Sumo 2 offers stability
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Just like the wrestlers of the same name, the first thing you notice about the Nike SasQuatch SUMO 2 driver, is its size - about 13 cms wide and deep (that's 25 square inches in old money) - equivalent to the crust of an average Supermarket thick-sliced loaf.
Get the picture?
The second thing is the sound it makes - unlike anything else I've ever hit. The sound made by the original Callaway metal-headed drivers (Big and Biggest Berthas) in the late 1980s was distinctive but the Nike Sumo 2 sets your ears ringing and heads of other golfers within 50 yards, turning.
'Clink', 'Tink', 'Boing' or 'Doing' doesn't really do it justice. Give your average central heating radiator a tap with a claw hammer and you're closer to reproducing the sounds of a modern golf ball on this club's titanium face.
Address the ball and it dwarfs it but I can imagine it instilling huge confidence into those nervous, inexperienced golfers among us, worried that we might not make contact with the ball off the tee. Surely, with this club you can't miss!
As described above, SUMO 2 stands for SUper MOment of Inertia Squared, the technical term within club-making that identifies how the club is delivered squarely to the ball at impact. A high MOI, we're told, prevents the shaft and clubhead twisting as it makes contact with the ball to send it off line.
In other words, the Nike SUMO 2 with its square shape, has enabled engineers to redistribute and reposition weight into the corners of the club head (manufacturers are restricted to a maximum volume of 460cc) for added stability.
Put another way, imagine a clubhead as a circular bread roll of 460 cc - press down on it and it's still a 460 cc bread roll but its shape has changed.
Consequently the SUMO 2's face is wider but less deep than other modern drivers making it more forgiving when the ball is hit off the toe or heel but making contact with the ball, higher or lower on the clubface more critical.
For those looking for added length, don't expect to find it immediately in the SUMO 2. However, this club will give you confidence to hit the ball harder and should help straighten out those wild drivers for whom length isn't a problem - but direction is.
An added bonus is the fact that off the deck the SUMO 2 is awesome. I encouraged two of my playing partners to try it, who had never previously had the confidence to hit a ball off the fairway with a driver and they were amazed at the results - a penetrating left-to right flight with lots of roll.
Take a look of our picture gallery of the Nike Sumo2 here
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Rating: |
8/10 |
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Summary: | If you're already a straight hitter, I doubt the SUMO 2 will deliver more length to your established accuracy. However, if you've got 300 quid to spare and the opportunity to add control and accuracy to your already prodigious length, its music to your ears (and you don't mind outrageous sound effects), then this square phenomenon is for you. |
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*The new Nike drivers are due to be in the shops and possibly available to test at demo days around the UK in early February. We want to know how you get on with them by submitting a
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