It’s time to go Rogue, or perhaps as Callaway is phrasing it, “Think Speed. Go Rogue.”
After a release cycle away, where Callaway introduced the Mavrik lineup, Rogue is back, but if you are thinking it’s just another “off year release” that isn’t Epic, you might want to reassess that.
Callaway is pulling no punches here, and though the Rogue line may have a slightly different target in some respects than Epic, this is still them bringing all of their innovations to the table alongside some new ones.
What better place to start than drivers, so let’s get into it!
While the Rogue name is back, there is no denying a lot has changed. Where metalwoods are concerned, the name of the game is stability, and Callaway is utilizing its most extreme weighting technology combined with every other tech which they have pioneered and continue to evolve.
Foremost, every single club in the new Rogue lineup has a unique A.I. face which now takes even more parameters into consideration like speed, launch, and spin robustness through a new optimization formula which means an even more refined face. Make no mistake, Callaway is not at all exaggerating when they say no one is doing club design like they are, and no one is using A.I. like they are.
These drivers have the most extreme weighting tech the company has ever used in a driver, they are using a “Tungsten Speed Cartridge” which uses up to 26g of MIM’d Tungsten, and folks that is a lot of tungsten. This is placed at the very extreme edge of the driver in order to increase speed on off center hits through “ball speed robustness”, which is fancy for minimizing the loss when you miss. Of course, this also helps with making the head more resistant to twisting.
Each driver is also using the new “Speed Tuned Jailbreak Speedframe” which is like what was used in Epic, except more slender with the same balance and stiffness, though some priority is given to further stiffening the lower part of the head.
Finally, the shaping here is a departure from the Cyclone shaping of the Mavrik release, that has gone in favor of a more rearward CG through the use of a “low tail” which looks pretty familiar to be honest, but this does follow the current trend, so it makes a lot of sense to see. It doesn’t mean Cyclone was wrong, this is just a different way to make things happen. This is part of the unibody frame construction that takes from F1 in the notion of making as much of the head one piece as possible while keeping it smooth and thin. It is finished out in all the Rogue drivers with Triaxial Carbon on both the crown and sole.
Even bolder than the tech perhaps, is that Callaway is bringing four different drivers to the Rogue ST MAX lineup. Yes, four.
Callaway Rogue ST MAX D Driver
This one is the most draw biased of the four drivers, it is the club for those who tend to struggle with a slice and need as much shot shape correction as they can get. This naturally has a draw weighted CG and a closed face orientation with the largest footprint to provide the forgiveness, elevation, and directional correction that golfers need without excessive spin.
The MAX D comes in three lofts (9°, 10.5°, 12°) and utilizes the OptiFit adapter. All three heads are also available in RH and LH.
Rogue ST Max Driver Rogue ST Max Driver
Callaway Rogue ST MAX Driver
This is the “sweetspot” driver of the lineup which will fit the largest number of golfers in the segment. It does have a slight draw bias because, believe it or not, that is what most of us need, and this offers the best combination of forgiveness and distance. The Rogue ST Max has the highest MOI of the four models and is somewhat larger but designed to still fit the eye of even the most discerning golfers.
The MAX has three base loft options (9°, 10.5°, 12°) with each using the OptiFit adapter and being available in both RH and LH.
Rogue ST Max LS Driver Rogue ST Max LS Driver
Callaway Rogue ST MAX LS Driver
Ah yes, the Rogue which is aimed at the slightly better player, the golfer which wants to see the ball go right and left at times and can use a more neutral overall bias to do just that. The MAX LS maintains a very high overall MOI thanks to the Tungsten Speed Cartridge but also keeps a lower launch angle and spin rate than the MAX.
The MAX LS also uses the Callaway OptiFit adapter in two loft options (9° and 10.5°) which also are available in both RH and LH.
Rogue ST Max Triple Diamond LS Driver Rogue ST Max Triple Diamond LS Driver
Callaway Rogue ST Triple Diamond LS
Yes, for those who clamor with every single Callaway metalwood release, for this driver release, the Triple Diamond is a regular part of the lineup. Well, as regular as it can be. The Triple Diamond is a 450cc head making it the smallest of the four and has the lowest spin profile with the most neutral to fade bias of the four options. While it still offers all the design bells and whistles of the others, there is no doubt the Triple Diamond is for the smallest segment.
Availability here is in two lofts (9° and 10.5°) with the OptiFit adapter and in both RH an LH.
While it will come as no surprise, Callaway, through their internal and external testing, believes they have created four drivers that will each lead their specific segment in performance. A bold take, absolutely, but the crew at Callaway have never been short of confidence, which they typically back up well.
The Details
Standard shaft options are as follows:
- Lightweight/Womens – Project X Cypher Black (40g, 50g)
- Mid Offering – Mitsubishi Tensei AV Blue (50g, 60g, 70g)
- Low Offering – Mitsubishi Tensei AV White (60g, 70g, 80g)
The Rogue ST drivers will be priced at $549.99 and hit retail on 2/18/22. Be sure to keep a keen eye on the THP Community as we will have a lot of feedback beginning today as 12 forum members already have these in hand!
That’s the crazy part! The more I went after, the better it performed! It is going to take a special club to kick it out.
I won’t test drivers this year. I’m likely not doing any better than what I have.
Keep what ? the Rogue or next years driver that I’m framing about
Word on the street is that you all are going to LOVE next year’s driver…..
View attachment 91318912023, BE Better Mark! This combo will get figured out as only 2 rounds under the belt with this combo and I’m going to find more fairways and hit some whispy trajy mediocre bombs for days! Let’s GO!
Here’s hoping tomorrow morning I can slow things down and figure it out, because the last few weeks it has been one of the most consistent clubs in my bag.
You’ve got this. Just relax have fun and take it one swing at a time!
It’ll snap back around it’s golf here today and gone tomorrow.
7 fairways today, 4 of the misses were 10 feet or less. A couple in the rough, and 1 that I lost because it ran through into the water.
Tons better than yesterday!!!
biggest difference for me was realizing I was standing too close to the ball, getting jammed and unable to get a full turn, so my arms couldn’t rotate and close the face.
Today on multiple drives I aimed at the edge of trouble on my left and the ball started down the intended line and faded in perfectly. Distance was really good as well as flight was down versus my typical draw and was piercing.
it has taken me all season pretty well but given this added versatility makes me more excited for next year as long as I don’t forget ?.
Very pleased with the ST Max LS, it has been a stellar performer all year.
Glad it’s working well for you!
I basically feel the same way. As you on this. First time I’m not worried about trying to find another one. I do have an interest in a different shaft, but that might be for next year.
Yeah I may tinker, but really happy with the pairing with the Velocity shaft right now. Probably time better spent working on swing speed & mechanics.
The tee boxes at my home course have all been moved up, but man it’s so fun driving greens or being just off.
Drive #1 pulled a little bit but great distance with the wind.
Drive #2 into the wind just off the green in the fairway.
Drive #3 on the green with the wind.
Drive #4 on the green, crosswind.
Drive #5 into the wind, and just a bomb for the conditions, and just a gap wedge left .
It’s the first 9 holes I’ve played with my league partner since being fit for this driver and he was impressed, as were the other two guys we were playing with.
Although the season is winding down here, I have high hopes for next year.
Only issue I’m finding is that my Sunfish head cover doesn’t fit easily, it’s getting caught up the edge of the back weight.
was playing the Tensei Pro 1k white 50r, and today played the Diamana TB 60s. So a bit less torque in the TB. I was very impressed with the TB today, and had one of my better driving days, despite the cold weather. I hit quite a few fairways, and avoided a lot of the right miss that I have been struggling with.
still going to explore some more shaft options, the LinQ Red is at the top of the list, with the Ventus TR Red and Diamana GT.
i was fit into this by CC and it was fantastic during the fitting…finally ordered it today and hope to have it by midweek…definitely wanna hear more about your experience with it.
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The head is so freaking good. It would be hard to make a bad combo with the Rogue ST Line!
it’s a bit softer than I’m used to in the tip, but that’s not a bad thing.
I think I found the best results with a smooth intentional swing. Not that I had to go after it, but a deliberate tempo and turn yielded some bombs. I was able to turn it over a bit when I needed, but it fit my natural cut really nice.
It was a very very smooth feel!
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On the sim yesterday I struggled in the beginning but by the 4th hole I finally figured out the swing and played the next 11 holes +5.
On the opening hole I kept hitting a hard fade and I could break it. I hit 4 balls before I figured it out. The crazy part is those 4 shots hit the exact same bush on all 3 of my mulligans??My friend was very impressed from that perspective
I always kind of have to have interest, but I’m sort of in the same boat, just with the Rogue ST Max LS. Love the shape, the sound, and everything I get from this club.
Agree, interested in the tech, and what comes out but the bag is set, as it’s so good with this entire lineup especially the ST Max.
If the opportunity presents itself I’ll happily demo some drivers but there’s a very very slim chance I’d add a new one to the bag. I will be interested in some new Callaway fairways though
they just really nailed this release. Even if it came off as boring/not as exciting as we’ve seen. Just rock solid.
I’m going to be keeping an eye on what they do in the FW space as well in 2023.
I highly doubt I’ll invest any time into this years driver releases. I’m happy. It works well and fits me well. I will hit a few just so I can have something to offer on here, but I have no interest in buying.
My main interest this year is hybrids and irons but if the irons don’t work out I may do hybrid and fairway. I never got a chance to hit the Rogue fairways but I’ve heard nothing but good things
I think this is really true. It kind of shows in fitting results and sales figures as well (based on what I have seen anyway).
The funny thing is when I saw this release I almost kind of wrote it off because it seemed like a decent jump in price. When I was doing my 3W fitting I was almost hoping I wouldn’t be fit into it (I ended up not even getting to try it) and now I wish I had been. This release remind of of the GBB Epic with its popularity
What it comes down to for me is that I have never felt comfortable with a Callaway driver in the bag, in all my years of golf. The last Callaway driver that wowed me and spent a significant amount of time with was the original Epic Sub Zero. That club was LONG for me and I loved it. Its for this reason that I still wonder if I should try the Triple Diamond. In the past the head that doesn’t seem like it should be for a high handicapper is the one that just fits my eye better. These results surprise me even more because the fairway woods are so good for me. The Rogue ST 3 wood and 5 wood are bombers, but the driver has been a different story all together. It’s also frustrating because I know how well the Rogue lineup worked for my Grandaddy teammates. All I could compare it to was the Titleist Tsi2 driver I played last year and I was hitting that at least 10-20 yards further than the Rogue lineup, according to all the old data I have.
The Rogue Max got me the closest that I want to a combination of distance and forgiveness, but even that driver still left me wanting more. I started experimenting with that one around the time we went to Myrtle Beach and I played it the remainder of the year. This is about the same time I put a Sim2 in the bag along with the Rogue Max and I was seeing the Sim2 go at least 10 to 15 yards farther than the Rogue Max on average. That said – the Rogue Max was more consistently keeping online, but I was again leaving yards behind. I was playing different second shots at my home course than I had been playing in the past. It was hard finding that consistency that I’ve been seeing with all the other clubs that I was fit into. I tried different shafts, I tried different loft settings, I feel like I tried it all. In the end, I just know that the Rogue St driver is not the final answer for me. That’s not to say it’s a bad driver, it’s a phenomenal driver, I just don’t think it works perfectly for me – for reasons I still havent’ figured out yet.
That said, I meant what I typed earlier on in this thread. Callaway will always gets the first shot at being in my bag. Whatever driver they come out with next will be the one I leans towards and I’ll give it every opportunity to win a spot. All the rest of the clubs in my bag are firmly in place (Rogue fairway woods, Super Hybrid, Apex DCB irons and Jaws Raw wedges, Triple Wide putter) and not leaving (barring something unexpected), and all of those spots belong to Callaway. I’m hoping to be blown away by the next offering and I hope those that read my reviews still give the Rogue lineup a try. It’s a absolute great driver. In the end I just don’t feel like it’s THE driver for me.
*Unless the new Callaway driver comes with purple and gold Viking accents I’ll be sticking with my Rogue LS, would love to try the 9* version LS but I’ll tinker with my current 10.5 and figure it out as too much good golf still in my body to miss as many fairways as I did in 2022
That is spot on from what I’ve seen from the Max D head so far, can’t wait to put it head to head in a shaft comparison and see what 2023 has in store for me, best driving I’ve seen in a long time.
It’s been a real game changer for me. If this club doesn’t perform well, it’s the archer not the bow.
Also, has anyone bought a weight kit to add weight to head? If so, recommendations?
@93civiccpe ?