01 Dec 2020

By Ken Lye
Photos by Ken Lye & Natasha Wong / Titleist

TSi Drivers

Interesting numbers have cropped up after the mid-September introduction of Titleist’s new TSi series to tour players on the PGA and European Tours.

Since then TSi has become the most played driver model:

• on both tours, with more than 150 players putting a TSi model into competition, of which 20 are in the Top 100 and 4 are in the Top 20 of the Official World Golf Rankings (Justin Thomas, Adam Scott and two others without a playing agreement).
• at the US Open at Winged Foot.
• out of 29 players using Titleist drivers at the November Masters at Augusta National; 23 players had the new TSi in competition play of which 9 are not signed to Titleist.

Why would tour adoption be so rapidly prolific during a season when two Majors are on the line? GolfAsia went down to the Titleist National Fitting Centre at Sentosa Golf Club on Masters Thursday for its TSi global launch to find out.

We discovered that the big sell with the TSi drivers is ATI 425 Aerospace Titanium, an expensive revolutionary face material that Titleist is the first in the industry to adopt for use, and it’s patent-pending.

ATI 425 was initially developed for military ballistic armor applications and has since been used in many aerospace and commercial aircraft solutions, including jet engines and NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander. Far superior to regular 6-4 Titanium, its 30 percent higher elasticity and ductility allows for a much thinner clubface resulting in a myriad of benefits:

• less clubface deformation and faster rebound at impact for increased ball speed.
• weight savings from the thinner clubface was repositioned to increase MOI. While high MOI usually equates to heel and toe forgiveness, the use of ATI 425 further optimises forgiveness up and down the clubface, improving MOI by 13 percent more than before to result in more consistent launch and spin numbers.
• redesigned clubhead aerodynamics reduce drag by up to 15 percent, again translating into more speed.

Expect that the TSi drivers will deliver a low and deep centre of gravity for exceptional stability, faster ball speed, and with a high launch and low spin trajectory. The improved launch and spin performance have resulted in a 0.5 degrees of loft reduction across the TSi drivers, yet the key takeaway is best expressed by world number 3 Justin Thomas.

“TSi just looks fast and it sounds like a missile coming off the face. When I first tested it, I hit one drive off the toe and it carried almost 20 yards further than I would have thought. What we want is the bad ones to perform better. Those weeks where I’m not hitting it consistently in the middle of the face, I feel like this [TSi driver] is going to have the opportunity for me to narrow my window and dispersion… The fact that it is faster without giving anything up – I can’t believe how much it’s improved when it already seemed to be the best that it can get.”

– Justin Thomas

Clubhead aerodynamics and acoustics at impact are a few other improved areas over the previous generation. Tour feedback has also resulted in a softer rounded toe profile for a look that setups more square at address, along with ‘Tsi’ replacing the long-familiar triangle alignment aid on the crown.

Club golfers at the far end of the spectrum can reasonably expect TSi1 and TSi4 drivers to follow in due course.

 

TSi Fairway Metals

 

In Titleist’s new TSi fairways, refined aerodynamics allow for faster clubhead speeds, and an improved Active Recoil Channel 4.0 or ARC, creates greater face-flex at impact for increased ball speed. A refined crown design and thinner high-speed variable clubface, along with a shortened ARC wall from heel to toe, produced significant weight savings. Thus, the CG is now lower and MOI higher, producing high launch and low spin in an extremely stable clubhead. Speed and spin are more consistent across the entire face for faster, longer, straighter shots.

For both driver and fairway, there are two distinct models.

TSi2 – for players seeking incredible speed and accuracy across the entire clubface. 

TSi3 – for players who create more consistent contact and require more precise control over CG placement to improve spin and ball flight performance.

Titleist recommends a custom fitting for optimum performance.

 

TSi Series

Drivers	Fairway Metals
• TSi2: Speed And Forgiveness   • Maximum distance and forgiveness • ATI 425 Aerospace Titanium face technology • Exceptionally stable high-MOI design • Adjustable swingweight, fixed deeper and lower CG location • High launch, low spin • Aerodynamically optimised modern shape, 460cc • Available lofts: 9.0, 10.0, 11.0	TSi2: Pure Distance   • Maximum distance and forgiveness • Improved Active Recoil Channel 4.0 • Adjustable swingweight, fixed CG location • High launch, mid spin • Improved aerodynamic modern shape (175cc) • Available lofts: RH: 13.5°, 15°, 16.5°, 18°, 21° LH: 13.5°, 15°, 16.5°, 18°
• TSi3 – Dialed in Distance • Precision performance via workability and dynamic forgiveness. • ATI 425 Aerospace Titanium face technology • Five-setting SureFit CG track to adjust clubhead CG and fine-tune ball flight – H2 (most heel biased), H1, Neutral, T1, T2 (most toe biased) for advanced speed-tuned performance, shot control and adjustable swingweight • Mid/high Launch, low spin • Aerodynamically optimised, traditional shape, 460cc • Available lofts: 8.0, 9.0, 10.0	TSi3: Dynamic Distance • Precision performance and dynamic forgiveness. • Improved Active Recoil Channel 4.0 • Three-setting SureFit CG track – Toe (T), Neutral (N) and Heel (H) to adjust clubhead CG and fine-tune ball flight. The new track design disappears into the sole of the club for smoother turf interaction through impact; adjustable swingweight • Mid/high launch, low spin • Improved aerodynamic traditional shape (175c) • Available lofts: RH: 13.5°, 15°, 16.5°, 18° LH: 15°, 16.5°

 

Both models feature Titleist’s backward-compatible SureFit hosel with 16 independent loft and lie settings and +/- 4g head-weight adjustability for a precise and optimised fit.

 

SHAFTS

Rather than stock, Titleist has four new high-performance aftermarket featured shafts; with the option to upgrade to one of three premium shafts.

 

• Featured Shafts

Mitsubishi KURO KAGE™ Black Dual-Core  (High launch and spin)

Mitsubishi TENSEI™ AV RAW Blue (Mid launch and spin)

HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX (Low-mid launch and spin)

Mitsubishi TENSEI™ AV RAW White (Low launch and spin)

 

Note: A Titleist exclusive, players with moderate swing speed can opt for Straight Flight Weighting (SFW) technology in the lightweight KURO KAGE Black Dual Core 50 and TENSEI AV Raw Blue 55 at no charge.

• 
  Premium Shafts (from Graphite Design)

Graphite Design Tour AD DI

Graphite Design Tour AD IZ

Graphite Design Tour AD XC

• Custom Shafts

Available on fitting or request

 

Trial And Fittings

Try out the new TSi Metals at a trial event or book a free fitting at a Titleist Fitting Day, visit www.titleist.com.sg/golf-clubs/events or www.titleist.com.sg/golf-club-fitting/appointments.