TaylorMade SLDR S Driver Review
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What we say...
TaylorMade’s SLDR became the No.1 driver on tour soon after it was launched last year. Its low-spinning clubhead required many players to “loft up” – generally after a fitting – while the £349 price tag matched its position as TaylorMade’s range-topping club. Now, the company has unveiled its “everyman” range of SLDR S woods.
The two main performance benefits carry over from the original SLDR – a low, forward centre of gravity contributing to faster ball speeds and less backspin and the sliding weight in the sole to change the draw/fade bias by up to 30 yards. But loft on the S isn’t adjustable – instead, it will be offered in higher standard lofts of 10°, 12°, 14° and 16° (the highest-lofted TaylorMade driver ever) and it will retail for £279. It also has a silver crown and a black back section to aid alignment. The driver sits between the original SLDR and the JetSpeed (£249) and has a lower centre of gravity than the latter, as well as an eight-gram heavier shaft. This should generate marginally faster ball speeds with slightly less spin.
“It’s no secret that high launch and low spin maximise driver distance, but some players think that only Tour pros can benefit from lofting up. This is simply not true,” Benoit Vincent, Vice President of R&D, told TG. “By lofting up, you can generate serious distance gains regardless of swing speed with SLDR S, which has a low and forward CG, along with a sliding weight that assists shot shaping.”
