Oddsocks
Ryder Cup Winner
For the last 2 years I’ve been using the Taylor Made Stratos bag and to be fair it’s been a very good bag. Apart from the straps being easy to twist (which has in turn killed the foam in the right hand strap well before the bag has worn) the bag has been faultless but there were a few reasons for changing which are listed below.
1) Its not shower proof – Its manufactured from a nylon based material and although a great bag any rain seems to be absorbed in the bag resulting in it gaining weight and the grips of the clubs getting wet very easy
2) While its pretty lightweight at about 7/8 lbs, the stand seems over engineered and made from bulkier materials than newer models so there would no doubt be weight saving here should I choose to upgrade
3) Although it had ample pockets (8 in total) I found that it was a bit overkill for what you actually needed unless it was raining and you needed to hold more clothing. This was fine but then if the bag wasn’t best suited to rainy conditions why have all these pockets to hold rain gear?
So with the above thoughts I was on to what I liked and straight out from October when it was delivered in my pro shop I’ve really liked the Taylormade Micro Lite 2011 bag. The biggest thing that drew me to this was the material it was made of being almost identical to the Sun Mountain H2NO, and pretty much the same construction but it didn’t carry the £150.00 price tag with full srrp being £99.00. The truth be told I really wanted the H2N0 but I don’t like the 2011 version, and the older 2010 model seems to have gone up because I am guessing other people share the same view.
Anyway, enough about the old bag and its rivals, the new bag review.
First impressions were very good, when I took it from display for the final gander before buying I couldn’t believe just how heavy the bag wasn’t. Now I don’t have the exact figure but TM’s site claims 3.9lbs, and with the older stratos being 8lbs I had halved the weight of the bag already. The stand although manufactured from lighter weight materials the legs of the stand were fitted with nice wide feet for stability, something the stratos didn’t have. The new Micro-Lite seems to have been well thought out with what is needed and what isnt and anything surplus seems to have gone. There were a few nice little additions as well like a sky caddy clip on the left strap and also the bag body, as well as a bottle compartment which my older 09 stratos didn’t have.
Bag Pro’s:
At only 3.9lbs its 4lbs lighter than my old stratos model of 09.
The stand is now complete with feet for better stability
Features 2 sky caddy clips – one on the strap and one on the bag body
The straps are reshaped and reinforced to stop the twisting which the earlier model suffered with
Shower proof/Water proof
Bottle holder compartment + 6 pockets
Nice loading handle which comes in handy
Bag Con’s:
A big downside for me with this bag is the size of the compartments. My older stratos has a 7 way divider which was nice, 2 clubs in each and one for my putter. Because they have tried to keep the weight down on this model the divider is only 6 way. 1 for your woods, 2 for your long-mid irons which you can only get 2 in each, then one for your shorter irons. When pulling clubs out its not unknown to pull 2 because the grips are so tight together and this will no doubt increase where on the grips through rubbing although by how much is not clear after one round. Personally if I could change one thing about this bag it would be the 7 way divider of the stratos with the slightly bigger bottom plate to allow the clubs to move around a bit more. If it meant dropping the loading handle to cover the extra weight then so be it.
All in all I very pleased with the purchased and if it wasn’t for the small issue with the divider it would be the perfect bag. The straps are now shaped to support the bag better and resist twisting, and the little touches like the sky caddie clips and the loading handle are nice additional features. I didn’t miss the additional pockets on the stratos and the bottle opener was a nice feature that my last bag didn’t have. The additional 2 pockets on the main compartment seem to have been moved so they are easier to access while walking too. After carrying my old stratos model in the rain on Saturday around my home track, I carried the new Micro-Lite Sunday around a pretty hilly course and wasn’t tiered at all.
Personal ratting 9/10 (TM put a 7 way divider in and it would have been a 10)
1) Its not shower proof – Its manufactured from a nylon based material and although a great bag any rain seems to be absorbed in the bag resulting in it gaining weight and the grips of the clubs getting wet very easy
2) While its pretty lightweight at about 7/8 lbs, the stand seems over engineered and made from bulkier materials than newer models so there would no doubt be weight saving here should I choose to upgrade
3) Although it had ample pockets (8 in total) I found that it was a bit overkill for what you actually needed unless it was raining and you needed to hold more clothing. This was fine but then if the bag wasn’t best suited to rainy conditions why have all these pockets to hold rain gear?
So with the above thoughts I was on to what I liked and straight out from October when it was delivered in my pro shop I’ve really liked the Taylormade Micro Lite 2011 bag. The biggest thing that drew me to this was the material it was made of being almost identical to the Sun Mountain H2NO, and pretty much the same construction but it didn’t carry the £150.00 price tag with full srrp being £99.00. The truth be told I really wanted the H2N0 but I don’t like the 2011 version, and the older 2010 model seems to have gone up because I am guessing other people share the same view.
Anyway, enough about the old bag and its rivals, the new bag review.
First impressions were very good, when I took it from display for the final gander before buying I couldn’t believe just how heavy the bag wasn’t. Now I don’t have the exact figure but TM’s site claims 3.9lbs, and with the older stratos being 8lbs I had halved the weight of the bag already. The stand although manufactured from lighter weight materials the legs of the stand were fitted with nice wide feet for stability, something the stratos didn’t have. The new Micro-Lite seems to have been well thought out with what is needed and what isnt and anything surplus seems to have gone. There were a few nice little additions as well like a sky caddy clip on the left strap and also the bag body, as well as a bottle compartment which my older 09 stratos didn’t have.
Bag Pro’s:
At only 3.9lbs its 4lbs lighter than my old stratos model of 09.
The stand is now complete with feet for better stability
Features 2 sky caddy clips – one on the strap and one on the bag body
The straps are reshaped and reinforced to stop the twisting which the earlier model suffered with
Shower proof/Water proof
Bottle holder compartment + 6 pockets
Nice loading handle which comes in handy
Bag Con’s:
A big downside for me with this bag is the size of the compartments. My older stratos has a 7 way divider which was nice, 2 clubs in each and one for my putter. Because they have tried to keep the weight down on this model the divider is only 6 way. 1 for your woods, 2 for your long-mid irons which you can only get 2 in each, then one for your shorter irons. When pulling clubs out its not unknown to pull 2 because the grips are so tight together and this will no doubt increase where on the grips through rubbing although by how much is not clear after one round. Personally if I could change one thing about this bag it would be the 7 way divider of the stratos with the slightly bigger bottom plate to allow the clubs to move around a bit more. If it meant dropping the loading handle to cover the extra weight then so be it.
All in all I very pleased with the purchased and if it wasn’t for the small issue with the divider it would be the perfect bag. The straps are now shaped to support the bag better and resist twisting, and the little touches like the sky caddie clips and the loading handle are nice additional features. I didn’t miss the additional pockets on the stratos and the bottle opener was a nice feature that my last bag didn’t have. The additional 2 pockets on the main compartment seem to have been moved so they are easier to access while walking too. After carrying my old stratos model in the rain on Saturday around my home track, I carried the new Micro-Lite Sunday around a pretty hilly course and wasn’t tiered at all.
Personal ratting 9/10 (TM put a 7 way divider in and it would have been a 10)
