The driver wars are always the most heated in the golf industry and 2019 has produced a bumper crop of big sticks. Given the sophistication of the available technology, the drivers of 2019 are the best that the industry has ever seen. Not only is the most advanced science used to design and build the heads, but the most exotic shafts are now available, nearly across the board, from every company.
We’ve said it before and today, and it rings truer than ever—There are no bad drivers, just bad fits. Everybody is a winner. In the battle of the ad campaigns however, this year, Callaway wins. By a mile.
Consider the Flash Face.
To gain an upper hand in a very hotly contested market, Callaway has gone all-in with technology. They acquired a super computer to design their golf clubs using artificial intelligence. This makes them the only manufacturer of golf clubs and possibly the only company outside of the aerospace or tech industries to employ this technology.
The benefits of using such technology come in the form of rapid prototyping. Callaway claims that the super computer went through 15,000 iterations of the clubface before settling on the one that is seeing production. To put that into perspective, a team of engineers at Callaway currently works with seven prototypes before settling on one to produce.
Mind-boggling.
Better still, the strange looking clubface is uniquely matched to each clubhead. The faces differ from model to model, they are optimized to work with that clubhead and that clubhead alone. They will be ineffective in another. The Epic Flash is that driver and it’s available in standard and Subzero versions, as with original Epic and Rogue (which will continue to exist alongside Epic Flash).
Beyond the revolutionary clubface, the computer optimized Callaway’s other signature technologies work in concert with the Flash Face for greatest effect. Jailbreak is back as with Epic 1.0 but slimmer and lighter. With that the new carbon crown saves just enough weight to give the Epic Flash Subzero a sliding weight track just like standard Epic Flash. The fitting benefits are considerable.
When making the investment in a new driver, one is best advised to leverage adjustability to better fit the club to your swing. It is what makes a good driver a great one. Callaway’s adjustable hosel allows you to adjust loft, face and lie angles to that end.
The stock shafts are Project X Evenflow Green made especially for Callaway, the Hzrdus Smoke and Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei Blue are available in weights from 50-70 grams. Apart from the Evenflow Green, these are the real deal; the same shafts the pros play. It’s a good selection and will fit a wide range of golfers. If none of these shafts is to your liking, then there are another 16 tour quality shafts that you can special order without an upcharge.
The head looks a lot like the old FT series drivers at address. Epic Flash is slightly longer from face to skirt, while the Epic Flash Subzero sports a more classic shape. Expect them to play differently from their Rogue counterparts; if you’re looking at these be sure to get a thorough fitting.
The cosmetics are going to polarize golfers who will either love it or hate it. The original green didn’t get the best response from golfers the world over and the addition of yellow to the scheme isn’t going to make a huge difference. But if you’re prepared to wait for that custom, no-upcharge shaft, you might consider a special paint scheme for your Epic Flash driver courtesy of Callaway’s custom department. The “black out” scheme is particularly fetching.
As the Epic Flash driver hit world markets, its capabilities have impressed the YouTube golf equipment vloggers, as well as the golfers who got the drivers ahead of us. My Golf Spy, a notoriously independent site in the United States known for its comprehensive, consumer biased, product testing procedures named the Epic Flash Subzero its Most Wanted Driver for 2019. The Epic Flash Subzero ranked first in strokes gained, second for carry and total distance, and had the highest fairways hit percentage in the tests. There is substance to the hype.
All the local distributors have launch monitors to dial in their drivers for you but only Transview Golf has a Foresght GC Quad. This device is unique in the world of launch monitors in that its four cameras are able to not only capture actual ball and clubface data (as opposed to data arrived at through the use of algorithms). This assures the fitting is as accurate as possible.
The one downside to all the new premium drivers has been the price. The Epic Flash twins are retailing at $550 on the world market and the local price will reflect that when they arrive in local proshops in a few weeks’ time. But Callaway isn’t the only one charging premium prices. The cost of manufacturing these ultralight, extremely complicated heads is considerable, and that cost, unfortunately, must be borne by us.
Are the performance gains going to be worth it? Join us as we find out in April.