Review: Nike SQ Driver - “The 800 Pound Gorilla of Drivers”
Michael White
The old adage goes something like this: “Where does an 800 pound gorilla sit?” Answer: “Anywhere he wants to.”
This often came to mind, as I’d go to place the rather oversized Nike SQ driver back into my golf bag, -complete with banana yellow headcover. It took up a lot of bag real estate! The sheer size of this driver makes a bold statement, and there’s nothing subtle about it: “Ball go far.” The SQ driver doesn’t try to be pretty, and it doesn’t try to hide its size. It’s right there in front of you, just begging to be hit.
Remembering my beginnings in the game of golf, drivers were made of persimmon, very small, and most players had a heck of a time hitting them with any amount of success. So each time I review a driver that is really pushing the U.S.G.A.’s size limits, I tend to chuckle as I look at it. When I unboxed the Nike SQ, I downright laughed with glee. Wow! I had noticed some older gentlemen at my home course using the SQ with good success. I wondered if they too had a nice chuckle when they got their SQ’s too? The look at address of the Nike SQ is nothing short of pure confidence. “How can I miss with this?!” With a square face angle, and a deep, midnight black paint job, the SQ appears very much like other 460cc drivers on the market. However, its size just keeps going rearward. A silver colored half moon shaped crescent at the rear of the head, takes the overall size of the SQ to sizes unseen before. It had a shocking effect at first, but there is a reason for this “shock and awe” inspired design.
The M.O.I., or “moment of inertia” whereby the club’s resistance to twisting at impact is greatly increased, is the goal with the SQ. The resulting shape is the outcome. The MOI measurements of the Nike SQ must be through the roof! Hit this club just about anywhere on the face and you will be rewarded with long, straight shots. The launch of my 10.5 degree lofted test club was high, yet the ballflight was very flat. The center of gravity of the SQ is located to the extreme rear of the clubhead, and shifted lower in the head, to produce the “high launch, low spin” ballflight everyone is after. This club is easy to launch off the tee, and the backspin is greatly reduced given the shifted center of gravity. My shots at no time wanted to balloon into the wind. Many people may want to go up in loft with the SQ, given it’s extremely low spin nature, to maximize their carry distance.
If you have a tendency to miss the sweet spot, the SQ is for you. Heel and toe hits produced excellent results and never felt overly harsh, yet still provided enough feedback to know that the center of the clubface was missed. The feel off the face is very solid, with a hint of a hollow sound. Nike once again used their “Nexti” material in the face, which is supposed to be stronger than other forms of Titanium, allowing it to be extremely thin, yet strong. It feels very hot, and Nike’s positioning of the weld line across the top of the club, rather than in the face itself, probably has a lot to do with this. The SQ proved to be very long, and very forgiving. Working the ball is not an easy task with the SQ, but for those that wish to maneuver their ballflight more left to right, or vice versa, Nike also offers their SQ “Tour” model. There was just a faint tendency to draw the ball with the SQ for me. But for those seeking an overall super straight ballflight and exceptional distance, -you’ve found it!
I had tried Nike’s proprietary SQ Diamana shaft, produced by Mitsubishi Rayon, in their SQ 3 wood previously. I was happy to find that this shaft seemed more at home in the driver than the 3 wood for me. At 60 grams, it is rather light, which will help those who need it to generate more swing speed. The ballflight was mid to high, and overall, the SQ Diamana shaft loaded and unloaded with a fairly smooth feel and fair amount of “kick” through impact. I appreciated the fact that the SQ came finished at a very reasonable 44.75”. With a slightly shorter shaft than many competitors, Nike made a great move to help people swing more in control without losing distance. With a hosel size of .335”, the SQ is ready to be shafted with one of Nike’s custom shaft options, everything from Aldila NV’s, all the way up to the high-end Mitsubishi Diamana like the pros use on the PGA tour.
The grip on the SQ is a proprietary design made of rubber- nothing too terribly special. It has some hand placement graphics, and seems to be a fairly soft rubber compound. I found it a little slick, and was happier with the club when I re-gripped it. Nike could consider doing something a little flashier with the grip, like a yellow and black Golf Pride multi-compound.
The headcover is primarily black, with prominent yellow panels down the sides. It provides good protection with its integrated shaft sock. This is a good thing, because the sheer size of the SQ head might make it tough to find an aftermarket cover to fit!
Once I got over the sheer size of the Nike SQ driver, I found it’s forgiving nature and ample amounts of distance made it a lot of fun to play. It was easy to aim with the silver arrow-shaped alignment marks on the crown. I found the sound and feel of the clubhead communicated nicely how well or poorly I had struck my drives, and always rewarded me with good distance and directional stability. The SQ is a driver that can’t be ignored. The 800-pound Gorilla of drivers -if you will. Once you stop giggling with glee at how big it is, get ready to take a long walk down the fairway, ‘cause this “Gorilla” is long!
Michael White (a.k.a. “Mr_Divots”)
Independent Equipment Consultant/Forums Moderator
Golf-Gear-Review.com
