USER1999
Grand Slam Winner
Initial thoughts on the Callaway RAZR fit Xtreme.
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My current driver is a Titleist 910 D3 9.5 as below in my signature. I have this set at A1, as I like it to sit square, and am happy with the loft. I hit quite a high ball, often with a bit too much back spin caused by a slightly descending blow. I carry about 220/230 with this set up. The Prolaunch Red is a low spin shaft, which suits me, but I feel I have to hit it quite hard to make it work for me (swing speed is 95/100 ish). As a result, the good ones are great, but the mi***** are either a big carve out right, or a flat snap hook. On a good day, I hit this as well or better than any driver I have owned. It is not the most forgiving combination though.
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I have two other shafts for this driver, an Ahina, and a Motore F1 75. The Ahina is a nice shaft for me, but feels a bit boardy and dead. The Motore is a bit heavy, and is nothing special. I originally had an RIP, but this was too light for me, and I was clueless with it.
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So my requirements for a new driver are that it has to sit square at address, it has to look neat and tidy (not a 460cc beached whale), it has to have a black crown, with no visible bumps, bulges, or chrome bits (ie: everything the Amp cell isn’t). It has to have a shaft I can feel the weight of, and ideally be more forgiving than the 910 D3. Oh, and it can’t be Ping (although the I series are fine looking drivers, I just don’t do Ping, and the G series are just plain ugly).
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The only driver I have seen recently that catches my eye is the Callaway RAZR fit Xtreme. In the lower lofts it has a neat, smallish head, which sits really nicely behind the ball (higher lofts such as 11 and 12 get a 460 head). It is very easy on the eye, although the electric green Aldila trinity shaft may take some getting used to. It could also come with a matrix black tie shaft, but I get the idea that this could be harder to hit than my Prolaunch red.
Other shafts are available as an upgrade, but as yet there is no fitting cart (major stockists really should have one for all drivers in my view), and I believe the shaft adaptor is the same as the RAZR Fit from last year, so if the Xtreme is an upgrade, you can fit your old shaft if you want. You can customise the head colours (if you are prepared to wait for delivery), both the crown and the sole. Standard is black crown, green sole. A black or grey sole would be better in my view, but then you don’t see it at address.
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The head can be adjusted to one of 3 positions, open, square (1/2 a degree open), and closed. Opening it lowers the loft, closing it raises the loft. I have a 9.5 head, set at square. It has two movable weights, a 13 and a 1 gram. These can be set to help promote a draw (13 near the hozel), or neutral (13 near the toe). I have mine set in the draw position (for the moment!).
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The grip is a lamkin crossline, which is a good grip, but it is a bit on the skinny side, so it will be coming off, and be replaced with a multi compound with more tape under it. I have never understood why so many clubs come as standard with skinny grips. My hands aren’t massive, so most must struggle.
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So, to swinging it.
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At address, the club looks really good. I like it a lot. However, the shaft is a tad longer than my Titleist (45 ½ as against 45). This is a bit off putting, but I guess I’ll get used to it, or get it cut down. The green shaft tapers to black near the hozel, which has the odd effect of making the shaft look a bit spindly near the head.
*
On first swinging it, the club feels a touch head heavy. I don’t mind this, but it is very different to the Titleist (it may be an illusion caused by the shaft feeling less stiff). I can certainly feel where the head is during the swing, and this, for me is a good thing. (I think a lot of my problems with modern drivers is that they are built too light, in the quest for faster swing speeds). However I guess if I cut the shaft down, this will make the swing weight lighter.
*
There is a weight kit available (I have found it for sale for £19) which has 4, 6, 8 and 10g weights. It would be nice to have got this with the driver, as for many, I’m guessing the 13 is too heavy, and would be better swapped out for a 10. I may yet buy this, and have a play, as I’m a bit of a tinkerer.
*
The Trinity shaft is supposed to combine the best bits from the RIP, the NV, and the Voodoo. Not sure what that is supposed to do, but it does feel quite stable, but also has some pop to it. It is supposed to be mid spin, and mid launch. It is also a real shaft, not a made for version.
Since I never liked the RIP, and was told the voodoo was totally unsuitable for me by Titleist, this may be a very short and expensive experiment. However, I actually quite liked the voodoo, and also the NV. I have owned and played drivers with all 3 of these shafts before.
*
I tried this out at dusk, which wasn’t the best idea. It was very difficult to see the end of the flight. I used my usual bay at the range, so I know where a good drive should finish. There is a bunker I normally carry, and a bunker a bit further out that I can pitch in, but rarely carry at this time of year. The end of the range slopes up, so run out is always hard to judge. It was also into the breeze.
*
I hit a few with the 910 first to set a bench mark, and then swapped to the Xtreme.
*
This is very easy to swing. The weight in the head makes it feel like swinging an axe.
*
In general the ball flight was pretty straight. I had a couple of big pulls left, but that was me. I hit a couple of nice gentle fades, about 4 yards L to R, which were really nice, and a few baby draws. I really couldn’t lose this right at all. This could be down to how the weights are set though. I have not tried the weights the other way around. The flight was a nice height, but hard to judge the distance. My impression is that there won’t be much between the two on average, but that the Titleist will have the longer Sunday best if really leant on. I could be completely wrong though. The impact sound is quite nice. Not the usual Callaway dull thud that I was expecting, but not the crack I get from the Titleist. It sounds about right to me.
*
I will be taking it out on the course Friday afternoon, and then both Saturday and Sunday. It will be interesting to see how it goes for real. I normally play solo on Fridays, so will have plenty of opportunity to hit a few off each tee, and get a better picture of what it does. I may also try the weights the other way around. I will try a few different balls too, as the Nikes (20X1-X) I am currently using are like rocks. The last few weeks I have been driving well (West Hill excluded!), and know where my ball should end up after a decent hit.
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I am very tempted by the weight kit. It’s only another £19 after all. I’ll decide on Monday.
Edited, bought it today, arrives next week. Fancy an 8 6 combination.
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Oh, and the head cover is cheap looking. Black vinyl, green logos, black sock. Sounds ok, but doesn’t look right in reality. Not good for a £329 driver. I may yet put my 910 head cover on it. This will also hide it from Mrs Mog until the summer, when my gay pink lion head cover comes out of hibernation.
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*
My current driver is a Titleist 910 D3 9.5 as below in my signature. I have this set at A1, as I like it to sit square, and am happy with the loft. I hit quite a high ball, often with a bit too much back spin caused by a slightly descending blow. I carry about 220/230 with this set up. The Prolaunch Red is a low spin shaft, which suits me, but I feel I have to hit it quite hard to make it work for me (swing speed is 95/100 ish). As a result, the good ones are great, but the mi***** are either a big carve out right, or a flat snap hook. On a good day, I hit this as well or better than any driver I have owned. It is not the most forgiving combination though.
*
I have two other shafts for this driver, an Ahina, and a Motore F1 75. The Ahina is a nice shaft for me, but feels a bit boardy and dead. The Motore is a bit heavy, and is nothing special. I originally had an RIP, but this was too light for me, and I was clueless with it.
*
So my requirements for a new driver are that it has to sit square at address, it has to look neat and tidy (not a 460cc beached whale), it has to have a black crown, with no visible bumps, bulges, or chrome bits (ie: everything the Amp cell isn’t). It has to have a shaft I can feel the weight of, and ideally be more forgiving than the 910 D3. Oh, and it can’t be Ping (although the I series are fine looking drivers, I just don’t do Ping, and the G series are just plain ugly).
*
The only driver I have seen recently that catches my eye is the Callaway RAZR fit Xtreme. In the lower lofts it has a neat, smallish head, which sits really nicely behind the ball (higher lofts such as 11 and 12 get a 460 head). It is very easy on the eye, although the electric green Aldila trinity shaft may take some getting used to. It could also come with a matrix black tie shaft, but I get the idea that this could be harder to hit than my Prolaunch red.
Other shafts are available as an upgrade, but as yet there is no fitting cart (major stockists really should have one for all drivers in my view), and I believe the shaft adaptor is the same as the RAZR Fit from last year, so if the Xtreme is an upgrade, you can fit your old shaft if you want. You can customise the head colours (if you are prepared to wait for delivery), both the crown and the sole. Standard is black crown, green sole. A black or grey sole would be better in my view, but then you don’t see it at address.
*
The head can be adjusted to one of 3 positions, open, square (1/2 a degree open), and closed. Opening it lowers the loft, closing it raises the loft. I have a 9.5 head, set at square. It has two movable weights, a 13 and a 1 gram. These can be set to help promote a draw (13 near the hozel), or neutral (13 near the toe). I have mine set in the draw position (for the moment!).
*
The grip is a lamkin crossline, which is a good grip, but it is a bit on the skinny side, so it will be coming off, and be replaced with a multi compound with more tape under it. I have never understood why so many clubs come as standard with skinny grips. My hands aren’t massive, so most must struggle.
*
So, to swinging it.
*
At address, the club looks really good. I like it a lot. However, the shaft is a tad longer than my Titleist (45 ½ as against 45). This is a bit off putting, but I guess I’ll get used to it, or get it cut down. The green shaft tapers to black near the hozel, which has the odd effect of making the shaft look a bit spindly near the head.
*
On first swinging it, the club feels a touch head heavy. I don’t mind this, but it is very different to the Titleist (it may be an illusion caused by the shaft feeling less stiff). I can certainly feel where the head is during the swing, and this, for me is a good thing. (I think a lot of my problems with modern drivers is that they are built too light, in the quest for faster swing speeds). However I guess if I cut the shaft down, this will make the swing weight lighter.
*
There is a weight kit available (I have found it for sale for £19) which has 4, 6, 8 and 10g weights. It would be nice to have got this with the driver, as for many, I’m guessing the 13 is too heavy, and would be better swapped out for a 10. I may yet buy this, and have a play, as I’m a bit of a tinkerer.
*
The Trinity shaft is supposed to combine the best bits from the RIP, the NV, and the Voodoo. Not sure what that is supposed to do, but it does feel quite stable, but also has some pop to it. It is supposed to be mid spin, and mid launch. It is also a real shaft, not a made for version.
Since I never liked the RIP, and was told the voodoo was totally unsuitable for me by Titleist, this may be a very short and expensive experiment. However, I actually quite liked the voodoo, and also the NV. I have owned and played drivers with all 3 of these shafts before.
*
I tried this out at dusk, which wasn’t the best idea. It was very difficult to see the end of the flight. I used my usual bay at the range, so I know where a good drive should finish. There is a bunker I normally carry, and a bunker a bit further out that I can pitch in, but rarely carry at this time of year. The end of the range slopes up, so run out is always hard to judge. It was also into the breeze.
*
I hit a few with the 910 first to set a bench mark, and then swapped to the Xtreme.
*
This is very easy to swing. The weight in the head makes it feel like swinging an axe.
*
In general the ball flight was pretty straight. I had a couple of big pulls left, but that was me. I hit a couple of nice gentle fades, about 4 yards L to R, which were really nice, and a few baby draws. I really couldn’t lose this right at all. This could be down to how the weights are set though. I have not tried the weights the other way around. The flight was a nice height, but hard to judge the distance. My impression is that there won’t be much between the two on average, but that the Titleist will have the longer Sunday best if really leant on. I could be completely wrong though. The impact sound is quite nice. Not the usual Callaway dull thud that I was expecting, but not the crack I get from the Titleist. It sounds about right to me.
*
I will be taking it out on the course Friday afternoon, and then both Saturday and Sunday. It will be interesting to see how it goes for real. I normally play solo on Fridays, so will have plenty of opportunity to hit a few off each tee, and get a better picture of what it does. I may also try the weights the other way around. I will try a few different balls too, as the Nikes (20X1-X) I am currently using are like rocks. The last few weeks I have been driving well (West Hill excluded!), and know where my ball should end up after a decent hit.
*
I am very tempted by the weight kit. It’s only another £19 after all. I’ll decide on Monday.
Edited, bought it today, arrives next week. Fancy an 8 6 combination.
*
Oh, and the head cover is cheap looking. Black vinyl, green logos, black sock. Sounds ok, but doesn’t look right in reality. Not good for a £329 driver. I may yet put my 910 head cover on it. This will also hide it from Mrs Mog until the summer, when my gay pink lion head cover comes out of hibernation.
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