Testers Announced! Callaway Ai-Smoke Drivers

[bens197]

3 hours ago, Berg Ryman said:

Ok, so first experience with Callaway woods was in the summer of 2005, when in a fitting for a new driver I was between the Nike SQ460 and the Callaway FT3 Fusion. I remember hitting the Fusion well, but just thought Sasquatch looked cooler and the numbers were so close, so that's what we went with at the time.

Fast forward to my law school days and I started working at Dick's Sporting Goods in Dewitt, NY with a gentleman by the name of Alan Savage as our PGA Pro. He had a deal with the guys at Callaway and due to that, we were part of Callaway VIP. I was always a bit concerned about ordering a ton of stuff at discount because I didn't want them checking to make sure I was utilizing things correctly. This was the Big Bertha Relaunch era in the mid 2010's, so I had fitting experience with the BB Alpha, which I liked (Gravity Core forever!) original XHot and X2Hot, all the way through to my leaving Dick's around the time of GBB Epic I believe, maybe I was there with Rogue, it's a bit of a blur.

So during that time I did the educational courses year on year to keep my fitting certificate status good and my discount active. The only club I ever ordered through the program was actually a fairway wood, the X2Hot in a strong 3 wood. I got it with the Aldila Tour Blue shaft an inch longer than standard to play it like a fairway finder driver alternative and until the shaft broke on me, I loved that club for that purpose.

Eventually I got the shaft replaced when I sent it back to Callaway but it was never the same. So I traded it along with some other clubs for the only other Callaway wood to make my bag, another fairway wood, the Epic Flash Sub Zero 3 wood. Up until my most recent fitting that was the club in the bag occupying the 3 wood spot. Again, an awesome fairway finder when needed and a solid part of the bag.

So Steve, I guess to answer your questions as to any thoughts and biases, I'd say this. I believe the marketing team does a great job of explaining to the consumer and the salespeople what the new tech is, how the new tech is better than what came before, and how to utilize it to help sell the product. I think from a performance standpoint Callaway is always at the bleeding edge of what is possible, but until more recently with Paradym and seemingly AI Smoke, the proof wasn't in the pudding as much as say Taylormade, Titleist, or Ping. I think you just have go back to the perception surveys to see that across the board.

So I am coming into this with the potential to be wowed, but also to know that at the end of the day, there just might not be a ton out there that doesn't come down to me and not the club. I expect a solid club, one that looks awesome, performs solid, and might be able to surprise. I expect to have a fun time learned about the tech more and experimenting with the widest part of the bell curve head and hopefully am able to really help those of us in the middle to find real truths about AI Smoke Max.

That’s legit. 
 

I appreciate the candor and despite the anticipation of a brand new club in your bag, you’re grounded enough to remain fair. 
 

I’m excited to see how it works for you. You deserve a trusted driver in the bag. 

[TylorJudd]

6 hours ago, bens197 said:

I know you’re familiar with your swing and recent hands on experiences with complete fittings. 
 

What’s your past experience with Callaway woods and are there any internal bias’ you have for the good or bad?

I may have a slight bias in favour of Callaway. Currently playing the Paradym Triple Diamond which is an out of this world driver, and before that played a Callaway X2 Hot, also good. I have played both the Stealth 2 and TSr3, and there are reasons for liking Callaway more. Never had favour for them before, just a good deal that worked out really well

[bens197]

14 minutes ago, TylorJudd said:

I may have a slight bias in favour of Callaway. Currently playing the Paradym Triple Diamond which is an out of this world driver, and before that played a Callaway X2 Hot, also good. I have played both the Stealth 2 and TSr3, and there are reasons for liking Callaway more. Never had favour for them before, just a good deal that worked out really well

Definitely makes sense to me. Well said. 

[matt_puttercup]

On 4/22/2024 at 12:38 AM, GolfSpy_APH said:

Max is the standard model and offers the most adjustability with a sliding weight at the back and an adjustable hosel.

Looking forward to see how the testers' experiences compares with mine!  Bought the Max 9* back in Feb and am feeling more confident with Driver in hand than I have in a loooong time!

[JAYER38]

20 hours ago, bens197 said:

I know you’re familiar with your swing and recent hands on experiences with complete fittings. 
 

What’s your past experience with Callaway woods and are there any internal bias’ you have for the good or bad?

Without making this to long of a story...

My FIRST Driver was a Callaway FT9. I say first as I've had it for around 10 years (dads hand me down & driving range fun) and started with it when I began to take golf more serious last year. I decided to upgrade rather quickly because of technology to a Cobra LTDx MAX (strictly based on reviews I've read). That lasted all of 2 months as I just could not hit it well... Then changed to my current gamer which is a PING G425 MAX. I love the PING but it does lack some distance & feel for me. I recently tried a Stealth 2+ and I believe I don't have the swing speed for that model to work as intended but I enjoy it using it.

I have always LOVED Callaway but about the only Bias I have is the confidence in my current gamer because well I know it.

I'm coming into this test hoping to be surprised by the distance and forgiveness of the Callaway while keeping the "feel" of a club that gives me honest feedback.

[bens197]

1 hour ago, JAYER38 said:

Without making this to long of a story...

My FIRST Driver was a Callaway FT9. I say first as I've had it for around 10 years (dads hand me down & driving range fun) and started with it when I began to take golf more serious last year. I decided to upgrade rather quickly because of technology to a Cobra LTDx MAX (strictly based on reviews I've read). That lasted all of 2 months as I just could not hit it well... Then changed to my current gamer which is a PING G425 MAX. I love the PING but it does lack some distance & feel for me. I recently tried a Stealth 2+ and I believe I don't have the swing speed for that model to work as intended but I enjoy it using it.

I have always LOVED Callaway but about the only Bias I have is the confidence in my current gamer because well I know it.

I'm coming into this test hoping to be surprised by the distance and forgiveness of the Callaway while keeping the "feel" of a club that gives me honest feedback.

Hopefully the Smoke Max D (high MOI) will give you what you need. 
 

I tried the 425 and had the same thoughts as you. It wasn’t really any better than my g400 and then we enter the “there still has to be something better out there” mindset. 
 

Wishing you luck with the test!!!

[Berg Ryman]

16 hours ago, matt_puttercup said:

Looking forward to see how the testers' experiences compares with mine!  Bought the Max 9* back in Feb and am feeling more confident with Driver in hand than I have in a loooong time!

well then, I'm your huckleberry I guess through this process!

Also, I'm not going to say I have a shipment coming from Mexico set to be delivered today... but I'm also not not saying it.

[EasyPutter]

And now it begins, no delivery was expected but a delivery was made.

Smoke and mirrors time and not everything is yet to be seen...

 

[Berg Ryman]

Intro is now live, and my fellow friend on the I-90 corridor isn't the only one getting that long brown box today

 

 

[TJ Hall]

4 hours ago, EasyPutter said:

And now it begins, no delivery was expected but a delivery was made.

Smoke and mirrors time and not everything is yet to be seen...

 

Gotta love the long skinny box sitting on the porch!

[EasyPutter]

1 hour ago, TJ Hall said:

Gotta love the long skinny box sitting on the porch!

The difference between me receiving a product to test previously and me receiving my 6th product to test is (not boasting here mind you - showing maturity or so I'm deluding myself) now it is here, how do I set up an unboxing worthy of the product that is creative, unique and interesting to the membership and public who will access my review  

Previously it was, "oh I will just do it over there" (somewhere within a few strides) and blah blah blah, click click click, whatever.

Experience gives me an understanding that the test will take a while, I get in 4 rounds (9 holes) per week on average, and there is only one unboxing so it is worth doing it right - and I have been thinking of what I want to do for a week so far... 

[EasyPutter]

1 hour ago, TJ Hall said:

Gotta love the long skinny box sitting on the porch!

That will account for the Max D drivers for the test 

[TJ Hall]

9 minutes ago, EasyPutter said:

The difference between me receiving a product to test previously and me receiving my 6th product to test is (not boasting here mind you - showing maturity or so I'm deluding myself) now it is here, how do I set up an unboxing worthy of the product that is creative, unique and interesting to the membership and public who will access my review  

Previously it was, "oh I will just do it over there" (somewhere within a few strides) and blah blah blah, click click click, whatever.

Experience gives me an understanding that the test will take a while, I get in 4 rounds (9 holes) per week on average, and there is only one unboxing so it is worth doing it right - and I have been thinking of what I want to do for a week so far... 

Nice brag on the sixth test!

There is a lot that goes into the overall test, having done a club test recent learned a lot.  It’s part golf, part art and all enjoyment (even if it requires playing in the rain (or snow in my case))!

[JAYER38]

OH BOY! OH BOY! OH BOY!

Too bad its not 4/20 cause the Smoke has showed up… Inappropriate? To much?! 
 

I didn't get a cool shot of it on the porch because the wife took the Ai Smoke Max D in the house   She as excited as I am I think

[EasyPutter]

Posted my Introduction for everyone to read and see who this selected tester is and what he's been doing so far getting ready for all the Smoke and Mirrors for the Magic on the fairways!

 

Edited April 27 by EasyPutter

[EasyPutter]

On 4/25/2024 at 9:54 AM, bens197 said:

I know you’re familiar with your swing and recent hands on experiences with complete fittings. 
 

What’s your past experience with Callaway woods and are there any internal bias’ you have for the good or bad?

I know this question was directed to Ryan but I will weigh in as many of the other testers have.  My answer should be not much longer than this preamble. 

This is my first experience with a Callaway driver and from the fitting it should revolutionize my game.  As testing will soon begin, there should be plenty of my posts to update on what happens with tracked distance, direction, and consistency of my drives which is what will be the focus of my review for those who like me are late to the game and interested in finding fairways with drives.

[RickM71]

My newbie introduction is now live.  I was tempted to stick with the Ai theme and have Chat GPT edit it for me, but I stuck with my own boring prose.  Chat GPT was just a bit too cheesy, filled with puns that were over the top.  

 

[Golfspy_CG2]

19 hours ago, TJ Hall said:

Nice brag on the sixth test!

There is a lot that goes into the overall test, having done a club test recent learned a lot.  It’s part golf, part art and all enjoyment (even if it requires playing in the rain (or snow in my case))!

The reply isnt directed at you.  But quoting you to give newer members a bit of history and perspective.  
 

@EasyPutter is a member for many years and his time predates the explosive growth we’ve seen in membership over the last 3-4 years especially the last two.   

Back in the old days it wasn’t unheard of for q proven tester to get two tests during the same year—-a rare occurrence these days—due to the lack of experienced testers.  
 

its often been referenced to check out the how to be a tester thread.  If you are a new member ane haven’t done so.   I’d encourage it.  

[JAYER38]

Its my first time soooo be gentle haha

Intro is LIVE!

 

[FallenSaber]

On 4/22/2024 at 1:12 AM, JAYER38 said:

WHO WANTS THE SMOKE?!

 

THANK YOU!!  To the staff of MGS & Callaway for this opportunity to test such a sought-after product!

ALL ME:

So, I’m sure you’ll all love reading about me cause that why your all here right…. RIGHT!!

We will keep this short and sweet for the sake of the important info!

Name is Josh, 35 years young, born and raised in Virginia. Loving wife of 1 year who recently had our son Jasper. He turned 3 months but was 2 months early so SURPRISE to us! He is healthy and we love every second with him even when he screams at us for no reason ha-ha. We love to travel when I’m not racing so here are some pictures to look at to end the life story…

ITS JUST A GAME:

This game is a love hate relationship!!

So, at best I would say I am a weekend warrior golfer that LOVES to tinker and try new clubs. I will break out a beer on the first Tee box no problem at 8am as I’m there to have fun and enjoy the game with some friends (please do not confuse that with getting smashed and being a hooligan) but enjoy the picture where I got SMOKED by a tee shop from an adjacent hole   Now that I’ve said that I see myself as a 28 handicap (not official) with my best score being 92(just the other week). I struggled the most with staying consistent in my swing throughout the bag (contact & face angle). I swear some day I’m a beast off the Tee and others I could pay the ball to stay in plate. If I could ever get my full bag swing together PGA tour here, I come…

THE CURRENT HAMMER:

PING G425 MAX 12*

*We all know what this looked like. Basically in every beginners bag that wants to be a little serious about the game*

 

THE FITTING or circus show:

During the fitting I was having a very off day! Driving the ball 150 yards straight and 100 yards right. I felt so bad and beyond embarrassed! So many people were there and watching it was a complete sh!tshow! I even hit a car in the parking lot. (I did apologize, and all was good)

Fitter & I talked about this, and he made his decision based on what he saw and thought would help me along with looking at some data from my session with the BLP at home .

 

NOWWWW FOR THER MAIN EVENT…. TESTING PLANS & QUIETING THE PING

-Comparison to my current gamer *BLING BLING*

-Data! All the number for the scientist out there

-Improvements to my game!

I want this to answer the biggest question of them all… Will this improve my game and be worth the price tag! Let’s see if the club catches some attention in the bag from other golfers, looks good to the eye behind the ball, and if adjustments work as they say. All in all, I want more distance, Help me feel for the clubface, & Same, if not more repeatability!

Congrats on being a new father, fairly new husband and on getting the testing opportunity! Glad to hear that the little one is doing well after being born so early.

Looking forward to the test! Happy there were no issues with the hit car... I hate playing courses that have houses along the right side because I'm always up at the tee thinking to myself, don't hit the house, don't hit the house... 

[EasyPutter]

On 4/26/2024 at 6:33 PM, EasyPutter said:

Experience gives me an understanding that the test will take a while, I get in 4 rounds (9 holes) per week on average, and there is only one unboxing so it is worth doing it right - and I have been thinking of what I want to do for a week so far... 

Got it!  Inspiration comes from many places and this time it goes to Matt @GolfSpy SAM 

Now while I might not be wearing my driver on my back like a backpack, I will be using another device of perspective(s) and that is all I am saying for now...

More is definitely to come:  or which is it?  I don't know!!!

[Berg Ryman]

Well, I promised you guys a fitting post, and since I've got a bit of time in front of a keyboard today, I figured now is the time. As an aside, here's a link to my thread from the wood fit in the fall of 2022, to give you an idea of where my swing usually sits.

Now, the first thing I will say is that when we were selected for this the first question I asked our intrepid mod team was how crazy we were going to be allowed to get with the shaft selection. The report back, anything that's no-upcharge is fair game. Luckily there's a good amount of shafts in the Callaway shaft market that would be a solid fit and if you're wondering more any any specific ones, you can check out the custom catalog right here. Took me a couple of searches to find it but it gives a lot of excellent information, like Callaway's new fitting ideas and matrix to help find shafts which exist in the right space for the right flights.

The next step was finding a place for the fitting and instead of my usual trip to Victor and my guy at Club Champion, I thought to keep this one close to home. Our Golf Galaxy in Dewitt has some decently knowledgeable staff and is outfitted with 4 trackman bays but more importantly, have a lot of the non-upcharge options right there for testing. Plus, even at 70 bucks for the driver fitting, they'll fit you using your ball of choice and you get to really talk through thinks with your guy. My fitter was a younger guy named Nick, and he was really easy to talk to and discuss what I was feeling. Also, I think it's a good test of the type of stuff that my fancy fitting at Club Champion got me compared against a Big Box fitting, with similar eqipment.

So, for those of you who have never used Trackman for a fitting, you do get a private report of your fitting and information sent to you after the fact. I'd say this is valuable in this case for a few reasons. One, it shows and confirms tendencies and two, it gives you enough information to make the right choices for your game. It's a worthwhile investment if you can get onto one for a fitting and a skilled aid can really make that information make sense.

For my fitting we started with the baseline of my TSR 2. It's set at 10 degrees of loft, in the natural A1 position, so nothing different. Now, the Fujikura NX Blue shaft is categorized in the Callaway Matrix as a Mid-High launch, High spin shaft, and while that may be what the shaft is, it wasn't the way it was being delivered. Here's the photo of the best shot with the TSR and while the distance isn't bad, you'll see something that had me troubled.

So yeah, you see that launch angle there? 6.7 degrees. Now, I've always been a primarily negative AOA guy, I always have and I always will. I refuse to learn and will swing the swing I have until I can't swing it anymore. Call it stubborn, call it complacency, call it unwilling, it's who I am. But even I know that with a shaft like this, you can't be launching that low. Now, I will admit that the tee heigh you see in this picture is also a little low for me, so these are primarily bottom-ish strikes, but that's no bueno.

So then it became time to crack open the cases and get to work. Luckily with only one head to test this fit became about two things. Finding the right loft, and then pairing the proper shaft. It seems straight forward, but that does make the work quite a bit easier. Also as anaside, pretty cool way to display everything instead of the old bag based model I was used to.

So, we started in with the Max Smoke turned up from the base 10.5 up to 11.5 with the help of the Callaway optifit cog. I'll spare you guys the details. The launch went up about a degree, but I was still prone to the absolute smother top that had killed my support of my TSR. So we then looked at the 12 degree head. Now, once I get to the range this week I'll get a profile shot for you guys, but as a visual person, having and seeing that much loft isn't something that concerns or scares me. I know some people want to see less or see a face maybe more closed or open, for me a lot of loft and seeing some toe isn't a deal breaker, in fact I almost prefer it. Sometimes not having a visual delineation between crown and face makes it harder on me, which is probably why I like my Stealth 3 wood so much.

Also, as a brief aside, the visual of this driver looking at the sole is so cool and awesome. The testing heads were super smoky, here's the head I was working with.

 

 

 

Ok, now that we had the head basically bolted on, the question became which shaft pairs best with it and we eventually found our way down to two. The first, the Tensei AV Blue in 55 grams and stiff, the second the Hzrdus Smoke Red RDX, 50 grams and regular for purposes of the fit as they didn't have the stiff. I'd say both shafts, listed as mid launch and mid spin in that Callaway guide I listed earlier feel pretty similar, I feel in swinging them both I could feel the head in space more in the Smoke Red than the Blue, which has always been the one thing that's kept me away from Tensei Blue in the past. It just feels too generic for me and never gets along with my swing. It was a contender for the Mizuno way back when, it was in play for the TSR, and now here. It's undoubtedly a good shaft, but I just don't get along with it. The red on the other hand felt like I could really feel in the swing, the one major disappointment was that they didn't have the stiff, so you're operating a bit on blind faith.

After some drives I settled on Smoke RDX Red. It felt the best to me, with my aggressive swinging nature of being more of a hitter than a swinger probably carrying the day, especially considering the bend profile isn't too dissimilar from Smoke RDX Black, except in the tip, which would never work for me, in Red though, it looks to be a winner. We also decided to through in the early season, the head into the draw setting while the swing kinks get worked out and I've also moved the sliding weight in between the standard spot and the draw setting.

Lastly about the fitting, remember how I said they fit you with your current ball of choice. Well, they fit me with the Bridgestone B-XS and I have to say, this might not only be a driver test, but a ball test as well. The B-XS is spinny, and with a downward attack angle and 12* of loft it get up over 3,500 pretty easy. Therefore, we're looking at some different balls. I want to see if it was the fact that all shots were more off the bottom of the face that was keeping that spin over high. However, much like Thanos, it appears the finding the Pro V1X back in my back may just be inevitable, but I also want to try the second best ball from my Ballnamic fitting, the Chrome Tour as well.

As a final treat before some hopefully in hand pics this week at the range, here's my fitting card from the unboxing, full specs listed, even the grip! Let's get it!

[CFreddie]

Great write-up @Berg Ryman - very interesting to hear you went up 2 whole degrees on the AI!

[bens197]

40 minutes ago, Berg Ryman said:

Well, I promised you guys a fitting post, and since I've got a bit of time in front of a keyboard today, I figured now is the time. As an aside, here's a link to my thread from the wood fit in the fall of 2022, to give you an idea of where my swing usually sits.

Now, the first thing I will say is that when we were selected for this the first question I asked our intrepid mod team was how crazy we were going to be allowed to get with the shaft selection. The report back, anything that's no-upcharge is fair game. Luckily there's a good amount of shafts in the Callaway shaft market that would be a solid fit and if you're wondering more any any specific ones, you can check out the custom catalog right here. Took me a couple of searches to find it but it gives a lot of excellent information, like Callaway's new fitting ideas and matrix to help find shafts which exist in the right space for the right flights.

The next step was finding a place for the fitting and instead of my usual trip to Victor and my guy at Club Champion, I thought to keep this one close to home. Our Golf Galaxy in Dewitt has some decently knowledgeable staff and is outfitted with 4 trackman bays but more importantly, have a lot of the non-upcharge options right there for testing. Plus, even at 70 bucks for the driver fitting, they'll fit you using your ball of choice and you get to really talk through thinks with your guy. My fitter was a younger guy named Nick, and he was really easy to talk to and discuss what I was feeling. Also, I think it's a good test of the type of stuff that my fancy fitting at Club Champion got me compared against a Big Box fitting, with similar eqipment.

So, for those of you who have never used Trackman for a fitting, you do get a private report of your fitting and information sent to you after the fact. I'd say this is valuable in this case for a few reasons. One, it shows and confirms tendencies and two, it gives you enough information to make the right choices for your game. It's a worthwhile investment if you can get onto one for a fitting and a skilled aid can really make that information make sense.

For my fitting we started with the baseline of my TSR 2. It's set at 10 degrees of loft, in the natural A1 position, so nothing different. Now, the Fujikura NX Blue shaft is categorized in the Callaway Matrix as a Mid-High launch, High spin shaft, and while that may be what the shaft is, it wasn't the way it was being delivered. Here's the photo of the best shot with the TSR and while the distance isn't bad, you'll see something that had me troubled.

So yeah, you see that launch angle there? 6.7 degrees. Now, I've always been a primarily negative AOA guy, I always have and I always will. I refuse to learn and will swing the swing I have until I can't swing it anymore. Call it stubborn, call it complacency, call it unwilling, it's who I am. But even I know that with a shaft like this, you can't be launching that low. Now, I will admit that the tee heigh you see in this picture is also a little low for me, so these are primarily bottom-ish strikes, but that's no bueno.

So then it became time to crack open the cases and get to work. Luckily with only one head to test this fit became about two things. Finding the right loft, and then pairing the proper shaft. It seems straight forward, but that does make the work quite a bit easier. Also as anaside, pretty cool way to display everything instead of the old bag based model I was used to.

So, we started in with the Max Smoke turned up from the base 10.5 up to 11.5 with the help of the Callaway optifit cog. I'll spare you guys the details. The launch went up about a degree, but I was still prone to the absolute smother top that had killed my support of my TSR. So we then looked at the 12 degree head. Now, once I get to the range this week I'll get a profile shot for you guys, but as a visual person, having and seeing that much loft isn't something that concerns or scares me. I know some people want to see less or see a face maybe more closed or open, for me a lot of loft and seeing some toe isn't a deal breaker, in fact I almost prefer it. Sometimes not having a visual delineation between crown and face makes it harder on me, which is probably why I like my Stealth 3 wood so much.

Also, as a brief aside, the visual of this driver looking at the sole is so cool and awesome. The testing heads were super smoky, here's the head I was working with.

 

 

 

Ok, now that we had the head basically bolted on, the question became which shaft pairs best with it and we eventually found our way down to two. The first, the Tensei AV Blue in 55 grams and stiff, the second the Hzrdus Smoke Red RDX, 50 grams and regular for purposes of the fit as they didn't have the stiff. I'd say both shafts, listed as mid launch and mid spin in that Callaway guide I listed earlier feel pretty similar, I feel in swinging them both I could feel the head in space more in the Smoke Red than the Blue, which has always been the one thing that's kept me away from Tensei Blue in the past. It just feels too generic for me and never gets along with my swing. It was a contender for the Mizuno way back when, it was in play for the TSR, and now here. It's undoubtedly a good shaft, but I just don't get along with it. The red on the other hand felt like I could really feel in the swing, the one major disappointment was that they didn't have the stiff, so you're operating a bit on blind faith.

After some drives I settled on Smoke RDX Red. It felt the best to me, with my aggressive swinging nature of being more of a hitter than a swinger probably carrying the day, especially considering the bend profile isn't too dissimilar from Smoke RDX Black, except in the tip, which would never work for me, in Red though, it looks to be a winner. We also decided to through in the early season, the head into the draw setting while the swing kinks get worked out and I've also moved the sliding weight in between the standard spot and the draw setting.

Lastly about the fitting, remember how I said they fit you with your current ball of choice. Well, they fit me with the Bridgestone B-XS and I have to say, this might not only be a driver test, but a ball test as well. The B-XS is spinny, and with a downward attack angle and 12* of loft it get up over 3,500 pretty easy. Therefore, we're looking at some different balls. I want to see if it was the fact that all shots were more off the bottom of the face that was keeping that spin over high. However, much like Thanos, it appears the finding the Pro V1X back in my back may just be inevitable, but I also want to try the second best ball from my Ballnamic fitting, the Chrome Tour as well.

As a final treat before some hopefully in hand pics this week at the range, here's my fitting card from the unboxing, full specs listed, even the grip! Let's get it!

12*...boss move.  Hope this one works well for you Ryan.

[JAYER38]

42 minutes ago, Berg Ryman said:

Well, I promised you guys a fitting post, and since I've got a bit of time in front of a keyboard today, I figured now is the time. As an aside, here's a link to my thread from the wood fit in the fall of 2022, to give you an idea of where my swing usually sits.

Now, the first thing I will say is that when we were selected for this the first question I asked our intrepid mod team was how crazy we were going to be allowed to get with the shaft selection. The report back, anything that's no-upcharge is fair game. Luckily there's a good amount of shafts in the Callaway shaft market that would be a solid fit and if you're wondering more any any specific ones, you can check out the custom catalog right here. Took me a couple of searches to find it but it gives a lot of excellent information, like Callaway's new fitting ideas and matrix to help find shafts which exist in the right space for the right flights.

The next step was finding a place for the fitting and instead of my usual trip to Victor and my guy at Club Champion, I thought to keep this one close to home. Our Golf Galaxy in Dewitt has some decently knowledgeable staff and is outfitted with 4 trackman bays but more importantly, have a lot of the non-upcharge options right there for testing. Plus, even at 70 bucks for the driver fitting, they'll fit you using your ball of choice and you get to really talk through thinks with your guy. My fitter was a younger guy named Nick, and he was really easy to talk to and discuss what I was feeling. Also, I think it's a good test of the type of stuff that my fancy fitting at Club Champion got me compared against a Big Box fitting, with similar eqipment.

So, for those of you who have never used Trackman for a fitting, you do get a private report of your fitting and information sent to you after the fact. I'd say this is valuable in this case for a few reasons. One, it shows and confirms tendencies and two, it gives you enough information to make the right choices for your game. It's a worthwhile investment if you can get onto one for a fitting and a skilled aid can really make that information make sense.

For my fitting we started with the baseline of my TSR 2. It's set at 10 degrees of loft, in the natural A1 position, so nothing different. Now, the Fujikura NX Blue shaft is categorized in the Callaway Matrix as a Mid-High launch, High spin shaft, and while that may be what the shaft is, it wasn't the way it was being delivered. Here's the photo of the best shot with the TSR and while the distance isn't bad, you'll see something that had me troubled.

So yeah, you see that launch angle there? 6.7 degrees. Now, I've always been a primarily negative AOA guy, I always have and I always will. I refuse to learn and will swing the swing I have until I can't swing it anymore. Call it stubborn, call it complacency, call it unwilling, it's who I am. But even I know that with a shaft like this, you can't be launching that low. Now, I will admit that the tee heigh you see in this picture is also a little low for me, so these are primarily bottom-ish strikes, but that's no bueno.

So then it became time to crack open the cases and get to work. Luckily with only one head to test this fit became about two things. Finding the right loft, and then pairing the proper shaft. It seems straight forward, but that does make the work quite a bit easier. Also as anaside, pretty cool way to display everything instead of the old bag based model I was used to.

So, we started in with the Max Smoke turned up from the base 10.5 up to 11.5 with the help of the Callaway optifit cog. I'll spare you guys the details. The launch went up about a degree, but I was still prone to the absolute smother top that had killed my support of my TSR. So we then looked at the 12 degree head. Now, once I get to the range this week I'll get a profile shot for you guys, but as a visual person, having and seeing that much loft isn't something that concerns or scares me. I know some people want to see less or see a face maybe more closed or open, for me a lot of loft and seeing some toe isn't a deal breaker, in fact I almost prefer it. Sometimes not having a visual delineation between crown and face makes it harder on me, which is probably why I like my Stealth 3 wood so much.

Also, as a brief aside, the visual of this driver looking at the sole is so cool and awesome. The testing heads were super smoky, here's the head I was working with.

 

 

 

Ok, now that we had the head basically bolted on, the question became which shaft pairs best with it and we eventually found our way down to two. The first, the Tensei AV Blue in 55 grams and stiff, the second the Hzrdus Smoke Red RDX, 50 grams and regular for purposes of the fit as they didn't have the stiff. I'd say both shafts, listed as mid launch and mid spin in that Callaway guide I listed earlier feel pretty similar, I feel in swinging them both I could feel the head in space more in the Smoke Red than the Blue, which has always been the one thing that's kept me away from Tensei Blue in the past. It just feels too generic for me and never gets along with my swing. It was a contender for the Mizuno way back when, it was in play for the TSR, and now here. It's undoubtedly a good shaft, but I just don't get along with it. The red on the other hand felt like I could really feel in the swing, the one major disappointment was that they didn't have the stiff, so you're operating a bit on blind faith.

After some drives I settled on Smoke RDX Red. It felt the best to me, with my aggressive swinging nature of being more of a hitter than a swinger probably carrying the day, especially considering the bend profile isn't too dissimilar from Smoke RDX Black, except in the tip, which would never work for me, in Red though, it looks to be a winner. We also decided to through in the early season, the head into the draw setting while the swing kinks get worked out and I've also moved the sliding weight in between the standard spot and the draw setting.

Lastly about the fitting, remember how I said they fit you with your current ball of choice. Well, they fit me with the Bridgestone B-XS and I have to say, this might not only be a driver test, but a ball test as well. The B-XS is spinny, and with a downward attack angle and 12* of loft it get up over 3,500 pretty easy. Therefore, we're looking at some different balls. I want to see if it was the fact that all shots were more off the bottom of the face that was keeping that spin over high. However, much like Thanos, it appears the finding the Pro V1X back in my back may just be inevitable, but I also want to try the second best ball from my Ballnamic fitting, the Chrome Tour as well.

As a final treat before some hopefully in hand pics this week at the range, here's my fitting card from the unboxing, full specs listed, even the grip! Let's get it!

SOOO much better of a fitting story than mine haha. 

I very much respect the 12* Driver also. Current PING is a 12* and it just gets it done so interested to see the results you get!

[Berg Ryman]

 

2 hours ago, CFreddie said:

Great write-up @Berg Ryman - very interesting to hear you went up 2 whole degrees on the AI!

 

1 hour ago, bens197 said:

12*...boss move.  Hope this one works well for you Ryan.

 

1 hour ago, JAYER38 said:

SOOO much better of a fitting story than mine haha. 

I very much respect the 12* Driver also. Current PING is a 12* and it just gets it done so interested to see the results you get!

 

So yeah, the move to a 12* degree head. As I mentioned in my intro and in my post on bias I said I was almost fit into the old FT-3 Fusion, what I didn't tip you guys off to was that I was almost fit into the HT head, which was 13.5 degrees, or 16 degrees in the draw head. Plus there was real consideration with the Nike SQ460 I went with to get the Lucky 13 head. 

Sorry to keep that slice of info secret, but the higher lofted head has always been a real consideration and I'm very interested to see what I can do with something I almost ended up with when my swing was at it's most powerful and strongest. I think it was that there wasn't really a shaft that was able to keep the spin down without paying through the wazoo, and eventually just natural swing changes lead me into the 10 to 10.5 realm. However, I think the Superspeed test last year and me swinging a bit more like the old days when I was younger has brought me back into this world, and I'm ok with that. Just have to marry the equipment in the right way.

[EasyPutter]

Ryan's fitter story is an amazing technical marvel, so much there for a newbie like the tester writing this who has a much different fitter story...

There was a golfer who had never had his own fitting but was now intent on getting one as soon as he found out he was selected to test the Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max D driver and read the conditions for the test, all of which must be agreed to, in order to accept the selection as tester.  And a driver fitting was on that list of conditions.

He knew his local Dick's SG was a club fitter doing a quick online search and even set up his fitting appointment thinking he was being on point by selecting the first available that fit his schedule.  Then found out the next day he was the last one to get fitted, not fast out of the blocks at all.

The instructions were good at Dick's SG online site with what to expect and what to have on hand and take with him.  It was adventure carrying in his own bag of clubs, tags, towels and such hanging and banging like one of the caddy's at the PGA Championship last May.  The golf desk knew his name and appointment time, a good feeling for the first time doing something.  He said why he was there and the fitter went to get the appropriate club while he stretched and did some practice swings to warm up.

He had his driver out and showed it to the fitter who took some notes.  The fitter looked at his SwingU app data of FirstStrike Rattlesnake driver tracked shots.  The fitter had him take a few swings to warm up then tracked 6 shots using a Callaway golf ball for the current driver stats.

The results of the driver were reviewed for ball flight, ball speed, launch angle, ball spin, and a few other data points.  He put down his Rattlesnake and was handed the Paradym Ai Smoke Max D to do an initial set of 6 shots.  A pressure sensitive club face sticker was adhered to the Max D and the first swing was amazingly straight and 20 yards longer than the gamer went.  After 6, the stats were reviewed and compared to the gamer.  The big concern was a high spin rate in the 5000 range.  

Adjustment to reduce loft was made and another 6 shots with new club face sticker producing similar results, again analyzed.  Then a lighter shaft was put on the club head, loft returned to standard and another 6 shots with a new club face sticker.  The fitter wrote down the settings and suggested a slightly shorter shaft length by 1/4 inch, not a lot but his logic was agreeable.

Then they talked grips, the fitter had noticed his fingers wrapped on the standard grip had fingertips pressing into the palm.  The fitter handed him a thicker grip that felt good but left a gap where it was mentioned less gap is better.  It was explained a standard grip with additional wraps of tape would make it slightly bigger and get fingertips to touch heel of thumb without pressing into skin.

The final write-up was done while he put his clubs away and got ready to complete the hour (that didn't seem that long) fitting session.  He paid the $30 fitting fee at the golf desk and understood the $30 would be taken off the cost of buying something from the golf department so not to lose the receipt. 

Again it felt like being some kind of caddy waiting for the next available checkout register thinking how in all the years going to Dick's SG had he never seen someone carrying their golf equipment like they owned it.  Checkout was easy and then was out the door, no questions asked except if everything looked for was found.

Fitting folder in hand, clubs were loaded into the vehicle, golf shoes changed out of, and sitting in the vehicle as it began to warm, he read the fitting report.  He had done it, his first fitting and he had confidence in the process, and the approach of the fitter that gave him the confidence he had a good workup for what was to be built by Callaway and sent for testing as a custom fitted club.

... of course I couldn't write that in first person voice because (sniff) I know what a fitting is and "all of my fittings" have been really good.  Yep, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.  For all you golf obsessed do it yourselfers, like I was, you really ought to try a golf club fitting.  It is a well spent hour doing what we love to do anyway PLUS you learn more than just what club(s) is/are good for your unique style of play.

Edited Wednesday at 11:07 AM by EasyPutter
readability

[FallenSaber]

13 minutes ago, EasyPutter said:

Ryan's fitter story is an amazing technical marvel, so much there for a newbie like the tester writing this had a much different fitter story...

There was a golfer who had never had his own fitting but was not intent on getting one as soon as he found out he was selected to test the Callaway Paradygm Ai Smoke Max D driver and read the conditions for the test, all of which must be agreed to, in order to accept the selection as tester.  And a driver fitting was on that list of conditions.

He knew his local Dick's SG was a club fitter doing a quick online search and even set up his fitting appointment thinking he was being on point by selecting the first available that fit his schedule.  Then found out the next day he was the last one to get fitted, not fast out of the blocks at all.

The instructions were good at Dick's SG online site with what to expect and what to have on hand and take with him.  It was adventure carrying in his own bag of clubs, tags, towels and such hanging and banging like one of the caddy's at the PGA Championship last May.  The golf desk knew his name and appointment time, a good feeling for the first time doing something.  He said why he was there and the fitter went to get the appropriate club while he stretched and did some practice swings to warm up.

He had his driver out and showed it to the fitter who took some notes.  The fitter looked at his SwingU app data of FirstStrike Rattlesnake driver tracked shots.  The fitter had him take a few swings to warm up then tracked 6 shots using a Callaway golf ball for the current driver stats.

The results of the driver were reviewed for ball flight, ball speed, launch angle, ball spin, and a few other data points.  He put down his Rattlesnake and was handed the Paradyme Ai Smoke Max D to do an initial set of 6 shots.  A pressure sensitive club face sticker was adhered to the Max D and the first swing was amazingly straight and 20 yards longer than the gamer went.  After 6, the stats were reviewed and compared to the gamer.  The big concern was a high spin rate in the 5000 range.  

Adjustment to reduce loft was made and another 6 shots with new club face sticker producing similar results, again analyzed.  Then a lighter shaft was put on the club head, loft returned to standard and another 6 shots with a new club face sticker.  The fitter wrote down the settings and suggested a slightly shorter shaft length by 1/4 inch, not a lot but his logic was agreeable.

Then they talked grips, the fitter had noticed his fingers wrapped on the standard grip had fingertips pressing into the palm.  The fitter handed him a thicker grip that felt good but left a gap where it was mentioned less gap is better.  It was explained a standard grip with additional wraps of tape would make it slightly bigger and get fingertips to touch heel of thumb without pressing into skin.

The final write-up was done while he put his clubs away and got ready to complete the hour (that didn't seem that long) fitting session.  He paid the $30 fitting fee at the golf desk and understood the $30 would be taken off the cost of buying something from the golf department so not to lose the receipt. 

Again it felt like being some kind of caddy waiting for the next available checkout register thinking how in all the years going to Dick's SG had he never seen someone carrying their golf equipment like they owned it.  Checkout was easy and then was out the door, no questions asked except if everything looked for was found.

Fitting folder in hand, clubs were loaded into the vehicle, golf shoes changed out of, and sitting in the vehicle as it began to warm, he read the fitting report.  He had done it, his first fitting and he had confidence in the process, and the approach of the fitter than gave him the confidence he had a good workup for what was to be built by Callaway and sent for testing as a custom fitted club.

... of course I couldn't write that in first person voice because (sniff) I know what a fitting is and "all of my fittings" have been really good.  Yep, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.  For all you golf obsessed do it yourselfers, like I was, you really ought to try a golf club fitting.  It is a well spent hour doing what we love to do anyway PLUS you learn more than just what club(s) is/are good for your unique style of play.

Sounds like a great experience! Can't wait to hear more about the club!

[Berg Ryman]

Interesting results here with mid-speed testing. As to my initial thoughts as to where I might see gains, Max is first for accuracy and 4th for forgiveness, but middle of the pack on distance, that's where I come in I guess!

https://mygolfspy.com/buyers-guides/drivers/best-drivers-for-mid-swing-speed-golfers/

[RickM71]

4 minutes ago, Berg Ryman said:

Interesting results here with mid-speed testing. As to my initial thoughts as to where I might see gains, Max is first for accuracy and 4th for forgiveness, but middle of the pack on distance, that's where I come in I guess!

https://mygolfspy.com/buyers-guides/drivers/best-drivers-for-mid-swing-speed-golfers/

Triple diamond came in first for my swing speed - I'll see if it works for me. Had my first outdoor range session of the season yesterday. I was struggling with pulling shots - both with my Cobra LTDx and with the Triple Diamond, so some of the dispersion is me trying different things to see what worked. I had to remind myself to not hurry my tempo (the one topped ball is likely what I'm going to see when I get on the course). Purple is the Callaway Triple Diamond. Red is my Cobra LTDx. Yellow is my 7 iron warm up shots. 

This is a range with Trackman app integration, using Titleist range balls. The app has a convert option to adjust distances, I assume to what it would be with a premium ball. Interestingly, actual distances with the range balls is longer than the numbers given when converting. I'm assuming they reduce distance to account for lower spin, harder cover, range balls. 

My average total distance with the Callaway was 263.4 and average total distance with the Cobra LTDx was 256.8.

Lots more hitting to come.

And I hope to get together my unboxing and initial impressions done soon.