Best driver for $199.99?

[e-man]

Now I'm thinking that the sole plate on the hyper X is depressed in the middle from the face to the back of the head:

[JSC924]

I would go with the R7 460 Non Draw. It has the feel of a superquad but a lower ball launch. I play the R7 Superquad and absolutely love it. If you have some extra $, you can even put in another $200 and get the Superquad.

[r7 425]

Best Driver for 200 dollars.....It has to be the Burner--

The longest driver in terms of raw distance ever made is the titleist 983k....anybody else feel the same way....i mean if u hit the 983k solid....it goes further than any driver ever produced

[e-man]

  r7 425 said:

Best Driver for 200 dollars.....It has to be the Burner--

I think the Burner is $300.

The 983K is a great club. I had one a while back. Very solid. Again, though, I'm getting older and I'm looking for more forgiveness than the 983k has to offer (or at least more than I perceive it has to offer).

[slimeberry]

I usually average about 270 yards (280 if I flush it) and about 110 mph swing speed.

Yeah, I hit the FT-5, the new Big Bertha, the X460 and the X460 Tour, and this. I love the stiff flex Fujikura Stock shaft that comes with this club. Though the Aldila NV works great for me on my hybrids, it really hindered my ball flight on the X460 Tour that I tried. I hated the sound and the price tag of the FT-5, The Bertha had a very light 55g stiff flex Aldila shaft that I didn't care for at all, so I narrowed it down to the X460 and the Hyper (I didn't hit the Hyper Tour). I liked the shaft, the sole, and the sound better on the Hyper. It was either $199.00 for a X460 at Golf Galaxy, or about $230.00 for a new Hyper off of ebay. I chose the latter and have been very satisfied, other than I haven't been able to play enough with it.

[e-man]

  JSC924 said:

I would go with the R7 460 Non Draw. It has the feel of a superquad but a lower ball launch. I play the R7 Superquad and absolutely love it. If you have some extra $, you can even put in another $200 and get the Superquad.

I just couldn't get comfortable with the R7 460. I can't put my finger on it, but I just couldn't catch it crisply compared to some of the others.

[slimeberry]

Sorry for the delay in my reply. We had a string of tornados just run through our area. And no, it is not depressed. Go to Callaway's web site and you can see it more clear.

[e-man]

  slimeberry said:

I usually average about 270 yards (280 if I flush it) and about 110 mph swing speed.

Tell me about it. You guys are getting pounded with rain in Indiana, and we're supposed to get a foot of snow up here in Chicago. Not good.

So the stiff stock shaft fits your 110 mph swing speed. I wonder if I should focus on the reg flex with my 95-97 mph swing speed.

[slimeberry]

Sorry, our power just went out!!!

Anyway, it wouldn't hurt to try it, but I would say no. I think you will loose some control w/ the reg flex at your speed. It's not really the stiffness as much as it is the torq and the weight.

My swing speed w/ the ProForce V2 shaft was actually between 102 and 104 mph. It was about 106 w/ the Aldila NV. And it averaged about 108 to 110 w/ the Fujikura. Same flex, but a tad lighter. Amazing. I would never have thought it would flux up to 8 mph w/ different shafts. Stay away from upgrading to the Aldila NV or the ProForce V2, as they will bring down your launch angle, lower your swing speed, and hinder your ball flight. I think the stiff, stock Fujikura w/ 10.o loft, however, would be great for you.

I was going to try to play this week, but my course will be a swamp after tonight

[e-man]

  slimeberry said:

Sorry, our power just went out!!!

Great advice regarding the shafts. Last year I decided to "upgrade" the shafts in my GBB II driver and 3 wood from the stock firm shaft to the Aldila NV 65-S. Guess what? Exactly what you described happened. My swing speed went down by a few ticks and I lost yardage (and didn't really gain any accuracy). I ended up buying a replacement driver and 3 wood with the stock firm shaft and gave the reshafted driver to a friend and sold the reshafted 3 wood on ebay. I call that chapter in my life the reshafting fiasco.

I'll try out the stock Callaway/Fuji shaft tomorrow or Thursday -- 10 firm, if they have it. If not, I'll try 9 firm and 10 reg to see which shaft is a better fit.

[Big_M]

try this site... many of the named drivers are cheaper. They don't have everything, but what they do have is dirt cheap for new stuff. EDIT: I now see this doesn't apply as you are locked in at golfsmith... I did make relevent comments below though.

http://www.rockbottomgolf.com/

The Adams drivers are pretty cheap right now too. I like the Sasquatch as another mentioned... but the stock shaft balloons a bit for me. I ended up with a Sasquatch knockoff that I put an old shaft in and I love it.

That golfsmith Snakeyes driver with moveable weights looks pretty nice and you can pick it up as a component for a little over 100, then add a shaft to your liking. I still want to hit this, even though I don't need a new driver since the one I have works great.

[LBlack14]

MINT/LIKE NEW ADAMS Insight BUL 9.5* stiff with Headcover. $115 shipped to your door!

If not happy with condition Money back.

PICS:

[slimeberry]

Well, we survived the night. Unbelievable. We live on the south part of town. The north part of town was hit hard last night, buildings crushed, power still out, etc., but our neighborhood, aside from a lot of standing water and a few trees down, isn't too bad.

Yea, the weather is nuts right now. You guys have snow up in Chicago (GO CUBS!!!), it's 60.o and tornados here, and then it is supposed to get down to 16.o by Sunday. I am ready for spring.

I really think you will like the Hyper X.

I am not a salesman for this club or that at all, but do think that too many of us, myself included, get sucked in to the hype of buying the most expensive club that we see the pro's play or what The Hot List tells us to buy. Don't get me wrong, I read over every page of The Hot List 20 times. But at the end of the day you must realize that all of these clubs are so similar as far as design, technology, etc. that it really must come down to how it performs for you. Just because the G10 got one more + than the Mizuno does not mean that the G10 is for you. That is the beauty of you being able to go out and hit these clubs and make an informed decision.

I used to hit the old Ping i3 driver until the weight finally fell out of it. That was around the time one of the first Hot Lists came out and man I went nuts. I had to have the r7 because it was the best, most expensive, driver out at the time. Trouble is, I never really hit it all that well. Then I went through a Nike Sasquatch, a Cobra F Speed, and a Titleist driver that I had no business hitting at the time, until I settled on the Ping G2, which has been a great driver for me.

I have always loved Callaway fairway woods, the X is the best one I have ever hit, and thought I would give the X460 a try (it was on sale) before I bought the G10 that I went in to get.... and the rest is history.

I hit the G10, the BB, the X460 (regular and Tour w/ various shafts) and I think even a Cobra. The salesman kept pushing me to the Hi Bore "because Vijay plays it"? Really?!?!

I LOVED the feel, the performance, the sound, and the ball flight of the Hyper X, a club that I had never really heard much about until I put it in my hand.

So, you never know. I think it is great, and it sounds like, from what you have said, that you will too. You seem to be unswayed by the hype of the newest and most expensive too, which is the way to approach it. You seem to be a smart guy who knows what he wants. Hit it and go for it. The price is right and it is a fantastic stick. I love mine!!!

Let me know about what you decide. I am always curious about stuff like this.

[wigolffan]

Its a shame your locked into golfsmith with that gift card, proshop wearhouse .com has (check my spelling I suck at spelling) has TM R5 drivers for 99 for my money cant go wrong I have been playing one for 3 years and just bought anouther one before you cant get them anymore so I have a back up! Forgiving and long!

[Wisco-Kid]

Well I was surprised to see at a Target store the Cleveland HiBore XL with stiff shaft on clearance for $85!!!! I couldn't believe it. Of course I didn't buy it because I love my Hogan C-S3 driver (which I bought at golf galaxy for $100). End of the year clearance is where it is at - buy last years model for half of what it cost originally.

[slainte]

I just got my hands on last years SasQuatch for $75 + tax at my local shop

Its nice because they have a range onsite so you can demo everything new and used.

If you are looking at something used or fairly new, I would try focusing on the club degree and the club shaft. If you figure out what loft you want and what type of shaft fits your swing it will severely limit your options and make the decision much easier.

[slimeberry]

Did you get your new X today? I am online and was just curious.

[e-man]

  slimeberry said:

Well, we survived the night. Unbelievable. We live on the south part of town. The north part of town was hit hard last night, buildings crushed, power still out, etc., but our neighborhood, aside from a lot of standing water and a few trees down, isn't too bad.

Unfortunately, as much as I was dying to go to Golfsmith today, I just couldn't make my way over there. We got hit really hard just north of Chicago with 10+ inches of snow.

I literally can't wait to hit the club tomorrow. I called Callaway today, and apparently it is a nice improvement over the X460 (which was already a nice club to begin with). I'll definitely post up my thoughts tomorrow night. I agree with everything you said (except for the Cubs thing, but I assume that was a typo). Like you, I've got the Hot List sitting out on the couch and I've thumbed through it more times than I care to admit. From 2001 until about 2005, I was a club junkie on ebay. I bought and sold literally dozens of drivers, sometimes 3 at a time in different lofts and shafts, in an effort to find the perfect club (well, not the actual "Perfect Club", but you know what I mean). I would always buy clubs that were a few years old because I never felt that I needed or wanted the latest and greatest, and certainly didn't want to spend $500 on a driver to pick up an additional 5-10 yards. Although I hate to see the club manufacturers introducing new clubs every 6-9 months, the nice part about it is that it drives the price of the "old" clubs down, and gives someone like me a chance to try everything. So, all of that being said, I truly believe that the Hyper X is everything I've been looking for in a driver -- 460cc head that doesn't look monstrously huge, good stock shaft, classic look, etc. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow. By the way, is your X fairway wood the new Hyper X or is it the X that matched the X460 from last year? Is there a new Hyper X fairway wood? e