TaylorMade Mens R11 Drivers
Product Details
Pros: What do you want from a driver and this is it. Adjustable king, long and straight
Cons: Takes a big 3 hours to get used to the white and you will tinker with different shafts because of the adjustability
Bottom Line:
Awesome driver and bold move from TMag on the white. Now I am used to the thought of white I want to be part of the movement. White is in.
GolfWRX Editors' Review
R11 Driver review from Chisag
By Site Administrator
After hitting all the new drivers this year, finding what you individually think is the best one can be a daunting task. I remember when Taylor Made introduced the 510TP. I didn't think there was any driver that could come close to it's looks and performance. I play to a single digit index and I think if you take 10 others of similar ability and have them hit every new driver it is fairly easy to narrow it down to 2 or 3. But then it gets pretty tricky. Feel and sound is so subjective, as is the look at address. But at least performance is something most will agree on. So you now have several drivers that all perform very well and you have to choose which one goes in your bag for the season. Then there are those that simply do not have access to many drivers. That is where I think Golfwrx and members reviews can certainly help to narrow down your choices.
… Lemme get the easy part out of the way first. I am old school and had 2 persimmon MacGregor M85's made when I heard they were making their last production run of wooden drivers in the mid 80's. So I mean old school. I like plain and simple. The R11 TP is certainly not that. A white head, with a black face and a red sole plate? I know, and you know Taylor Made came up with the idea because you can easily see the PGA Tour players white headed driver stand out and there is no guessing what driver that particular Tour Pro is playing. And whether we want to admit it or not, it does makes a difference to us. When your favorite player is using a new driver, you at least notice. When it seems like the majority of players are using a white headed R11, it makes an impression and at the bare minimum, you are at least tempted to hit one. I looked at the R11 TP in a golf store with a multi colored carpet and it just wasn't for me. However, when I hit one on a grass range with a real golf ball as my main focus, a funny thing happened. I didn't mind the white head. In fact, I kinda liked it. Going back and reading the website I had to agree. "The contrast between the white crown and black clubface makes it easy to align the R11 accurately at address." It's not like my black headed driver was difficult to align, but the white head and black face does stand out and alignment is easy. And it looks good at address with a classic shape that is very appealing. I love the way the R11 TP looks at address, but as we all know, looks fade and you begin to just align the club and hit golf shots. So for those of you that think a white head is a gimmick, you are certainly welcome to your opinion, but it is functional and looks good even to an old school guy.
... OK, it looks good and the white is easy to get used to, but does it perform? Does the technology really work? I just spent two weeks at Myrtle Beach and the mountains of North Carolina and the answer is yes it does. I hover my driver at address so I wondered if the adjustable sole plate (ASP) would make any difference as opposed to a truly open face? The first time I addressed the ball, I realized I always set the club down behind the ball to get my grip and then I hover the head. I was very pleasantly surprised to find the ASP worked great. It is amazing that something so simple actually does exactly what it is supposed to do. Set in the O or open position the R11 TP looked perfect at address for someone that battles the left side. So I would advise the skeptics to hit one before dismissing the R11's ASP as non functional. I set the flight control technology (FCT) of my 9* R11 TP to the standard setting and as I expected the flight was just a little too low for my swing. Moving the FCT to "higher" brought the trajectory up right where I like it. I would say the R11 TP launches just a hair lower than some other comparable drivers, so keep that in mind when selecting loft and shaft. Finally the moveable weight technology (MWT) has been around awhile and especially if you have other weights, you can really fine tune your ball flight. As I said the left side is my nemeses, and the last thing I need is any draw bias but I can certainly deal with neutral. So I started with a ball flight that was a little low, a slight draw bias and a head I had to manipulate at address. With literally 4 twists of the wrench, I had a head that set up perfectly at address, produced a pleasing mid high ball flight that was straight to a very slight draw. Sweet.
... The R11 TP is as long or longer than any driver I have hit to date. Some may feel this is a given with the new drivers, but I have found when you find one that really works for you, it is hard to find another that matches it's performance. While I can't say I found any extra yardage, I certainly hit it as far as my last driver. I have no doubt that some of you with drivers not set up optimally, will find additional yards once you have tuned your R11. As I stated earlier, feel and sound are subjective. One man's perfect kick is another man's telephone pole and my smooth and sweet is another man's mush. This is the only area I was not thrilled with the R11 TP. The face has a very crisp feel and sound. I prefer a more muted sound and like to feel some give to the face. However, this same crisp feel provide an added benefit I did find quite useful. Shots hit right on the sweetspot have that nice crisp, solid feel to them. You know when you catch it well. Slight mishits don't quite have that same solid feel. Since I found the R11 TP to be quite forgiving, it is nice to know when I am missing it a little. It's a good reminder to dial it down a notch and make as perfect contact as possible. Mishits with the R11 TP do not wander far off line and distance loss is minimal as well. So while I still prefer a more muted and dense feel, I very much appreciate the feedback this head gives me. I also do not rule out the possibility, that with familiarity I may actually grow to prefer this feel and sound. I forgot to mention earlier that the black face also makes ball contact easy to see. So not only do you get the auditory and physical sensation of a slight miss, you can look at the ball mark on the face to be sure.
… The list of shafts that Taylor Made offers with the R11 TP is amazing when you consider most have no up charge, and even those that do are a fraction of the aftermarket shaft. A $380 Kai'li is available for only an $82 up charge! I tried several shafts in my R11 TP and it handled all of them very well. My favorite shaft is the RIP Alpha, but it produced a little lower flight than is optimal for my swing when combined with the R11 TP 9* head. Obviously it will be ideal for those that have a slightly higher flight than they would prefer. The RIP Beta worked great, and the smooth feel was a nice combination with the crisp head. I was a little surprised to find I liked the Kai'li even more than the Diamana Blue. If you like to experiment with shafts, picking up a few R9 shaft adapters for $9 makes it ever so easy. However, after all my shaft experimentation, it turns out the original Kai'li that came with the R11 TP worked best for me. Duh. It is a great combo that allows me to swing within myself and rewards me with the straightest and most consistent yardage. For those of you that still work the ball, fading the R11 TP is a piece of cake. It is a very easy driver to move either way, a little surprising because it generally wants to go straight with the right set-up.
… I expected to like the R11 TP. I did not expect to love it. Taylor Made has taken a gamble with the white head of the R11 TP, but the performance makes that gamble well worth it. If you think the white head is kinda cool, you should demo one. If you don't think the white head is kinda cool, you definitely should demo one. Then it will be easy to affirm you don't like it… but… I suspect you will surprise yourself and very quickly the white head will either grow on you as it did with me, or you just won't notice it anymore. And I know you will be happy with the performance.
Here is the origianl post where we saw the review... http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/471937-taylor-made-r11-tp-diamana-kaili-review/page__p__3208493__hl__r11+review__fromsearch__1#entry3208493
Product Description
TaylorMade Introduces R11™ and R11 TP Drivers
Introduction of Adjustable Sole Plate (ASP) Technology Marks Next Revolution in Golf Club Adjustability
Three Dimensions to Distance (3-D) for a Total of 48 Settings
CARLSBAD, Calif. (January 3, 2011) — Seven years ago, TaylorMade Golf introduced Movable Weight Technology™ (MWT®) with the revolutionary r7® quad, which gave golfers the ability to move weight to promote changes in trajectory for greater distance and accuracy. Again, in 2009, the R9™ driver transformed the metalwood category with the introduction of Flight Control Technology (FCT), providing golfers the ability to change the orientation of the driver head with the shaft. Last year, TaylorMade introduced the R9 SuperTri driver, which incorporated two major driver technologies — FCT and MWT — in a 460cc clubhead.
Now TaylorMade is proud to introduce the R11 driver — the next revolution in golf club adjustability. "By incorporating our new Adjustable Sole Plate (ASP) Technology, along with our proven Flight Control Technology and Movable Weight Technology, into a single clubhead, the R11 gives golfers the ability to adjust their driver to fit their individual needs with even greater precision," said Dr. Benoit Vincent, TaylorMade's chief technology officer.
The Introduction of Adjustable Sole Plate (ASP) Technology
When you change the clubhead's loft using FCT, you're also forced to change the face angle – increase loft and the face angle closes; decrease loft and the face angle opens. Adjustable Sole Plate solves that problem by allowing you to adjust the face angle independently of the loft, which is controlled by FCT.
The ASP sole plate provides ±2° of face angle change (neutral/square, 2° open, 2° closed). You can create three lofts with the same face angle, or you can further accentuate a face angle or counter a negative face angle. Plus, the combination of ASP and FCT effectively doubles the range of face angle for the club for ±2° to ±4°.
Three Dimensions to Distance (3-D): Combining ASP, FCT, and MWT
Altogether, the combination of ASP, FCT and MWT gives golfers 48 ways to set up the clubhead to promotes up to 100 yards of side-to-side trajectory adjustment, the most of any driver in existence. Combining full FCT and MWT settings promotes a launch-condition range of 2° launch angle and 1,000 RPM.
The FCT system is extremely sleek and streamlined, resulting in less mass and a lower clubhead CG location compared to hosel adjustability systems in competitive drivers.
The R11 includes two weight cartridges weighing 10-grams and 1-gram. To create a neutral bias, install the heavy (10-gram) weight in the toe, for a draw bias, put the heavy weight in the heel. If a more neutral setting is desired, 4 and 6-gram weights are available separately.
Players who prefer a specific face angle setting can bias the weights to adjust trajectory independent of the ASP setting. For instance, a player may prefer an open face angle at address while also desiring a draw-bias performance. With the R11 driver, the player can open the face using ASP and put the heavy weight in the heel, resulting in an open face but a draw-bias weighting.
Understanding 3-D: Three Simple Steps to Fitting an R11 Driver
Metalwoods with TaylorMade’s ASP, FCT and MWT will revolutionize the clubfitting process and promote superior performance. Properly fitting an R11 driver takes three simple steps:
- (FCT) Select desired loft by setting the FCT, choosing either Neutral, 1º higher loft, or 1º lower loft (or one of the intermediate positions ±0.5º). When you change the loft, the face angle will be modified. A higher loft equates creates a closed face angle, while a lower loft creates an open face angle.
- (ASP) Rest the club in the address position and decide if you want to change the face angle. If the club looks too closed, adjust the ASP to square or open the face. If the club looks too open, adjust the ASP square or close the face. If the face angle look just right, no need to adjust the ASP.
- (MWT) Adjust the weights as necessary to achieve the desired trajectory bias. The ball directional tendency goes towards the side that the heavy weight is placed. For example, move the 10-gram to the heel side to create more draw bias.
Modern-Classical Clubhead Shape with White Crown, Black PVD Clubface for Optimum Contrast for Alignment The R11 driver is designed with a new, modern-classical clubhead shape intended to suit the eye of better players, while still providing forgiveness and confidence for average players. The shape is more contemporary appearance than traditional drivers, and slightly triangular to create a modern yet classical address silhouette. The triangular shape creates more inertia and a deeper back CG position for greater stability and forgiveness.
At 440cc, the R11 appears slightly (2%) larger due to its white crown color. Most golfers recognize address size relative to the size of the ball as a key confidence builder.
The white crown color and black PVD face provides optimum contrast against the ground to make the R11 easier to aim. This advantage is even more pronounced in lower light, such as when the tee box is in shade or shadow, on overcast days or when the sun is low in the morning and in the evening. The crown color also eliminates high-intensity "hot spots" caused by reflected sunlight that afflicts gloss-finish metalwoods.
Extensive Tour Feedback Influences Design, Shaft Properties
The R11 was designed with significant feedback from tour players and the unification of three major driver technologies, including ASP, has been extremely well-received; we expect it to be the No. 1 model very quickly after introduction on the PGA Tour. And, like all TaylorMade drivers, it features Inverted Cone Technology for higher ball speed on off-center hits.
The R11 measures 45.75" and is equipped standard with a Fujikura Blur 60-gram shaft, which features a medium-firm tip profile. The Fujikura Blur features a large weave material in the outer diameters of the layup to provide more stability at impact. As a result, this shaft specification delivers more distance and control without the harsh feel associated with some firmer-tip shafts.
Availability and Pricing
Two versions of the driver — R11 and R11 TP — are to be offered to suit a wide range of players. The R11 driver is available in two lofts right-handed – 9°, 10.5° – and two lofts left-handed – 9.5° and 10.5°. The standard R11 comes in four shaft flexes – X, S, R, M. In addition to the Fujikura Blur TP, the R11 TP comes with the option of 19 additional shaft choices
[ See the TaylorMade Mens R11 Drivers Now ]
Here are 3 Videos from TMag that shows us the adjustability features:
R11 Driver 3-D Tuning - Step #1 - Loft (FCT)
R11 Driver 3-D Tuning - Step #2 - Face Angle (ASP)
R11 Driver 3-D Tuning - Step #3 - Flight Path (MWT)
User Reviews
| Average user rating: | Write your own review |
 (5 reviews) |
| Showing 3 of 5 user reviews |
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by SweetLou on April 08, 2011
Results not good enough
Pros:Control, Adaptability Cons:
Feel...Feel...Feel -
by trunkup on April 15, 2011
This belongs in a high handicappers bag
Pros:Adjustability, feel, distance Cons:
Sound, Visual, Cleanliness, Distracting, Gimmicky -
by Feragne on June 23, 2011
Its as great as any other club out there, except its different.
Pros:Feel, Distance,Options,Adjustability,White crown,Attention Grabbing Cons:
Its definitely not worth what they retail it for.
Where To Buy
User Reviews (5)
by SweetLou on April 08, 2011
Pros:
Control, Adaptability
Cons:
Feel...Feel...Feel
Rating:
I tried this puppy out just because I am curious. Had it set on neutral. I was really hoping that i would like it, I like liking new clubs. Teed the first one up...CLANK. It flew beautifully, perfect trajectory, baby draw (my generic shot). But wow, the feel at contact was just shy of unacceptable. I thought maybe I heeled it. So I teed another one up...CLINK! Ehh no, definitely dead center. Again, it was a beautiful drive. After a bunch of shots, and toying with all the trinkets my conclusion is that if you don't mind feeling all the different screws and joints Taylormade had screwed into this thing, and are solely concerned with the result, The R11 is a great club. But for me...the results weren't enough to get me passed that CLANK
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
by trunkup on April 15, 2011
Pros:
Adjustability, feel, distance
Cons:
Sound, Visual, Cleanliness, Distracting, Gimmicky
Rating:
Not a players club. The white face is so distracting. You can see it in your backswing. The clubface also has a tendency to get dirty. Everyone I've seen, other than the pros who are paid to hit it, are high handicappers. When they pull it out of their bag, my playing partners and I shake our heads. The sound is also a bit clunky. The crack is missing! Give this club a new paint job and a crack and I would give it a good review. To me it looks like they are just trying to sell, sell, sell. I like the R9 better. Maybe they should paint it green!
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
by Feragne on June 23, 2011
Pros:
Feel, Distance,Options,Adjustability,White crown,Attention Grabbing
Cons:
Its definitely not worth what they retail it for.
Rating:
Ok. IMHO, I love this club. I am what you would call an obsessive golf equipment buyer. I like to have the latest and greatest of everything, and that does not stop at golf gear.
I picked this club up, and immediately discovered it to be much smoother than my TEE XCG-4, and longer, and better feel, and distance. I agree the sound is lacking, not that *ting* Im used to. I can get over that quickly when I watch the ball sail effortlessly out yonder.
The white crown..... I believe it to truly be a blessing that this was done. I actually like that in my peripherals I can see the club move through the swing plane, and again through the impact zone with such clarity. I feel this is actually an aid, and helps me swing with more confidence.
The one thing I did not like about this club was its price point. If it guaranteed every shot to hit a fairway, and about 340 yards out, it would be justified, but 500 for -just- a club is outrageous.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
by MrParr1Noid on September 27, 2011
Pros:
Frames the ball well, excellent shape @ address... this thing exudes confidence, no doubt.
Cons:
Stock shaft is adequate... wish I'd have sprung for the upgraded Fuji or Mitsubishi.
Rating:
The new Taylor Made R11 drivers has lived up to the initial hype that we've all read. The white frames the ball for a "new" look, and while I thought the color white / lack of color, might be a distraction, it is quite refreshing to say the least.'
Taylor Made, the New R11 driver is a "Two" thumbs up
. Very solid at impact, and between the MWT, and the removeable shaft technology, the many variables / adjustable points of fine tuning are pretty well covered in every direction...Easy to set up, and LLLong !!.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
by ExpertGolfver on October 20, 2011
Pros:
brand new driver
Cons:
will a new driver will really help this old swing
Rating:
In my TaylorMade R11 Driver Review, I have to start out by saying that my best friend has this club and it is slick! Wow, out of al the golf clubs review that I’ve done, this is easily one of the best that I’ve tested. I’m sure that you’d agree with me on that one, if you felt one of these puppies in your hands.
So what the heck makes this club tick? Well, first off, it has a new technology. This new feature is an adjustable sole that can adjust the face angle of the club, as well as the ability to adjust the launch angle. Wow! One of the only truly adjustable drivers around! This massive club can give you 100 yards of side to side trajectory and around 1000 RPM extra backspin.
It also has an aerodynamic shape which of course, gives you more clubhead speed. Many people brag about the forgiveness of this club. How they can overswing and still have some good distance thanks to this club. The club head is also white, which can help big time with alignment so that you can crush your ball and watch it go higher, straighter and further.
Here is what a pro golfer has to say:
“I have had about 3 TM drivers since the 360 came out so I’m not an every new model person. I tried out several new models and after the adjustments made at Golfsmith I went with their recommendation the R11 was for me. It’s nice to find a driver you can adjust the lie angle, being 6’4″ and close the face a bit until you get your swing down pat.
The adjustable weights in the R7 were great but being able to also close the face 2 degrees to cut down on my block fade is even better. The driver settings allow you to adjust the driver back to a more neutral position later on if you correct a swing issue unlike others that give you no option but to get another driver with a different swing bias. Also nice on windy Texas days to be able to lower the loft a degree. I feel more confident on the tee box with this driver knowing it’s dialed in for me. I’m not the person they market to for 300 plus yard drives. I could care less about claims of 6 extra yards with the new Callaway, if those yards are further out in the rough. I’m longer than I have ever been by 10 to 15 yards and I’m in the fairway. Great driver and the white color for better alignment seems to help.”
If this club doesn’t interest you, look at our Cleveland XL 270 Driver Review.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Where To Buy
Where To Buy
- Editor Rating
