For over a decade, Taylormade has titled themselves "the number one driver in golf." That's a bold claim. In our Taylormade Stealth 2 HD Driver Review, we will take an in depth look at both the things that we liked in our testing of the golf manufacturing Goliath's newest installment, as well as some things we noticed that weren't our favorite.
Why Trust Us?
The guys at Golf Gear Advisor didn't take the traditional route to golf knowledge and expertise. We are primarily players. We learn by testing, feeling the differences that different equipment presents, and basing our judgement on results.
Our founder, John, is the patriarch of what has become a family of accomplishment in the game. His boys, John and Michael, have a combined 4 NCAA National Championship rings and are both pursuing careers as professional golfer. John has made 3 cuts on the PGA Tour as well as over 50 on the Korn Ferry Tour. Michael has had success on mini tours and is preparing for Q School while acting as a part time teaching professional.
We may not have the traditional education of some "golf experts," but we have the experience to bring you the most comprehensive and accurate reviews of all kinds of equipment, including the Taylormade Stealth 2 HD.
Taylormade Stealth 2 HD Features
Taylormade's line of drivers are golf club royalty. The older brother to the Stealth 2 - the Stealth - was an impressive upgrade from the highly touted SIM line.
In the design and production of the Stealth 2 HD, Taylormade took all of the best features of the Stealth and amplified them. There is something to be said for this. Taylormade, a manufacturer known for making changes to great products and pushing boundaries, doubled down on what they already had. To us, that says they are confident in this line of drivers.
Innovative Design
All club manufacturers are looking for ways to take the advantage in the driver market segment. Taylormade has been able to stay on top of the driver game for a long time, and part of the reason is their willingness to be different and forward thinking.
We will discuss all of these in detail, but they added more and higher quality carbon, enhanced the face technology, and a draw bias to help all of the slicers out there hit more fairways.
Premium Carbon Fiber Feel
With the first installation of the Stealth line, Taylormade introduced the world to the Carbonwood era. Unlike Callaway, Taylormade has actually found a way to incorporate carbon into the face of the golf club, making for some pretty big changes.
What are the advantages of carbon fiber?
Carbon fiber is less dense and lighter than titanium. This allows more flexure in the face during impact, as well as less resistance. The end result is faster ball speed and higher launch angles.
Carbon fiber also allows Taylormade to add nanotexture technology to the face of their drivers. Nanotexture technology increases the club's ability to create optimal launch conditions in wet weather, making the performance of the Stealth 2 HD more versatile than most other drivers on the market.
Player Performance Characteristics
Performance Technology
The Stealth 2 HD is chock full of technology that increases the performance of the club on both the solid strikes and the misses.
- 60X Carbon - 60 layers of carbon fiber layered into the face of the golf club create in incredibly fast, flexible club face that transfers a ton of energy into the golf ball. As Taylormade has always done, the goal of this is to help you hit the golf ball farther.
- Enhanced Inverted Cone Technology - this technology was first built into the original Stealth drivers, and has been improved upon in this rendition of the driver. It is made to increase ball speed on off center strikes and enhance forgiveness, meaning longer and straighter drives more often.
- Carbon Reinforced Composite Ring - by using more carbon than any other driver in golf history, and moving it to carefully selected areas of the club, Taylormade redistributes the mass of the golf club for increased stability. This is part of what makes the Stealth 2 HD such a straight driver.
Visual Characteristics
You have to like the way your driver looks, plain and simple. Believe it or not, you are more likely to hit a driver well if you like its appearance. So let's talk about the way the Stealth 2 HD looks.
Shape
When we talk about the shape of a driver, we are referring mostly to the crown of the golf club. That is the part that you are looking at when you are set up to hit a golf shot.
With that said, the shape of the Stealth 2 HD is very traditional as modern drivers go. It effectively looks like the letter "D", with no crazy features standing out. The one thing that is different about the crown of this driver is the design, which you can read more about below.
Color and Design
In terms of color, Taylormade has encapsulated the Sunday Tiger look. A primarily black theme with brilliant accents of deep red give this driver a look that says "I stand out because I know I deserve to." We feel that this is an indicator of the way Taylormade feels about their newest line of drivers. They have pushed it to a different level that they are proud of, and they want everyone to know which driver they put on the market.
As far as design goes, we are talking both about different patterns, logos, and other visuals, as well as technology that changes the appearance of the club.
On the crown of the club, there is some subtle patterning that helps cut the glare on sunny days, as well as the word "Stealth" embossed on the back, heel side edge. We found these features to be a little distracting at first, but it was very easy to get used to them.
On the bottom of the club, you will see a speed pocket. These have become pretty common on drivers in today's game. They are made up of a different material that sits below and ahead of the center of gravity with the intent to increase the amount of energy that it transferred into the golf ball. You will also find 2 ridges that work from the middle of the club towards the back, converging as they go. These are intended to increase the aerodynamics of the club, allowing you to maintain higher speeds through impact and hit the ball farther as a result.
Adjustability
The Stealth 2 HD is adjustable, but not as much as some other drivers out there. The hosel of the golf club houses a sleeve that allows you to change the loft of the club by a total of 4 degrees.
There are 2 weights that can be removed and replaced. You can replace them with different weights that change the feel of the club head, but those are an additional purchase and do not come with the driver.
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Price
The Taylormade Stealth 2 HD is relatively affordable as far as drivers go. As one of the drivers in Taylormade's newest line, it sits at $600 for a driver with a stock shaft. This is the base price for what we would call "off the rack" purchases.
Pros and Cons Of The Stealth 2 HD Driver
What We Like
What We Don't Like
Taylormade Stealth HD 2 Driver Review Wrap Up
The HD in the Taylormade Stealth 2 HD Driver stands for high draw, which makes it our top pick for best driver for a slice.
We learned a lot in the process of developing our Taylormade Stealth 2 HD Driver Review. We've seen some of the initial reaction of the professionals who are playing drivers in this line, and there have been mixed reviews. We understand why.
The Stealth 2 HD brings a lot of great technological advancements to the table. It is designed to help you hit the ball farther, straighter, and more consistently. Unfortunately, that means it is also harder to move the golf ball.
We also don't love the look or the sound produced by impact, but these are very minor things that you can adjust to.
At the end of the day, this is a very well balanced driver that makes hitting fairways easier. There are certainly other drivers on the market that can compete with this one, but we feel strongly that this is a driver that most golfers would be satisfied to play.
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- Titleist TSR Driver Review
- Callaway Paradym Driver Review
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