I owned the FT-3 Tour and demoed (several times) the X460 Tour and found the FT-3 to be a little better. The X460 is a little more forgiving but I found it to be a lot shorter and I didn't like the feel of the club. The only reason I no longer have the FT-3 is because of the .5 open face. I usually slice pretty bad, so the square or open face doesn't work well for me. They both sound weird, with the FT-3 sounding like an aluminum bat (which never bothered me) and the X460 has a VERY loud metallic ping (which I never liked). But sound (in my opinion) is not important in a club. Give me a club I that I can hit consistant and accurate and I could care less what is sounds like. If the FT-3 Tour would have been a slightly closed face (I chose the tour for the NVS 65 shaft instead of the NVS 55 in the regular FT-3) I would still have it because I really enjoy the distance, feel and the look of the club.
Demo both clubs and see which one works best for YOU. Both clubs are very good and you would enjoy them both. Best of luck!
I extensively tested both the FT-3, X460, and r7 460 when looking to buy a new driver. I didn't like the feel of X460 and the X460 didn't seem as long as they FT-3 or r7. It was as forgiving as the FT-3, but with a harsher feel imo. Personally I like the sound of the FT-3 when hit, but not as much as I did the r7 Quad. Personally I've go for the FT-3 between the two, but you wont lose much if anything going with the X460.
I extensively tested both the FT-3, X460, and r7 460 when looking to buy a new driver. I didn't like the feel of X460 and the X460 didn't seem as long as they FT-3 or r7. It was as forgiving as the FT-3, but with a harsher feel imo. Personally I like the sound of the FT-3 when hit, but not as much as I did the r7 Quad. Personally I've go for the FT-3 between the two, but you wont lose much if anything going with the X460.
What kind of trajectories were you producing with each and which shaft(s) were in each club (if you can remember)?
Both had the factory shafts (10.5* NVS Stiff for the FT-3....Fujikura stiff for the 10.5* X460). The trajectory for the FT-3 was a bit higher than the X460. For me the ball flight on the FT-3 launched high and stayed high there for what seems forver. It's not ballooning and allows for about 5-10yard roll after it hits the ground. The X460 had a bit lower ball flight for me which resulted in more roll. The roll from the X460 came to about 5 yards farther than where the ball landed with the FT-3. All in all, their distance was the same...what really sold me was the weight, for me the FT-3 just 'felt' right in terms of the weighting on it. The X460 felt a little lightweight, but nothing I wouldn't be use too if that was my primary driver. All in all, both great clubs... let me know if that helped answer you question.
Both had the factory shafts (10.5* NVS Stiff for the FT-3....Fujikura stiff for the 10.5* X460). ... All in all, both great clubs... let me know if that helped answer you question.
Sounds to me like I'll have either a long testing period or a short coin flip to decide which one I'll like best. As I'm a high-ball hitter and want a lower trajectory, it sounds like the X460 is the better choice for me at this time.
A local club is supposed to be getting Callaway's Optifit Driver system in the next couple of weeks. I'll take this info with me and use it as a starting point.
For sure the X460 is the lower hitter of the two. I'm the opposite, I hit the ball a little on the low side, so I was wanting to get the trajectory up a bit. Netted me about an avg. of 15 yards (using the GPS at my home course), so for sure ballflight is very individualized. It might come down to little things like the set-up, weighting, and sound since the performance was pretty close to each other. Good luck either way though and let us know how it goes.
good point...my FT-3 Tour was 9.5 with the NVS Stiff and the X460 I demoed for a while was a 10.5 with the Grafalloy Pro launch 65 Stiff and the FT-3 was a lot higher trajectory than the X460. Just like pgonza2723 said the
FT-3 stayed in the air a LONG time with no ballooning, while the X460 (even with the 10.5) was a lower trajectory with more roll. Both drivers are very good but the FT-3 is the longer of the two and has a good feel and weight (to me anyway). The X460 is also $100 dollars cheaper and drives almost as long. For me the X460 was a lot lower trajectory (I have no trouble getting the ball in the air) which sounds like what you are looking for. I liked that as well but I just fell in love with feel and weight of the FT-3, so I bought it instead. Of course the NV shaft in the FT-3 wouldn't give you as much height as the NVS.
Hit them both and you will know which one you like better.
For sure the X460 is the lower hitter of the two. I'm the opposite, I hit the ball a little on the low side, so I was wanting to get the trajectory up a bit. Netted me about an avg. of 15 yards (using the GPS at my home course), so for sure ballflight is very individualized. It might come down to little things like the set-up, weighting, and sound since the performance was pretty close to each other. Good luck either way though and let us know how it goes.
Well... I got to try both clubheads in 3 different shafts: Grafalloy Blue, Aldila NV, and the Diamana 73... all X flex.
Here's what I noticed in the heads...
The FT-3 9.5 Tour seemed to hit the ball consistently lower than the X460 Tour 9.5, but I was able to square the X460 Tour easier. I think it's because the FT-3 Tour is a little open at address, but I could be mistaken. The sound... well... I liked the sound of the X460 Tour over the FT-3, but the ball flight of the FT-3 was much better, so I'll have to get used to the sound.
Shafts...
The NV was too soft for me. I hit a lot of high, ballooning balls with both heads. The shaft felt a bit whippy at the bottom as well, which I didn't like so much.
The Diamana 73, although a good shaft (duh) was not suited for my swing for some reason. Most of the time, I got a good ball flight, but the shaft seemed to give a little at the bottom, creating an occasional "balloon ball". This is weird, because it seems that from what I've heard, the Diamana is supposed to have one of the stiffest and most stable tip sections around.
The Blue was by far my favorite shaft. Felt solid through impact, not at all whippy, and I could lean into it without it giving out on me. Very repeatable and predictable.
Conclusion... my club of choice would be the FT-3 9.5 Tour with the Grafalloy Blue X.
September 12th, 2006, 12:14 PM
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