Callaway RAZR Fit Driver

In the business world, sometimes you want to be the first to come up with something new or revolutionary to beat up the competition. Some golf manufacturers for example may throw in a high end shaft as stock shaft, offer you hundreds of adjustment options, paint a club head white and immediately you are a trend setter and add to the hype. I prefer those that take their time to do some real R and D and later come up with a great club. 

Callaway was not only late in introducing a hybrid in their stable but also in the age of adjustable drivers. May be they were taking their time to build one with absolutely no compromise in performance? It is Callaway's first face and weight adjustable driver with simple adjustments. Their slogan for their first adjustable driver - the Callaway "RAZR Fit" said it all - "Change your driver, not your swing".

Allow me to let you in as to who is using this driver - the longest player on the European Tour Alvaro Quiros used it to win the Dubai World Championship at the end of 2011 and his average driving distance was 310 yards. It is also used by Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Fredrik Jacobson, Stuart Appleby and Nick Dougherty. It comes with a nicely shaped cover with enough socks to protect the shaft.

The OptiFit hosel allows the face angle to be adjusted nto 3 positions of "O" (Open at 2.5 degrees), "S" (Square) or "C" (Closed at 1.5 degrees). Face and shaft rotation are independent so that shaft graphics and grip are always centred.

The forged composite head comes in a super sleek and clean design. The material is lighter and stronger than titanium which says a lot and save a lot of weight that can be strategically placed elsewhere. It is made using 7 million "turbostratic" carbon fibres that reinforce 30% of the club head. It allows engineers to control precise thickness to give the club head optimum centre of gravity thus a high MOI (Moment Of Inertia). This is the company that teamed up with Lamborghini on the Callaway Diablo Octane driver.  Watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqtUtwIZ0Wg

They use a speed frame technology, a combination of VFT (Variable Face Thickness) and hyperbolic face technology to create a larger sweet spot and higher ball speed across the face for longer and more consistent distances. A chemical milling process removes excess material for precision. The "streamline surface technology" gives the driver perfect aerodynamic contours to reduce energy loss from drag during the downswing by 27% compared to their previous driver the RAZR Hawk. This provides higher impact speed for added distance. The sweet spot marker on the face makes it look powerful.

The driver comes with two weights (12g and 2 g) in a tall face. Switching the weights shift the CG to promote either a draw, fade or neutral shot. You simply use the torque wrench to unscrew, switch and screw back. This driver looks aggressive (picture on top) but subtle (pix below). Its head is unique at 458 cc (usually 460cc).

Callaway drivers tend to have a muted sound but the RAZR Fit while retaining that muted property has a solid, powerful and very distinct metallic "tinging sensation". It is audible enough like a signal for you to know that is is time to take a look at your shot and watch it soar and disappear into the distant horizon. It can be addictive.

It is not often you get a driver with no alignment aid on the crown. A few people may frown but I like it as if it is saying to you "don't worry, just give it a mighty whack!" May be they are so confident you can play it blind.

The thing I like about the sole is that it makes your set up easy. Just place it and there you go. It has an aerodynamic design to glide through and explode on impact on an unsuspecting golf ball. Beyond this it does nothing to hit the ball but it sure look very good when it is placed in the bag and may I add that I have always love the look of black , silver and red though the red are merely accents.

It has the look of a pro's driver as it does not look big at address. It feels lethal in the hands and is begging you to just give it a mighty smash. I will be lying to you that this is the longest driver out there because there isn't really one. You driver length, correct launch angle, swing speed, shaft and how often you hit the sweet spot are factors that gives you distance. Todays' drivers are all within that "long" range.  Forged Composite material, VFT, adjustable flight are nothing new now but if what we wanted is consistency in flight  path and distance then there is plenty here and I attribute this to its OEM shaft.

This driver is one of the longest out there and will be as long if not longer than your current driver according to many reports. There is plenty of forgiveness and gives a solid sensation on impact and is a consistent performer with a penetrating flight. In range test, I found my preferred setting for now is a neutral face with the 12g weight behind at the heel and the 2g weight in front at the toe which gives me a straight to slight draw finish. At times, I felt I have absolutely crushed that ball but it never hit the net, just frequently hovered over 200m, dropped behind and ran. You will hit much longer with a proper ball on the golf course. Its forgiveness and weight setting can be seen when the ball is raptured into the atmosphere as there seemed to be some kind of auto pilot flight.


In Singapore, they always gives you the American spec and the Japanese Version (JV) or so called Asian specs. Take note that the JV specs may be suitable for slower swingers due to its lighter weight (50g) and more whippy shaft (Graphite Design) while the American spec comes with the renowned Aldila RIP'd NV shaft at 60g. The wrench comes in a pouch that you can hang onto your golf bag if needed.

Even the wrench is well constructed and has a nice grip making the change of face angle or weight switch a cinch.

So easy that you can change the weights within seconds and just a little longer if you wish to change the face angle.

I was given preferential treatment in a way that three extra weights of 2g, 6g and 10g were given to me and is stored at the top of this wrench hidden by that grey cover.

I chose a standard setting for a neutral face.

The American spec came fitted with an Aldila RIP'd NV shaft as standard. They proclaimed that this shaft is not just straight but straighter, not just long but longer. It uses the best attributes of both the RIP and NV series to provide feel, control and accuracy. I like its simple yet striking colour and graphic.

Golf Pride New Decade grip fuses the best performance of rubber and cord combination and is supposed to offer fantastic performance for all-weather. It is a velvet cord upper and rubber lower grip for feedback.

Aldila RIP'd NV Shaft

The RIP'd NV incorporates the best performance attributes from two of Aldila's most innovative shaft designs. The perfect feel and slim, stable profile of the NV and the unprecedented control and accuracy of the RIP. The Aldila NV with Micro Laminate Technology is the most popular aftermarket shaft in history. The revolutionary RIP made it the hottest shaft in PGA Tour.

RIP stands for Reverse Interlaminar Placement and it transform shaft design from the inside out just like how a person should transform - inside out. It is not Rest In Peace, may be so if I used it correctly to inflict pain and damage to my flight mates' game. Engineers using advance computer technology with exclusive materials completely rethink design and performance to provide optimum flex and torque characteristics with incredible feel. This is mid torque with low kick point at 60g. Great shaft!















Swing Weight

What I felt strange about is its swing weight. We used to play with driver swing weight of D0-D1 then D2-D3 while some are D4. This one is a hefty D6! When you move 1-2 swing weights, you may not feel a great difference but more than that and you will feel a much heavier head. Let me share with you on swing weight from an old article I wrote:

http://gforce-guru.blogspot.sg/2009/07/swing-weight-is-it-important.html

You will feel the club head through the entire swing which may be a good thing but it makes me feel like I have walked into fast food restaurant and just ordered a Whopper of a burger. I have never ever had a Whopper just like I have never played anything more than a D3. Will it serve me well or do I need to seek out a good club fitter to trim half an inch and thus shave off some swing weight is left to be seen. Or I could just replace the 12g weight with one that is 6g as I was told that reducing 6g would change three swing weight meaning it becomes a D3.

Conclusion

Any driver that gives you a dispersion of not more than 15 yards is a great driver and this one feels less than that once you ringed in the right setting. Once you have dialled in, it is not just long and straight but really long and very straight.

Adjustable settings are nothing new and TaylorMade's R11S lets you have 80 settings but Callaway has blended it all nicely into a simple, easy-to-use package. It has personality and charisma.

This driver looks like a best-seller for me. If looks can kill then this is a definite killer. It has the full range and the complete package. It ticks all the boxes. Looks - checked. Sound - checked. Technology - checked. Feel - checked. Performance - checked and this is its strongest allure. I think Callaway must have spent a lot of money and time on research to come up with this and at the end of the day this is what matters most, not just hype and buzz. You owe it to yourself to check and test this driver and not miss it if you are out looking for one. Grab it and smash it!
 
A beautiful and appropriate song from Foreigner which starts with "So long..."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7m6y6ZZRSOk

Golf as in life, play as it lies.

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