Before we continue, you should know something.
I am, essentially, an outlaw. An honest-to-goodness outlaw Butch and Sundance. I like to think of myself as a modern-day Sundance Kid, but my wife says I’m more of a George Costanza Bootlegger kind of outlaw episode.
Deep down she means Sundance. I just know it.
However, this outlaw plays by his own rules and will not be bound by arbitrary mandates given by man. That is why, at this very moment, I called a driver The Juggernaut in my office.
Juggernaut, you see, is illegal. In its ultimate wisdom, the USGA says the Juggernaut is non-conforming, simply because of its 515cc head volume and its grinning face on the 0.830 coefficient of restitution rule.
It also literally mocks the limitations of characteristic time.
That’s all well and good, but what you probably want to know is how much benefit a golfer would get from being illegal. I invite you to join my little Hole In The Wall Gang and let’s see what this Juggernaut can do.
Let’s ride, you outlaws!
You can see me tonight with an illegal smile …
While an outlaw at heart, the last time I bought anything illegal was my junior year of college. Would the FBI find out about my illegal driving? Was this some sort of sting operation run by the USGA? I can always claim trap. It has worked for me before.
I’ll admit it friends, it was the ad that hooked me.
The headline on Facebook was: “Why settle for less?” Since this is a question I ask myself almost every day, he had asked me Why.
“The Juggernaut driver pushes the limits of power and performance…” Hmm, good start. I like to think so, so I read on.
“… so much so that it doesn’t comply with USGA regulations.”
BINGO!
I know if ol’ Sandance had an American Express card, he’d slap it down like I did. Hey, I’ve done softer stuff for $149.99.
I was immediately drawn into the world of golfclubsforless.comlocated just down the highway from me in Braintree, Mass. I have always had a soft spot in my heart for Braintree, dating back to a warm summer’s eve in 1985 and a lady to whom I will be forever grateful.
Before committing a crime, I asked the Copilot (in this case, Co-conspirator is a better name) to show me what it can be made of golfclubsforless.com.
The company was founded in 2005 in Illinois, but was bought last year by a Massachusetts group and moved to Braintree. He specializes in modestly priced custom-built clubs, including single-length sets specifically for seniors, recreational players and beginners.
There was no talk of outlaws like me.
What is “The Juggernaut?”
At 515cc, the Juggernaut is 12 percent larger than the USGA limit of 460cc. The variable-thickness beta face of titanium is significantly larger than that of a conformal conductor. It’s also not the latest and greatest, as it’s been out since at least 2014. That tells me it’s eluded the USGA cops for 11 years. Bonnie and Clyde only got two before, well, you know.
Even that face is illegal. Its COR/CT exceeds USGA limits for elasticity. Combined with the face size, you have a large sweet spot to maintain ball speed. As someone who likes to spread impact over a wider portion of a driver’s face (hey, I paid for the whole face, I’ll use whole face), this is a good benefit.
Although I bought it through golfclubsforless.com, the Juggernaut is made by Hireko. The company’s technical director, Jeff Summit, told Golf Digest that the Juggernaut is “strictly for those four out of five people who really don’t care about the rules.”
Although I did buy the only Juggernaut golfclubsforless.com had listed, I was surprised to learn that there is a MAX version available. It is draw biased with a heavily offset pit.
And, no, the clutch is not adjustable. Us law breakers will have to settle for a fixed 10.5 degree loft.
The Juggernaut came with an Acculite shaft from Apollo on the R-flex. It’s a budget-friendly, high-release shaft designed to help recreational players get the ball in the air. It’s not the Ventus, but it does the job of connecting the club head to the grip.
Won’t you please tell the man that I haven’t killed anyone …
With two range sessions and a launch monitor session in the books, I can tell you a few things about Juggernaut. First of all, this driver wants to go straight. I mean, straight stupid. Mini-draw high straight, every time scary. It was actually kind of weird, because deep down in places I don’t talk about at parties, I know I can’t do that.
The second most obvious thing is that this anvil is loud, as in a ball hammer loudly hitting an anvil. Although I couldn’t get an accurate measure of how long the Juggernaut was in range, of course sound long.
However, my launch monitor session brought me back to reality. My winter swing speed that day averaged 94 mph, but the Juggernaut distance didn’t scream “crime of the century.” In fact, it was more than a little shorter than my player. The carry average was 221 yards with a total average distance of 235. The problem was the spin which averaged just under 3100 rpm.
However, just as it did at the range, the Juggernaut was ridiculously straight with side spin averaging just under 159rpm, with one registering a fat low of 22rpm. “Naut” (needs a nickname, doesn’t it?) and I just kept feeling the simulated centerline.
That’s when the lights went on in the attic where the parts of my brain that are still functional sometimes reside.
I was just trying to have some fun…
When the dust finally settled, I learned that in the case of the Juggernaut, “illegal” doesn’t mean faster ball speed and more powerful distance. This means off the chart MOI and lots of fairways hits. The distance wasn’t great, but the damn thing found the short grass every single time.
I don’t know much about the Acculite shaft, but I’m willing to go out on a limb and say that while it’s functional, it’s probably not optimized for me and the Naut (OK, I’m starting to like this one). It might be a fun experiment to throw in a TPT or other premium axle and see what happens.
So who is this illegal driver for? Well, if you’re not playing for your lunch money on Sundays, you’re playing golf for fun. There are a lot of horrible players out there who don’t carry handicaps, don’t play in tournaments, don’t care what the USGA says, and don’t read or comment on golf blogs. For them, golf is an activity that is meant to be fun. It is certainly not a heavy test of their personal worth as a human being, nor an integral part of their identity.
And this game is theirs as much as it is yours, mine or anyone’s. If Juggernaut helps that golfer find a few more fairways, what’s the problem? They’re just trying to make it a little fun.
bravo
Hot dog bun.
My sister is a nun.
Hey, if you know, you know.
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