50 Words or Less
The PXG 0811 XT is the tour-inspired model in the company’s latest stable of drivers. Built to maximize ball speed for players with high swing speeds who find the sweet spot more often than not.
Introduction
PXG has always been known primarily for the quality of its irons. With its GEN4 line of clubs, one of the company’s goals was to create a line of drivers that rivaled its irons in quality. Starting with a bold new look, the company did just that, creating three distinct head shapes for three different types of players. The XT is the third and final installment in my series of reviews of these drivers.
You can find links to my reviews of the 0811 X HERE and 0811 XF HERE
Check out the PXG 0311 GEN5 Driver HERE
Looks
The 0811 XT has the smallest footprint of the three GEN4 head shapes. It’s shorter from heel to toe, the crown is noticeably shorter as well. It has a distinct tear drop shape and the crown and sole are more parallel to each other than in the other two models. All of this is in service of making the clubhead more aerodynamic for faster swings.
The other obvious talking point with regard to looks is the Aluminum Vapor (AV) carbon fiber crown. While this material makes a bold visual impact, it also removes weight from the crown by using carbon fiber and adds strength to that material without adding any appreciable mass by coating it in a thin layer of AV.
Sound & Feel
The sound is very similar to the other drivers in the GEN4 lineup, which is to say, good. Good strikes are met with a solid mid-range, slightly metallic “crack”. It’s satisfying, and I have to assume part of that is the result of the Honeycomb TPE insert inside the clubhead, which dampens vibrations around the weight ports. The more off-center your strike, the less pleasing the sound becomes. It feels good off the face, but there’s a bit less room for error because of the smaller clubface, relative to the other two models.
Performance
In my testing, the XT produced slightly less ball speed than the X and was on par with the XF. OEM testing shows a player with similar clubhead speed to mine hitting the XT with just a touch more ball speed than each of the other two. In that testing, the XT spun less than the XF and slightly more than the X. For me, the XT spun the most, followed by the XF, then the X. Why the difference in results? I think there are a couple of reasons.
Realistically, I’m not the player this driver was designed for. It worked okay for me, but its footprint appears smaller, which didn’t help my confidence in swinging it. More importantly, my swing speed is not high enough in order to squeeze extra ball speed out of the clubhead’s more aerodynamic design. Additionally, my swing is very human and range or fitting sessions can differ in quality from week to week.
In order to squeeze the most out of this club, you’re going to want to be swinging the driver in excess of 105 mph. Even then, I would strongly encourage that kind of player to get fit in order to confirm that the look and performance match up in a way that works for them.
Conclusion
When it comes to the 0811 XT, only high swing speed players need apply. Otherwise, you’re leaving forgiveness on the table and not getting any of the gains the club was designed to provide. For those interested in bagging a GEN4 driver, it’s worth noting that, at time of publishing, GEN4 drivers are on sale for $299.
Visit PXG HERE
PXG 0811 XT GEN4 Driver Price & Specs
Dylan Thaemert
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