I also just want to comment here that recent legal actions against Titleist as regards Bridgestone and Callaway are rather revealing. GolfWeek has the stories in those hyperlinks.
Drivers: Taylor Made
NO contest here, just pick the one you like best. In my bag right now is the r7 Superquad TP with the 75 shaft jointly developed by Fujikara and Taylor Made. For teh first time in my life recently I hit 11 that's eleven fairways in a row in a single round. My old favorite for years had been the original pre-HT r7 with the Kuehne Mitsubishi Rayon shaft - incredibly straight. I needed the extra 60 cc - I am old and have been falling apart for years. I am a feel player and like to fiddle. I love the wrenches and weights in the TM MWT (Moveable Weight Technology) lines. They really make a difference, it's like having a whole set of drivers. I like to hit it low and r7 has helped me keep it that way although if you put the two heaviest weights in an r7 in the back, you can hit moonballs. I hit my first dozen with my first r7 that way, then switched them to the front ports and it was like two radically different drivers. I was sold and still am.
Other great drivers? My wife went with the 425 r7 with the M shaft and she is the straightest-hitting thing around. I have two friends playing the Burner TP (one about 5 Hcp the other +3) and that is a superior driver as well, much different from the standard model Burner which is your dream if you want a high straight ball flight. Easily the most forgiving performance line on the planet
Now there is the new CGB series. Look no further than Taylor Made for your driver. For so many years now the pick of the litter, just get properly fit.
Shoes: Adidas Tour 360 II and Ecco
I was once a shot-putter and discus thrower for the University of Florida. Adidas made incredible shoes - real athletic shoes that fit you like a glove. (Interesting tidbit: in German the word for gloves is Handshuhe literally hand-shoe). That's the Tour 360 II. That's my personal shoe.
I also highly recommend the Ecco line; their lasts (that mold over which the shoe is formed) are quite good and the European sizes for Americans make fitting easy as there is not an exact conversion, so you actually try on shoes and find what fits. I wear a 14 or 15 Us size but a 49 Euro in Ecco. So you will actually try on several sizes that way. Another tip is to measure your foot in a Brannock Device and choose the largest of the four that you might get. In Ortholingo: the metatarsal length rather than the toe length often determines proper shoe fit.
Putters: YES!
Certainly I am kidding as putters are so individual that what I like and use is of no value wahtsoever to anyone else, RIGHT? C-Groove technology gives the best roll around, but you do need to know where you are hitting the ball on the face of your putter. Otherwise it's a complete waste of time. But yes, there is a YES! in my bag.