Do drivers "Wear Out"

Webster

New member
Joined
Mar 24, 2010
Messages
47
Reaction score
0
Location
New Brunswick, Canada
Handicap
LOFT
This may have been asked at some point in the past but I couldn't seem to find it if it has. Do drivers wear out(lose their pop; however you want to say it} or do they just break(crack etc.). I think they do seem to deaden with use; but that's just my opinion.
 
I believe they do. But it takes a lot and frankly most amateurs cannot do the damage in the amount of time they keep their clubs. However off center hits dont help and over the course of time banging something, it could change. But metal technology is better than it has ever been and they make solid clubs. I have had my r9 for about 18 months now, play 4 times a week and go to the range almost every day. Plus it gets hit hundreds more times by testers in comparisons and hundreds more again during shaft testings and it is still as good as new.
 
Mine wear out. Their welcome. Ask my FT-i.

Kevin
 
Had my previous driver for 5 years and always liked it but it just seemed to lose it pop.

Before anyone else says it maybe its me losing my pop :bashful::bashful:
 
I think part of the problem is that it is perception as well when comparing them to the newest ones out there. Hotter faces happen every few years. Plus lets not forget that shaft technology has changed so much in the last 5 years and so has ball technology. Golf balls today are made for clubs of today. Not a huge difference, but it can matter.
 
I think part of the problem is that it is perception as well when comparing them to the newest ones out there. Hotter faces happen every few years. Plus lets not forget that shaft technology has changed so much in the last 5 years and so has ball technology. Golf balls today are made for clubs of today. Not a huge difference, but it can matter.

The only part of what you said JB that would apply to my driver is your reference to today's golf balls. Was 100% faithful to my old girl; never had another in my hands until I decided to replace her. It just.....I know I keep saying it but it.... lost its pop. Just a curosity thing on my part thanks for the input.
 
i have a bunch of drivers i swap around when i feel the one ive been using has lost its "pop"...
i think the main reason mine loses it is because of my confidence in it... so the "pop" is pretty much all in my head... i still have a 260 that i can absolutely kill but it looks pretty weird when a 3w's head is bigger than my drivers... so i break that puppy out when im feeling nostalgic on the range...

as for amateurs not being able to damage a driver... i think they do much more damage than a pro... pros dont chunk the ground... accidentally hit tee markers... drop them on cart paths... miss the face all together and put dents on the bottom... lolz
 
as for amateurs not being able to damage a driver... i think they do much more damage than a pro... pros dont chunk the ground... accidentally hit tee markers... drop them on cart paths... miss the face all together and put dents on the bottom... lolz

Agreed. I am just now starting to hit it more so in the center of the face... I've had my Burner '09 for only a few months now, and the face is actually no longer even (dented close to the toe) and the top of my driver has a bump... Odd, because after hitting so many off the top, you would think there would be a dent... but there is a bump... :bulgy-eyes:
 
Yup, they do. Over time the metal of the face will begin to fatigue and eventually will crack.
 
I have been using the same driver (Titleist 983E) for about 7 years now and I can tell no difference. Granted, I don't play nearly as much as some. Maybe 2-3 times a month on average for the year. But I do probably hit the ball a little harder than most, don't know how much difference that makes.

I haven't found anything I can hit better so I just stick with it. The few times I have played this year it hits just as good as it always did and is showing no signs of slowing down.
 
I think that there are basically two ways that drivers can "wear out": by having an exceptionally high swing speed and just beating the face into submission, or because of a defective club that got past "Inspector 12" at the factory. But under normal use by average golfers, I think you'd have a hard time destroying a modern driver.

That said, I DID manage to crack a driver face on a Golfsmith driver (a Ti-Compressor head), but I believe that it was most likely a defective weld that finally let go rather than poor materials or a "too thin" face. I've heard of driver faces suffering "dents" which is where the face sort of caves in to varying degrees, but again, I think that's rare and probably due more to a defect rather than a bad design.

Honestly, I look at modern golf clubs the way I look at brand new car models: I try to stay away from anything that's radically different for the first model year so that the "bugs" have a chance to show themselves and get worked out and THEN buy after that's happened. But with driver technology, it's rare these days to find something so radically different that you'd need to worry about that as most new designs are just ever more refined versions of what really was radical years ago, so the "bugs" don't really exist as much (if at all) these days.


-JP
 
I hope not. Found one I really like.
 
I got to tour Adams Golf headquarters in Plano, they have a club face testing machine that shoots balls at stationary clubs at 200 mph, they test a wide variety of clubs and said it takes around 2-3 million impacts at virtually the same spot to damage a face noticeably. So most golfers cannot wear out a driver through normal play.
 
mine "wore out" so im bagging my older sumo with the stiffer shaft... its getting hotter out anyways
 
I just noticed a crack on my NEW Nickent 4DX Driver and I'm about sick. I'm pretty inconsistant with it, however I hit it longer than anything else I have ever played. Not effecting anything yet, I just hope it holds on until I find something I like better, lol.
 
I just noticed a crack on my NEW Nickent 4DX Driver and I'm about sick. I'm pretty inconsistant with it, however I hit it longer than anything else I have ever played. Not effecting anything yet, I just hope it holds on until I find something I like better, lol.

let us know how that goes and if you notice a difference in your ball flight each round you go with it
 
I just noticed a crack on my NEW Nickent 4DX Driver and I'm about sick. I'm pretty inconsistant with it, however I hit it longer than anything else I have ever played. Not effecting anything yet, I just hope it holds on until I find something I like better, lol.

Dang due! Sorry to hear of the misfortune. At least replacement heads are readily available on the bay. Were you knocking the snot out of the ball or just happen to get a head with a slight flaw?
 
let us know how that goes and if you notice a difference in your ball flight each round you go with it

I'll do that. I'll also see if it will show up in a picture. It's a very small crack on the very edge of the face. May be a while before it goes any where.

Dang due! Sorry to hear of the misfortune. At least replacement heads are readily available on the bay. Were you knocking the snot out of the ball or just happen to get a head with a slight flaw?

Don't think I was knocking the snot out of it with my 90 mph swing, lol. I baby all my clubs too. I wipe them down and put the head covers back on after every shot. Must have just been a flaw of some sort.
 
Only broken driver head I have ever seen was just a few weeks ago. Friend of mine broke his FT-i where the composite body and the cup face are joined. Must have been a defective joint. Callaway replaced it immediately. I have an 8 yr old R580 that still hits the ball just fine. I play an R7 or Burner, but the old R580 is still fine. Has plenty of "pop" left in it.
 
I've never felt a driver wear out before because I usually rotate my collection before I notice any performance loss. I still have plenty of big swinging years to find out though.

Don't think I was knocking the snot out of it with my 90 mph swing, lol. I baby all my clubs too. I wipe them down and put the head covers back on after every shot. Must have just been a flaw of some sort.

I thought so but I figured it might give ya a confidence boost on smashing that ball. I'll have to keep an eye on my Evolver now to make sure it's all good. I don't know my #'s but I'm sure I give mine a stronger swing.
 
Sorry to hear that Due.

My '07 Burner is far from wearing out, but it has taken some damage. I let a buddy of mine swing it at the range. He topped the ball and now I have a nice size dent on the bottom. I was not happy to see it, but not much I can do about it now.
 
Yes, they can wear out.Drivers are designed for 10,000 hits which is many,but that number diminishes with range balls. Do not hit range balls
 
Sorry to hear that Due.

My '07 Burner is far from wearing out, but it has taken some damage. I let a buddy of mine swing it at the range. He topped the ball and now I have a nice size dent on the bottom. I was not happy to see it, but not much I can do about it now.

No kidding, I had the same exact thing happen to my 07 Burner. So, I gave it to him. then bought myself another one. I dont typically sell my old clubs, I like to give them to buddies that are just learning the game or dont have the money but love the game. My little way of paying it forward.
 
Do not hit range balls

I think that largely depends on where you are playing and what type of range balls. Many clubs use great range balls. Some use limited flight balls which are even easier on the face.
 
Back
Top