Staff WriterTitleist GT280 Mini Driver has arrived on the scene, promising a whole new realm of distance, control, and approachability that’ll make your tee box (and fairway) shenanigans downright thrilling.
The latest addition to Titleist’s GT family marries the best features of a driver and a fairway wood, offering an option that’s longer and more forgiving than its fairway siblings yet more controllable and workable than a standard driver.
“GT280 is a completely new offering that was born from golfer feedback,” said Josh Talge, Titleist’s Vice President of Golf Club Marketing.
“We heard from more and more players who were looking for a club that gapped between their driver and 3-wood.
For some, this club is for tee shots only. Others need to be able to hit this club off the turf.
GT280 is designed to perform exceptionally under both conditions, and it will be a really valuable addition to our metalwood lineup.”
At 280cc, the GT280’s head volume slides neatly between Titleist’s drivers and fairway metals, bringing a refreshingly distinct performance profile to the table.
It’s got 13 degrees of loft, so it sits right in that sweet spot for players wanting a second driving option or a more powerful fairway replacement.
Plus, the stock shaft length is 43.5 inches—two inches shorter than the usual driver—making it remarkably easy to command off the tee or from the turf.
“The design process for GT280 began with a request from J.J. [Van Wezenbeeck, Titleist’s Senior Director of Club Promotions], and when we brought out our first mini driver prototype last year, we quickly saw that it fit a performance need for both tour players and amateurs,” said Tom Bennett, Principal Product Manager for Titleist Metalwood R&D.
“Whether GT280 is going to have a permanent spot in a player’s bag and replace their strongest-lofted fairway, or if it’s more of a situational ‘15th club,’ there’s a lot of interest in another go-to distance club that performs how GT280 does.”
Built on Generational Technology
Titleist drew heavily from its GT driver and fairway lines to craft the GT280’s engineering.
According to Bennett: “The design goals for GT280 were multi-faceted. GT280 needed to have exceptional distance and speed off the tee, it needed to perform from the turf, and it needed to offer adjustability for fitting purposes.
That’s a long list of demands, but we approached the challenge by building off both our GT driver and fairway platforms.”
Seamless Thermoform Crown
Like the heavyweight drivers in the GT stable, the GT280 Mini Driver uses the same Proprietary Matrix Polymer (PMP) for its Seamless Thermoform Crown.
Titleist’s engineering team shaved off precious grams to fine-tune the center of gravity, boosting ball speed, stability, and launch.
The PMP also tames unwanted vibrations, maintaining that trademark Titleist sound and feel you know and love.
Forward/Aft CG Adjustability
Engineers borrowed the forward/aft CG adjustability from the GT4 driver, too. Right out of the box, you’ll find a heavier, 11-gram weight in the aft position, while a lighter 3-gram weight sits forward.
You can flip those around to chase a more piercing trajectory if that’s your cup of tea.
“What we saw with our tour players, some were only looking for performance off the tee – this is like a second driver to them,” said Bennett.
“Other ones were really interested in performance off the turf. So having these two CG options to adjust is going to be very valuable in both tour and amateur fittings depending on player needs.”
Forged L-Cup Face
To keep your ball speed sizzling on low-face strikes, Titleist added a forged L-Cup face that wraps around the bottom of the clubface.
This design element eliminates gear effect that’s common when catching the ball low, giving you better spin rates and a more consistent feel—even if you’ve spent the morning hitting out of one too many bunkers.
Lower Leading Edge
“We took the leading edge of a typical driver and really dropped it closer to the turf,” said Bennett.
“That’s been one of the first things players have noticed when they set it down at address. It looks more inviting to hit off the turf than a club with its face depth typically would.”
This friendlier leading edge also makes it easier to square up low shots, helping you achieve a more forgiving strike from the fairway.
Specs & Availability
The GT280 Mini Driver’s standard loft is 13.0 degrees (both RH and LH), and it comes in various shaft lengths: 43.5″ for men, 42.5″ for women, and 41.5″ for juniors.
The club’s standard lie angle is 56.0 degrees, and it offers weight options of 11 grams in the aft position and 3 grams forward, along with multiple lighter and heavier variations.
It’s also compatible with Titleist’s Fairway SureFit sleeve, so you can tailor your shaft length or experiment with different fairway shafts as you please.
The featured shafts include:
- Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Blue (65g): R, S, X
- Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Black (75g): S, X
And it’s all topped off with the Titleist Universal 360 grip.
GT280 is available for fitting and pre-sale right now and will officially land in UK and Ireland golf shops on Friday, April 18th, at an SRP of £459.
If you’re hunting for that elusive blend of driver-like distance and fairway-like control, the Titleist GT280 Mini Driver stands ready to transform your long game—whether you need a second driver off the tee or a versatile go-to club off the deck.
