KZG Gemini Driver

The KZG Gemini Driver has taken a long road, first being ruled non-conforming by the USGA before winning acceptance on appeal. And now that golfers are discovering the legal Gemini, they are also discovering what KZG claimed was true all along: the Gemini is one of the best drivers you can buy.

The Gemini is so-named because of its twin-faced technology. The driver incorporates two clubfaces - the outer one, plus a second face a miniscule distance behind the first one inside the clubhead.

It's the twin faces that let the KZG Gemini live up to its maker's claims of great distance and accuracy, and particularly improved accuracy on off-center hits. But it's also what originally got the club in hot water with the USGA.

The USGA ruled in late 2003 that the Gemini was non-conforming, even though the driver does not exceed the .830 limit on COR (coefficient of restitution). KZG appealed the ruling and won a reversal, which was announced just prior to the 2004 PGA Show.

If the Gemini doesn't violate the COR limits, why was it first ruled non-conforming? Speculation centers on the club's performance on off-center hits. The interior clubface serves to stiffen the outer clubface (actually reducing spring effect), both reducing spin and creating a huge sweet spot. Some industry insiders have suggested that what the USGA was concerned about was not that the clubface was too "hot," but that its constuction simply made the club too forgiving.

Regardless, that's all in the past, and any golfer who has a KZG Gemini driver in his future has a lot to look forward to.

The model we tested was the 395cc clubhead with 10.5 degrees of loft on the end of a Nova Tech 6000 stiff shaft. A 355cc clubhead is also available, as are lofts of 9-, 12- and 14-degrees.

While the Gemini is touted for its distance performance, KZG stresses the Gemini's accuracy more than anything. Especially its performance on heel and toe hits, where the company claims the golfer will not experience any loss of distance or accuracy.

In fact, KZG says the Gemini is "without a doubt the most accurate club on the market." While we can't vouch for that all-inclusive claim, we can say that everyone who tried our KZG Gemini walked away believing it was a driver that helped them keep the ball in the fairway.

The KZG Gemini sets up well, launches high and carries far. One pro who tried it was carrying the Gemini almost as long as his total distance with his Titleist 983K (although it should be noted that the Gemini had a lighter shaft than his club, allowing him to generate more clubhead speed).

We were just as impressed with its distance performance as with its accuracy, but we, too, seemed to be hitting the Gemini a little straighter. Perhaps our swing was a bit more in sync during our use of the Gemini. After all, there is no magic bullet in golf club design - the swing is the thing. Garbage in, garbage out.

But there's no question, after weeks of testing the KZG Gemini, that this is one great driver that will help most who play it hit better shots.

The only two negatives we can come up with are small things, and things we haven't even experienced ourselves. First, low handicappers who love to work their drives - or who hate hitting straight shots - might prefer other drivers that don't have as big a spin-reducing effect as the Gemini. Second, we've heard from a few KZG Gemini owners who say that the paint and finish scratch easily if you're not careful putting it back into your golf bag.