2019 Official Forum Member Review-Callaway Epic Flash Drivers

[yungkory 8,796]

Looks like the Flash could be taking some cash out of many a pocket!


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I think it's good enough to warrant a test for anyone looking for a new driver.

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[yungkory 8,796]

Rain or shine, I'm out here testing!

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[THEZIPR23 4,921]

I am on the DL (or IL or whatever they call it now). Had a qualifier on Thursday so I stayed in a hotel room Wednesday night and woke up to a back that wouldn't function (been an issue for 20+ years). I still played in the tournament even though I couldn't swing ( I was a club and half short or more on everything). Hopefully will be back up and hitting bombs this weekend. 

I have tested the sliding weight and seen the differences it is able to make. One thing I haven't touched is the different settings on the adapter. Anybody have a good way to test this? My thought is to just track ball flight of a series of shots for each setting. I won't have a LM but should be able to tell what differences and adjustability of the Flash. 

 

[yungkory 8,796]

1 hour ago, THEZIPR23 said:

I am on the DL (or IL or whatever they call it now). Had a qualifier on Thursday so I stayed in a hotel room Wednesday night and woke up to a back that wouldn't function (been an issue for 20+ years). I still played in the tournament even though I couldn't swing ( I was a club and half short or more on everything). Hopefully will be back up and hitting bombs this weekend. 

I have tested the sliding weight and seen the differences it is able to make. One thing I haven't touched is the different settings on the adapter. Anybody have a good way to test this? My thought is to just track ball flight of a series of shots for each setting. I won't have a LM but should be able to tell what differences and adjustability of the Flash. 

 

 

Sorry to hear that dude. I have no idea how to test hosel settings without just giving subjective feedback on the ball flight, i.e. "looks lower to me."

Thanks for reminding me about testing the sliding weight though, never really moved it out of the toe based on the recommendation of my fitter. I'll play with it during the next range session, I'm pretty certain it won't help me any, but it'll be good to see if it actually does anything for my swing.

[THEZIPR23 4,921]

4 minutes ago, yungkory said:

 

Sorry to hear that dude. I have no idea how to test hosel settings without just giving subjective feedback on the ball flight, i.e. "looks lower to me."

Thanks for reminding me about testing the sliding weight though, never really moved it out of the toe based on the recommendation of my fitter. I'll play with it during the next range session, I'm pretty certain it won't help me any, but it'll be good to see if it actually does anything for my swing.

Yea that's about the best I could come up with. I am more curious as to what & how much adjustability there is. I know with the sliding weight it really moved the ball flight. Since my settings are basically all set up to fight a high draw it will be interesting to see how the hosel changes move that. For example is the max loft and max draw setting a high hook for me? 

[edingc 6,498]

FINALLY got to the range today to test out the Tensei Blue shaft. It had been almost 10 days without swinging a club due to weather, family health problems and a pulled muscle in my neck.

Unsurprisingly, my driver swing was out of sorts today. I really struggled with a block, however true to its billing, the Epic Flash showed tremendous forgiveness keeping the distance up and the ball in the same ZIP code. I think even the worst blocks would have been playable on my home course from the right rough.

The Tensei is definitely a little whippier than the HZRDUS Smoke. I wasn't seeing a ton of difference in club speed, but I do think there was a slightly higher flight with similar carry distance. I will give the Tensei a few more range sessions and rounds for a fair comparison.

I still have the sliding weight in a slight draw position and am liking the flight I'm getting at the moment with that.

[sirchunksalot 7,167]

Yea that's about the best I could come up with. I am more curious as to what & how much adjustability there is. I know with the sliding weight it really moved the ball flight. Since my settings are basically all set up to fight a high draw it will be interesting to see how the hosel changes move that. For example is the max loft and max draw setting a high hook for me? 

You got my curiosity up and so i read a post on the Callaway forum on their website and it says that the hosel adjustment would set the club more upright promoting a draw. They also noted that the effect would be more pronounced at max loft, so I would assume it would turn the club into more of a hook machine.

I have practiced with the sliding weight in full draw (it's also where I play it) and the hosel in draw at the same time. I couldn't get consistent results, but I also was fighting my swing at the time as it was a hot mess.

I'm planning on playing tomorrow and will set the sliding weight to neutral and the hosel to draw to see what happens.
@edingc and@THEZIPR23 I hope both of you feel better before your next rounds.

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[edingc 6,498]

My neck continues to feel better, and I was able to get nine holes in today before work. The Epic Flash once again performed admirably despite all of my efforts to swing terribly. Still managed a 44 (+8), so I'm not going to complain too much.

Highlight of my round was my drive on hole No. 4, a 322-yard par 4 that dog legs to the right. You tee off from way back underneath some trees, and the hole doesn't really open up until you get to the dog leg. It's very intimidating to say the least. 

 

Even for me (who usually doesn't top 240 carry), driver is really almost too long for this hole. If you are left, you'll go through the dog leg and behind trees toward hole No. 13. You can't go right at any distance because you'll get caught up in a bunch of trees as well (the screenshot from GAME Golf above shows the hole with full foliage).

I setup pointing at the deepest part of the dog leg and just smashed the ball right down the middle of the fairway, cutting the dogleg off and leaving only about 90 yards to the pin. Stuck my 54-degree within 15 feet and nailed the birdie putt on the left edge.

While I struggled with blocks yesterday, today I ended up pulling a bunch of balls again. However, I can say for certain the Tensei Blue shaft launches much higher than the HZRDUS Smoke, as I anticipated. I also have noticed a more pronounced draw on some of my shots since switching to the Tensei. I may have to adjust the sliding weight back to center as a result. 

(Also, I hope we dry out some soon. The course still had standing water in several areas, and the fairways were sopping wet. I'd love to see some roll factored into my distance numbers, eventually!)
 

[Wedgie 4,908]

It is rare when everyone seems to be having success with a product when testing occurs. That being said it seems like the Ping G410 driver testers are seeing the same. It would be fun when testing is over for everyone to flip flop drivers with the Ping testers then post their thoughts on the two.


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[edingc 6,498]

6 minutes ago, Wedgie said:

It is rare when everyone seems to be having success with a product when testing occurs. That being said it seems like the Ping G410 driver testers are seeing the same. It would be fun when testing is over for everyone to flip flop drivers with the Ping testers then post their thoughts on the two.


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The thing about this driver for me is that, even on bad swings, it produces reasonably good results. I hit several trees today pulling the ball left and my average driving distance was poor because of that. But there's nothing the driver can do in that case. 

The amount of forgiveness on these is impressive. That's the point that needs to be reiterated. I suspect much of the same from the G410.

[THEZIPR23 4,921]

9 minutes ago, Wedgie said:

It is rare when everyone seems to be having success with a product when testing occurs. That being said it seems like the Ping G410 driver testers are seeing the same. It would be fun when testing is over for everyone to flip flop drivers with the Ping testers then post their thoughts on the two.


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I honestly thought that I was tapped for distance as I have hit the ball pretty close to the same length for 10+ years, obviously not the case. It really is abnormal to see both clubs test as well as they have. I have talked to a few people upgraded to the Flash and their results are similar. If the results hold for me I know there will be more floating around my club just based of conversations and my results. 

[THEZIPR23 4,921]

2 minutes ago, edingc said:

The thing about this driver for me is that, even on bad swings, it produces reasonably good results. I hit several trees today pulling the ball left and my average driving distance was poor because of that. But there's nothing the driver can do in that case. 

The amount of forgiveness on these is impressive. That's the point that needs to be reiterated. I suspect much of the same from the G410.

Couldn't agree more. 

[yungkory 8,796]

38 minutes ago, Wedgie said:

It is rare when everyone seems to be having success with a product when testing occurs. That being said it seems like the Ping G410 driver testers are seeing the same. It would be fun when testing is over for everyone to flip flop drivers with the Ping testers then post their thoughts on the two.


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I'm down to try the 410, but not at the cost of parting with 

 

 

I don't really know how to do a better test than to play and continue posting my Arccos stats with the Flash, but if anyone has an idea, or something they'd like to see, please let us know  . Also, TS2 is gone, there's just no ounce of uncertainty anymore that this is a better head/fit for me than TS2 + HZRDUS Smoke was. 

[sirchunksalot 7,167]

I was able to get out and play 18 after work today, and let me tell you, the Epic Flash Sub Zero still brings the wow factor. My average driving distance was down compared to my last two rounds where I averaged 230.

You can see, I missed a lot of shots left because I kept pulling the ball. Not to mention, there was this:

I just straight up sent a worm burner down the fairway. A couple of guys let me play through and I caved to the pressure and just choked.

My thought today was to test the driver in neutral on the sliding weight and the hosel in draw position. I was still hitting a baby fade when I wasn't pulling it, but it kept the slices to a minimum. I think one of the other testers who has a better swing than mine needs to test it out to give real results, but I'm honestly giddy with how it performed.

I did come closer to an ace than I ever have in the 10th. I hit a 7 iron to within three feet of the flag. I gotta say I was both ecstatic and heartbroken at the same time. I guess since I was playing solo it was for the greater good, I don't want to have a heart attack without someone there to call an ambulance.

I finally figured out how to fight my pull on the 18th, by moving the ball back in my stance a little bit. Then I did this:

This is my longest drive ever! I'm not going to take all the credit for the shot because I was able to take advantage of the slope and the dry conditions.

This driver is definitely staying in the bag.


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[yungkory 8,796]

Congrats on the new longest! Looks like all of us hit new personal bests in terms of distance? I know I did, I think I read in another thread that @THEZIPR23 hit it further after years of thinking he was maxed out, and now you just put one deep at 270. @edingc you hit a new PB too? Maybe there's something to this Flash Face after all, or maybe it's Maybelline?

[THEZIPR23 4,921]

41 minutes ago, yungkory said:

Congrats on the new longest! Looks like all of us hit new personal bests in terms of distance? I know I did, I think I read in another thread that @THEZIPR23 hit it further after years of thinking he was maxed out, and now you just put one deep at 270. @edingc you hit a new PB too? Maybe there's something to this Flash Face after all, or maybe it's Maybelline?

No PB from me but I don’t expect one as I am 18 years older than I was then. BUT so far I am more consistent and on average longer than I have been in a decade or more. I was trying to fight losing distance and now I have more. It’s crazy to think about. To the fellow readers it probably is tiring to listen too but there hasn’t been a round where I haven’t been impressed with the Flash. 

Going to try to get out and see if my back will hold up tomorrow. We will see how that goes.

 

And if it’s Maybelline then I am going to join the Gram and be an influencer...

[Fireinthehole 668]

I really liked the addition of the line to the crown, really helped make the face look square. I remember the rogue looked almost toe down and open faced to me.

One of the only drivers that had below 2500RPMS of backspin, couldn't beat my G400 dispersion or distance, but a real bomber!

Only knock is the sound-blah!

[edingc 6,498]

43 minutes ago, Fireinthehole said:

I really liked the addition of the line to the crown, really helped make the face look square. I remember the rogue looked almost toe down and open faced to me.

One of the only drivers that had below 2500RPMS of backspin, couldn't beat my G400 dispersion or distance, but a real bomber!

Only knock is the sound-blah!

Yeah, the more the sound has been brought up, the more I've noticed it. Oh well. I don't think it's awful, but I'd call it, "less than ideal sounding."

[edingc 6,498]

22 hours ago, yungkory said:

Congrats on the new longest! Looks like all of us hit new personal bests in terms of distance? I know I did, I think I read in another thread that @THEZIPR23 hit it further after years of thinking he was maxed out, and now you just put one deep at 270. @edingc you hit a new PB too? Maybe there's something to this Flash Face after all, or maybe it's Maybelline?

Close, not quite. I carried 240-something a week ago, but this last one was very close. I think those two drives are two of the better I've hit in my life. I can think of one drive last summer that caught a downslope on a dry day at a different course and went about 260-270 with roll. But, last year I'd hit one reasonably straight but short and then three or four that were completely off the planet right (I was gaming an Adams Super LS at the time).

So many of the holes at my home course have fairways that slope up toward the green. Combined with all of the rain we've had there has just been no rollout whatsoever. Just wishing for a dry spell and a nice downhill landing area.

[THEZIPR23 4,921]

16 hours ago, Fireinthehole said:

I really liked the addition of the line to the crown, really helped make the face look square. I remember the rogue looked almost toe down and open faced to me.

One of the only drivers that had below 2500RPMS of backspin, couldn't beat my G400 dispersion or distance, but a real bomber!

Only knock is the sound-blah!

The additional line is nice. When I first saw it I was not sold, but you are correct it helps square everything up. As far as the sound, yea it's not great BUT when you hit it 15 yards farther with less dispersion who really cares. It is starting to grow on me though watching my playing partners cringe when they hear it and the hang their head in disgust as I fly by them.