Welcome to GOLF Geared Up’s weekly tour gear report. Every Friday during PGA Tour week (and other times, if there’s news to cover), golf equipment editor Jack Hirsh will be covering you with some of the biggest news about golf clubs on tour, including changes, adjustments and releases.
Scottie Scheffler’s gear switches are few and far between, but when they happen, they usually signal a tear.
Everyone remembers Scheffler switching to a TaylorMade Spider Tour X putter in early spring of 2024, and has since gone on to score a world-leading 15 global wins and three major championships in the past two seasons alone. This spring, he returned to Vokey 0.06K-Grind lob wedges to kick off a six-win season.
But there’s another change for 2024 that’s less well-known and has a lot to do with Scheffler’s success the past two seasons: his drivers.
Scheffler first tried TaylorMade’s Qi10 LS driver at the 2023 Hero World Challenge, but it only lasted one round. That Friday, Scheffler returned to the Stealth 2 Plus console he’d used throughout 2023 to win, a feat he repeated last season.
He continued using that driver for the first three events of 2024, then switched again to the Qi10, this time the core model, at the WM Phoenix Open. Since that week, he has used this driver model in all 15 of his wins. But in the Bahamas, Qi10’s journey appears to be finally over as he once again seeks to defend his Hero title.
The reigning PGA and Open champion, making his first start since September’s Ryder Cup, became the latest to use TaylorMade’s new Qi4D driver. Scheffler bagged a Qi4D core driver and 3-wood in the Bahamas this week, but he struggled through the first two rounds as he entered the weekend just one shot off the lead.
The move now means the world’s top three players – Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood – along with the rest of TaylorMade’s staff, have all switched to the new Qi4D driver.
“I’ve been playing really well so far, my spin numbers are pretty consistent, my ball flight is pretty consistent, and I’m looking forward to getting that in the game,” Scheffler said Wednesday.
It’s easy to see why it’s been left in the bag, too, as Scheffler has allowed 1.8 drives off the tee (fifth), hit 22 of 26 pitches (tied for third), and averaged 312.6 yards per pop-up.
Scheffler said before this week that the new Qi4D immediately caught his eye and was “always the first test” for him. After several tests throughout the season, Scheffler never finally put TaylorMade’s 2025 driver Qi35 into service, making the testing process much shorter. He said he and fitter Adrian Reitveld gained a lot from the experience this year. ”
“We learned a lot along the way about what I like to see in a driver and the way it needs to perform specifically for me,” he said Wednesday. “Going into this year, I feel like Adrian and the whole team at TaylorMade had a really good idea of what my eyes needed to see in order for the driver to work. We went through a lot of different options specifically to suit my face needs and felt like we were in a good position, and then testing this time around was definitely a lot easier.”
This week, thanks to on-set photos from legendary Getty Images photographer David Cannon, we can see that Scheffler’s Qi4D has a decidedly different face than other Qi4D drivers we’ve seen on tour around the world. While most of the Qi4D’s faces are a muted gray (except for Rory McIlroy, who has a bright gray), Scheffler’s face is the same bright blue as the Qi10.
The brighter color helps Scheffler see the clubface better in low-loft (7.5°) settings, which helps new players check out appearance categories more quickly.
TaylorMade’s Qi4D continues rapid transformation in top products @taylormadegolf staff.
Scottie Scheffler used a new driver on the Hero course this week and wanted to add a Qi4D fairway wood cover to his bag.
Scheffler was also quick to add a matching Qi4D 3-wood to the package, which shouldn’t be taken for granted considering how successful his previous Qi10 3-wood was. Both clubs still have the same Fujikura Ventus Black 7-X and 8-X respectively.
What did Rory do?
Rory McIlroy signed with TaylorMade in 2017, following a brief but adventurous run without equipment in 2016 when Nike exited the hard goods space, and since then, the biggest staple in his golf bag has been his RORS Proto irons.
McIlroy’s RORS Protos are an improved version of TaylorMade’s P730 blade introduced in 2017. He has used the RORS Protos in each of his 16 PGA Tour victories since joining TaylorMade, including a Masters win at a major in April, and he has used the 5-iron through 9-iron almost every time.
What is indeed surprising is that Rory McIlroy switched his 5-iron and 6-iron from RORS Proto blades to TaylorMade P7CB.
McIlroy already uses the P760 on his 4-iron, but seeing him drop blades on the mid-irons as well really emphasizes the trend toward forgiveness… pic.twitter.com/9iwj2jjmx6
But this week, McIlroy made a shocking change. McIlroy swapped out the 5 and 6 irons in the RORS Proto and the P760 4 iron for the more forgiving and larger P7CB.
McIlroy tested a full set of P7CBs this week as he looked to improve distance control and ultimately settled on the long irons. According to DP World Tour equipment surveyor SMS on Tour, McIlroy found the launch height of the short irons to be slightly higher than his RORS Protos and felt he needed more time to get used to them.
TaylorMade P7CB custom irons
Best-in-Class Feel Utilizing touring feedback and modal analysis, we strategically designed quality layouts to achieve a best-in-class feel. Forged with a tight grain and refined with 2000 tons of pressure to deliver the purest feel of 1025 mild carbon steel. PRECISION CONTROL With a precision milled face and grooves combined with a constant center of gravity, the P•7CB is designed to deliver the best combination of launch and spin for ultimate control and precision. Consistency is designed to maximize accuracy and consistency. P•7CB has optimized perimeter weights and co-forged tungsten, designed to provide the perfect combination of stability and machinability. Compact Tour Shape Every aspect of this iron’s shape is designed to satisfy the discerning golfer. The compact blade length and thin topline create a confident, clean look in the playing position, while the sole camber and progressive bounce profile provide consistent turf interaction.
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The P7CB long irons entering play feature a unique sole geometry with added bounce on the leading and trailing edge reliefs that are more similar to the P760 4-iron that McIlroy has used for years.
We expect this to be McIlroy’s last appearance of the year, aside from the Golf Channel event later this month. Still, it’s certainly a development worth watching, especially since McIlroy appears to be following a growing trend on tour.
More and more long-time blade users are ditching their butter knives in favor of larger, more forgiving cavity-back irons. Just this fall, Billy Horschel switched from Titleist’s 620 MB to the T100. TaylorMade colleague Nelly Korda also switched from P7MC to P7CB irons.
Whether it’s for more launch, better distance dispersion, or a combination of the two, the world’s best hitters are increasingly looking for more help with their irons. This is a trend we see among drivers too!
Through three rounds this week, McIlroy is 5 under par and just outside the top 20.
Sam Burns stirs up quantum mania
Callaway added its Quantum driver lineup to the USGA eligible list this week, with Sam Burns being the first crew member to put it into action.
Burns uses a Quantum Triple Diamond Max 9+ head, which means the actual loft of the head is probably closer to 9.75.
Sam Burns was the first player on the pitch @CallawayGolfof new quantum drives.
Paired with Triple Diamond Max 9+ heads. The plus sign indicates a loft angle slightly higher than 9 degrees, more likely around 9.75°. pic.twitter.com/A8CXSGgbRt
Burns has been strong off the tee in Albany this week, leading the field with more than 323 yards per drive and missing only five fairways through two rounds. After rounds of 71 and 70, he was 3 under.
We still know very little about the driver, but the ringleaders added to the eligible list this week say it all. First, Burns’ addition to the Triple Diamond Max bodes well for fans of Tour’s favorite larger driver, which wasn’t available in the Elyte and Paradym Ai-Smoke lines until spring. The TD Max is simply a larger, more forgiving version of the Triple Diamond, Callaway’s tour-model driver.
In addition to the standard Triple Diamond, a left-handed only Triple Diamond “TD” head has been added. New to the Elyte lineup this year, the Triple Diamond Tour Draw offers an optimized club head for golfers who prefer to tee off. Still, the driver ended up in the hands of primarily left-to-right player Min Woo Lee, who used it to help promote the left starting line.
🍥Callaway Quantum entered the USGA qualifying list! 🍥@CallawayGolf There are four new Quantum drive heads.
Interestingly, there don’t appear to be core or standard “Max” models in this release, but that’s not surprising as early compliance list additions are typically only available on Tour… pic.twitter.com/hJLoekEoGq
If the left-hander’s three-diamond touchdown was a “tournament draw” header, it was most likely from Akshay Bhatia, who would have likely used the same approach as Lee to help him start the strike on the right hook. However, Bhatia is still with his trusty Rogue ST Triple Diamond LS this week.
Finally, there’s a Max-D head, but there’s no Max or core on the list yet. Alex Noren is currently wearing Ai-Smoke Max-D and has been keeping in touch with the player this week.
The driver isn’t Burns’ only change this week. He also became the latest adopter of Callaway’s Apex MB ’26 irons, which continue to spread like wildfire among staff and non-staff alike, especially the blades.
look at this
This section is dedicated to a cool photo we recently took on tour, but haven’t had a reason to share yet. This week, check out Adrien Dumont de Chassart’s Apex MB ’26 irons, the same irons Burns is playing this week.
Sam Burns plays the same prototype irons as Adrien Dumont de Chassart.
Jack Hersh/Golf
odds and ends
Some other gear changes and notes we’re tracking this week.
Eddie Pepperall switched to Ping’s G440 K driver… Akshay Bhatia didn’t add a new Quantum driver, but he did switch to a new Ai-Dual Jailbird Cruiser 1/2-Ball putter. He is tied for the lead at 10 under through two rounds and ranks sixth with 2.3 SG: Putting.
3 things you should read/watch
Featured golf content from the past week that may interest you.
PXG launches new Lightning series of drivers, fairway woods, hybrids – Jake Morrow explains PXG’s most significant metalwood product launch to date.
PXG Lightning Tour Midsize Custom Driver
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Why 2026 will be a big year for drivers Well equipped – Listen to Jack and Johnny discuss why 2026 will be a great driver’s year.
The author welcomes comments at Jack.Hirsh@golf.com.
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