SCHAUMBURG, Illinois (June 28, 2005) - Nippon Shaft's lightweight N.S. Pro-brand steel shafts are now a custom option available to purchasers of Srixon irons, company officials announced today.

"We are very excited with the opportunity to provide our industry-leading lightweight steel shafts to a company like Srixon, which is known for its high quality and performance," said Hiroyuki Fukuda, manager of sales and marketing for Nippon Shaft.

Consumers may order custom Nippon Shaft products in any of Srixon's three iron models: the Pro 100, a pure muscle back blade iron for better players; the 302 irons, a club for better players, including a number of touring pros, and the 403 irons, a stainless cast iron game improvement iron.

"The quality of Nippon Shaft products is tremendous," said Marty Olinger, executive vice president of sales for Srixon Sports USA in Atlanta. "One of the reasons we entered this agreement with Nippon is because of the positive experiences a couple of our tour players have had with the product. The Nippon product is just fantastic."

The Nippon Shaft custom option for Srixon irons may be ordered at no extra charge either through green-grass pro shops or larger golf or sports equipment retailers, Olinger said.

Nippon Shaft is the No. 1-selling steel shaft in Asia with more than 80 percent of the market. The company currently ranks No. 2 in the North American market. Currently, more than 100 touring professionals use Nippon Shaft products in their clubs, Fukuda said. All shafts sold by Nippon Shaft are made in Japan in order to maintain the highest quality labor and technical expertise.

Nippon Shaft's major breakthrough in North America came in 2000 with the introduction of the N.S. Pro 950GH shaft, the world's first consistently-manufactured sub-100 gram steel shaft. The N.S. Pro 950GH was the first shaft in the industry to maintain the same weight for all irons - one through pitching wedge.

Nippon Shaft is a subsidiary of privately-held NHK, a Japanese automobile parts manufacturer based in Yokohama, Japan. Nippon Shaft's North American headquarters is in Schaumburg, Illinois.Nippon Shaft is a subsidiary of privately-held NHK, a Japanese automobile parts manufacturer based in Yokohama, Japan. Nippon Shaft's North American headquarters is in Schaumburg, Illinois.