Golf equipment, my friends, is not a zero-sum game.
Every year when the mainstream OEMs release their new drivers, the online community is inundated with moaning, wailing and gnashing of teeth.
“Golf is getting too expensive,” we cry. “These greedy OEMs are driving the average golfer out of the game. When will it end?”
Spoiler alert, my fellow GolfSpies: It won’t.
Every year, the best-selling drivers are also the most expensive ones. Hey, I don’t make the rules, I just report the facts.
Also every year, direct-to-consumer brands bring you lower-priced alternatives. This year, however, has been a bumper crop. The list of sub-$400 drivers is both long and impressive. They may not be as long or as forgiving as the Big Guys, but the fact is, they’re likely long and forgiving enough.
It’s against that backdrop that we’d like to introduce you to a compelling player in the market: the new MacGregor Tourney MAX.
The new MacGregor Tourney MAX driver?
Technically speaking, MacGregor is an old company. Its golf roots date back to the late 1800s, and it spent much of the last century known as “The Greatest Name in Golf.” The MacGregor brand died in 2016 when brand owner Golfsmith went under. However, just a few years later, it was resurrected by serial brand resurrector Simon Millington.
The MacGregor Tourney MAX is the first “real driver” the brand has introduced since its rebirth. MacGregor owner Simon Millington’s goal was to create a driver that would be a “Costco Beater.” The Kirkland Signature driver burst onto the scene in 2024 and, at $199.99, was getting a ton of love. Folks considered it “as good as the big boys,” but at a fraction of the price.
The reality of the Kirkland is that, while a great value at $199.99, it was a mediocre performer in our testing. It ranked 15th in distance, 17th in accuracy and 14th in forgiveness and tied for 16th overall. Tester feedback ranged from “Great driver for $199.99” to “It isn’t that bad.”
Not the highest of bars to clear in terms of performance, but at that price point? Hard decisions would have to be made.
Making the MacGregor Tourney Max
When making a driver for a specific price point, especially one this low, you can expect sacrifices. Millington’s first decision, if he was to stay at $199.99, was whether to make the driver adjustable or use a better stock shaft. Ultimately, he chose both, deciding that pricing the MacGregor Tourney Max at $249.99 was close enough to be in the same ballpark.
The new MacGregor Tourney Max can be adjusted up or down 2o in 1o increments. It can also be adjusted between the standard lie and a more upright lie, making it more draw-biased.
And speaking of draw bias, the standard loft setting gives the face a slightly closed look. Adding loft will make it more draw-biased, while lowering the loft will open the face slightly. Given the price point and the target market, it’s not meant to be a low-spinning, fade-biased driver.
The MacGregor Tourney Max features a carbon crown, which gives it a premium look. Given that Millington’s chief designer is former Adams designer Gavin Wallin, the Tourney Max is very subtly reminiscent of older Adams shaping. You have to be looking for it, as it’s not nearly as obvious as Wallin’s current designs for the new Ben Hogan drivers.
What do you get for $249.99?
At that price point, you can expect a few sacrifices. You’re not getting the latest variable face thickness technology, nor are you getting anything in the way of premium shafts. However, unlike the Kirkland driver, there are options. You can choose between the UST DHI dRVR (A-, R- and S-flexes) and the Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX (R-, S- and X-flexes).
The UST offering, while not technically lightweight, is a higher-trajectory shaft for slow-to-medium swing speeds. The HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX is a higher-grade shaft with a stiff midsection and tip for lower launch and lower spin.
MacGregor is offering two upcharge options. The ultralight UST Helium NCT is an extra $40, while the mid-trajectory Denali Blue is a $50 upcharge. If there’s a particular shaft you want that’s not on the list, MacGregor will price it for you. You can also purchase heads only.
When you hold the MacGregor Tourney Max in your hands, it doesn’t feel “cheap,” but it doesn’t feel like a $600 driver, either. Cost sacrifices were made on items such as the hex screw. During my first range session, I clanked one off the heel, which loosened the rear sole weight enough to cause a rattle. I found out the hard way that the weight doesn’t use the same torque wrench as the adjustable hex screw, so I had to live with the rattle until I got home and found the correct wrench.
Subjectively, the driver is subtle. The carbon fiber crown is nice, and the script M alignment aid is understated. The sole is plain, with slight MacGregor green accents and a so-so paintfill. The sound is solid and muted, not the tingy sound you often get with lower-priced drivers.
Again, these are little things you wouldn’t accept in a $600 driver. A $249.99 driver is a different story. The bigger question, however, is can you play good golf with it?
Driver vs driver vs driver: What the data says
Using the new Flightscope Mevo Gen2 launch monitor and range balls, I was able to get the following numbers with the MacGregor:
Average carry: 229.1 yards
Average total: 241.3 yards
Ball Speed: 138.1 mph
Spin: 2,554 rpm
Excluding a big hook and a big slice, dispersion was pretty tight. The Tourney averaged 1.3 yards right of center with a modest draw.
For giggles and grins (since I don’t have a Kirkland), I hit up Golf Deals and Steals and found a new-in-plastic 2022 TaylorMade Stealth+, which was also selling for $249. When it launched in 2022, the Stealth+ was considered the lowest-spinning model in the new, carbon-faced Stealth family. In MyGolfSpy’s testing that year, it ranked 5th overall and was the longest driver in the test.
Here are the Stealth’s numbers:
Average carry: 232.4 yards
Average total: 241.2 yards
Ball Speed: 140.6 mph
Spin: 2,738 rpm
As with the Tourney, the Stealth+ was, on average, pretty accurate, although with a very slight fade bias.
Pretty doggone close, I’d say. While the totals are unofficial (given Mevo’s relative accuracy), the comparison is interesting. What it says to me is that for $249.99, you can get a driver that you can play pretty good golf with, whether it’s the three-year-old TaylorMade or the brand new MacGregor. Besides, at my age, if you told me on the first tee I’d be getting 241 yards per drive, I’d be boogeying like Wilson Pickett in the “Land of 1000 Dances.”
Dancing aside, it is interesting to note that neither stood up to this year’s Most Wanted driver, the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond:
Average carry: 237.5 yards
Average total: 253.3
Ball speed: 143 mph
Spin: 2,547
This requires a disclaimer, as the Triple Diamond was custom fit with an ungraded Aretera shaft. It also costs $700.00.
A question of value
The above data is by no means “official” or the final word, but it does tell us a few things. Perhaps the first thing it tells us is that the MacGregor isn’t a toy or a piece of junk. It’s a serious golf club that you can play serious golf with. At $249, it won’t break the bank, either.
Sure, if you want to be cynical, you can say it’s no better than three-year-old TaylorMade technology, and that you can get that TaylorMade technology for the same price. You’d be correct on both counts. What you can get from MacGregor, however, is a certain level of customization. The company will cut the Tourney to length for you at no extra cost. At the very least, you can choose a different shaft.
Ironically, the Stealth+ came with the same HZRDUS Smoke Black RDX shaft as the MacGregor. However, as the TaylorMade is “new” old stock, what you get is what you get.
Used is another way to go. You can find plenty of two- to three-year-old models in that price range, but again, you’re dealing with the shaft that’s already on the club.
So what, then, is the value of a new $249 MacGregor Tourney driver? It’s a fair question with a simple answer. There will always be a segment of the golfing populace that loves bargain hunting. They find joy in finding used solutions at great prices. There’s another segment, however, that only wants to find a decent driver without a ton of effort. It may not be the perfect driver, but it’ll be a driver that you can play good golf with. That’s the segment that Costco tapped into with its Kirkland Signature driver, and it’s a segment that’s a good bit larger than you might think.
Final thoughts on the new MacGregor Tourney Max driver
It may or may not mean anything to you, but it is fun (in a retro-nostalgic way) to be hitting a MacGregor Tourney driver again. I gamed a gorgeous persimmon Tourney driver, with matching 3- and 5-woods, from 1985 through 1997, when I caved and bought a COBRA King metal driver.
I know, nostalgia doesn’t get the ball in the hole, but it does make the journey from tee to green a little more fun.
The main point, however, is that for $249, the MacGregor Tourney Max driver is a pretty sophisticated stick. In my hands on that day, the MacGregor was 12 yards shorter than the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond. Twelve yards is twelve yards. It’s also 36 feet, about the length of a good sacrifice bunt.
Another way of looking at it is in terms of yards per dollar. The MacGregor, at $249.99, got you the first 241.3 yards. The next 12 yards cost another $451. The first 241 yards cost you just over a buck a yard. The next 12?
$37.58 per yard.
Those are the numbers. What would you do?
The MacGregor Tourney Max driver is available for both lefties and righties, in 9- and 10.5-degree models. For more info, visit www.magregorgolf.com.
The post Can This New $249 Driver Earn a Spot in Your Bag? appeared first on MyGolfSpy.
