Rory McIlroy is using his final official tournament of 2023 to put a new TaylorMade driver into play at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
McIlroy has already clinched a fifth Race to Dubai title, so he's cashing in well ahead of teeing off at Jumeirah Golf Estates. However, he still has a $3 million first-place prize to play for in the $10 million tournament itself. McIlroy will be looking to further his advantage off the tee with the new TaylorMade Qi10 driver, which recently hit the USGA list of conforming drivers along with several other major manufacturers' 2024 models.
Specifically, McIlroy's new driver in play this week is the TaylorMade Qi10 LS, which is a lower-spinning model. An image of the driver face that appears in a DP World Tour video this week shows the word "Carbon" printed across the bottom of the face, suggesting this new product will continue TaylorMade's move into carbon fiber bodies and faces.
“It’s just a new driver that I have been playing around with," McIlroy said. “I still want to go out and try to win the golf tournament, but it could be a good time to test it out in competition. You’ll probably see a new driver in the bag this week.”
We don't have many additional details on the driver design or the differences and upgrades from the Stealth 2 driver, which is TaylorMade's current flagship driver. McIlroy said earlier this year that he was struggling to dial in a new driver, but he ultimately found success off the tee to the tune of an early-season win in the Hero Dubai Desert Classic and a latter-half win in the Genesis Scottish Open. He also placed in the top seven in three of the four majors in 2023.
The Qi10 LS model has a forward weight slider that is smaller compared to older generations of TaylorMade drivers. With the weight forward to kill spin, the track features draw- and fade-bias settings so a golfer can dial in shot-shape influence. There is a weight port in the back of the head, though it's not apparent how it integrates with the driver head from the sole picture provided from the USGA conforming list.
