Krank Rage Driver Review

(Editor's Note: Following is a review submitted by Bill Kroen of the Krank Rage driver. Kroen, a golf professional, is the author of Bill Kroen's Golf Tip A Day Calendar. Bill's rating is listed below; readers can add their own reviews of the Krank Rage driver below.)

Product: Krank Rage driver
Reviewer: Bill Kroen
Reviewer's Rating: 5 out of 5

Pros

• Tremendous ball speed
• High MOI without looking big
• Long and forgiving
• Quality head, shaft and grip

Cons

• Head graphics may be distracting
• Devil head cover might be too much for the traditionalist
• $350 price tag might be steep for some

Many golfers buy drivers and hope for the Holy Grail: launching the ball like touring professionals. In reality, however, the golfer's skill has far more to do with results than the club. However, there is a driver that I have found that does deliver the distance and, surprisingly, accuracy that almost every clubmaker claims. This driver will not guarantee you 300 yards drives if you are a 15-handicap, but you will pick extra yards with your current swing if you can put a decent swing on the ball.

Krank Golf always seemed like a fringe company to me when, occasionally, I saw an ad for their El Diablo or Chili Pepper clubs. Somehow, I never took this company seriously.

What caught my interest was when I was skimming through a golf forum and read that the Krank Diablo driver finished first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh in the 2008 Re-Max Long Drive Contest in Overall performance. I checked out their site, Krankgolf.com, where I read about their Long Drive successes and also found out that they offer online fitting (either through a questionnaire, or by submitting your specifications). Since I play yearround, I decided to give the new Krank offering – The Rage driver - a whirl.

The driver arrived with the specs that I had ordered. The head is black with red accents and a gray, sweeping design across the crown. I cannot say that the design either helps or hinders the driver as I do not look at the club crown at setup. Some golfers, however, might find the extra graphics a little too much. I had steered away from the El Diablo line for the reason that the neon red head just looked too gimmicky and loud.

The shaft used in my Krank Rage driver is a high-quality Fujikura Diesel that comes in A, R, F, S and X-S flexes. I chose the firm. The grip is a very comfortable half cord that offers a non-slip feel without stinging the hands. It comes with an El Diablo headcover in the shape of a red devil complete with horns and a tail.

I am a 64-year-old golf professional with a handicap in the low single digits. While I practice quite a bit and work out, my distance is average for my age and skill level. I hit my drives about 250 yards and most of the time I am in the fairway. I can work the ball left or right. In the past two years I have used Wishon THC and TaylorMade Burner drivers with good results.

I took the Krank Rage driver to my range and, after warming up, teed up a few balls. The ball jumps off the face so that you can instantly sense that you are generating more ball speed. The club is not loud at all, but makes a solid click that you can hear and feel at impact.

My first drive launched well into the air and carried farther than any of my normal drives. I paused to evaluate the drive and was very surprised at the results. Pleasantly surprised. As I hit more balls, I could feel the Deisel shaft work perfectly in balance with the head to help whip the club through impact. The shaft is 70g, but feels lighter.

I continued to hit great drives and was consistently longer than my usual distance. As a bonus, I noticed that I hit very few shots that would get me into trouble, and these came when I tried to over-swing to see if I could push it farther. The Krank Rage driver is very forgiving and this is what Krank had in mind when the company developed the club. While the El Diablo racked up tremendous results on the Long Driver circuit, Krank realized that 95-percent of its business comes from golfers who play the game. Making a driver that will help you land on the fairway while smacking it out a good distance is what they came up with when they developed the Rage.

On the course, I stepped to the tee on the fifth hole only to have my three playing partners ask about the driver - they said I was hitting the ball farther than I ever had before. It was true. They all wanted to look at and swing the Krank Rage driver, and I continued to hit great drives that were in play for the entire 18. Simply put – I love this driver.