Golf drivers have been one of the most important pieces of equipment a player can carry in his bag. It’s the one club that you achieve the maximum distance with from the tee or from the fairway.
A driver also happens to be the most expensive golf club in your bag.
Does it mean that you have to break your bank every time you need a new driver? Not really.
We’ve curated the best budget drivers for you in this post. All you have to do is go through our driver buying guide and select what features you need and what you don’t.
In this post, we’re going to briefly cover the things that matter the most in terms of a golf driver’s price and its performance. We’ll also list 5 of the best cheap drivers that you can buy right now.
Without further ado, let’s get started.
Resource: Foy Golf Academy Practice System – Lower Your Golf Scores Fast
What Are Golf Drivers?
A short introduction. Golf drivers are the longest clubs in your bag. Why? Because they hit the longest distances! A golf driver may have up to 46 inches of shaft length! More shaft length means more leverage!
The club heads are also the largest on these clubs. If the regulation of keeping the head volume less than 460cc wasn’t in motion, we may have seen even bigger drivers!
The purpose of a driver is to hit you off from the tee box. You simply set up your ball on the tee, take your position, and swing the club as fast as you can to send the ball as close to the target as possible.
However, it’s going to need a lot of practice to learn how to hit a driver. We’re assuming that you’ve gotten your game right and you’re thinking about getting your first professional driver. But you’re not willing to put a hole in your bank account just yet.
That’s why we’ve designed this place. Now, we’re going to learn what are the things that you should look for when you’re getting the best budget drivers.
Best Budget Drivers Buying Guide 2024
Golf clubs have advanced light years in terms of technology. The regulations have changed over the years and manufacturers have come up with new ways to improve the performance of drivers.
Here are the things that matter the most in a golf driver for any player.
The Forgiveness
Probably the biggest leap in driver technology. The more forgiving a driver is, the easier it is to hit. It also means that it improves your odds of getting away with mish*ts. While it’s not strongly recommended, you may want to look at more forgiving clubs if you want to enjoy the sport as much as possible.
Larger club heads naturally come with more forgiveness. More area means a larger sweet spot. It also means more weight to the head so you can transfer more energy from your body to the club face.
In general, club heads with 450cc to 460cc volumes are considered the most forgiving. However, more forgiving clubs might cost you more because the manufacturers need to account for your errors through Research and Development (R&D).
The Club Head Material
If you’ve read our in-depth golf driver buying guide, you may already know about the different club head materials on a driver. If you haven’t yet, we highly recommend that you give it a read.
In short, you can get materials like stainless steel, carbon steel, and even titanium. Titanium club heads are amazing because the metal has a spectacular weight to strength ratio. However, they cost the most as well.
So, when you’re looking for the best budget drivers, you need to look at the stainless steel club heads. If you can increase your budget just a little, you may also look at the metal composite options.
You’ll be surprised when you get to the selection because we’ve picked up a few titanium drivers just for you!
Shaft Material
The same theory applies to shaft materials as the club heads. You can get your hands on different materials. The most common ones are graphite and steel. Graphite shafts are very lightweight and offer more flex than steel ones. But they cost more.
If your goal is to cut as much cost as possible when it comes to a driver, you should go for an all-metal driver.
Adjustability
We have gone quite deep about the adjustability modern golf drivers offer in our driver buying guide. It includes loft adjustment, perimeter weighting, and even face angles. The more adjustability you want, the more you have to pay.
We recommend at least going for loft adjustment. It’ll allow you to adjust your gameplay on various golf courses. You’ll be able to play equally on the 3-par holes, 5-par holes, and even 6-par holes. It’s just not feasible to go with the fixed loft drivers in this era.
Center of Gravity and Moment of Inertia
Two crucial concepts of physics closely intertwined with golf mechanics. Both of the properties will impact your playing style heavily.
The general rule of thumb for the center of gravity is that the more it’s pushed back, the more distance you can cover.
When it comes to MOI, it’s more related to the accuracy of your shots. A high MOI driver will compensate for more of your mistakes or mish*ts than a low MOI club. Depending on your budget, you need to mix and match the right combination of both.
Custom Fitment
The best advice you can give when it comes to budget drivers is to get custom-fitted. It might take a few extra bucks and you may have to cut down on some of the features. But you’re always on the right foot when a professional helps you pick the right driver.
Resource: Foy Golf Academy Practice System – Lower Your Golf Scores Fast
5 Affordable Golf Drivers to Purchase
We’re at the most important section of our post. We’ve gone through the marketplace for you and picked the 5 best budget drivers that you can buy right now. All of these follow the buying guide we discussed so far.
TaylorMade Men’s RBZ Black Driver
If you haven’t heard of the brand before, you should ask one of your golf buddies about it. Or, do a little research on the internet by yourself. When it comes to golf equipment like clubs, there are very companies as efficient and as advanced as TaylorMade.
TaylorMade Men’s RBZ Black is a prime example of what the brand can do. And the best thing is, it doesn’t cost a fortune! The RBZ comes with a titanium head, which is very surprising because it’s a guide for budget drivers.
Moreover, the club offers an adjustable loft as well. The RBZ Black club has been a popular choice for players who want precise control over their ball flight, launch angles, and distance. The satin finish on the club roars elegance from all different angles!
You get a matrix white shaft along with a textured grip to give you maximum confidence when you’re swinging this club over 100 miles an hour!
Keep in mind that this club is designed for sheer performance and not for longevity. Hence, the titanium head. So, if you’re looking for something that will for years, this might not be the right choice for you.
Pros
- Performance beast
- Titanium club head
- Different shaft flex options
- Adjustable loft
- Texture grip and smooth shaft
- Elegant paint scheme
Cons
- Doesn’t last very long
Cobra Golf Men’s Speedzone Driver
Cobra Golf is just as competitive as TaylorMade when it comes to budget drivers. The sub $300 Men’s Speedzone is an amazing driver to start your journey with golf at a professional level.
The club face is precisely milled on a CNC machine for maximum accuracy and power. When you look at the face from up close, it looks nothing less than a piece of art! The chassis surrounding the face is made from Titanium. It’s lighter and stronger at the same time.
Moreover, the crown of the drivers is wrapped in carbon to add stability to the shaft as well as shave even more weight. The center of gravity on this one is pretty pushed back. The club features 69 grams of mass as perimeter weighting!
The club head has a proprietary technology known as the Aero Zone Speedback shape. It’s designed to cut across the air like melted butter. The sweet spot on the club face is very cleverly calculated to offer as much forgiveness to the club as possible.
Due to the severe weight reduction, the club has lost some of its integrity when compared to other clubs from Cobra Golf. That’s why there has been a few reports of the club snapping after a few powerful hits. The thing you need to remember is that you don’t need to hit the ball as hard because you’ve already got a powerful titanium club head.
Pros
- Aero Zone Speedback shape
- 69 grams of mass to control the center of gravity
- Comes in various specifications
- 10.5 degrees fixed loft
- CNC precision milled club face
Cons
- Not very durable
Callaway X HOT Driver
When it comes to golf, Callaway is one of the gourmet manufacturers. While almost all of its drivers are in the mid to high budget range, we managed to dig up the Callaway X HOT driver under $300!
This club comes in various flex settings thanks to the graphite composition. It has a 10.5 degrees loft by default on the VFT face. It offers astounding ball speeds against moderate swing speeds. The driver also comes with an adjustable loft and adjustable lie.
The club head is chemically milled to position the weight as accurately as possible. It helps you with consistent long-distance shots. It even compensates for some of your mish*ts!
According to the many users on the internet, this driver performs surprisingly well considering its price. So, as you’re looking for the best budget driver, we recommend that you consider the Callaway X HOT driver as a strong choice.
Pros
- Very affordable
- Graphite shaft for lighter weight
- Adjustable loft and lie
- Proprietary VFT face technology
- The precisely milled sweet spot
Cons
- No headcover included with the purchase
TaylorMade MWD-M4 Driver
Another TaylorMade product on our list because it just makes the best ones when it comes to golf clubs. The M4 driver is quite popular among rookie players because they offer amazing performance at a very affordable cost.
It has the proprietary Twist Face technology which results in better forgiveness for the players. If you don’t know what Twist Face is, it’s TaylorMade’s way of denoting the MOI. The higher MOI in these drivers helps you hit more distance because the club face won’t get any torque at impact.
This club is amazing in terms of acoustics as well. The sound it makes at impact is one of the most satisfying sounds you can hear at the golf course. The sole has a recessed design which helped to get the larger sweet spot.
Pros
- Amazing value for the money
- Explosive shots thanks to the Twist Face technology
- 9.5/Rh 5
- Reinforced outer portions for lighter weight without comprising the strength
Cons
- No head adjustment wrench included
Srixon Golf 2017 Men’s Driver
This driver may not look like much in terms of head size, but it packs a lot of power. You can only realize it when you play at the course. It’s the Srixon Golf 2017 Men’s Driver with an impeccable flex to help you with the COR (Coefficient of Restitution).
The club has very innovative MOI and CG properties to improve you as a player. The Stretch Flex Cup allows you to use the entire vertical area of the club face as your sweet spot. It’s something we haven’t seen in any other driver!
The lower CG and the higher MOI results in amazing forgiveness. You can send the ball flying in your desired direction even if you miss the hit by a few inches!
However, all of this comes at the cost of durability. While the manufacturer has packed a lot of power, it had to cut down on durability. Because the two don’t get along very well.
Pros
- Amazing power to weight ratio
- Huge sweet spot
- Higher MOI
- Lower center of gravity
- Clean and straight shots
Cons
- The club head is prone to breaking
Final Words
Finding the right driver on the right budget is often harder than you anticipate. The fact that you’re here means either you’ve tried for yourself and failed or you don’t want to go through the trouble. Whatever it is, we’ve got you covered! Find the best budget drivers from our list according to your needs!
