PXG 0311 XF Driver Review

PXG 0311 XF Driver Review

PXG 0311 XF Driver
Grade: A
Teachers’ Comments: This baby makes the ball fly.

Manufacturer’s Site

I’ve been intrigued by PXG clubs since I first saw the ads with the distinctive, weight-festooned irons and drivers. Then there was the unbridled energy and enthusiasm of owner Bob Parsons, with whom I was familiar from his days at Parsons Technology. I was an avid user of the MoneyCounts program.

As much as the PXG clubs were shown in ads, however, I never actually saw any “in the wild.” Thus, I was quite pleased when PXG gave me the opportunity to have a clubfitting experience at PXG Detroit and then test one of their drivers in the field.

The driver that club fitter Marcus Aguilar put me in is a PXG Gen 5 0311XF, with a Projext X Riptide CB50 5.5 at 45 inches. My grip is a Winn Dri-Tac Dark Grey in Midsize.

In the field, I’ve found that this driver really makes the ball fly. With my current gamer, a Tour Edge C721 (read GolfBlogger’s Tour Edge C721 Review), I get a piercing low- to mid-height arc that rolls out forever. The PXG 0311 XF Driver, on the other hand, has a high soaring flight that lands and takes a couple of forward hops.

Total distance on the PXG and Tour Edge are quite similar, which is to say fifteen yards longer on average as measured by GPS than previous drivers (a couple of TaylorMades and Cobras).

I’ve had both these drivers in my bag for a couple of weeks, playing two balls from the tee as I make my early morning rounds at Washtenaw Golf Club.

Of the two, the PXG 0311 XF seems to me to be a bit straighter. On the downside, I’m not as able to hit a draw. On the positive side, the PXG 0311 XF doesn’t turn tee shots into hooks either.

The PXG 0311 rewards a smooth swing. I didn’t feel as though I had to crank it up to get distance. Indeed, I get the best results with a swing that feels as though I have expended little effort. On the morning before I wrote this, I hit my longest drive of the season with the PXG 0311 XF with what felt like a half-hearted swing.

I’ve found that my best swing thought with the PXG 0311 is to feel like I’m making an underhanded toss of the ball down the fairway. Club hits ball, ball soars.

The easy swing obviously is a function of having the right shaft for my PXG 0311, which in turn is a function of having spent an hour with a PGX club fitter.

As an aside, If you are going to get new clubs, you owe it to yourself to get fitted. PXG makes that easy if you have one of their storefronts in your area.

The PXG 0311 XF sets up very nicely with a slightly open look at address. A grey body with a black faceplate and a mark at the top makes it easy to align the club.

In all, I think the PXG driver is quite attractive. Notably, the PXG 0311 does not have any of the exposed weights that are part of PXG’s brand identity.

As a deaf person, I can’t really speak to the sound, but no one I have played with has commented. That is probably good news.

When they first hit the market, PGX clubs had a reputation for being expensive. That no longer is the case. As of this writing, PXG is selling the PXG 0311 driver for $299. Even at the full price of $499, the PXG driver is less than most other manufacturers’ offerings.

If you are in the market for a new driver, I suggest that you look outside the usual TaylorMade/Callaway/Cobra box and consider the PXG 0311.

Recommended.