THE BRAND FOR THE WORLD NO. 1
Nike has been an innovator on the driver front for years, each model they
produced model adds some “new technology” to enhance the end users
performance. In 2015 Nike is going all in with the Vapor Speed driver as
they have combined all the previous iterations technologies into one driver.
The Covert Cavity, Compression Channel, NexCore face, and FlexLoft 2
adjustable hosel is all part of what makes the Vapor Speed Driver a top
performer in every category.
Gone is the black and red of the VR line and in is the
Black and Volt of the Vapor line. The shift to the “in
your face” luminous branding lines up with the rest
of Nike products and while it might be a love it or
hate it kind of colour scheme, the one thing everyone
agrees on is that it certainly stands out against the
other clubs in anyone’s bag.
Any club that that encompasses a Fubuki shaft always
worries me, not because they produce substandard
equipment, I have just never hit one particularly well,
especially a 50 gram model. For the first trip out on
the course I had the head set at 10.5* loft and sure
enough everything went high and right. It wasn’t the
way I had hoped to start with this club. After a few
more strokes and some tinkering I had the club set
to 9.5*, and boom; long, straight and with a good
launch angle. I wouldn’t have guessed changing the
hosel setting would make such a big difference, but
it did. The Fubuki Z50 didn’t become a hindrance
for me with this club, but the great feel associated
with this shaft really made this club a fairway finder;
straight hit after straight hit. I even found that the
spin was moderate for the “base” model of the Nike
Vapor family.
The combination of all the head tech really pays off
in the Nike Vapor Speed, between the compression
channel and the cavity, this is one forgiving driver.
Pretty much the entire lower half of the face offers
consistent results and the anywhere near the centre
works well, leaving only the far upper corners for bad
shots. Nike is really able to put weight and forgiveness
in what seems to be the right places for good sound,
great feel and excellent results. It launches the ball
fairly easily with a flat flight.
30 YOURCADDY | ISSUE 03
Based on what I am reading and seeing out there, this
is the most underrated driver of 2015, not too many
folks are talking about it. It has been surrounded by
all the media hype that you would normally associate
with a new Nike product, but the results speak for
themselves, this is a top performer in just about
every category. Sure it doesn’t have all the bells and
whistles of the Vapor Flex or the Vapor Tour name,
but it offers excellent performance for a so called
“base” model driver.
If you are looking for a new driver that makes you
feel a little more like Rory then Nikes new driver may
take you one step closer, the Speed is a great choice
for forgiveness, accuracy and solid distance.
FLIGHTSCOPE X2 LAUNCH MONITOR
NIKE VAPOR SPEED DRIVER
SPIN: 2524 rpms
LAUNCH ANGLE: 14.8*
DISPERSION: 7.1 yds
CLUB HEAD SPEED: 103.7 mph
BALL SPEED: 152.4 mph
TOTAL DISTANCE: 271.1 yds
CARRY DISTANCE: 260.7 yds