2021 Callaway Epic Speed, Epic Max, Epic LS drivers (in-hand photos)

[hawkgolfer]

12 hours ago, LowAndLeft32 said:

Ok what are some of the favorite shafts in 60 gram weight class for theses drivers? 

I love both the ventus blue and the atmos blue in this head

[SwooshLT]

1 hour ago, LowAndLeft32 said:

Thanks swoosh. Do you like the Tensei blue ck, av, or pro? 

 

 

Only hit ck and av.....AV far more stable to me.....never hit or needed pro

[SwooshLT]

1 hour ago, fishn said:

Swoosh I may have asked this before but how does Tensei blue compare to rogue white on feel? Looking for something with some kick, not sure about going down to im10 50. Thanks 

 

I've only hit rogue white in demo mavrik sz last year......can't give you much feedback except I would have the shaft choice if I had gotten the club. With my slothful swing , you'd think I'd be a great candidate for 50g shafts but my sweetspot evidently is 60g ....Tensei 65R AV blue is just that 65g and paired with this particular Speed head, I'm seeing spots only dreamed about .....CONSISTENTLY!  Not the occasional oh wow shot.....the NEW NORMAL! 😂😂😂

 

But yes rogue white is comparable to Tensei 

[jeffrey r]

13 hours ago, LowAndLeft32 said:

Ok what are some of the favorite shafts in 60 gram weight class for theses drivers? 

 

This is really a strong suit for Callaway IMHO.  As has been mentioned, you have some stock options from this current crop and recent years that are terrific.  Rogue White 60, Tensei AV Blue 65, Smoke Black 60, Smoke Black RDX 60, Smoke im10 60, MMT 60, probably some more I am not thinking of.  I haven't hit the RDX for example, but I have played most of the others, and they are all good.  Slight differences in launch/spin characteristics, to get yourself dialed in.  The new "mid" Smoke im10 60 is a very nice shaft.  YMMV.

 

Edited to add, and apologies if this has been mentioned, but it seems Callaway is now offering the 50% trade-in bonus only on the new Epic drivers.

Edited March 18, 2021 by jeffrey r

[LowAndLeft32]

On second thought maybe I should go a with a little bit more weight than 60 gram. My swing speed is 104mph. Seems like most are playing 60 gram shafts in regular flex?

[third-times-a-charm]

4 minutes ago, LowAndLeft32 said:

On second thought maybe I should go a with a little bit more weight than 60 gram. My swing speed is 104mph. Seems like most are playing 60 gram shafts in regular flex?

 

With a 104 SS? No way, stiff and possibly X stiff depending on transition.

[jeffrey r]

8 minutes ago, LowAndLeft32 said:

On second thought maybe I should go a with a little bit more weight than 60 gram. My swing speed is 104mph. Seems like most are playing 60 gram shafts in regular flex?

 

Sounds like you should get fit.  Not sure what experience you have with shafts and such, but we can't really help you, other than as was just mentioned, you should be stiff or x-stiff at 104ss.  I am around 95mph, and am playing stiff in the Smoke im10 without issue (but can move back and forth between reg and stiff depending on the shaft, head I am using it with, etc.).  If you can get to a store, like PGA Tour Superstore or Golf Galaxy, ask to hit some of the new heads with different shafts.  You should not have a problem doing that without charge.  Or get properly fit.

 

And as to weight, 60-70g, where a lot of the shafts we have mentioned fall out, is totally a good solid weight for drivers.  Just because it is named XXX 60, doesn't mean it is literally 60g.  Many of these "60" shafts are 65g or higher.  And I believe when I was checking Justin Thomas's WITB after his win this past weekend, he is playing a "60" driver, but very stiff of course.

Edited March 18, 2021 by jeffrey r

[third-times-a-charm]

The fine print on the Callaway 50% promo says "One Club Trade-in per club purchased". Does that mean only one of your trade-in clubs gets the 50%?

 

I just traded my clubs into Callaway but havent gotten my refund yet, during the first round of 50% trade in, and there was no notice like this.

[jeffrey r]

3 minutes ago, third-times-a-charm said:

The fine print on the Callaway 50% promo says "One Club Trade-in per club purchased". Does that mean only one of your trade-in clubs gets the 50%?

 

I just traded my clubs into Callaway but havent gotten my refund yet, during the first round of 50% trade in, and there was no notice like this.

 

Ah, I hate that Callaway fine print.  It is always so confusing, though this seems pretty clear and limiting.  I have never heard of people getting turned down for credit, but not sure about the 1 for 1.  On the recent 50% bonus that was handed out selectively, I believe the fine print was 3 clubs with trade-in bonus for each wood, so I did stick to that I believe just to be safe.  1 for 1 is quite limiting of course.

[third-times-a-charm]

1 minute ago, jeffrey r said:

 

Ah, I hate that Callaway fine print.  It is always so confusing, though this seems pretty clear and limiting.  I have never heard of people getting turned down for credit, but not sure about the 1 for 1.  On the recent 50% bonus that was handed out selectively, I believe the fine print was 3 clubs with trade-in bonus for each wood, so I did stick to that I believe just to be safe.  1 for 1 is quite limiting of course.

 

Yeah I did 3 clubs on the first round as well.

[fishn]

37 minutes ago, SwooshLT said:

 

I've only hit rogue white in demo mavrik sz last year......can't give you much feedback except I would have the shaft choice if I had gotten the club. With my slothful swing , you'd think I'd be a great candidate for 50g shafts but my sweetspot evidently is 60g ....Tensei 65R AV blue is just that 65g and paired with this particular Speed head, I'm seeing spots only dreamed about .....CONSISTENTLY!  Not the occasional oh wow shot.....the NEW NORMAL! 😂😂😂

 

But yes rogue white is comparable to Tensei 

Thanks

[dmeeksDC]

10 minutes ago, third-times-a-charm said:

 

Yeah I did 3 clubs on the first round as well.

They show what your trade-in value is as you make the purchase and for me that reflected the 50 pct bonus.

 

So if they pledge a number at the time of purchase, they will honor that number. If not, I would complain, but I’ve never had a problem. 

[third-times-a-charm]

10 minutes ago, dmeeksDC said:

They show what your trade-in value is as you make the purchase and for me that reflected the 50 pct bonus.

 

So if they pledge a number at the time of purchase, they will honor that number. If not, I would complain, but I’ve never had a problem. 

 

Mine was done by a customer service rep over the phone so it didnt apply like that.

[CallawayLefty]

Finally got to hit the LS demo today.  Compared against my Epic Flash Triple Diamond outdoors, no launch monitor.  Tried with both my trusty Tensei Orange and my newer Ventus Blue.  My initial take is that I love the triangular look of the LS.  Looks great behind the ball.  People say it is "modeled" after the TD, but I really did not see that at all personally.  Some similarities in the face shape, but that's about it to my eye.  Also for some reason little touches like making the chevron a little "shinier" looked really cool. 

 

Performance wise, I wouldn't say I noticed a huge difference.  The sound is very unique...has a very distinct "ting" at impact to my ear, as compared to the dead thud of my EFTD (which admittedly I think may have a little hotmelt in it).  Ball speed, spin, etc. just by the "eyeball" test all appeared about the same as the EFTD (which is a very long and hot driver, so this is very good as well).    

 

I hit some really nice drives with it and am actually already awaiting my order from Callaway (come on backorder...let's get moving!).  I'm hoping on the course it will prove to be a little more accurate, but we shall see.  I might hotmelt a little to play with the sound, but overall thought it looked, felt, and performed good.  Did not hit the others, but honestly I would be shocked if anything other than the LS would work either way.  

[Tree Levino]

Tried the LS 9* head on my Ventus Black 6x today apples to apples against my Mavrik SZ 9*. No noticeable increase in forgiveness, distance, feel, or anything. Overall, it was a bit uglier, a bit louder, and was slightly shorter if anything. Mavrik stays. 
 

My swing has changed a bit and although I’m generally driving it better and getting near to averaging 170 ball speed (that’s the goal for this season for on course swing) I have stopped hitting up on it as much as I’d like. So while the ball speed I’m getting out of the Mavrik is awesome, I would like a bit more launch. I think I’m happy for now and when the Callaway rep comes to our club I’ll try the Epic Speed head. Maybe the Epic speed triple LS could be nice too but it’ll be hard to find somewhere to demo. 
 

I’m swinging around 114 right now and I hope to get that to 120 this season. The issue I’m having is launch. So I’m sitting at 9-10 launch and consistently at high 160s ball speed with 2200 ish spin. Great numbers and I can carry it around 290 with that. If I could get my launch and speed up just a hair I’ll be carrying 300 consistently which is the goal. I’m also a guy that doesn’t turn it over super hard. My miss is always open face rather than hooky so I think the speed could give me a more consistent right to left shape and allow me to be more confident in keeping that path out to the right. 
 

has anybody actually hit the Speed LS triple yet?

Edited March 19, 2021 by TigerInTheWoods

[CactusGolf]

Went for a driver fitting yesterday and hit a few drivers.  I hit the new Titleist (couldn't feel where impact was on the face), the Sim2 (looked cheap compared to the M5 and didn't feel as good), and the Ping G425 (didn't like the sound and couldn't turn it over).

 

I was surprisingly fit into the Epic Speed at 9* set to draw and +1 with the Tensei Blue Extra Stiff.  Loved the headshape and feel/sound off the driver head.  I really liked the shape of the Speed over the Max or Max LS. I picked up 3-4 MPH of ball speed over my current M5.  I averaged 152 MPH with the M5 and got up to 158 with the Epic Speed with an average of 155 I didn't feel like I was any less accurate with the Speed over the M5. 

 

I didn't lose as nearly as much ball speed on mishits as I did with the M5.  I thought it would be interesting to post some of my data.  First table is from a range session with the M5 (Mevo doesn't do well on clubhead speed, but ball speed is very accurate).  My clubspeed was around 105, so right on the bubble between X flex and standard stiff.  Second table (shots 2 and 4 are mine) with shot 2 a terrible mishit and 4 a good hit.

 

I think I'll be putting in an order for the Speed today, but I'm still not 100% sure on the shaft.  I've been using the Riptide 70 in 6.5, but I might switch to a 60 gram version still in 6.5.

 

I wanted to like the Max and Max LS, but couldn't get over the triangular headshape.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 19, 2021 by CactusGolf

[Jaywh2]

Get the Speed. It’s super solid and a beautiful head shape 

[CactusGolf]

17 minutes ago, Jaywh2 said:

Get the Speed. It’s super solid and a beautiful head shape 

Definitely one of the best headshapes I've seen in a few years.  Ended up putting in the order a few minutes ago.  The 50% trade in helps!

 

Decided to go with the Tensei Blue over the Riptide since it is a slightly lower spinning shaft.  

[SwooshLT]

2 hours ago, CactusGolf said:

Definitely one of the best headshapes I've seen in a few years.  Ended up putting in the order a few minutes ago.  The 50% trade in helps!

 

Decided to go with the Tensei Blue over the Riptide since it is a slightly lower spinning shaft.  

 

 

My setup sans shaft flex! Lol.......Speed looks, sounds/feels and flights like the R510 non-tp 330cc driver from 17-18yrs back......reincarnation or back to the future? 

[CactusGolf]

4 hours ago, SwooshLT said:

 

 

My setup sans shaft flex! Lol.......Speed looks, sounds/feels and flights like the R510 non-tp 330cc driver from 17-18yrs back......reincarnation or back to the future? 

When I started out caddying, you looked for those members with the 510TP in their bags because you knew they were players.  Many of the members I caddied for had the 510TPs and a Jones Players bag.  Those were the days.

 

[sociojeje]

On 3/18/2021 at 10:31 AM, jeffrey r said:

 

This is really a strong suit for Callaway IMHO.  As has been mentioned, you have some stock options from this current crop and recent years that are terrific.  Rogue White 60, Tensei AV Blue 65, Smoke Black 60, Smoke Black RDX 60, Smoke im10 60, MMT 60, probably some more I am not thinking of.  I haven't hit the RDX for example, but I have played most of the others, and they are all good.  Slight differences in launch/spin characteristics, to get yourself dialed in.  The new "mid" Smoke im10 60 is a very nice shaft.  YMMV.

 

Edited to add, and apologies if this has been mentioned, but it seems Callaway is now offering the 50% trade-in bonus only on the new Epic drivers.

I love the new im10 60 too. It finally kicked out my old fubuki k. My ss is around 105 and got im10 60 6.0. I love how it feels. For those who tried rdx blue and im10 mid, how those two differ? I was hoping cally to offer rdx blue as one of the stocks... Anyway, for now, I am settling down with im10 60. Not sure about the spin number but it feels like low-mid spin with low-mid trajectory as long as I look at my ball flight. I think im10 low versino would be too much for me. Anyway, from last year's rogue white which I use it in my 3 wood, I love callaway offering these quality stock shafts! 

[rxk9fan]

Anyone else having to remind themselves that the sweet spot is not center club on the Max, but instead a little heal side?  Or am I the only one that this things it is not center of club?

[sbjinx]

How are the fairway woods?  Not looking to replace my epic flash TD but thinking of taking advantage of the trade in bo us for the speed 3 wood. 

[dmeeksDC]

19 minutes ago, sbjinx said:

How are the fairway woods?  Not looking to replace my epic flash TD but thinking of taking advantage of the trade in bo us for the speed 3 wood. 

I like the look of the Speed 3 wood. Currently playing a Mavrik Max 3 wood on a trial basis and it is easy off the deck but the head still looks big. The Speed looks like best for tee and turf. 

[jeffrey r]

I was able to get out for two rounds this weekend with my Epic Max.  Nice weather, finally.  Bottom line, I am pleased with the Max.  Coming into the weekend, I was favoring the Smoke im10 shaft, but I think the 6.0 is a bit too stiff for me.  Probably should have gone with 5.5 on that one.  Great shaft, though, and I hit some nice drives with it.   

 

As often happens, when I go with the shafts I should go with, things kick into gear. Felt more comfortable with my fitted Speeder 661, and also with the Tensei Blue 65.  Need to do more testing with my regular shafts, but the Max head will be in the driver’s seat for the coming season.  Forgiving, and easy to launch.  It was outperforming my B21 today, which I also brought out with me.  YMMV. 

[SwooshLT]

10 minutes ago, jeffrey r said:

I was able to get out for two rounds this weekend with my Epic Max.  Nice weather, finally.  Bottom line, I am pleased with the Max.  Coming into the weekend, I was favoring the Smoke im10 shaft, but I think the 6.0 is a bit too stiff for me.  Probably should have gone with 5.5 on that one.  Great shaft, though, and I hit some nice drives with it.   

 

As often happens, when I go with the shafts I should go with, things kick into gear. Felt more comfortable with my fitted Speeder 661, and also with the Tensei Blue 65.  Need to do more testing with my regular shafts, but the Max head will be in the driver’s seat for the coming season.  Forgiving, and easy to launch.  It was outperforming my B21 today, which I also brought out with me.  YMMV. 

 

 

Nice to hear !

[third-times-a-charm]

Wind is up right now, but still loving the Max LS. Been demoing shafts at the range each afternoon and as I hoped (since its a cool shaft) the Tensei Pro Blue is the current winner.

 

The Diamana S+ Limited was nice, but I lost it left quite a bit. The Tensei AV Blue tipped 1/2" is also a solid runner up. Going to play a few rounds with the Pro Blue and see how it does on the course in the coming weeks.

[LowAndLeft32]

57 minutes ago, third-times-a-charm said:

Wind is up right now, but still loving the Max LS. Been demoing shafts at the range each afternoon and as I hoped (since its a cool shaft) the Tensei Pro Blue is the current winner.

 

The Diamana S+ Limited was nice, but I lost it left quite a bit. The Tensei AV Blue tipped 1/2" is also a solid runner up. Going to play a few rounds with the Pro Blue and see how it does on the course in the coming weeks.

How close are the pro and AV shafts? Do you plan on selling the shafts that don’t make the cut? Thanks 

[third-times-a-charm]

4 minutes ago, LowAndLeft32 said:

How close are the pro and AV shafts? Do you plan on selling the shafts that don’t make the cut? Thanks 

 

Yes I plan to sell them for sure.

 

The CK Pro is definitely slightly more stiff overall especially in the tip and you can feel it overall while holding the club - even though the AV Blue and CK Pro Blue are both advertised as 68g.

 

I like shafts that feel very linear and stable so I have not liked 'blue' profiles in a long time, but this CK Pro Blue has changed that. I do want to try the Diamana ZF one day as its supposed to be a tweener shaft as well in that profile range.

[noodle3872]

Here’s the EI profile. AV and Raw profiles are the same. The CK Blue is the old OEM shaft. 

 

Edited March 21, 2021 by noodle3872