Chie Arimura’s Bag: A new trend signalling the end of the Tourstage ViQ line??

A few months ago, a fellow TSG forum member from Hawaii was talking to me about what’s in the bag for serveral JLPGA pros and he noted that many of the Tourstage pros were no longer playing the ViQ line, the most dominant line on the Japanese ladies tour which also happens to be one of the best selling lineups for the average male golfer in Japan. At the time, I kinda brushed it off thinking, no way Tourstage would dump their number one selling line focused on the largest group of golfers in Japan.

Now that I think back and look at Tourstage’s movement over the last few months. That forum member could very well be correct. It is only speculation but based on the fact that no new ViQ model has been even whispered about since late 2007 and the old and popular ViQ Forged iron from early 2007 has never been replaced does make one wonder. Then you look at all the JLPGA Tourstage pros. As I said what the girls play on tour actually parallel what is popular for the average golfer in Japan and its been that way for a long time.

If you look at Tourstage’s top female Pros, many of them are in transition away from ViQ line models. Almost all the girls are now playing X-Drive driver  models of some sort (including Tourstage number one Ai Miyazato), and many have switched over to X-Blade irons. Perhaps Tourstage’s sudden decision to release the X Series, traditionally their athlete low handicapper line, this year with multiple models targeting multiple levels of player also signaled a move that the X Series models like the GR are moving to replace the ViQ.

If you look at up and coming Tourstage pro Chie Arimura who I do frequently talk about on my blog, she has gone from playing several ViQ models last season to none now. Here is a break down of her current bag. Does it signal the end of the ViQ line? Only time will tell.

Chie-chan is playing the new X-Drive deep faced 701R 9.5* with Tour AD EV-5 shaft in stiff flex.  She’s got a Callaway X 3 Wood and then 5 7 and 9 X-Drive woods with pink Rombax 5X07 in stiff flex. Her new irons are the X-Blade GR C-1 Forged with NS Pro 750GH regular flex. She’s playing her trusty old 2006 X-Wedges in 52 and 58* lofts with 950GH regular flex. Her putter is the Odyssey Japan Black Series #1 with Prototype insert.

Here are Chie-chan’s distances:

1W      ： 240yards
3W     ： 205yards
5W     ： 195yards
7W     ： 185yards
4I     ： 175yards
5I     ： 165yards
6I     ： 155yards
7I      ： 145yards
8I     ： 135yards
8I     ： 135yards
9I     ： 120yards
PW     ： 105yards
AW     ： 90yards(50*)
SW     ： 75yards(58*)