 fairway that I hit pretty good off the tee, so I figured I'd go this route so the feel is consistant between clubs. Only one range session so far, but the r9 has been much better. I can set it backweighted on N and hit high straight/slight fade bombs. Set on N/R, the launch is lower, but I can really release the club and it's hard to go left. I'll play with the r9 a bit more, but I'm pretty sure the r7 Limited is gone.

[bbedell]

this is interesting. The last time i had my swing speed measured was a while ago, and I'm pretty sure I swing a bit harder now, but at that point it was high 80s-low 90s. I read a few reviews that said that due to the low kick point of the shaft on the Limited, the stiff flex tended to feel a bit closer to a regular flex. This is why I ordered the stiff flex, figuring even if it was a bit stiff for me at first, I am improving and can grow into it. When you tell me that your SS is 94 and the regular worked perfect for you, it makes me question my decision. The club is geting here tomorrow...maybe I'll try to hit it with the shrink wrap still on and guarded with some packing tape so that i can send it back if I dont like the flex. Thanks for the info either way, I'll let you know how it turns out.

[TimC794]

hey hows the driver going for you?

i got mine tuesday. x stiff matrix shaft in her and ive never hit a club as straght as this one. tbh i have great ball striking skills with my irons but my driver has always been a problem for me. the r7 limited must be the hardest driver i have ever hit and i believe it can only be good for my game i hope cause my timing is very out with a driver:$

do you find that you hit a inconsistant distance with the club? i hit one drive to the back of a 360yard green on a windless day and the next hole i was 20yards short on a 300 yard hole? my strikes weren that different and my swing speed is always very similar? could it be that this driver is a lot like a blade youve got to middle it at all times?

i love hitting the ball very straight though its lovely to no that the bad shot is just off the fairway

[gauchogolfer]

I just picked up an R7 (9.5° S shaft) from Golfsmith last weekend, and hit it in the simulator to compare to my old TM r540XD (also 9.5° S).
With the 540 my launch conditions were:
* SS ~ 86mph
* Ball Speed ~ 125mph
* Launch Angle ~ 12°
* Spin ~ 4000rpm
With the R7 launch conditions are:
* SS ~ 94mph
* Ball Speed ~ 146mph
* Launch Angle ~ 12°
* Spin ~ 3000rpm

I've noticed that the shaft is much better on this in terms of tip stiffness and resistance to twisting on off-center hits.
For me a good drive is normally in the 265-yard range, but my first round (yesterday) featured several 280+ drives, and a much better dispersion pattern.
I'm very pleased with the results, and think it was a very good investment (especially at $199).

[bbedell]

100% the best driver I have ever owned. From the moment I first took it out to the range I noticed that my drives were much straighter and more consistent. I also very much enjoy the smaller head on this driver compared to the 460cc monsters out there today, I think it makes the club much easier to swing. Having that smaller head, you do have to hit the ball more consistently, but I have not noticed that I have had to change my swing in the least to hit this driver. At $199 there is no doubt in my mind that this is one of the best golf investments that I have made to date. I'm thinking about picking up another to set aside just in case!

[Cussin hacker]

5.5 is on the light side of stiff and more of a regular shaft. 5.5 represents frequency of the shaft. Say it was a 6.2 it would be stiffer. Labeling shafts that way lets you know exactly how stiff a shaft is. Not many companies do this.

[Crey23]

  bbedell said:

100% the best driver I have ever owned....

Exactly!!!! This is by bar the best..... All my drivers have been TM....07 Burner (counterfeit), and an r7cbgMax. Al regulars with 10.5* lofts. I wanted to re-shaft my r7cbgmax with an Ozik or Aldila shafts, but for the price, I ended up with the r7 Limited Reg - 9.5*. I really like this driver, the first time at the course I hit my highest fairway % ever (57%).

Lately I have been working on my swing mechanics and I am begining to hit a draw, with weights setup to natural position. I've hit my second longest drive 267 (longest was 279 with counterfeit burner), but my average with the cbgMax was 230, and with the Limited is 244, although my last round with new swing was about 250. This driver certainly has alot of potential and room for me to grow into....I will have this driver in my bag for a long time, and even when I changes it, this one will stay with me. Great Driver...oh, and I got it at GG for $150 of a sale they had a few months ago.