Taylormade Burner Driver

A driver not called r7 something from Taylor Made? I know this may be hard to believe with all of the success that Taylor Made has had with the r7 line, but one of their newest clubs (the picture should be changing soon) is actually going by an old name. The Burner is Taylor Made's answer to the geometry driven drivers that are currently hitting the market from other companies. Despite the idea on message boards that this club is strictly for the player who needs some help, there is a Tour Preferred (TP) model that has found it's way into the bags of some of the PGA Tour's best players. John Daly and Sean O'Hair are two of the bigger names to put this club in their bags since it was introduced on Tour. Being on the Taylor Made playing staff, I was able to test the Burner as well as the new SuperQuad prior to the February 23rd release date.

So what makes this club different? The first thing that you will notice when you look at this club is the large size, it measures 4.8" from heel to toe, and 4.8" from front to back, this takes it almost to the USGA limit on face length and depth. This allows the engineers to move the center of gravity extremely low and deep in the club head for a higher launch with less spin for increased distance. The effective moment of inertia to over 5800 gram centimeters squared, for the ultimate in forgiveness. The club head itself looks like it is composite, but the crown graphics are designed to help align the club square to the target line. The ultra thin titanium walls and crown make this club head lighter, this combined with the lighter shaft and grip allow for maximum club head speed. The Burner features the patented Reax shaft, which is designed to reduce ovaling for a more consistent swing and flex profile. This added stability allows for a longer stocj shaft (46 inches) which further promotes higher club head speeds for increased distance.

The standard version of the Burner is set slightly closed which promotes more of a draw off the face or helps off set a tendency to deliver the club head in an open position at impact. The Tour Preferred version is set a degree open with the center of gravity slightly higher and closer to the club face for added control over trajectory and ball flight. Both drivers offer the inverted cone technology in the back of the club face. This increases intial ball speed and enlarges the effective hitting area since the ball will come off the face faster even on slightly off center hits. Both clubs feature a bullet shape with a slope from the top of the toe to the back of the club, this allows for the increased square inch measurement while staying in line with the 460 cubic centimeter volume limit. Both drivers also have a factory installed weight in the sole that allows Taylor Made to set the swing weight.

I tested the Burner TP versus the SuperQuad TP when deciding which club to put in the bag for the season. The Burner was fitted with the Mitsubishi Diamana Red Board shaft at my standard 44.5" length. I took this club out to the range at my course and did some launch monitor testing. The first thing that I noticed, other than the graphics on the crown, was how large the club head looked. It is almost as large as the SuMo Square from Nike, which is the largest driver on the market. This inspires a lot of confidence at address, you know that the effective hitting area is huge and that all you have to do is make contact with the ball to send it out there. The TP head has a slightly deeper face, this gives the ball a slightly more penetrating flight.

I did notice that the ball launched slightly higher with the Burner TP versus the SuperQuad TP, about a degree on average over fifteen shots with each club. The spin rates were almost identical, with the Burner being a couple hundred rpm higher. The ball flight with the Burner TP was very nice, a flatter flight than I had anticipated, especially with the unique design of the head. The sound was nice as well, it was just a bit higher pitched than with the SuperQuad TP, but not hollow like some of the other larger drivers on the market. I had a slightly heavier weight installed in the club to increase the swing weight a little more than versus the factory standard. Hitting a standard, stock version I did notice a slight increase in both club head speed and ball speed versus the other drivers, but I did not feel as comfortable controlling the club head through the swing to warrant the extra few yards that I gained. The club head felt extremely stable through the hitting area, even slightly off center shots felt well struck. The increased MOI and head size did not eliminate all feedback though, I was still able to feel where on the face I was making impact.

On the course, I was impressed with the Burner TP, it did hit the ball a long way. The one area of concern was that it was a little more difficult to control the shape of the shot with the Burner TP, it seems to be more of a high, long, and straight driver (which is what most people need). Trajectory control wasn't too bad with the Burner, you are able to hit the ball low when needed, it's just not as easy as with other clubs. This driver is the product of the new wave in golf, the bomb and gouge technique where shot shaping is minimalized while distance is maximized. I found that I was able to overcome some of the shot shaping limitations by simply hitting the ball higher and over corners that I would usually turn the ball around. I really liked the feel of the club, but rely to heavily on turning shots to have this in the bag everyday, I went with the SuperQuad TP, but still have the Burner TP as a back up and for courses that are long and straight.

I would recommend the standard Burner for the player who has some trouble with consistency off the tee, the larger size offers more forgiveness and will not lose distance if you are less than precise striking the ball. I'm not a huge fan of the longer shaft, since most players have trouble delivering the club head to the ball consistently, a longer shaft is a little more difficult to control, but the size and shape of the head allow for some imperfections in the swing. The TP version is better for the lower handicap player who wants to control the trajectory a little bit more. At $300 for the standard, and $400 for the TP, these clubs are a little more in line with some of the other models on the market (Nike SuMo, Cleveland HiBore XL).