Abu Dhabi R1 Leaderboard: Rory McIlroy happy with new TaylorMade driver despite average start

Rory McIlroy has given an early assessment of his new TaylorMade Qi4D Driver after using it for the first time in competition en route to an opening 4-under 68 at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links. 

Thankfully for his TaylorMade reps, McIlroy, 36, has given his sponsor a green light. 

If truth be told, McIlroy was never settled with the brand's former driver model, the Qi35. 

McIlroy tried to get it full-time in his bag at multiple stages this season, but in his eyes it never quite matched up to his favoured Qi10 model of 2024. 

But TaylorMade's brand new Qi4D model for 2026 very much appears to be an instant hit for him. 

While we cannot give you any more information about the new TaylorMade Qi4D for now - more insight will be available soon here at GolfMagic - we can at least already see McIlroy is a big fan.

McIlroy pleased with new TaylorMade Qi4D Driver

It usually takes McIlroy a bit of time to put a brand new driver in the bag, but he's wasted little time at the penultimate event of the 2025 DP World Tour season.

The new TaylorMade Qi4D Drivers for 2026 hit the USGA Conforming List earlier this week - and it meant McIlroy was allowed to use it on Tour. 

Although McIlroy started relatively slowly on day one at the Abu Dhabi Championship, a tournament he has incredibly never won on the DP World Tour (he's had four second and five third-place finishes in 13 appearances), he was content with the core Qi4D model's debut. 

And why wouldn't he be given he drove the par-4 10th when sending a missile more than 390 yards onto the green, scroll below to watch. 

"Yeah, I felt like the driver was good, obviously a new driver in the bag this week," said McIlroy, after signing for a 4-under 68 to lie just inside the top 30 after the first 18 holes.

"I felt like it worked well.

"I hit some good iron shots and felt like I controlled my ball in the wind pretty well when the wind got up there a little bit for the last few holes.

"Just need to hole a few more putts. I think that was the difference between what I shot today and being up there around the lead."

McIlroy added: "I drove the ball well and felt like the driver was good, so that was a positive."

Here's McIlroy driving the 10th green:

The Northern Irishman is still projected to remain in top spot in the Race to Dubai, although England's Marco Penge is doing his best to trim the gap after going one better than McIlroy with a 5-under 67 on Thursday. 

McIlroy is looking to win the Race to Dubai for a seventh time - and fourth straight - as he closes in on Colin Montgomerie's all-time Order of Merit haul of eight titles. 

The World No.2 has two wins on the DP World Tour this season - The Masters that saw him complete the career grand slam, and a second Irish Open once again at The K Club. 

Rory with work to do

McIlroy currently trails a logjam group of leaders by four shots with three rounds to play at the Abu Dhabi HSB C Championship. 

One of those leaders is McIlroy's Ryder Cup teammate Tommy Fleetwood, who also used the new TaylorMade Qi4D but in the low spin (LS) model. 

Fleetwood fired a flawless round of 8-under 64 to hit the top of the board alongside fellow Ryder Cup hero Shane Lowry, Richard Sterne, Kazuma Kobori and Adrien Saddier. 

After the round, the DP World Tour got Fleetwood and Lowry to hilariously interview each other, scroll below to watch.