the wife just bought me one for my birthday, hit a half a buck last night and could actually draw it slightly at will....have never been able to do that, maybe i can pich up a couple of yards from roll now.
I've had it for about 4 weeks, and am loving it. I have the 10.5 Degree Loft (I've never been one to have much back spin on my drives, nor do I sky them as some of my fellow golfing companions do) with the stiff shaft.
I've never hit more fairways in my life, and do so now with a beautiful looking draw. Distance is still not my friend though, as I still max out at about 265-270 yards, and average about 240-250. Still farther than what I hit with my old driver, but I feel it may have been a mistake to get the stiff shaft.
I hit a lot better with the R5. But I do have to say I did not know the setup configuration of the demo R7. But the R7 is definitely head heavy. My friend who tried them out for 2 days also agrees with me on the head heaviness.
I've had it for about 4 weeks, and am loving it. I have the 10.5 Degree Loft (I've never been one to have much back spin on my drives, nor do I sky them as some of my fellow golfing companions do) with the stiff shaft.
I've never hit more fairways in my life, and do so now with a beautiful looking draw. Distance is still not my friend though, as I still max out at about 265-270 yards, and average about 240-250. Still farther than what I hit with my old driver, but I feel it may have been a mistake to get the stiff shaft.
I just reviewed the R7/R5's this weekend. Here's my review:
PREFACE: I don't need to preface the R7/R5 series. Everyone knows about their tour performance, and the success of this club. I was very curious to see if the weight changes would actually work on the course, and see what the hype is all about. I did notice the Taylor made rep did not have any 580-series drivers at all - obviously, they're marketing the R7/R5's, and getting ready to phase out the 580 series.
APPEARANCE: I loved the appearance of the R7. I'm an engineer by schooling, and I find beauty in mechanically-crafted items like the R7. It looks modern, purposeful, and very technical, with it's weight ports. Some people find this a gimmicky solution (like the Callaway folks!), but I like the concept of changing weights to suit your swing.
FEEL/PERFORMANCE: Ta-DA! The R7 "Tour" TP with a Fujikura 757 shaft was ROCKING for me in the morning! I was smashing drives straight, long, and perfectly straight! I have no idea what combination was working for me (the drivers was setup in the "neutral" weighting configuration), but I absolutely loved it. I tried a couple of other R7's with different weight port configurations, but they all seems to perform very well for me. One of the drivers in a "fade" configuration was not working well, which lead me to believe that yes - the weight port concept actually works!
R5 Neutral - I liked this club very much, the feeling at impact, sound, and distance/performance seems very good, but I did find myself losing some drives to the right. If you like to work the ball, and want to save some $$$, this may be the driver for you.
R5 Draw - Awesome! This club hit straight for me EVERY TIME. The face felt good, the shot pattern was very straight, long, and penetrating. And………I couldn't slice/fade it. This club was fitting me perfectly at the end of the day, even better than the R7 TP/Fuji 757 combination I was hitting earlier in the day.
SUMMARY: The weight port concept is NOT a gimmick, IMO. I tested a few different R7's, and the two different R5's, and I can honestly say that moving weight around in the clubhead DOES work to assist your swing and product desired results, especially for a draw/fade bias. As far as high/low bias - I did not notice consistent results in this manner - my swing is not consistent enough to generate accurate testing data towards validating the high/low bias.
Sound - Moving the weight ports in the R7 does indeed make this club sound and feel different. If I tried the larger weights in the extreme left/right of the club, the club sounds differently. The R5's reward you with a very nice "WHACK" sound that is higher pitched, but very satisfying.
In short - Taylormade had a winner here. I liked these clubs a lot, and since my swing DOES change, I can see some value in having the moveable weight ports. Time will tell if the durability of this system will last, but it truly draws a lot of attention from golfers. Oddly, at the beginning of the day, the R7 TP was working the best, but at the end of the day - the R5 "Draw" was working best for me. ???
I think it is to gimmicky for me...I mean with the weights and stuff in the bottom. I mean the weight will help some, but if you're swing is off then the weights are not going to help your game or swing that much. That is what a lot of people dont' realize...the club doesn't make your game, its the person. If you've got a slice swing, then you're going to slice it with the R7 no matter where the weights are at.
To me its more or less like saying that because you got the new Kobe Bryant shoes, you can now dunk a basketball. If you're not tall enough or can jump high enough you wont be able to dunk it. If you don't have the correct fundamentals of the golf swing, even with this driver you wont hit it straight. And you're not going to hit it to much if any further, if you could hit it that much futher with this R7 the PGA wouldn't allow it on tour, because they have certain standards which clubs must follow. I think a lot of times people get to caught up in the hype.
Last edited by deronsizemore : October 9th, 2004 at 03:08 PM.
First time I played with my R7 yesterday and I was never ever as consistent with my drives than when using the R7. It goes where I aim it. This is my new driver for almost 7 years replacing my Biggest Big Bertha. I was always smacking it dead center. Couldn't care less with what technology or gimmick with this driver, all I konw it's working for me, and it's worth every penny I paid for it. I had it set up normal high, tried the fade set up but couldn't get the height. Will practice more so I can work the ball. Anyway this one is a
keeper......
SamT,
Nice review! What shaft did you like in the Draw? Stock shaft? 55 or 65 grams?
Iwc,
Yea, I know what you mean about the UFO. But you really have to try it. If you get a taste of what the Taylor Made has to offer, you may change your mind. I stayed clear of Taylor Made. But now I'm gravitating towards it!
I love the R7 and plan to soon get one.
I work at a golf store and have demoed the driver in many different settings and have been hitting smooth effortless draws to the end of the range. However, my swing speed isnt the fastest, so the stock shaft with its firm tip tends to give me a low ball flight even witha 10.5. I would like to see them come out with many shaft options easily accesible or maybe even a stock tip soft shaft.
Great Driver though. 5 stars!
September 21st, 2004, 07:29 AM
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