Callaway FT Optiforce Driver Review - Forum Testing

Thanks. Higher torque could mean wider dispersion?

Absolutely! I have a SS similar to yours. But my swing is very short ( previous, current "injuries" ) with a very quick tempo & fast transition - and a light,"torquey"? shaft is death for me. A lot of people I knew had great success with the Amp Cell last year, but I really struggled with it. I did some research and saw the torque rating on the stock shaft was in the high 4's if I remember correctly.
 
Has anyone had experience with the Optiforce and CG Black driver?
 
So I got to escape New England for a couple days this weekend and played The Links at Gettysburg in PA.

This was the first round for the Optiforce, and all I can say is WOW! It hit better on the course, on my first time out for the season than any other driver I've ever hit, and better than it did in the store.

Good hits were rewarded with blazing ball flight, an un-mistakable sound and amazing feel. Mis-hits weren't too shabby either, favoring a loss of distance instead of control. Mine is the 460cc version with stock Stiff shaft. I couldn't be happier.

All in all, I'm very pleased, and for the bargain-basement price these days, the Optiforce could be one of the best deals on the market right now!
 
So I got to escape New England for a couple days this weekend and played The Links at Gettysburg in PA.

This was the first round for the Optiforce, and all I can say is WOW! It hit better on the course, on my first time out for the season than any other driver I've ever hit, and better than it did in the store.

Good hits were rewarded with blazing ball flight, an un-mistakable sound and amazing feel. Mis-hits weren't too shabby either, favoring a loss of distance instead of control. Mine is the 460cc version with stock Stiff shaft. I couldn't be happier.

All in all, I'm very pleased, and for the bargain-basement price these days, the Optiforce could be one of the best deals on the market right now!

There are going to be a lot of happy people who find these for $100 or less in the liquidation bins of their shops. Even when they were released late last year, my Edwin Watts guy said, "Why would you want to try that? Callaway only made one production run, it's already obsolete." I ignored him because I wanted to try everything and dang if it didn't surprise me. Now most of my best drive records at the 3 courses I play belong to one of the two Optiforces. Like 'em or dislike 'em, one thing you can take to the bank is they don't feel anything like the two BB's that replaced them. I'm keeping both my 440 and my 460 and we'll see how long they stay in the bag.
 
Yeah, the guy at my shop looked at me a little funny too when I made a B-line to the bin and grabbed it. Little did he know I had already tested it head to head with both BB's Xhot and X2Hot drivers. I will say the BB was a little longer, but I couldn't justify paying $250 more for 5 yards MAX.
 
I would be surprised if the Optiforce technology is dead and gone with Callaway. We shall see.
 
I would be surprised if the Optiforce technology is dead and gone with Callaway. We shall see.

I think I recall Harry coming on here at some point last fall/winter and confirming this. They had 3 drivers last year why not 3 this year with a May-July release!
 
I think I recall Harry coming on here at some point last fall/winter and confirming this. They had 3 drivers last year why not 3 this year with a May-July release!

I sent Harry a tweet awhile back when I heard the production of the Optiforce had stopped. I asked him if this was the last we'd see of the Optiforce and the technology behind it. He replied no way! So fingers crossed it will return with force.
 
I think I recall Harry coming on here at some point last fall/winter and confirming this. They had 3 drivers last year why not 3 this year with a May-July release!

There's been 4 drivers already this year. Which is fine options are fun.
 
I think I recall Harry coming on here at some point last fall/winter and confirming this. They had 3 drivers last year why not 3 this year with a May-July release!
makes sense the super light weight drivers seem to work well for slower swing speed players
 
makes sense the super light weight drivers seem to work well for slower swing speed players

I just got back from the range where I tested a Callaway X2Hot and Ping I25 against my two Opti's and mixed and matched the 3 shafts I have for them. Strange thing was both the I25 and the X2Hots were lighter overall than the Optis when mated to with their stock Diamana shaft (that I don't like). Go figure. I actually prefer the Opti's with a heavier 74 gram shaft and even some lead tape. This is counter-intuitive, I know, but it seems to work for me.

I found the Ping too light, almost like it didn't have enough mass to make solid contact. I did like the racing stripe however and I did think it was useful for properly squaring the club. I struggle to close my drivers at address. What looks square to my eye is really open.

I liked the X2Hot better and it behaved and felt more like the Opti's and less like the Berthas. It seemed to have some spring in its face, but I never pured one with that trampoline like zoom that the Opti's will give you about 1 in 5 times.

So the Opti stays in the bag for another week.
 
I just got back from the range where I tested a Callaway X2Hot and Ping I25 against my two Opti's and mixed and matched the 3 shafts I have for them. Strange thing was both the I25 and the X2Hots were lighter overall than the Optis when mated to with their stock Diamana shaft (that I don't like). Go figure. I actually prefer the Opti's with a heavier 74 gram shaft and even some lead tape. This is counter-intuitive, I know, but it seems to work for me.

I found the Ping too light, almost like it didn't have enough mass to make solid contact. I did like the racing stripe however and I did think it was useful for properly squaring the club. I struggle to close my drivers at address. What looks square to my eye is really open.

I liked the X2Hot better and it behaved and felt more like the Opti's and less like the Berthas. It seemed to have some spring in its face, but I never pured one with that trampoline like zoom that the Opti's will give you about 1 in 5 times.

So the Opti stays in the bag for another week.
Interesting enough, I recently came into possession of a heavier shaft as well and it is working great. Interesting to see you have some success with that combo.
 
Interesting enough, I recently came into possession of a heavier shaft as well and it is working great. Interesting to see you have some success with that combo.

I heard that several touring pros were doing the same thing, which made me feel not so stupid. Of course, most have switched to the Berthas since then.
 
I will be switching to a Bertha shortly but the optiforce when struck was quite the gem. The stock shaft never did work for me, so I had to get heavier and a shorter shaft. The Optiforce will be making its way to the BST in the next week or so.
 
Swung the Optiforce for the first time today, after reading the comments in this thread - was comparing the Cally drivers in the closeout area, and they had an Optiforce 460 with the heavier Diamana shaft - not the ultralight Project X. It's a really nice club. Wasn't as consistent with it as I was with the RFX, but my longest drives were probably a bit longer. I really love how the club looks at address - I'm looking forward to seeing what the next generation version looks like.
 
Swung the Optiforce for the first time today, after reading the comments in this thread - was comparing the Cally drivers in the closeout area, and they had an Optiforce 460 with the heavier Diamana shaft - not the ultralight Project X. It's a really nice club. Wasn't as consistent with it as I was with the RFX, but my longest drives were probably a bit longer. I really love how the club looks at address - I'm looking forward to seeing what the next generation version looks like.

Will there be another generation? That's news to me. I've already tried both Berthas and went back to Opti. Face feel just wasn't the same. The BB's are stiffer, harder faced. They clack on impact. I thought forgiveness dropped and I got no more distance.

I had two more "longest drives ever" with the 440 on holes I play a lot while playing nine yesterday. Unfortunately I hooked the other four pretty wickedly. So it's not fool proof.
 
So I just ordered the optiforce 440 with the mist blue 62g shaft to possible replace my rfx 10.5 with trinity shaft. Can anyone share with me what I can expect. Great deal at callaway preowned with additional 50% trade in so it will only cost me $90. BTW my miss with the rfx is a push right.
 
I just got back from the range where I tested a Callaway X2Hot and Ping I25 against my two Opti's and mixed and matched the 3 shafts I have for them. Strange thing was both the I25 and the X2Hots were lighter overall than the Optis when mated to with their stock Diamana shaft (that I don't like). Go figure. I actually prefer the Opti's with a heavier 74 gram shaft and even some lead tape. This is counter-intuitive, I know, but it seems to work for me.

I found the Ping too light, almost like it didn't have enough mass to make solid contact. I did like the racing stripe however and I did think it was useful for properly squaring the club. I struggle to close my drivers at address. What looks square to my eye is really open.

I liked the X2Hot better and it behaved and felt more like the Opti's and less like the Berthas. It seemed to have some spring in its face, but I never pured one with that trampoline like zoom that the Opti's will give you about 1 in 5 times.

So the Opti stays in the bag for another week.

By putting a heavier shaft it changes the what the original intent of the tech from Callaway was it is a solid driver and is very nice to hit to light for me
 
So I just ordered the optiforce 440 with the mist blue 62g shaft to possible replace my rfx 10.5 with trinity shaft. Can anyone share with me what I can expect. Great deal at callaway preowned with additional 50% trade in so it will only cost me $90. BTW my miss with the rfx is a push right.

That is a great deal and you'll be happy. The best part of the trade up is the dual cog Opti hosel adapter that allows for independent draw/fade/up/down adjustments

I played an RFX a few drivers before the Opti and so I'm familiar with them. I found they had a similar face feel, although the Opti's are softer and springier IMO. They were similar in that when you really nail one on the screws with both the difference in distance is shocking. What do I mean by this? I mean with most other drivers I've played, you hit a lot of "good" ones and they go predictable distances, and then you think you nail one and it goes maybe 10-20 yards further. But with the RFX (and even more so with the Optis) you'll flush one and it'll shock you with how much further it is. 30 to 40 yards further and you'll ask yourself, "Where did THAT come from, cause it sure wasn't me."

I couldn't ever get the RFX dialed in so that its miss was predictably to one side or another and this bothered me. With my 460 it fades and my 440 draws, pretty much regardless of what I do to them. So they're predictable and I can aim accordingly. I also think that lateral forgiveness and liveliness is a tad higher with the Opti's.

What that other guy said about putting heavier shafts in the Opti's being contrary to Callaway's design is correct. They didn't make them that way. I also play mine long in the shaft and I lead tape them. This extra weight kinda just brings them back to normal as opposed to light. It seems to work for me. I don't see what shaft Tadashi70 plays in his Opti, but I wouldn't be surprised to learn that it was 70+ grams in a S or X. I'll bet it's not stock and light. The 440 I play now weighs 335 grams overall and is 47.5" long.
 
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Thanks Mark. So you play it at it's length of 46". Did it take much time to get use to the difference in length from the rfx? Do you put the lead tape on the heel of the 440? I am hoping with the lighter weight I can get the face back to square a bit more quickly, if that makes sense.
 
Mark sorry I just re-read your post and saw you play it at 47.5. What did you play the rfx at? Sorry for the grammar.
 
Mark sorry I just re-read your post and saw you play it at 47.5. What did you play the rfx at? Sorry for the grammar.

I played the RFX with the same shaft at around 47.5". I've been playing this shaft for years after I was fitted for it. I bought several and had them tipped with different adapters. My results are better in some driver heads than others, but usually I'm always better than the stock shafts. I am 6'3" but have short arms so I play everything about 1" long just to make up for my short arms. Everybody complains about my long shafts and they must choke up when swinging my clubs, but I honestly don't have any trouble with them.

In fact, I just played my 440 (with this shaft) against my 460 (with a lower launching Fujikura Rombax in the same length) and the 440 smoked the 460. Every time I try this old shaft against something else, it wins. Shaft fitting and tuning makes more difference than the head these days. My SS is 105 to 108 and I prefer a low torque, high launch, regular flex shaft. Next up I've got a Fujikura Motore F1 that I'll be trying. BTW, I really liked that old Trinity shaft, you might try re-tipping it.

Interestingly, the Callaway tip adapter system makes for a much longer metal neck in their driver heads than with TMag or Ping. If I take the same shaft and mate it to a TMag tip, the shaft must be cut about 1/2 to 3/4" LONGER than when mated to a Callaway tip to get the same overall length because the connection point is so much higher up in Callaway than in TMag. I think this helps contribute to why Opti's play well at 46 standard length -- their shafts aren't really as long.
 
Have really enjoyed the heavier shaft I'm using in the Optiforce. Had a great day with it Saturday. Was played with a guy that was using a X Hot driver and was hitting it ok. He was an athletic and taller guy and I kept telling him that a heavier shaft might help out with his wicked slice he was having. So on 18 he grabs my driver after I hit and proceeds to hit it straighter and farther then he had all day. He looks at me and says, "So what's the name and loft of that driver again..." LOL.

I keep trying to take it out of the bag and I continue to keep putting it back in. I have an experiment coming with the X2 Hot 13.5 degree driver coming but it's still going to be hard to knock this out of the bag. I really hope that Callaway brings this driver back in some new fashion in the years to come. The sound and feel off the face is one of a kind and it continues to impress those that I let hit it.
 
I am having really good success with mine this year. I picked it up last fall and only had one round in with it until this spring.

My most recent round with it I got off the tee better than I have in a while.

While I'd love to give the BB a go, I just can't see hitting it any better than the OptiForce.
 
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