Equipment
Six players switch to TaylorMade’s R1 Black in Memphis
In the days leading up to the start of the FedEx St. Jude Classic, golf fans were treated to a fury of buzz about the debut of TaylorMade’s new R1 Black driver.
“Who was testing it?,” they wondered. And was anyone going to switch?
PGA Tour players are guilty of being some of worst window shoppers on the planet. They look, they touch, they test and they might even take a club home with them. But for most players, the commitment level to a new product, especially in its debut week, is very low.
That’s why we’re shocked that six PGA Tour players decided to put the R1 Black driver in play this week in Memphis, a club that is virtually identical to the R1 White drivers that the players have been using in 2013. The only difference is that the R1 Black has a glossy black-painted crown, while the R1 White has a matte white-painted crown. The players who made the switch this week are:
- Dustin Johnson: Loft (10.5), Shaft (Fujikura Fuel 2.0X), Length (45.75 inches), Sole Plate (Neutral), Weights (7 heel, 7 toe).
- Brian Gay: Loft (9.5), Shaft (Oban Kiyoshi Purple 65X), Length (45.75 inches), Sole Plate (O1), Weights (6 heel, 6 toe).
- Robert Allenby: Specs coming
- Peter Hanson: Loft (8.75 degrees), Shaft (UST Miyama Accra 65X), Weights (7 heel, 8 toe) Sole plate (O2).
- Scott Verplank: Specs coming
- Casey Wittenberg: Specs coming
With the exception of Wittenberg, every player who made the switch to an R1 Black made the cut in Memphis.
Gay’s reason for the change was the most unusual. During testing on Trackman, he saw an 2-mph increase of club head speed with the R1 Black. While no two drivers are ever exactly the same, Gay had the drivers dialed into the exact same specs as his R1 White driver that he used to win this year’s Humana Challenge, making the increased performance even more baffling.
Charlie Kautz, TaylorMade’s social media manager, said that it’s tough to point to an exact reason for Gay’s faster club head speed with the R1 Black, but it’s not unheard of.
“If the visual cues of R1 Black naturally inspire faster swing speed/ball speed for Brian and he picks up a few yards, the analytical testing on Trackman is completely worthwhile,” he said. “And, you could argue, necessary, to evaluate which driver is better beyond just looks.”
There were 26 of TaylorMade’s R1 White drivers used in Round 1 of FedEx St. Jude Classic for a total of 32 R1’s in the field. That means that nearly 19 percent of R1 users decided to tee it up with TaylorMade’s black version.
We expect that number to grow as the year goes on, as several other players such as Brandt Snedeker (Click here to see photos of him testing the driver), Sean O’Hair, Chad Campbell, Boo Weekly, Matt Bettencourt and Ken Duke all tested the R1 Black but decided not to put it in play this week.
Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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Peter Malnati WITB 2025 (August)
Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here. Driver: Titleist...
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Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting) Buy here. Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX 3-wood: Titleist...
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Camilo Villegas WITB accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. Villegas was undecided on a 3-wood when we shot his bag. ...
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leftright
Dec 31, 2014 at 10:48 pm
I rest my case. I get tired of telling everyone “I told you so.”
Dunno, Jack
Jun 13, 2013 at 8:10 am
Cool. Does anyone know if this new black version will come in white?
John
Aug 26, 2014 at 12:33 pm
Yeah, i heard it’ll be released as soon as they’ve implemented their revolutionary I.C.T (Inverted Color Technology). Apparently it’s gonna change the game and give all of us 17 extra inches and a stiffer shaft..
Jack
Jun 9, 2013 at 11:21 pm
Good job TMag! You found a new way to make drivers obsolete without even coming out with “new tech”. Great.
Austin
Jun 9, 2013 at 12:06 pm
back in black. I hated the white look. will be testing taylormade product again when I am ready to buy this fall.
Greg
Jun 9, 2013 at 5:36 am
I have ordered my black R1 and can’t wait. White just didn’t suite my eye at address. Having the options to dial in the loft and face angle should help my driving ability and accuracy.
erkr
Jun 9, 2013 at 2:41 am
The white looks better. It is what makes R1 stand out
1puttwoods
Jun 8, 2013 at 9:24 pm
I find it interesting that Brian Gay and his 103 mph swing speed play an x flex….
Blanco
Jun 8, 2013 at 10:18 pm
The folks at UST Miyama Accra must be stoked.
Taylormade Rep
Jun 9, 2013 at 9:36 pm
at 103 mph your supposed to play x, or you can play taylormade TP S which is the same as x. Get your facts right
Kmax™
Jun 8, 2013 at 5:41 pm
Didnt Sneds put the black R1 in the bag too?
URNS
Jun 8, 2013 at 2:45 pm
The shiny finish is more aerodynamic, whipping through the air, rather than the matt finish which causes more friction as it is not as smooth.
Burddz
Jun 9, 2013 at 10:52 pm
Pure genius…
jgpl001
Jun 10, 2013 at 5:34 pm
Don’t be stupid – everyone know it’s due to TM’s new reverse, inverted R bi-concial cone, cold melted, plasma arc, seam free Molybdenum oxide face
You need to keep up with the new technology man..
PS I hear there is a new green TP “B” version on the way next week with an interchangable sole
Can’t wait and it’s only $1199 on special order!
I just wish TM would get lost and stop the nonsense
Jake A
Jun 18, 2013 at 7:24 pm
So every manufacture does that, it doesn’t mean there not high quality equipment….that’s why Justin rose just won the us open, so get out of here, you don’t know anything about golf you dumb*^%, every manufacture has to advertise some way
MFB
Jun 8, 2013 at 12:31 pm
I am sure Taylormade lining a few guys pockets with money to play the new R1 black had nothing to do with it.
Launcher
Jun 8, 2013 at 2:14 pm
TaylorMade pays players to use their stuff? Get outta here!
Taylormade Rep
Jun 9, 2013 at 1:11 pm
all company’s do that
lloyd duffield
Jun 9, 2013 at 4:57 pm
i agree taylormade will sign and pay any old tom dick and harry to use there products so the public is brain washed in to thinking its the best gear on tour so u will spent your months rent on a shiny new R1 driver.
all clubs are the same and always will be its down to u wot u want to be seen using.
Taylormade Rep
Jun 9, 2013 at 9:34 pm
all company’s do that, that is the reason that rory maclroy switched to nike