Equipment
Rory McIlroy tests Tiger Woods’ new TaylorMade driver, Fujikura Ventus shaft setup
Tiger Woods made a rare change to his driver setup at the 2022 JP McManus Pro-Am at Adare Manor in Ireland on Monday.
Since 2018, and as recently as the 2022 PGA Championship, Woods had been using a Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited model (either 60 TX or 70 TX) in his drivers. When he showed up in Ireland on Monday for the event, however, his TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver (9 degrees) was equipped with a Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X shaft.
Warming up before the round, fellow TaylorMade staffer Rory McIlroy discussed the switch with Woods, leading Woods to offer McIlroy try it out for himself. It was a brief yet intriguing exchange watching two of the game’s most popular players geeking out over a gear change.
Rory McIlroy tests out Tiger Woods' driver @JPProAm.
"Too much loft for you?" Tiger asks.pic.twitter.com/mcGlIdhhBZ
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) July 4, 2022
Woods’ new shaft build was certainly familiar for McIlroy since the Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X shaft is the same model that McIlroy himself has in his own TaylorMade Stealth Plus driver (9 degrees set at 7.5 degrees).
Based on the exchange, although Woods and McIlroy are using the same low-spin shaft, Woods’ head configuration has a bit more loft than McIlroy’s. As McIlroy was addressing the ball to try out Woods’ new driver setup for the first time, Woods asked him if the driver has “too much loft for you?”
McIlroy confirmed Woods’ suspicions: “A little bit, yeah.”
To see GolfWRX’s most recent in-hand photos of their TaylorMade Stealth Plus drivers, check out McIlroy’s 2022 WITB and Woods’ 2022 WITB.
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In other relevant gear testing news, TaylorMade posted on Instagram on Monday that McIlroy was “Testing out something new this week.”
Judging by the video, it appears as though McIlroy is hitting a new utility iron, which would make sense with The 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews (Old Course) just a week away. Tour pros often switch out their higher-lofted fairways and rescues for a long iron option that may better penetrate the blustery Scottish winds during Open Championships.
While it’s difficult to decipher the exact head, model, or loft that McIlroy was spotted testing out, GolfWRX did photograph a new TaylorMade Stealth UDI 2-iron in left-hander Robert MacIntyre’s bag on Monday ahead of the 2022 Genesis Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club in Scotland. McIlroy probably wouldn’t fare too well using MacIntyre’s lefty version, but could it be the same model that McIlroy was testing in TaylorMade’s video?
GolfWRX is live from the Scottish Open and The Open Championship over the next two weeks in Scotland, so we’ll be sure to report back on any confirmed changes or further gear testing. Stay in touch with our latest updates on GolfWRX’s Instagram or TikTok pages, too!
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...
Chuck
Jul 5, 2022 at 12:38 pm
That musical soundtrack; was that added, or was it part of the live soundscape? Really annoying if it was added. What were the first things they said before Rory took the club from Tiger?
Harrison
Jul 5, 2022 at 9:57 am
What lofts are Tiger and Rory playing w/ their drivers?
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Gordy3279
Jul 5, 2022 at 6:54 am
In other news..Rory used the same porta john that Tiger used as well.
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Wow
Jul 4, 2022 at 8:48 pm
Rory McIlroy’s driver swing should be in the Louvre.
Chuck
Jul 5, 2022 at 12:36 pm
The British Museum.
Sam Snead in the Louvre.
Ben Hogan in the Smthsonian.
Jack Nicklaus in the National Archives.
Seve in The Prado.