Scottie Scheffler makes rare equipment switch at PGA Tour's play-offs opener

Scottie Scheffler has put TaylorMade's latest driver back in his bag at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.

The world number one first tested the Qi4D last December at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas before putting the club into play again three months later at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Scheffler subsequently returned to his trusty Qi10, which he first put into play in 2024, and has used it for the majority of the season.

The Qi10 family of drivers has delivered considerable success for the 30-year-old, with Scheffler winning 15 PGA Tour titles using the range.

The Qi4D range, meanwhile, has also enjoyed considerable success among other leading players this season. 

Rory McIlroy, Nelly Korda, Tommy Fleetwood, Charley Hull and Collin Morikawa have all recorded victories using it. 

Scheffler is yet to explain why he has decided to revert to the Qi4D in Memphis, although he previously outlined some of the benefits.

"I've seen some improvements in the new driver; like my spin is much more consistent," he said in March. "It's actually a touch faster than my driver."

However, the four-time major champion also explained why he had initially opted to return to the Qi10.

"But the way I play, I always hit so many different types of shots and the one last week felt like it was going a little left on me.

"And when I want to hit my peeler a lot of times I would hit it out of the middle of the face it would start drawing on me."

It remains to be seen whether Scheffler will continue using the Qi4D after the conclusion of the first leg of the PGA Tour play-offs.

After 36 holes, Scheffler ranks ninth in strokes gained off the tee and 29th in driving accuracy, having found 15 of 28 fairways.

He ranks 27th in driving distance but, as has so often been the case throughout his career, has been dominant with his approach play, hitting 31 of 36 greens in regulation.

A second-round 9-under 61 saw Scheffler open up a three-shot lead over South Korea's Sungjae Im and Norway's Viktor Hovland.

Scheffler is now in a strong position to claim his second win of the season and strengthen his position at the top of the FedExCup standings.

He has a comfortable lead in the season-long points race and is attempting to win the FedExCup for the second time in his career.

"My swing has felt really good in the past couple weeks, especially playing at home," he said on Friday after tying the course record at TPC Southwind.

"It was nice to get out there and get things rolling early in the round and was able to keep the momentum going and shoot myself a nice round."

Scheffler will also have plenty of time to dial in the Qi4D if he chooses. 

In May, TaylorMade announced it was scrapping annual driver launches and is moving to a two-year cycle for its woods line-up. 

The decision is expected to mark the first time since 2001 that TaylorMade has gone an entire year without introducing a new driver.

The move also aligns TaylorMade more closely with rivals such as Titleist and PING, both of whom already operate on two-year woods cycles.