Forum Member Reviews! TaylorMade 14* SLDR

[dru_]

Dave's comments really reiterates my first impression. Loft Up works, but you can go too far, and 14* is probably going to be a little high for a huge segment of the golfers that are avid enough to buy the latest and greatest.

 

The people that would reap the greatest reward from the 14* SLDR aren't going to be buying it until it hits the discount racks.  Guys like my father that struggle to get the ball up in the air, but won't justify the expense of buying a $400 club to solve a problem in just one place of the game.

[GolfSpy Dave]

Dave's comments really reiterates my first impression. Loft Up works, but you can go too far, and 14* is probably going to be a little high for a huge segment of the golfers that are avid enough to buy the latest and greatest.

 

There really does seem to be something to the SLDR, just not at 14° for me. 10.5° is looking like a much better option though.

[dru_]

There really does seem to be something to the SLDR, just not at 14° for me. 10.5° is looking like a much better option though.

 

What loft is your current?  I went from 8.5* to 10.5* and have floated bewteww 10-11 on my SLDR depending upon conditions and geography, but generally come back to 10.5.  Every now and then I will see a ball get up and just fall out of the sky, but that's the rarity.

 

That said, you might want to look at the ball too.  I find the flight behavior of balls vary more off the SLDR than any other driver I've put to the test.  Traditionally, I would prefer the equivalent of the Pro V1x, but with the SLDR, the Pro V1 or the TM Tour Preferred (not the X) behaves far better in the wind.  

 

The lesson from the SLDR for me is that changing the launch conditions has additional fallout that we often overlook.  

 

I think the best example I can give you is this.  Grab a box of Bridgestone E6's and/or a box of NXT Tour's and go compare them side by side off an SLDR and then your current gamer and really watch the ball flight/rollout.  If you've got some crosswinds, that will only make the behaviors more obvious.  Most of the balls on the market right now were built with the pre'SLDR' launch conditions in mind.  balls built to get 'up' in those conditions create really strange behaviors coming off the SLDR face.

 

FWIW, balls I used to play all the time I can no longer stand playing.  They drive me batty.

[GolfSpy WD]

That's why clubs need to be fit for the ball you play!

 

This is a fun experiment. I'm curious how many golfers really would fit into a 14* driver. I guess we'll find out with the next reviews...

[BK in TEXAS]

There really does seem to be something to the SLDR, just not at 14° for me. 10.5° is looking like a much better option though.

LOL.....ya.....lofting up 4.5 degrees is a lot!

[GolfSpy Barbajo]

Very interesting read Dave, and very much in line with my on-course experiences with the SLDR so far.  I have the 12* head with the stock shaft from the MyGolfSpy Most Wanted Driver contest, and my results with it so far have been, well, mixed...

 

I've hit some serious bombs with it, but with anything resembling even a slight negative angle of attack, I get the exact same ball flight (HIGH!!!) and the exact same feel (pretty darned good), but drives in the 210-220 ranges.  They just don't go.  They look awesome from the tee, and playing partners say "you nailed that one!"  But when we find our balls (usually in the FW-a good swing gives very accurate results), you could usually build a strip mall between my ball and theirs. 

 

I do need to continue working on my driver swing and will go for a shaft fitting as soon as the swing smooths out some more.  Actually thinking of "lofting down" to maybe 11 degrees to see what would happen.  I have some TrackMan time coming at the Minnesota Golf Academy at the end of the week, so it'll be a good chance to experiment. 

 

Good thing I haven't sold my R1 just yet...

[revkev]

Nice review Dave. I'm glad someone else enjoys the way the SLDR feels. I do beyond a doubt. Like you I also find it straight, ridiculously so. Unlike you I'm seeing a nice gain in distance but of course I'm only up 2.25.

 

I bet the 10.5 is the ticket.

[SPY ZINGER]

Nicely done guys, enjoying these!

[RookieBlue7]

I've been killing my 12* 430 with the PX Handcrafted. It's amazing how well that combo works

[GolfSpy Dave]

I've been killing my 12* 430 with the PX Handcrafted. It's amazing how well that combo works

I may look into the 430 version as well...

[MmmmmmBuddy]

Finally got my review up... Click here to check it out!!

[Mr_Theoo]

Finally got my review up... Click here to check it out!!

Great job on the review

[MmmmmmBuddy]

Great job on the review

 

Thanks bud!!

 

It has been fun so far!!

[revkev]

Finally got my review up... Click here to check it out!!

 

 

Very thorough - great review.

[MmmmmmBuddy]

Very thorough - great review.

Thank you.. :)

[kygolfer1980]

I'm still playing a 9.5* so the "Loft Up" intrigues me.  I have to say for some reason the SLDR mini appeals to me more for some reason.  Gonna have to demo it when it comes out.  I'm sure I'm losing distance the way I'm currently set up.  Great job with the reviews guys...

[MmmmmmBuddy]

I have demoed the Mini. Not a driver replacement for me. Ball speeds are much slower than current driver.   Very good from the deck, just not my fave off of the tee..

[Salmon]

I'm still playing a 9.5* so the "Loft Up" intrigues me.  I have to say for some reason the SLDR mini appeals to me more for some reason.  Gonna have to demo it when it comes out.  I'm sure I'm losing distance the way I'm currently set up.  Great job with the reviews guys...

 

I'm currently bagging 7.5* so will be interesting for me lol. I'm due for a fitting this coming monday in Aus but I have already spoken with my Pro and he is not the biggest fan of Taylormade to begin with but I expect the SLDR will be on the list for me to have a go at. Should be interesting

[BK in TEXAS]

Got my review up!

 

http://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/11010-forum-member-reviews-taylormade-14-sldr/?p=131826

[RoverRick]

Hey Buddy, great review.

 

 

 

• Distance - I am quite familiar with both of the ranges that I used for these tests, and I can say unequivocally, that the SLDR was shorter than my R9 SuperDeep, but more consistent distance wise. There was more variance with the R9, but even my worst shots were better than the better shots with SLDR. I wanted to know why this was, so I went to my local Golf Shop and hopped on their PING nFlight system powered by FlightScope. I was curious about the numbers. Ball Speed, Launch Angle, Spin Rates. The always friendly staff at Fiddlers Green in “Sunny” Eugene Oregon was happy to help me out.

•  

•  

•  What I discovered was quite interesting. Here are numbers from the session.So, to summarize, The SLDR Produced a slightly higher flight with less spin and a 5 yard shorter shot, but the R9SD has a nearly 6 mph faster ball speed with almost identical launch conditions.  14/20

 

 

 

I am so glad you compared this to the Super Deep.  I have one of those and was wondering about that.  I recently put a higher launching shaft on it was happy with it for a while until I went back to my TItleist.  I would be interested in trying this experiment.

[MmmmmmBuddy]

Hey Buddy, great review.

 

 

I am so glad you compared this to the Super Deep.  I have one of those and was wondering about that.  I recently put a higher launching shaft on it was happy with it for a while until I went back to my TItleist.  I would be interested in trying this experiment.

The only way that I know how to test clubs objectively is to compare them to something. In this case, the driver that I cannot kick out of my bag is that R9SD. Perhaps a 12* SLDR with the correct shaft.

 

I was quite surprised that a stock offering was so close to optimal for me.  Can't imagine how good a properly fit SLDR will be.

[GolfSpy WD]

It really is fun to read about how different lofts affect everyone differently. Great work so far guys.

 

Two more to go next week!

[SeeRed]

Review posted: http://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/11010-forum-member-reviews-taylormade-14-sldr/?p=131841

[GolfSpy WD]

Final SLDR review is up!

 

http://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/11010-forum-member-reviews-taylormade-14-sldr/?p=131837

 

Overall, it was only popular with one of our members. I honestly can't tell if this was a fitting issue though, or the club itself. Many of the guys could hit it just fine, but the height off the tee was always the issue and it often resulted in less distance.

 

TM is going to really have to work with retailers to ensure customers are properly fit for these drivers. I'm very curious about why they felt a 14* loft option warranted mass production and if they are seeing the sales numbers they wanted with this driver.

 

Thanks again tot he tester group for participating!

[revkev]

Actually what I've noticed is that several of the testers recognized the benefits of this driver for someone that they play with. I have a 12, we set it way up and a guy that it play with was creaming it but the closed face was too much. I think the 14 would be just the ticket for him.

[SeeRed]

This was a fun test, actually. It was a great opportunity to take the club for an extended demo. It didn't end up in my bag, but it is in my wife's. She's playing it at 12.5* for now, but I see some tweaking in the near future and I really think it can work well for her- probably at 13*, and maybe with an 'R' flex shaft. When she puts a good swing on it, it is much longer and straighter than anything she has played to this point (3.5 years of golf). No doubt it's a good product for the right golfer. But like WD, I wonder about mass production of a 14* driver.

[BK in TEXAS]

 

Overall, it was only popular with one of our members. I honestly can't tell if this was a fitting issue though, or the club itself. Many of the guys could hit it just fine, but the height off the tee was always the issue and it often resulted in less distance.

 

I think you're right on the fitting being the issue...along with the stock shaft.

[revkev]

One thing I've noticed is that I need to tee it lower with the SLDR. It's taken me a while to figure that out. I'm wondering if our testers noticed this with the 14.

[MmmmmmBuddy]

One thing I've noticed is that I need to tee it lower with the SLDR. It's taken me a while to figure that out. I'm wondering if our testers noticed this with the 14.

This seems to be true. Lower tee height will work well with a low/forward cg driver. It seems to me that the hot spot on this driver is much lower on the face than on my R9SD.

[revkev]

So I'm not nuts in this regard at least. Few.