Drivers Test 2015
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We kick off our exhaustive 2015 testing programme with the club we all love most – the driver. This year has seen a raft of new launches, all claiming to help you hit the ball longer and straighter. But with so many decent options out there, how do you decide which one to buy? This test has been done by four golfers of various abilities, from pro to a 15-handicapper with an average club speed. Their feedback and Trackman stats helped us decide which were the best drivers of 2015 – and which ones you should go and try.
Our panel of testers |
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James RidyardHandicap: Pro |
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Joel TadmanHandicap: 4 |
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Joel CunninghamHandicap: 8 |
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Robin HopkinsHandicap: 15 |
How We Tested The 29 Drivers |
Our testing panel includes two readers, equipment editor Joel Tadman and TG pro James Ridyard, from the Bedford Golf Club. James is a qualified club fitter, an expert in the laws of ball flight and has no brand affiliation, ensuring he offers honest and uncompromised club advice so you know which are the best drivers for you! Our driver test took place over three days in one of The Belfry’s custom-fitting bays using a Trackman launch monitor. We based our rankings out of 10 on opinion, feel and fact.
We recorded the distance and dispersion of each drive, and noted how far each shot finished away from the player’s best drive. We then took an average and gave it a rating out of 10 using a sliding scale. Performance was given double the weighting when creating the overall mark. |
Who Took Part |
We invited all major manufacturers to be involved in our test, and gave them the chance to come along on the first morning and fit our testers. James was also on hand to fit the optimum loft, lie and shaft spec to each tester based on their swing characteristics. Manufacturers supplied us with an array of lofts with shafts that incur no upcharge at retail from all the 2015 models they wished to be included. |
The Results |
MD Golf Superfit |
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Yonex XP |
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Adams XTD |
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Yonex Z- Force |
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Benross Speed 10 |
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Mizuno JPX-850 |
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Cobra Fly-Z/Fly-Z+ |
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Wilson Staff D200 |
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Callaway XR |
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Bridgestone J715 |
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Srixon Z545 |
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Titleist 915 |
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Callaway Big Bertha Alpha 815 |
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TaylorMade R15 |