The round black driver head looks like a hockey puck on the end of a stick. It's designed for more workability over the square face. The "STR8-Fit technology" allows you to tweak the puck open or closed to your liking. And the light aerodynamics produces fast clubhead speeds with less spin on the ball, which results in bigger longer drives.

The other advantage of this club is the sound. If you are ever lost in the forest and you've got your trusty driver with you (I never go hiking without mine), simply start hitting golf balls (or rocks, or pine cones) and somebody will find you quickly. The sound of the golf ball at impact can be heard for miles and miles. It is as pleasing a sound as a cow bell or car wreck.

I recommend you check out the Nike VR Pro. It has a hotter face, a better look, and you can adjust it to 32 different positions as opposed to 8. If you don't want to shell out for the new one, check out last year's model.

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And like a Corolla, this club will get you from point A to point B. It is designed for higher handicappers and thus is very forgiving. The club face is adjustable to 8 different positions, but keep in mind the neutral position is actually a little closed. This is to help slicers. If you still slice it after trying it neutral, you obviously will need to tweak it even more closed.

Now for the panning… Fasten your seatbelts. The square black driver head looks like a giant Klondike bar. (Mmmmm, yummy.) The only thing less pleasing than the look is the sound of the ball at impact. When I hear it, I imagine that I am a P.O.W. and the enemy is trying to extract information from me by making me listen to the Commandant hitting drives with this beast. TINK... TINK... TINK... "Ve have vays of making you talk..."

I recommend you upgrade to the Nike VR Pro. Buy last year's model if price is an issue. The club is much better looking, and it has 32 different adjustments. The sound still is a bit metallic, but it won't lead you to commit treason.

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This 2011 VR Pro is the second generation of this driver whose claim to fame is the compression channel at the bottom. This compression channel is Nike's unique design that makes the bottom of the club more forgiving when you miss-hit the ball low.

The other big feature of the driver is the STR8-FIT technology that allows you to adjust the face to 32 different positions. (It used to be just 8, hence the name STR8-FIT. Thus, it should be called the STR32-FIT. Not exactly the same ring to it.)

Nike has really improved the look of this driver over last year's model. First, the adjustable hosel is more disguised. On last year's club, it was gaudy and ugly. They've also made the shape more traditional.

I find this driver very easy to work the ball, left and right, high and low. However, the sound is not pleasing. Don't get me wrong; it's not as annoying as the loud tinks of those old Sumos and Sasquatches, but it certainly isn't as muted as what I expect from a tour driver. Also, the feel leaves a lot to be desired. There is not much feed back on mishits. Having said that, mishits fly high and far as if they were hit on the screws.

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Remember me?  I’m the one that promised you that if I got the Sky Caddy last year, I’d quit throwing my clubs and fix all my divots and ball marks.  And for the most part, I stuck to our deal.  Surely you can understand me losing my temper last month when I duck-hooked my drive on 18 into the lake.  C’mon, Santa, I was even par with one to go!  Okay, so maybe I shouldn’t have thrown my driver into the lake, but in my defense, I had no idea that I could hurl it that far.  (I guess they aren’t kidding when they say these new drivers are aerodynamic.)

This year, I want the Nike VR Pro Limited Driver (to be released November 2011) . PGA tour players Lucas Glover, Anthony Kim, and Paul Casey have already added this slick beast to their arsenal.

This is one of the most beautiful drivers I’ve seen.  For this “players” club, Nike has thrown out the ugly STR8-Fit adjustable hosel and glued the shaft directly to the driver head.

Comparing this to the 2011 model (which I currently play)

Nike kept:  the red sole channel that goes around the bottom of the club.  It allows the driver to flex on low, bottom mishits so you don’t lose ball speed.  And the standard shaft will be the Mitsubishi Rayon ‘ahina offered in 8.5, 9.5, and 10.5-degree lofts

Nike changed: In addition to throwing out the adjustability, they’ve dialed down the clubhead size to 430cc (from 460cc).  Better players who don’t need the extra forgiveness will love how this makes the driver more workable.  And smaller doesn’t mean shorter distance.  The face is hotter than ever.  Nike has added a “NexCor” face.  This means they’ve varied the thickness across the face – thinner in the middle, thicker on the sides (heel and toe).

The coolest thing to me is the sleek look and color.  The smaller pear-shaped driver head painted in dark satin grey is reminiscent of a gorgeous 911 Porsche waiting to be floored.

So what do you say Santa?  You know I would never throw this driver in the lake.  Although, I can’t really speak for my putter -- it’s been giving me some guff lately.

The days of humping around the links in stiff, heavy leather golf shoes are over. I remember having to tape up my feet because they were so badly blistered from trying to “break in” my shoes.

But in recent years, golf shoe designers have taken a page from the running shoe guys. Shoes like the Adidas FitRX Sports and the Nike Air Zoom Elite look like track shoes with spikes added to the bottoms.

Now, with the dawn of these Dunks, the geniuses at Nike are turning your local golf club into a basketball court. (Anybody care for a game of H-O-R-S-E?) These kicks are a low profile basketball shoe with an “old-school” look. The only difference is the shoes have soft spikes in the very bottom.

I think this is a great idea. I am a huge fan of breathable, comfortable golf shoes especially on hot summer days when I am on my feet for 4+ hours. My favorite thing about the shoes are all the colorful choices. Celtics fans will want to go with the green, while you more conservative types will choose the grey. They even have two different designs that would excite North Carolina Tar Heel fans: the Soaring Black and the Midnight Fog. (Hmmmm, M.J., come out wherever you are.)

The only thing I would warn is: don’t expect these shoes to be waterproof. Leave them in the closet on those “mudder” days and stick with your Dry Joys. But of course that goes without saying, because you won’t want to get your Dunks dirty. Reserve them for the days when it’s warm enough to match them with your Tar Heel’s basketball polo. And please leave the tank top at home.

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That’s goes double for the sound at impact. The sound it makes is about as pleasing as freight train slamming on its brakes. They should include a set of ear plugs and a bottle of Excedrin with this thing. (On a positive note, it’s very useful at extracting information on unwilling double agents that have not succumbed to water boarding.)

The aerodynamic profile of the Mach Speed Driver takes advantage of the air movement around the club at all times -- in the backswing and downswing -- reducing the drag and allowing the club to have that max speed at impact. You'll also see that Nike has built some adjustability into the Mach Speed Driver with their STR8-FIT system. This allows the user to adjust the club to one of eight different positions to achieve the ideal face angle for that players swing, helping to correct even the worst hooks and slices. As with nearly every new-age driver, the Mach Speed from Nike has a great deal of forgiveness built into the oversized clubhead, so even off-center hits will travel in the direction intended and for much of the distance potential sought. Also helping that increased distance profile, the SQ driver produces a lower ball flight and imparts less spin on the ball. A word of caution: If you're looking for a club that will allow you to "work" the ball, keep looking -- this club is designed to hit the ball a long way. Period.

This club comes in quite a variety of options for both right- and left-handed players. With lofts from 8.5 degrees to 13 degrees and shaft flexes that include Senior (A), Regular, Stiff and X-Stiff, there is almost surely a combination to fit your game. The shaft is a proprietary model from Nike called the Fubuki and is also done in a jet black finish. I like the shaft. It’s about all I like about the driver. To sum up, all-in-all this is an attractive driver, if you are drawn to such things as black shoe boxes, coal bricks, and compressed cow manure… suffice to say – it’s a somewhat menacing looking, obnoxiously loud club.

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Fitted with the tried-and-true True Temper Dynamic Gold shafts, they are available in Regular or Stiff flex. The eight-piece set includes the 3-iron through Pitching Wedge. Grips are the Red Grip from Easton. Easton -- for those who don't know -- is the maker of GolfPride grips. This version has a dual-density design that provides for maximum grip in the top half, and enhanced feel on the bottom of the grip. Visually, these irons are like most forged sets, they are simple in their elegance. A dark chrome finish is offset by the Nike swoosh and the now familiar red/black "V" for Victory that adorn so many hats and shirts on the PGA and other Tours.

If a set of forged irons is a consideration, you might also investigate the Titleist AP-2 or ZM-Forged models.

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Nike polled their Tour Staff members, and the resulting feedback and suggestions went into the creation of the SV Tour wedge. Among other things, the profile, bounce, and groove contour are all Tour caliber. The SV Tour wedges have classic (e.g., simple) profiles and sole grinds which provide a clean look with a lot versatility. Using a CNC milling machine to create a flat face will -- Nike claims -- provide a consistent golf ball response off the club face for more accurate golf shots. When you combine these features, they are bound to provide a greater degree of control, confidence, and accuracy necessary for a solid short game. Having confidence in your wedges is one of the key elements to their successful application. I've tried all manner of wedges over the years, from the most basic Sam Snead model to the gimmicky stuff advertised at 3:00 a.m. on The Golf Channel. After all the wedges I have tried, the ones that consistently perform the best are the high quality, tour proven options.

The Nike SV Tour comes in a wide variety of loft, lie and bounce options -- from a Strong Gap Wedge at 50 degrees to a Lob Wedge at 60 degrees, and several in-between, there is a combo available to suit most any need. Even the shaft option is simple: True Temper Dynamic Gold in regular flex. This is a handsome club as well with a satin chrome finish to the head and simple, yet elegant, markings. If nothing else, you'll at least feel like a Tour Pro pulling one of these from your bag.

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The Nike CPR is a blended set of hybrids and game improvement irons. An 8-piece set, the 3 and 4 are hybrids while the 5-PW feature game improvement designs like a deep cavity back, perimeter weighting, progressive offset, and a uni-flex shaft - all designed for what Nike claims to be "rapid game improvement." That sounds a lot like marketing-speak for "beginner's set" to me. Be that as it may, there is a lot of tech to be found here. Physically, these clubs are, at first blush, reminiscent of the old Burner Bubble from TaylorMade. However, the insert is actually red (rather then copper colored) with the black and stainless color scheme.

A little on the large size, these clubs are heavier than some similar offerings. However, after getting a few rounds under your belt with them, that perception will no doubt fade and be a minor consideration. One limitation with the Nike CPR set is that, though they are (technically, at least) available with a graphite shaft, that option is nearly impossible to find, and most you'll see are steel-shafted. For many players in this category, a graphite option would go a long way to improving their game as well.

If you are a mid-to-high handicapper, the benefits of a blended set like this are something you should experience first hand. While the Nike CPR is a good choice, many other options exist in this category, including sets from TaylorMade, Cobra, Titleist and others.

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All of the Nike packable rain suits are made from 100% polyester, are machine washable, and can be packed into a small, zippered case that fits easily in your golf bag.

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