Drive Golf Performance Blog

Drive Golf Performance Blog

Monday 2 November 2015

Comparing the Taylor Made M1 Driver to the R15 Driver

Taylor Made just launched their new M1 driver in the last couple of weeks.



Taylor Made are calling it their longest driver. We tested the driver recently to see how it compared to last years R15. Is the M1 their longest driver yet? How much better is it then the R15? These are the questions we were looking to answer.

We used 3 players and had them hit 10 shots with each driver. The results were recorded on a Trackman 111 launch monitor. Each player used used a shaft suitable to them and used the same shaft in the M1 and the R15, this way we could measure how much difference there was between the heads only. The Mizuno MP S ball was used for all shots hit.




The results we wanted to compare were Club Head Speed, Ball Speed, Carry Distance, Overall Distance, Lateral Distance from Target, Launch Angle and Spin Rate

Conditions were very good on the day for testing around 15 degrees C and a slight breeze against.


Results




Carry (Yards) Overall (Yards) Club Head Speed MPH Ball Speed MPH Side Distance Feet Launch Angle Spin Rate RPM
Player A M1 226.9 247.9 101.8 149.4 49.69 10.4 2282
R15 231.5 249.5 103.6 150.6 40.31 10.7 2670
Player B M1 239.9 262.9 107.2 155.7 25.83 11.5 2349
R15 241.7 262.5 108 156 26.82 11 2465
Player C M1 245.3 266.9 108.6 160.8 56.54 11.9 2374
R15 249 266 108 161.3 58.97 11.9 2524


Player A used a 9.5 degree M1 and R15 with a Diamana Kai'li 70 S Shaft
Player B used a M1 and R15 set to 10 degrees with a Diamana 'Ahina 60 X Shaft
Player C used a 9.5 degree M1 and R15 with a UST Attas 7 X Shaft.

Analysis


We can see that the results of both drivers are very similar for all players.

For Player A The R15 had longer carry by 4.6 yards, overall distance by 1.6 yards, higher club head and ball speed, 1.8 & 1.2 mph, better dispersion 9.38 feet closer, launch angles quite similar just 0.3 degrees apart. The M1 had lower spin - 388 rpm lower.

For Player B The R15 had longer carry by 1.8 yards, higher club head and ball speed 0.8 & 0.3 mph. The M1 had more overall distance by 0.4 yards, better dispersion 0.99 feet closer and lower spin 166 rpm less. The M1 had a slightly higher launch angle by 0.5 degrees

For Player C The R15 had longer carry by 3.7 yards and higher ball speed by 0.5 mph. The M1 had longer overall distance by 0.9 yards, higher club head speed by 0.6 mph, better dispersion by 2.33 feet and lower spin by 150 rpm. The launch angles were identical 11.9 degrees.

Things to note the M1 has lower spin for all three players. It also has a very attractive sound when hit. The R15 has longer carry and higher ball speed for all three players.

Conclusion


Is the M1 the longest driver? The answer is yes for some and no for others. In our test for 2 players it was 0.4 and 0.9 yards longer or around 1 foot and 3 feet longer, longer yes but not by much. For one player it was 1.6 yards shorter.  

Should you rush out and buy the M1 immediately? Definitely not, in this test the R15 is better for player A and for players B&C there's negligible difference between the two and not worth the difference in price.

I would say the most important thing when considering buying this driver is to test it and get fitted for it. If your current driver suits you it's unlikely that the M1 will give you a significant boost.

Comments and questions are always welcome.


4 comments:

  1. Very interesting test. I would have expected the M1 club head speed to be greater but not the case.

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    Replies
    1. Interesting results here in comparison:

      http://www.foregolf.ie/blog/2015/10/taylor-made-m1-vs-taylor-made-r15

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    2. I'm not sure how the 430 M1 head leads to 5 mph more club head speed in that test, there's no explanation given either.

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  2. This comment has been removed by the author.

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