Titleist 910 D2 Review

[InTheHole!]

Comparison Pics

Firstly, I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to the people at Acushnet Singapore (Rick, Tom and Cheng) who made this review possible. Their kind attention enabled me not only to demo and test, but also play the latest 910 driver a whole week prior to its official launch. Many thanks guys.

I have tried and loved Titleist drivers on and off for some time now, although I have mixed in a fair bit of TM drivers from time to time as well. My first love amongst the Titleist driver family was, and still very is, the Titleist 905R. This driver shafted with the Aldila NV65 still remains as part of my driver rotation till this day. In fact I have another 2 such drivers as back up. It is against this driver that my review is largely based on.

Demo and fitting

Acushnet Singapore ran demos and fittings during the recently concluded Barclays Singapore Open (which Adam Scott won). I managed to get a slot and off I went for a fitting with the trackman LM. The club pro at my golf club happened to be assisting and he volunteered to get me fitted. I am by no means a single capper, or someone who would be seen as being a Titleist player (ie. consistent enough to play the perceived more demanding clubs offered by Titleist), but I was out on a mission to prove this "stereotyping " wrong. I was on a mission to prove that given the proper fitting, almost anyone can play a Titleist driver and benefit from using the club.

Based on LM session, I averaged at 95mph swing speed, with a lunch angle of 14.5* average. Spin rates were high earlier on in the session at the 4,000rpm range (using Titleist Prov1 balls as opposed to my V1x or NXT Tour), but as the session progressed and with some tweaking of the shafts, I managed to bring the spin rate down to an average of 3,200rpm. Ballspeeds averaged at 135mph and smash factor was a measely 1.44. As you can tell from these numbers, I would fall within the category of a typical weekend golfer. After trying shaft after shaft from the Titleist fitting cart, I settled on a D2 9.5 with a Fujikura Motore F3 55 stiff. The lighter shaft weight enabled me to swing faster and this faster ball speed also resulted in greater carry.

910 D2


Compared to the 909 D2 and the 905R, the 910D2 appears shallower and definitely more elongated from face to back. Compared to the 909 series, the 910 D2 appears to resemble the 909 D Comp. Without the black appearance on the crown of the 910, the layout (alignment aid) and the bulge and roll of the 905, 909 and 910 appear very similar.

On the whole, I like the black finish of the 910 - very much in line with the latest offerings from the OEM through 2009. But I personally would prefer if the 910 D2 had the taller face of the 905R and less of the "pancake" appearance of the 909 D Comp. I guess the engineers at Titleist wanted to move the CG further back in the 910 to accommodate the higher launch angles and lower spin desired now.

In terms of sound, I would say that the 910 is not as solid sounding as the 905R but definitely not as "tingy" (if I can even call it that!) as the 909 series. The 910 however felt very hot off the face, and this was the noticeable difference between the 910 and the 905R and the 909. The 910 was also plenty forgiving in terms of toe hits, and high and mid-low hits, more so than the 909 and the 905R. Where the 910 was most unforgiving in terms of mishits was the heel and low hits -- but then, isn't every other driver as well?

The adjustable hosel of the 910 allows both lie and loft adjustments (the latter via changes to the face angle). I have noticed that these adjustment "notches" actually do result in different ball flights if you put a consistent swing to the club. Open face / flatter lie set up results in an easy fade almost all of the time. Similarly, if you close the face and increase the lie angle, I noticed that draws and "small hooks" started to appear quickly. Given my swing pattern, I found that leaving the 910 in the neutral position with std lie and face angle / loft suited me best in that I could attempt to move the ball with a different swing each time.

On Course review


I managed to take this driver out for 27 holes on 2 separate occasions. I didi take my 905R out as well for comparison. At this time of the year, the weather in Singapore is mostly wet, with fairways being soft / soggy. With this in mind, I knew that there was no way to get much run from drives. The 910 launch higher than the 905R with the same loft (although different shafts, so factor this in when reading this review). Carry distance was slightly longer with the 910 (prob on account of the fact that I was fitted for the 910 as opposed to the 905R). However, whatever "run" there was to benefit from, the 905R had more compared to the 910. Differences were noted via the pitch mark made by the balls when landing and the final resting position of the balls. All in all, the distances are comparable, and neither driver is actually much longer for me.

The main difference between the 905R and the 910 is however the forgiveness of the 910 compared with the 905R. All things being equal, the 910 wins in terms of rewarding a mishit better. To an average golfer like myself (a weekend hack), I think that spending some money for the latest Titleist 910 would makes sense simply because this driver offers more forgiveness than the previous models of Titleist drivers - this is of course if you would like to own a Titleist driver.

I have taken some pics as comparison between the 910, 909 and 905R. Where 3 drivers are featured, the 905R is on the left, the 910 in the middle and the 909 on the right.

Conclusion


If I was on the lookout for another driver to try, I would definietly give the 910 a try, and believe me when I say that Titleist has managed to manufacture a driver which is very much suited for the single capper as well as the mid capper / weekend golfer. I would however warn that the finish on the 910 does wear with use, esp on the lower face and sole - see the pics.

I hope that this review has managed to convince the mid cappers and the once-a-week golfers to give the Titleist 910 a try. Titleist does NOT make drivers suitable only for the single cappers or very good golfers!

[wedge1]

I played a full round yesterday with the D2 and stock Kai'Li. I currently play a VR Tour Str8-fit with stock Voodoo X Flex. The 910 is pretty nice...felt a lot like the 909 to me. The stock shafts was not so good...weak (even for an S) and seemed very spinny. I'd like to try the driver with a Voodoo or a real Whiteboard in it and see what it does.

[JinxyJ08]

Did you try the D3? That D2 looks huge......

[Sakman]

Nice write up C!

[InTheHole!]

[quote name='JinxyJ08' timestamp='1290089713' post='2796513']
Did you try the D3? That D2 looks huge......
[/quote]


Yes I tried the D3 as well and it did resemble the 905R more, although the head did not quite suit my swing.

[mosesgolf]

Great review. It is interesting that even w/ the proper fitting, the 910D2 wasn't any longer than the 905R. In my own personal testing, the 909D2 wasn't longer than the 905R either so the results will likely be the same w/ the 910. What is great about the 910D series is that we can manipulate ball flight and that will be the reason for the 910D3 to make it into my bag. My personal preference is for a flatter lie angle. Great job Titleist.

[MG 1977]

Titleist seem to be loosing the pear shape profile they are famous for. The 909D2 and this D2 are very circular in apperance, not my cup of tea. Love the idea of changing the lie and loft, as a Golfer who's bad shot goes left it's great to see more drivers which can be set up to incourage a fade ball flight. I may check out the D3 but for now my Mizzy MP630 is safe.

[jamesherring]

[quote name='InTheHole!' timestamp='1290087077' post='2796473']
Given my swing pattern, I found that leaving the 910 in the neutral position with std lie and face angle / loft suited me best in that I could attempt to move the ball with a different swing each time.

[/quote]
Just going from the above quote and the pictures, it looks like you have taken D4 as standard and that is what your club is set to, but you have taken it from the left hand club chart. A1 is standard for Right Hand club! D4 for right hand is the same lie and slighlty higher ball flight +.75 degree of loft.

[InTheHole!]

[quote name='jamesherring' timestamp='1290102479' post='2796910']
[quote name='InTheHole!' timestamp='1290087077' post='2796473']
Given my swing pattern, I found that leaving the 910 in the neutral position with std lie and face angle / loft suited me best in that I could attempt to move the ball with a different swing each time.

[/quote]
Just going from the above quote and the pictures, it looks like you have taken D4 as standard and that is what your club is set to, but you have taken it from the left hand club chart. A1 is standard for Right Hand club! D4 for right hand is the same lie and slighlty higher ball flight +.75 degree of loft.
[/quote]

Thanks for highlighting that - no I have not, I actually just screwed the shaft back in w/o any particular preference after taking the pics of the club head.

[mlesser]

Great review !

[stguest]

wow, the finish is already showing signs of wear? That's a big turn off for me. I like the dark color but not if it's gonna wear that easily.

[InTheHole!]

[quote name='stguest' timestamp='1290132086' post='2797604']
wow, the finish is already showing signs of wear? That's a big turn off for me. I like the dark color but not if it's gonna wear that easily.
[/quote]


Just to clarify in respect of the wear on the clubhead. This club head probably went through at least a 1000 balls from a sandy range during the course of 3 days' worth of demos and fittings! Now that's some use ..... and "abuse".

[whchoclte]

I dont mind the black finish in Drivers but fairways and hybrids get really beat up catching the earth on shots.

[huskerpower_105]

is it just the pics deceiving me or is the 910 D2 much much shallower than the 909 and 905R?

[drjwpdc]

Nice review!!! I was fitted for the 910 D2 on Friday and ended up with the ahina stiff shaft. The 2 major differences between the 910 D2 and all other Titleist drivers that I have hit are: 1) much more forgiving 2) clubface feels hotter.

[InTheHole!]

[quote name='huskerpower_105' timestamp='1290375037' post='2801358']
is it just the pics deceiving me or is the 910 D2 much much shallower than the 909 and 905R?
[/quote]


No deception there at all, the 910 D2 is in fact shallower than the 909D2 and the 905R. The 910 D2's shape resembles the 909 DComp head.

[Gemini5936]

I just got fitted for a new driver over the weekend. I was looking into the Razr Fit, but my heart still lied with the 910, but I went in with no reservations. My issue has always been getting enough height from my driver without losing the ever valueable distance.

My old driver was an "off the rack" Nike 5900 SQ with a stock Stiff shaft and according to the computer system at the shop, my launch angle was around 8.5 with a spin rate of 4000 (give or take), with a distance of between 260 and 295...lets just say all over the map.

I tried a few different heads with some different shafts, not paying attention to head loft degrees or anything, just going off of the numbers from the system. After almost an hour I settled on the Titleist 910D2 with the Pro Force V2 Stiff Shaft 76g...I personally like the feeling of a stronger heavier club in my hand. The "after" numbers were a launch angle of 12.5 spin rate of 2800-3000, between 290 and 305 with a total dispursion of 7 yards left and right (with no bending in either direction and not one drive right of center, which is always my problem). But to my surprise, I didnt even notice that the driver head was 12 degrees!! I was blown away by that, I didn't know a 12 degree driver could go that far, with all of my golfing buddies hitting 8.5, 9, or 9.5 deg drivers i'll roll up in my 12 degree driver and put it past them down the middle of the fairway.

I was amazed at how much diference a fitted head and shaft can really affect your game.

Just thought I'd throw my two cents in.