NIKE Q&A 2.0: Tour Van, Oven & Nike HQ answers questions 3/4/14. See transcripts here...

[BuckyBadger]

There were some complaints about the original Covert driver and the plastic cavity piece breaking. I owned one and it did eventually break. Has this problem been solved? I am afraid of it happening again.

[TooMuchAwesome]

[quote name='scottvw13' timestamp='1393958855' post='8796531']
[quote name='Nike Golf HQ' timestamp='1393958664' post='8796493']
[b]Rest assured all of the players that you see with a Polymetal Patterned face has polymer and metal on the face. The notion of a "painted face" on a Method putter makes David Franklin cringe![/b]
[/quote]

So are you saying definitively that there is not a single player on tour utilizing a Nike Method putter with method grooves that have been pained on the face?
[/quote]

This.. hard to tell from some of the pictures, especially Watney's

[wldchld22]

http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/902163-nike-2014-please-give-us-the-rory-006-poll-inside-wrxers-cast-your-vote-update-over-200-and-counting-just-do-it/page__st__690

Rorys masters edition putter...

[IheartNY]

Currently, what is the oldest Nike Golf club in the PGA and LPGA tour player's bags?

[Dbendetti2]

My average score hovers in the 90's with an old set of off the shelf callaways. I would love to make the transition to Nike Clubs. How many strokes do you believe i could realistically shave off by getting fitted for a set and where do you suggest i go for the fitting?

[justdoit22]

What do you have to say to the people who say that your clubs are not up to the quality of other manufactures. I was in Golfsmith recently and the guy that was helping me was talking awful about the quality of Nike clubs and how bad the customer service if you have a problem. I'm a huge Nike guy and so off course I tried to defend my brand. Furthermore, I find a lot of people at my course including my head pro who's on the TM staff who constantly bashes Nike and said that their equipment is garbage. I really hope that you will answer this so I can show this to him!! I love the great weekend that NIke golfers had with Fisher, Henley, Rory, and Vegas.

[Nike Golf HQ]

[quote name='Pure745' timestamp='1393480237' post='8755816']
#1 - Does Nike plan on offering a black option or phase out the red paint in the Covert for some people that won't try it strictly because it's red?

[b]I believe the plan is quite public, at least on the GolfWRX site. We will offer a limited number of black drivers in May.[/b]

#2 - What are the most commonly used wedge grind setups? Specifically the grinds in the 48, 54, 60.

#3 - What model of RZN ball is the most popular on tour? Which one is also the most unique (special, proto etc.) ?

#4 - What is on the horizon for the next versions of Nike's forged "Player" category blades and CB's?

[b]Come on! You know we can’t answer that?!![/b]

#5 - Recently after some on course testing, I noticed differences in spin when switching my Covert 2.0 from Right to Neutral, any comments on this?

[b]You should get a little less spin in the right position…[/b]

#6 - Does Tiger actually like the red paint? Or did it take some major $$$$$ arm twisting to get him to jump on board with the red?

Bonus Question - When Nike paints on the grooves on Tiger and Rory's Method, which puts a purer roll on the ball? Acrylic or enamel? Sorry, I was kidding.. it was a joke!
[/quote]

[b]Tai, you should be docked 3 questions for that “bonus” shot, but you get them all back for the genius “dead horse” emoticon![/b]

[Nike Golf Tour Van]

[quote name='FullOfBrushMan' timestamp='1393568417' post='8763324'] Thanks Nike and WRX! Can Nike go into detail about the process of selecting a pro or amateur to play your product? For instance, what are you specifically looking for in a golfer marketing wise? i.e. specific golfer in a region of the world like Korea or maybe young face to put with a new club/line aim a specific demographic. Finally, can you describe the funniest moment you've encountered at The Oven, Nike HQ, etc., involving a golf product? [/quote]

"We are always looking for athletes who strive to be the best they can be. They have a passion for sport and strive for innovative products to help them perform at their best." - BG

"There are definitely some funny moments but probably can't share them! LOL" - RN

[wldchld22]

Who is the best athlete of all the Nike Staffers? Guys in the Van? Guys in the Oven?

[UncleKevin]

What benefits are we getting with the new groove pattern over the old one found on the VR Pro wedges? I love my VR Pro wedges but those thin grooves are impossible to clean.

[Nike Golf HQ]

[quote name='OPIE98LMB' timestamp='1393483430' post='8755950']
So many good questions already.....

1.) Will Nike ever offer an option for someone to schedule a full club/ball fitting at The Oven or maybe at a different site here in the US? This would be similar to what Titleist offers at TPI.... I know it would probably be pricey, but it's worth it to some of us that play all Nike bags. I for one would like the peace of mind knowing that the clubs/ball/wedge grinds I currently play are the best for my game. I would literally kill someone for the opportunity to get custom fit at The Oven.......kill

2.) Is there any way that Nike will be open to custom ordering golf balls similar to what the tour guys play? Someone mentioned before liking a possible mix of the RZN black and platinum, maybe some guys on tour play a ball similar to this.....Would this be an option further on down the road seeing that Nike is getting more into customization (i.e. TW14 id's)?

Thanks for the time Nike and GolfWRX.....I absolutely love this site!
[/quote]

[b]Yes. While the Oven may not be the exact venue, we are working with a couple of the premier golf facilities in the world to create the Nike experience. More to come on this, but rest assured it will be a tour-level experience.[/b]

[vertigo88]

[quote name='Nike Golf Tour Van' timestamp='1393958054' post='8796399']
[quote name='JollyGreenBucket' timestamp='1393524010' post='8758630']
My question is:

Over the past few years, have you seen an increase in respect among other non-Nike pros as products like the Covert have been released? Sort of a "game respect game" concept?
[/quote]

"Yes. It takes time to establish credibility which we have done through the success of our athletes. A testament to that is we have a number of Covert 2.0 fairway woods in the bags of non-nike athletes." - BG
[/quote]

Curious - which non-nike staffer uses Covert fairway woods?

[wldchld22]

Nike HQ.

Dogs or Cats? What is your take?

[vertigo88]

Could you comment on whether Tiger's clubs are outsourced to a well-known Japanese forging house?

[Nike Golf HQ]

[quote name='easyyy' timestamp='1393506367' post='8756614']
Nike 2.0 tour and performance drivers. What are the spin and MOI differences between these and last years heads?

2013 Covert Performance Driver - Spin center hit vs 2014
2013 Covert Tour Driver- MOI vs 2014
[/quote]

[b]Spin is answered previously, MOI- Increase of 500gm/cm2 for MOI on the Tour driver to 4500. Extremely stable tour product![/b]

[Nike Golf Tour Van]

[quote name='jokerusn' timestamp='1393682298' post='8770786']
Very cool Nike! Thanks for joining us!

Who is the hardest player on tour to fit? Not necessarily the pickiest or most demanding but what swing on tour is the most difficult.

What are the biggest changes in setups (loft, FA, shaft, etc) you've seen with a change to the Covert drivers?

What is the hardest club you have to fit? Why?

I know it's a trend (or really a fad?) these days to have a "tee fw". Are there plans in the works to build a deeper faced fw? If not, why not? I have a hard time with shallow fws which has kept me away from Nike fws since the T60 (which was a BEAST!)

Thanks again!
[/quote]

"With the technology and the equipment we have today, and the experience on our staff, fitting them is not difficult. The better player you are, the easier it is to fit and these are the best players in the world out here." - RN

[homeport99]

[b]Hey guys... first, thanks for your time. I'll be at Doral later in the week. Will any of your players be hitting anything new (that you can talk about)? [/b]

[Nike Golf HQ]

[quote name='enis750' timestamp='1393507685' post='8756704']
1. The tour issue RAW finish wedges seem to be everywhere on tour. Were always trying to find a way to strip the existing finish to achieve this. Any chance we will see a TRUE RAW finish on the wedges, like the NIKE tour players? OR at least make it an order-able custom option? And more grind options, will we see more grind options?

2. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, confirm there will be a limited edition black, glued hosel tour head, just like Tigers red one?

3. The future of the Pro Combo Irons - will it be possible to order them in whatever configuration you want? Such as PC, CB & MB? I think TM has this market cornered w the new TP line, as they flow seamlessly. Give me the chance to configure my own Nike Combo Set, and Im all in!

4. Would you consider the first "GolfWRX visits the OVEN" a success and if so in what regards? And will there be a 2.0 visit?
[/quote]

1. [b]While raw wedges are great, the trouble with them is what they look like at retail over time. This is why we have launched Black Oxide wedges. The black ox is essentially raw as there is no plating and will rust once it gets to the course. It tends to look better when sitting on a shelf for a longer period of time, therefore this has been our direction.[/b]
2. [b]The Oven visit was awesome in that the group of guys that attended were true gentlemen and did a great job of communicating to the community candidly about the experience. Rest assured it will not be the last time we do something like this![/b]

[born4golf77]

What is MOI of covert 2.0 performance model?

ALL things equal (shaft, setting,etc) what is launch and spin difference between 2014 covert 2.0 performance vs 2014 covert 2.0 tour models.

Thanks again for coming here to answer questions.

[2012BFT]

Of the Covert Driver Line, what was more popular? The Performance or the Tour model? Retail and on Tour?

[Joche47]

Why Did you choose the golfpride shiny grips for new C2.0.? I have to change it beacuse rain condition.

[Nike Golf Tour Van]

[quote name='binknrum' timestamp='1393775536' post='8777644']
My question is more tour van related. How much equipment and supplies are stocked in the van for a tour event? How often are the guy changing their grips and what's the average number of extra wraps they have under their grips?
[/quote]

"We usually have about 2-3 weeks full of soft goods (Hats, gloves, balls, footwear, outerwear). For hard goods, we have everything they need on board. We make sure to be prepared for anything they want to test/tweak…variety of grips, shaft, heads, etc…." - BG

"It depends on the player, but some of our athletes change every month, some every couple of months. But most in general only have one piece of tape underneath and switch out their grips every 6-8 weeks." - BG

[wldchld22]

[b]I feel like both Nike Golf HQ and Nike Golf Tour Van have low feedback scores. How soon would you like to make a few posts in the Buy Sell Trade Forum? [/b]

[Nike Golf HQ]

[quote name='MNNikeGuy' timestamp='1393508420' post='8756754']
Why are the new Toe sweep wedges cast and not forged?
[/quote]

[b]Due to the CG placement and overall feel of this product, we did not see a benefit in forging the part. Our tour athletes told us over and over that it was the best “feeling” wedge they had ever hit. They had no idea if it was forged or cast, nor did they care. The results spoke for themselves.[/b]

[jaeges000]

What's in LeBron James bag?

[scottvw13]

How many tour staffers are playing a version of the Covert driver with a glued hosel?

[Nike Golf HQ]

[quote name='UncleKevin' timestamp='1393509509' post='8756852']
- Will you be releasing a putter like Tommy Fleetwood's current gamer? I know the Mod 00 is similar but something without the lines would be amazing.

- The weights I see in putters like Paul Casey, are those interchangeable weights? If so, do you see those coming to retail anytime soon?

- I've been playing the One Tour D for a while now, which one of the new balls is similar?

- Is it true the staff has been playing the 2.0 for a while just with the 1.0 color way?

- What reasons made you guys bring the Kuro Kage TiNi to retail with the 2.0's? Pretty nice shaft offering for a stock shaft.

- I'm volunteering at Doral next week, any chance I can hang out in the tour van?

I'm sure i'll think of more throughout the week. Thanks Nike and GolfWRX for putting this together!
[/quote]

[b]The 1.0 Fairway woods that you saw on tour last year (and still this year) are the foundation that we built the 2.0 line on. As noted before, once a player gets settled into a fairway wood, it is very difficult to get them to switch, hence some of the guys have remained in the original proto rather than the new 2.0.[/b]

[b]We have worked with MRC for nearly 4 years co-developing the TiNi shaft. We partnered with them, utilizing a number of our tour athletes to performance test during this time. This resulted in a shaft that performs remarkably well in out Covert 2.0 Tour head, hence is why it became the stock offering.[/b]

[j2_a2]

Who is the better golfer out of all the tour van staff?

[drvrwdge]

What size are Rory's NDMC's? Any wraps if standard?

[Nike Golf HQ]

[quote name='JPNC1977' timestamp='1393512038' post='8757154']
Big thank you to Nike and Golfwrx.


1. Great work on the new irons. Can you talk a little bit about how the VR-S 2.0 Covert irons came about and how they compare to the Machspeed irons from a few seasons back?

2. One of my dreams is to do a fitting at The Oven. Are there any plans to open this facility to us mere mortals for fittings, tour, etc
[/quote]

[b]The VRS Covert 2.0 irons are remarkably different from the Machspeed. The MS was one of our first “distance” irons, but was built from a wider sole. The new Covert 2.0 iron incorporates a lot of what the Machspeed had, but is in a chassis that is much more appealing to a wider audience and more importantly showcases major advances in face technology. Technology flies literally in this case as the Covert 2.0 is as much as 8 yards longer across the set than the Machspeed, while having the same MOI numbers![/b]
[b]As for the premium fitting experience, this was answered above.[/b]