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TaylorMade SLDR Driver - Review Thread

SuperStroke
ArmyGolf said:
Sometimes all the knowledge, science, and fact has to take a backseat to real world results. It's weird and I don't really understand how it happens but good on you for finding something that works and sticking with it.
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I give a lot credit to my fitter for finding a fantastic driver setup for me.
 
blugold said:
I give a lot credit to my fitter for finding a fantastic driver setup for me.
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You have the 430 correct? What shaft do you have in it?
 
PhillyV said:
At first I thought the club wasn't. 7* and 8* launch angles had me thinking teeing it up would help. But what I noticed was my swing plane was so flat and then extremely over the top leading to all sorts of issues. A small stance correction and takeaway fix and I was back to hitting the high climbing ball flight I saw last fall
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Glad you're on track.
 
blugold said:
Yup. 430 with a 6m3
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I was looking at a black tie also. But the Motore speeder just works for me. I would hate to part ways with it. If I could come across a black tie tipped for the SLDR for a decent price I might grab it to just have and compare
 
PhillyV said:
I was looking at a black tie also. But the Motore speeder just works for me. I would hate to part ways with it. If I could come across a black tie tipped for the SLDR for a decent price I might grab it to just have and compare
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The speeder is not a bad shaft. They're nothing to scoff at either.
 
Tried yet another experiment today that yielded interesting results. I played 9 holes with the loft set at my favorite 9* setting and wrote down the yardages remaining to each green, ball flight, carry, and rollout if I could find the pitchmark in the wet grass. Then I played the same 9 holes again but maxed out my driver's loft up to 11*. The drives wound up to be surprisingly close and one was farther than a 9* drive by 10 yards. Wearing my Captain Obvious hat now, the 11* drives launched higher with less fade, carried further, but with less rollout. The results seem to tell me that I can arrive at about the same spot in 2 different ways. I'm going to try another 36 holes at 11* to hopefully gain a better understanding of all this as I don't have a degree in physics or aerodynamics. I'll have to figure out how to use this to my advantage in different playing conditions. I'm sure that over time I'll discover which of the 2 lofts is more consistent.
 
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ehamady.6 said:
Tried yet another experiment today that yielded interesting results. I played 9 holes with the loft set at my favorite 9* setting. I wrote down the yardages remaining to each green, ball flight, carry, and rollout if I could find the pitchmark in the wet grass. Then I played the same 9 holes again but maxed out my driver's loft to 11*. The drives wound up about the same distances from the greens and one was further than a 9* drive by 10 yards. Wearing my Captain Obvious hat now, the 11* drives launched higher with less fade, carried further, but with less rollout. The results seem to tell me that I can arrive at the same spot 2 different ways. I'm going to try another 36 holes at 11* to hopefully get a better understanding of all this as I am not a physicist. I'll have to figure out how to use this to my advantage in different playing conditions.
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Interesting. Carry is king for me. I love driver loft.
 
You should come on over to the MN/WI event that is coming up and jump on the launch monitor. That will give you a good idea of which is working.
 
JB said:
You should come on over to the MN/WI event that is coming up and jump on the launch monitor. That will give you a good idea of which is working.
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Can't wait till that happens here in Cali. Good times. See what this Speeder really looks like compared to my Kiyoshi and Iliama. Real numbers.


Tapping Away
 
My TM fitting is over. Not sure what to think. Long story short, it is apparently the hottest day of the year so far at Disney. I tore open my left index finger while warming up with irons. Not a good sign. I started off with the Red Tie and got decent results, but it wasn't the shaft. Hit a few bombs with the Speeder before switching to the TP, which was clearly the best mix of distance and consistent ball flight for me. Average drive was 260ish carry with 12 yards of roll. I had a very faint wind behind me. Best was 294 total with 30 yards of roll. I lofted up from 10 to 10.5, and started to really get it dialed in before I tore open the ring finger on my right hand. WTF? This is not normally an issue for me.

I am so glad this was a free fitting, because I ruined it by tearing up my hands.

Final thoughts: This performed similar (distance and accuracy wise) to the Bio Cell, but the head feels heavier and a bit more clunky for $100 more. I wish I could have finished dialing it in, because I was just starting to get a feel for it.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S4 using Tapatalk.
 
A quick question, to sum it up for me:

SLDR owners,

How much have you lofted up compared to your previous driver?
 
Castor Hades said:
A quick question, to sum it up for me:

SLDR owners,

How much have you lofted up compared to your previous driver?
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I've actually stayed where I have been. Haven't lofted up. Still love the heck out of it though
 
Just got done with my fitting at cool clubs. Tried a bunch of variations and found one that is just insane. So excited to get my order in.
 
fupresti said:
Just got done with my fitting at cool clubs. Tried a bunch of variations and found one that is just insane. So excited to get my order in.
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Nice Fupresti. That has to feel really good.
 
fupresti said:
Just got done with my fitting at cool clubs. Tried a bunch of variations and found one that is just insane. So excited to get my order in.
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That sense of "closure" after a fitting like that is the best feeling.
 
Castor Hades said:
A quick question, to sum it up for me:

SLDR owners,

How much have you lofted up compared to your previous driver?
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Normally 9* went to 10.5*


Tapping Away
 
JB said:
Nice Fupresti. That has to feel really good.
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Had a great talk with the fitter about this head that honestly made sense in light of the troubles people have.
 
9 to 10.5 ...gb
 
Castor Hades said:
A quick question, to sum it up for me:

SLDR owners,

How much have you lofted up compared to your previous driver?
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My R1 was set at 9* now playing a SLDR 10.5 i was also fit for a SLDR 430 12*
 
Castor Hades said:
A quick question, to sum it up for me:

SLDR owners,

How much have you lofted up compared to your previous driver?
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Not enough, apparently. I might need to look in to the 20* SLDR driver.
 
TaylorMade SLDR Driver - Review Thread

In playing mine at 12°. Which is 1/2° than my highest driver loft last year.
 
Castor Hades said:
A quick question, to sum it up for me:

SLDR owners,

How much have you lofted up compared to your previous driver?
Click to expand...

R11 8* to SLDR 11* (still testing)
 
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My next priority is to put on a better grip and build up the lower hand a bit.
 
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