Equipment
Justin Rose tweets out TaylorMade “Rose Proto” irons
On July 4th, while America was celebrating its Independence Day, Justin Rose dropped a firework of a Tweet; a photo of his new, shiny TaylorMade “Rose Proto” irons. They appear to have a similar construction to Rory McIlroy’s “Rors Proto” irons he put in the bag in 2017, although Rose’s have a different finish — chrome versus Rory’s satin.
ROSE•PROTO @taylormadegolf ???????? pic.twitter.com/YeAsF4SnC5
— Justin Rose (@JustinRose99) July 4, 2017
With two seemingly similar sets of forged blade irons from TaylorMade, that certainly makes us wonder if the company is considering a public release of the irons. Here’s what a TaylorMade representative had to say about the “Rose Proto” irons.
“These are proto forged irons that we milled for Justin here in Carlsbad following Rory putting a set of his Rors Proto irons into play at The Players. We’ll continue to source feedback from the athletes before we make a decision on a potential market introduction.”
For comparison: Rose Proto (left) vs. Rory Proto
Of course, GolfWRX members were quick to comment on the Rose Proto irons. Below is a collection of the notable takes on the matter.
- thedurtydurden: Dare I say these look better than Rory’s satin heads.
- noodle3872: I’m liking the chrome better. I guess I fall into the “blades should be chromed” camp.
- JJBonyai: Looks like P730 on the hosel?
- bladehunter: These look great! TM doing a nice job for sure.. only thing i could say as well is thats a wonky Font for the numbers.. BUT it wouldn’t stop me from hitting them!
- Z1ggy16: I wonder if the retail version will be offered in the satin or chrome finish, and just say PROTO on them, or whatever TM officially names it.
Discussion: See what GolfWRX members are saying about the Rose Proto irons
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 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...
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Mark Walgren
Jul 17, 2017 at 7:18 pm
gross
Speedy
Jul 9, 2017 at 2:12 pm
Nothings too original with the blades these days. The heads are made a little bigger, that’s all.
Mike
Jul 8, 2017 at 8:02 pm
I could be mistaken but don’t these look a little like the Cobra blades from the 80’s They were thicker on the topline but same idea
Matt
Jul 7, 2017 at 9:08 pm
Irons schmions, stuff all difference between anything made after 2000 or thereabouts. So long as they’re fit correctly, not worn out and make you feel good.
Jacked_Loft
Jul 7, 2017 at 8:52 am
Only logical that TM needs to follow up on the discontinued 2014 MBs.
I’d love to make a combo set with my P770s.
Tom Duckworth
Jul 6, 2017 at 7:28 pm
They are some very pretty blades.
We are going to see every manufacturer coming out with some “high end” special irons
that will cost twice as much as their other products. I hope they are a giant flop as it would just make them bolder feeling they could creep up prices on their other products. Don’t think for one second they won’t if they feel like they can get away with it. I don’t have a problem with a company trying to make an honest buck but these luxury high end products tend to trickle down and raise prices across the line. If they can sell a $2000,00 set of irons why not just bump that $1000.00 set up to $1200.00
rex235
Jul 6, 2017 at 5:37 pm
Its 2017-
Another RH Only Prototype from TaylorMade.
setter02
Jul 7, 2017 at 8:10 am
The blade market is already tiny, add in that the lefty population is like 10% of the total golfers out there (like 50% in Quebec). The market for these is so tiny its not even close to worth it, not sure why the constant complaining.
rex235
Jul 7, 2017 at 11:07 pm
Because it is 2017.
Anyway, don’t these TaylorMade Proto Blades look a lot like Mizuno MS-9s? RH Only.
i bogey alot
Jul 6, 2017 at 10:18 am
so JR had to feel special too and tweet out “prototype” that are just like Rory clubs haha
golfraven
Jul 6, 2017 at 10:09 am
TM is very generous with their Protos at this moment. Seems like the new management is taking things in their own hands. Treat your cattle well and then you can milk them.
Za
Jul 6, 2017 at 2:15 am
Yeah, a nice turd color will you do great
Gorden
Jul 5, 2017 at 11:20 pm
Before going off the wall on these irons remember these were hand milled for one person.. unless you are on the payroll for Taylormade best you will ever see is an overpriced copy of these irons…
Traj
Jul 5, 2017 at 10:32 pm
We’ll make one for you in turd
Prime21
Jul 5, 2017 at 8:31 pm
It’s the replacement for the MB & will launch this summer.
Ben Jones
Jul 5, 2017 at 6:01 pm
So what.
golfbum
Jul 5, 2017 at 4:53 pm
TAYLORMADE…here is a sales and marketing tip for you.
Create a web page that I can order personalized irons: GOLFBUM PROTO irons sound pretty good.
golfraven
Jul 6, 2017 at 10:12 am
That would be an easy one and they could close the gap between the “Japanese” premium brands and likes of PXG.
jgpl001
Jul 5, 2017 at 4:50 pm
Wow, these are gorgeous
Yes, please TM – when, when, when?????