PREVIEW: XXIO announces XXIO9 woods, hybrids and irons
Equipment

PREVIEW: XXIO announces XXIO9 woods, hybrids and irons

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XXIO is dominant in Japanese golf, owning the club market for over a decade and a half. Dunlop Sports, parent to XXIO and Srixon Golf, brought the company into the U.S. market a few years ago, hoping to capture part of the niche, high-end golf club market.

So, while the company may not be on the tip of American golf tongues, the company's ninth-generation products are a big deal for global golf.

The XXIO9 driver and fairway woods come with a unique technology, dubbed Dual Speed, designed to maintain wrist cock longer through the swing, closer to impact, leading, the company says, to almost 6 more yards off the tee. The company says its combination of a lightweight MP900 shaft -- 2 grams lighter than the previous generation, with a balance point 20 mm closer to the grip -- with its heaviest driver head offering combine to create more lag in the first half of the downswing without forcing the golfer to lose their wrist cock. The company maintains that lag on the first half of the downswing leads to less radial movement on the second half of the downswing, improving clubhead speed, leading to more yards.

The Wing Cup face runs deeper on the toe and heel, connecting further into the body for extra weight and better MOI on poor contact. A weight placed deep on the sole on the heel side lowers and deepens the center of gravity compared to the prior generation. In addition, XXIO designers built the sole with thinner material in the center and reinforced it with thicker, heavier materials on the edges to add forgiveness, dubbing in Power Wave.

Similar technologies carry through the fairway woods, including Wing Cup face with variable thickness for improved forgiveness and better energy transfer (COR) at impact.

The XXIO9 driver and fairway woods will be available Dec. 8, with the driver (available in 8.5-, 9.5-, 10.5- and 11.5-degree options) going for $650 and the fairway woods (available in 15-, 18- and 20-degree options) going for $430 each.

The XXIO9 utility clubs, or hybrids, sport the Wing Cup face and Power Wave sole technologies as well, with the curvature of the back of the head moved closer to the toe for improved forgiveness. The head is also wider at address compared to the prior generation.

The XXIO9 hybrids, available in 3-, 4- and 5-iron loft options, will cost $280 each.

The XXIO9 irons, featuring a titanium face, also have the Dual Speed technology, with a taller face, making a smaller transition from face to sole for, like the Wilson Staff FG Tour F5 irons, an improved sweet spot that extends to the bottom of the face. The five-piece iron comes with separate tungsten-nickel weights to improve MOI.

The XXIO9 irons come in a five-club (6-iron through pitching wedge) set, going for $1,050 with the XXIO MP900 graphite shaft and $850 with the N.S. PRO 890GH DST for XXIO steel shaft.

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Ryan Ballengee

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