REVIEW: The Callaway Elyte is the Best Driver of 2025!

The Callaway Elyte driver has been on the market since early this year, but I’ve just gotten my hands on it for the first time, and I am sure it is the best driver you could have in your bag!

The Elyte Driver focuses on forgiveness, increased speed for more distance, and AI-forward R&D to help with spin, making it one of the most high-tech big sticks on the market. Callaway claims players felt an average gain of 1.8 yards from their previous model, the Paradym Ai Smoke, which is what has been in my bag for two seasons.

There are a multitude of changes between the two, and they are very evident from the first swing. The appearance, look, sound, feel, and performance are all significantly different from last year’s release, and thanks to Dick’s Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy, I was able to test it firsthand.

There have been some significant improvements from last year, but I want to be transparent about the changes between the two that I made. I used stock shafts in both: The Paradym Ai Smoke came with a 50g Mitsubishi Tensei Blue, and the Elyte comes with a Project X Denali Charcoal, and I chose to go with the heavier 60g weight on this club.

The increase in shaft weight was not recommended by a fitter, but instead something I wanted to try for myself. A few of my friends have played 60g shafts in their drivers, and I enjoyed the feel of it more, as it felt less whippy than the lighter 50g shaft.

Let’s dive into what I got from my first round with the Callaway Elyte.

Appearance and Look

The first thing off the bat that I will say is that the Ai Smoke was and still is the best-looking driver that any company has ever developed. The graphics, colors, and overall aesthetic were absolutely excellent. I think Callaway took a step back here with the Elyte in terms of the club head:

Credit: SGGT

However, the crown of the clubheads has been improved from the Ai Smoke, but this is a matter of personal preference. I believe a matte finish on a driver is less of a distraction and helps keep me more focused on my swing, rather than avoiding the potential reflection of the sun.

The graphic design does not really play a part in how the club performs, and the crown is a better thing to focus on because it’s what you’re looking at when addressing the golf ball. 

The crown of the Callaway Elyte Driver is a matte finish, a big change from the Ai Smoke’s gloss. (Credit: SGGT)

I’ll dig more into the crown material when discussing the sound of this driver.

Sound

After my first shot with the Elyte driver, my playing partner, who is someone I play with a few times a week, said, “I love the sound of that thing. It sounds incredible.”

It is much different from the sound of the Ai Smoke, which was solid but also had a tendency to sound like an aluminum baseball bat on mishits. I prefer the solid sounds that these matte drivers tend to have.

The Callaway Elyte features a Thermoforged Carbon crown, which helps lower spin and increase launch.

Feel and Performance

The big thing I noticed was stability, especially with the weight of the shaft on the way back and with the face at impact.

My driver is the most inconsistent club in the bag; I go from hitting it further and straighter than anyone in my group to just the opposite, and it’s usually a very small change that enables my lack of accuracy and distance.

Since the shaft is not a constant factor with this club, I won’t focus on it too much. However, given its stock selection, I would truly recommend it.

The driver face was really easy to square. Finding the middle of it is a whole different story, but it feels incredibly forgiving on balls that don’t quite find the center.

I found that, even with off-center hits, I still felt compression and had plenty of distance, while also maintaining a consistent, straight ball flight. The round I played with the Elyte driver was my most consistent off the tee in some time, and I attribute half of that to the driver and the other half to my swing.

I was able to achieve a penetrating ball flight off the tee, rather than something that lacked speed and was more of a 230-yard fairway finder that my friends would laugh at. A lot of this speed improvement comes from the Ai 10x face and the shape of the head. Callaway describes them:

“Developed through advanced prototyping capabilities, the new Elyte shape is designed to maximize swing speed. A lower crown profile and heel section provide enhanced aerodynamics for elite speed throughout the entire golf swing, not just at impact.”

“Our most advanced Ai face to date, the new Ai 10x Face delivers 10x more control points than our Ai Smart Face™. It’s designed to produce exceptionally fast ball speeds, tight dispersion, and optimized launch across the face.”

All of these differences are felt in the first swing. You truly can feel all the improvements Callaway has made to make this driver one of the best around, and in my opinion, the best on the market!

Pick Yours Up at Dick’s or Golf Galaxy

I want to say thank you to Dick’s Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy for hooking me up with a new driver to test and review. If you’re looking to pick one up for yourself or someone in your life who plays golf, be sure to go to them for great prices or to get fit.

Dick’s Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy locations are plentiful and can be located using their website.