History of TaylorMade Drivers Through the Years

Updated November 3, 2023
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TaylorMade Stealth 2 lineup of drivers, released in 2023
  • DESCRIPTION
    TaylorMade Stealth 2 lineup of drivers, released in 2023
  • SOURCE
    TaylorMade
  • PERMISSION
    Permission given by TaylorMade

Gary Adams started TaylorMade in the late 1970s out of his home in Illinois with an idea that the two-piece golf ball wasn't a fad. Adams recognized the way irons interacted with the new balls and believed steel drivers would outperform the persimmon drivers of the day.

Founding TaylorMade

Adams approached PGA touring pro Ron Streck in 1978 with three metal woods. Adams' metal woods out-drove some of the longest hitters on tour, and at that year's PGA Merchandise Show he received close to $50,000 in orders.

Pittsburgh Persimmon

Ron Streck won the 1981 Houston Open using the first TaylorMade driver. The company's drivers earned the nickname "Pittsburgh Persimmon" as TaylorMade used steel rather than persimmon to construct their drivers. Adams and Streck started stamping it on the toe of all their drivers, and it developed into one of their strongest lines throughout the 1980s. In the process, golf adapted to the popular “metal-woods" seen today.

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TaylorMade Burner Drivers

In 1983, the Burner and Tour Burner were introduced and the company boasted 147 tour pros as product ambassadors. By 1986, the Burner became the No. 1 driver.

Curtis Strange won the 1988 U.S. Open with a Burner driver, giving TaylorMade its first major championship. The company claimed its first Master's in 1994 with a prototype of the Bubble Shaft.

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TaylorMade’s 300 and 500 Series

In 2000, the 300 series became the number one driver on tour. The 300, 320 and 360 were developed for the three most prevalent swing types. The R500 series was introduced in 2002, featuring the inverted cone technology.

The r Series

In 2004, r7 quad came along with its movable-weight technology and won 24 of 48 tour events. The following year TaylorMade introduced the r5 and became the second-most used driver on tour, behind the r7. TaylorMade continued to develop the r7 by introducing draw models, 460cc models and introduced the Burner series with a bullet shaped head for increased swing speeds. TaylorMade used the r-series until 2013 as they wrapped the series with the R1 Driver.

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TaylorMade Recent Drivers: From RocketBallz to Stealth

Taylor Made branched away from the r-series in 2012, and since then the company has released several different models, pushing the golf technology limits.

From the Rocketballz, SLDR, Jetspeed, Aeroburner, M-series, SIM series, and now the Stealth series, TaylorMade continues to produce some the best drivers in golf.

TaylorMade’s Speed Injected technology, implemented in its SIM and SIM Max, have elevated the golf equipment game. The technology improves ball speed across the face by calibrating each head to the threshold of the legal speed limit.

These drivers also feature Twist Face technology, which uses corrective face angles designed to overcome those tendencies golfers have on mis-hits, which ultimately helps produce straighter shots.

In 2022, TaylorMade introduced Carbonwood with the Stealth lineup of drivers, which evolved with the Stealth 2 line in 2023.

In 2023, TaylorMade also released its latest mini driver, the BRNR mini, with throwback styling and modern performance in a package that's built to rival a full-sized driver off the tee while offering the ability to be hit off the turf with relative ease.

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TaylorMade Drivers By Year

Year Release Shop
1980s Persimmon Drivers  
1983 Burner and Tour Burner Driver  
1988-93 Burner Plus Driver  
1995-96 Titanium Bubble Driver  
1997 Titanium Bubble 2 Driver  
1999 Firesole CHECK 2ND SWING
2000 300 Series CHECK 2ND SWING
2002 500 Series/Burner 420  
2003 R510 TP Driver  
2003 R360 XD Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2004 r5 Dual Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2005 r7 Drivers: r7, r7 quad, r7 quad TP CHECK 2ND SWING
2005 r5 dual TP Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2006 r7 Draw Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2006 r7 460 Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2006 r5 XL Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2007 r7 CGB MAX Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2007 Burner '07 Drivers: Burner, TP, Draw, Women's CHECK 2ND SWING
2008 r7 Limited Drivers: Limited, TP, CGB MAX CHECK 2ND SWING
2008 Tour Burner Driver & Tour Burner TP Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2009 R9 & R9 460 Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2010 R9 SuperDeep TP Driver  
2010 R9 Supertri Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2010 Burner SuperFast & Burner Superfast TP Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2011 R11 Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2011 Burner Superfast 2.0 Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2012 R11 S Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2012 RocketBallz & RocketBallz Bonded Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2013 RBZ Stage 2 Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2013 R1 Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2014 SLDR: 460, 430, White Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2014 Jetspeed CHECK 2ND SWING
2015 Aeroburner Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2016 M1 Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2017 M2 Driver & M2 D-Type Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2018 M3 Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2018 M4 & M4-D Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2019 M5 & M5 Tour Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2019 M6 Driver & M6-D Driver CHECK 2ND SWING
2019 Original One Mini Drivers CHECK 2ND SWING
2019 M-Gloire Driver CHECK GOLF GALAXY
2020 SIM Drivers: SIM, SIM MAX, SIM MAX-D CHECK 2ND SWING
2021 SIM2 Drivers: SIM2, SIM2 Max, SIM2 Max D CHECK GOLF GALAXY
2022 Stealth Drivers: Stealth, Stealth HD Driver (High Draw), Stealth Plus CHECK GOLF GALAXY
2023 Stealth 2 Drivers: Stealth2, Stealth 2 HD, Stealth 2 Plus CHECK GOLF GALAXY
2023 BRNR Mini Driver

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