Choosing the right driver to suit your game as a mid-handicapper can be a tricky task. You may well feel stuck in no mans land between being too good for the best drivers for high handicappers whilst also feeling you may not have the sufficient abilities to play the low loft, low spin drivers that single figure handicappers tend to play. Fear not - this guide can help you find the driver that is best for you.
WATCH: Joe Ferguson tests and compares the leading drivers on the market in 2025
However, there is no one size fits all solution though and you will need to have a good understanding of your own game before deciding what driver you need. Not all 15 handicap players will have the same attributes and skillsets. If you feel like you need a better understanding of your game, we'd highly recommend a custom fitting or simply a lesson with your local PGA Pro, but more on that later.
For example, you may be a 15 handicap who swings the club very quickly and needs the emphasis to be on forgiveness. If that's the case you should check out our guide to the most forgiving drivers. Alternatively, perhaps you are a slow swinger who hits every fairway but who needs more length. If so, you'll be looking for the best drivers for distance.
Generally though, the drivers listed below combine the best of both worlds and will therefore suit most players in the mid-handicap range.
Joe has over 20 years of experience in the golf industry, ranging from becoming PGA Head Professional at Ryder Cup venue Celtic Manor to serving and leading the National Fitting Centers for both Titleist and Taylormade. Joe heads up our testing and reviews for Drivers and Irons with the help of Deputy Editor Joel Tadman, who has spent many years testing golf clubs, and Sam De'Ath, a professional who has competed on both the EuroPro Tour and Clutch Pro Tour.
The Quick List
We were left seriously impressed by the entire Callaway Elyte range after testing but think the standard model is best for mid handicappers thanks to general, well-rounded performance and a slightly lower spin profile.
Looks matter more than you think, so it's best to equip yourself with one that looks the part. The Qi35 looks like a club plucked from the future, delivering a pretty aesthetic as well as lovely feel and genuine playability.
The GT3 sits in the middle of the range of Titleist's GT family, making it perfect for the mid-handicapper. Although the head doesn't look the biggest at address, it frames the ball beautifully for you ahead of you swing.
Ping are known more making forgiving, user friendly drivers and the G440 is a continuation of that trend. Our testing saw it deliver consistent, powerful ball flights that are now coupled with an improved visual package.
Mid handicappers can still struggle to get the ball airborne off the tee, meaning a loss of yardage as a result. The ST-Max 230 not only looks superb but helps promote a high launch to allow you to gain a few extra yards.
The adjustability on offer from Cobra's new unique FutureFit33 hosel means the ultimate customization experience for those who love a bit of trial and error when it comes to dialing in their golfing setup.
Load the next 3 models
Looks matter - and so does the sound, albeit slightly less. If you don't want your driver sounding like a frying pan as you make contact with the ball on the first tee, opt for something with better acoustics like the Black Ops 0311.
The Dynapower Max is Wilson's best driver in years. Plenty of forgiveness is on offer here, with a prominent fade bias built in to help players who want to shape the ball left to right.
The ZXi is a real upgrade on the previous ZX7, delivering a smarter aesthetic and some nice technical refinements. This is a well-rounded package of a driver that will suit a wide range of golfers.
Best Golf Drivers for Mid Handicappers
Top pick
Our top pick is regular Elyte head,suited to the widest range of golfers regardless of ability level which makes it the natural headliner in this guide from the impressive never Callaway Elyte range. It's an excellent 'all-rounder' that delivers slightly less spin than competitors 'standard' models. This is thanks in part to increased levels of forgiveness and a solid feel at impact which will appeal to the masses.
Like the best golf drivers, the Elyte features a customizable perimeter weighting system that features a 13g movable weight for optimum adjustability. We enjoying playing around with this in testing, noting that it really did help us manipulate the ball flight - something that will help players set their driver up to compliment their strengths and hopefully iron out some weaknesses off the tee.
Although we think the looks have not matched the lofty heights of those displayed in the previous Ai Smoke range, I think they still look great - even if the sole design caused a divide in opinion around the GM office. This driver looks best in the playing position, framing the ball beautifully square whilst boosting confidence in the player courtesy of the large amount of real estate from the club head. A matte carbon fiber crown also really adds to the look alongside the iconic Callaway chevron alignment aid which will benefit mid handicappers.
- Read our full Callaway Elyte Driver Review
Best shelf appeal
The standard model in the new Qi35 range from TaylorMade features two adjustable weights in the sole that can be switched to fine-tune launch and spin, a high-tech matte finish that looks like the inside of a supercar and brand new CG technology to enhance performance.
Without bogging you down in too much technology talk, Taylormade have moved the CG in the face as low as possible to increase what they call 'the area of opportunity', essentially increasing the size of the sweet spot. As a result, the feel off the face is more lively than previous iterations with a complimentary higher pitch that we enjoyed during testing.
We also loved the adjustability on offer here in relation to the two weights on the sole. In a neutral setting, they give the driver a real feeling of stability and forgiveness, but you can ramp up to what we called the 'beast mode' setting by adjusting the weights to drop rpm and increase overall distance output. Your dispersion will suffer a little but nowhere as much as I imagined. There really isn't much we can criticize about the new Qi35, meaning it's well worth a try for the mid-handicapper.
- Read our full TaylorMade Qi35 Driver Review
Best at address
With the new GT range Titleist's main target was to make it faster than the hugely successful TSR family. To do this their their engineers changed the all-titanium construction to something called Proprietary Matrix Polymer which seems to have done the trick as in our testing we found that the lightweight head produced plenty of power and speed!
The GT range consists of the GT2, GT3 and GT4, with the GT3 being the most adjustable model thanks to a new weight track which sits much closer to the face. This weight track allows the centre of gravity to be moved and as a result of that we found that the GT3 was very easy to flight and shape. We also found that the forgiveness on offer from predominantly low, heel misses was very impressive.
In terms of the looks, we were happy to see that Titleist chose to retain the simple aesthetics that we know and love. Despite being a multi-material crown, there are no joins or banner strips down in the playing position or, in fact, any real indication of the new technology and it's the typical classical looking driver that Titelist do so well.
- Read our full Titleist GT3 Driver Review
Best wide appeal
Ping aren't particularly known for making good looking golf clubs like Taylormade or Callaway are, so we were excited to see the new makeover look given the entire driver range. The most notable change is the new eight-layer carbon wrap on the head which helps give the club a real premium look. From the top, this is a really good looking driver.
For this guide we've chosen the G440 Max driver, the option in the middle of the range between the low spin driver - the G440 LST and the more user friendly, game improvement driver - the G440 SFT. Like the G430 Max before it, the G440 gobbles up mishits and turns them into playable drives. Data between the two drivers remains similar although I found the feel of the G440 to be improved.
We also enjoyed the adjustability is on offer here as well thanks to the 29-gram, three position adjustable back weight that can be tweaked to suit your ball flight preference. This has allowed the brains behind the operation at Ping to lower the CG and make shots hit lower on the face perform better in terms of spin and distance. As mentioned, there aren't massive differences between the G440 and G430 models, but both are excellent driver models worth trying if you're looking for something new.
- Read our full Ping G440 Max Driver Review
Best For high launch
The ST-Max 230 is an underrated model that more should test
Mizuno are better known for making some of the best golf irons and lesser known for their fairway woods and drivers, but the Japanese brand have worked hard to improve the quality of their longer clubs and have succeeded in doing so.
The aesthetics really set this model apart and we found the shape of the head to be close to perfect when looking down at address. In terms of the sound and feel, I really enjoyed what this driver had to offer. The feel at impact is more subtle than some of the other most forgiving drivers on the market and the acoustics follow the same pattern.
The main selling point here is the launch - this driver delivers high levels of spin which can really benefit those who struggle to launch the ball a sufficient height, thus losing distance as a result. If you don't struggle with this, it may be wise to look elsewhere due to those high spins levels, but this is a great option for those who have shorter carry distances.
- Read our full Mizuno ST-Max 230 Driver Review
Best adjustability
The DS-ADAPT X, a driver designed to be an all-rounder and appeal to players of all levels and abilities, making it an ideal choice for the wide-range of abilities we see in the mid-handicapper range.
We'll begin by talking about the new, industry-leading FutureFit33 adjustable hosel which allows players to de-couple loft and lie angle for the first time ever meaning 33 unique individual settings are available to keep even the most avid tinkerer happy. Like the adjustability on the Callaway Elyte, this means players can fully fine tune their driver to a ball flight that their game, the golf course of the conditions the best. The neutral setting is what most player reading this will suit best, those with moderate swing speeds for example, but fast swingers of the golf club will benefit immensely from this added adjustability.
This is also a driver that is both pleasing on the eye and ear - fantastic looks are matched with beautiful acoustics, whilst the feel we felt during testing was one of the best we've had out of the 2025 range of drivers. Once again, Cobra have delivered a terrific driver that should be considered by players of all handicaps.
- Read our full Cobra DS-ADAPT X Driver Review
Best sounding
The Black Ops 0311 range from PXG sees the introduction of a new AMF technology titanium alloy face that PXG claim gives higher strength and flexibility to increase face deflection, resulting in high launch and lower spin. Our testing did show an extremely strong and penetrating flight, while the ample adjustability will appeal to mid-handicap players too.
The acoustics of the Black Ops were some of the best we have heard in testing this year and the lively feel wasn't harsh whatsoever.
We would describe the aesthetics as fairly basic, but that's no bad thing and we enjoyed the clean and simple looks, which include a gloss finish, carbon crown and subtle, light grey accent graphics. Additionally, the shape is pleasingly rounded and the head sits extremely square in the neutral setting making this a nice club to look down on at address.
- Read our full PXG Black Ops 0311 Driver Review
Best value
Wilson's Dynapower Carbon model is for the lower spin players
We were impressed by the 2025 Dynapwr family of drivers from Wilson, with the 'Max' designed to be the most user-friendly. It's a club packed full of MOI and proved impressively stable during testing, rewarding me with a nicely tight dispersion during both inside and outdoor testing.
The latest Dynapwr range has certainly taken a step forward in terms of looks - the minimal design is one I appreciated in the address position, with the predominantly black coloring offers a very sophisticated feel that I don’t know if I’ve seen before from Wilson drivers.
This is also one of the most forgiving drivers in this guide and could be particularly beneficial to those players who tend to struggle with a slice of the tee. A build-in draw bias means the Dynapwr will aid you in your attempts to take the right side of the golf course out of play and achieve a tighter dispersion. All of this performance for a price of $500, significantly lower than other models on this list, means the Dynapwr should be under serious consideration by any mid handicapper.
- Read our full Wilson Dynapower Carbon Driver Review
Most underrated
When we tested the new ZXi I wanted to see how Srixon could improve on the previous ZX7 Mk II driver and I'm pleased to report they've done just that. Numbers on the launch monitor to differ too much, but there have been real steps forward in terms of both looks and feel that will please many players.
The new ‘i-FLEX’ face makes it debut and I felt a lovely powerful feel off the face during testing as a result. Two adjustable weights in the sole also let you tweak this driver to suit the playing characteristics of your game.
With the ZX7 MK II, we felt the sole of the club in particular was very cluttered. Maybe Srixon agreed with us as they decided to really upgrade the looks package in a slick but sophisticated way. This driver also looks really good at address thanks to the tint textures on the top of the crown and subtle extra detailing on the head, giving this club a real premium feel in your hand.
Consistency was the thing that stood out most to us during testing. Good contact felt easily attainable and even when I missed the center of the face it felt like I had achieved good contact. Ball speed retention was great on these mishits, meaning this is a really good option for a mid-handicapper who might be a little streaky with driver in hand from day to day.
- Read our full Srixon ZXi Driver Review
How we test
Our overall testing ethos at Golf Monthly is to put all products through a rigorous testing procedure to give you crucial insights into three things; how they perform, how they compare to their predecessors and where they stack up in relation to the competition.
The first step of our testing procedure is learning as much as possible about each club we review - this often begins by speaking to the manufacturers and developers themselves at product launch events or when we are invited to their headquarters. We then speak directly to each brands' R&D experts to help us gather a better understanding of the technology behind each driver.
Once we have our hands on the product, it's time to start hitting balls. Our hands-on testing is split into two parts - indoor, controlled environment testing and outdoor, 'in the elements' testing.
Joe Ferguson testing the Mizuno ST-Max 230 Driver
Beginning with indoor testing, we fire up one of the best golf launch monitors to gather and than analyze data. These numbers give us quantifiable information on club performance with which to compare and contrast other clubs with like total distance, carry distance, dispersion, launch angle, smash factor and more.
Once we have a good understanding of how the club performs in terms of the data we've collected, it's then out onto the golf course we go to see if the same performance can be translated to on-course action. We aim to test across multiple rounds of golf on different courses in different conditions to throw as many variables as possible at each driver to really put them through their paces. It also lets us further hone in on specific performance objectives each club has - if a driver sells itself as a low launch driver that will perform well in the wind, we wait for a blustery day to then put that to the test.
When it comes to testing, our goal is simple - to deliver the most informative, impartial review to then provide our loyal readership with informed buying advice - we don't say a product is good because we love the brand or were paid to do so, and we never will.
How to choose a new driver
There are a few key things to consider when investing in a new driver and hopefully answering these questions will narrow your search down slightly and make comparing between various models much easier.
When purchasing a new big stick, it is crucial to ask yourself just what you need from it. Is distance your main priority or are you looking for something to help you find more fairways? We'd always recommend a custom fitting with a PGA Pro but if you know what you're looking for you can make an informed decision.
If accuracy is your primary focus then you should go for something with a high MOI and/or adjustable weights which will help alter spin and flight characteristics to dial in your ideal setting. If distance is your priority then look at a low-spinning driver to help ensure your ball doesn't balloon too much. If you're after something in the middle, the so-called 'standard' heads in most driver ranges will suit you the best.
For more driver buying advice, check out our best drivers for beginners and best drivers for seniors.
FAQs
What is the easiest driver to hit for a mid handicapper?
Any of the non-low spinning models in this list will be ideal. We think the Ping G430 SFT, Cleveland Launcher and Srixon ZX5 MK II are some of the most forgiving in this guide. For a more in-depth look at forgiving drivers, check out our guide on the most forgiving golf drivers currently on the market.
What is considered mid-handicap?
This is a slightly more subjective area. But traditionally a mid-handicapper is considered to hold a playing handicap of 10-20.