Sonartec GS Tour Fairway Wood and t35 Wedges
“Let’s Hear It for the Little Guy”
OK- I’ll admit it. I’m a little late to the dance. I had never used a Sonartec product prior to this review in my many odd years of golfing. I’m not exactly certain as to why. Sonartecs have been found in the bags of many professionals for years now, including major champions. I suppose it was the reputation that they were for the “better player” which kind of scared me off. As a 7 handicap, sometimes I would struggle to hit a fairway wood consistently, like many others. I had even gone as far as to replace my 3 wood altogether with a 16 degree hybrid. I’m happy to report my fairway wood technique has improved greatly over the last couple of seasons, and I very much looked forward to trying out the GS Tour for a change of pace from the large OEM offerings I had been playing. Also, any time the words “forged” and “wedge” are used in a sentence together, you’ll probably get my attention (such is the life of an equipment junky.)
The GS Tour arrived at my doorstep. I took it out of the box anxiously to see what had arrived. I unwrapped it, and said to myself, “Uh-oh. This thing is tiny!” But man, did I want to hit it in the worst way. The small black head had a look of both purpose and just sheer beauty. The face angle appeared to be very square and the depth of the face was a perfect mid-height and looked promising for dual usage from both tee and fairway. Despite never before using a Sonartec, I could certainly see the “driving cavity’s” functional design elements. The horseshoe shape of the soleplate with the signature cavity in the middle made it very evident that the head’s weight was pushed to the extreme back corners of the head. Paired with their proprietary Graphite Design Red Ice shaft at approximately 76 grams in X flex, it is a little heavier than some of their previous models stock shafts, which I was glad to see. The red and black combination of the head and shaft looked classy and all business.
Given I received the GS Tour in the middle of March, and the only place to hit it was a heated range, I trudged off through the snow on a mission. With no practice time to speak of over the winter, my expectations were a few notches below basement level. Upon the first few strikes, I knew I had come across something special, and the GS Tour has rarely left my bag, -save to make room for other review clubs. The small black head had plenty of forgiveness! Having hit this club for the last 3 months, it has been a total joy to experience. The feeling at impact is a light metallic “tink” that has just the right feeling of “hotness” and solid feedback. There is little vibration at impact, and it is void of any harshness. I’ve hit this club as far as my driver on many occasions off the tee, and the face height has been perfect for elevating the ball off the deck. If you have a decent technique with a fairway wood, do not let the smallish look of the GS Tour intimidate you. Hit anywhere near the center, it is ready to reward your efforts. Off-center strikes are perceptible, but they are not jarring thanks to the driving cavity sole. The distance does not suffer too greatly, and most importantly- the ball tends to stay in play with not too much deviation in direction.
The Graphite Design Red Ice shaft is actually very serviceable for a stock proprietary shaft. At 110 MPH for my driver swing, I was happy that I opted for the X flex, so keep that in mind. It’s an easy to load shaft, however, do not confuse it with the Purple Ice shaft from Graphite Design. The Red Ice has a flavor all its own. Described as a low-mid bendpoint on Sonartec’s website, that seems to be an apt overall description. It is easy to elevate, with a slightly firmer tip than the Purple Ice, and the butt section feels softer in comparison. I did not find it to have any tendency to feel “loose” through impact like some lower kickpoint shafts can exhibit. Faster tempo players may loose this shaft in their transition, but my medium tempo has gotten along with it splendidly. It’s so good, I would be nervous to change anything about it by re-shafting. Your mileage may vary. With 15 degrees of loft, and combined with the Red Ice shaft, my ballflight has been relatively high, but the carry distance has been superb. Here in the Midwest this season, it has been about as windy as I can ever recall, and I have not once complained of ballooning. I have not had a lot of run out with this combo, but I have been able to hold greens with it very nicely. I like to hit my fairway woods a certain distance, rather than all-out go-for-it yardages, so the hit-and-sit nature of this setup has served me well. Sonartec has a real winner in the GS Tour. I’m only sorry it has taken me this long to try their product.
In the, -ahem, rare instance that I might miss a green on a long par 5 with my GS Tour, I’m going to need some short game tools to get up and down. The t35 proto wedges accompanied my GS Tour when it arrived. Lofts of 52, 56, and 60 degrees were at my disposal. For all my long game woes, it has done one positive thing, and that is- stressed my short game to the max and made it pretty serviceable because it has to be! So wedges are in my wheelhouse, and I was eager to see what Sonartec’s forged offering could do for me. Milled grooves are all the rage, with most manufacturers offering at least one wedge in their lineups with this feature. Sonartec’s aggressively milled grooves are referred to as “Yo-Yo grooves,” (ya know- pull the string to make ‘em dance.)
The Yo-Yo grooves are up to the task. In all lofts- whether it be low running checkers around the green with the 52 degree, three-quarter swings from the fairway with the sandwedge, or high, soft-landing bunker shots with the 60 degree, these grooves had my ball doing the cha-cha on the green. I have to warn you, your precious Tour balls are going to grow some gills in the process. Nothing that would make a ball unplayable after one shot (at least for me,) but after a few holes, your ball may need to be changed out. Over the course of about two months of play, the grooves seem to be holding up well, so the ball damage has continued. However, I must say, the cover scuffing is no worse than any of the other manufacturers out there, so don’t disregard these wedges based on that.
Grooves can only do so much if you can’t make consistent contact. This is where the grind of the t35 protos really impressed me. They have what I personally would consider a medium amount of bounce, but they have been easy as pie to slide the blade under the ball. At the same time, the relatively narrow sole had me nervous about potential digging here in the soft Midwestern turf conditions. Happily, this has not been a problem, as the lead edge has a nice radius to it. I am not a “grind expert,” but to the best of my ability, I have identified these as having a moderate “M-grind” to them. The heel and toe have relief for opening and closing of the face, along with a trailing relief to allow the face to sit lower to the ground when square, and exposing the bounce for sand shots.
Out of the beach, I have really enjoyed the t35 protos. The narrow sole width really cuts through the sand, but the exposed bounce prevents them from catching and digging. I’ve been able to experiment with how closely I can hit the sand next to the ball in creating different shot heights and amounts of spin as a result. Sonartec has also recently released their t46 wedges with slightly more bounce. So if you are concerned about digging, those may be something to check out. But, my experience has been a positive one with the t35’s with very little tendency to dig. My only complaint would be the grips, which are a tour velvet type variety, but are very soft and wore quickly. The grips rubbing from taking them in and out of my bag had them ready to be replaced after a couple weeks. No big deal, but I would have been happier with a true Tour Velvet like my GS Tour came equipped with. The stock dynamic gold shafts are familiar and a good match.
One phenomenon I noticed with the t35 wedges when taking fuller swings from the fairway is a slight loss of distance. I attribute this to the aggressive grooves creating a lot of spin, causing a slight ballooning, -especially in windy conditions. This was most evident with the 52 degree wedge. Normally, this would be my 115 yard club, and I was often coming up short by 5-10 yards. I preferred the 56 and 60 degree more in this regard, and would probably skip the 52 and replace it with something less aggressively grooved. Again, your needs may vary.
Overall, the 8620 forged construction felt soft, but came up a little short in the feel department when compared to 1020 carbon steel forgings. This is not to say that the t35’s were “harsh” in any way, -quite the contrary. But when compared to the standard-bearer Vokeys made of the same material, yet cast, you would be hard-pressed to note a discernable difference in feel. It is a familiar soft feel along with a muted “click” at impact. Overall, the t35 wedges are very serviceable and enjoyable short game tools that offer great feel and tons of versatility given their grinds and the stopping power of the grooves. I’d love to see an oilcan or black oxide finish added to the lineup. However, the satin chrome did not cast glare and had a classy look.
Sonartec is a company that concentrates on the things they do well it would appear. They do not offer a full lineup of clubs, and that is fine by me. There are tons of options out there to fill your bag with when it comes to irons and such. If you are looking for a workable, sweet-feeling fairway wood, that still offers good amounts of absolution for off-center strikes, the GS Tour should be on your short list to demo. The t35’s are versatile and offer a true “Tour” experience around the greens when it comes to spin. Sonartec may be the “little guy” when it comes to golf equipment manufacturers, but their equipment is “big time” when it comes to performance.
Michael White
Independent Equipment Reviewer
GolfDiscussions.com
