Equipment maker TaylorMade has launched its R1 line of drivers, while Callaway, which has struggled with recent product introductions, has unveiled its RAZR X Hot driver, which the manufacturer says adds up to 13 yards of distance.
TaylorMade are heralding the R1 for its adjustability. The club also offers a variation on TaylorMade’s successful white-crowned drivers from recent years by adding grey and red graphics to the top of the club. TaylorMade says the R1, which follows the company’s R11 series, allows golfers to tune the club in 168 different ways to optimize distance and accuracy. The manufacturer says the club was created to address the fact many golfers are playing the incorrect loft: “Offering a wide range of loft settings is imperative, because our research indicates that 80% of golfers are playing the wrong loft, which costs them distance,” said Dr. Benoit Vincent, chief technical officer.
Callaway, on the other hand, is promoting distance with its new driver. The company says its X Hot woods X Hot Woods are a result of its research and development team creating clubs for the best players in the world, and using optimized design progression and adjustability to make them accessible and high-performing for all players. The clubs are available Jan. 25.
Callaway says gains of up to 13 yards with its X Hot Driver have been achieved using it’s fast Speed Frame Face Technology that increases ball speed, saves weight and optimizes stiffness and stress distribution across the face for more efficient energy transfer. The new face technology promotes more – and more consistent — distance, even on off-center impact.
“With the X Hot Drivers, we pushed the Speed Frame Face’s efficiency to a new standard, producing high ball speeds while maintaining the trajectory and accuracy that discerning golfers demand,” said Dr. Alan Hocknell, SVP, Research & Development, Callaway Golf. “The fast face on X Hot is one piece of the puzzle, though. We went to great lengths to configure the X Hot drivers not only to promote distance, but to progressively optimize performance for various player types.”
