The Green Fee A few weeks ago I wrote a story on the new Titleist TSi Series. Ever since i saw the first picture of the TSi3 I wanted to get my hand son it and put it through the ringer. Well I finally got my hands on it and got to compare it to my current driver
Performance
I can sit here and wax poetic about all the different things this driver has before giving you the information you came here for. Simply put this driver is long. Its longer than my current Rogue. How much further? It wasnt a massive distance gain but it was about 5 yards. With the TSi3 ball speed jumped up 2mph. That doesnt sound like much but in the quest for distance it absolutely matters. Spin rate was about 100 RPM less with the TSi3. The TSi3 launched about a full degree lower than the Rogue. It makes sense though. The Rogue is designed with the weight lower and further back promoting higher launch and spin. That design may make you lose a few yards but it is designed to be a little more forgiving. I can attest to that with this test. The Rogue may have been shorter by 5 yards but it was much more consistent. The misses were smaller. The circle in the landing area was smaller as well. The best shot with the Rogue was closer to the worst shot with the Rogue than the TSi3 best and worst shot were to each other. The Rogue was more consistent but in the search for more distance its hard to ignore the 5 yards.
Looks and Feel
When you have been in the industry and you write about golf equipment it can be exciting to see all the pictures of the new stuff but it takes something REALLY special to mak eme tell my wife about it. She has heard it all and frankly doesnt care about the new driver so rather than tell her everything I only mention things that really catch my eye.
I have to say the initial pictures of the TSi3 got me to tell my wife “Im getting one of these”. When something is that hyped it often times leads to a massive disappointment. The TSi3 was exactly what I expected. It lived up to the hype in the looks department. The nice deep face, the rounder profile, the beautiful sole graphics, and even that weird face design all came together to create almost the perfect looking driver.I like the matte finish of other drivers but the glossy is also beautiful. I feel like I should have some negatives about the looks but I really dont.
In terms of feel, there wasnt anything that felt warranted a huge knock. The ball felt like it EXPLODED off the new ATi face. The club did feel a little head heavy but it wasnt a massive complaint. Hell some folks may even prefer that. As I have said in many stories sound and feel go hand in hand. The sound of this club was solid. Maybe a little hig hpitch but I wouldnt call it pingy. It would be a little better if it had more of a thud. If you can get your hands on some hot melt im sure that would help.
Final Thoughts
I know it sounds like I am falling all over myself to tell you how great this driver is but it is that good. Ball speed increases and one of the best looking drivers l have ever seen lead me to do nothing but talk great about it. When the biggest knock I can find with it is the fact a driver designed to be a little more forgiving is more forgiving should say it all. Titleist really knocked it out of the park here.