Equipment
TaylorMade releases Tour Preferred UDI (Ultimate Driving iron)
TaylorMade’s new Tour Preferred UDI (Ultimate Driving Irons) are low-lofted, hollow-bodied long irons designed to launch the ball higher and with more ball speed than traditional long irons.
“We designed the Tour Preferred UDI for players seeking a club that delivers incredible distance off the tee and a high-performance alternative from the fairway,” said Tomo Bystedt, TaylorMade’s Director of Iron Creation. “The clean, traditional look at address inspires confidence and the SpeedPocket technology provides amazing distance and consistency.”
TaylorMade achieved this performance by moving weight lower and more forward in the club head, which produces a higher launch angle with lower spin. The driving iron’s hollow body is made from 450 stainless steel, while its clubface is made from stronger, thinner 455 Carpenter Steel that helps the club produce faster ball speeds.
TaylorMade’s Speed Pocket, a 3-millimeter slot in the sole of the iron, is said to allow the face to flex more efficiently for distance and consistency and further encourage high launch characteristics in the UDI. It’s the same pocket that’s used in the company’s SpeedBlade irons, which are some of the longest-flying irons in golf.
Although the UDI’s look similar to TaylorMade’s Tour Preferred MC irons, they have thicker toplines and lower face profiles that better suit the design of driving irons.
The UDI’s are available in three models: a 1 iron (16 degrees), 2 iron (19 degrees) and 3 iron (20 degrees), and will carry an MSRP of $199. A KBS C-Taper Lite shaft comes stock in the driving irons, which the company says also promotes a mid-to-high trajectory and controlled spin.
TaylorMade staffer Justin Rose had a UDI 3 iron (20 degrees) in his bag during his wins at both the Quicken Loans National and the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open last week.
See the rest of Rose’s Winning WITB here.
Rose is expected to have a UDI in play this week at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England for the Open Championship, and TaylorMade expects other golfers to put the club in play as well.
Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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Peter Malnati WITB 2025 (August)
Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here. Driver: Titleist...
Cameron Young’s winning WITB: 2025 Wyndham Championship
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting) Buy here. Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX 3-wood: Titleist...
Camilo Villegas WITB 2025 (July)
Camilo Villegas WITB accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. Villegas was undecided on a 3-wood when we shot his bag. ...
WITB Time Machine: Brandt Snedeker’s winning WITB, 2018 Wyndham Championship
Brandt Snedeker fired a final-round 65 at the 2018 Wyndham Championship to outlast Webb Simpson and C.T. Pan. His 5-under...
Bigleftygolfer
May 28, 2015 at 1:21 pm
I can’t hit a hybrid to save my life I am a struggling 5 HC (my low is a +4 when I played competitive as an amateur after a short pro career as a point of reference) and this Udi is the best / most versatile / easy to hit club I have ever owned I have miura lh prototype baby tournament blades and honestly the 2 iron Udi is easier to hit than my six iron! It flies much higher than I expected and I have verified that it can be bent by 2.5 degrees on a Mitchell press even though it is cast. Since I am a stinky lefty with no endorsements anymore I had to “adjust” my 2 iron to replace an old driving iron so for people wondering I was able to re shaft it with a kbs c taper s+ firm tip 41″ and adjust the lie to down -1 also adjusting loft by 2.5 degree strong (which is max) I now have a club that is about 10 yards shorter than a perfectly struck 3 wood with a much better workability and forgiveness factor. I am actually considering pulling my 3 wood and buying another 2 iron (although that may get confusing as I will have two identical looking clubs in the bag after swapping out shafts maybe paintfill or something to represent which one is the one iron lol). This club flies about as high as my 4 iron without ballooning and rolls for days. It has a carry for me with this setup of about 225 with a total distance of around 250 verified on trackman. I wish TM made a club labelled with a 1 and a 3 for the lefty player but once again us lefties get no love! My three wood maxes out from the deck at around 260 on a well struck ball. Hope this information answered any questions about this club oh yeah it is also very easy to flight in the wind which is something hybrids just can not accommodate!
dunn2500
Jul 17, 2014 at 3:12 am
Cmon…. $200 for a thicker mc iron….you can buy single irons for $100….why are these utility irons so much….I’ll stick to my fli hi which started all this buzz anyway
Jake
Jul 16, 2014 at 11:03 am
Just received this information from TM support: “The 2 and 1 UDI are going to be 18 and 16 degree lofts. They are going to have a higher trajectory than the Rocketbladez Tour irons. The UDI will be a longer 2 iron than the Rocketbladez Tour. It is built with driver DNA.”
Rich
Jul 15, 2014 at 9:41 am
Not to be a nark but I think there’s a typo in the story. The 2 iron is 18 degrees, not 19. It even says so on the hosel in one of the photo’s.
Matt Wiseley
Jul 15, 2014 at 12:30 am
Jake,
Like yourself I am an iron guy to. I say get the 2 iron, if you end up needing more yards, have it bent a degree or so. Since the club is forged, this is an easy fix.
Good luck
Billy
Jul 15, 2014 at 3:51 am
It’s CAST. Not forged.
Jake
Jul 15, 2014 at 10:40 am
Are you able to bend cast, just not as easy as forged?
K
Jul 15, 2014 at 11:53 am
You can bend most cast, just be careful.
Or just put a heavier shaft in it, in my mind its pointless to make a 2 iron with a 110 gram shaft. Toss a S400 in there and let it hit the ground early.
Quintin Carr
Jul 14, 2014 at 10:07 pm
Are these going to be a limited release or a general release. I’d really like to get my hands on the 1 iron.
Billy
Jul 14, 2014 at 11:30 pm
It’a General Release on 8/1/14.
Quintin Carr
Jul 14, 2014 at 11:40 pm
Thanks Billy!
Jason P.
Jul 14, 2014 at 8:00 pm
If you want to buy a driving iron with basically the same technology go to hireko.com and order their new Dynacraft Driving Irons. They have 3 lofts to choose from. I use their 18 degree model and it is flat out hot and straight off the tee for those short par 4’s . Plus it is 3-4 times cheaper and you can have it built with the shaft and grips you want.
Jim
Jul 14, 2014 at 5:51 pm
Still sounds like a form of birth control . The udi
Rich
Jul 15, 2014 at 9:37 am
Good call, LOL!
Pingback: TaylorMade’s Tour Preferred UDI is Open-ready | Spacetimeandi.com
Jake
Jul 14, 2014 at 2:01 pm
I currently play the rocketbladez tour 19* 3-iron. I’m looking for a club to fill between my driver and 3-iron and saw these come in 19* 2 iron and 16* 1-iron. Would it be redundant to get the 2-iron or is this a lower trajectory driving iron?
Curt
Jul 14, 2014 at 3:25 pm
It states both head slot technology and shaft helps to launch the ball high.
MHendon
Jul 14, 2014 at 4:38 pm
How about a 3 wood.
Jake
Jul 14, 2014 at 4:56 pm
Appreciate the snarky comment. Havent used a 3 wood in years. I like the feel of irons. Do you have suggestion of a different (non-driving iron) 2 iron to help fill gap? What is the point of a high trajectory 2 iron?
Cal
Jul 14, 2014 at 5:30 pm
I play a fli hi 3 iron right now but will be getting one of these when they’re released. The purpose, I think, of the high(er) launching 2 iron is to be more versatile from the tee AND the fairway during long approach shots. While this iron is supposed to launch higher than the MC line, I’ve read that it spins less than a normal iron leading me to believe it will still have a piercing flight even if it is high. As for your first question…if it were me, I would get the 2 iron and see what kind of yardage gap I had. Then I would adjust the loft to whatever I needed. The hollow design and new speed pocket may help you eek out a couple more yards and still have a landing angle that could help you hold a green if needed. Good luck!
mhendon
Jul 14, 2014 at 6:44 pm
can’t beat Adams hybrids, got two in my bag. Try one of their tour models in a real strong loft.
Jeff Trigger
Jul 14, 2014 at 6:58 pm
TM’s thing is high launch, low spin. I guess this is the Tour Preferred UDI featuring SLDR technology. I doubt these launch that high, just higher than the low ball hitting TP irons.
Zak Kozuchowski
Jul 14, 2014 at 7:57 pm
Our testing found that the 2014 Tour Preferred CB irons were actually pretty high-launching for their size. I wouldn’t call the Tour Preferred MC irons low-launching, either.