Unofficial Quick Review: Project X Evenflow Riptide MX vs. LX

[Jeff in the Mitten]

I have been playing the original Evenflow black in my driver for a bit now and have been overall pretty happy with it.  But when these two beauties came out, I wanted to see if the low torque could provide tighter dispersion.  Here's a quick write up after hitting both the MX and LX at the range.  I played both in 60 gram class at TX flex cut 1.5" short to fit my normal setup in my Stealth plus+ 10.5* driver head w/ 4 extra grams of weight in the sliding track to increase swing weight. 

QUICK OVERALL THOUGHTS:  The LX is supposed to be the low launch and lower spin, whereas the MX is more mid launch and mid spin.  I didn't actually see a huge variance in launch conditions, in fact if you just looked at the numbers they could very well be the same shaft.  BUT, what I did notice is the feel.  The MX has a smoother load and I could feel it really rip through impact.  It felt like the shaft was generating more energy, which I really liked.  The LX felt really nice, but it was a bit boardy for me.  Not exactly in a bad way though, because I new exactly where the club was throughout the swing with the LX so I can see how this could create a very predictable swing and results.  

I love the looks of both with the flowy waves against the black or red background.  Amazing design work IMO.  See image to show comparison from web (note these are not my images) below

In one sentence...If you want to really feel the club load, go for the MX, whereas if you like a more stout profile that is very predictable throughout the swing, try the LX.

 

BY THE NUMBERS:  After hitting 15 shots with each, I took out the worst 2 (although that didn't really change the end result), here is the comparison on average:

As you can see, on paper they're close to identical!  For me personally, I found the MX easier to hit my line as well.  With the LX I had a couple where trying to hit a baby fade turned into a pretty gnarly one and the same when trying for the high draw that quickly went too far left.  

I wasn't tracking spin on this launch monitor, but I can say neither gave me a high balloon at all, so I don't think spin was a huge v

 

GAME OR LAME:  I am actually going to put this against my Evenflow Black, but I fully expect the MX is going in the bag permanently for me.  I simply found it to be very controllable and I really need the accuracy I saw on the range.  More time will tell.  Furthermore, I really felt like I could throw a variety of swings at it and get straight spin-controlled shots, ranging from the smooth fairway finder to the go-all-out bomber.  Nice to know that for the course. 

 

I will provide a course update after this weekend's round when I have the MX in the Stealth.  Stay tuned for more!

NOTE:  I realize this is not a full review, but given there is limited info out on these I thought I'd share my experience with others.  I'll continue to add more context as I have more time with the shafts.  Thanks for reading and understanding  

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

just finding this. nice write up. What is your CHS? I am looking into a shaft to replace my ventus black 6x and am eyeing up a 70g MX in 6.5.

[NM01]

On 7/20/2023 at 11:34 AM, Jeff in the Mitten said:

The LX is supposed to be the low launch and lower spin, whereas the MX is more mid launch and mid spin.  I didn't actually see a huge variance in launch conditions, in fact if you just looked at the numbers they could very well be the same shaft. 

This is because shafts don’t launch or spin. They provide weight and feel, they can have an influence on dynamic loft. Callaway and some other brands tested shafts from lightweight “lady” flex to the shafts used by long driver competitors using different swing speed and launch and spin between them were neglible. 
 

How a shaft feels and how that feel influences one swing and the delivery of the club will determine the launch characteristics. The profile of the shaft the manufacturers use it to let you know the profile of the shaft, low/low is going to typically have a stiff tip, mid will be softer tip as examples

On 7/20/2023 at 11:34 AM, Jeff in the Mitten said:

I wanted to see if the low torque could provide tighter dispersion

Torque is more about feel than it is dispersion 

 

[NM01]

26 minutes ago, Vegan_Golfer_PNW said:

just finding this. nice write up. What is your CHS? I am looking into a shaft to replace my ventus black 6x and am eyeing up a 70g MX in 6.5.

Really doesn’t matter, if he had the same ss as you but swings different the shaft is going to feel and perform different for both of you.

as mentioned in the other thread ss isn’t a number to base shaft profile and/or flex on.

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

1 minute ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Really doesn’t matter, if he had the same ss as you but swings different the shaft is going to feel and perform different for both of you.

as mentioned in the other thread ss isn’t a number to base shaft profile and/or flex on.

i understand. just looking for an initial reference point

[NM01]

5 minutes ago, Vegan_Golfer_PNW said:

i understand. just looking for an initial reference point

His profile says 111+ and he’s a 4.1 hdcp

What you need to figure out is if the black profile is the issue or the flex of it. You could drop a flex and keep the weigh the same as your shaft and try that, or try something in similar profile like AV white, rogue white, tensei pro white or black, evenflow black.

Or if the profile of the black is the issue then change to a blue profile. Which would be Diamana blueboard, evenflow blue, ventus blue or blue Tr. Tour AD series from graphite design, tensei av blue

potentially the kai’li series 

the problem is that whatever one will work is a guess and you will have to pick one or two to buy and test or find a place that carries these, most of which are stock or upgrade shafts in Callaway. 

you will just have to take the leap at some point. There are no bad shafts on the market, just bad fits for the golfer

[Jeff in the Mitten]

On 8/18/2023 at 1:44 PM, RickyBobby_PR said:

His profile says 111+ and he’s a 4.1 hdcp

What you need to figure out is if the black profile is the issue or the flex of it. You could drop a flex and keep the weigh the same as your shaft and try that, or try something in similar profile like AV white, rogue white, tensei pro white or black, evenflow black.

Or if the profile of the black is the issue then change to a blue profile. Which would be Diamana blueboard, evenflow blue, ventus blue or blue Tr. Tour AD series from graphite design, tensei av blue

potentially the kai’li series 

the problem is that whatever one will work is a guess and you will have to pick one or two to buy and test or find a place that carries these, most of which are stock or upgrade shafts in Callaway. 

you will just have to take the leap at some point. There are no bad shafts on the market, just bad fits for the golfer

Sorry, just getting back to this thread.  Correct, my average Driver swing speed with 1.5" shorter shaft is about 112-114.  I have a moderately aggressive transition, but not to the max on the scale from smooth to aggressive. 

I have been playing the 6.5 MX in 70g for a while now and am LOVING the dispersion results.  Here's what I'd say about it...

1. If you love and/or need the FEEL of a shaft loading and thus unloading at impact for that "whip", this is NOT the shaft for you.

2. If you (like me) don't really need more distance, but need to find more fairways, I think this could be a great fit.  This is purely a functional shaft for me.  I said to a good buddy of mine who is a 3 hdcp, "this thing just gets me where I need to be.  I'll leave the feel for my irons and wedges.  I hit so many balls with this where I'd say "meh, didn't feel awesome" but then walk up there an I have a 285 yd drive in the fairway...so no complaints if that's where I'm hitting my irons."  

3. I got this shaft to play into my strengths in the irons.  I no longer think about "how did that feel" and more just look at the results.  I'm getting more and more used to a little less shaft feedback now and am really settling in nicely with this shaft. 

4. Mishits are still forgiving to me.  My normal miss is on the toe, but I'm finding they still get out there plenty with my Stealth+ set to 10.5 neutral weighting.  

 

@Vegan_Golfer_PNW I haven't played much with the Ventus series, so I can't give you a direct comparison.  I see these for pretty affordable online so if you can add your own tip, I'd say give it a go. 

@RickyBobby_PR I agree that torque isn't about dispersion, but result in feel.  However, what I was referring to is a bit more of a stable face angle through the swing to deliver the face back to square with less movement through the transition and impact.  For me personally, it has delivered on tighter dispersion as I think I'm able to maintain face angle better, but at the sacrifice of a buttery feel.  Hope that sort of makes sense on how I translated the specs to a desired outcome. 

[Jeff in the Mitten]

In general I think I would adjust my initial testing statement about Feel in the MX and not in the LX.  When I compare these to something like a Tour AD Di 7x, they couldn't be more different.  I love the feel of the Tour AD, but only God knew where the ball would end up.  Whereas with these, I feel like (again) it goes to a more functional view of the shaft as a tool to deliver an end result rather than what the process of the swing feels like.  

I'm confident it won't be for everyone, but for me I'm thrilled I made the switch.  

If you're curious, I tried a @project_x hulk shaft a while ago and I can say that it produced low missiles with zero feel for me.  I am very glad to have gone to the Riptide MX as it is the right mix for my swing to get a nice launch angle, tighter dispersion than before with my Evenflow black, and forgiving misses.