Srixon

What it does: Two models offer two takes on ball flight. The ZX7 uses moveable weights to produce a lower-spinning, flatter trajectory. The ZX5 helps launch it higher with a draw. The two are so compatibly designed that Hideki Matsuyama won a tournament with each of them in 2021. It helps to have a super-fast, thin titanium alloy in the face, but what gives these drivers speed across the hitting area is how the thicknesses and materials change in the areas just around the face. Specifically, the start of the crown features a 30-percent thinner section. A strip of an even thinner titanium alloy around the frame offers extra flex, and the larger carbon-fibre crown and internal sole ribs add rigidity and save weight.

Why we like it: Getting the crown to help maximise the face’s flexibility is next-level thinking, but we like how the hitting area’s performance is designed to match how a golfer makes impact. The Srixon team studied typical impacts and figured out where it makes sense to optimise flexibility. Even more, those faces are unique for the more forgiving ZX5 and the more exacting ZX7.

lofts 9.5, 10.5; adjustable