The top 5 drivers ready to tackle Oakmont

By E. Michael Johnson

June 14, 2016

Shop This Look

Photo By: Getty Images

Photo By: US PGA TOUR

Photo By: Getty Images

Photo By: US PGA TOUR

Rory McIlroy

Nike Vapor Fly Pro, 9.5 degreesStrokes gained/off-the-tee: 1.227Few players on tour can match McIlroy’s prowess off the tee. The four-time major winner uses a 45.25-inch Nike Vapor Fly Pro driver set at 9.5 degrees with a Mitsubishi Diamana S+ 70 XTS shaft and Golf Pride New Decade Multi-Compound ribbed white/black grip. Prior to this year’s Northern Trust Open in February, McIlroy adjusted the loft of his driver plus 1 degree (from 8.5 to 9.5 degrees) in order to create more spin to help him draw the ball more.

Photo By: Getty Images

Bubba Watson

Ping G, 7.5 degreesStrokes gained/off-the-tee: 1.087As one would expect with an individual as unique as Watson, his Ping G driver isn’t exactly standard-issue. For starters, the 9-degree pink clubhead is set at 7.5 degrees, and the “dragonfly” technology on the crown (areas where the crown is made thinner) is black. Though one of the tour’s longest hitters, the True Temper Grafalloy BiMatrx x-flex shaft (which is graphite with a steel tip section) is on the short end of the spectrum at 44.5 inches, which Watson says offers him greater control of his tee shots. The grips are oversized with 11 wraps of tape on the top and 13 wraps on the bottom and set at 10 degrees open. Watson will use this club as he tries to improve on his fifth-place showing at Oakmont in 2007 when he ranked 10th in distance for the week.

Photo By: Getty Images

Dustin Johnson

TaylorMade M1 460, 10.5 degreesStrokes gained/off-the-tee: 1.040It’s no surprise that Johnson ranks high in this statistic as his prodigious length off the tee (309.5-yard average, ranked third on tour) provides a distinct advantage. Johnson has tinkered with a few drivers over the past year but seems to have settled on TaylorMade’s M1 460, with 10.5 degrees of loft and Fujikura Speeder Evolution X shaft. The club is 45.75 inches long and has a swingweight of D-4, down from the D-7 he had when using the company’s AeroBurner model. The weight tracks have the weight in the neutral directional position and all the way in the rear in the trajectory position to assist launch.

Photo By: US PGA TOUR

Justin Rose

TaylorMade M2, 8.5 degreesStrokes gained/off-the-tee: .865TaylorMade touts its M2 driver as offering distance and forgiveness, both of which appeal to Rose, who uses a 45.5-inch version of the club with 8.5 degrees of loft and a D-4 swingweight. The shaft is a Matrix Speed Rulz C Type 70TX—a shaft designed to optimize speed for players who prefer a shaft with a softer feel in the butt end balanced with a more stout tip and mid section.

Photo By: Getty Images

Rickie Fowler

Cobra King LTD, 10.5 degreesStrokes gained/off-the-tee: .735Although the noticeable thing about Fowler’s Cobra King LTD driver is the “space port” in the sole of the club that allows for a peek inside the head, Fowler does some subtle things to the club to make it distinctly his. The 44.5-inch club is set at 10.5 degrees loft and in the draw position. The shaft is a 70-gram, x-flex Matrix RF prototype (a counterbalanced shaft), tipped half an inch. The grip is Golf Pride’s ribbed Tour Velvet with just one wrap of tape underneath. The swingweight is D-3 and Fowler has 2 grams of “hot melt” glue added to the crown and heel areas to help him dial in the weight and flight he prefers.

Photo By: US PGA TOUR

Players Championship

The top 5 drivers ready to tackle Oakmont

Shop This Look

Rory McIlroy

Bubba Watson

Dustin Johnson

Justin Rose

Rickie Fowler

Sections

Support

Services

Magazine

Newsletter

Social

Sections

Support

Services

Social

Magazine