Driver advice..

[Britishshooting]

All down to catering to your miss, most consistent and or preference really whether it be looks or cost. Cobra for instance, more cost effective than some other brands and I’ve never noticed any distance drop off in comparison, i fact some previous offerings have been slightly hotter by up to 5 yards but some nasty misses for me which ruled it out as 5 yards is doing nothing for me.

All being equal if you were to use the same shaft, switch heads only on centred strikes I personally have never found much in the way of distance gains certainly no magic ‘20 yard gain’ to be had in modern equipment from my experience anyway as you say.

Personally I never purchase a driver on this basis anyway, buy a driver to cater to your miss. That may mean being able to adjust heel/toe weighting is a must or front/back weight change functionality.

I really wanted to get into the TSi3, great driver and pounded it and I love the look of it. I’ve never been much of a fan of Callaway but it’s consistently the best on my miss in a current set up I have and on those middled drives it keeps up with any other offerings.

 

[srixon 1]

But have you been in the presence of one being hit? The sound is dreadful, propa dreadful. I'm not one that is usually swayed by sound but it really is that bad.
It does feel good though.

A mate of mine has just got the latest Ping driver. The sound is awful.

 

[hines57]

have them cover up all the brand logos and let the fitter find the best in terms of distance, dispersion and repeatability. After that it's down to look and feel from the short list. A good fitter should lead you through the process in a totally unbiased way!

 

[hovis]

A mate of mine has just got the latest Ping driver. The sound is awful.

He took it to a club fitter and had a hot melt. It's made it sound almost acceptable

 

[KenL]

A mate of mine has just got the latest Ping driver. The sound is awful.

Yes, my mate has one. Sound is a bit in your face. That wouldn't bother me though if it was my best option.

 

[MarkT]

Are you considering 1 draw & 1 fade (neutral) biased. Or different lofts?
In the past I did play about a bit with 2 lofts, dropping the FW. If time and money were available I might be tempted to go one front weighted, low spin, slightly longer shafted thing. Plus a back weighted slightly shorter shafted fairway finder.

One draw and one neutral, all sounds a bit silly given that I play off 6 but I'll very rarely hit anything other than driver off the tee and there are three tee shots that I really struggle with on my home course which is where I basically play all my golf. And there will be days when you're swinging it off so that might be handy for one or the other driver? Early days (in my head) but I could very easily/happily lose a wedge or 5-iron and see no difference

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

It’s definately work in progress for me with my Ping G425 MAX. I am sure I will get there - and I am working on my acceptance of the ‘metal drum’ effect when I hit it. What a racket.

 

[hovis]

It’s definately work in progress for me with my Ping G425 MAX. I am sure I will get there - and I am working on my acceptance of the ‘metal drum’ effect when I hit it. What a racket.

Like I said In a previous post. A hot melt will sort that out for you. The driver even comes with a port ready for the job

 

[sunshine]

One of my mates recently changed from TS2 or 3 to to TSi3 (fully fitted for both drivers) and I reckon he has gained 20 yards plus.

That is crazy, TS is only the last model. He can't have been properly fitted for the first driver.

I bet if he put the new shaft in the TS head the difference would be marginal to the TSi

 

[sunshine]

Ping are the best for drivers aren't they? Stick with them.

Are you keeping your sponsors happy?

 

[Orikoru]

Are you keeping your sponsors happy?

Nothing feels like a Ping! Wait, I mean, nobody makes clubs like Ping do... period. Is that it?

 

[jim8flog]

That is crazy, TS is only the last model. He can't have been properly fitted for the first driver.

I bet if he put the new shaft in the TS head the difference would be marginal to the TSi

My mate is one of those players that buys the latest thing as soon as it come out. He always buys from the pro at the club who has a shaft fit lab.

 

[srixon 1]

Yes, my mate has one. Sound is a bit in your face. That wouldn't bother me though if it was my best option.

I would imagine you get used to it after a while.

 

[chrisd]

Nothing feels like a Ping! Wait, I mean, nobody makes clubs like Ping do... period. Is that it?

I have a G400 but might move to a Cobra Radspeed if I can find one at a decent price

 

[Imurg]

I'm, hopefully, going to give the new Mizuno a shot in a couple of weeks..

 

[Oddsocks]

Nothing wrong with cobra drivers , I tried to hate the original amp in my fitting but the numbers didn’t lie. Changed that god awful orange grip though.

I’ve tried all sorts since the 2012 amp, XR15 & 16, 815 and 816 dbd, 913’s and a short stint with a Taylormade, just love the feel of the cobras

 

[TogoPresley]

I play G400 and recently went for a custom fit. I am an early 50s 12 handicapper who hits the ball long, yesterday most drives in 280-290 range.

I ended up with G425 after the fit. There was very little between the various driver heads tbh, they are all good, but the mis hit on Ping were generally better. I thought I would want the TM, but didn't like the white high line. I didn't like the sound of the Callaway, it was twice as loud which surprised me as Ping's milk-bottle clink is an acquired taste!

The irons again I stayed with Ping as the differences in heads were completely negligible for me. They look similar at address too, now that ping have thinned the top line. There was a world of difference on shafts. Even among shafts of same stiffness, the weights and kick points made the difference for me. I have some non off the rack shafts which suited me. Best advice have a fitting try stuff!

 

[clubchamp98]

I play G400 and recently went for a custom fit. I am an early 50s 12 handicapper who hits the ball long, yesterday most drives in 280-290 range.

I ended up with G425 after the fit. There was very little between the various driver heads tbh, they are all good, but the mis hit on Ping were generally better. I thought I would want the TM, but didn't like the white high line. I didn't like the sound of the Callaway, it was twice as loud which surprised me as Ping's milk-bottle clink is an acquired taste!

The irons again I stayed with Ping as the differences in heads were completely negligible for me. They look similar at address too, now that ping have thinned the top line. There was a world of difference on shafts. Even among shafts of same stiffness, the weights and kick points made the difference for me. I have some non off the rack shafts which suited me. Best advice have a fitting try stuff!

I found with the G425.
Watching my ball go straight down the middle I never noticed the sound!

 

[KenL]

I play G400 and recently went for a custom fit. I am an early 50s 12 handicapper who hits the ball long, yesterday most drives in 280-290 range.

I ended up with G425 after the fit. There was very little between the various driver heads tbh, they are all good, but the mis hit on Ping were generally better. I thought I would want the TM, but didn't like the white high line. I didn't like the sound of the Callaway, it was twice as loud which surprised me as Ping's milk-bottle clink is an acquired taste!

The irons again I stayed with Ping as the differences in heads were completely negligible for me. They look similar at address too, now that ping have thinned the top line. There was a world of difference on shafts. Even among shafts of same stiffness, the weights and kick points made the difference for me. I have some non off the rack shafts which suited me. Best advice have a fitting try stuff!

280-290 average is like the European tour.

Do you hit fairways? How's the rest of your game?

My average drive is about 240 yards and I am longer than a lot of people I play with.

 

[TogoPresley]

280-290 average is like the European tour.

Do you hit fairways? How's the rest of your game?

My average drive is about 240 yards and I am longer than a lot of people I play with.

As I say, I hit it long. The 7 irons I was hitting in the fitting were 195ish, my 4iron in last lesson was 220ish which I think is longer than tour average too, albeit I am clearly using the wrong shafts. The longer drives yesterday hit the fairways of course to get some roll. Not all drives did was in trouble twice, that is kinda the point of the 425s to hopefully keep the bad ones in play. Approaches were very average and got stuck horribly in a messy bunker cost me three after making a par 5 in two. Putting was good made up for average approaches some of the time though had four horseshoe on me. Distance is not the only measure of course,but I would agree that my current handicap is at odds with my ball striking. I'm hopeful of getting about four lower, having trimmed two since lockdown lifted, hopefully the new bat's will help.