Many thanks go out to Jon Claffey who is the Vice President of Marketing for Tour Edge Golf. Without the willingness of Mr. Claffey to send me products to test and review, reviews like this would never be possible. Thank you Jon!!
The Set-Up
“Straight From The Tour Van”. This is the tagline that was used when Tour Edge Golf released the Exotics EXS Pro range of golf clubs earlier this season. The Exotics EXS Pro range are a by-product of products that were initially a concept, as they were supposed to be strictly prototypes for professional tour players.
Feedback from their Tour Staff and other PGA TOUR players suggested that they wanted to see certain characteristics in the design of clubs that they put into their respective golf bags. Among these suggestions were a head that offered a more classic tour-inspired shape, a head that offered anti-left tendencies, and a design that places the center of gravity more forward in the head to flatten the trajectory and lower spin rates.
However, Tour Edge Golf President and Master Club Designer David Glod realized that there was a niche in the golf market that applied to the better recreational golf consumer, who also wanted and demanded the same qualities. So the EXS Pro range of metalwoods was released. Only 1,000 pieces per model were produced, thus making the EXS Pro range a “Limited Edition” release.
“At first, we were just designing prototypes for the pro tours, but along the way, we realized that the market has a need for these tour-inspired designs as a limited edition series,” – Tour Edge President and Master Club Designer David Glod
When it comes to some of the technical talking points there are some new features, on top of some of the proven technologies that we’ve seen in the past. Designs like the EX9, EX10, EXS from 2019 and EXS 220 from 2020 quickly come to mind.
- Sound Diffusion Bar – A bar placed in the head, we see this technology used in the music industry which enriches the acoustics.
- SlipStream Sole – A special wave pattern on the sole improves turf interaction. The design creates less drag through the turf to produce speed through any lie.
- Classic Shape – A smaller, more compact head shape with a deeper square face. Preferred by better players.
- Beta Titanium Face – Typically, we see steel used for the face of hybrids. The EXS Pro Hybrid utilizes a Beta Titanium face which is “Combo Brazed” (no welds) to the body. The Beta Titanium face produces more power at impact, including swings that are considered to be misses.
- True Loft System – The EXS Pro hybrid features lofts from 16* to 22*. Loft increments are 1* to help golfers with gapping issues.
- Flight Tuning System – Adjustable sole weights consisting of weights of 20 and 5-grams respectively allows golfers to fine tune their shot shape.
Stock shafts that are offered for the EXS Pro Hybrid are the Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei AV Silver which comes in three different weights and flexes. Or, there is the venerable Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black in R, S, and X flex. All of the Project X shafts come in at 85-grams.
The Transition
Through discussions with Mr Claffey, I opted to test and review the 19* head paired with a Stiff flex Mitsubishi Tensei AV 70 shaft which weighs 77-grams.
Upon receiving the EXS Pro hybrid, I couldn’t wait to get it out to the driving range and/or the golf course to get down to business. Unfortunately, the day that it arrived I was on my way out for a day of fly fishing, so, it had to wait. But, I woke up the next morning and wasted no time taking it to the range at nearby Brock Golf Course for early testing.
But, I did have the EXS Pro Hybrid with me on that fly fishing outing. It gave me a chance to unbox the product and do an unboxing video and take some pictures. Aesthetically speaking, the EXS Pro Hybrid is one of the nicest hybrids that I’ve had in hand. I love the overall profile of this head. From heel to toe the EXS Pro isn’t elongated (like it’s EXS 220 sibling) and the footprint from leading to trailing edge is compact. Yes, you’re looking down at a rescue club, but it doesn’t feel like it. It’s a great-looking golf club from the address position especially when you also factor that the crown is void of any alignment aid. Then there’s the face!
The face alone deserves it’s own paragraph. Not only was I absolutely enamored with the face depth of this Beta Titanium-faced beauty, but the face itself is special. Having briefly alluding to it already in the technical summary seen in “The Set-Up” the fact that this face is constructed of Beta Titanium makes this hybrid unique. This is a material that we typically don’t see in a hybrid.
Flipping the golf club over, it’s hard not to notice the SlipStream Sole first. The sole design is something that we’ve seen for a couple of generations now in Tour Edge Golf Exotics metalwoods. But, a close second are the adjustable heel and toe weights that comprise the “Flight Control System”. From an aesthetics standpoint, the EXS Pro Hybrid checks all of the boxes when it comes to design that appeals to me.
When it comes to the performance of the EXS Pro Hybrid, it’s nothing short of special. One of the keys to the design is that this golf club is meant to be “anti-left” for a right-handed golfer. That is exactly what the case is with this golf club. Is it possible to hit the ball left with this golf club? Yes, but it takes a mistake on the part of the individual swinging it. I found this hybrid very difficult to turn over, however, if you have a flaw in the set-up like closing the face at address, or if you fail to stay in the shot and spin out, the golf ball will travel left. There have been periods of time this season where my golf swing has… Ahem! Struggled. But even on the mishits, I yielded good results and the misses traveled straight. These misses were mostly of the thinned variety. A weird miss that I’ve never had until this season.
The face of the EXS Pro Hybrid is more than, well, a pretty face. The Beta Titanium face does generate speed at impact but the acoustics are outstanding. I can only describe the acoustics as being “piercing”. I love the sound that emits from the face at impact, and some of that I’m certain is a “sound” contribution of the Sound Diffusion Bar. If the Exotics range of metalwoods made big strides in 2020, it would be in the acoustics department. The sound of this hybrid is “ear candy”. But, the face does even more. This golf club is designed to offer golfers a lower-spinning option for their hybrids and between the deep face and the placement of the center of gravity this is a lower launching, low-spin weapon.
From a distance standpoint, I found that the Exotics EXS Pro hybrid was quite long. I used this golf club off of the tee, from the fairway, and from the rough. Off of the tee, the EXS Pro was a standout. Especially, when the golfer using it makes good passes. During one round, I used it on a shorter Par 4 dogleg right over water that measures 317 yards. There was a hurting wind. The ensuing tee shot carried the water and ended up in the fairway leaving me 76 yards into the green. The tee shot measured 241 yards and set me up for a birdie putt. On another occasion from a tricky lie in the rough between two bunkers, I had 217 yards to the pin. I flew the golf ball about 200 yards and watched it hit the false-front, upslope of the green. My golf ball came to rest 18 inches from the pin. Birdie! The ball flight with this hybrid is low and penetrating. On firm fairways, the EXS Pro hybrid will deliver lengthy strikes that will chase down the fairway.
Forgiveness is a part of this review that I didn’t think, or at least hoped that I wouldn’t be able to elaborate on. But I have to, because I’ve been plagued by “the thins” this year. There’s an adage in golf and that’s “you’re only as good as your worst miss”. I’ve had plenty of those this year and some of them were nearly complete whiffs. I know that I’ve already touched on this briefly already, but I just need to reiterate that even though it isn’t necessarily designed with forgiveness in mind, there’s a degree of forgiveness built into this golf club. I had a range session today to finish up the testing process and even today I made a couple of unsatisfactory swings. I had a couple of strike towards the toe and the result was still really good. This hybrid offers feedback because when you do have a toe strike, the EXS Pro hybrid lets you know it. Is it as forgiving as say the EXS or EXS 220 hybrid? No, because it isn’t the high M.O.I. design that is the EXS 220. But, the EXS Pro will get you out of trouble even on a bad swing (cold tops notwithstanding).
The Finish
I am glad that Tour Edge Golf decided to release this EXS Pro Hybrid to the recreational, non-TOUR golfing population. This hybrid will check a lot of boxes for the better player with higher swing speeds.
The EXS Pro Hybrid offers classic styling with a boatload of technology built into it. This golf club is designed to take the hook away and it does do that, very well. The acoustics are second to nobody, and more to that point, I think that the EXS Pro Hybrid has the best acoustics of any hybrid that I’ve made swings with in 2020.
Low spinning, flatter trajectories, long, and aesthetically pleasing. At $249.99 USD this hybrid is worth a look. With the helpful 1* increments, the EXS Pro hybrid could easily round out the top end of the golf bag.
All golf clubs from Tour Edge Golf are “Hand Assembled in the U.S.A” and come with a Lifetime Warranty. For more information please head to Tour Edge Golf (Exotics).
Until The Next Tee!!
#seeuonthenexttee #fightandgrind
The Next Tee (TNT) 