I have to admit, Callaway's Triple Diamond drivers always make me a little nervous, as I often find low-spin drivers difficult to strike well consistently.
This year, I was excited to put the Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond to the test, thanks to bold claims from Callaway stating these drivers are looking to be their most forgiving and consistent yet.
Could there be hope for me with a low spin driver? Keep reading to find out...
Who Is It Aimed At?
With a neutral-to-fade biased head and compact overall head size, the Ai Smoke Triple Diamond is for ‘better players’, specifically with higher club speeds.
This low spin model is designed with Callaway’s new advanced machine learning technology, to bring more forgiveness even in their hardest-to-hit model of the range.
The Tech
New to the 2024 driver range is Callaway’s advanced Ai Smart Face technology, which uses micro-deflections across the inside of the club face, giving a series of sweet spots designed to retain ball speed and distance from every possible strike location.
Looking to save weight in the crown, the 360-degree Carbon Chassis is now 15% lighter, allowing weight to be redistributed into the head for more forgiveness and better launch conditions.
The big change compared to the 2023 Paradym drivers is that Callaway has completely done away with Jailbreak technology in this new range.
The reasoning behind this is that the extra weight that Jailbreak adds can again be repositioned throughout the clubface, which Callaway are claiming outweighs the benefits seen by using Jailbreak in the past.
The Ai Smoke Triple Diamond is shaped with a neutral-to-fade bias, compact overall head size and comes with a moveable 14g weight, so players can optimise their speeds and spin rates.
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Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond Driver Review
Looks and Feel
As you’d expect, this low spin model features a more compact head shape compared to the Max or Max D models in the Ai Smoke range.
For me, this doesn’t help to inspire lots of confidence, however I do understand the desire for this smaller head size with faster swinging golfers and you'd have to say aesthetically it looks great.
As we’ve seen before, the Triple Diamond model doesn’t feature an alignment aid on the crown of the club. This is supposedly as the golfer this club is aimed at wouldn’t want or need this excess design feature. However, I like to see an alignment aid on my woods, so this wasn’t ideal for me.
This year the Forged Carbon pattern is a lot more visible across the entire clubhead. With a black, grey and slight blue colour scheme, the driver design is very loud and bold, but I do prefer it compared to last year’s Paradym.
When it comes to feel, as always with low spin drivers, I was slightly torn with my initial thoughts.
Most shots were spinning off to the right, but not with an amount that was landing me in too much trouble once I got used to it – we won’t talk about those first few balls that flew off into the trees…
I was finding the Triple Diamond tough to control at first, but then once I got into it and started to swing with a bit more speed behind it, I was really impressed. The feel when you strike it well and get that lower, powerful shot going is exceptional. It’s just unfortunate for me that I wasn’t getting that every single time.
The Data
Starting off with distances, I was getting more out of the Triple Diamond than the other models in the Paradym Ai Smoke raneg, with an extra 10 yards total compared to the Max D model. My average ball speed was highest with the Triple Diamond model at 133mph, which gave me a carry of 211 yards and total of 242. Although this carry isn't massively impressive, the total is very appealing.
My spin rates were also down significantly, as you’d expect, with the Triple Diamond at 1800rpm compared to the 2500-2600 I was seeing with the other models in the Ai Smoke range. This helped to give a lower ball flight, with extra run out on the ball helping to boost that overall distance.
As expected, I did see some increase in the distance dispersion in the carry, but the totals were more consistent, within 4 yards either side of the 242. The main issue with the Triple Diamond for me was seeing some shots with higher left-to-right bias than I’d seen with either of the other two Ai Smoke models.
On-Course Performance
The first few shots did have me a bit concerned about this driver, as they did just spin off into the trees. You really do have to produce some speed behind the Triple Diamond to achieve a good strike, but when I did, this club performed best out of all three models we tried!
The straightest and longest shots seen out on the course were always with the Triple Diamond, and to be fair, once I’d adjusted to having this club in hand, the worst-case scenario I was finding myself to be in was in the right-hand side semi rough, or just creeping into the trees.
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond Driver Verdict
If I could hit the ball every time with enough speed for a perfect strike, with that low, powerful ball flight, then I wouldn’t be able to fault this club. However, this is golf we're talking about here and I didn't see the same levels of consistency with the Triple Diamond.
I would say these ‘offline’ shots weren’t as drastic as I’d usually see with a low spin model, however given how consistent the Max and Max D drivers were, it made the Triple Diamond stick out comparatively in terms of forgiveness and reliability.
Overall if you’ve got the ball speeds for a low spin model, this club could be a great option. Coming in at an RRP of £569, it is of course a large price tag, but interestingly £30 cheaper than last year’s Paradym. So, if you’re in the market for a low spin driver and held off last year, this could be great news for you.
Would I Use It?
Personally, I wouldn’t be reaching for a Callaway low spin driver given my club speeds aren’t pushing the speeds I’d need to strike this type of driver well each time. That said, I think the Ai Smoke Triple Diamond has been one of the easiest, and most forgiving low-spin drivers I’ve tested.
If I was looking to put a low spin driver in play, this would certainly be one I’d consider.
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond Driver Pros and Cons
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