Callaway Epic Speed and Epic Max Drivers and Fairway Woods

don't sleep on the epic max. i've been seriously impressed. my last round was seriously the most fun i've had on a course with a driver in over a year. that toe weight is legit, and this driver sits way more neutral than the mav max, at least to my eye.
100% Spot on. In some cases Max has been the longest of the three, especially for players under 100MPH
 
Epic Max has been a sleeper hit for us this far. Personally, I think the extra adjustability in a HIGH MOI head has been a magic combo.

I really love the Epic Max. Took it out today, on a chilly day here in NJ, no warm-up, smoked one right down the middle on the first tee. Proceeded to have a really nice driving round. Had my moments of less than stellar swings and less than stellar results, but generally felt in control with the Epic Max. And this was with a shaft that I hadn't used in years, but seems to work very well in the Epic Max for me (the Speeder 665 TS in my sig). I think I'll roll with the GD G 60 or Rogue White 60 tomorrow. Really fun, forgiving head.
 
Got out to a range with my Max LS today finally. Even though my swing is still very much a work in progress from hibernation, I saw some good things with the 15-20 balls I hit. With the weight in the draw position I didn’t have a single ball go mor than a touch right. As someone who fights the pull left/slice right two way miss, that would be a big deal if it continues that way. At least in the first foray, I liked the Tensei Orange shaft more than the MMT 60, but both were better than I expected. I definitely think this is a club I can work with and get some good stuff out of as I get more time and get it out on the course in the coming weeks.
 
Well, I did find out that an 11g weight from Billy Bobs in a 45 inch Riptide 60 R Epic Speed Tour Velvet Grip with an extra wrap gets me about a D6-6.5 swing weight. Ordered a Golfworks 8g weight (BB did not have 8g) to bring it down a bit. The 11g weight will work if I go to 44.5 inches or a 50g shaft, either of which may happen.
 
Well, I did find out that an 11g weight from Billy Bobs in a 45 inch Riptide 60 R Epic Speed Tour Velvet Grip with an extra wrap gets me about a D6-6.5 swing weight. Ordered a Golfworks 8g weight (BB did not have 8g) to bring it down a bit. The 11g weight will work if I go to 44.5 inches or a 50g shaft, either of which may happen.

i should get mine swingweighted, because whatever it is i like it a lot. that may help me make the right decision in a future purchase.
 
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Great round with the epic speed std today. Was able to move it both ways when I needed to and it’s long. Ventus blue Velocore won out and I’m pretty sure this will stay in the bag all season. First few indoor and outdoor range sessions didn’t seem to gain much distance over the Mavrik but as I’m learning how to find the middle of the face a bit more, I’m seeing a bit more distance.
 
Epic Max is draw-biased to a point for sure but as you said probably not as much as previous models. I think they really nailed the shape and top line to give the player a square look all while making it easier for players to sling it right to left. Mav Max to me looked draw biased, E Max doesn't if that makes sense.

My eyes must deceive me. The Epic max looks a good 2-3* closed to me compared to the same settings as the Epic Speed head.
 
First real round today 65° with 20+ wind. Epic Max performed just “Ok”:
(Take this all day)
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i should get mine swingweighted, because whatever it is i like it a lot. that may help me make the right decision in a future purchase.
My instructor does some sort of voodoo that about D5 is a magic number:unsure: ... my Ping 400Max was D4. Maybe for slower swings that's a magic number.:ROFLMAO:
 
When I first got the Epic Max LS I wanted lower spin but was concerned about the fade bias. That turned out not to be a problem wasn't going right but was hitting a fade or straight ball on good swings. As the weather has improved with the weight in the heel the more confidence I got and the more I went after it I was occasionally turning it over when aiming a little left expecting a fade. Moved the weight from the heel halfway from the heel to the center. I then teed it up just a little higher and in my setup started to hover the driver head during my setup and takeaway. I have done that in the past including with the Mavrik Max but would all too often hit a ball that flew too high with little to no roll ( played the Mavrik either at 9 degrees or lofted up to 10 degrees occasionally because that seemed to help with dispersion) but still got the high ball. After demoing the Epic Max LS on the course I realized that for me it launched much lower than the Mavrik Max. Went with the 10.5 loft and left it there. Tried that on the back 9 today with great results and think the Epic Max LS is just a good fit for me. I haven't in the past got a lot of roll but im already seeing some on fairways that are still somewhat soft and can't wait to see what this driver does for me on hot days with fairways with some roll and im hoping hovering the driver head at address and teeing a little higher continues to be a good combination for me.
 
Finished the last of the club work on my Speed and LS setups. Took the Speed down to 45.5", added 5g to the head, and have it set at D3, 9*, 1 flat. It's going to get a round or two at a time and swapped out for the TSi3 to see which is the A bag driver.

LS I'm going to try with the RDX Black and some tape for now, but it's in no rush to get played. Loaning it out tomorrow actually. Going to try it at 10* with the tape all the way back though and see what I get. If I like it I'll hotmelt it like that to take some of the crack out of the sound of it.

They've both been good, but distance and dispersion edge has gone to the Speed for me with just about every setup. And look and sound better to me.
 
I'm going to continue to come back in here and sing it's praises but high toe side on the Speed is stupid forgiving. It just keeps it straight when there is no way it should be in play. I've put some absolutely pathetic swings on the ball recently that hit high toe and I'm only punished with some distance loss. I'm rarely out of play with this club and it's been a revelation compared to the end of last year for me.

While I sing the praises of forgiveness from the high toe side, I still don't like the aluminum bat sound I get. But I can't complain when the acoustics aren't being tuned for high toe misses :LOL:

I'm still getting my driver swing grooved for it only being the beginning of the season, but I'm not scared to pull this from the bag and that's all I can ask for at the moment. And the times where I button one....ball go far. The Speed is a beast!
 
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Reading this thread since the release and following it , watching the Callaway Day on THP listening to the podcasts I think Callaway really hit a home run with this release and accomplished what they intended to with this release. Each driver , be it the Speed , Epic Max or Epic Max LS seems to really work for someone its just a matter of finding the one for you. Im guessing this is exactly what Callaway expected would happen. Clearly all three have the potential to be great for someone.
 
I'm going to continue to come back in here and sing it's praises but high toe side on the Speed is stupid forgiving. It just keeps it straight when there is no way it should be in play. I've put some absolutely pathetic swings on the ball recently that hit high toe and I'm only punished with some distance loss. I'm rarely out of play with this club and it's been a revelation compared to the end of last year for me.

While I sing the praises of forgiveness from the high toe side, I still don't like the aluminum bat sound I get. But I can't complain when the acoustics aren't being tuned for high toe misses :LOL:

I'm still getting my driver swing grooved for it only being the beginning of the season, but I'm not scared to pull this from the bag and that's all I can ask for at the moment. And the times where I button one....ball go far. The Speed is a beast!
My last round i hit one way out of the toe and said "crap, that's going nowhere". We got up the fairway and my ball was well ahead of my playing partner. It had no reason to go that far with that miss
 
My last round i hit one way out of the toe and said "crap, that's going nowhere". We got up the fairway and my ball was well ahead of my playing partner. It had no reason to go that far with that miss
It's pretty unreal isn't it? I wish I didn't actually use the toe so damn much, but I'm glad to know it works
 
First real round today 65° with 20+ wind. Epic Max performed just “Ok”:
(Take this all day)
View attachment 9001244
TBH, the Max is really Draw Bias for me. I took my 10.5* head and turned it down to 9.5*. That tweak opened up the face just enough to "Smooth Out" the "Hook" to the Prettiest Little draw you'd ever seen and I have the weight in the track pushed all the way to the Toe.
 
TBH, the Max is really Draw Bias for me. I took my 10.5* head and turned it down to 9.5*. That tweak opened up the face just enough to "Smooth Out" the "Hook" to the Prettiest Little draw you'd ever seen and I have the weight in the track pushed all the way to the Toe.

This is exactly what I have done.
I can still hook one every once in a while, but moving that weight towards the toe has completely changed this driver into a club with confidence in the tee.
 
TBH, the Max is really Draw Bias for me. I took my 10.5* head and turned it down to 9.5*. That tweak opened up the face just enough to "Smooth Out" the "Hook" to the Prettiest Little draw you'd ever seen and I have the weight in the track pushed all the way to the Toe.

it's so crazy how a driver can perform so differently for people. i hooked the ever-loving crap out of the mavrik max. but the epic max with the weight toward the toe was been fantastic for me, even without lofting down. i have weakened my grip, though, so maybe that's the reason. that said, i've hit plenty toward the toe with the epic max and that miss is more playable and longer than it was with mav max, i would guess because of moving the apw.
 
This is exactly what I have done.
I can still hook one every once in a while, but moving that weight towards the toe has completely changed this driver into a club with confidence in the tee.
With this new set up, I can just aim to the left side of the fairway and it comes right back to the center.

So for those that were "Fit" for theirs, like I said in a previous post, fit in the bay and actually playing are two different things.
TRUST YOUR EYES. If the ball flight doesn't look right, don't be afraid to tweak. That's the reason you bought this driver, for it's adjustability.
 
With this new set up, I can just aim to the left side of the fairway and it comes right back to the center.

So for those that were "Fit" for theirs, like I said in a previous post, fit in the bay and actually playing are two different things.
TRUST YOUR EYES. If the ball flight doesn't look right, don't be afraid to tweak. That's the reason you bought this driver, for it's adjustability.

This is a great comment on importance of fitting and working with a fitter to know and understand your game and needs.

During my fitting, the Speed is what I had the best results with, having a slight edge over the Max. But at the time, recovering from a back injury flare-up, I knew that I was going to have lessons and try to change my swing to something that was less punishing on my back. Knowing that, I chose the Max specifically for the forgiveness and adjustability. I had the standard Mavrik last year, and my big miss a bad hook. Starting lessons and changing my swing, I could not get the Epic Max to go left to save my life. Big looping slices everywhere. So in order to have something playable I threw the weight to the heel. Since then, I have had a couple more lessons, and am building my swing speed back up. Now that the slice is gone, and we’re back to the lefts, sliding that weight has straightened me back out, and I have a ton of forgiveness when I need it.
 
The Speed has a home in my bag. I lost one drive to the right today, but other than that it was lights out at the new length and weight configuration.

298 ✅
300 ✅
298 ✅
333 ✅
281 ✅
294 ✅
322 ✅
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300 ✅
297 ✅
266 ❌🌳
307 ✅


11/12 300y, even with the one that smacked a tree at 266. New course, lots of semi blind landings, and big trouble if offline, and I was aiming for every carry and turn without hesitation. The 281 was a bit of a flare on a two hole stretch when I was suddenly blocking the ball, but everything else was pretty steady on speed and flight. My buddy who has played with me a ton of times said "I think that's the one for you. Those are some of the best drives I've ever seen you hit." So that means a lot coming from him. He also thinks I should stop buying new ones now, adamantly, so he might just be competely crazy too! :p
 
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