TaylorMade's Mini Driver

TaylorMade's new Original One Mini Driver just became available for pre-order a couple of days back and should hit retail outlets early next month. And if you're struggling off the tee with your regular driver, maybe you should consider it.

First let's talk some specs. I'm comparing it to a standard 15° 3-wood here.

Forget your 460cc big stick -- the Original One Mini has a mere 275cc head. That may sound incredibly small, but bear in mind that the M3/M4 3-wood was around 176cc while the M5/M6 is 161cc. So this mini driver is still noticeably larger than a 3-wood.

It comes in two lofts, 11.5° and 13.5°, it's 43.75" in length (a regular M5/M6 3-wood is 43.25") and it's intended to give players of all playing levels another option off the tee. Yes, it's been designed to fit between your driver and your 3-wood, should you be inclined to carry both.

I suspect this club would be a replacement for a standard driver for most weekend players. If you don't get a lot of distance with your driver because you don't generate as much clubhead speed, the extra loft should help you get that higher launch angle that normally comes from extra speed. And it's got all the same tech that goes into the regular drivers, like that twist-face all the pros seem so excited about.

Plus it comes at a lower price than the driver. At $400 it might be the way to go if you want the tech but don't want to pay for a driver that you don't hit all that well to begin with.

Obviously I don't know what would work for you and what wouldn't. But if you're considering something like this, here's the page at TaylorMade's website that has all the specs for the Original Mini One and here's the announcement of the club from Golf Tips Mag's site, which includes some guidance on whether you should consider it or not.

Personally, given how many of us prefer 3-woods off the tee anyway, I'm glad to see TaylorMade catering to that potentially large group of players.