When Rory McIlroy makes an equipment change, the entire golf world pays attention. Rory only switches his equipment when a new product delivers clear, measurable, undeniable performance gains.
That’s exactly what happened with three new clubs and a new golf ball in his bag during offseason testing.
In this article we will breakdown Rory’s new WITB for 2026, including his switch to Qi4D driver and (click to jump to each section):
RORY'S HONEST APPROACH TO DRIVER TESTING
Rory’s reputation when it comes to testing equipment is that he is open and honest. If a club doesn’t look right, sound right, or outperform his current gamer, it does not stand a chance of going in the bag.
This made his feedback on Qi4D even more significant.
At the TOUR Championship in 2025, Rory spent nearly an hour studying the Qi4D and Qi4D LS models, different face options including those with launch monitor enabled reflective markers, and color tones with our tour fitters and R&D team. Thanks to the flexibility of Qi4D’s carbon face construction, our team could show him multiple visual variations quickly — a level of customization titanium can’t provide.
The moment the visuals matched Rory’s eye, the performance had space to shine.
“THE BEST DRIVER TESTING SESSION I'VE EVER WITNESSED”
Fast forward to late October, 2025 before the DP World Tour Play-Offs, TaylorMade’s engineering team dialed in his launch and spin conditions on a robot. The robot was set up to mimic Rory's swing in hopes that when Rory himself took his first shot with Qi4D, it would produce the exact performance gains he was looking for.
After meticulous work at The Kingdom with the robot, our team suspected Rory would be seeing some serious gains.
They (and the robot) were right.
According to Senior Tour Manager, Adrian Rietveld, Rory’s testing session was the best display of driving he had ever seen in his life during a testing session.
Rory's Testing Session at a Glance:
- Average of 2 MPH ball speed gains maxing out at 190 MPH
- Carry distances were up to 330–340 yards
- 117 RPM spin deviation
- Missed his target only twice
Rory's driver is set up with his usual Ventus Black 6X shaft with two four-gram weights in the front and two 11 gram weights in the back and the loft sleeve set to two towards lower.
SPIN STABILITY & OFF-CENTER FORGIVENESS
When dialing in a driver for Rory, sub 2000 RPM spin numbers immediately set off alarms. He wants control and dislikes unpredictably low spin.
Qi4D’s new eight-inch face roll and tightened spin tolerances allowed TaylorMade to:
- Deliver a higher, more stable spin window
- Reduce dangerous “low spin knucklers”
- Improve performance on low face strikes
- Maintain consistency across mishits
This spin stability was one of the biggest reasons Rory trusted the Qi4D right away.
RORY CHOSE TO PUT THE Qi4D IN EARLY
Perhaps the clearest sign of Rory’s confidence was this:
He chose to put the Qi4D driver into play at his next start at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, the first leg of the DP World Tour playoffs.
Rory planned to revisit testing in January, but after his early sessions he said plainly:
“I want to play this driver.”
Rory has played it in every tournament since. In the first round of the Dubai Invitational, Rory finished third in Strokes Gained Off the Tee (2.08) and driving distance (319.4).
TOUR VALIDATION | RORY'S SWITCH TO TP5
Rory’s switch to TP5 before the start of his 2025 season has been well-documented – and for good reason. In fact, he credits the switch as to why he was able to hold the green on his now legendary draw into the 15th hole at Augusta before claiming the career Grand Slam.
The move to the 2026 TP5 was about continuing to unlock greater shot versatility, especially in challenging conditions and on partial shots. The new TP5 that launches a touch lower while delivering exceptionally consistent spin rates, helping Rory maintain a familiar trajectory window throughout the bag.
"If you have a golf ball that produces consistency in spin, then you only have to worry about launch angle," Senior Tour Manager Adrian Rietveld said. "A great player like Rory can control that."
From Rory’s perspective, the biggest difference is control, especially when shaping shots and taking speed off the ball.
“For me over the past few years, I've definitely placed more importance on the control aspect, taking speed off shots and flighting them. Before switching to TP5 last year, I felt my game was becoming one-dimensional and by playing TP5 I’ve added a little more versatility to my game.”Rory McIlroy
He notes that the new TP5:
- Spins more consistently
- Launches slightly lower with short irons
- Holds its line better on off-center strikes
- Feels softer and more responsive around the greens
In windy conditions, Rory has found the TP5 allows him to hit controlled cuts and three-quarter shots that hold spin without ballooning — something he believes adds versatility to his game.
“The nice thing with thew new TP5 is that I feel like I can still put enough spin on it so that it doesn’t one bounce through a green. I feel like my tentativeness to back flags isn’t what it used to be. I can be a little more aggressive.”Rory McIlroy
INSIDE THE SPEC: RORY'S NEW Qi4D FAIRWAY WOODS
Rounding out his changes to start the year, Rory added two new fairway woods to the top of the bag.
- Finished Loft: 14.0°
- Lie: 58.0°
- Shaft: Ventus Black 8X
- Tipping: 1.5’’
- Length: 42 ½’’ CUT
- Swingweight: D4
- Grip: MCC White/Black 60 Rib
- Tapes: 2
- Head: Qi4D 5-Wood
- Finished Loft: 16.5°
- Lie: 58.5°
- Shaft: Ventus Black 8X
- Tipping: 2’’
- Length: 41 ½’’ CUT
- Swingweight: D4
- Grip: MCC White/Black 60 Rib
- Tapes: 2
- Qi4D 9.0° Driver (Ventus Black 6X)
- Qi4D 15.0° 3-Wood (Ventus Black 8X)
- Qi4D 18.0° 5-Wood (Ventus Black 9X)
- P·760 4 (Project X 7.0)
- Rors Proto 5-9 (Project X 7.0)
- MG5 46° SB, 50° SB, 54° SB (Project X 6.5)
- MG5 60° LB (Project X 6.5 Wedge)
- Spider Tour X
- TP5
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