New vs Old Drivers?

[Leftygolfer]

Driver technology has maxed out.  If you have a driver that was made after 2006 you aren't loosing anything in terms of distance.  Some might let you get away with a bit more.  The USGA has put limits on them so no all they can do is gimic up there drivers to help sell them.  I've used a newer driver and I'm back to old classic.  Maybe its the shaft but what I use now is longer than the ft 9 tour I was using earlier this year.

[WUTiger]

On decent, not super, driver shots:

* When I was in my 30s, I could carry a persimmon-headed stiff metal-shafted driver about 240 yds.

* Now, at age 60, I can carry my Rflex graphite-shafted Callaway Hyper-X Tour driver about 220 yds.

When I'm swinging well, I hit my graphite-shafted driver straighter. Probably a combination of MOI of head, and mid-spin golf balls available today - less sidespin than years ago.

Trimming an inch off driver shaft is also an option to increase control. Isn't it about time for one of the clubmakers to offer a standard model with sub-45" shaft?

[qbaldwin]

I play a PING G5. It's around 5 yrs old and is just a long and straight as any other club I've hit. I have tried buddies' R9 and SuperTri, 910 D2, 909 D2, and my driver is just as straight.  The only difference is shaft, set up, and swing.  Drivers now days are maxed out on size and face thinness, the only thing left to change is material and all the adjustable stuff which doesn't really help the "straightness" of the ball flight, mainly just forgiveness.

[pcourtney]

I've been using a demo Callaway 2010 FT iZ Tour driver 9.5 deg over the holidays, I don't think the pro is going to get it back, it's a sweet driver that is long and straight, difficult for me to say whether it's better than my Bang driver, or the other half a dozen drivers I have in the garage for the last 10 years, but I felt I wanted a change and the FT-iZ seems to me the pinnacle of Callaways offerings for the last 20 years

it might be all horse shit, but I'm smitten :-0

Callaway FT-iZ Driver Features:

Beyond Long- In their never-ending mission to find more distance and accuracy for golfers, Callaway’s engineers used an entirely new design to once again produce a driver that’s longer and straighter than anything they’ve ever made.

Polar Weighting- Utilizes a heavy face and a heavy in-line power source in the rear, localizing weight at the front and back of the driver to provide stability, consistency, incredible feel and increased linear acceleration of the ball.

Chemically Milled Hyperbolic Face- Generates Callaway’s most consistently high ball speeds ever by using a chemical reduction process to selectively remove unwanted material for precision thickness control.

Aerodynamic Body Design- The progressive shape reduces drag in the downswing for higher impact speeds and produces Callaway’s most efficient high inertia clubhead ever.

Fusion Technology- Exploits extreme weight placement by utilizing cast titanium, compression cured carbon fiber, formed aluminum and cast steel for the optimal combination of performance, feel and looks.

Aldila VooDoo Shaft- High performance graphite shafts are engineered as the ideal complement to the FT-iZ Drivers.

[Shanks A Million]

Here's the properly translated version:

Callaway FT-iZ Driver Features:

Why we're charging you $500 for a driver nearly identical to our last "driver to end all drivers."

Beyond Long- In their never-ending mission to find more distance and accuracy for golfers, Callaway’s engineers used an entirely new design to once again produce a driver that’s longer and straighter than anything they’ve ever made.

We've added about a half of a yard, assuming you swing 110 mph with a -2° angle of attack.

Polar Weighting- Utilizes a heavy face and a heavy in-line power source in the rear, localizing weight at the front and back of the driver to provide stability, consistency, incredible feel and increased linear acceleration of the ball.

Sure, MOI is capped, but we've managed to get about a hundredth of a percent closer to the full 5900.

Chemically Milled Hyperbolic Face- Generates Callaway’s most consistently high ball speeds ever by using a chemical reduction process to selectively remove unwanted material for precision thickness control.

COR is capped, but we've managed to get about a hundredth of a percent closer if you hit it a bit off center.

Aerodynamic Body Design- The progressive shape reduces drag in the downswing for higher impact speeds and produces Callaway’s most efficient high inertia clubhead ever.

We've managed to add about a tenth of a mile-per-hour to your swing.

Fusion Technology- Exploits extreme weight placement by utilizing cast titanium, compression cured carbon fiber, formed aluminum and cast steel for the optimal combination of performance, feel and looks.

You see those fancy metals? Shiny! That's why we can charge you $500 without getting lynched.

Aldila VooDoo Shaft- High performance graphite shafts are engineered as the ideal complement to the FT-iZ Drivers.

Basically, it's a really, really expensive stick.

[Gordon McTavish]

So just how short and inaccurate have past Callaway drivers been?

[sportsnut]

JMHO for what it is worth. I am new to golf and wanted to get a driver to begin working with when I worked with my other clubs at the range. I picked up an X460 (2006 club) with regular RCH 75g shaft new for $60 and was very frustrated with the club. I was able to hit a 3 wood with a stiff shaft farther.  All the reviews I had read rated it a very good club. In this case it is shaft technology that has become the benchmark. I moved to a Diablo Edge Tour (2010 club) with a Habanero stiff shaft that weights 60g. You move the clubhead faster with the lighter shaft therefore more clubhead speed which equates to further drivers. After working with the regular shafted x460 it became apparent the softer flex did not work for me, I had to close the clubface to hit straighter shots still with a high launch ball flight so loss of distance there as well. Not the same problem with the stiffer shaft on the new club much better shots longer and with a lower ball flight which I prefer. Moving to a lighter newer stiffer shaft worked well for me and was the right move. You can always reshaft and I found callaway very reasonable in that department. Would have cost me $70 bucks for them to reshaft the x460 with a fujikura 651 in stiff but the callaway preowned had this like new diablo edge for $109 with my club traded in and free 2 day shipping just a couple of days before Christmas. Was not a hard decision to make and it worked out great for me.

Good Luck equipment decisions are part of the fun. Frank

[ronaldkuntoro]

How about Nike Sumo Square and Callaway FT Square?   I've heard they are the straightest driver on the market.    It's hard to work the ball with those drivers.

[The Gill]

Sorry, but you've been misinformed. MOI = resistance to twisting = less of a bad shot on mishits. That's it. If you swing outside to in, the ball will move left to right. If you swing inside to out the ball will move right to left...

I've been playing the Sumo2 for over 2 years now. The main reason I like it: I feel like I can get better aligned with the square head and I like how it looks.

Originally Posted by ronaldkuntoro

How about Nike Sumo Square and Callaway FT Square?   I've heard they are the straightest driver on the market.    It's hard to work the ball with those drivers.