It’s an arduous task to make any fairway wood (or hybrid) launch story sizzle. The category tends to lack the requisite pomp and circumstance necessary to make broad, scroll-stopping claims. Without the promise of more distance (17 more yards, anyone?), where is the clear benefit? What’s a company to do?
The TaylorMade Qi35 fairway woods and hybrids provide some compelling insights which address this conundrum. Put differently, how does TaylorMade define better, particularly given its longstanding perch as a category juggernaut.
The short answer is the alliterative talking points: Form, Function, Fitting. Now, the degree to which each of these elements resonates with the consumer is, well, where we can engender some healthy debate.
But before we provide a summative assessment, let’s take a closer look at each one.
From Qi10 to Qi35?
The “10” in last year’s Qi10 set the stage for TaylorMade to tell us all about its quest for a driver with 10K MOI. It was a bit of a misnomer in that MOI isn’t generally part of a fairway wood story (Qi10 isn’t really a fairway wood thing and I don’t think “Qi6” would find executive approval) so I’m happy to report that “Qi35” is a more inclusive naming convention.
With that, Qi35 is a quick nod to the three alliterative pillars (Form, Function, Fitting) paired with five ways to optimally fit each product.
Qi35 fairways: Form
Think of form as not just how a club looks but as the complete visual presentation of the product. Ultimately, consumers tend to rate club aesthetics on a personal Likert scale (hate it, don’t love it, ambivalent, like it, love it and are going to tell everyone about it).
As with the Qi35 driver, the primary color scheme revolves around Chromium Carbon which for my money is a cool metallic hue with subtle blue hints. I put it in the “like it” category. At address, the crown is nearly entirely consumed by a visible carbon weave pattern with understated perimeter striping (on all models except for the Qi35 Tour).
The sole features requisite name, model, brand and material call outs: Qi35, TaylorMade, Titanium, Max, Tour, Max Lite, etc. A high-gloss polished finish makes taking quality photos more challenging than taking Eddie Vedder’s drive-thru order but should garner quite a bit of attention on the rack at big box retailers.
Shaping, face angle and overall footprint matter to discerning consumers. How a fairway wood sits at address can be the deciding factor whether the club gets a second look or returns to the demo bag. With the Qi35 fairways, TaylorMade hasn’t deviated from its blueprint which made it the most played fairway wood model on the PGA Tour in 2024. I mention that stat because touring professionals tend to be quite picky in this regard and it’s one of the instances where “what’s good for tour is good for consumers.”
Qi35 fairways: Function
How do the club and its tech platform help you get the results that you want? That’s function.
Fundamentally, it’s the story of a brand and the key technologies it uses to moderate mass properties to provide golfers with optimized performance and discrete models of varying characteristics.
A good bit of function is derived from CG placement which is paramount in setting boundaries for what’s possible regarding ball speed, launch/trajectory and forgiveness. With Qi35, TaylorMade is sticking with its typical starting lineup, albeit with a few tweaks. The common theme, however, is a slightly lower CG location throughout all models which works to allow for more energy to transfer from the club to the ball at impact.
Infinity Carbon Crown – The purpose of the Infinity Carbon Crown is two-fold. First, carbon composites are lightweight materials and removing weight higher in the head allows engineers to redistribute mass to help achieve a lower CG location. TaylorMade’s arrangement in the Qi35 generates a CG location marginally lower than the Qi10 fairways (closer to the neutral axis). The net result is a CG location more in line with the equator of the ball thus generating more efficient impact. The other bit here is that TaylorMade uses carbon on as much of the crown as possible to achieve a cohesive look at address.
Twist Face – This is TaylorMade’s proprietary face topology which works to correct trajectory and spin on off-center strikes. Every brand uses some form of variable-face thickness and face curvature to maximize the percertage of the face where the golfer can achieve results as close as possible to center-face strikes.
Thru-Slot Speed Pocket – Primarily, the speed pocket is designed to maximize ball speeds and generate additional forgiveness on low-face strikes. Given that we’re talking about fairway woods (and hybrids) where the typical impact location is below the center of the face, this is a critical attribute for all golfers, particularly recreational amateurs and weekend warriors.
Qi35 fairways: Fitting
With the Qi35 drivers, the fitting story took us down an unexpected path centering on closure rate which is a Foresight metric defined as the rotation of the clubhead heel to toe measured about the shaft in degrees per second or rpm. For now, TaylorMade’s fitting protocols leverage this information exclusively for drivers but my sense is that it’s something we should see in other clubs relatively soon.
That aside, TaylorMade’s fitting advancements in fairway woods centers on adjustability, particularly in higher-lofted models.
“We want to be the leaders in fit. For this year, the question became how can we put loft sleeves in fairway woods without losing face performance? After years of research and testing, we were able to incorporate 4° loft sleeves into all our 3-woods and 5-woods. With Qi35 fairway woods, we’ve elevated the fitting experience and given golfers the chance to truly optimize their distance, flight and face angle.”
– Andrew Oldknow, Director of Woods & Putter Product Creation
One caveat I’d mention is that TaylorMade also incorporated the four-degree loft sleeve into the Qi35 Tour 7-wood.
It stands to reason that if loft/lie are important when fitting irons, wedges and drivers, it should also be something that manufacturers allow for in higher-lofted fairway woods. Kudos to the TaylorMade team for getting this right.
Qi35 fairway models
The standard Qi35 features a slightly lower skirt section and a TSS weight positioned toward the front of the clubhead. At 185cc, it’s a moderate size and should fit the widest segment of the market. That said, I fully expect to see the standard model as the most popular among paid and non-paid touring professionals.
AT 200cc, the Qi35 Max fairway is, as the name suggests, the largest of the four models. It’s also the most forgiving and designed with a rear TSS weight to assist golfers who rely a bit more on technology to get the ball in the air. Though it’s 80cc or so smaller than even the smallest mini-drivers, part of me wonders what might happen if you took the 15.5-degree 3-wood head, and turned it down two degrees to 13.5. Maybe it could be a de facto mini-mini driver? Food for thought.
TaylorMade is also offering a Qi35 Max Lite which is the same size (200cc) as the Qi35 Max, albeit with lighter components (head, shaft, grip). Plenty of golfers can swing a lighter club faster, particularly those for whom distance is imperative.
Then we have the Qi35 Tour. With a titanium construction and 40-gram flippable sole weight, it’s the most adjustable of the four Qi35 models. With the weight set all the way back, trajectory and MOI increase. Conversely, with the weight pushed forward, launch will come down as will spin. There are multiple settings in between the two extreme positions and the weight can be fully removed, rotated 180 degrees and reinstalled to access additional settings. It might feel a bit like overkill but for the tinkerer, I’m not sure if that’s possible.
In addition, at 170cc, it’s the most compact shape and designed for golfers who place a premium on workability and prefer a smaller footprint. My only concern with this model is that at a retail price of $449 and the “Tour” name, golfers might be inclined to think that it’s somehow superior to the standard Qi35. That’s not the case. It’s a more expensive option because of its versatility, construction and materials but that doesn’t inherently mean it will always be the better option.
A word on Qi35 hybrids
Again, the primary design consideration with all Qi35 metalwoods is to lower the CG projection and increase the overall quality of impact. A slightly lower CG location leads to higher launch and TSS weights that sit inline with the CG enhance energy transfer between the clubface and ball.
TaylorMade is launching three Qi35 models: Qi35 Rescue, Qi35 Max Rescue and Qi35 Max Lite Rescue. The standard model is the one-ski quiver, designed to fit the needs of most golfers and, with a three-degree adjustable hosel, it should be relatively easy to find proper distance gaps.
As with the Qi35 fairways, the Max Rescue is higher-launching and more forgiving than the standard Qi35 Rescue. Also, it does not have an adjustable hosel. The Qi35 Max Lite Rescue is essentially the Max Rescue with lighter components (head, shaft, grip) to give golfers a lightweight option to promote faster swing speeds.
At this point, you might be wondering whether there’s a replacement for the Qi10 Tour Rescue. Survey says … Nope.
Market behaviors shift and, between the increase in popularity of higher-lofted fairway woods and advancements in utility irons, there isn’t enough interest to warrant a small, iron-like hybrid. So grab your beverage of choice and pour one out.
My $0.05
In general, TaylorMade doesn’t miss when it comes to fairway woods and hybrids. The brand has a history of bona-fide metalwoods that resonate with the best players in the world, competitive amateurs and discerning recreational golfers. The Qi35 family builds upon that legacy and takes it a step further by offering incremental improvements that directly translate to better performance.
Beyond that, I’m intrigued by the lower CG projections throughout the line and additional fitting options in higher lofts, specifically the Qi35 Tour 5-wood. Because I tend to hit the ball high, a lower-launching, versatile 5-wood is a vital part of the top end of my bag. Finally, I fully expect the popularity of the 7-wood (aka Tony Covey’s cheat code) to continue its upward trend. Don’t be shocked when you see a bunch of scratch golfers with a bag full of headcovers.
Availability and pricing
Qi35 fairway woods are available for $349.99 USD in 3-wood (15° RH/LH), 3-HL (16.5° RH), 5-wood (18° RH/LH) and 7-wood (21° RH/LH). The stock shaft is the Fujikura Ventus Blue FW 25’ 6 (X, S) 5 (R, A).
Qi35 Max fairway woods are available for $349.99 USD in 3-wood (15.5° RH/LH), 5-wood (18.5° RH/LH), 7-wood (21.5° RH/LH) and 9-wood (24.5° RH). The stock shaft is the Fujikura AirSpeeder 25’ (5S, 5R, 5A)
Qi35 Max Lite fairway woods are available for $349.99 USD in 3-wood (15.5° RH/LH), 5-wood (18.5° RH/LH), and 7-wood (21.5° RH/LH). The stock shaft is the Mitsubishi Vanquish 4 (R, R2/A)
Qi35 Tour fairway woods are available for $449.99 USD in 3-wood (15° RH/LH), 5-wood (18° RH/LH) and 7-wood (21° RH). The stock shaft is the Mitsubishi Kaili Blue DarkWave FW 75 (X, S) and 65 (R).
Qi35 Rescue is available for $299.99 USD in 2 (17° RH), 3 (19° RH/LH), 4 (22° RH/LH) and 5 (25° RH/LH). The stock shaft for mid-flight is the Fujikura Ventus Blue HB 25’ 7 (S), 6 (R), 5 (A). The stock low-flight shaft is the Mitsubishi Kaili Blue DarkWave HY 95 (X), 85 (S).
Qi35 Max Rescue is available for $299.99 USD in 3 (20° RH/LH), 4 (23° RH/LH), 5 (27° RH/LH), 6 (31° RH) and 7 (35° RH). The stock shaft is the Fujikura AirSpeeder 25’ (5S, 5R, 5A)
Qi35 Max Lite is available for $299.99 USD in the same 4-7 lofts and RH/LH options as Qi35 Max. The stock shaft is the Mitsubishi Vanquish 5 (R, R2/A)
TaylorMade Qi35 fairways and hybrids are available for pre-order now. Full retail availability begins Jan. 30.
For more information, visit TaylorMadeGolf.com
If you’re looking to save some money on what is almost the latest tech, last season’s Qi10 fairways have been discounted.
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