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Driver Quest 2012: Driver Adjustability - Do you miss it or need it?

SuperStroke
RatFink

RatFink

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With the golfing season right around the corner for me (the last snow is melting now!) I am starting to seek out a new driver since my current FT-iQ just doesn't cut it with its noodley shaft, and it's very awkward looking face angle (setting up and having the face point past your left shoulder is just weird).

I have been looking at as many options as I can, given the selection here in Calgary, and my own personal reservations (shaft length, aesthetics).

On the adjustable side I have on my list:
  • 910 D2 9.5˚ w/ Stiff 'Ahina 80 (Driver I was fit for... but is really stinking expensive)
  • RAZR Fit 9.5˚Stiff (the shaft seems noodley as well, but given peoples' feedback this one is tempting but really stinking expensive)
  • Z-Star 9.0˚ Stiff (Nice price, but rare as rocking horse droppings in Calgary)
  • VR-S 9.5˚ Stiff (wild card)
**I don't have the R11S listed because I'm not really a fan of the white head, and it too is very expensive (two strikes against?)

Non adjustable side:
  • Cleveland Classic 9.5˚ Stiff (super cool, but afraid of it being too much of a player's club)
  • Cleveland Launcher TL310/SL290 (cheap, but afraid of it being too much of a player's club)
  • VR Pro Ltd Edition (Looks amazing, great reviews, but again with the player's complaint)
  • Ping i20 (looks better than amazing, same complaint as above)
So what I have here is basically a list of expensive adjustable drivers that I could potentially hit, and a list of cheaper non-adjustable clubs that scare me. I am going to do my best to try each and give them all fair chance, but I am looking for insight on adjustability.

To those of you who have the ability to adjust:
  1. Is it something you actually use, or has your driver been stock since the day you bought it?
  2. Have you ever felt overwhelmed with the options you have?
  3. Was it worth it over a fixed hosel?
  4. Why did you buy adjustable? (I'm a gadget guy and I like tinkering.. :alien2:)
To those of you who don't have the ability to adjust:
  1. What made you go with a non-adjustable club?
  2. Do you wish you could adjust?
As always, other comments are more than welcome!


Any guidance would be great! I don't want to plunk money down on another club that isn't for me, and that I will regret owning.

Cheers,
 
I went from the SuperTri to the Fast12 and don't miss the adjustability at all. I never used it. I also think that player's tinker with it too much. They think that it's an instant fix, when it reality it's a fitting tool that should not be used.
 
blugold said:
I went from the SuperTri to the Fast12 and don't miss the adjustability at all. I never used it. I also think that player's tinker with it too much. They think that it's an instant fix, when it reality it's a fitting tool that should not be used.
Click to expand...

This is what I was thinking... once it's fit, leave it.
 
RatFink said:
This is what I was thinking... once it's fit, leave it.
Click to expand...

Not to mention, you could be constantly looking to change/compensate for what your swing is doing that week. Likely never get completely comfortable with it. I do not see myself going the adjustable route any time soon. Too many solid products out there that don't even offer it (J40, Classic, etc).
 
RatFink said:
This is what I was thinking... once it's fit, leave it.
Click to expand...

I do remember tinkering with the R11 and really dialing in a good ball flight, but I just wasn't consistant enough to jump on it. I think that if the golfer can produce a repeatable enough swing, the adjustable drivers could really help.
 
I've had both and prefer neither over the other.

To those of you who have the ability to adjust:
  1. Is it something you actually use, or has your driver been stock since the day you bought it? I've used it sparingly with the adjustables I've had. I'd say 95% of the time I was using stock settings.
  2. Have you ever felt overwhelmed with the options you have? No.
  3. Was it worth it over a fixed hosel? Really doesn't make a huge difference to me. I did open up the Amp to lower the flight a bit.
  4. Why did you buy adjustable? (I'm a gadget guy and I like tinkering.. :alien2:) N/A
To those of you who don't have the ability to adjust:
  1. What made you go with a non-adjustable club? More often than not, I use a stock setting anyway.
  2. Do you wish you could adjust? No
I think you can find a driver that fits you without adjustability if you want to. It's not a requirement imo.

I'd throw the RAZR X Black on that list too.
 
I have had the ZStar for all most a year and maybe adjusted the settings twice. I actually prefer not having the ability to adjust the club as it is just something else for me to worry about.
 
Hopefully I can answer this from both sides of it for you, I currently play a TM R9 that has adjustability and will be upgrading to a Ping G20, that doesn't. And I've tried a bunch of drivers in the last month or so.

Based on your list here are my first few thoughts on the one's I've hit:
-910 D2 9.5˚ w/ Stiff 'Ahina 80 (Driver I was fit for... but is really stinking expensive) - Really expensive for sure, didn't love the feel of it during the swing and didn't feel right at address.
-RAZR Fit 9.5˚Stiff (the shaft seems noodley as well, but given peoples' feedback this one is tempting but really stinking expensive) - Came in second for me, loved the performance, but the sound was a bit offputting for me.
-Ping i20 (looks better than amazing, same complaint as above) - Loved the matte black finish, but too much of a players club for me, couldn't get it high enough

To those of you who have the ability to adjust:
  1. Is it something you actually use, or has your driver been stock since the day you bought it? - I've played my R9 in a bunch of different settings before coming back to the standard, it's 10.5 which is too much for me, but the side to side movement I didn't need anymore.
  2. Have you ever felt overwhelmed with the options you have? - At first I had no idea which setting to used, and with the weights involved I was very overwhelmed, it was a lot of trial and error for me.
  3. Was it worth it over a fixed hosel? - In the end I don't think the adjustability was worth it
  4. Why did you buy adjustable? (I'm a gadget guy and I like tinkering.. :alien2:) - It was a trade that in the end worked out ok.
To those of you who don't have the ability to adjust:
  1. What made you go with a non-adjustable club? - Figured lessons and my pro could help fix my swing instead of a club
  2. Do you wish you could adjust? - Can't answer for sure yet, but from the performance I saw on the range during demo, I'm not going to miss it at all
 
I think people use adjustability to hide swing flaws. In the end I think it's better not to have it IMO
 
To those of you who have the ability to adjust:
  1. Is it something you actually use, or has your driver been stock since the day you bought it? I have the R11, Nike Dymo with the awful Str8fit, and the Z-Star, I didn't adjust the R11 much after getting it as it was professionally fit by the Kingdom guys. I do tinker with the Z-Star quite a bit though. What I don't like about like about the Nike system is the lack of moveable weights. To me I would rather have weights instead of an adjustable hosel.
  2. Have you ever felt overwhelmed with the options you have? No, the options are simple to understand.
  3. Was it worth it over a fixed hosel? Meh, I think I find moveable weights more of a bonus vs an adjustable hosel for me.
  4. Why did you buy adjustable? I just happened to like the Z-Stars performance. I didn't seek out an adjustable driver in that case.
 
I have never owned an adjustable driver, I don't really see the benefit. If I know what loft and face angle works best for me then I buy that spec and use it. Changing club specs back and forth would just be injecting too many variables into the process of becoming comfortable with any one driver, it would be like trying to get comfortable with 3 or 4 different drivers all at the same time. I don't want my club head determining whether the ball goes high or low, left to right or right to left, I want my swing and setup doing that.
 
RatFink said:
This is what I was thinking... once it's fit, leave it.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. However I think people forget just what has to be done to a standard driver head for some players before adjustability made it easier.

Bend the head for loft, bend the head if possible for face angle, rat glue it for weight distrobution, alter the amount of glue and/lead tape to get the swing weight right, etc. I like adjustability as a fitting tool and for ease of shaft swapping. Otherwise I don't really use it.

As Hawk mentioned, stick the Razr X Black on your list as well.

Though if what you were fit into was a 80g Ahina shaft, even if it's the made for, you're going to find that most of the off the rack drivers aren't going to get it done for you which is just going to inflate the cost over and above the Titleist.
 
Totally disagree with the adjustability being a non-factor for players. Like many have stated they have changed the settings one or twice and never touched it again. Well, that's the point. You test out different settings, adjust as needed, and like Ron Popeil says, "Set it and forget it". Done. Now, being in Texas I did find myself changing the loft of my R11 once when it was blowing 30-40mph because I do have my loft set pretty high as my norm. This saved my round by doing so. I will probably stick the the adjustable drivers because I really think that's the way the gold industry is going, esp. for drivers. Might take 2 years or 5 years or 10, but it's going that way for most OEM's.

However, if you get a driver without the adjustability, but get custom fit for it, I think that would be just as good. You would be getting it set-up for your swing then and now and might not need the adjustabilty later on. But like I said, wind conditions change here in Texas daily and the fact that I could adjust it down really did help. Good Luck!
 
Thainer21 said:
I think people use adjustability to hide swing flaws. In the end I think it's better not to have it IMO
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pjcedog said:
I have never owned an adjustable driver, I don't really see the benefit. If I know what loft and face angle works best for me then I buy that spec and use it. Changing club specs back and forth would just be injecting too many variables into the process of becoming comfortable with any one driver, it would be like trying to get comfortable with 3 or 4 different drivers all at the same time. I don't want my club head determining whether the ball goes high or low, left to right or right to left, I want my swing and setup doing that.
Click to expand...

But in terms of fitting don't you think that the extra options allow someone to have a driver dialed into the best settings for them? Say a guy walks in to a store and likes what Driver Y does, but wishes he could get a little help turning the ball over, so he picks up Driver Z and it has adjustablilty so he can move some weight around to help manipulate the club a little. I'm betting the consumer will pick option Z more often.

Sure he could go get lessons but that's not the point here.
 
Thanks for the comments, keep 'em coming!

I do intend on taking lessons this year - I am in the midst of tracking down the golf pro I worked with last year, but he hasn't responded to my e-mail yet...
What I do like about an adjustable driver is that I could (theoretically) adjust it to work with my swing right now, and then later on when I am better, I can reset it again so that it's all neutral or whatever setting works best then. Versus buying a club that only works one way.

How much of a difference do open faces make (like 2˚ on a TL310 or whatever)?
 
For me, I didn't notice a huge difference in terms of the rights with the open face, but it did lower my ball flight.
 
I think in terms of fitting, yes its better. But I dont think its necessary for all golfers. I used to think otherwise, now I certainly dont.

The best thing about adjustable drivers is interchangeable shafts, not the head settings and weight settings imo
SW said:
But in terms of fitting don't you think that the extra options allow someone to have a driver dialed into the best settings for them? Say a guy walks in to a store and likes what Driver Y does, but wishes he could get a little help turning the ball over, so he picks up Driver Z and it has adjustablilty so he can move some weight around to help manipulate the club a little. I'm betting the consumer will pick option Z more often.

Sure he could go get lessons but that's not the point here.
Click to expand...
 
Thainer21 said:
I think in terms of fitting, yes its better. But I dont think its necessary for all golfers. I used to think otherwise, now I certainly dont.

The best thing about adjustable drivers is interchangeable shafts, not the head settings and weight settings imo
Click to expand...

I agree with this post, especially the part in bold. I've owned a total of three adjustable drivers. Since they were all used/online pickups, I wasn't fit for any of them. Other than the first range session because of the novelty, I have universally left them at the neutral setting. I did fiddle with the weights on my SuperTri to see if it would change anything. Answer: not too much.
 
I want an adjustable driver mainly for the ability to swap shafts easily. I can put tips on myself and don't have to pay to have it switched every time. Thinking about it now I really wish I just had an i-Mix head and shafts.
 
SW said:
But in terms of fitting don't you think that the extra options allow someone to have a driver dialed into the best settings for them? Say a guy walks in to a store and likes what Driver Y does, but wishes he could get a little help turning the ball over, so he picks up Driver Z and it has adjustablilty so he can move some weight around to help manipulate the club a little. I'm betting the consumer will pick option Z more often.

Sure he could go get lessons but that's not the point here.
Click to expand...

For fitting sure, that is convenient, but once I am fit why do I need to ever change it? Does every driver made need to be adjustable? I was thinking more of loft and face angle adjustment more so than weight adjustment. I can see more benefit to having preset weight adjustments be more convenient with standardized weight screws and all but the reality is all woods have always been adjustable for weight balance - with lead tape. The real impetus for interchangeable shafts that led to adjustable heads being practical in the first place was the club makers' interest in making inroads into the after market shaft industry, by replacing my own glued on shaft with whatever I wanted to glue onto the club head the original clubmaker is out of the transaction. With an interchangeable proprietary shaft setup they control what shafts go into their clubs and retain some of that revenue that they had to view as lost with glued on shafts. This is really my main reason for not buying adjustable - I want to put the shaft I want to play onto any club I own.
 
pjcedog said:
For fitting sure, that is convenient, but once I am fit why do I need to ever change it? Does every driver made need to be adjustable? I was thinking more of loft and face angle adjustment more so than weight adjustment. I can see more benefit to having preset weight adjustments be more convenient with standardized weight screws and all but the reality is all woods have always been adjustable for weight balance - with lead tape. The real impetus for interchangeable shafts that led to adjustable heads being practical in the first place was the club makers' interest in making inroads into the after market shaft industry, by replacing my own glued on shaft with whatever I wanted to glue onto the club head the original clubmaker is out of the transaction. With an interchangeable proprietary shaft setup they control what shafts go into their clubs and retain some of that revenue that they had to view as lost with glued on shafts. This is really my main reason for not buying adjustable - I want to put the shaft I want to play onto any club I own.
Click to expand...

I think you missed my point. I could care less about being able to plug in shafts of every spec, that should be done during the fitting hence fitting centers and carts. Being able to manipulate the face angle with a simple adjustment is a giant step over having to bend a club. Every tom dick and harry can operate a wrench, not so many can put a head into a mold and bend it a half degree. Now that the adjustable tips are on the market, like the R11 tips you can put whatever shaft you want in your driver, not just what TaylorMade makes available.
 
The swappable shaft option is really, very appealing.
I agree with a lot about what has been said here regarding the pros and cons of both adjustable and fixed club heads. I guess it really boils down to which club you hit best.
The reservation that keeps me coming back to thinking I need (or is it want?) an adjustable club is the "what if" factor about thinking what if things down the road change and an adjustable driver could help make my game better? I fully admit that right now, I am thinking long term. But in a year, say, I will probably be fiending for another club and it may not actually matter. I really don't want to be dropping $400+ on a club regularly though.

Another thing that is bothering me is the fact that the 910 will be replaced in the fall - which means its price tag will be slashed, leading to massive buyer's remorse (can you tell I like holding on to my hard earned money?)... but if I wait until then, maybe my options won't be available because production will have been stopped.
 
A few thoughts.

1. You are leaving a great club off your list in the G20. I will be the first to admit it isn't as sexy as its cousin the I, but dang I love this club.

2. If a person has enough of a repeatable swing to really benefit from the adjustable driver shouldn't they be able to dial their swing in with a non adjustable club?

3. In the middle of working through the swing glitches with the G20 I began to wonder if an adjustable would help me, but now that I've figured it out I wouldn't change a thing.
 
A few thoughts.

1. You are leaving a great club off your list in the G20. I will be the first to admit it isn't as sexy as its cousin the I, but dang I love this club. I looked at clubs and basically axed things with 46" shafts - hence the lack of RAZR X Black as well.

2. If a person has enough of a repeatable swing to really benefit from the adjustable driver shouldn't they be able to dial their swing in with a non adjustable club? Agreed, but I'm not there yet, unfortunately.

3. In the middle of working through the swing glitches with the G20 I began to wonder if an adjustable would help me, but now that I've figured it out I wouldn't change a thing. This is good, thanks!
Click to expand...
 
RatFink said:
Another thing that is bothering me is the fact that the 910 will be replaced in the fall - which means its price tag will be slashed, leading to massive buyer's remorse (can you tell I like holding on to my hard earned money?)... but if I wait until then, maybe my options won't be available because production will have been stopped.
Click to expand...

Reduced yet but not slashed if that makes you feel any better. Even on out going models it doesn't seem like Titleist let's it's partners do much of a discount on them. Look at the price of the 710 CB irons vs the 712 CB irons at Golftown for example. There's about $150 difference between them so I wouldn't expect more then about $75 off the drivers next fall if I took a guess.
 
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