Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood Use New TaylorMade Drivers in Abu Dhabi
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood, both TaylorMade staff players, were seen using new TaylorMade drivers while preparing for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. The drivers recently appeared on the USGA's conforming list on Sunday evening.
Details of the New Drivers
At Yas Links, ahead of the $9 million tournament, McIlroy used the standard version of the TaylorMade Qi4D driver, while Fleetwood opted for the LS version. The Qi4D range includes three head types: Standard, LS, and Max, similar to the existing Qi35 range.
Statement from TaylorMade
Following ongoing testing, our athletes have expressed a strong desire to play these products. In order for them to use these in tournament play, we have added them to the USGA conforming list.
Tournament Context
The Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship is one of the DP World Tour's Play-Off events. It remains unclear if the inclusion of these new drivers in the conforming list will be permanent or specific to this tournament.
A post shared by SMS on TOUR highlighted the use of these new drivers by McIlroy and Fleetwood during practice sessions.
Author's Summary
The introduction of TaylorMade’s new conforming drivers is gaining attention as top players McIlroy and Fleetwood debut them at a key Abu Dhabi tournament, signaling potential shifts in equipment preferences.