PXG Lightning Drivers Review: Harder, better, straighter, faster
GolfMagic tests out PXG's brand new flagship driver to see if it finally has what it takes to bring the fight to the big boys in golf.
- Wonderfully straight ball flight
- Speed and distance is much improved on the Black Ops model
- Looks fantastic
PXG has performed somewhat of a pivot in recent years. Once known for making ultra-premium clubs with far-out designs and a price tag to match, more recent times have seen Bob Parsons' company come more into the realm of the every man.
As such, as we enter 2026, PXG feels more attuned to the golfing mainstream than at any point in its history. Its clubs, rather than being exorbitantly expensive, now either match or often undercut the main competition, without losing the brand's commitment to cutting edge materials or sacrificing its distinctly premium air.
The clubs, meanwhile, have come on leaps and bounds to match. Even so, the brand's flagship driver release for the 2026 season, named the Lightning, could be one of the most important clubs the brand has ever released for a number of reasons.
While PXG's woods have always performed admirably against the very best drivers on the market, the most common criticism of previous models (including the previous model Black Ops) was that while they were ultra forgiving, they simply weren't as long as the major brands.
As such, and perhaps as you might have gleamed from the fighter jet-inspired moniker, the key mission of the Lightning range is delivering the speed and distance required to compete with the flagship models of the big five club manufacturers, without sacrificing the forgiveness that made the Black Ops such an easy-hitting club.
Did they succeed, and more importantly, is the Lightning the first driver in PXG history to truly bring the fight to its biggest rivals? We took it out, alongside the old Black Ops model, to find out just how big of a leap forward it is for the brand.
Check out our video review and scroll on to read our detailed thoughts. Let us know what you think of the new range in the comments below.
| Brand | PXG |
| Year launched | 2025 |
| RRP | £569 |
| Key Features |
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Looks and features
While PXG's Black Ops metalwoods felt like more of an extension of its wider game-improvement offering, PXG have gone to great lengths to ensure the brand new Lightning range feels as distinct as possible: a true flagship product for a brand with major-winning ambitions.
The key change they've made right off the bat is expanding the range from two drivers to four, the range now comprising the most forgiving Lightning 10K MAX model, the lower-spin Lightning Tour, a newly introduced option called the Tour Mid (which will perform something akin to other brands core model drivers), and the lighter-weight Lightning Max Lite for slower swingers.
The key question PXG's engineers sought to address with the Lightning was fairly simple, and one that most manufacturers now pour most of their R&D budgets into solving: how do you make a club already stretching USGA limits for forgiveness, faster?
PXG think they've found the answer in a couple of key innovations. The major breakthrough is what they call their Frequency Tuned Face, which to explain in the simplest terms possible is tuned to produce a the optimum frequency between the ball and face at impact – sort of like tuning the skin of a drum to perfect pitch. The idea is to reduce less efficient vibrations, thereby increasing energy transfer into the ball itself, thus optimising speed.
Away from the face, the wider clubhead has had something of a lowkey makeover, with significantly more carbon fibre used across all four models (the 10k MAX uses the most, with 84% more Carbon than the Black Ops. This, in combination with the ridged sole, significantly increases the stiffness of the driver head while cutting down on weight. This means more MOI across the entire range, with the 10K the first PXG driver to crack the 10,000 figure so many manufacturers now strive for.
The addition of all this carbon fibre fits in well with PXG's trademark aesthetic, and all four Lightning models cut predictably sleek figures. At address, the crown of the Lightning is slightly toned down from the Black Ops model, while the sole is rendered in a clean, aerodynamic black and carbon finish. It's well in keeping with the minimalist aesthetics the major brands all seem to have gone for with their 2026 models, and we think the Lightning is comfortably the most premium looking driver the PXG has made to date.
Performance
Golfmagic tested all four models in the new Lightning range to get a true feel of their respective strengths, but focused mostly on the two we feel will cater to the broadest range of golfers: the Tour Mid and the MAX 10K.
The Tour Mid, which Equipment Editor Georgina was fitted into, impressed straight off the bat. PXG have nailed the formula of fast forgiveness even in the Tour Mid, which ostensibly isn't even meant to be the brand's most easy-hitting model. The Tour Mid is incredibly forgiving for what will come to be seen as a core model driver, with super tight dispersion and a wonderfully straight ball flight.
The PXG inspires the confidence to really swing at the ball without fear of bad shots getting out of control. In the hands of GolfMagic's Review Editor, who plays off a mid-handicap, the Lightning Max 10K also proved incredibly forgiving, and after a test round at Royal Blackheath Golf Club, he's put it in the bag for the time-being.
Perhaps most importantly, the Lightning is significantly longer than its predecessor. PXG's efforts to up the speed factor with the Lightning have worked, and when compared to the Black Ops we were fitted into last year, we saw a significant jump in carry and total distance, along with more optimal spin rates, when using the new model.
| Club | Ball Speed (Mph) | Spin Rate (RPM) | Carry Distance | Total Distance |
| PXG Black Ops | 134 | 2320 | 214 | 232 |
| PXG Lightning | 135 | 2490 | 221 | 239 |
In terms of real drawbacks, there are very few to write home about. However one bugbear that might afflict some golfers is the noise and impact feel produced by the Frequency Tuned Face. The club is designed to reduce unwanted vibrations as much as possible, however this means that by its very nature, the sound the Lightning driver produces is quite dull and solid even on good strikes.
This isn't a massive dealbreaker, of course, but you prefer your drivers big and booming, the sound of the Lightning might be a tad underwhelming by comparison. When you hit it as straight and long as we did, however, you'll likely learn to live with it.
Should you buy the PXG Lightning Driver?
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PXG's Lightning driver is, quite comfortably, the best the brand has ever made, and vaults the American brand into a position where it truly has a legitimate alternative to upcoming 2026 models from the likes of TaylorMade, Callaway and Cobra. Priced at £569, it's definitely placed towards the higher end of the driver market, but not so much that the cost is prohibitive (Titleist's GT2, for instance, retails for £10 more).
PXG have managed not only to address the speed and distance concerns that afflicted the Black Ops model in the past, but have done so while somehow managing to make the Lightning range even more forgiving than its predecessor as well.
PXG's decision to expand the Lightning range beyond the previous pair of models opens its offering up to a far wider range of golfers. Mid to high hanidcappers will find lots to love in the Lightning Max 10K, while better players will enjoy the combination of forgiveness, speed and slightly slimmer profile offered by the new Tour Mid Model. The Lightning Tour, meanwhile, impressed us despite not quite matching our respective games, offering great dispersion in a lower-spin offering.
All of this combines to make the Lightning an incredibly impressive offering, and one that's well worth testing if you're on the hunt for a new driver for the 2026 season.
Georgina was appointed GolfMagic Equipment Editor in November 2025.