New Driver.. Or not?

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By Tim C

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  • 12 Replies
  1. Tim C

    Tim C
    Apollo, PA

    Hey Team Titleist! I have been playing with the same driver for 3 years now. Its a 10.5 degree cally Diablo Octane driver. I have always hit it pretty well, but this year I am really struggling with it. My drives have been very inconsistent and I am tired of it. The rest of my game has been great. I am hitting all of my other clubs really well, but that doesn't matter when I can't find the fairway. And on top of that, I am a pretty decent player, so I don't want to make a major swing change and suffer from it, so I am really considering buying a new driver. There is so much more technology out there, and I think getting the right driver could fix my problem. What do you guys think I should do?

  2. Richard H

    Richard H
    Grand Prairie, TX

    Get some foot powder spray and head to the range. Make note of your impact location every 5 shots or so and adjust. If you're striking it close to center, but spraying it left or right you know that the relation of clubface to path needs to change. If you're striking it out the toe or heel, you'll need to move closer or further away from the ball - you could also try standing more upright (works for me a lot) or adding a little more bend in the knees or hips - ball position or tee height may also be factors here. If you've played well with it in the past and you're doing well with the rest of your clubs then it's probably just some sort of mental thing - and it usually gets worse the longer it goes on because you'll say, "Hey! I used to hit this thing pretty good. What's the matter?" and start trying to fix things. Sometimes golf is simply a game of perseverance.

     

    If you try that and still find you're having issues, you might have someone take a look at the club to make sure nothing is wrong with it and then maybe settle on buying a new driver or not. I would never tell someone to buy a new club simply because they've been having a bad stretch with it - at least if they've had consistent success with it in the past anyway.

  3. Tim C, If you are unhappy with your old driver, by all means "TRY TITLEIST"!!!!! Find a demo-day near you and give them a test "DRIVE". If you try them I'm sure you'll like them! steve b
  4. Spudstarch

    Spudstarch
    Walnut Creek, CA

    Hi Tim,

    My friend has that driver, or rather "had". (I was able to find him a cheap, used 905R with and X flex V2 shaft to replace it.) I tried the Octane a few times on the range and it just sets up really strange, like the only thing that it wants to do is be pulled or hooked. I'm a decent striker with most drivers and can shape them either way, but the set up and alignment just did not work for me on the Octane.

    Having a shut face and triangular shape is a common trait for super game improvement clubs in order to fight the common slice. If you do not want to get a more neutral set driver, you will probably need an adjustable one that you can change to a few degrees shut to match the swing that you probably had to use for the Octane.

  5. Gabe B

    Gabe B
    Pueblo, CO

    Tim,

    Its time to go see your local PGA Professional and get fit for the 915. After a certain period of time and depending on how much you play your clubs and shaft wear out. It is time and the 915 is the best on the market. 

  6. JMT-064

    JMT-064
    Richmond, BC

    Just do it. Toss, or try and pawn your cally driver on someone unsuspecting. I find people who play Titleist have a unique pride of ownership. I have always put Titleist on a pedestal above other club manufacturers. Whenever I read about news clubs out there, they always have a marketing slogan to go with their latest line. 'Burner', 'Diablo', 'Fly-Z', 'Launcher'. I find this a total turn off. People should see past this BS. Titleist for years now, have maintained a very understated and classy naming system for their new releases. They even maintain the same font face on the clubs from year to year. I love that.

  7. Titleist Daft Scottie

    Titleist Daft Scottie
    Hopeman, Morayshire

    Hi Tim, Like yourself I was in a very similar situation a couple months back. I have always dreamed of having a Titleist driver however they were more "better players clubs" back then and I didn't feel consistently good enough of the tee to justify it. However the new 915 range has changed all of this, like your average amateur golfer it is a slim percentage of my tee shots that come off the sweet spot. With the new ARC providing much more forgiveness I felt it was finally time to try out the new range and I am so glad I did. The titleist 915 looks and feels exactly how a club should, and when you hit it off the sweet spot it feels simply amazing and you know before you even look up that its been creamed down the middle for miles. I now have an extra 30 yards on my drives and have a much smaller dispersion range. I know this may all sound like marketing but it really is a wonderful club, and more often than not I find a new club gives you the mental boost needed to find your best form again.

    Give it a try and see how you get on, I assure you you wont be disappointed. As always though, make sure you get a custom fitting! I got this driver custom fitted for the first  time and I now play with less loft and a much stiffer shaft than I would otherwise.

  8. Mike M

    Mike M
    Roanoke, VA

    I've been hitting cally as well.  Specifically the XHot.  I do have plans to transition my irons to Titleist this year once the716's are available.  I was able to demo the 915 D2 for several rounds recently and was wowed.  For me, the 915 was a bit longer and more consistent. Go find a local fitter and hit the 915. I think you will also be impressed with its performance. I'm putting one in my bag with the irons very soon.

  9. Doug T

    Doug T
    Guilford, CT

    Totally agree Mike. Proper fitting makes a huge difference for the whole bag.

  10. Chris M

    Chris M
    Grindelwald,

    Tim

    Suggest to find a Demo Day close by and try different drivers

    In the end get fitted by a professinal as only this gives you the full trust in a new equipment

  11. John L

    John L
    Cumming, GA

    Check shaft flex and weight on your current driver. If you go with a new Titleist driver, get fitted for the correct shaft. The shaft is always very underrated.

    The best thing about the Titleist drivers is  the stock shafts in Titleist drivers are high quality. 

  12. Ben A

    Ben A
    Los Gatos, CA

    I second the foot spray or you could also try some masking tape (what I use). The wide grey label beige painters tape works best in my opinion. Works for multiple hits, you just peel up and reapply to reset it. Works just like impact tape but cheaper by the roll. 

    The first thing you should do it make sure you're hitting the center of the face. If you aren't, then fix that and THEN go buy a nice Titleist driver (after getting fit).

    Fix the problem before trying to hide it. Just saying from experience... 

  13. Don O

    Don O
    Madison, WI

    The best driver is the one that is fit to, and the best way to see that is in an outdoors fitting. The best fitters will work with you and if a swing tweak will improve the fit, the best thing to do is listen. And the best driver to get fit to you is the Titleist line. You don't have to worry next year this year's club was a fad (seen any square club heads lately). Combining all that, any golfer serious about improvement will improve with the right driver. Anything else, and you might as well pick your favorite color off the rack. I went through a bunch of used fad drivers looking for Mr. Right and finally got serious, found Titleist. When I'm not hitting the fairway, it's all on me. I'm longer and straighter now than 3 years ago at an age when I should be losing distance.

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