Discovering JDM equipment

By derchas

The other day I was looking at my current golf bag, wondering how it ended up like it currently is. To begin with, I live in Stockholm Sweden about as far north as Anchorage Alaska, and the golfing season is severely hampered by the awful, long winter. Courses where I live are generally closed for at least five months. So if I was as perfectly normal person, with any kind of sense, I wouldn't really care so much what kind of equipment I play golf with. But I do care, so - consequently - that makes me abnormal with no sense at all.

Anyway, I started playing for real when I was about 23 years old. I played only for the fun of the game itself, since none of my friends played. Over the years I went through different sets of clubs geared at the beginner and average player. Then I took the next step and ordered a set of Ben Hogan Apex Plus irons and discovered the beauty of chromed clubs. After a while I wanted to try something else, picked up a used set of MP-33:s with Rifle shafts and discovered the muscleback, as well as the importance of shafts. A few years later, in the spring of 2006, the MP-33:s looked worn, so I sold them and bought a set of Titleist 690MB:s with Dynamic Gold shafts. Then I discovered... that I missed the MP-33:s. They were smoother, better launching, had better workability, better looks - well most everything was better.

What to do, then? Well nowadays, in the good times of the Internet, do some googling on "Mizuno MP 33 reviews" and see what happens. At some point I stumbled on Tourspecgolf. What's this then? Japanese clubs I never heard of... Tourstage, Epon, Miura, Gauge design and many more. This was interesting, golf gear for the japanese market only. So I go about doing some more searching on domestic and international golf forums and spend a good part of the winter doing it, slowly focusing on Miura. At this point, I realize that I just must have japanese equipment - there is nowhere else to go.

Since I realize I have to do some custom fitting, I look for a reseller in Sweden and I actually find one, for Miura - none of the other JDM brands. After a little hesitation, ok more than a little, I decide that the Tournament blade or the CB301 are my preferred variants. After the fitting session it is finally the CB301:s with Project X shafts, I really wanted the Nippon shafts to work the best, but alas. Indoor practising gives me additional feedback, I really did the right thing here. These are not like the MP-33:s, they are different, smooth but solid, much like precision instruments. Hmm, maybe a driver would be a good investment - the old Ping is getting a bit worn, isn't it. I'm going on a business trip to Japan in june, is it coincidence or is it fate? I presume it is fate and decide on looking for a new driver while in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, the golf courses have opened and the Miuras work great on course as well as indoors, that is when my winter-rusty swing occasionally works. Still there is a nagging thought that maybe I should have bought Epon J:s instead. Maybe I'll buy those as well. All right, the wife would kill me, let's wait a year or so. But I do need a new driver. An Epon 460, preferably.

Arriving in Tokyo I set out to find golf shops and after spending some time with seafood markets and second hand shoes I find the shops I’m looking for. Then I realize that not speaking japanese is kind of a drawback, since most of the staff don't speak too good english. I bring a local guide from our business the next time I visit the shops, but even with language help noone had heard of Epon and only one had heard of Endo. Much later I think that maybe I should have asked for Technity. Oh well, I found a nicely priced Tourstage X-drive 460 with a Quattrotech 65 shaft and after some hesitation I bought it. After all, this was why I was in Japan, wasn't it? Business too, but the driver was more urgent. Japan was interesting in many other ways, we visited Kyoto and Osaka as well, but I won't dwell on that here.

Happily equipped I spend the entire summer on the golf course, playing as much as I can and really enjoying the clubs. Scoring is improving gradually, no super-lows but very much more consistent. If it's the clubs or me I cannot tell, but I do feel more confident this year and I don't feel the need to change my irons, like last year. However... aren't the wedges a little worn? But I really can't convince myself to buy JDM wedges as gamers, since they wear out so quickly. And they are supposed to be gamed, because the are so good. Maybe a gapwedge, but that's it.

Discovering JDM equipment has brought a new dimension of temptation into my life, as well as improving my game. That temptation makes me regularly question the contents of my bag and scan the 'net for possible replacements. The putter is an old Scotty Newport Oil Can and I won't change that. Fairway wood is another story, the Titleist 904F with Dynamic gold could very well be a candidate for replacement. No sentimentality there, let's start looking, I have the entire winter to decide.