I had a chance recently to spend a couple of weeks with the new R9 Supermax from Taylormade Japan. As you all know, Japan gets all the global models in the R9 line, the R9, R9 460, R9 Supertri, R9 Superdeep, plus all it’s own Japan market only drivers. Japanese models have included the R9 Max, R9 Max Type E, and now the R9 Supermax.  All in all that’s 7 different R9 models since the release of the original R9 back in the spring last year.  Some people have commented that Taylormade releases too many drivers far too often in an attempt to have players spend money to upgrade.

All brands love tweaking design…

Are there a big difference in the drivers they release? The differences are probably small but there are differences.  Many companies are in the same boat, when it comes to driver design, they are maxed out at 460cc and topped out at 0.83 COR. They strive to tweak design, materials and manufacturing processes but there is a lot of competition out there.

Taylormade’s thinking is not that it expects every player to change drivers several times a year when a new model comes out  (though some of us certainly do), but rather that consumers upgrade at different times ie player A upgraded earlier this spring to the new R9 Max Type E but player B is now ready to upgrade to the R9 Supermax.  Taylormade Japan is also a brand (well pretty much every brand is like this) that likes to make those design tweaks and changes to improve performance any way they can.

Black head, red accents…

Physically the R9 Supermax is not all that different from the R9 Max Type E which the R9 Supertri also had a similar head shape. It does follow along the lines of the the R9 progression in that it now has a black satin head though the finish is a bit different from the complete IP style heads of the Supertri and Superdeep. It looks a lot more “mature” than the original mirror finished R9 Max.  Black finish when done well on a driver can look very cool and done poorly can look very cheap. The R9 Supermax has a mix of IP black finish in the sole center plate where the logos are coupled with matte black finish and red accents. The grooves in the head design make it look more muscular. The face is that nice black satin and it has the white score lines in the center. It is quite long heel to toe as the typical miss for the average golfer is horizontal rather than vertical. There are no removeable weights in the Supermax, it’s weighted for a straight ball with weighting towards the back of the longer shallower head.

The lightest R9 series driver…

The Supermax is designed for MAX distance and MAX ease of use. The  460cc conforming black Supermax features high MOI and higher launch and big carry thanks to a deep and low center of gravity. The shallower face and larger head provide a large sweet spot and confidence at address. Like all other R9 drivers, the Supermax also features Flight Control Technology which allows for the head to be adjusted to 8 different positions altering trajectory and direction by changing the loft, lie and face angle. With the new FCT Sleeve the R9 Supermax comes in at an ultralight weight of 287g (R Flex)! This makes for increased swing speed and more overall distance for the average golfer. The all Titanium head features an inverted cone technology face and ultra thin wall crown at 0.6mm.

Good for the slicer….

Even with the FCT, the SuperMax features a 1* closed face in standard Neutral setting which along with it’s ultra light static weight shows that this driver targets the more average golfer battling the right side with a push or slice and those looking for more distance. It’s not terribly huge like some drivers these days at address but it certainly has the look of a new style 460cc head.

The new shaft is a Motore Supermax 50 shaft which features torque in the mid 4’s and a low 50g weight shaft. At at 45.75″ this seemed to be a good match for the Supermax, enough torque to have good feedback and feel but not too much where control would be lost. Definitely this stock shaft is for the smoother average swinger.  Of the current “black” drivers in TM’s lineup the Supermax also has the lowest swingweight at around D0 to D1.

Good feel good trajectory…

So how does it feel and perform? My tester came with a 9.5* head and the stock Motore Supermax shaft in the R flex. Yes it is a very light driver, very easy to swing. Taylormade specs the driver at 45.75″ but I always find TM on the shorter side compared to other brands as there is no fixed standard for length measurement and depending on the method for measuring  a driver length can be different. What I’m saying is I usually don’t like long drivers and try not to play anything over 45.5″ and that is the max. The Supermax felt softer at impact than the Type E and Supertri and the sound was more of a subtle tink. I actually liked the trajectory of the 9.5* as it was not overly high unlike many max carry high launch drivers today.  The closed face of the driver and the design and weighting of the head produces a soft draw with good distance.

The Supermax is forgiving. It’s a shallow head so tee’ed lower my misses are towards the toe and it does not lose much distance. Some distance and direction is lost off of low heel hits but this is common with most drivers.  The shaft has good feel and I can feel it load and release right before impact.  An aggressive swing results in a bit of a push to the right as the shaft seems to not unload in time leaving the face angle open a bit. These are typical characteristics of a mid to higher torque shaft which help the head square at impact especially for the player who is not as strong or quick, but on the other hand an aggressive player can force the shaft to either not unload in time or with too much wrist action create a pull/hook.

I was getting good run as the 9.5 seems to have a good balance of spin and trajectory.  For those average golfers who hit the ball too high with too much spin, stepping down to a 9.5* for more stability and control  and run is not a bad idea. I’ve been considering it for a while myself.

A definite option for the average golfer…

The R9 Supermax provides pretty good results for the average golfer and those with a smooth swing looking for more distance.  It’s forgiving and will yield great results to someone who doesn’t swing out of their pants or overly aggressive hard hitters.  It doesn’t launch as high as the R9 Supertri, it feels better than the R9 Max, and is better looking than the Max Type E (hey looks count too right?).  All in all an improvement over previous Japan Market R9 models though it definitely has a lot of competition out there from other brands. You can check out the specs as always in the Tourspecgolf.com pro shop.

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