Tour Xander Schauffele testing the Callaway Ti 340 mini driver & the DUW - 2024 RBC Heritage

[adamwon84]

well well well.....looks like the big 3 are all going to have a mini driver/2 wood option....interesting 

[apex523]

whoaa

[RoyalMustang]

4 hours ago, bcflyguy1 said:

Theory on this is that as elite players as a demographic get faster and longer, they're using that 12*-16* club type off the tee far more often than long approaches than was the case even a decade ago. Mini-driver type clubs are a more useful tool in that slot than a traditional fairway wood, at least for some.

 

yeah, I can see that. 

 

On my course, from the tips, there is trouble right at 310 on several holes. When they built it, it was probably out of range for most. Now, better players should perhaps lay up at 280-290.  It's easier to get home in two from 240 from the fairway than 215 from the bunker!

 

That's the sweet spot for one of these mini clubs. 

[leftyb]

The ONLY pic I want to see is face depth...and nothing....

[billyspan]

Oh the Brassie War begins...

 

Snead would be proud.

[tj7644]

send me the DUW right now!!    I want that baby

[EaglesGolf99]

340...... Hello Driver replacement! I love 350-380cc Driver heads. If it's light enough to play at 46" I know what I'll be eyeing for the foreseeable future. 

[JungleJimbo]

 

 

[TheMoneyShot]

Old JW says these are just prototypes and that they will never be released…

[EaglesGolf99]

11 minutes ago, TheMoneyShot said:

Old JW says these are just prototypes and that they will never be released…

That 340 has what looks like finished graphics. I hope it makes it through to the other side. 

[Valtiel]

37 minutes ago, JungleJimbo said:

 

 

"But, as a card carrying member of the roll back the ball club, it has me wondering why if the ball is being rolled back, why driver heads can’t be made smaller for professionals."

It makes my eye twitch that ostensibly "senior" people in the industry keep asking questions like this as though the answer hasn't been abundantly clear for years now. The size rule was already set, the entire driver side of the equipment industry has been based around it for decades now, and changing it would mean a significant equipment bifurcation that would be extremely disruptive to a hard goods industry that already doesn't have great margins. Also with how good the pros are they would simply adapt and we'd see minimal if any changes long term for the cost of pissing off the entire equipment industry. 

So yes, as a "card carrying member" of one bad idea, it's not shocking that you also believe in a second, even worse idea. 
 

[TheMoneyShot]

2 minutes ago, EaglesGolf99 said:

That 340 has what looks like finished graphics. I hope it makes it through to the other side. 

Me too!  It wouldn’t be the first time he has been wrong about a club being released.  

[jds101086]

Damn, 8 pictures of the sole and not one of the face or address.

[elwhippy]

Both look fantastic. Please bring these to retail.

[RogerinNewZealand]

13 hours ago, SJL1216 said:

Would DUW mean Draw Utility Wood because of the heel weight?

Dastardly! Utility Wood speed limited to 130mph Swingers ....so 275 yards

[jblough99]

Face pics of the mini from one of the other threads.

 

Edited April 17 by jblough99

[geauxWRX]

Can we get the triple diamond max driver to retail already?

[dcmidnight]

Yeah....I've seen this movie before...

 

"We are absolutely never bringing these to retail"

 

(sees response on social media)

 

"We are probably not bringing these to retail"

 

(sees continued response on social media)

 

"These will never be available to the consumer"

 

(response on social media wont stop)

 

"TEN MORE SLEEPS GUYS, WE CANT WAIT FOR YOU TO GET ONE OF THESE FOR YOURSELF"

[Scootre]

I like the retro branding Taylor Made has done for their "Mini."

 

Hoping Callaway would do the same and bring out a BB Hawkeye inspired mini driver. Or if they had the "courage", C4. Lol

[third-times-a-charm]

55 minutes ago, geauxWRX said:

Can we get the triple diamond max driver to retail already?

No, you'll get 14 more tour only models of random engineering ideas and you'll like it!

[tbowles411]

1 hour ago, dcmidnight said:

Yeah....I've seen this movie before...

 

"We are absolutely never bringing these to retail"

 

(sees response on social media)

 

"We are probably not bringing these to retail"

 

(sees continued response on social media)

 

"These will never be available to the consumer"

 

(response on social media wont stop)

 

"TEN MORE SLEEPS GUYS, WE CANT WAIT FOR YOU TO GET ONE OF THESE FOR YOURSELF"

Pretty much.  They seed the pics to gauge interest.  That's how the TM mini driver hype started.  Any self-respecting company won't let a competitor be the only game in town.  🙂

[BagofToast]

11 hours ago, TheMoneyShot said:

Old JW says these are just prototypes and that they will never be released…

Because everything he says is true...

[QuigleyDU]

12 hours ago, JungleJimbo said:

 

 

The reason Mister Ryan. Is that for the tour guys. a smaller driver head would make almost zero difference. But for us flat landers it would make it more difficult. 

[Stoc]

[Valtiel]

2 hours ago, Stoc said:

[gvogel]

15 hours ago, jds101086 said:

Damn, 8 pictures of the sole and not one of the face or address.

I agree.  Until I have seen a picture at address, I really can't form an opinion.

[gvogel]

It would seem that TaylorMade, having made a few iterations of mini drivers, has settled on around 300 cc as big enough to play nicely off the tee, and just small enough to hit off the fairway for a player of sufficient talent.

 

The Titleist might be a bit too small, and the Callaway too big to accommodate both parameters.  We shall see.

[eric61]

Interesting comments from Marty Jertson on this YouTube video, where he talks about how he replaced his 3W with a 12 degree driver playing 42.75”. I also saw the reports about Tony Finau swapping his 3W for a second, shorter driver at Augusta. 
 

Makes me wonder if @PING might consider going down this route too.

 

I’d love to see all the OEMs release something like this to the general public. Seems like an area that’s really ripe for innovation, whereas the major OEMs’ fairway wood shapes haven’t changed a ton over the last few generations.

[JungleJimbo]

 

 

[xxio]

Big Bertha Mini

Edited April 18 by xxio