Technology Overview-
Wilson may not be one of the big players on the block but they produce some great, relatively inexpensive golf equipment, the Wilson Smooth will fall into this category. This driver incorporates a changing weight pad in the sole of the club to optimize the CG within each loft from middle-low starting in the low lofts, to low and deep in the high lofts.
This 460cc driver is one of a smooth shape outside matched by the powerful, efficient performance on the inside. The Smooth is quite beautiful to look with great performance to match.
Wilson Smooth Spec Sheet-
Face Height……………..: 48 mm
Face Area………………..: 40.5 cm
Heel to Toe……………..: 127 mm
Shaft Length……………: 45.5″
Front to Back…………..: 111 mm
MOI………………………..: High
Launch Angle………….: Medium
Spin………………………: High
Actual Player Feedback-
“That club’s on steroids”
“A terrific performer”
“Wow, that’s a good club, I missed two or three, and all would have been in the fairway”
Pros/Positives-
The CG based on loft seems to be a good concept. This driver does not lack distance, Wilson even points to research that shows R (Regular) and S (Stiff) flex players picking up extra clubhead speed with the driver.
Cons/Negatives-
The Launch angle and Spin rate does not seem to favor the recreational player, low and high respectively.
Overall Rating-
The CG and face design do seem to favor added distance by way of increased clubhead speed. There isn’t a lot of information available at the time of this writing however Wilson does seem to be onto something here with the Wilson Smooth.
I am in the market for a new driver and tested out six drivers (Calloway and some high end names) as well as the Wilson Smooth. I am a recreational bogey player and found the Wilson Smooth to perform far better for me with my less-than-perfect swing and little experience with the driver. Unlike the other drivers I tested, I was consistently hitting this club straight and far. Now I am looking for the best price.
Have been searching for a driver/shaft combo that will retain my distance and give me a tighter dispersion, with the ability to work the ball left or right and find more fairways. I’ve settled on the Smooth 9.0 with the Fujikura 360 shaft. I’ve owned Taylor Made (R7), Cleveland Launcher and Wilson Spine in the last few years. The Taylor was short and hard to control, the Cleveland was much more suited to my swing and the Spine launched some of the longest drives I’ve ever hit, but mishits were penal and sounded awful. So off I went to a couple Demo Days and a few hours of trying new drivers.
The Adams Fast 10 was interesting with their claims to aerodynamic flow, increasing clubhead speed. It felt fairly good but whether it was the shaft or the head, I’m not sure, but the distance wasn’t there for me and I was fading the ball repeatedly with different shafts.
I’ve now hit the Wilson Smooth for extended periods at the range and came away thrilled with the club. I struggled with the choice between the 9.0 and the 10.5 but settled on the 9.0 due to a more penetrating ball flight. The 10.5 was beautiful to watch, but I was concerned that in windy conditions I’d have trouble keeping it on line. The 9.0 exploded off the club face and held it’s line impressively. Mishits still gave me acceptable distance also. The Spine had a dead spot on the inside of the clubface that left me occasionally trickling balls off to the left in a way I haven’t done since the days of the original Taylor Made Burner. The Smooth overlooks my imperfect mechanics and rewards my better swings like no other driver I’ve owned. Highly recommended. The upsides are the clubhead shape, great shaft, workability, forgiveness and length. The only negative is that the crown is very simple. With all the subtle metallic treatments out there (Ping Rapture, newer Taylors, etc), this club is very basic looking down. The results, however are anything but ordinary.
At address, it’s head shape and size don’t look like a 460cc. I sit many of it’s competitors down (Cobra’s line, for instance) and the heads just look immense. The Smooth just looks right, feels right and swings easy.