Alongside the Qi10 metalwoods, TaylorMade has unveiled new game-improvement Qi irons. With bold claims that the Qi irons will be ‘the straightest distance irons you can play' and the fact that they claim to remove the standard right miss.
Aren't all game-improvement irons supposed to help save the right miss with a draw bias shape? Time to do some testing...
Who Is It Aimed At?
The Qi irons sit firmly in the game-improvement category with a big focus on distance. They also set out to remove the right miss bias TaylorMade have claimed to off found through testing other manufacturers irons in the same category.
TaylorMade are claiming the Qi irons will reduce a average 27ft miss to the right to only 3ft! This claim is huge so if you spend the majority of your time on the right hand side of the course, TaylorMade would say these would have to be on your testing list!
The Tech
In the Qi irons we’re seeing the usual TaylorMade Speed Pocket that links together with specific mass distributions, to give players optimum ball speeds, launch angles and spin rates. The Cap Back Design seen previously in 2022's Stealth irons remains in the Qi set, helping to keep consistent gapping between each iron.
The longer irons feature a lower profile backbar with a lower centre of gravity, making it easier to launch the ball up while keeping a solid feel in the 4 and 5-iron. The shorter irons see a more exaggerated heel-toe weighting that increases inertia to help control the ball flight and provide more forgiveness across the scoring clubs.
We also see the continued use of FLTD CG in the Qi irons, with each iron having a unique CG position that gets lower across the longer irons to help launch the more challenging clubs. The face design and Speed Pocket weighting are also unique to each iron in the set to fine tune each club.
TaylorMade have made the Qi irons slightly longer than Stealth, making them easier to hit with a larger face area. So, if you’re looking for a larger, thicker club to help with confidence, these clubs could be a winner for you.
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TaylorMade Qi Irons Review
Looks
It’s very easy for game improvement irons to look a bit clunky from the extra weight and thickness. Although I found the backing of the Qi irons looks a bit chunky initially, it’s not visible at all when the club is at address. The topline thickness is enough to help add a little confidence over the ball, without being too oversized that it becomes off-putting.
The back of the irons features a silver and black design that I think looks clean and professional. The minimalistic design and colour pattern help the club look very high end and sleek, especially for a game improvement iron, however overall they are very similar to the Stealth irons.
Feel
The Qi irons straight away seemed very easy to hit. The amount of forgiveness in these irons was impressive and had me stood over the ball with very high levels of confidence.
The only thing I noticed in terms of feel that I wasn’t a huge fan of, is that the Qi irons felt a bit hollow at impact, especially across the shorter end of the set. This is something you can often feel with game improvement irons due to their design features and larger backing, but I did notice it more than usual with these irons.
On-Course Performance
That said, I was able to overlook this given how easy and enjoyable these clubs were to hit out on the course!
On a variety of approach shots and on different par 3’s on-course I impressed. One par 3 at Stockport GC I stood and hit ball after ball, for the simple reason that every shot I hit seemed to get closer! I often feel as though game improvement irons lack consistency whether that be in distance or shot shape, but I wasn’t getting that at all with these irons.
My off-centre strikes were staying either on the green or just off the edge, and despite Qi being game improvement irons, I really felt as though I was able to be aggressive and hunt the flag with these clubs with plenty of stopping power too, although the greens were a little wet.
The Data
I was excited to get these clubs indoors to HUKD, so I could test out exactly how consistent these irons were, and if they could live up to the big claims TaylorMade were making about the right-miss bias.
Straight away I noticed some big numbers in terms of distance from the Qi iron. If we look at the 7-iron, I was hitting this an average total of 157 yards! This is what I’d expect to see from my own T150 6 or 5-iron, one reason behind that is that the Qi irons have very strong lofts. At 28-degrees for the Qi 7-iron, this is the same loft as my T150 6-iron. In terms of consistency, the dispersion in total distance was strong at only 3 yards, with the carry varying slightly more at 7.
The big thing I noticed from the data was the consistency in the shot shape, which did back up TaylorMade’s claims to reduce the right miss. Every shot I hit with the Qi irons had a right-to-left side spin, which typically was in a similar range resulting in a very consistent and reliable shot shape. The backspin was pretty low at an average of 4200, meaning we’re losing a bit of control in terms of stopping power by chasing that distance from the stronger lofts.
TaylorMade Qi10 Irons Verdict
If I’m being honest, I was pretty blown away by the Qi irons! With game improvement irons there always tends to be one aspect holding them back, but the Qi irons performed well in each category, other than having a slightly hollow feel in the shorter irons at impact.
At an RRP of £143 per steel club or £157 per graphite, you’d be looking to invest a large amount of money into getting a full set of these irons. There's not too much change from the Stealth irons however, if you’re in the market for some new game improvement irons and are looking for extra distance and specifically to remove a right miss bias, I’d absolutely say you should try these out.
Would I Use It?
Personally, I found these irons incredibly easy to use out on the golf course. I was confident that I could attack the flag, and that I could trust the irons to hit the distances I was expecting. Although these irons aren’t designed for me specifically, the Qi irons are one of the few game improvement irons I’d happily use out on the course.
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