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TaylorMade Stealth and Stealth Plus are on the USGA-compliant driver list.

USGA’s latest update to the list of driver heads that meet the standards includes several interesting additions: TaylorMade’s unreleased Stealth and Stealth Plus drivers. TaylorMade's annual equipment rhythm can almost guarantee that the new driver is being prepared-it just doesn't seem to be your ordinary metal wood.

In fact, Stealth may not even be metal wood. The word "Carbonwood" is located on the toe of the Stealth driver. The description of the two drivers also lists the face as "60X CARBON, TWIST FACE". For those who follow at home, the constant in both names is carbon.

Carbon composites are a popular material application in the cue design space and have recently been used to remove excess mass-especially the bottom and top-and reposition it in strategic locations to affect launch, rotation, and stability . But over the years, it has also played a role in several facial designs.

Both Callaway and Yonex released carbon composite driver faces in the early 2000s, but neither succeeded. This material is related to the face structure, and its disadvantage is that it never produces sound or ball speed numbers, making it a viable long-term choice.

Since then, titanium has been the face material of choice for almost all manufacturers in the industry.

Considering TaylorMade’s history in the field of metal wood-they were the first company to launch a steel-headed driver-one can speculate that they have corrected the sound and distance problems that plagued carbon fiber face in the past, especially if they The touring stables are running to use it in the near future.

The black and white photos also show an aerodynamic sole design, which looks like a hybrid of SIM and SIM2. Stealth Plus also includes a weight trajectory, which looks very similar to the weight trajectory on the original SIM drive. It should be noted that both SIM2 and SIM2 Max use a fixed TPS counterweight port to change the launch and rotation, instead of the traditional adjustable orbit.

A speed pocket is also located behind the face. In the past, it was used to improve face deflection, especially when hitting the bottom of the structure.

The timing of the approval of the United States Golf Association is also a strange moment for TaylorMade, who usually waits until the beginning of the new year like most manufacturers to launch new products.

This begs an obvious question: Why does TaylorMade launch the new driver in December?

This is pure speculation at this point, but as Tiger Woods announces that he intends to participate in the PNC Championship with his son Charlie, we may soon be able to see the true face of this driver. (It should be noted that all drivers must be approved and listed on the qualified list before they can be used in tournaments approved by the tour.)

Woods was recently photographed cutting with irons and fairway woods during the Heroes World Challenge, but the wood is still hidden under his famous "Frank" club head cover.

Is Stealth hidden in a conspicuous position? We will find out soon.

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Jonathan Wall is the equipment editor in chief of GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com. Before joining the staff at the end of 2018, he spent 6 years in charge of equipment for the PGA Tour.

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