Miyazaki Shaft Review

So there's not been a whole lot of exciting action on the PGA Tour recently, which has prompted the first equipment review for this blog.  For the first product spotlight, I chose the Miyazaki shaft line, which is owned by Sumitomo Rubber Industries - which also owns Cleveland/Srixon.

Background
First, as a little background on the shafts, they are manufactured somewhat differently then other graphite shafts within the golf industry.  Without getting too technical, a shaft starts as a bunch of sheets of graphite fiber, with each sheet rolled around a rod called a mandrel, and each layer is applied until the desired weight and flex point is achieved.  Miyazaki shafts incorporate an extra step in the manufacturing process in which after a layer of graphite is applied to the madrel, a film is also wrapped around the graphite layer increasing tension and decreasing the amount of air pockets that are produced within layers, making the shaft lighter, more uniform within the shaft, and more consistent from shaft to shaft.

Aside from the manufacturing side, the composition of the shaft is also different in that Miyazaki doesn't see the flex of the shaft as 'Regular' or 'Stiff' like most companies, or even as CPM's (cycles per minute) as a few within the industry define them.  Instead, a Miyazaki shaft is viewed in ten inch segments that each have their own flex based on a scale of one to nine, with nine being the stiffest.  This philosophy enables various versions of the same shaft, and instead of designating one model high launch and another low launch, you can find the four-digit flex code on a Miyazaki shaft and and immediately tell if the shaft has an active tip, soft mid-section, or firm butt end, which each help the golf ball do different things.

For this product review, I was lent a Miyazaki C. Kua 59 gram shaft that was tour issued, with a flex code of 5674.  Basically, this is a light-weight shaft that has a stiff tip, very stiff mid-section, and slightly softer tip.  I was given this shaft after explaining to a Miyazaki employee that I usually used the Diamana Whiteboard 63 gram shaft in a stiff flex.  Using a private database, that employee was able to find the four-digit flex code of the version of the Whiteboard I use and recommend a similar Miyazaki shaft, as the company has tested just about every shaft out there so that they are able to manufacture shafts for their tour players to fit their swing styles.


The Testing Data
The driver that I used for this test was the Nike VR Pro, 440cc model with a loft of 10.5 degree set 1 degree open.  The shaft that I was custom fit for in this head was a Mitsubishi-Rayon Diamana 'Ahina 63 gram stiff flex.  As a baseline, my launch numbers with the 'Ahina were as follows:

Launch Angle:  14.3
Ball Speed:  154
Spin Rate:  3120 rpm's

After installing the Miyazaki C. Kua into the same head, with the same shaft length and grip as the 'Ahina, my launch numbers were as follows:

Launch Angle:  13.1
Ball Speed:  159
Spin Rate:  2850 rpm's

So, the Miyazaki shaft managed to launch the ball 1 degree lower with more speed coming off the club face and slightly less spin.  All these technical numbers add up to approximately a 15 yard increase in distance, from 260 yards with the 'Ahina to 275 with the Miyazaki.  Both shafts had a nice trajectory and feel to them, and both still produced my natural draw, but the Miyazaki shaft had less of a tendency to hook, partially due to the decrease in spin, which meant the balls I hit with the Miyazaki were closer together, on average, than those hit with the 'Ahina.

The same golf ball was used for all of the testing, the Nike 20XI-S, and all numbers were collected on the same day under the same weather conditions with a Flightscope launch monitor.


Conclusion
The Miyazaki shaft performed admirably, and at a price-point of $50 less than a Diamana shaft, it definitely wins out on value, and will win out on performance as long as you are custom fit for the shaft.

One weakness for the brand is the fact that they have done extensive testing of the other shafts on the market, but unless you are a tour player or know someone who knows someone, you don't have access to any sort of comparative data or recommendations.  It would be nice if Miyazaki could do a web fitting module, where you would enter information on what shafts you prefer and what type of launch characteristics you achieve with those shafts and in turn recommend one of their shafts.  They could also do something similar to the Mizuno shaft optimizer, somehow taking data from a demo club to recommend the different flex code you would need.

The other weakness is the fact that they are owned by a club manufacturer, Cleveland/Srixon.  If they were independent, they would be a custom option already for every major manufacturer.  Because of their parent company, TaylorMade refuses to put the shafts in their clubs, the same stance adopted by Titleist.  Nike Golf is the only manufacturer to my knowledge that currently has the Miyazaki shafts as a custom option.

Hopefully Miyazaki can overcome these weaknesses, as they make a great product with a great philosophy behind it.  If they can implement the fitting tool, look for the brand to be a real force among top amateur players in the near future.

This weakness is a simple fix, and if corrected