Titleist TS4 Driver In Review

To win, you need to have a winning approach and, of course, title-worthy equipment, which brings us to the Titleist TS4 Driver. It has been received well so far, and has made it into the bags of pro golfers on the PGA Tour, but does it belong in yours, and is it the right driver to help you taste the thrill of victory?

There’s nothing quite like the thrill of victory, especially when it translates into winning a title. There’s something about the extreme elation and sense of validation and achievement that comes from winning a championship that’s simply intoxicating. Once you win one, you want to win more. Even so, titles are transcendent – even if you have never shot a round of 18 in your life, you can’t help but feel a bit pumped at a classic Tiger Fist Pump.

Titleist TS4's Aesthetic Sleekness

Looks aren’t everything, especially when it comes to drivers, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t important. Sure, you should care a lot more about performance, but drivers are still one of if not the most distinctive and visible golf clubs in your bag. From a purely social standpoint, you want your clubs to be nice. You may not be a boastful person, but there’s nothing wrong with taking a little pride in clubs well-worth boasting about, right?

Well, you should be pretty proud of how this driver looks. It’s lithe without feeling too small, nice, and sleek. “Titleist” is printed on it in elegant cursive and features a great finish. At 430cc, it is 30cc smaller than some of the other drivers offered by TS, but as we’ll see, it can still come up big. For now, this smaller size makes it seem a bit less bulky while also making it that much easier to fit into your bag – a nice little win-win from a form and function standpoint.

The shape is a bit different from other drivers. Instead of the traditional pear shape, you get a more rounded, symmetrical look. This, combined with the glossy black crown and the model’s alignment, help contribute to its aforementioned litheness.

Evaluating its Performance

Just as a batter can tell whether they’ve hit the ball well or not by the crack of the bat, a good golfer can tell how well they’ve hit their shot by the sound of the ball coming off the club. The classic sound-feel test here checks out, with a dead-on center shot producing a lower-pitched “whack” while hitting it off the outer side of the face produces a higher-pitched sound. You also feel some good, solid feedback in your hands when you hit it well.

The Titleist TS4 Driver has a rectangular weight (if you have used the TS2, it’s similar to that, but with the weight placed toward the face instead). 

On the one hand, this has helped the TS4 cut down on spin rate, so if you’re someone who is tired of accidentally putting too much spin on your ball and want a more straight-on shot instead, this may be a valuable countermeasure.

On the other hand, however, it comes at the cost of some of this driver’s forgiveness, and that can be a problem in itself. Even pro golfers have to grapple with their swing biases, and amateurs can have an even bigger issue with shots slicing off to the side. Flick your wrist even a fraction of an inch the wrong way and it could cost you precious inches or feet. That’s why many drivers include Motion of Inertia (MOI) measures to help add a bit of swing forgiveness so small movements in your wrists or deviations in your swing don't translate into a huge slice.

The fact that the TS4 is less forgiving than some of its previous TS models is thus something you’ll need to consider when deciding if it’s right for you.

However, a positive that helps counteract this aspect of the driver’s play style is that the TS4 is quite good at shaping shots. While it may be less forgiving, if you can manage to keep your shots under control, the Titleist TS4 Driver can allow you to put extra curvature on your shots better than many other drivers in this price range.

In Conclusion

If you are a beginner, the TS4 may be a bit too intense for you, especially with its less than forgiving style. For those with the experience to master it, however, it can be a highly rewarding driver. It cuts down on excess spin masterfully, and is a great choice for anyone looking for extra shot shaping help.

Bubba Watson has been known for his crazy shot curvature on the Tour. If that’s your style and you’re looking to blast it like Bubba, this Titleist TS4 driver may prove to be the choice of champions in your hands.