I went to a fitting at a local coourse with no intention of buying. Just wanted to have some fun and hit some different things for fun. The second club I hit was the FT-5. I was shocked. Love the sound and feel. Never lost the ball right. I was swinging with a club speed usually around 119, and a ball speed of 180. I went to Nike, Cobra, Titelist, and a couple of others. Nothing compared. So about an hour later I went back to Callaway. Asked the guy for the 2nd driver he gave me. The feeling came right back. Bang, bang, bang, one after another over 300. Dead straight or slight draw. I went to my car to get my R5 just to compare. Felt dead and shaky in comparison. I really couldn't resist. After some working and a trade-in, I paid more for a club than I ever thought I would....Worth every dollar! The more I hit it the more I love it. Straigt and dependable. Worse case is an off center hit that travels 260 and draws 30 yards or so. Again "worst case". I am thrilled. I can aim down the right side and pound it. Awesome! I used the Stiff shaft with the 10deg loft. Believe me...IT IS WORTH IT!

Customer Service

None

Similar Products Used:

Nike, Fi-1, Titelist, Cobra, TaylorMade, etc.

First of all, I never have been a really big Callaway fan. I have always played Ping or TM. When I first began my quest for a new driver this season, the FT-5 was not even on my list of drivers to try. I decided to give it a go since I was trying everything else in the store and WOW! I was very surprised. Last year, I spent several trips to my local store to get on the Vector launch monitor. I ended up getting a Ping G5 10.5 with the graffaloy prolaunch blue. It gave me the best results. It is really a nice club, but for me, once on the course, the results were lackluster. I was hitting probably close to 300 yds, but got absolutely no roll whatsoever (probably due to the shaft). I compared my G5 to all other drivers I was trying and the only one to outhit the Ping was the FT-5 (9.5 loft, Fuji 360 stiff). I was getting around 315-320 yds including 10-15 yds roll with the Callaway which averaged about 8-10 yds farther than the G5. Some of this I am sure was due to the shaft flex points, but the Callaway had less sidespin and felt better overall. It seems like with the G5, I had to really control my swing, but with the FT5, I could "grip it and rip it" if I wanted and it had no ill effects on my ball flight. Also, for some reason, my club head speed was much higher with the FT5. Not sure if it was the shorter club length or the flex point, but either way, avg for the G5 was 119mph and the avg for the FT5 was 128 with ball speed of 186mph or those of you who like numbers. I did not need x stiff because the pro I worked with said I did not place a load on the shaft in such a place that it required an x stiff. I hit this driver straighter than any others I tried and now that I have been on the range and the course with it, I find it to be very workable for a fade or draw. I also find it easy to hit the ball higher or lower depending on how high I tee it and where I place it in my stance. The sound is solid and looks are good. I feel confident standing over the ball. I went with the tour version because I can't stand the look of a closed clubface at address. I can say that I feel that this driver is for someone who is a mid to low handicapper, but high handicappers may like it for the traditional look and the feel of it. Only major problem is the price, but being an avid golfer, I would probably pay the same price for a new driver within the next 2 years if I find something else I like better!

Customer Service

Have not used it. Custom orders take a ridiculous amount of time to complete. I hope that I have no troubles with this driver.

Similar Products Used:

Nike Ignite, G5, Titleist 905R for a little while, FT3 for a couple of rounds - also a nice driver, tested but did not like - All new Nike, Cleveland HiBore XL, Titlest D1 and D2, TM Superquad, R7 460, 425, and Burner, Big Bertha 460. New Nicklaus drivers felt descent.

I ran a "Zelocity" simulator session at Golf Galaxy comparing the Nike Sumo2, King Cobra SpeedLD F, Ping Rapture, TaylorMade Burner, and Callaway FT-i and FT-5. The FT-5 was absolutely incredible. All the other clubs I used a 10.5 loft and stiff flex shaft. The FT-5 I used the same loft but reg flex since Callaway used a sweet shaft by Fujikura. I hit the FT-i and FT-5 the best by far and loved the feel of the swing and sound they made. The FT-5 surprisingly went just as straight as the FT-i but I had slightly more distance and shapeability. I also compared many balls and the one that performed the best with this club was the TaylorMade TP Red. I highly recommend this club; if you get a chance to use a nice simulator like at Golf Galaxy it will really help you sort through the best club for you.

Customer Service

Haven't used Callaway's CS but I hear its great. Golf Galaxy's customer service is always fantastic.

Similar Products Used:

TaylorMade r7 425, Titleist 905R, and test many others as you can see above.

My son is 13 and competes in tournaments, shoots in 70-s and "needed" new driver. He had been hitting a Callaway X with a regular stock shaft and after demoing a bunch of clubs on a launch monitor, he opted for the FT-5 10 deg. draw with regular shaft(Ouch $130 more expensive than next best alternatives). His swing speed was measure at 95-97. I'm pretty skeptical about claims a driver "instantly adds 10-15 yards" but that's exactly what it did for him and seemed more forgiving and workable than the X. The lesser loft than his prior club may have helped but I demo'd one with a stiff shaft and was maybe 10 yards longer but also the club was so easy to hit and could be faded at will (I opted for the neutral version). What a club! Now I'm going to get one of E-Bay to lessen the financial pain of buying two of these. I tend to play Titleist but Callaway clubs seem to just keep getting better and better.

Customer Service

Slow to fill custom orders.

Similar Products Used:

Titleist 905R (current club), 905T and 983K. I love Titleist clubs.

Let me just say WOW. I never thought in a million years that I'd like/love a Callaway driver. As of today, its by far the most accurate and forgiving club out.
On the range I was hitting it 250 in the air. I usually get 250yards after its rolled a bit. So, I took it on the course, and I must say I was averaging about 265 on all of my drives. With 290 being the best. Now, I'm not going to say I didn't hit it to the right a few times, because I did. And that's because I was feeling good, and I swung a little harder.
April 07 is the 5th year I've been playing. I've tried over 20 clubs. The FT-5 is by far the best.

Similar Products Used:

Taylormade R5, r7 Quad, 425, 460 Draw, 460, HT, Superquad

I picked up this club about two weeks ago based solely on the golf digest "hot list" recommendation. Ive been hitting the Taylor R7 with mixed results. I demo'd the FT-5 along with the FT-i at the same time. The FT-5 flies about as straight as the FT-i but with much more distance. An average increase of 25 yards and its almost always in the fairway (draw bias). Yes,ladies and gentlemen, THE DREADED STRAIGHT BALL!!! I LOVED IT SO MUCH I went out and bought the Calloway X fairway woods. Great choice no matter what your skill level.

Customer Service

never asked for any

Similar Products Used:

Taylor R7

This is a first impression review of the FT-5. I’ll probably have more comprehensive feedback in a few months. I’ll start by saying that last season I spent a lot of time on the range and the course with the FT-3. That driver changed my game in so many ways. That was the first driver I ever had good confidence in.

Callaway’s engineers and marketing people had me good. When they announced the FT-5 I tried to tell myself to wait till mid-season for a promotion or Callaway pre-owned to get the club. No luck, the more I read about the FT-5 being a complete upgrade on the FT-3 the more I liked. I traded in the FT-3 on the FT-5 (both 9 degree) last week and have been on the range twice.

Charles Howell says the FT-5 gave him 12 yards overnight. Well, I’m a 9 handicap and no pro, but I’ll back up that claim. I went to the same range I always go and easily have another 25 yards of carry (45 degrees here as well). Now, to be fair, I had a ProLaunch stiff in the FT-3 which is generally thought of a lower distance shaft. The stock Fujikura Fit-On stiff is a better distance shaft and in my view certainly not any less accurate than the ProLaunch… great stock shaft. Also, I am seem to be loading my right side better this season than I was last season.

All the same, after 2 range sessions I am completely sold. Farther, straighter, easier, and just about any other compliment you could think of. If you have spent time with the FT-3 you are really going to like the bigger face. Increased ball speed? No kidding… I would say that’s true. Price is high as always and it’s hard to say if it’s worth it or not…. after all this is golf. Mine will get its use this season.

Customer Service

They take care of you... and should at these prices.

Similar Products Used:

FT-3, Ping G5

The driver has a really solid feel, excellent swing weight and decent sound at impact. With the built in draw bias, the results on the store simulator were very strong. I expect the composite material and design features to increase distance considerably over previous all-titanium driver (Taylor Made R-5). I strongly recommend the FT-5 to other mid-handicappers, and low handicappers alike.

Customer Service

None

Similar Products Used:

Callaway Great Big Bertha 415, Callaway Steelhead III, Taylor Made R-5 Type D