TaylorMade M4 Driver Review (Our Honest Feedback)

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TaylorMade M4 Driver Review

Ideal for mid handicappers, but undoubtedly accessible for single-digit handicaps, the M4 is a hard worker that did well throughout our rigorous testing, showcasing why it has a reputation as one of the best drivers for amateurs looking to improve their tee box performance.

Great Driver for Mid Handicappers: TaylorMade M4 Driver

A superb driver that works well for mid handicappers.

• Larger Hammerhead slot provides plenty of power to the golf ball at impact
• Twist Face technology delivers exceptional forgiveness, especially on shots toward the toe of the club
• Well-balanced with a lower center of gravity for more carry

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Pros

• Replaces the M2 as TaylorMade’s best non-adjustable weight driver
• Larger Hammerhead slot provides plenty of power to the golf ball at impact
• Twist Face technology delivers exceptional forgiveness, especially on shots toward the toe of the club
• Well-balanced with a lower center of gravity for more carry

Cons

• Lack of adjustable weighting could be off-putting for some low handicappers

The M4 features a broader version of the company’s patented Hammerhead slot that provides more directed energy to the golf ball as well as their Twist Face technology that assists in boosting the forgiveness of the club.

The driver does include an adjustable loft sleeve that can alter your club face by one degree, either way, for higher or lower launch angle at impact.

What’s new about the driver is the Geocoustic sole design that rounds the rear sole of the club. Working in unison with the single weight that’s located at the end of the crown, the Geocoustic sole is designed to improve the driver’s response and feel, especially when compared to the M3.

A well-made driver that works well for the mid handicapper, the M4 is a superb club worth looking into if you are ready to make a moderate upgrade to your game off the tee box.

Alternatives to TaylorMade M4 Driver

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Pros

• Speed-injected club face is created with hands-on process that optimizes sweet spot
• Twist Face technology is designed to reduce side spin and create straighter shots
• T-Track system allows golfer to dial in higher shots and fight against slices
• Hammerhead slot is newly designed to work with redesigned Twist Face for more consistency

Cons

• Expensive driver that may only attract low handicappers with large wallets

TaylorMade recently came out with the M4’s bigger brother, the sleek and well designed M5 driver. Featuring newly designed versions of the M4’s best features, the M5 isn’t just an open-and-shut improvement over the M4 for a variety of reasons.

All the features you see in the M4 are here in the M5, starting with the Twist Face technology that allows exceptional forgiveness on off-center strikes and reduces the pain of hitting the ball off the toe or hosel. When the Twist Face feature works with the individually-made speed-injected club face, golfers of any level can certainly experience what makes the M-series line of drivers so accessible.

If there is a massive difference between the two clubs, it has to focus on the M5’s T-Track system. This adjustable feature allows the golfer to find the perfect setting for their driver to produce the shot shape and ball height they want on each drive. With the simple twist of the club’s tool, the M5 can turn into a machine that fights slices or a club that produces staggering shot height.

Also featuring a large Hammerhead Slot that works hard to promote stability and reliability from the club face, the M5 has a boxier look and feel than the M4, to the point that traditional golfers who like their driver with rounded edges, and a half-moon look to think twice of choosing this model over the M4.

Best suited for low handicappers who can afford a high-priced driver, the M5 does have some sparkling bells and whistles, but ultimately might fall short of forcing the upgrade from the M4.

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Pros

• Jailbreak Technology solidifies center of face for more directed energy and increased distance
• X-Face VFT technology promotes high launch angle off tee and incredible carry of golf ball
• Redesigned crown is more aerodynamic for less drag and enhanced swing speed
• More forgiving driver than older Callaway models with exceptional response at impact

Cons

• Lack of adjustable weighting makes this driver more ideal for mid to high handicappers

The Callaway Rogue is an excellent mid-priced driver from a reputable company that is known for producing high-quality equipment that can vastly improve a golfer’s game.

Featuring all the standard innovations you’d expect from Callaway, the Rogue is another of the company’s driver that provides a bump in distance and forgiveness for golfers looking to improve the smaller areas of their driving skill set.

Starting with the Jailbreak Technology, the Rogue is more stable and responsive than drivers at this price point as club designers have stabilized the center of the face with the two-bar system. The Jailbreak feature concentrates energy where it should be, behind the golf ball, to create a larger sweet spot and more distance.

The Jailbreak Technology works hand-in-hand with the X-Face VFT technology, Callaway’s version of TaylorMade’s Twist Face feature on their drivers. The VFT technology, designed to reduce side spin, helps keep the velocity of the swing at maximum levels for longer drives, even on the ones that strike an area off the center of the face.

Another standout on the Rogue is the aerodynamic crown built with the help of the famous aircraft manufacturer, Boeing. Together, the two companies’ engineers reduced weight and drag from the crown allowing the club to smoothly move against the air surrounding the club for more swing speed for the Rogue.

The company also offers the Rogue with multiple shaft options to help the golfer create that precise shot setting that works best for their game.

An exceptional driver that also features an adjustable loft sleeve for control of shot height, the Rogue is a feature-laden club that will undoubtedly help boost your distance and improve your accuracy from the tee box.

Technical Specifications

Twist Face Technology

The Twist Face technology on the M4 is quite attractive as the curved face allows golfers who routinely miss the center mark to receive help in keeping drives straighter and with less sidespin. Shots off the toe come off the M4’s face with less spin and reduce that nasty slice that plagues older drivers.

Hammerhead Slot

The redesigned Hammerhead Slot on the M4 is more extended and broader than the previous version on the M3. The wider slot allows golfers more room for error as the golf ball stays straight and long in the larger sweet spot area. The new Hammerhead Slot also is lighter and thinner than in older M-series model drivers for reduced drag and more club speed.

Geocoustic Sole Design

The company’s Geocoustic technology gives the golfer more feel and better response over previous models of M-series drivers. At impact, the golfer immediately knows if the shot found the sweet spot, instilling confidence and enjoyment when using the M4. The reduction in the volume of the M4’s head allowed the designers to increase club face size with the company suggesting that the sweet spot has increased by 67% over the M3.

Things to Consider Before Buying a New Driver

New Drivers Help Boost Your Distance and Accuracy

The best reason to upgrade to a new driver is to experience the benefits of what new golf equipment technology can do for your game. Golfers who use cutting edge drivers find that the new club helps in two main areas; distance and accuracy. 

When considering a driver like the M4, a golfer must understand that the best equipment is there to provide tools that fit our game the best. For example, let’s say that you are an older golfer that is experiencing diminished swing speed. A new driver that is known to provide maximum distance coupled with a swing speed-appropriate shaft can help stave off that reduction in length off the tee box for many years to come.

Professional golfers have been telling us for years that accuracy doesn’t matter as much as distance off the tee for as long as Tiger Woods has been on the scene. Yes, it is better to hit from the fairway with your second shot, but there is a ton of difference between a shot into the green from the light rough at 150 yards and the fairway at 225. New drivers with more forgiveness can allow you to let it rip without worrying about the flight path nearly as much as you do with older clubs.

Adjustable Features Can Provide Control to Help Grow Your Game

New drivers certainly can help a golfer take advantage of the latest equipment technology to bring control to their tee box game. Although the M4 does not have adjustable weighting in the back of the sole, the driver does come with an adjustable loft sleeve to help you craft the shot height that you are hoping to achieve regularly.

By dialing-in the shot style you want, you gain more consistency as a golfer, something that is incredibly important for posting low scores with more regularity. 

The club’s loft sleeve is quite advanced and certainly helps reduce launch angle in rougher weather like heavy wind, but also allows you to boost your shot height when you want to take advantage of that powerful downwind. So, even though the M4 may not have adjustable weighting, it does not mean that it has not been designed with the latest technology in mind.

New Drivers Have Improved Forgiveness Technology

Forgiveness is a feature that all golfers should consider when upgrading their driver. Having the ability to keep shots straighter and with more distance is a characteristic of new equipment that provides new dimension and excitement to any golfer’s game.

The way forgiveness works for new drivers is through the shaping of the club’s face. Current drivers utilize a twisted face that allows golfers to reduce the penalty of their off-center strikes off the toe or hosel.

When you consider how all of the components of the driver work together, the club face is obviously the most important because it is the element that comes into contact with the golf ball. But just because the club face may use cutting edge technology does not mean that other features such as adjustable weighting, the loft sleeve, and the location of the center of gravity doesn’t assist with how forgiving a driver this is for the golfer.

When looking at the M4, the company has implemented its Twist Face technology to help the golfer keep their slice tendencies down while accelerating their ball speed for more distance. It is a terrific feature that has made the M-series one of the best lines of drivers available to amateurs

TaylorMade M4 Driver Features & Benefits

Better Distance with Increased Hammerhead Slot

One of the biggest improvements of the M4 is the widened Hammerhead Slot that rests behind the face of the driver. The slot is responsible for creating one of the largest sweet spots ever on a driver by TaylorMade. As a result, the sweet spot provides the M4 with exceptional distance for the golfer and additional forgiveness for higher accuracy.

The outer area of M4’s face has been reinforced alongside the Hammerhead Slot for more flexibility to increase forgiveness. The center of the face has been stabilized and solidified for better ball speed on lower strikes while also reducing spin for extended carry and maximum distance.

The Hammerhead Slot is one of the primary reasons why the M4 is such a great driver for mid handicappers looking to get more from their driver, such as additional distance and more room for error in the way of forgiveness.

Adjustable Loft Sleeve Helps with Control

The M4 does have a loft sleeve that allows the golfer more control when adjusting the setting for their face. Although the loft sleeve is a feature that has become commonplace for upper scale drivers, the M4’s shines due to its simplicity. With the quick turn of the hosel connection, the M4 can provide more or less loft to craft shot height that will stay lower to help in the wind or rise higher to take advantage of a strong downwind.

What makes the loft sleeve a must-have feature on a new driver is that it gives the golfer the ability to really fine tune their shot shape. Slower swingers need more carry to gain maximum distance so a higher lofted face could provide that carry necessary to get the length they desire from their driver.

High Contrast Crown Assists Alignment

Something that TaylorMade had gotten away from is providing a multi-colored crown to assist the golfer with a contrast that helps align the golf ball to the center of the driver’s face. But with the M4, the company has included the use of white on area of the crown near the face to help golfers find the center of the club with quickness and ease.

TaylorMade’s designers have used the company’s logo to mark the direct center of the club face for alignment that will keep the club square at address. The alignment symbol certainly helps find the sweet spot with more regularity for drives that scream down the fairway.

For high handicappers that are taking a chance that they can grow into the M4, the alignment logo provides a return point at address to make sure that the golfer’s body is positioned correctly along their target line.

Low Center of Gravity Improves Launch Angle

One of the biggest areas that new drivers can improve for an inexperienced or struggling golfer is to raise the lift of the golf ball after impact. This lift is a by-product of a low center of gravity that moves through the impact zone and pushes the golf ball at an increased launch angle for more carry and a surge in distance.

The M4 has a sole weight that keeps the club anchored to keep the club low to the ground throughout the impact zone. The club’s Hammerhead Slot and twisted face have reduced weight to allow designers to relocate those precious grams into other areas of the club head creating a lower center of gravity.

For golfers that are having difficulties with consistent launch off the tee, drivers like the M4 have been designed to help so that the player can reach their potential from a yardage standpoint.

The M4 Provides Exceptional Forgiveness

Another great reason why the TaylorMade M4 is a tremendous upgrade for golfers is because the club provides exceptional forgiveness on off-center strikes. By design, the M4 has been tailored to help golfers correct shots that don’t find the sweet spot.

Since golf equipment companies know that most amateurs miss toward the toe, drivers like the M4 have been engineered to reduce the spin while increasing the power of drives where the golfer hits the ball along the outer edge of the club.

The club’s Twist Face technology is adapted to provide the golfer a layer of protection when they seem to be struggling to find the center of the face, by providing a flexible face that works to adjust when the impact is along the outer area of the M4.

Twist Face Technology Assists With Distance and Forgiveness

The Twist Face technology is one of the cooler features of the M4. The patented design is actual club face that is twisted and set into the crown to aid producing true flight on each shot and enhancing forgiveness on the strikes that go off-center.

For amateurs, most misses are toward the toe of the driver. By twisting the face, TaylorMade reduces side spin on shots that drift outward, allowing the golfer to play their shot closer to the intended target line without the penalty that older drivers would incur.

With the higher numbered TaylorMade drivers (think M3-M6), the Twist Face technology is the reason why the forgiveness is off the charts for straighter drives and more dependability that your tee shot will go where you want it to go.

Geocoustic Technology Promotes Terrific Feel and Response

Behind the club face of the M4, TaylorMade is utilizing their patented Geocoustic technology to innovatively redesign what a driver should look and feel like. The unique shape promotes a response that golfers can certainly enjoy with each swing.

One of the standout features of the M4 is how well it feels when you hit the sweet spot. The club feels remarkably solid and responds with explosive flight and eye-popping distance.

The contour of the M4’s sole allows more surface area to be moved to the face for a broader sweet spot that enhances forgiveness and generates course-stretching distance.

The M4 Delivers Repeatable Ball Flight for Extended Carry

If you are looking for a driver that is consistent for long ball flight that you can count on with each swing, then the M4 is one of the better drivers available to weekend warriors. One of the biggest differences between low handicappers and mid handicappers is the ability to repeat every aspect of their game. From repeating a putting stroke to repeatedly hitting gorgeous drives, better golfers find a way to recreate their swing on each shot.

When mid-level players scuffle and can’t find their groove, great equipment fills those gaps and keeps amateurs afloat as they look to find a rhythm for their shotmaking. The M4 is a terrific driver that delivers solid performance that a golfer can count on when they reach the tee.

Great for Mid Handicappers Looking to Increase Distance

Mid handicappers will experience positive enhancement to their game with the M4. The driver doesn’t feature adjustable weighting that may be more desirable to low handicap golfers, but instead the club is highlighted by an assortment of enhancements that create staggering distance that will greatly help a golfer in need of more length off the tee.

Of course, the Hammerhead Slot and Twist Face Technology are the features that pro golfers swoon over, but the club’s overall head design is really the unsung hero of the driver. The aerodynamic crown performs admirably on swing after swing by reducing the drag around the club head for faster swings that helps the golfer impact the golf ball at the center of the face with enthusiasm and strength.

Larger Sweet Spot than M3 for More Forgiveness and Less Side Spin

When compared to its little brother, the M3, the M4 driver has a larger sweet spot that the company claims is two-thirds bigger than the previous model. Regardless of statistical accuracy, our testers can attest that the sweet spot on the M4 is one of the largest we’ve seen in recent memory due to the consistency and remarkable accuracy of the drives hit during out testing.

As you would expect from a TaylorMade driver, the M4 offers the golfer a wide area on the club face to make contact with reliable results. Even on drives that find themselves drifting toward the toe at impact, we did not notice a significant loss in distance and the club did an admirable job at reducing the side spin that kills so many scores.

Questions & Answers

Is an adjustable driver better than a non-adjustable driver?

One of the biggest questions that golfers struggle with when deciding whether to upgrade their driver is if they should explore a multi-featured adjustable driver or locate one that has static settings for more reliability and less hassle.

Adjustable drivers can help golfers of any skill level, including high handicappers. The ability to alter the height of their shot and the shape of their drives is quite appealing for golfers who need help fighting off a nasty slice or are having trouble getting a lift off the tee.

That said, these feature-loaded drivers can be way too much club for inexperienced golfers who have not matured with their fundamentals. Rather than spend a ton of cash on a driver with all the bells and whistles, it might be wiser to find a stable setting driver that delivers reliability for these lower-skilled golfers.

But for mid to low handicappers, adjustable drivers can revolutionize your game by adding subtlety to your shotmaking ability.

What level of golfer is the M4 best suited for?

Even though the M4 can be played by really any level of golfer, the club is certainly tailored to help mid handicappers shore up the flaws holding them back from excelling and posting lower scores. Featuring several characteristics that can help boost distance and reduce the shot killing sidespin that older drivers may impart, the M4 is a classy piece of golf equipment that can absolutely help a struggling golfer find success off the tee box.

What separates low from mid handicappers is primarily distance related. Low handicappers have higher swing speeds and can hit a golf ball much further leading to shorter second shots where the single-digit handicap golfer can take advantage with a higher lofted iron for more accuracy and better birdie chances.

For mid handicappers seeking lower scores, the golfer must get more consistent and reduce the length of the second shot on holes. Drivers like the M4 can cut a few corners, especially once the adjustable features have been set with the right specs for optimum ball flight and carry.

Can high handicappers use the M4 with success?

Yes, high handicappers can find success with an adjustable driver like the M4 but chances are they’ll be wholly inconsistent off the tee due to their poor fundamental approach to the game. Those bad fundamentals could be due to inexperience around the game, meaning just not enough swings, or be from the fact that the golfer is just not naturally skilled and is failing to improve through practice or instruction.

A club, like the M4, can be used in parallel with lessons from a golf instructor who can help solidify those nagging flaws, such as a poor grip, bad foundation and slow swing velocity. Should a high handicapper enter the realm of multi-featured drivers lightly? No. But could they take advantage of advanced equipment while focusing on getting better with the help of a teacher? Absolutely.

Although we believe the M4 works best for mid handicappers, low handicappers can find success with the TaylorMade driver as long as they accept the work needed to improve their game.

How does the M4 compare to the M5 & M6 drivers?

One of the biggest questions that golfers ask is how drivers differ when a company releases multiple versions of the same line of clubs. With the M-series drivers, TaylorMade has stayed close to the original design and features of the M1, but altered each successive club as they seek to improve and streamline the design.

For the M4, the driver features an adjustable loft sleeve but no movable weighting. The M6 shares this absence by having a loft sleeve as well, but no adjustable weights. The TaylorMade M5 differs because it is more in line with the M3 as it does have a T-Track system that allows the golfer to fine tune the driver for a fade or draw bias plus offers the opportunity to add or subtract height from the tee shot.

That track system aside, all three drivers are similar in shape and weight, delivering terrific performance.

Is the M4 worth the money for a mid-range priced driver?

The M4 is definitely worth the money if you are looking for an extraordinary driver that does not feature adjustable weighting. If that specification is something you must have with a new driver then the TaylorMade M5 is potentially the club for you.

What makes the M4 worth the price of a mid-range driver is the outstanding features that can dramatically improve any golfer’s game. From the increased Hammerhead Slot behind the center of the club face that improves distance and stability throughout the swing, to the Geocoustic technology on the crown allowing for a bigger club face, the M4 can unquestionably provide the golfer with improved equipment.

Another reason that the M4 should be appealing to mid handicappers is that it provides first-rate performance for a few hundred dollars less than the cutting edge drivers that have just reached the market. With those savings, a golfer could utilize their resources to improving their wedges or putter.

Conclusion

The TaylorMade M4 continues the company’s long history of creating quality drivers that speak to a wide range of golfers who need help with their game off the tee. When you consider the improvements made to the M4 from the previous M3, the company has provided outstanding durability to pair with the driver’s dependable performance.

If you were looking for a highlight of the club, then I suggest you take a look at home the Hammerhead Slot, and Twist Face technology work in unison to create staggering distance and head-shaking accuracy. This powerful combo is the engine behind the M4 and provides loads of enjoyment, whether you are at the range or on the links.