£50 Vs £479 Driver Test | Slazenger P500 Vs TaylorMade M3

Just how does the performance differ from a £50 budget driver compared to a top-of-the-range premium model? We found out...

£50 Vs £479 Driver Test | Slazenger P500 Vs TaylorMade M3

Digital Editor Neil Tappin took the drivers to Streamsong Golf Club in Florida to test out the performance at both ends of the spectrum.

The Slazenger P500 has an RRP of £199.99, however it is available on the Sports Direct website for £49.99.

Related: TaylorMade M3 driver review

The TaylorMade M3 retails at £479.

There's obviously a big difference in price between the two clubs, so what we wanted to do was put the drivers up against each other on the launch monitor and see what those differences are in terms of performance.

Looks

Looking at the M3, from the address view it has been refined comapred to last year's M1. It looks really high tech and modern with a classic head shape.

Related: TaylorMade M1 2016 vs M1 2017 vs M3

It is undoubtedly one of the best looking drivers on the market right now.

The P500 is a really simple driver. What Slazenger have done is produce something that's totally inoffensive. For £50 you're not expecting the world, what you want is something that's really simple, classic and a nice shape to look down on - and Slazenger have delivered on that.

The matte finish is really good and smart, and there's absolutely nothing that would put you off. It sets up closed at address to aide those who struggle with a slice, better players may not like this.

Related: TaylorMade M2 2017 vs M4 driver test

It doesn't look as good as the M3, but you wouldn't expect it to. It looks good enough for a driver that is only £50

Performance

This is where we were expecting the biggest differences.

Neil Tappin's launch monitor numbers with the TaylorMade M3, featuring a custom fit Aldila Rogue X shaft:

The performance from the M3 was very strong, with an impressive carry distance of 287 yards on average.

Neil Tappin's launch monitor numbers with the Slazenger P500, fit with a regular shaft:

The ball speed was good, although we got a much lower launch, less spin and an average carry distance of nine yards less than the M3.

Solid performance, although we did struggle with dispersion.

Neil Tappin's launch monitor numbers with the Slazenger P500 driver fit with the same Aldila Rogue X shaft:

As you can see, carry distance was up on average by a yard with the premium shaft despite ball speed dropping 1mph. The big difference was in dispersion.

For our full comparison, watch the video at the top of the page