2022 TaylorMade Stealth, Stealth Plus, Stealth HD drivers (in-hand photos)

[Benkross]

50 minutes ago, Chilli9880 said:

I think that this definitely looks like awesome club and the "My" program is a great idea but you just can't ignore $700 price tag. And you wonder why they call this an elitist sport... I guess the good news is by the end of the year it'll be $400 which seems a little more reasonable... Great looking club & idea though! 

Fwiw, the country club memberships in many parts of the country are truly what make it elitist. Hard to find anything close to NY Metro for less than $20K commitment annually. Thankfully WRX BST has massive discounts if you can wait 4-5 mos 😂

[Benkross]

1 hour ago, thezinfan said:

Which is why I asked. It looked like the real deal yet at least two people in thread have mentioned that it has made-for shafts.

They may be referring to the K’aili. Will be curious to see if the MR70 tip version is the stock offering (highly doubtful). 

[jon12]

I am very curious to see how the face finish holds up on the drivers over time, especially after hitting sandy range balls.

[phizzy30]

My question is........will we see less cracked faces since "carbon wood" is supposedly more durable than titanium like TM claims.  I like the notion of more ball speed but at what cost? 

[Benkross]

4 hours ago, mjb4385 said:

I think it's pretty awful looking personally, but different strokes. Early reviews I've watched (TXG, Shiels) don't show any increase in ball speed vs SIM2. With a $600 price tag, subpar looks imo, and seemingly no performance gains, can't imagine this will be in my bag in 2022. If anything, the new TM and Callaway releases make me appreciate more my TSi3, at least as far as looks go.

I think Peter Finch nailed it with his review. +2 mph ball speed over sim, +1 over sim 2. Difference is spin consistency and more forgiveness. That will be the trend from here on with drivers. Marginal speed gains in the center, but more forgiveness on off center strikes. Sim2 max forgiveness with Sim spin etc. people who expect significant distance gains will be disappointed. I imagine those thinking from a strokes gained perspective would make the trade. 

[jmcm87]

14 minutes ago, MCoz said:

if it was so good why not just go back to it?  I have gone back a tried drivers going back 15+ years and those from over about 4- 5 years old are not even close to even getting off the range. Yes I have all of my gamers going back 20 years including yours.  Memories are hard to beat but head to head performance is reality. 

Because I'm a ho and I've had 150 drivers since. Think that one was kicked out when I got a deal on one of those lime Oziks in a Tour Issue Burner. Ah, the good old BSG days..... It makes me sick thinking how much I bought and sold on that site.

[Carolina Golfer 2]

7 hours ago, jvincent said:

 

I wonder what the internal TM numbers for people ordering custom colours are?  $120 premium for a different face colour might be a good revenue boost.

Obvioulsy it's not apples to apples because a driver is much more expensive.  But a TM person has said that MYSpider orders constitute about 40% of all Spider orders, much more than they had anticpated, and that's one of the reasons they brought it to the driver. 

[Mookieb10]

8 hours ago, me05501 said:

I bet there was a lot of debate over whether or not to use the red face. It's such an obvious mistake IMO that I lean toward thinking it's intentional. There will probably be a "pro" version in six months with a more subtle face for $100-150 more and the usual suspects will eat it up. 

Everyone who goes for a fitting will pick that club up. Maybe not a great look for traditionalists, but it grabs the eye. 

[me05501]

47 minutes ago, Mookieb10 said:

Everyone who goes for a fitting will pick that club up. Maybe not a great look for traditionalists, but it grabs the eye. 

it’s a risk. It looks low-rent to my eye. 

[TheMoneyShot]

3 hours ago, jon12 said:

I am very curious to see how the face finish holds up on the drivers over time, especially after hitting sandy range balls.

Most of us on here just need it to last long enough until next years model comes out😂

[picardyThird]

4 hours ago, phizzy30 said:

My question is........will we see less cracked faces since "carbon wood" is supposedly more durable than titanium like TM claims.  I like the notion of more ball speed but at what cost? 

The photos of broken drivers I've seen haven't been cracked faces, but rather cracked crowns. Who knows whether the carbon face will affect this in either direction. 

[phizzy30]

Just now, picardyThird said:

The photos of broken drivers I've seen haven't been cracked faces, but rather cracked crowns. Who knows whether the carbon face will affect this in either direction. 

There will always be cracked crowns with the newer TM drivers.  I cracked my SIM MAX face last year which is why I'm curious as to how the carbon face will hold up.  Only time will tell I suppose. 

Edited January 5, 2022 by phizzy30

[thezinfan]

4 hours ago, Benkross said:

They may be referring to the K’aili. Will be curious to see if the MR70 tip version is the stock offering (highly doubtful). 

The specs on the TM site match the Mitsubishi site specs for the K'aila. 

[smg6165]

10 hours ago, ignitewvu said:

 

MyStealth is already live and you can get it with a stealth grey & black face.

This is genius. A lot of benefit from the custom program.

[smg6165]

Interesting the company is under new ownership in 2021. Wonder if they influenced a paradigm shift in driver construction.

[gunmetal]

10 hours ago, QuigleyDU said:

I think the tech adjustments are coming into play more and more in maintaining top speeds on off center hits. There is for sure room there. Center square strike. I agree. 

 

That's what they tell you but they don't tell you how every millimeter off center (or away from the true cg) increases spin which saps distance. So if they're increasing speeds on off center, it might actually be worse for people who can't find the middle to begin with because of the increased spin generated. 

 

I remember several years ago kzg produced a driver called the Gemini. It had "twin face" technology. The theory was that the face behind face stabilized off center hits. That makes a lot more sense to me and maybe even to physics than increasing ball speeds away from the cg. 

[BottleCap]

3 hours ago, me05501 said:

it’s a risk. It looks low-rent to my eye. 

From a guy that has Callaway in his bag

[Valtiel]

11 hours ago, pccasstpro said:

Nobody remembers the Callaway C4 back in 2003/4ish ?? The failure rate for higher handicap players was through the roof! Just wait until that 14 Hdcp comes in steep and buries that head into the ground and that carbon cracks, or that muni course with those rock-hard range balls, with wet sand on them come in contact with carbon fiber ?!? Carbon fiber is not an impact material it is a utility material that can be used for weight savings in specific applications. I have an M5 in my bag, which I think was one of the better drivers from the past 5 years, for me anyways. I hope I am wrong for everyone that is about to drop $700.00 on one of these!

 

 

 

Honest question, if you have these concerns then don't you think the entire R&D and testing department of one of the biggest club companies in the world would be aware as well? For what you're saying to be valid, TM would have had to do zero durability testing and be completely unaware of the problems you're speaking of, which I think we can agree is pretty silly. The fact that you seem to be dismissing carbon fiber out of hand would also suggest you know very little about the material, especially since your M5 is full of it. 
 

44 minutes ago, gunmetal said:

 

That's what they tell you but they don't tell you how every millimeter off center (or away from the true cg) increases spin which saps distance. So if they're increasing speeds on off center, it might actually be worse for people who can't find the middle to begin with because of the increased spin generated. 

 

I remember several years ago kzg produced a driver called the Gemini. It had "twin face" technology. The theory was that the face behind face stabilized off center hits. That makes a lot more sense to me and maybe even to physics than increasing ball speeds away from the cg. 

Every millimeter BELOW the CG increases spin, every millimeter above it will decrease spin. Increasing speeds on off center hits is not a bad thing unless the driver also happened to be very low MOI, which they aren't. 

[gunmetal]

Just now, Valtiel said:

Honest question, if you have these concerns then don't you think the entire R&D and testing department of one of the biggest club companies in the world would be aware as well? For what you're saying to be valid, TM would have had to do zero durability testing and be completely unaware of the problems you're speaking of, which I think we can agree is pretty silly. The fact that you seem to be dismissing carbon fiber out of hand would also suggest you know very little about the material, especially since your M5 is full of it. 
 

Every millimeter BELOW the CG increases spin, every millimeter above it will decrease spin. Increasing speeds on off center hits is not a bad thing unless the driver also happened to be very low MOI, which they aren't. 

 

It has to be something else. You marginally improve 1 out of 4 areas at the sacrifice of the other 3??? You're increasing spin below the vertical CG (as you indicated) but you're also doing it on both sides of the horizontal CG. I get very much that bulge and roll help mitigate these to a point but if manufacturers continue to increase ball speeds on off center hits there will definitely be diminishing returns. I suppose that's why Callaway uses "AI Tech" to map the face. They probably don't want it hot all over the place - especially away from the CG's. All of this sorta explains why guys like Oostehuizen are playing drivers that are nearly 5 years old. 

[QuigleyDU]

1 hour ago, gunmetal said:

 

That's what they tell you but they don't tell you how every millimeter off center (or away from the true cg) increases spin which saps distance. So if they're increasing speeds on off center, it might actually be worse for people who can't find the middle to begin with because of the increased spin generated. 

 

I remember several years ago kzg produced a driver called the Gemini. It had "twin face" technology. The theory was that the face behind face stabilized off center hits. That makes a lot more sense to me and maybe even to physics than increasing ball speeds away from the cg. 

The Gemini was an awesome driver at the time. You could be right I have no clue. I try to trust the rocket scientist that decided to build golf clubs. Lol. I think they are all trying to make us better.. 

[Valtiel]

40 minutes ago, gunmetal said:

 

It has to be something else. You marginally improve 1 out of 4 areas at the sacrifice of the other 3??? You're increasing spin below the vertical CG (as you indicated) but you're also doing it on both sides of the horizontal CG. I get very much that bulge and roll help mitigate these to a point but if manufacturers continue to increase ball speeds on off center hits there will definitely be diminishing returns. I suppose that's why Callaway uses "AI Tech" to map the face. They probably don't want it hot all over the place - especially away from the CG's. All of this sorta explains why guys like Oostehuizen are playing drivers that are nearly 5 years old. 

I fail to see how there is any sacrifice here though, i'm not following your logic. 

Faster means longer, and whether you have more spin or less spin, increasing speed on a mishits has no downside. The only way it does is if you're increasing speed on something that is also very crooked e.g the low MOI mishit example I gave. No one is making drivers down in that low MOI range though, so it's not really a concern anymore. 

As far Oosthuizen, I doubt any of that is related. His is notoriously slower and pickier with driver changes. And for everyone guy like him there are a dozen others happily embracing the newer tech.  

[grm24]

2 hours ago, smg6165 said:

Interesting the company is under new ownership in 2021. Wonder if they influenced a paradigm shift in driver construction.

Seeing that this has been under development by TM for years it's highly improbable their new VC owners had anything to do with it. Excellent article on it.

 

https://golf.com/gear/taylormade-stealth-drivers-fairway-woods-first-look/

 

“We’ve found ways to move driver technology and face design forward,” said Tomo Bystedt, TaylorMade’s senior director of product creation. “But, like anything else, there’s an expiration on certain materials and technologies. As an R&D organization, we’re trying to look into the future and see what our next 5 to 10 years are going to look like.

 

“What we learned is there is no dramatic improvement for titanium, so we could see that writing on the wall about 3 to 4 years ago when we introduced the Speed Injection Technology. Now we were really at the limit of how good — and fast — we could make the face.”

 

Over the next four years, TaylorMade worked diligently on a driver that’s been dubbed the “Carbonwood.” In TaylorMade’s eyes, the 60-layer Carbon Twist Face found on the new Stealth, Stealth Plus and Stealth HD (High Draw) is the future of driver face design. The company is so bullish, in fact, they’re ceasing production of titanium drivers going

Edited January 5, 2022 by grm24

[shankz]

Red face is for tv. When all your favorite players are hitting a red face driver on sunday, its sure gonna sell

[Buzzzy]

24 minutes ago, Valtiel said:

I fail to see how there is any sacrifice here though, i'm not following your logic. 

Faster means longer, and whether you have more spin or less spin, increasing speed on a mishits has no downside. The only way it does is if you're increasing speed on something that is also very crooked e.g the low MOI mishit example I gave. No one is making drivers down in that low MOI range though, so it's not really a concern anymore. 

As far Oosthuizen, I doubt any of that is related. His is notoriously slower and pickier with driver changes. And for everyone guy like him there are a dozen others happily embracing the newer tech.  

High MOI- Low MOI, high spin, low spin, sure. It does a bit, you can stabilize a club as much as you want but it will still twist on mishits. No matter what. And if your “increasing ball speed to those mishit areas”, aren’t you just worsening the miss, since it goes farther?

 

all in all, the thing is next years drivers are only so much better than last years, even on mishits. That’s why reviewers have difficult times these clubs because they can hardly tell any differences in forgiveness. But anyways, anyone here planning to put these stovetops drivers into play?!🤷‍♂️🤣

[dalehead]

15 hours ago, me05501 said:

I bet there was a lot of debate over whether or not to use the red face. It's such an obvious mistake IMO that I lean toward thinking it's intentional. There will probably be a "pro" version in six months with a more subtle face for $100-150 more and the usual suspects will eat it up. 

You can already order the face in custom colors, but I think the TM staff and other tour players using the Stealth will be playing the red. TM wants TV viewers to see how many guys are playing the driver.

[dalehead]

15 hours ago, BirdieBirdieX said:

Love the look of the crown by the face is trash. It'll sell like hotcakes because it's new, it's TMAG and people would rather buy golf clubs than pay their real bills. 

 

 

Any other advice you’d like to give regarding how other people spend their money?

[dalehead]

8 hours ago, jon12 said:

I am very curious to see how the face finish holds up on the drivers over time, especially after hitting sandy range balls.

Er, wipe the sand off the balls?

[Valtiel]

1 hour ago, Buzzzy said:

High MOI- Low MOI, high spin, low spin, sure. It does a bit, you can stabilize a club as much as you want but it will still twist on mishits. No matter what. And if your “increasing ball speed to those mishit areas”, aren’t you just worsening the miss, since it goes farther?

That's a bit reductive. The difference between the amount of twisting on a low MOI driver (SLDR for example) to a very high one (G400/425 MAX) is significant in terms of how it impacts ball flight. Easily the difference between a drop kick out of play hook from the toe on one and a soft draw to the left side/maybe rough on the other, all other things being equal. So yes, it will still twist on mishits, but how much ALWAYS matters. And as a +3 handicap I really don't feel like I should have to remind you that heel/toe mishits still very often find the fairway, they aren't all careening into the wilderness and varying speeds. The horizontal gear effects of those misses combined with the startline offset of the face bulge results in the push draw and pull cut flight you'll get out of toe/heel strikes, and those shots often still end up in the fairway assuming your path was otherwise good. I'll take any and ball speed increases on those shots, thank you very much. 

Edited January 5, 2022 by Valtiel

[gunmetal]

1 hour ago, Valtiel said:

I fail to see how there is any sacrifice here though, i'm not following your logic. 

Faster means longer, and whether you have more spin or less spin, increasing speed on a mishits has no downside. The only way it does is if you're increasing speed on something that is also very crooked e.g the low MOI mishit example I gave. No one is making drivers down in that low MOI range though, so it's not really a concern anymore. 

As far Oosthuizen, I doubt any of that is related. His is notoriously slower and pickier with driver changes. And for everyone guy like him there are a dozen others happily embracing the newer tech.  

 

My main point is that I actually don't think companies are just going for faster ball speeds across the face... because of what I said earlier. The further away you get from horizontal cg the more spin so I believe they're going for 'optimal' ball speeds across the face. Which is where the AI mapping Callaway is doing is probably pretty relevant

 

The other underlying point that I'm admittedly not explaining very well is that when these companies make the claim "our fastest driver ever" or "we've increased ball speeds" they never explain more or attempt to quantify it. They wouldn't need to explain it were there not an explicit restriction being imposed by the governing bodies, but there is. So how and where exactly are they achieving higher speeds (AI and carbon wood, recycled Inverted Cone Tech, etc)? How are they measuring it and from what to what? 

 

This stuff should be important to some people who actually think they're going to see performance gains over their current driver as they drop $600. Some people (myself) won't care because I know the performance is as good as my current driver, I just want a new toy and happen to think the new Rogue looks and sounds filthy good. But it's not doing anything meaningful in terms of performance that my Mavrik isn't already doing.

 

Hope I explained my line of thinking better. 

 

[Valtiel]

15 minutes ago, gunmetal said:

 

My main point is that I actually don't think companies are just going for faster ball speeds across the face... because of what I said earlier. The further away you get from horizontal cg the more spin so I believe they're going for 'optimal' ball speeds across the face. Which is where the AI mapping Callaway is doing is probably pretty relevant

 

The other underlying point that I'm admittedly not explaining very well is that when these companies make the claim "our fastest driver ever" or "we've increased ball speeds" they never explain more or attempt to quantify it. They wouldn't need to explain it were there not an explicit restriction being imposed by the governing bodies, but there is. So how and where exactly are they achieving higher speeds (AI and carbon wood, recycled Inverted Cone Tech, etc)? How are they measuring it and from what to what? 

 

This stuff should be important to some people who actually think they're going to see performance gains over their current driver as they drop $600. Some people (myself) won't care because I know the performance is as good as my current driver, I just want a new toy and happen to think the new Rogue looks and sounds filthy good. But it's not doing anything meaningful in terms of performance that my Mavrik isn't already doing.

 

Hope I explained my line of thinking better. 

 

I think I understand what you're saying, I just don't think the first part is correct. "The further away you get from horizontal cg the more spin" is not true, half of the face is going to decrease spin. It doesn't matter either way though, because as I mentioned in my post above yours, balancing MOI and face bulge is what helps to steer the ball back online when you miss horizontally. I feel like you're coming from the place of "all mishits are off target, therefore more speed is bad", and that is not true. All things being equal, toe strikes will start right and curve left, and vice versa for heel strikes. If they ALL have more speed than that is a good thing on average. You would not want to strategically "slow down" any portion of the face for spin reasons, you would do so for durability ones (different topic). 

You're right in wondering about the explanations for what "increased speed" actually means though, I definitely agree with that. With the way faces are designed I believe they can make the same types of claims as you might see from a casino. I've used this analogy here before, but when a casino claims their slots payout more than anyone else's, the fact is that the computer controlled nature of the machine and the way it can be programmed means they can legally make that claim even if the actual difference is intentionally miniscule. The point is not that TM or anyone else is "holding anything back", although they definitely are in other ways, but all they need to claim "fastest ever" or "increased speed" is a some agreed upon collection of shots and their averages. They need only remove fractions of material from certain parts of the face to increase COR in that area, and thus increase ball speed. This btw is what I think carbon brings to the table; the ability to do this without having to consider metallic limitations in strength and flexibility, buts thats a different topic. 

The second bit is that admitting the gains are based on an average across a wide variety of strikes just isn't very sexy, and it's still accurate and legal to just say "increased speed" because the average player that hits all over the face will likely see an increase on average. 

Edited January 5, 2022 by Valtiel