The time has come to announce the winners of the 2020 Teezy Awards for the top golf equipment that I experienced during the 2020 PGA Show Demo Day. The Demo Day was held at a very cold (for Florida) and blustery Orange County National Golf Resort and Lodge.
The day itself was a perfect day to test. The less than optimal weather allowed the cream to rise to the top. The conditions were sunny however it only reached a high of 59*F but it felt more like 45*F. While some of the manufacturers had the advantage of having a tailwind others, of course, did not. Having said that, that was a variable that I took into consideration.
I changed things up a little bit this year. I decided to go with Gold, Silver, and Bronze medal winners instead of a Winner and a Runner-Up. All of the points were awarded out of 10 points and the parameters were…
- Performance
- Aesthetics
- Sound/Feel
- Innovation
- Price Point
As I tallied things up, some of the results were eyebrow-raisers. Some of the winners last year, weren’t even finalists this year. So the time has come. Here are your 2020 Teezy Award Winners.
Top Driver
Gold – Tour Edge Exotics EXS 220 (46/50)
Make no mistake about it. Tour Edge Golf is on the rise. Last year, the Exotics EXS lacked a little bit leaving it short just behind the top two. This year, the EXS 220 is the winner. The EXS 220 is a serious stick. It has a terrific blend of looks and performance. The ball just jumped off of the face and the acoustics and feel were top notch. The EXS 220 is packed with innovation and technology (Diamond Face Technology and the Sound Diffusion Bar to name a couple). But what sets it apart from the rest? The MSRP. This is a premium driver, with premium technology, and a consumer-friendly price tag of $349.99.
Silver – COBRA Golf KING SPEEDZONE and SPEEDZONE Xtreme (45.5/50)
In 2019, COBRA Golf somehow was not a finalist. Yet, the F9 was impressive. SPEEDZONE and SPEEDZONE Xtreme drivers are to be taken seriously in 2020. Yes, their “Infinity Face” is CNC-milled and they have the best-looking face in the industry. Their design has its inspiration driven from the motorsports world. It looks fast sitting on the rack. I absolutely loved the sound and feel of this driver. It’s a driver that will make you smile at impact. COBRA Golf has a tailwind at their disposal and the golf ball just seemed to carry. The Xtreme was highly forgiving and I don’t suggest that the SZ isn’t. It is!! These drivers are fun to swing. Remember, the SZ has two adjustable weights for optimizing spin and launch.
Bronze – Honma Golf TR20 440 (44/50)
Leaving Demo Day, I thought that when all was said and done the TR20 was the winner. The TR20 was the last driver that I made swings with at Demo Day. It performed very well right into the “teeth of the wind”. That was until I tallied up the points. Winning the Bronze medal was the 440 CC version of the TR20. It’s a very attractive driver and I loved the footprint in the address position. A 440CC head is so refreshing. The Honma TR20 driver has a ton of innovation. It scored a 10/10 in that part of the evaluation. Why a 10? it has all of the adjustability that you might want, a carbon-wrapped body, and a non-rotating hosel that keeps the shaft spine perfectly aligned through all adjustable loft-lie settings. Up until this weekend, Justin Rose was gaming the 460CC version.
Bronze – XXIO X (44/50)
The XXIO X driver was a very pleasant surprise and it was the second driver that I hit at Demo Day. The first driver that I made swings with, was its sister. The XXIO Eleven. There’s a lot of good going for the X. This is a driver that offers lightweight performance, has good looks, a cup face for better ball speeds, and their Weight Plus Technology in the grip. With Weight Plus Technology you can really feel your hands get through impact.
A Special Note About Callaway Golf MAVRIK
*** In case you were wondering. Finishing just off of the podium scoring 43/50 was the Callaway Golf MAVRIK. MAVRIK left me in a really weird place after Demo Day. MAVRIK really is a good stick. Another carbon-fibred crown beauty from the Carlsbad, California golf giant. Flash Face Technology is back for a second year. When I made swings with MAVRIK using shafts that I thought were my profile I struggled real badly. I could not control this driver. It took a lot of work and an accident to find the right set-up. Had I not accidentally grabbed a 70-gram X-Stiff flex, I would have left the Callaway Golf booth thinking that they took a real step back from last year’s runner-up the Epic Flash. If you find the right shaft, the potential is there for the MAVRIK to be a beast. Understated power partially because its acoustics are muted. The most-muted in this 2020 class. It ended up being very impressive in a very hard left to right crosswind. Had I even suspected that I needed that shaft, who knows, the MAVRIK might have been the winner.
Until The Next Tee!!
#fightandgrind #seeuonthenexttee
The Next Tee (TNT) 