TaylorMade SLDR Driver - Review Thread

[checkered]

With everything that's been said here I"m really wanting to get a chance to hit this on a launch monitor. I've hit it and loved the feel and sound of it, but am curious with the spin how it would be for me. Great stuff in here so far guys thanks for all the work you're putting in.

 

[PhillyV]

Put in some good work today with the SLDR. Was able to get on a lm for the first time with it. Just stinks I couldn't make good swings. Could be the other 20 people watching or the club pro staring at me waiting to tell me what I was doing wrong lol but i was able to get some numbers. 114.5 SS 13* Launch Angle 3500rpm 265 carry. But again these swings were very tense and uncomfortable. Once I was able to get on the course, it was like I was using a different club. I've definitely found my groove with it and it's such a game changing feeling. Knowing I can hit that perfect drive when I need to the most is something my game has been lacking. But I have that now. A couple other THPers got to hit my driver today and not one person disliked it. They all turned around to me and gave me the same look. The "is this real life" look.

 

[War Eagle]

Put in some good work today with the SLDR. Was able to get on a lm for the first time with it. Just stinks I couldn't make good swings. Could be the other 20 people watching or the club pro staring at me waiting to tell me what I was doing wrong lol but i was able to get some numbers. 114.5 SS 13* Launch Angle 3500rpm 265 carry. But again these swings were very tense and uncomfortable. Once I was able to get on the course, it was like I was using a different club. I've definitely found my groove with it and it's such a game changing feeling. Knowing I can hit that perfect drive when I need to the most is something my game has been lacking. But I have that now. A couple other THPers got to hit my driver today and not one person disliked it. They all turned around to me and gave me the same look. The "is this real life" look.

You sound like me, bro. Everytime I get on a LM, I tense up and cant make a good swing.

 

[DufferToo]

Finally catching up on this thread, great work guys! I think my wallet is happy that I haven't had the chance to demo the SLDR yet.

 

[adwillingham]

I hit a few balls with the SLDR (and a number of other sticks) in the simulator at Golfsmith earlier, and I saw some really good numbers with the SLDR. The stock shaft gave me some really nice spin rates, and the three balls I hit with it were 3 of the top 4 distance wise of the probably 20 I hit across all the drivers. I'd love to have the chance to try it outdoor sometime, but for someone who struggles with higher spin, this club could be really useful.

 

[PhillyV]

You sound like me, bro. Everytime I get on a LM, I tense up and cant make a good swing.

Ya it's so annoying. My spin was like 4900 at first lol but Chris was real cool about everything so he gave me a few tips but it just double crossed me in my mind so after the LM i had to go get another bucket of balls and just get back to my groove. My swing may not be perfect but it works for me.

One thing I wanted to add is the durability of the face and the bottom of the head. It may be the black of the R11s, but I'm putting the SLDR through the ringer as of lately and there's no tee scuffs on the bottom of the head or on the face which I really like. Seems like this club will be able to be kept clean and looking good for a long time.

 

[cpljohnst]

For those testing the SLDR does the low spin make the driver harder to work. Say you're playing a course with a lot of doglegs off the tee. Do you find it harder to hit a draw or fade when the course demands it?

 

[PhillyV]

For those testing the SLDR does the low spin make the driver harder to work. Say you're playing a course with a lot of doglegs off the tee. Do you find it harder to hit a draw or fade when the course demands it?

For me it's the same except the fade or draw isn't as dramatic. Instead of picking a target off the fairway playing it to fade or draw back into the fairway, I'm just picking a side of the fairway to be my target. If that makes sense

 

[Mark]

Greetings
Yesterday I took mine out for 18. I tried the lofts at 11 and 12 on some holes. On the high lofted shots, I got a really high and abysmal pattern. They would drop out of the sky 200 yards down. I would then set the loft at 10.5 and 9.5. 10.5 still gave me a higher ball flight but they were carrying 240. 9.5 I increased carry to 260. These yards were verified by my S3. Thats huge IMO. There is such a notable distance change. There are a few caveats to discuss. First, not every swing was repeated. Second, wind was up. Third, the look of a closed driver allows for a bad move on my part. Lastly, Lethals and Hex Blacks were alternated as I only had 4 balls.
Driver is set to 9.5 with this beast. The Speeder 6.3 is what I would say mid/low flight for my swing. Kind of matches a black tie in flight characteristics for me. My buddy who hits the ball low cranked a lower shot than I did. He compared his to his AMP and hit it the exact same distance like side by side. I think with a fitting he would be impressed

 

[Paladin]

For those testing the SLDR does the low spin make the driver harder to work. Say you're playing a course with a lot of doglegs off the tee. Do you find it harder to hit a draw or fade when the course demands it?

Bear in mind I'm not someone who works the ball with a ton of regularity. Friday when I played I set up to play a draw (slightly stronger grip than usual, closed my stance by about 4-6", a little more spine tilt) but left the driver in neutral settings, and I was able to generate a draw pretty reliably without it turning into a hook or losing a ton of distance. I was able to negate a couple of those things and go back to a fade as needed. I ended up hitting two thirds of my fairways, with distances that I'm perfectly happy with, 230 to the occasional 240+ drives.

That was with the weight in the neutral setting, so I'm not sure if you bias the weight to a shot shape if you run the risk of overcooking trying to go the other way, or if the lower spin might also affect that overcooking. I'm also not someone who reliably aims to hit terribly different shots from one tee to another. I showed up Friday to hit draws, hit draws on the practice tee, liked the distance and feel, hit draws on the course, aside from the occasional lazy swing that I'd slice and one decidedly over-cooked hook.

 

[PhillyV]

Nice stuff Paladin. Seems like your starting to find your groove with the SLDR. It's a great feeling isn't it

 

[Paladin]

It's a very fun club to hit. While I played with the club in the neutral setting, it was fun to have repeatable enough flight on the range (and a strong draw as repeatable flight) to adjust the bias weight and see the resulting effects.

I had said when I got selected for this testing and review that this was a chance to really examine my play off the tee and find ways to improve in reliability, accuracy, and distance. I needed a switch from the guy who occasionally "gets ahold of one" for 260+, but three times as often holds up the group hunting in the weeds short and right. I was worried that the weighted biasing of the SLDR was going to promote a two-way miss, where I'd have it pegged toward the draw bias for my 75% shot, then hooking the snot out of the ball the other 25% of the time. I know a lot of this has been as much the result of improving my swing as the club itself, but having never used a driver with adjustable weights of any kind (went from a Launcher Comp to a Amp Cell to the SLDR), I can say the following things: Movable weights won't bend a slice into a draw. They might bend a slice into a "strong fade." But if you hit a fade and want a straight shot, I think the SLDR can get you there. If you hit a straight shot and want a reliable draw or fade, the SLDR can definitely get you there. Next up will be to mess around with the loft and face angle and see if there's a loft setting that produces notably more distance and see how much changing the face angle also affects shot shape. Will probably make it out to the range this afternoon.

 

[Franklin51]

Will be hitting this tomorrow at my fittjng

 

[bellairemi]

I had the same experience with the SLDR. Off the tee, my swing is mid launch and spin so I can usually play lower spin heads (like the Anser) at a higher loft without being too punished for mishits. In the case of the SLDR, I was seeing 6-10 yards distance loss just off center versus my Rapture V2 (not noted to be too forgiving in its own right).

This one has been interesting to read through.

I know I adore the look of this one and love that the sound is SO improved, but for me the lack of lateral forgiveness compared to other heads and the LOOOOOOOOOOOOW spin just killed me. Knucklers all day. That said there is clearly a large segment that it will fit well and you have to love that! Its the beauty of this game, we're all so different!

 

[jt2929]

I was able to get out for 18 yesterday with the SLDR. I hit 8/14 fairways. That number isn't great by any means, but when I missed the fairway, it wasn't by much and the next shot was very playable. In the past, if I missed a fairway it was always way right, and the SLDR has definately helped reduce the severity of my slice. I found myself aiming like I would with my old driver which led to the occasional "miss left because I hit it where I was aiming" shot. That's definately something I'm going to have to work on mentally. Distance wise, I was seeing my gains on the launch monitor confirmed. I was about 10 yards longer with the SLDR on average and it sure is nice to hit into greens with one less club. I still have some work to do with the SLDR and I certainly want to get my FIR numbers up, but I think that will come with a few slight adjustments.

One thing I forgot to add to my last range session update: I tried teeing the ball higher, to the second line from the bottom of my THP Epoch tee as recommended on the Epoch website. This did not work for me at all. I was catching the ball high on the face and hitting moon shots. I may have needed to play the ball a little more forward, but I didn't even like seeing almost the entire ball above the clubface before I even swung the club.

 

[PhillyV]

I was able to get out for 18 yesterday with the SLDR. I hit 8/14 fairways. That number isn't great by any means, but when I missed the fairway, it wasn't by much and the next shot was very playable. In the past, if I missed a fairway it was always way right, and the SLDR has definately helped reduce the severity of my slice. I found myself aiming like I would with my old driver which led to the occasional "miss left because I hit it where I was aiming" shot. That's definately something I'm going to have to work on mentally. Distance wise, I was seeing my gains on the launch monitor confirmed. I was about 10 yards longer with the SLDR on average and it sure is nice to hit into greens with one less club. I still have some work to do with the SLDR and I certainly want to get my FIR numbers up, but I think that will come with a few slight adjustments.

One thing I forgot to add to my last range session update: I tried teeing the ball higher, to the second line from the bottom of my THP Epoch tee as recommended on the Epoch website. This did not work for me at all. I was catching the ball high on the face and hitting moon shots. I may have needed to play the ball a little more forward, but I didn't even like seeing almost the entire ball above the clubface before I even swung the club.

As I've gotten more comfortable with this club and more confident, I've been teeing it a little closer to normal. Might just be a mental thing

 

[RPBGator]

I took the SLDR out yesterday for some good range time. Dropped the weight all the way to draw and wanted to tee the ball higher on the Epoch tee. Set it to the second line from the top.

Ball flight was definitely higher but not ballooning. I did hit some balls higher on the face than normal but probably has to do with ball placement in my stance as well. With the weight set all the way at draw, I still was having a hard time hitting a good consistent draw. It was definitely my swing that day but liked seeing the results on a day I wasn't swinging my best. A few did go left but the majority still straight. I did notice the few I came across and didn't keep my shoulders square still went right. Depending on the hole could have still been playable but the driver didn't eliminate the cut all together. I still like this low spin driver a lot. I do not hit center face every time but do get pretty close and I find it to be pretty forgiving. Now if you do hit it off the toe or heel it will penalize you but I find that to be pretty normal.

Something I did notice with the new face while at the range is I have no ball marks at all. With the old R11 you could really see some fading and marks all over. This face still looks brand new. Another note is the sound. Every time I have been out someone next to me has asked about the sound. Not a big deal because people like seeing results but the muted sound is perfect.

Love seeing all the different reviews coming in and different results. Should be playing tomorrow and going to play with weight all the way on draw. Results to come.

 

[RPBGator]

For those testing the SLDR does the low spin make the driver harder to work. Say you're playing a course with a lot of doglegs off the tee. Do you find it harder to hit a draw or fade when the course demands it?

I do not work the driver a lot myself. I have noticed more than anything a much straighter ball flight with the low spin. I still tend to aim a little left because my miss is fade right but that is my game. I would think if you could work the driver, the neutral weight setting would be ideal with no face manipulation. I would be interested in any of the better players playing this driver and the work-ability as well.

 

[jt2929]

I'm seeing minimal ball marks on the face as well. There were times on the range I would want to see where on the face I hit the ball, but there was nothing!

 

[PhillyV]

I'm seeing minimal ball marks on the face as well. There were times on the range I would want to see where on the face I hit the ball, but there was nothing!

i noticed that too

 

[tmo1620]

Was thinking of putting one in the bag for next year. Like my r9 but its had three seasons and is definitely showing mire than its age, after reading all this ill be buying a SLDR and retiring my r9


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[doctorjedi]

Guys I usually post to "TOS" but this thread has made me addicted to THP. Paladin and Gator I know you guys did not make this a comparison thread but as of right now, no commitments, would you say that the SLDR will kick you AMP Cells out of your bags? Thanks for all your posts I have found them ultra useful.

I took the SLDR out yesterday for some good range time. Dropped the weight all the way to draw and wanted to tee the ball higher on the Epoch tee. Set it to the second line from the top.

Ball flight was definitely higher but not ballooning. I did hit some balls higher on the face than normal but probably has to do with ball placement in my stance as well. With the weight set all the way at draw, I still was having a hard time hitting a good consistent draw. It was definitely my swing that day but liked seeing the results on a day I wasn't swinging my best. A few did go left but the majority still straight. I did notice the few I came across and didn't keep my shoulders square still went right. Depending on the hole could have still been playable but the driver didn't eliminate the cut all together. I still like this low spin driver a lot. I do not hit center face every time but do get pretty close and I find it to be pretty forgiving. Now if you do hit it off the toe or heel it will penalize you but I find that to be pretty normal.

Something I did notice with the new face while at the range is I have no ball marks at all. With the old R11 you could really see some fading and marks all over. This face still looks brand new. Another note is the sound. Every time I have been out someone next to me has asked about the sound. Not a big deal because people like seeing results but the muted sound is perfect.

Love seeing all the different reviews coming in and different results. Should be playing tomorrow and going to play with weight all the way on draw. Results to come.

It's a very fun club to hit. While I played with the club in the neutral setting, it was fun to have repeatable enough flight on the range (and a strong draw as repeatable flight) to adjust the bias weight and see the resulting effects.

I had said when I got selected for this testing and review that this was a chance to really examine my play off the tee and find ways to improve in reliability, accuracy, and distance. I needed a switch from the guy who occasionally "gets ahold of one" for 260+, but three times as often holds up the group hunting in the weeds short and right. I was worried that the weighted biasing of the SLDR was going to promote a two-way miss, where I'd have it pegged toward the draw bias for my 75% shot, then hooking the snot out of the ball the other 25% of the time. I know a lot of this has been as much the result of improving my swing as the club itself, but having never used a driver with adjustable weights of any kind (went from a Launcher Comp to a Amp Cell to the SLDR), I can say the following things: Movable weights won't bend a slice into a draw. They might bend a slice into a "strong fade." But if you hit a fade and want a straight shot, I think the SLDR can get you there. If you hit a straight shot and want a reliable draw or fade, the SLDR can definitely get you there. Next up will be to mess around with the loft and face angle and see if there's a loft setting that produces notably more distance and see how much changing the face angle also affects shot shape. Will probably make it out to the range this afternoon.

 

[dcbrad]

Testers, this is probably a major skim, and I apologize for that, this thread has exploded, and that is awesome!

How has that cavity been through multiple rounds? Does it get junk built up in it and how is it to clean?

Also, how does this drive compare to the FT Optiforce? I've gotten a chance to swing both, albeit the SLDR just a few times at a golf shop, and I am just wondering how they compared for the people that have swung both.

Keep it up guys, you are all doing a great job!

 

[PhillyV]

Testers, this is probably a major skim, and I apologize for that, this thread has exploded, and that is awesome!

How has that cavity been through multiple rounds? Does it get junk built up in it and how is it to clean?

Also, how does this drive compare to the FT Optiforce? I've gotten a chance to swing both, albeit the SLDR just a few times at a golf shop, and I am just wondering how they compared for the people that have swung both.

Keep it up guys, you are all doing a great job!

Ya I touched on the cavity early in the testing. When playing in wet conditions, crap can build up. But normally a towel will take care of it. I did have to take an air compressor to it because grass got stuck in there and I'm OCD when it comes to keeping my clubs clean

 

[jt2929]

Testers, this is probably a major skim, and I apologize for that, this thread has exploded, and that is awesome!

How has that cavity been through multiple rounds? Does it get junk built up in it and how is it to clean?

Also, how does this drive compare to the FT Optiforce? I've gotten a chance to swing both, albeit the SLDR just a few times at a golf shop, and I am just wondering how they compared for the people that have swung both.

Keep it up guys, you are all doing a great job!

Keeping the cavity clean is going to depend on your playing conditions. If it's wet out, grass is going to get in there, but I have been able to clean mine out with a towel on the course. If dirt gets in there, a brush will probably be needed. If you are one to keep tinkering with the weight, keeping the track it slides on along with the cavity itself clean is going to be important. I have not come across any issues yet. As for comparing it to the Optiforce, I have not hit that driver so I can't add anything there.