The king of forgiveness? TaylorMade Qi10 MAX Fairway Wood Review
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At a glance
- TG Rating
- Owner Rating
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Pros
- The wide shallow profile is really confidence-inspiring at address.
- The high-launch ball flight will maximize carry distance at more average speeds.
- I love the slightly weaker lofts that are a doddle to launch from the turf.
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Cons
- So long as you can justify the price there's nothing here not to like.
What we say...
The TaylorMade Qi10 MAX is the brand’s highest-ever MOI fairway wood. I find out how forgiving they are.
Since launching in 1979, TaylorMade has been most well-known for making the best drivers in golf. But since 2016, when the company unveiled the carbon crown M2 range, they’ve made massive strides towards setting themselves up as a maker of some of the best fairway woods available. The California-based company is hoping the TaylorMade Qi10 fairway wood will cement and reinforce its rising stock in that area.
Today, in a world where the lure of tour contracts has become much less attractive (as players make more cash from corporate sponsors or selling out to a LIV team franchise), fairway woods have become a seriously lucrative hero category for TaylorMade.
Year after year, TaylorMade rank as some of the most used fairway woods on tour. Impressively, the numbers are greatly bolstered by non-TaylorMade contracted players – golfers who earn their living playing the game are choosing TaylorMade fairway woods just for the performance they deliver. Endorsements don’t come any bigger.
Everything you need to know about the TaylorMade Qi10 MAX fairway wood
Infinity Edge Crown
Thanks to carbon crowns growing in size over generations, the top edge width of TaylorMade fairways has steadily shrunk since 2016. The previous Stealth 2 had a wafer-thin line running across the top edge. But, like the Qi10 driver that’s now completely disappeared for this new generation of fairway woods.
Golfers instead get a super clean Infinity Edge, with carbon fiber running right to the top of the face. A look rumored to be loved by the brand’s elite tour stars. All three Qi10 fairway models also boast VSteel sole shaping which improves turf interaction and eliminates energy loss in the dirt.
The Qi10 MAX is TaylorMade’s highest MOI fairway wood ever
RRP: $349 / £309
Lofts: 3W – 16° / 5W – 19° / 7W – 22°
Stock shaft: High – Fujikura Speeder NX TCS (50 S/R/A, 40L)
Stock grip: Golf Pride Z-Grip Plus 2 (52g)
Headsize (3W): 200cc (5mm larger from face to back than Qi10)
Shallow profile
Forgiveness and high MOI is a theme that runs through this year’s entire Qi10 wood family in a way I’ve never seen with TaylorMade before. It’s like after owning speed and distance for years the brand now wants to turn its attention to bossing a big slice of the forgiveness pie too.
Straight up the Qi10 MAX is the highest MOI fairway the company has ever produced. Where competitor fairway models often have an MOI around the 5000g cm2 mark, TaylorMade reckons the MAX weighs in at more than 6000g cm2.
To maximize stability and forgiveness, the shallower head profile has been stretched by 5mm over the standard Qi10. 42g of weight is now sat at the back of the head with 14g low behind the face. The set-up creates a more rearward CG position than the standard model and generates an ultra-forgiving high MOI.
TaylorMade says this model does not have a draw or left bias like the previous Stealth 2 HD fairway wood. Instead, it’s been designed to hit shots straight as the face is easier to square at impact. Very often golfers will shy away from draw bias options. The loft gaps are also slightly wider to ensure slightly more moderate-speed players get good yardage gaps between their fairway woods.
Video: How does the TaylorMade Qi10 Max compare to other leading 2024 fairway woods?
Verdict: TaylorMade Qi10 MAX fairway wood
Very rarely when we come to dishing out our awards for the best performing clubs each year do two products from the same brand feature as our top performers in a single category. Sometimes it happens with putters, there’s been a couple of times with wedges but never has it happened with Fairway Woods before. But 2024 is a very different year.
2024 is the year that TaylorMade ditched their ‘draw biased’ family in a bid to make an ultimate forgiveness driver, fairway, and hybrid family, and the Qi10 MAX across all three categories has been a brilliant performer in a way that its HD (High Draw) predecessor would always have struggled to compete with. By removing the draw bias/slicers family designation the MAX family has suddenly become an option for everyone, and it’s so much better for it.
If you want to chase ball speed and distance that’s fine TaylorMade’s Qi10 is all over that for you. But if you want a very forgiving and playable driver, fairway wood or hybrid the TaylorMade Qi10 MAX is the friend you wish you’d always had. This model puts serious fairway wood choices on the table in a way that hasn’t existed before.
For some, it won’t ever be the longest especially at the very highest speeds, as the wide-body head will create too much spin. Its strength though lies in no matter where shots hit the face it’s always going to be forgiving, and for reasonable – average swing speed players it will flight shots for optimum distance and stopping power.
I’ve been bowled over by the Qi10 MAX this year, from a loft 1° weaker loft than our test spec this head produced a 2mph faster ball speed, and 4.3 yards more carry distance than our test averages, so the model is absolutely no slouch in terms of power. Where it comes into its own though is where that speed and distance come with more launch angle, more spin, more shot height, and additional stopping power, all traits that will help regular golfers score better more often.
My guess is the MAX is going to be so successful this year that it’s only a matter of time before other brands start retargeting their draw-biased families to ‘ultimate forgiveness’ golfers too. Watch this space.
Data comparison: How does the TaylorMade Qi10 MAX compare to leading competitor fairway woods?
| Fairway Wood | Loft | Ball Speed | Launch Angle | Backspin | Height | Descent Angle | Carry Distance | Carry Distance Drop Off | Shot Area |
| TaylorMade Qi10 | 15° | 154.5 MPH (1) | 8.7° | 2916 RPM | 26 YDS | 34.5° | 251 YDS (1) | 12 YDS (2) | 379.2 SQ YDS (3) |
| Srixon ZX MK II | 15° | 153.9 MPH (3) | 8.1° | 2715 RPM | 23 YDS | 31.5° | 249 YDS (2) | 20 YDS | 864 SQ YDS |
| Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max | 15° | 152.4 MPH | 9.6° | 2995 RPM | 27 YDS | 36° | 248 YDS (3) | 20 YDS | 566 SQ YDS |
| Titleist TSR 3 | 15° | 152.5 MPH | 8.3° | 2786 RPM | 23 YDS | 31.9° | 245 YDS | 29 YDS | 1377.5 SQ YDS |
| Wilson Dynapower | 15° | 152.4 MPH | 8.2° | 2849 RPM | 23 YDS | 32.5° | 245 YDS | 16 YDS | 838.4 SQ YDS |
| Cobra Darkspeed LS | 14.5° @ 15.5° | 152.3 MPH | 9.6° | 3189 RPM | 28 YDS | 37.4° | 245 YDS | 17 YDS | 906.1 SQ YDS |
| TaylorMade Qi10 Max | 16° | 153 MPH | 8.6° | 3309 RPM | 27 YDS | 36.4° | 244 YDS | 22 YDS | 693 SQ YDS |
| Ping G430 Max | 15° | 153.7 MPH | 7.2° | 2913 RPM | 21 YDS | 31° | 244 YDS | 9 YDS (1) | 328.5 SQ YDS (2) |
| Mizuno ST-G | 15° | 150.4 MPH | 9° | 2666 RPM | 23 YDS | 31.6° | 244 YDS | 30 YDS | 1302 SQ YDS |
| Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke TD | 15° | 154 MPH (2) | 8.3° | 2611 RPM | 23 YDS | 31.7° | 243 YDS | 46 YDS | 3109.6 SQ YDS |
| Titleist TSR 2 | 16.5° | 149.8 MPH | 10.2° | 3204 RPM | 29 YDS | 38.2° | 242 YDS | 24 YDS | 907.2 SQ YDS |
| PXG 0311 Black Ops | 15° | 152.5 MPH | 8.7° | 3589 RPM | 28 YDS | 38.1° | 241 YDS | 25 YDS | 815 SQ YDS |
| Cobra Darkspeed X | 15° | 152.6 MPH | 7.5° | 2952 RPM | 23 YDS | 32.7° | 241 YDS | 21 YDS | 821.1 SQ YDS |
| Cleveland Launcher XL 2 | 15° | 151.2 MPH | 7.3° | 2877 RPM | 20 YDS | 30.4° | 240 YDS | 17 YDS | 382.5 SQ YDS |
| PXG 0311 XF GEN6 | 16° | 151.7 MPH | 9.9° | 3699 RPM | 31 YDS | 40.3° | 239 YDS | 17 YDS | 698.7 SQ YDS |
| Mizuno ST-Z 230 | 15° | 150.8 MPH | 8.3° | 2714 RPM | 22 YDS | 31.7° | 239 YDS | 25 YDS | 892.5 SQ YDS |
| TaylorMade Qi10 Tour | 15° | 150.7 MPH | 8.8° | 3239 RPM | 27 YDS | 36.8° | 238 YDS | 25 YDS | 705 SQ YDS |
| Ram FX | 15° | 150.6 MPH | 7.3° | 2516 RPM | 19 YDS | 28° | 236 YDS | 15 YDS (T3) | 579 SQ YDS |
| Sub 70 949 X | 15° | 150 MPH | 7.6° | 2874 RPM | 21 YDS | 31.4° | 235 YDS | 25 YDS | 562.5 SQ YDS |
| Cobra Darkspeed Max | 15.5° | 151 MPH | 7.4° | 3841 RPM | 25 YDS | 36.2° | 232 YDS | 17 YDS | 839.8 SQ YDS |
| Vega Alkaid | 15° | 148 MPH | 8.3° | 3554 RPM | 24 YDS | 35.7° | 231 YDS | 15 YDS (T3) | 486 SQ YDS |
| PXG 0211 | 15° | 146 MPH | 9.3° | 3092 RPM | 25 YDS | 35.7° | 230 YDS | 20 YDS | 848 SQ YDS |
| Inesis 500 | 15° | 145.1 MPH | 10.7° | 3401 RPM | 30 YDS | 39.9° | 229 YDS | 22 YDS | 264 SQ YDS (1) |
| MacGregor V Max | 15° | 146 MPH | 8.4° | 4052 RPM | 25 YDS | 37.3° | 222 YDS | 24 YDS | 993.6 SQ YDS |
| Average | 151 MPH | 8.6° | 3106.4 RPM | 24.7 YDS | 34.5° | 239.7 YDS | 21.4 YDS | 840 SQ YDS |
About the author
Simon Daddow – Today’s Golfer Equipment Editor
Having tested and played more than 10,000 clubs in his life, what Simon doesn’t know about golf clubs isn’t worth knowing.
He spent a large part of his career as a golf club maker and product development manager, and has worked in the golf industry for more than 30 years. He joined EMAP Active (now Bauer Media) as Equipment Editor in 2006 and has worked for both Today’s Golfer and Golf World.
You can contact Simon via email and follow him on X (formerly Twitter) for loads more golf equipment insight.
Product Information
TaylorMade Qi10 MAX Fairway Wood
RRP: $349 / £309
Lofts: 3W – 16° / 5W – 19° / 7W - 22°
Stock shaft: High -Fujikura Speeder NX TCS (50 S/R/A, 40L)
Stock grip: Golf Pride Z-Grip Plus 2 (52g)
Headsize (3W): 200cc (5mm larger from face to back than Qi10)
Shallow profile
Visit the TaylorMade website here
