Rory McIlroy shocked {the golfing} world together with his choice to twist and have the TaylorMade Qi35 collection in his golf bag for the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Quick ahead a month and McIlroy has joined an elite group with a profession Grand Slam because of a dramatic victory within the 2025 Masters.
However there was no Qi35 within the bag – as a substitute, the generational nice accomplished his most well-known profession victory with a TaylorMade Qi10 which has been a everlasting fixture since late 2023.
Was the U-turn after the Arnold Palmer Invitational a pivotal level in his victory at Augusta Nationwide Golf Membership?
And the way did his trusted Qi10 carry out off the tee as he received a Inexperienced Jacket following the gear swap?
Why has the latest TaylorMade Qi35 expertise been absent from McIlroy’s bag?
Put fairly merely, McIlroy has remained devoted to his Qi10 merchandise by means of an ‘if it ain’t broke don’t repair it’ mentality.
And that is comprehensible, why change gear when your present instruments are yielding the specified outcomes?
“Actually it’s most likely the very best driver I’ve had in the previous couple of years. I’ve actually gotten comfy with the driving force, and I feel a number of the technical issues in my swing are just a bit bit higher,” defined McIlroy on his relationship with the mannequin.
The nice drives are nonetheless superb however the dangerous drives aren’t as dangerous so the misses aren’t as wild.”
It seemingly sparks a debate at TaylorMade, who would inevitably want their model picture for use and finally advertising their newest product to a hungry viewers.
However that is sport, and in some unspecified time in the future the road must be drawn with McIlroy making a private choice to stay together with his trusted mannequin moderately than making an attempt to power a relationship together with his gear maker’s newest tech.
And hey, a Masters win in entrance of thousands and thousands around the globe is rarely going to be a nasty search for the model – whatever the mannequin.
How did McIlroy and his Qi10 driver carry out in opposition to the sphere at Augusta Nationwide Golf Membership?
McIlroy’s dominance off the tee confirmed with a mean driving distance of 342 yards within the closing spherical, 42 greater than the sphere’s common of 300.
His understanding of the Qi10 driver allowed him to be aggressive together with his tee photographs, helped by his familiarity with the membership and its mixture of energy and forgiveness.
The World No.2 comfortably outdrove Justin Rose within the playoff by practically 50 yards, affording him a neater method shot which consequently helped him win The Masters.
Regardless of the burden of the occasion and the influence of nerves, he managed to common over 329 yards off the tee in Georgia, up from the 325 yards he’d averaged within the 4 occasions prior, together with the Arnold Palmer Invitational the place he used the Qi35 driver and woods.
How did his Masters efficiency with the Qi10 line evaluate to his Arnold Palmer Invitational debut of the Qi35 selection off the tee?
After opting to make use of a Qi35 driver and woods on the Arnold Palmer Invitational, McIlroy made an admission following a poor spherical on the Saturday.
“They didn’t fairly work out the way in which I wished it to, I misplaced strokes off the tee which is the primary time I’ve accomplished that in a very long time,” he famous.
Within the third spherical of the occasion he discovered solely six fairways and was 14% much less correct than the remainder of the sphere off the tee. All informed, he misplaced strokes in two of his 4 rounds on the Bay Hill Membership.
Then again, the Masters was a balanced show of composure and dominance off the tee with the Qi10 line, regardless of the inevitable impact {that a} larger coronary heart charge would have had on efficiency compared to earlier PGA Tour occasions.
He gained 2.6 strokes off the tee at Augusta, a stat that will have positioned him within the high 5% of PGA Tour drivers of the ball.
This mixed with driving distance: McIlroy ranked second solely to monster-hitting Bryson DeChambeau, the Northern Irishman driving the ball deep with immense accuracy.
His persistently good tee photographs gave him equally good method shot alternatives which he transformed as he led the sphere with a staggering 2.3 strokes gained per spherical in his method play.
What’s subsequent for the profession Grand Slammer and his golf bag?
It’s exhausting to think about that his TaylorMade Qi10 driver and woods can be going anyplace anytime quickly.
He’s received three of 5 occasions this season with the Qi10 in his bag for the entire weekend and 50% of occasions entered in complete: The Masters, THE PLAYERS Championship and the AT&T Pebble Seaside Professional-Am.
With the Main season simply getting underway and the long-standing strain of a profession Grand Slam off his shoulders, who is aware of what number of extra occasions McIlroy may win this season.
READ MORE: ‘I can do that’: Rory McIlroy on the daring shot at 7 that sparked his Masters Comeback and profession Grand Slam
