Titleist reveals 910D2(460cc) adjustable driver

Titleist is set to provide amateur club golfers with its latest technology - and its answer to the adjustable-headed driver phenomenon that is proving so popular within the golf industry.

Already the Titleist 910 D3 driver with a 445cc head is in play with many players on the PGA and European Tours - and in this week's Ryder Cup. Now a Titleist 910 D2 version, with a larger, 460cc head, will be available for the rest of us.

Titleist says its 910 metals are ' the longest, most stable the company has ever produced.' Golfmagic understands fairway woods and hybrids are set to be launched later in the year.

Steve Pelisek, vice president of golf club sales and marketing for Titleist, told me at the recent launch at Walton Heath Golf Club: "910 metals feature patented, innovative SureFit Tour hosel technology that allows loft and lie to be independently adjusted and set for maximum effectiveness.

 
"These precise adjustments were born from our Tour fitting practices and are why we call SFT 'a Tour van in a hosel.'"

Both the Titleist 910 D2 and 910D3 will be available in 8.5, 9.5 and 10.5-degree lofts in right and left-handed models. The key difference is the different-sized heads and while the 910D2 is made for 'maximum playabilty and forgiveness', the 910D3 has a deeper face and lower centre of gravity to generate a boring, penetrating flight, the pros and top amateurs prefer.

It's unclear why it has taken Titleist so long to introduce the adjustable technology that other brands including Callaway, Nike, TaylorMade and Mizuno have been using for upto two years. But no doubt the company wanted to make sure its Tour pros were totally satisfied with adapting to the adjustable technology before it launched a large-headed option to a wider public.

"We knew we could make a better driver. We had the opportunity to add technology and take it to a new level," said Pelisek, himself a two-handicap golfer. "It's the best we've made - it's faster, more stable, more playable and more workable.

"The SureFit Tour hosel is a more powerful tool than anything currently in the market.  It gives our Tour van fitter the chance to dial in the club that works best for our players."

Pelisek admits that sometimes Titleist tends to be pigeon-holed into a category of 'only for better players'.

"The new drivers have given us the opportunity to focus on performance," he said. "With the 910 D2 driver, we wanted to make available to all golfers the level of customisation and adjustability only previously available to Tour pros. So we started talking to consumers, to get all players fitted to a level they had never experienced before.

"Previously we had four driver heads, four shafts and grips that would have taken 3-4 hours to fit. Now it takes less than 45 minutes."

Titleist's new pair of drivers will be available at any one of dozens of Titleist SureFit facilities around the UK, together with a modernised 'cat-in-the-hat' headcover, pouch, wrench (capable of adjusting the hosel and head to 16 settings), a performance guide and selection of high quality shaft options.

Expected recommended retail price of the Titleist 910D2 460cc driver is £279-£300.