Well, I did it! I went out a bought a new driver. I had talked about it for years and could not bring myself to pay full price for a quality club. So, as a gift to myself for completing treatment, I decide it as time to get over myself and make the purchase. My friend Blair and I headed to Golftown, spent 2.5 hours hitting all the newest clubs, and finally decided on the Callaway Rogue. It was a fantastic experience and I could not be happier!

Exactly a week ago, Blair and I hopped in my car and drove the 2.5 hours to the nearest Golftown. I had talked about going for some time and Blair was definitely up for the trip. On the way down, we discussed what to expect from the experience, how to go about it, and to make sure that the club I select was right for my swing.

The last point was very important to me because if I focused on a specific brand, model, or price, then I could very well purchase the wrong club.  I felt that if I was going to make a big purchase that I needed to have an open mind. Because of this, I found the experience of selecting my new driver very pleasurable.

Upon arriving at the store, I met Bruce. He was a very experienced and patient person who helped me focus on the important stats that would pop on the golf simulator. As a result, I focused on club head speed, launch angle, spin rate, carry and total distance. These four categories were critical when making my final decision. 

I tried all the top drivers, actually there were eight in all. I hit over 120 golf balls and as a result, I had a very good idea on how each club reacted to my swing. I hit at least 6 balls with each club and sum over 15. As the day progressed, I would eliminate drivers until I had two clubs left at the end of the preliminary round. I disqualified drivers because the ball did not pop off the club face, I hooked the ball every time, the spin rate was way to high or it just felt odd in my hands. Through the entire process Blair would watch and offer some very sound advice that I found extremely helpful.

As I stated earlier, at the end of the preliminary round there were two clubs that performed shoulders above the rest: the Callaway Rouge and the Titleist TS2. The last driver was a big surprised because before the elimination round, it had numbers marginally better. So on to the second round of testing.

I decided to hit 7 balls with each club on last time. After that, I would make a decision as to which club would be best for me. After hitting all the balls, the Callaway Rogue had marginally better numbers, so I was leaning towards the Rogue. 

I then had a discussion with Bruce. The price was exactly the same so factor was a push; but the ability to adjust the angle of the Rogue better suited my game. It is adjustable one degree down and two degrees up. This was perfect for my game moving forward. The Titleist had a different adjustment scale and I was not as comfortable with it. I have to thank Blair for bringing up this point and it was the deciding factor.

So after 2.5 hours, 120+ balls hit and much discussion, I bought my new driver: the Callaway Rogue.

An interesting note, the next day Blair and I hit the course for the last time in 2018. I used my new driver and was extremely happy with the results. I was averaging about 230 off the tee on a cold day with plenty of wind. I can hardly wait to see how it works next summer! Only 173 days to wait!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!