Indoor Golf: SHAVED FACE: TaylorMade Jetspeed VS. Taylormade Jetspeed

Have you ever heard of anyone shaving the face of their driver?

As unusual as it sounds, there's a chance that someone in your weekend foursome may have already done it.

Trust me, the company World's Hottest Drivers wouldn't be in business if nobody was shaving faces; and I don't mean with Barbasol.

WHAT DOES A SHAVED FACE DO?

When was the last time you read or watched an advertisement that promised that a product could increase your distance off the tee by 10, 20, even 30 yards?

I already know the answer, and it's every day. Every equipment manufacturer is going to tell you their product will let you hit the ball higher, farther and straighter than you ever have. I mean, is the GX-7 X-Metal not the BEST driver (or whatever it actually is) you've ever hit?

I rest my case.

To really gain meaningful distance off the tee, sometimes it takes a little something extra. And by extra, I mean something completely outside the USGA's rules and regulations.

Milled for Distance

World's Hottest Drivers has developed a process to CNC-mill (or shave) the face of a driver, increasing the Coefficient of Restitution (COR), or "spring-like" effect of the face. The result is increased ball speed, decreased spin and of course, longer drives.

HOW IT'S DONE

The video above explains it simply:

The max Coefficient of Restitution (COR) for a driver under USGA regulations is .830
World's Hottest Drivers can CNC-mill the face of the driver to increase the COR to .930
Your driver is now non-conforming, but you'll yack dingers all day long and impress your buddies.

The guys over at WHD have this thing down to a science. They shave the face based on your swing speed, giving you max distance while minimizing the risk of a cracked face. Therefore, the slower you swing, the thinner you can go.

At the Risk of Stating the Obvious: MyGolfSpy does not condone the use of non-conforming equipment for handicapping purposes and USGA tournament play, however; golf is a game, and if you just want to have a little fun on a Saturday afternoon, go for it.

HOW WE TESTED

Two TaylorMade Jetspeed drivers were tested (one with a shaved face/the other stock).
Both were tested at 9.5°.
The same shaft was used for both heads, swapping the heads out every three shots.
The shaved Jetspeed was milled to COR of .880, WHD's recommendation for swing speeds between 100-110 mph.
Six golfers with handicaps ranging from 0-15 and driver swing speeds between 75 and 125 mph participated in this test. (2 slow, 2 medium, 2 fast).
Each tester hit 12-14 shots with each club (frequently rotating between clubs).
Gross mishits were eliminated and are not included in the shot counts.
Remaining outliers were identified using Median Absolute Deviation (both distance and offline), and dropped before calculation of the final averages.
All testers hit Bridgestone B330-RX Golf Balls.
Ball Data was recorded using a Foresight GC2 Launch Monitor.

THE DATA

TaylorMade Jetspeed (Shaved)

Distance	261.42 ^yds
Accuracy	21.04 ^yds
Spin	2,237 ^rpm
Launch	14.49 ^deg
Ball Speed	145.52 ^mph

TaylorMade Jetspeed (Stock)

Distance	251.40 ^yds
Accuracy	20.24 ^yds
Spin	2,471 ^rpm
Launch	15.63 ^deg
Ball Speed	141.45 ^mph

OBSERVATIONS

The data suggest that the shaved face driver does exactly what it is intended to do:

Shaving the face of a driver produces ball speeds on average of 4 mph faster than a stock head.
Higher ball speeds equal longer distances; the shaved Jetspeed traveled a full 10 yards farther than its USGA-conforming counterpart.
In addition to added ball speed and distance, the shaved face driver produced shots with lower launch and less spin, while maintaining similar accuracy to the conforming version.
While not readily apparent in the data, we found club head speed increased with the shaved face. This may be attributable to a weight difference of nearly 20-grams.

TaylorMade Jetspeed (Shaved) VS. (STOCK)

Club	Ball Speed	Launch	Spin	Peak Height	Carry	Total	Yards From Center
Jetspeed (Shaved)	145.52	14.49	2,237	31.77	245.57	261.42	21.04
Jetspeed (Stock)	141.45	15.63	2,471	34.10	236.44	251.40	20.24

FINAL NOTES

While we do not, under any circumstances, condone using non-conforming gear for handicapping purposes or in competition, the results are nevertheless impressive, and provide a window into what might be possible if manufacturers ever decided to circumvent the USGA's regulations.

The shaved face driver produced higher ball speeds, lower spin, and appreciable longer drives than the conforming version.

If you're looking to impress your friends, or just gain a bit of extra distance that you might have lost over time, a shaved face driver could be for you.