Go to the Taylormade website, read about the club. Believe it! The club came in the neutral position and I changed that to neutral upright before heading to the range. 1st drive I hit was 250+ draw, I hadn't done that in many years. Hit 20 shots, still had a fade working a bit more right than I wanted, due to dialing up the power. Changed setting 1 more click Left. Presto, gentle fade all the time. Hit the rest of the large bucket quickly, light was failing, 95% fairway! Choaked up an inch, swing smooth, 70% power = 215yds dead straight, 8 in a row. I cranked the power back up toward redline, the club stayed with me, 275+ fade. Hit a maintenance shed out at about 300. I don't know where the new redline will be with this Driver, but my fear of the right rough is soon to be a memory. A little context might help. I'm 56, 6'1", 195lb. beer bellied smoker. Playing at golf 25yrs off and on. In the 1980's (in military) had a 13 handicap, probably 25 now. 3weeks ago got out the old clubs to play w/ my brother in law and a couple older guys we hooked up with. Completely embarrased myself. Couldn't get off the tee, couldn't hit anything from the fairway. Hit fat, topped, skys, pulls, slices, I was losing balls faster than they make'm. I hadn't played in a year, hadn't hit a bucket in 2 yr., so I shouldn't have been surprised that I had turned into a complete hacker by the back 9. So I've hit a bucket almost every day since; picked up a Nike 3W from a pawn shop, and a Shinnecock 9` driver made by Superior Metal Technology, hooked to a Graffalloy Blue stiff shaft, from a guy I met who had twenty different drivers in his garage, and brought 7 or 8 to the range for me to try out. The SMT driver added 25yds over my old persimmon Wilson woods immediately, but shot shape and control was about the same, i.e., 30% of shots were still in the right rough, 20% slices way out to the right. (Out of bounds/lost in the palmettos on our local courses.) So despite my serious practicing to straighten my outside in swing path, its still there, just lessened to 2` or so, but consistent and persistant. I had just returned home from hitting a bucket, when the new R9 arrived. Back I went. I was tired, I was hungry, my back was aching from pitching and putting practice, but couldn't wait. So.. I hope you understand that no miracle from above transpired, no Zen moment happened at address, only an hour had gone by, same wind, etc. Due to the light, I was firing them out there like a machinegun, rather than go through my preshot routine. To get my old 50% in the fairway, I'd aim left to allow room for the fade. With the R9 I aim just a tad left. So I'm telling you, this thing works. Borrow one, go to a demo day, buy a gently used one from Ebay like I did, whatever. This club puts 95% in the fairway (50yds wide) at 250+ yards with a fairly consistant, albeit not perfect, swing. If your game/swing could use a dramatic, immediate, statisticly reliable boost in confident accuracy, get it. The 2010 model may be better, 98%? Have a great day, I did.Read full review
The look is great and you feel instantly confortable at your stance. Easy to swing and very light makes high speed swing with no effort. Sound is great. You can shape easily your trajectory without using the set up screw. Setup system is very easy to use and seems strong enough even for high speed swing. High and roll are perfect. You win 20-25 yds with no effort. Ball remains very steady in the wind and is less affected than other drivers. Golf Digest gave him a gold medal he really has. Incredible Driver !
What I liked most about the TaylorMade R9 460 is that it is one of the most solid divers that I have had the pleasure of hitting. It has a solid sound not a pingy hollow sound. It is adjustable to the way I swing the club. I have mine set to NU (neutral Upright). What I dislike is that I seem to spin the ball more. Especially when I hit into the wind. It is not the longest driver I have hit but I am a lot more accurate off the tee with it. I have sharved 1-2 stokes off my game from hitting more fairways. I would recommend that anyone looking for a new driver take a close look at this club. Good luck and keep them in the short grass.
I find the Taylormade R9 460 to be an excellent, user friendly club. It does not have an odd shape or coloration, which can be distracting. It does have a head that is adjustable for lie, loft, open/closed face. I actually use the adjustment (I prefer a slightly closed clubface)so it is not a gimmick and allowed me to fit the club to me, not the other way around. The adjustment takes about one minute and the club head sits securely. You can use a star bit from your toolchest, but it is better to use the Taylormade one since it is comfortable to use and clicks when properly tightened. I also have the #3 fairway wood which matches well and has the same adjustments. Also, since the shafts come out easily, you can interchange them as well.
First of all I am a light recreational golfer. I love to play but only make it out for maybe 5-7 rounds a year sometimes a few more. I have been playing for about 7 years and have always had a pretty nasty slice. Once in a while I could hit one straight maybe hitting it about 225-250 yards. The R9 460 seemed like a great club when I saw the price drop at the local stores. So I went and swung it into a practice net and it "felt incredible" almost like I was lighting off explosives behind the ball every swing. So I then went to another store that had a simulator. Same exact club R9 460 RH stiff flex RE*AX 60 shaft. my first 5 hits (mind you this is the middle of winter and I haven't swung a club in months)the ball went 225-250 yards and dead straight maybe a little to the right. The salesman asked if he could make an adjustment to the club. After he did, my next 10 swings were 250-285 yards all but one shot was dead straight or even a little left! I never hit left! I was more than a little excited at the thought of owning this club. Needless to say I CAN'T wait to get out golfing this coming season. Hopefully hitting further and much straighter than ever before. When you have confidence with a club it translates into lower scores. I had the same thing happen 2 years ago when I got a different putter. I hope this driver has the same results for my scores. I typically shoot a round of 18 holes in the 100's if it is the first time playing a course usually 110's on a bad day. My goal is to have 2 consecutive rounds this year under 100.( Hopefully 1 round in the high 80's) Not being deep into the right hand side of the fairway should help a lot! I am sure that there are many better golfers than me using this club. But I am looking forward to progressing my game to the next level. If you are wondering about this club, do yourself a favor and find a store that lets you swing it, try it out, trust me you will probably want it as badly as I did once you do!Read full review