Last year, Taylormade Golf introduced their M family of golf clubs. Anchored by the M1 driver, the M family was later completed by the addition of the M2 driver, fairway woods and hybrids. The M2 irons were also released to provide golfers both maximum distance and playability in a game improvement iron.
With 2017 just around the corner, Taylormade is slowly releasing the M Lineup for next year as “The Best Gets Better.” Starting with the M1 driver, engineers have carved out more of the clubhead in order to insert more composite. This was achieved by a new, lower density Titanium alloy called 9-1-1 and an added carbon toe panel that accounts for a total of 43% more Carbon composite than its predecessor. The 2017 M1 features a lower center of gravity and along with more moveable-weight adjustibility (27g total; 12g back, 15g front), offers greater consistency on mishit shots.
Available on January 27, 2017 at $499.99 USD, the M1 460 driver will be offered in 8.5°, 9.5°, 10.5° & 12° loft options, while LH models will be offered in 9.5° and 10.5° lofts. The M1 440 driver (RH only) will be offered in 8.5°, 9.5° & 10.5° loft options.
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The M2 driver has generated a lot of fanfare since its release. It has even made its way into the bag of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy after Nike’s decision to leave the hard goods side of the golf industry. In the 2017 model of the M2, Taylormade is taking its speed and forgiveness to the extreme. With a more advanced speed pocket and a 7% larger face as well as lightweight carbon in the sole’s toe section, the M2 is able to maintain its ball speed on off center strikes. The new Geocoustic feature combines geometry and acoustical engineering to unlock more forgiveness and “best-in-class sound.”
Available on January 27, 2017 at $399.99 USD, the M2 driver will be offered in 9.5°, 10.5° & 12° loft options, while LH models will be offered in 9.5° and 10.5° lofts.
There will also be a third driver model in the M series, the M2 D-Type. This driver has added heel weighting and a more upright lie and offset, all of which results in a higher trajectory, 300 rpm more spin and a draw bias that produces 10 extra yards than the standard M2. In addition to drivers, the M family is joined by new M1 and M2 fairway woods as well as hybrids.
“Performance is the genesis of everything we do, and through the use of multi-material construction with the original M1, we were able to elevate performance to a level that captured the attention of golfers around the world. Our mission continues in 2017 by advancing the use of exotic materials with new, intelligent shapes to once again deliver industry-leading performance. The M1 is our flagship driver designed and engineered to give all golfers the ability to further personalize their driver to maximize their game.” – Brian Bazzel, Senior Director of Product Creation, Metalwoods
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Last year, it was the M1 and M2 fairway woods that really made a splash in the equipment world, especially the M2. It was one of the clubs that saw players gain a lot of improvement with driver-like numbers. For 2017, the M1 fairway wood is constructed with a 450 stainless steel body, strong Ni-Co C300 face and same 6-layer Carbon composite crown as the M1 driver. Similar to last year, the M1 fairway wood features a sliding weight (25g) system that has been shifted more rearward to make room for a new open channel Speed Pocket designed to deliver more ball speed & more forgiveness. Available on January 27, 2017 at $299 USD, the M1 fairway will be offered in 15° (3), 17° (3HL) and19° (5) loft options while LH models will be offered in 15° and 19° options.
In the M2 Fairway, the ultimate distance fairway has been made even more forgiving by way of the incorporation of a recessed 6-layer carbon composite crown, inverted cone technology (for the first time in a TaylorMade fairway) and a new Geocoustic-driven sole design. Additionally, a longer, more flexible Speed Pocket and lighter fluted hosel create a low CG that produces fast ballspeeds for an incredibly long, high launching and low spinning fairway. Available on January 27, 2017 at $249.99 USD, the M2 Fairway will be offered in 15° (3), 16.5° (3HL) & 18° (5), 21° (5HL) and 24° (7HL) loft options, while LH models will be offered in 15°, 16.5° & 18° lofts.
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With the Rescue clubs, the M1 features a moderate sized, Tour-proven shape and a newly designed sole that will appeal to a larger demographic of player, offering more playability from an increased variety of lies. The sole is engineered with TaylorMade’s first-ever sliding weight system (27g) in a hybrid – and the company’s most adjustable ever – providing golfers the opportunity to not only experience the neutral/fade biases of its predecessor but with the added option of draw setting – as well as anything in between for ultimate shot shape adjustability and personalization. TaylorMade’s most adjustable hybrid to date, the M1 Rescue, will be offered in 17° (2), 19° (3), 21° (4) and 24° (5) options while LH models will be offered in 19° and 21° options at $249 USD.
Completing the M2 metalwood family in 2017 is the M2 Rescue. Like the rest of the M collection of golf clubs, the M2 Rescue also has the two-tone crown with a longer, more flexible Speed Pocket for more speed and forgiveness. The new Geocoustic sole design and a short, fluted hosel work in tandem to optimize sound and feel at impact. This Rescue is designed to help average golfers replace a long iron with higher, longer and more draw biased performance. Available on January 27, 2017 at $199.99 USD, the M2 Rescue will be offered in 19° (3), 22° (4), 25° (5) and 28° (6) lofts while LH models will be offered in 19°, 22° and 25° lofts.
In terms of irons, last year saw the introduction of the M2 irons, which emphasized distance and height of the ball flight. In 2017, the M2 irons have been improved and we also see the release of the M1 irons as well. In the improved M2 irons, a fluted hosel has been implemented to lower the CG for higher-launch and in combination with Taylormade’s Face Slot and Speed Pocket Technology, it has also added forgiveness as another element in these clubs. The sound that these clubs make has also been considered as Taylormade use its Geocoustic engineering to address this.
For players who prefer more control, Taylormade is introducing its M1 irons that features a low-profile, multi-material head construction. This creates a compact distance iron with more workability and control. Despite having more control, the M1 still has the distance, power and forgiveness that is also found in the M2 irons. This is possible due to a fluted hosel that produces a lower CG and a 15-gram tungsten inserted on the toe of the club. This helps produce an inertia that’s higher than what you’d typically see in this size of a clubhead.
But the iron that we are all waiting for is the Prototype Tour forged irons that have made their way into the bag of Justin Rose. Supposedly, staff players, particularly Justin Rose, have collaborated in the design of this new iron. You can expect more of a player’s iron – from the teaser photos, this line seems to have gotten rid of any “slots” in the club – no sole or face slots here! The word tungsten is also stamped on the clubs. Lately, TaylorMade irons have featured a 10-gram tungsten weight in the toe that improved forgiveness and launch, possibly a feature with the Prototype Tour forged irons. We’ll have more on this as soon as we get information – look for a release date in January though!
Lastly, the new TP5 and TP5X golf balls are something that we’re really looking forward to testing. We are big fans of the Tour Preferred X golf ball, which is our ball of choice at Eighteen Under Par, and look forward to comparing the two. The two golf balls incorporate 5-layer construction (Penta Golf Ball?) to actively improve or increase driver/iron distance, control and spin without sacrificing any industry leading greenside performance.
The unique advantage for both TP5 and TP5x starts with proprietary 5-layer ball construction. In traditional golf balls with 3 or 4 layers, golfers are forced to settle for high wedge performance at the expense of distance, or more driver/iron distance at the expense of losing control and feel around the greens. TP5 and TP5x feature varying 5-layer constructions, whereby each ball maximizes driver and iron distance while also delivering best in class wedge performance and greenside spin.
This is achieved by a unique progressive construction manipulating the size, compression, and materials of each layer, which allows the decoupling of driver and iron speed from iron and wedge spin – a formula that can be directly attributed and only obtained through a 5-layer construction.
With this new product line, we can imagine that 2017 will be a pretty big year for TaylorMade – perhaps the last year that it is under the Adidas brand. We can’t wait to get our hands on these new products, particularly the fairway woods, hybrids, prototype tour irons and golf balls. Will you be giving any of these a try or looking to replace your current clubs with the 2017 M family? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
Source: Taylormade Golf
