Callaway Legacy Driver

K2_2 · April 6, 2008

Something wicked this way comes

Well, I managed to toy around with a few JDM drivers during my last trip to Japan and based on my impressions and a chat with a few people I wound up with a Callaway Legacy. Short version - try one!

Here were the other contenders:

The new Tourstage X-Drive 445 is indeed a solid stick. It seems more forgiving than the 460; the face is not as deep, the launch is a bit higher, and it definitely seems more directionally forgiving. I came very close to grabbing this with an MD-7. If it had been available in the MD-6 (I like a 55-65 g shaft depending on the club).

2008 OnOFF Plus. This is the coolest looking driver I have picked up in sometime, and it is also a very solid club. I would say it is a bit more forgiving than the X-Drive 445 without sacrificing much control of your shot shape. Having had a GIII driver in the bag for awhile though, I was keen to try something a bit different.

Callaway Legacy. There is already a great review here, and I can’t add any numbers yet – sheet that I had of results comparing these three went walkabout when I flew out – but I would like to add my thoughts. Shaft it up properly and this is one of the best drivers you will hit. Period.

From what I found and from a bit of translated conversation with the fitter and other guys I spoke to, here is the breakdown.
Forgiveness – one of the more forgiving non-MOI drivers you can pick up this year.
Launch – mid launch, mid spin and obviously varies with shaft selection.
Ball speed – a few other people also found this to be as good as any other driver out this spring.
All of the above, assuming you pick the proper shaft, adds up to a very long driver.

What I really like so far though is the confidence, control, and feel.

Confidence; that probably comes from having a reasonable fit, but the fact that the face on the head I picked up measured out to roughly square, and the loft is within about half a degree of spec inspires some confidence. Also, as noted by others, the driver – at least the 9.5* with a square face – does not flip over and produce a hook even if you have a good move through the ball.

Control; the Legacy is very easy to hit – I have put some boneheaded swings on the ball, to be sure, but it is very forgiving imho. That means I can find the fairway when I’m not having a top day. Equally important for the better player though – and this might be due to me being in the final days of the honeymoon period – I have managed to control my trajectory a bit better with this driver. No, I can’t consistently command a shot that is 5.3 yards higher or lower than my norm – then I would be blogging about a tournament I finished up instead of writing reviews :good: - but so far I have been able to keep the ball under a head wind a bit more than I could previously while also being able to hit the ball a bit higher if the wind is up behind me.

Feel; again, much of this comes down to having a good fit, being confident, and having good control, but this club feels exceptional. It does not have a loud, explosive feel or sound that you would get from a Cobra L4V or high MOI driver. Nor does it have the soft springy feel that you find on some JDM game improvement drivers. The words smooth, solid, and strong probably describe the feel better than anything I can come up with.

Duffy19 · April 6, 2008

Kyle:

Would you recommend the Legacy to a 20 handicapper? How would this compare with the Epon 460? My friend is looking for another driver to 'compliment' his 460 ZR (deep face and traditional looking and all). I myself, picked up the new Mizuno JPX A25 over the weekend and of course, its still honeymooning.

K2_2 · April 7, 2008

Hi Duffy,

More details on the A25 when you get a chance! As for the Legacy and a 20 handicap - can I cop out and say it depends on his ball striking?

The ERC series have always been very forgiving, but with this club playing true to loft and having a squarish face - atleast on the 9.5 I picked up - I would see about going to a higher loft and trying to find out whether or not the face angle would be similar to his Epon. That said, I would still say that this is one very forgiving club, and if he went with the right loft and shaft combo, I think he would be happy with it.

As an alternative, if he is after a relatively deep face and traditional look, the 2007 X-Drive GR might be worth shot although I don't think it is as forgiving as the Legacy.

driverhead · April 8, 2008

Callaway Legacy. There is already a great review here, and I can’t add any numbers yet – sheet that I had of results comparing these three went walkabout when I flew out – but I would like to add my thoughts. Shaft it up properly and this is one of the best drivers you will hit. Period.

Maybe I missed it but what shaft did you end up going with? I am really tempted to put an XCON 5 in this head, but before I do it I need more info on the ferrule. The ferrule is flush with the crown and it could possibly be shimmed like the FT5, FTI, and hyper x, but might have a different internal shim diameter. I can get the standard FT5 ferrules, but if the Japanese legacy ferrule is shimed and unique, it would make the club useless, so Im looking into this and will post when I get info.

K2_2 · April 8, 2008

Callaway Legacy. There is already a great review here, and I can’t add any numbers yet – sheet that I had of results comparing these three went walkabout when I flew out – but I would like to add my thoughts. Shaft it up properly and this is one of the best drivers you will hit. Period.

Maybe I missed it but what shaft did you end up going with? I am really tempted to put an XCON 5 in this head, but before I do it I need more info on the ferrule. The ferrule is flush with the crown and it could possibility be shimmed like the FT5, FTI, and hyper x, but might have a different internal shim diameter. I can get the standard FT5 ferrules, but if the Japanese legacy ferrule is shimed and unique, it would make the club useless, so Im looking into this and will post when I get info.

Driverhead, I ended up going with the stock stiff shaft. I liked the MD-6 in this and really liked the MD-7 in the X-Drive but I felt like I really had to swing a bit harder to make either combo come alive - I'm happy with a bit less demanding bend profile and with the stock shaft I could take an easy swing (avg 48 m/s) or 'have a bash' and I still managed to keep the ball going in the right direction.

That said, thanks for the info about the hosel and shmming, I hadn't realized it would be that difficult to reshaft later on. I guess that means I will just have to pick up another driver if I want a club that I plan to try and happer on all of the time. Oh well :good: .

driverhead · April 8, 2008

That said, thanks for the info about the hosel and shmming, I hadn't realized it would be that difficult to reshaft later on. I guess that means I will just have to pick up another driver if I want a club that I plan to try and happer on all of the time. Oh well :good: .

Ill post as soon as I get info. All I know is that the ferrule is flush with the crown, and I suspect its shimmed, but I dont know yet.

Duffy19 · April 10, 2008

Hi Duffy,

More details on the A25 when you get a chance! As for the Legacy and a 20 handicap - can I cop out and say it depends on his ball striking?

The ERC series have always been very forgiving, but with this club playing true to loft and having a squarish face - atleast on the 9.5 I picked up - I would see about going to a higher loft and trying to find out whether or not the face angle would be similar to his Epon. That said, I would still say that this is one very forgiving club, and if he went with the right loft and shaft combo, I think he would be happy with it.

As an alternative, if he is after a relatively deep face and traditional look, the 2007 X-Drive GR might be worth shot although I don't think it is as forgiving as the Legacy.

Kyle:

This is not a review of the A25 but some comment on the club after 2 games with it. The square head is relative small as compared to other high Moi drivers out there (its only 4600+ cm2) and pleasing to the eys at address. The impact and sound is actually quite good vs. Nike and FT since this all Ti rather than composite. Its not deep face hence you have to tee lower and you are actually work the ball a bit surprisingly but not much. I have the SR shaft which on cpm wise is low of 220 at 45" yet does not have the wet noodle feel. At the same time, the stock does not give the sweet kick feel (hence distance) of some of the aftermarket shafts such as GD, Diamana or NGS. Distance so far is average but direction is good. The stock combo is definitely for smoother swinger and not hitter as the head/club is on the light side.

I also pick up the 3 wood which is 17 degree at 43". It is easy to hit and straight but lost some distance (compared to a nornal 14/15 degree 3 wood) due to its higher loft. The stock SR shaft is quite adequate but lacks the nice kick.

K2_2 · April 11, 2008

Thanks Duffy,

That sounds encouraging - does Mizuno have some good aftermarket shaft options from the factory? Either way, the all Ti head sounds nice - I have never gotten along well with any composite crown drivers with one or two exceptions. Keeping swinging it well, and let us know if it makes it into the rotation!