For well over a decade, as more golf equipment companies added exotic materials to their drivers, Titleist continued making its drivers using titanium. Working with its manufacturing partners, Titleist made the titanium crowns, faces and body sections thinner, enhanced the aerodynamics of the heads, and developed different head styles so players and fitters could create a club that maximized overall performance. Attaining more ball speed was great, but designers did not want to sacrifice stability to get it, and their goal was not to increase forgiveness by giving up speed.
That overall philosophy hasn’t changed, but in the new GT2, GT3 and GT4 drivers, the decision to go with a new shape necessitated the use of a new material, which has helped to quicken the adoption of the new GT drivers by PGA Tour players like Justin Thomas (GT2), Max Homa (GT3), Cameron Young (GT2), Tom Kim (GT3), and Patrick Cantlay (GT2). Now Titleist is making the GT family of drivers available to everyone.
Who are the Titleist GT2, GT3, and GT4 drivers for?
Each of the Titleist GT drivers is designed to create more ball speed and distance. The GT2 is made specifically for players who want to maximize stability and forgiveness. The GT3 was made for players who want left-right adjustability, and the GT4 is for golfers who need a low-spin driver.
What do you need to know about the Titleist GT drivers?
To improve the aerodynamics of the GT drivers, Titleist engineers elevated the back portion of the sole to reduce drag and improve the way air flows over the club. However, using the new shape in an all-titanium club elevated the center of gravity (CG) location, resulting in more spin, a lower launch angle and less distance.
The back of the sole of the Titleist GT3 driver peals up, creating a more aerodynamic shape. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
To use the aerodynamic head shape but lower the CG location, engineers decided to use a thermoform polymer to design a crown piece that wraps over the heel and toe and into the sole. While many carbon fiber crowns require small ledges and glue on the top of the club to hold them in place, Titleist’s design positions the ledges low in the heel, toe and back of the head. In those areas, adding a small amount of extra weight does not reduce performance.
Look as closely as you want at the GT drivers, but you won’t see the seams where the thermoform polymer insert is joined to the titanium portion of the chassis. After the crown piece is added, Titleist fills the seams with resin, which is then hand-buffed to create a smooth surface before the heads are painted. In the address position, golfers see nothing but a glossy black crown and a small “GT” logo that players can use to center the ball when they address it.
The top of the Titleist GT2 driver is made using thermoform polymer instead of titanium. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
For many players, drivers with a carbon fiber top sound muffled or soft because the resin glue used to create the carbon fiber material absorbs vibrations and sounds. However, in addition to being light, Titleist’s proprietary carbon material is impregnated with a polymer instead of resin glue, and the polymer can be tuned to create specific sounds. That allowed Titleist to modify the sound of the GT drivers so they mimic what you hear with titanium drivers. If you tap it with your fingernail, the polymer piece even sounds like a metal crown.
Much of the weight saved by using the thermoform polymer crown piece was redistributed to different areas within the heads. Each of the GT drivers has extra mass low and forward, which should increase ball speed, with the remaining mass going to the back.
The Titleist GT4 features a variable-thickness titanium face. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Finally, Titleist gave each GT driver a variable-thickness face that is thicker around the perimeter and very thin on the inside before getting thicker again in the middle. Titleist refers to this design as Speed Ring and it debuted in the TSR3 driver two years ago and Titleist claims it creates more speed over a larger area.
As with the TSR driver family, Titleist has designed three GT heads that players and fitters can use to create the ideal club for the majority of golfers.
The GT2 is a 460cc driver that is the largest from front to back and has the most stability. It comes standard with a nine-gram weight in the back of the head to boost the moment of inertia (MOI) and make the head twist less on off-center hits.
The GT2 is available in 8-, 9-, 10-, and 11-degree lofts for both right and left-handed golfers. It comes standard at 45.5 inches in length and has Titleist’s 16-position SureFit adjustable hosel that lets players and fitters independently adjust the loft and lie angle.
All of the Titleist GT drivers feature a 16-position SureFit hosel. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
The GT3 is also a 460cc head and comes in the same loft options for right and left-handed players, and it has the SureFit hosel system, too. However, the GT3 has a five-position weight track in the front of the sole that pushes the CG location more forward for increased ball speed. The moveable weight lets players and fitters create either a draw or fade bias. The weight, which comes standard at eight grams, is accessible by unscrewing a plate in the sole. Compared to the TSR3, the sliding weight is more forward in the head, so the GT3 should produce a slightly lower flight and less spin than the TSR3.
Finally, the GT4 is a 430cc driver designed to create the lowest spin and launch angle. It is available in 8-, 9-, and 10-degree heads, has the SureFit hosel and comes with an 11-gram sole weight in a rear port and a three-gram sole weight in the front port. According to Titleist, moving the 11-gram weight to the front in the GT4 makes the club produce less spin and a lower flight than a front-weighted TSR4, but keeping the 11-gram weight in the back keeps the CG location between the GT2 and GT3, so the spin and launch angle fit between the GT2 and GT3.
How much will the Titleist GT drivers cost?
The Titleist GT2, GT3, and GT4 drivers are $649 each with Project X Denali Red, HZRDUS Black 5th Generation, or Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Blue shaft and Titleist Universal 360 grip.
When will the Titleist GT drivers be available?
The Titleist GT2, GT3, and GT4 drivers are available for pre-order with fittings starting August 1 and should be in stores starting August 23.
Below are several close-up looks at the Titleiust GT2, GT3 and GT4 drivers: