Screaming off the tee

The newest drivers use aerospace materials and unconventional weighting to deliver distance and accuracy. TaylorMade's r7 quad features four movable weights for adjusting club CG and ball trajectory. The cartridges install with a special six-point-drive torque wrench. The Srixon W-403AD has varying wall thicknesses throughout the clubhead. The construction lets the entire clubhead deform on impact, said to launch the ball in a high trajectory with low spin. The King Cobra 454 Comp is designed for players of all skill levels seeking a combination of distance, forgiveness, and accuracy. At 454 cm3, the model features the largest "sweet zone" of any King Cobra driver. The Wilson Staff Dd5 combines a lightweight carbon-composite crown with a titanium base. A large 460-cm3 head gives better results on offcenter hits. Of all the weapons in a golfer's bag, the driver offers the most power and distance off the tee. But it's notoriously difficult to hit and control where the ball lands. This has golfers on a never-ending quest to find the elusive club that will magically combine long drives with pinpoint accuracy. One hurdle is that golfers often don't strike the ball where they're supposed to — in the center of the clubface. Another is that no two players have exactly the same swing. To overcome these shortcomings, club designers increasingly rely on advanced materials to match mass-produced clubs to individual swings. The new r7 quad ht titanium driver from Carlsbad, Calif., gives users the freedom to change the clubhead's weight distribution and create the best impact conditions for an individual golfer's abilities. Typical drivers deliver a single set of "launch" conditions — the clubhead's angle, pitch, and weighting as the face impacts the ball. If those conditions are not ideal for a particular swing, however, the player sacrifices distance and control. TaylorMade Launch