Equipment
Taking the 2024 PGA Show’s pulse
What’s the vibe inside the Orange County Convention Center? What’s the morale of the army in khakis and quarterzips? Is it eagerness, excitement, or quiet desperation from the exhibitors? What do we see? What do we feel beneath this high ceiling and overhead lights? Is this big beast of golf equipment, golf apparel, golf other…dying? (Spoiler: No, we don’t think so)
Do we see the same wrinkles, and onset of decrepitude as we have recently at this annual meet-up? More? Greater hollowing of the eyes, further faux smile stretch? Or are there signs of a new spring? Youth! Vibrance! The industry’s favorite “g” word (growth)? New exhibitors. Stalwarts increasing their footprints on the show floor, crafting compelling exhibits?
Everyone — attendees, exhibitors, media — feels compelled to take the PGA Show’s pulse, rising from the patient to discuss vital signs with those around them. The collective perspective then becomes a narrative swirl spinning further and further out from Florida, hovering over “the industry” as a whole, serving, for many (rightly or wrongly) as golf’s annual physical, writ large.
The consensus this year seemed to be the Show is comfortably well within the bradycardia and tachycardia book ends. Mild and moderate exertion were plentiful in the form of new products and dynamic exhibitors.
To drill down further, we chatted with our Resident Club Junkie and intrepid man on the ground all week, Brian Knudson.
Check out BK’s perspective, below.
What was the vibe like at Demo Day?
Demo Day gave us beautiful weather and what seemed like some added exhibitors on the massive circle driving range. It was unfortunate that the internet went down at the entrance for about two hours in the morning, holding some of the attendees out of the event until about 11 am. I think that delay might have discouraged a few people, as there weren’t as many people walking around.
What standout products did you see at Demo Day?
To me there were a whole lot of people in the Ping booth all day. A lot of interest was focused on the new G430 Max 10K driver, but I think equally of interest were the new irons. Blueprint T, Blueprint S, G730, and the i530. A lot of new stuff, but I feel like everyone was really drawn to the i530. Slightly larger than the i230, the i530 is still a hollow body, forged head with stronger lofts, and a hotter face. From address, the i530 looks great and should fit a wide range of golfers.
How was attendance on the show floor Wednesday and Thursday?
Packed. I was fortunate to get a few minutes with Bob Vokey on the second level in the Titleist booth and when we were done, Bob said “Look at that!” I was packing up my things, looked up, and saw one of the main aisles just packed with attendees walking up and down. I haven’t seen the convention floor this busy since my first few years at the show in 2017 and 2018. I also feel like there were more booths this year as the show covered more of the convention floor space. Simulator and launch monitor booths were more abundant and everyone was in them for product demos and information.
What were the major OEM displays like?
Callaway, Titleist, Cobra, Ping, Cleveland/Srixon, and Mizuno were all there with large booths as you would expect. Titleist had their usual clean white booth with their employees wearing the famous white sports coats. The Scotty Cameron display felt a touch smaller while every club they made was on display. Callaway had a cool sphere LCD display that showed off the new Chrome golf balls and next to that was an Paradym Ai Smoke display that actually produced smoke out of it! They also had a huge putting green where you could roll the new Ai and Ai Milled putters. Ping was very traditional with their booth, but they did have a separate putting green space to roll the new PLD putters. Cleveland and Srixon were combined with a new center aisle where they showed off the new Never Compromised putters and the fitting system to go with them. Cobra had an open-concept booth with a simulator and a small putting green to try all the new gear. Mizuno had a classy booth with a wood floor and tons of the new clubs there, including some limited edition blue Pro 241 irons.
Among smaller brands, who stood out to you?
Booths from smaller brands like LA Golf, Pins & Aces, and Paynter were just flat-out creative and cool. From red velvet ropes, that didn’t keep anyone out, to custom-wrapped trailers covered in product, they were just fun to walk around. Autoflex had tons of shafts on rotating displays and Shot Scope kept it simple with displays that you could easily get product info without any assistance. It was great to see T.P. Mills back with a booth and some of the other smaller putter brands like Makefield showing off their new flat sticks.
Any celebrity sightings?
I know some celebrities were at the show, but I either didn’t notice them or must have missed them on the floor. I did see golf YouTube and social media star Rick Sheils grab a breakfast sandwich in the media center on Thursday morning!
Finally, an important one: Best and worst meals of the trip?
The best meal of the trip was a great dinner with all the folks at Motocaddy on Thursday night. Just a perfect way to cap off the week with some great people and a tasty, medium-rare filet! The worst food had to be lunch on Wednesday with the guys from Edel Golf. The conversation and company were A+ but the $14 personal pizza was far from authentic Italian cuisine!
Check out photos from all our photos from the PGA Show here.
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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