OLD vs. NEW: TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC 2011 irons vs. My modern irons (Full launch monitor numbers)
The golf club market can be a confusing place for consumers, no matter their skill level. The latest and greatest products that are designed by modern manufacturers are usually the best performing options when properly fit to your swing. The only problem is, new clubs are also typically the most expensive options.
In a sport that’s already quite expensive, is making the investment on new clubs always worth the high price tags?
Here at GolfWRX.com, we believe that whether you’re buying expensive new equipment or more affordable used options, you should get a proper club fitting from an expert fitter. Factors such as club length, loft, lie angle, overall design, weight settings, shaft flex, shaft weight and even grip size can all make a drastic impact on how the club feels and performs to the individual golfer. It’s not easy trying to figure out all of that by yourself, so working with an expert is imperative.
Now, when it comes to deciding on buying old versus new clubs, the conversation becomes a little more personalized to your specific budget and performance needs.
When you look at the clubs that are being used on the PGA Tour, most professional golfers opt to use the newest equipment possible, or they have clubs that are customized and prototyped to their exact liking.
That’s not always the case, however. Sometimes, PGA Tour players use golf clubs that were released several years ago, and they are still available on the current market for a more affordable price. Although the clubs are older designs, some Tour players still find benefits because the designs have managed to withstand the test of time.
I call these clubs the “Modern Classics.”
The benefit for consumers when it comes to these Modern Classics is that they’re currently available on the market for a fraction of the cost of new equipment, but they’re still viable options to use – even on the PGA Tour.
For our new 8-part club testing series in partnership with 2nd Swing Golf, I chose 8 classic golf clubs that are still used on the professional level, and each club can still be found online at 2nd Swing Golf’s website, or at 2nd Swing Golf retail outlets. Although these used clubs can be found at other third-party retail sites, as well, we chose to conduct this testing at 2nd Swing because, in my personal opinion, they have one of the largest selections of used equipment on the market, and they certify the quality of each club that they sell.
Also, the 2nd Swing store in Scottsdale has over 15 fitting bays that are equipped with launch monitors, and they have a team of expert club fitters to help analyze the numbers.
The first club that I chose to test in this 8-part video series was a TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC 4-iron that was first released to the public in 2011. As we’ve discussed at length at GolfWRX.com, PGA Tour player Daniel Berger still uses a set of TaylorMade TP MC 2011 irons.
For this specific test, I pitted a used TaylorMade TP MC 2011 4-iron (22 degrees) against my current gamer 4-iron (24 degrees) from my set of golf clubs; each club was shafted with an extra stiff steel shaft. I hit 5 shots with each club, using a high-end tour golf ball. We deleted any outliers, and then we analyzed the numbers with the help of 2nd Swing expert fitter Cliff Walzak, who’s a well-respected and longtime club fitter in the industry.
In the video at the top of the page, we break down the entire test, the launch monitor numbers, and then I assign a value rating to the club. Just a heads up, not every club tested in the series will score such a high rating, but we happened to start off with an especially top-tier Modern Classic.
If you’re interested in testing/purchasing the TaylorMade TP MC 2011 irons for yourself, they’re currently available on 2nd Swing’s website for $84.99 for an individual iron, or $339.99 for an entire set.
What other 7 clubs do you think I chose for this Modern Classics video series?
*Credit to Saeyae for the video production.
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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Nadia Comaneci
Jan 18, 2023 at 5:28 pm
Good video, but what is nine-point-four?
Danon
Jan 17, 2023 at 2:16 pm
Original Callaway Apex Pro irons should be on this list in my opinion. They’ve certainly withstood the test of time with some pros still gaming the longer irons from that 2013/14 release.
Joey Horn
Jan 17, 2023 at 1:29 pm
Am I missing the comparison data? All I see is numbers for the 2011 TM TP MCs. What are we comparing this too?
Mark
Jan 17, 2023 at 12:54 am
Forgive me for being blunt, but unless you are testing clubs with matching specifications (SW, grip make and size, shaft make and flex, loft, etc.), nothing of value will be learnt here.
This type of test is best suited for mainstream golf publications catering to the uneducated. The GolfWRX readership is not well served by this.
wrx staff lol
Jan 21, 2023 at 5:49 pm
Haven’t you seen that is basically what wrx is from their staff… They can be torched quite easily by a good amount of people on here…
Tom K
Jan 16, 2023 at 6:25 pm
Didn’t want to sit through the video. How did the old irons tack up?
Benny
Jan 25, 2023 at 6:58 am
Hahahaha me neither…
Branson Reynolds
Jan 16, 2023 at 6:10 pm
From the looks the drivers are GBB, g400, ‘16M2, fairways are rocketballz, nike vr, taylormade burner, with an Adams idea pro hybrid
ac
Jan 16, 2023 at 1:02 pm
Testing the Taylormade R1 vs. Stealth 2 would be great as well.
The others I would love to see are player distance product, since there is the “tec” involved. Something like P790 vs. Mizuno H5?
Eastpointe
Jan 16, 2023 at 11:56 am
Gotta test the Stensons. Both the 3wd and shovels