The most forgiving driver I’ve ever had has to be Abdul with Uber. My girlfriend was sick out his window after a night out. He didn’t kick us out but stopped at a kebab shop and let me buy a bottle of water to wash down the side of his Prius. He dropped us home safe and my 4.8 Uber rating didn’t drop after that journey. Honestly Abdul’s the best driver out there
I needed this video 7 years ago when I bought an exdemo SLDR. I’m still using it at can hit 280 with a steady swing. As soon as I try and increase club head speed I can slice at right angles.
Definitely agree with the Callaway Rogue OG. Was on the hunt for a new driver and hit many different types and brands. I happened across a 2nd hand Rogue and it was love at first swing. I didn't want heaps of adjustment setting just nice and simple. It will fade, draw and hit bombs when I want and it is extremely forgiving. 2nd best for me was the Titleist, I found similar results with it but when you can save $300 (Aus), well, it's a no brainer.
This video, in all honesty, is almost perfect. It filled to the brim with value, entertainment, and production quality. Peter’s delivery and enunciation are top notch. I see him commentating in the future.
I still love my 2017 Callaway rogue sub zero. Only took me 5 balls on demo day to pick it back then and still outperforms the newest clubs today! That was a good year for Callaway!
I picked up a new F9 about 2 year ago. It’s good to know that it’s a great club even when compared to its modern counterparts. It’s also good to know that my driving troubles are with myself rather than my driver lol
Still got my SLDR driver, but it's tucked away... couldn't control it. When you did hit the sweet spot, it was an absolute beast. Perfect for corporate golf days when you wanted to win the longest drive.
Now This is the kind of comparison I’ve been waiting to see. Couldn’t agree more,I’ve hit many contenders to replace my F9: gamed a TM and the LTDX, can’t say I NEED to spend $500.00 or more to gain three yards, however as a 14 handicap workability is not a big enough factor for consideration. Go straight (where I aim) and I’m happy. Thanks Pete!
Just purchased the SLDR driver with X stiff shaft and I'm amazed at how well it feels. Just about everyone talks about its unforgiveness but I find it consistent and as you said, surprisingly straight!
I saw a big difference between an F8 and the F9. I haven't found anything that beats the F9 yet. And as others have stated for 400 to 500 dollars "improvement" of a few yards not worth changing..Still love the F9
I still have my F9 and love it, I have tried the new LTDX and it is nice but I cannot see enough gains to switch it out. I am excited for next years new Cobra driver though. Great video thanks Pete.
Finally got my hands on a Fusion driver after seeing one of your videos. I paid a pretty penny for it, but it changed my game. I’ve never been so confident with a driver! I might be giving up some yards in distance to my playing partners, but I don’t miss many fairways with it!
Interesting. As you said, main takeaway is that improvements have been incremental at best. Like many I was surprised that there was no Ping in there, and the M2 as well - expected to see both put in an appearance.
Agreed. Any Ping G series could have made the cut and I painted a few old TM drivers to look like the M2 because I think it’s the best looking driver. Never hit one though
Peter, great video. On the back of this video I came upon a Fusion Driver for £50! came with 2 shafts too : ), I rested up my SIM2 for to see what the fuss was about. I am no blaster of the driver but mid summer comfortably made 260 -280 yards over and over again. Measured on my GPS tagged club. My SIM2 made 275yards recorded over 100 shots on GPS tags, so the Fusion with it 44.5inch shat now 80 shots in matches the SIM2 within a few yards. Thank you 👍
Pete, any chance you could do a shaft comparison? It would be an absolute treat to see how the top shafts in golf compare when sticking them in the same head. Will you see noticeable differences in spin/feel/distance etc.?
You make me grateful that I'm still rockin' the OG Rogue in my bag. I love that thing so much and don't see replacing it any time soon. The feel, the sound, the look (esp the blue colorway), and the performance is just too good for needing a replacement.
I'm just starting out and after lots of research I decided to plump for the OG rogue as seemed the best option for forgiveness and price, and distance should I hit it right. A damn sight cheaper than getting a newer option at the time. Reassuring to see it still stacks up against its you get brother. Now just have to learn to swing it lol
I had an F9 and loved it. I replaced it with a Ping G410 which has performed admirably but it is not better - it doesn’t sound nearly as good as the F9, and whilst marginally more forgiving it is definitely not longer.
@@shawnspenc1 Don't get too carried away my friend. I playing Ping, Cobra, and Taylor Made + my old Tommy Armour 845 from 1991 (Yes I use the driver too - I'm using this set when I want to go down memory lane, and it is quite fun.) Otherwise, I have to say it doesn't matter which driver I use. Yes, I absolutely love my Ping G15 driver, but the same goes for my Speedzone driver and my old Jetspeed driver from Taylor Made. Can't tell the difference between them for the most part. Well, okay, I can but they give me the same end result. 😊 Anyway. Sure I agree. You can put a Ping in every category but the same goes for all the other brands out there, in my humble opinion. Would have loved to see a video where he picked out the best ones from every brand in every category and compared all of them in different episodes in a series of videos. That's easily five, six videos that most people could get useful information from, right?! A win-win-win. People, Golfbidder and Peters Finch win.
My ears perked up when you covered the TM SLDR Pete. Just learned why mime hates me so often with less than impressive shots but performs like a champ every now & again. Sadly, that every now & again isn't as often as I need it to be.
I'm sorry Peter but the Ping G425 is the most amazing Driver in years... Fits any type of swing speed, desired flight, and the level of forgiveness is massive. For me personally the G425 Max has added 20+ yards in carry distance and cut down at least 10 yards in right and left dispersion. IMO it's a bomb inspiring, shot making machine of the tee...
I cracked my Cobra Driver head and I had an SLDR head with a tour hot melt, I put it on and Oban 65g shaft and I am crushing it. You are correct, tempo is everything. If you hit it well, its a great combo.
Great info as always Pete. I don't have a lot of swing speed so I'm using a TaylorMade Jetspeed HL with a 49g M flex shaft. Feel more confident on the tee, one thing that the data can't factor in 👍
What a great video Peter! So many of us need a Driver that finds a fairway and maximum distance is secondary. Being fairly new to golf I thought of the Big 4 as similar to buying a BMW or Mercedes in comparison to a lower cost car. They all do the same thing; right? I bought a series of Cobra drivers ( F7 and F8 /second hand) and they still didn't work well, so I bought a F9 thinking that all the testers said it was pretty good. I kept it for a year and still sprayed the thing all over the place! So I sold it and bought a Cleveland HB Turbo with a higher loft. After 12 months trying I managed to get the ball on the fairway more often, going from a push fade, the a push, to straight , to draw shaped shots. I had the opportunity to hit my old F9 a few months ago. I was shocked how much it had improved! BTW, thanks for leaving that heel strike shot in the video. It gives we mere mortals hope when we see a good player do that too.
I brought the rouge set and selected the sub zero @ 10.5 loft. Just recently brought the ping 425 but keep going back to the rouge sub zero. A great club that change my game
Hey SLDR have been using for some years now and really love this driver although I have never tried to adjust it. Thanks for melding the past and the new.
To make hitting a driver straight easier for high handicappers, you should be using a driver with an offset head which makes it easier to square it at impact. There aren't many on the market for some reason considering that they can help hitting the most difficult club to hit in your bag. The same goes for irons as well. Offset heads make it easier to get the clubhead square at impact where it matters most.
The Ping G20 blows the doors off the Cobra F9. Its longer by 5 - 15 yards at same swing speeds (160 - 168 ball speed) and more forgiving. I spent an hour on the launch monitor with both a couple years ago. The F9 loses 20+ yards distance with offcenter strikes and the face feels dead. The Ping barely lost 10 yards and still went very straight.
Great video. I bought the OG Rouge last year for 195 USD and almost bought a SLDR (Because I have the SLDR Mini Driver). And I’m glad I didn’t now because I definitely do not hit a driver that well. I had the rouge 3 wood at the time and loved it. So that helped push me to the Rouge. I’ve also just recently added the rouge (OG) 5 wood to help gap my hybrid and 3 wood and boy am I happy that I did that. It took so long to find that 5 wood however being a left handed player. But those clubs are out there in numbers for all the “normal” people out there.
I took up golf in Aug 2020 and for that upcoming Christmas, the fiance got me a F9 Driver. It stood out to me because of the reviews and I didn't have the means to do a fitting but also didn't have a golf swing nailed down. A month into having it, I went to the range to hit 120 balls. Did driver in the middle then when I had 5 at the end, I got it back out. On the very last ball I hit a wooden pillar behind me and cracked the head (got video of it but the cracking of the driver is off screen) I was devastated. I called Golf Town (basically Canada's American Golf) just to see what the warranty covered. As it was human error it didn't cover the damage that had been done and they suggested I call Cobra. I spoke to a gent on the phone and he asked me to email the video, photos and explain what happened in writing (after I had explained on the call what had happened). On the call he said they don't normally sell individual heads which was my first request since I didn't need a new shaft or grip, and that the F9 is hard to find (the Rad Speed was dropping a week later). A couple days later I get an email back and it was Cobra offering a free Speedzone head (regular as well with the two swappable weights and not the Xtreme one with just the one weight at the back). I've been gaming it since and it is simply incredible. I feel my game is at the point where I should go get fitted to see what shaft works best but will be keeping with the Speedzone head. Because of that customer service, it would be hard to dissuade me from sticking with Cobra drivers but who knows in 10 years time. @Peter - did the F9 win the overall category over the SZ because of the price? - Alex
Nice story Alex, I've got an SZ too. It's great and I've no plans to change it this year. About a year ago I was looking for an F9, it seemed every youtube golfer loved it and I'd tried out a friends F9 and liked it, but when I looked at prices for second hand F9s I realised I could get a brand new SZ ( the Rad had been out a few months) for about £60 or £70 more than I'd pay for a good second hand club. I don't think the SZ sold very well, the F9 is a great driver and they sold loads. The SZ was and is overlooked because there really isn't any noticable difference between the two. That was it's problem it was too similar to the F9. So if the F9 is great, then so is the SZ. F9s still seem to attract fancy prices second hand the SZ is a good alternative.
Event hough I was fitted for the T2, I still play my speed zone cobra. Purely mental as I get 168 ball speed from the T2 and around 162mph from the cobra. All mental
When I had my sldr I always wanted to get ahold of extra slide weights. I wanted to try putting one full draw and another full fade and see if it would clean up off center hits.. mine had a habit of spinning in my grip on toe strikes.
I had an SLDR 12 degree with a Matrix Black Tie 7M3 Shaft. By far the longest driver I've ever used but so hard to control 😂. I now game a Callaway Rogue (og). Can't fault it to be honest. It's deffo a fairway finder
For me the best driver on the list 10 years is Ping G400 Max. Had the G400 sFT and lit it long, but too much dispersion Tit Cobra Speed Zone for 2 years in between, but hit too may sky ball, My fault, got the Tour shaft in my specs, but even set at 8 degrees it with my steep swing it launched ffar too high. Got a G400 Max form a used stick outfitter. Got one in my exact specs in like new condition featuring an upgraded shaft and grip for well under 200 quid your money. Picked up about 35 yards over the Cobra, dispersion not quite as good but acceptable.
Still own the SLDR 9.5 and for giggles cranked in down to 7.5 see how low spin could this Best of a creation man kind has ever developed ...... and MAN never seen a golf ball die so fast out of the air ! but said that iv had my longest drives ever with this Nuked out driver currently married the Ping g ls tec and not changing love everything about this driver.
The older style MacGregor Eye-O-Matic out hit the Taylor Burner my buddy got as a gift from wife. He had me buy him one. 2 other co workers also bought it, over 55 of age .I Tried the newer MacGregor MacTec and lost accuracy .
I'll admit, I'm a sucker for the fact that your videos keep recommending clubs I've recently put in the bag: Rogue OG driver, Cleveland HB Turbo irons and the Sik DW putter. A bit of positive reinforcement for my first golf set. Only missing the Cleveland smart sole wedge, at this point.
Love the F9. It's too bad the new F9s isn't as well built. Many youtubers over the years praise how good it is so picked up a Cobra Speedzone Driver which seems to be pretty similar just a year newer for a good deal a few weeks ago. I love it!
I had a F9 for my first couple of years back to the game after long hiatus. Really liked it but got a good deal on Mizuno that I jumped at. Maybe should have tweaked the F9 a bit before selling but the Mizuno ST-G 220 is a beast :-D
Nice stuff. I wasn't golfing much until the pandemic so I look forward to this same test in 10 years on the clubs that came out while I was fully submerged in the golfing world.
I’d say the F9 must be pretty good cuz I haven’t been able to find one second hand for a reasonable price the last two years. (Caveat being that I prefer to purchase clubs in store as much as possible…) Maybe this summer I’ll finally be able to get one in the bag.
Sold my driver recently as it just wasn't working for me. Going to game a 5w and hybrids for a while before seeing if I dip into 2nd hand market for a driver. Will keep an eye out for the BB Fusion and F9
I'm currently playing with it, I've tried several other drivers and always come back to my M2 (2016) driver without a doubt the best driver ever made!!
some good choices! I'm currently rocking a Titleist 905T and at times do feel kinda cool...I think I'm in need of an upgrade. love the new cobras and pings. At my level forgiveness is a must
It's refreshing that you mention drivers that don't all cost around $500. It can't cost anywhere near that much to make a driver which means we are getting ripped off.
Getting a shaft matched to your swing is SOOOOO much more important than whatever head is bolted on the end of it. Not uncommon to see 40 yards difference between different shafts on the same head. Putting the perfectly matched shaft onto a forgiving head makes for an easy way to hit longer and straighter for us mere mortals.
Still reckon the Ping g400 is the best beginner/most forgiving driver. You can't necessarily buy a club and expect your game to improve, there are other factors obviously, but the g400 is the closest thing that you can buy
I had the SLDR...S. I lofted up to 12 -- funny my average drive when it landed actually bounced backwards. I don't think I've been able to hit 300 yards since I moved on, but those off center strikes were just awful.
I wish you had mentioned if you moved the heavier weight forward in the Cobra F9, to help lower the spin rate somewhat. If not, then that might account for (some of) the difference with the LTD clubhead.
Really interesting in regards to the Taylor Made drivers! I did a custom fitting a few days ago and the Stealth was the longest one for me while also being forgiving enough. I can imagine that the SLDR could go even longer for me but then again perhaps that would get over the threshold of just not being forgiving enough. Great video!
The sldr is a low spinning monster that goes a mile but as Peter said it's not very forgiving. It took me awhile to get used to it compared to the rbz I had. The stealth+ is far easier to hit.
Funny enough I still have the F9 as a back up after the SIM max fell into my lap. While prior I played the Callaway fusion driver and yes not long but is a fairway finder. Last but not least I still play the Fusion 3w with the recoil es450 shaft and hands down my go to off the deck or tee box.
Hi Pete. I hope you reply to this question. How does the forgiveness of the Callaway Fusion driver compare to the newer Cobra Radspeed XB. My HCP is about 22.5 and my normal driver fades to the right. Thank you!
Putting Titleist in the list seems like a consolidation award, for finally getting it somewhat right again. There are probably 13 clubs on the dozen that can challenge the TS3.
