TP5/TP5x: The Tour verdict
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With five of the World’s top 10 players now using the new TaylorMade TP5x on the course, we took a closer look at how the TP5x has benefited them on the course.
Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia and Jon Rahm have all won multiple times in 2017, and with Players Champion Si Woo Kim and three more former major champions all using TaylorMade’s five piece golf ball – it’s been an incredible year for the TP5.
But why have so many players made the switch?
Rory McIlroy
World ranking: 4
Plays: TP5x
Driving distance: 311.8
What Rory has said: “I’m seeing numbers that I haven’t seen before, and I really think this TaylorMade TP5x is going to help me. At Augusta, where it was windy, I struggled. On Saturday and Sunday, the 14th hole was playing into the wind and 15 was playing downwind.”
“On 14 I could barely hit an 8-iron 140 yards, and on 15 I was pitching it 195. That’s a 55-yard discrepancy between an into- the-wind and downwind shot with an 8-iron. It was way too much. How are you supposed to pull a club when the ball is doing things that you just don’t expect it to do?”
“I started testing TaylorMade’s TP5x the weekend after Augusta, and very quickly I realised it was much better in the wind. I had that 8-iron in my head from Augusta so I just hit 8-irons to see what this TP5x does in the same wind. All of sudden I’m hitting 8-irons that are going the number I want them to – or even further.
“With this ball it launches high and doesn’t spin as much as the ball I had been playing – with better distance, more consistency and better spin rates than what I had been getting with the iron/ball combination I used at Augusta.”
Dustin Johnson
World ranking: 1
Plays: TP5x
Driving distance: 312.1
As a player who isn’t afraid to drive it long, DJ is always looking for improved performance wherever he can get it. With TP5x, he has noticed improvements in trajectory control as well as feel and spin around the greens. The change from Tour Preferred X to TP5x is already paying dividends for DJ, with three wins and a jump to No.1 in the world.
Jason Day
World ranking: 6
Plays: TP5x
Driving distance: 298.9
Jason has experienced improvements with his TP5x, especially the ball’s wind performance. With less spin as a result of the Tri-Fast Core, TP5x delivers less drag and a more penetrating ball flight to minimise the impact that wind has on the ball’s trajectory. He said: “It’s surprising because people just don’t realise how good this ball is.”
Sergio Garcia
World ranking: 5
Plays: TP5
Driving distance: 299.6
Masters champion Sergio loves to work the ball, and use spin to control the various types of shots he plays. He can flight the TP5 high to low on demand and curve it both ways, depending on the shot shape he needs. Additionally, the feel and receptiveness around the greens set the ball apart versus older models. He also won with it in Dubai in February.
Jon Rahm
World ranking: 7
Plays TP5x
Driving distance: 305.1
Jon is a high-spin player, so after adding TP5x to the bag, he noticed significant distance gains with both his irons and his driver as a result of the decreased spin. He has been thrilled with the added control TP5x offers and he’s been killing it off the tee. Rahm has said he’s never been longer in his life than he is with his new 2017 M2 driver and TP5x ball.
Justin Rose
World ranking: 12
Plays: TP5x
Driving distance: 299.9
Justin gave both the new TP5 and TP5x balls an in- depth side-by-side test and was really struggling to choose between them. He put the TP5x in play because his distances were more consistent and he was seeing 3-5 more yards with his irons. The killer for him was that his new M2 driver/TP5x golf ball combo is 10 yards longer off the tee than last year’s M2 and TPx
Si Woo Kim
World ranking: 31
Plays: TP5x
Driving distance: 285.9
The new Players Champion was one of the first guys to test the new balls last year. He creates a lot of spin with his irons, so once he switched to TP5x, he immediately noticed a difference – gaining up to 10 yards, especially into the wind. His spin meant he has struggled in the past when playing into the wind and loves the improved control and decreased long iron spin.
