dhill
New member
Great stuff Jordan & Ryan!
Looking for to Bomber Brad to having his in hand today as well
Looking for to Bomber Brad to having his in hand today as well
Callaway FT Optiforce Driver Review - Forum Testing
dcbrad
locked and reloaded
The FT Optiforce 460 finally made it to the house today! It was like torture waiting for this thing all week! Boy the looks of this thing did not disappoint. I was given the Diamana S62 in a Regular Flex. I usually use a Stiff Flex, but I am going to play around with a few different shaft combinations so it's really not that big of deal. I noticed right off the bat the light weight feel of this club. But like Ryan and Jordan have stated, I didn't get that "whippy" sensation that one could of expected with a club that is marketed as "light and fast." Let's start with a few pictures:
I was able to sneak out to the range after work today and hit about 50 balls with this thing. I started off with it at -1* and on the (D) Draw setting. So it was sitting as a 9.5* with a slightly closed face. I wanted to try to closely match my J40 445 9.5*. Before we get into the results, lets talk about the adjustability that this driver has. It is very easy to adjust. You set your loft first, and then set whether you want it in a Neutral (N) setting or a Draw (D) setting.
So I started with it at 9.5* and with the D setting. The results were somewhat disappointing. I noticed a much lower ball flight than I do with my J40 and it seemed to almost be more like line drives then it was that nice, rising, penetrating ball flight. The ball seemed to just not be able to get up in the air.
So I decided to try the driver at 10.5* (S) and keep it on the (D) Draw setting. What. A. Difference. It was like a night and day change. The ball flight got up, and just seemed to carry FOREVER. It also had that nice, penetrating flight that everyone dreams of. I was hitting parts of the range that I wasn't hitting before with my J40. I can't even imagine what it will be like hitting actually quality golf balls. (Which will be happening Saturday). I ran out of golf balls because I was having so much fun with this setting. I plan on putting this club through the rigors on the Trackman on Saturday at Pine Lakes. I'll report back with some concrete numbers after that!
Another thing I wanted to do was try to show everyone how this driver matches up against some of the competition. So here is a picture of the OptiForce on the left, Classic 270 in the middle and the J40 445 on the right. You can tell that the J40 and OptiForce seem to match up a little more than the Classic 270, even though the J40 is 15cc less than the Optiforce.
There are a few things I want to accomplish with this testing:
1. Sit down and give a brutally honest assessment of this club. Putting it through all the rigors possible.
2. Help THPers/guests get the best information/most information I can possibly give.
3. Have fun with this bad boy.
I will be updating/in this thread as much as possible and will answer any questions to the best of my ability! Hopefully you guys enjoyed this initial overview!
I was able to sneak out to the range after work today and hit about 50 balls with this thing. I started off with it at -1* and on the (D) Draw setting. So it was sitting as a 9.5* with a slightly closed face. I wanted to try to closely match my J40 445 9.5*. Before we get into the results, lets talk about the adjustability that this driver has. It is very easy to adjust. You set your loft first, and then set whether you want it in a Neutral (N) setting or a Draw (D) setting.
So I decided to try the driver at 10.5* (S) and keep it on the (D) Draw setting. What. A. Difference. It was like a night and day change. The ball flight got up, and just seemed to carry FOREVER. It also had that nice, penetrating flight that everyone dreams of. I was hitting parts of the range that I wasn't hitting before with my J40. I can't even imagine what it will be like hitting actually quality golf balls. (Which will be happening Saturday). I ran out of golf balls because I was having so much fun with this setting. I plan on putting this club through the rigors on the Trackman on Saturday at Pine Lakes. I'll report back with some concrete numbers after that!
Another thing I wanted to do was try to show everyone how this driver matches up against some of the competition. So here is a picture of the OptiForce on the left, Classic 270 in the middle and the J40 445 on the right. You can tell that the J40 and OptiForce seem to match up a little more than the Classic 270, even though the J40 is 15cc less than the Optiforce.
There are a few things I want to accomplish with this testing:
1. Sit down and give a brutally honest assessment of this club. Putting it through all the rigors possible.
2. Help THPers/guests get the best information/most information I can possibly give.
3. Have fun with this bad boy.
I will be updating/in this thread as much as possible and will answer any questions to the best of my ability! Hopefully you guys enjoyed this initial overview!
- Joined
- Apr 3, 2011
- Messages
- 25,455
- Reaction score
- 1,662
So this thing sounds super forgiving by the sounds. Would that be a save early assessment?
deleebar
blargh
dcbrad
locked and reloaded
It's actually not too bad Erik, all you have to do is find which loft you want, whether it's on the top cog or bottom one, than set it to either D or N for Draw or Neutral. It's just a matter of making sure it's lined up with the lines.
I would definitely say there is some forgiveness. Much more than my J40 445 TBH. You are going to lose a bit of distance when the ball is hit off the heel/toe. But it is not going to penalize you as much from accentuating a hook or a slice IMO.
I went and looked it up. I think I was technically right but probably wrong in the application of that principle to a golf club. I think the discussion would get too far away from Optiforce testing, so I deleted my post
Howzat
I'd Rather Be At The Hideaway
I could see myself losing a piece. Maybe I am just jaded because the AMP Cell is so easy.
dcbrad
locked and reloaded
Nice thing about it is they actually don't come off the shaft. They can't be pulled off. That picture in the OptiForce booklet is a little mis leading. So you can take off the head and not have to worry about the COGs falling off. So don't let that keep you from a purchase!
Haha.
Great initial review and pics dcbrad
deleebar
blargh
yeah, don't really want to get into the physics of it, but from all the testers so far it seems to work. Although I think there is a weight application, otherwise in a sport like bowling, everyone would be hurling 8 lbs balls as they are all the same size.
But that said, I trust Callaway's investment in their R&D team more than my understanding of things. Keep the impressions coming, interested in this one. Great job guys.
But that said, I trust Callaway's investment in their R&D team more than my understanding of things. Keep the impressions coming, interested in this one. Great job guys.
I went and looked it up. I think I was technically right but probably wrong in the application of that principle to a golf club. I think the discussion would get too far away from Optiforce testing, so I deleted my post
PM sent!
Howzat
I'd Rather Be At The Hideaway
Nice thing about it is they actually don't come off the shaft. They can't be pulled off. That picture in the OptiForce booklet is a little mis leading. So you can take off the head and not have to worry about the COGs falling off. So don't let that keep you from a purchase!
That makes more sense. Thanks for clearing that up.
Smithfaced
New member
It isn't necessarily the weight that Callaway was going after to boost club head speed. From my understanding, The aerodynamics of the club head are what mostly led to the 23% less drag when compared to the X-Hot Pro.
Scrap Iron
On The Eh Team
Great review so far guys. This is an interesting club.
Every time I see this thread Callaway FT I think someone wants to trade a driver.
Every time I see this thread Callaway FT I think someone wants to trade a driver.
Smithfaced
New member
I ran into a little hiccup out on the range today with my OptiForce. I went to make my first adjustments and when I was taking the club head off the screw gave me just a bit of flack. I didn't think much of it and went on with my adjustments. I was planning on taking the loft down to 9.5 to lower my ball flight a bit. I lined up the bolt and started to tighten it. It was going in just fine and then the shaft started turning. I held down the shaft and the screw wouldn't turn. I wanted to try and force it a bit but I figured this would do some damage so I backed off and pulled the head back off.
It's hard to see in the picture but the shiny parts inside the adapter are stripped after a single use. The paint chips you see on the outside of the adapter are from when the shaft started spinning. I've used my fair share of adjustable drivers and have never had this happen. I'm sure this is not a testament to Callaway's quality control and I understand that you won't always get a perfect club. So, like I said, just a small hiccup. JB is on this one for me and I hope to get the OptiForce back out soon.
It's hard to see in the picture but the shiny parts inside the adapter are stripped after a single use. The paint chips you see on the outside of the adapter are from when the shaft started spinning. I've used my fair share of adjustable drivers and have never had this happen. I'm sure this is not a testament to Callaway's quality control and I understand that you won't always get a perfect club. So, like I said, just a small hiccup. JB is on this one for me and I hope to get the OptiForce back out soon.
Tadashi70
Well-known member
14-14 FIR...holy sh!t! That's amazing Ryan. I'm glad you are seeing positive results. The Optiforce seems like a complete departure from the Cleveland Black. Looking forward to see this is person in a few weeks.
DC I think this will be a game changer for you and you are rocking the review. Did you find it much easier to get elevation with the 10.5* setting over the J40?
DC I think this will be a game changer for you and you are rocking the review. Did you find it much easier to get elevation with the 10.5* setting over the J40?
dcbrad
locked and reloaded
I did Freddie. I was able to get great elevation on it without much effort. Just that awesome penetrating ball flight that seemed to carry forever. Really seemed to be a huge difference from the 9.5* setting. Like I said earlier, there is going to be lots of tinkering with this bad boy.
Jordan, that's such a bummer man. On that note, I have noticed something as well right off the bat. The two cogs, they seem to not want to separate after I pull the head off. They can move up and down the adapter, but it takes quite a bit of effort to pull them apart to make a change to loft/lie. This may be just a process where it needs to be worked in a bit, so I will keep an eye on it as I keep working with it.
dcbrad
locked and reloaded
I am not 100% sure on that, but here's a close up of the head on the wrench and maybe you might be able to compare
Tadashi70
Well-known member
I am not 100% sure on that, but here's a close up of the head on the wrench and maybe you might be able to compare
It's the same, thanks
It is obviously natural to focus on distance with this club since it is marketed as lighter = faster = longer. In time I'd like to hear from the testers about playability and accuracy, especially in relation to the adjustability of the club. For example, do you have a common miss with the driver? Does the club's adjustment features help you over come that miss? Thanks!
Jordan....wow! Dude, you don't need to take a power drill to get those things off buddy!!! Ha! Hope you get a replacement soon!
Ryan...14/14??!! Really? Good gosh...
Brad, can't wait to see how this performs long term for you. Curious if the distance is there for you and the consistency stays in check.
Ryan...14/14??!! Really? Good gosh...
Brad, can't wait to see how this performs long term for you. Curious if the distance is there for you and the consistency stays in check.
- Thread starter
- #99
For my round this weekend, I am planning on putting the loft up to 11.5* and on the range (pre-round) checking out this "draw" setting.
I had left it bone stock when I gamed it this past Sunday and really liked what I saw, but a touch more lunch and a bit straighter off the tee is always intriguing.
I had left it bone stock when I gamed it this past Sunday and really liked what I saw, but a touch more lunch and a bit straighter off the tee is always intriguing.
dcbrad
locked and reloaded
I have a feeling you are gonna walk away impressed with that setting. I certainly was!