Death, taxes, and Bryson DeChambeau changing equipment at a major championship.

The biggest story of the week started before anyone had even made it on-site Monday morning when a mystery TaylorMade driver turned up on the USGA conforming list, sparking questions as to who the “200+ Proto” Qi4D model would be built for.

After some early examination, it was clear to see that only one player would be testing out the model — Bryson DeChambeau.

GolfWRX reported the news earlier in the week and got the first comments from DeChambeau himself about his prototype driver, as well as a new pair of golf shoes he’s helped design. More on those here.

DeChambeau’s first drive with the new club went a staggering 427 yards, although it was slightly asphault-assisted.

“The foundation laid with the speed of our Qi4D drivers has allowed us to push further than ever before,” said Brian Bazzel, TaylorMade vice president of Product Creation. “The Qi4D 200+ Proto was developed as a prototype — a concept car, in many ways — to explore new ideas in aerodynamics, durability and performance created specifically for the high-speed player of today.”

According to Bazzel, DeChambeau wanted a driver that could handle ball speeds north of 200 mph, while also addressing the unique performance demands that come with swinging at the speed necessary to generate those numbers.

“We were able to meet him there by utilizing the backbone of Qi4D,” Bazzel said.

Speed isn’t something that TaylorMade has been lacking with the Qi4D lineup. What is interesting with the 200+ Proto is the face design and construction.

“The carbon face on the Qi4D 200+ Proto is really where the story gets interesting,” Bazzel wrote. “At those speeds, the shape of the face needs to be different. It must be uniquely engineered to maximize speed, start direction and consistency on off center shots, in a way that compliments someone at 200 mph+. Carbon lets us custom-form that face with an incredible level of precision. We can do things, and hold tolerances, that you simply can’t achieve any other way.”

To achieve greater aerodynamics the 200+ Proto driver head has a more toe-shaped profile compared to a core model, along with an overly forward center of gravity to lower the spin created from such speeds.

Keeping it low-key with driving irons

It happened in 2018, and players are looking to go the same route this year at Shinnecock, with the additions of low-lofted driving irons in the bags of many players this week.

Plenty of players added them. To name a few, Rory McIlroy went to his usual P760 3-iron (the same model as his usual go-to 4-iron), while Tyrrell Hatton went for the Ping iDi driving iron, fitted with a Fujikura Ventus HB Blue Velocore+ shaft as well. Spaniard Rocco Repetto Taylor had just the one headcover in the bag for his adventures around Shinnecock, going driver and then 2-iron through a 58-degree wedge.

Titleist Tour Rep JJ Van Wezenbeeck noted that the driving irons aren’t just for off the tee, with the greens at Shinnecock still receptive enough to hold some long approach shots, and players favouring the more penetrating flight of the iron instead of a high-lofted fairway wood, with the high winds forecasted.

Van Wezenbeeck helped Ludvig Åberg dial in the Titleist T350 head, with the duo adjusting the lie slightly flatter to get a desired shot shape.

Hideki Matsuyama spent much of the early week deciding which long-iron would go in the bag for Round 1. His options included the Apex UT driving iron along with a nearly two-decade-old Srixon ZR Forged UTI 3-iron. The club features one of the thickest toplines seen on a golf club on Tour. With a high-rebound face for increased distance and a hollow head for improved directional stability, it was Srixon’s first iron-type utility club.

It wasn’t the only driving iron option Matusyama was testing, a Callaway Apex UT. Also, instead of his usual True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 iron shafts, the Japanese major champion was spotted using a KBS Tour 130x in both irons.

Check out a selection of driving irons that GolfWRX’s Tour Photographer Greg Moore captured onsite in New York. 

Theegala’s own take on a driving iron

Frank’s back! And he got an upgrade.

For those that don’t know, Sahith Theegala has at times throughout his career opted not to use his 4-wood, and instead, go with a juiced-up 2 hybrid that he likes to call his “Franken-hybrid,” or for short, “Frank.”

What used to be a Ping G425 is now a G440; the 17-degree head is set in small minus on Ping’s adapter to crank the loft down to 15.5 degrees. Equipped with a Graphite Design Tour AD DI 85x shaft according to Ping PGA Tour rep Kenton Oates, Theegala can launch the club anywhere from 4-7 degrees and can vary spin from 2200-3100 rpm. The carry that Theegala sees with Frank, depending on launch and spin, is around 260 to 280 yards.

Cantlay putter switch comes with comfort

Patrick Cantlay doesn’t change clubs. But now that he’s an equipment-free agent, outside of his Titleist golf ball contract, he’s been making more moves than you think.

Cantlay spent a lot of the early season testing different drivers, and gamed the Ping G440 LST before becoming the first player this year to switch to the Titleist GTS4 driver at the RBC Heritage.

Now, at the U.S. Open, Cantlay has made a significant putter swap, trading out his Scotty Cameron Phantom 7.2 for a TaylorMade Spider Tour X.

Interesting development here at @usopengolf. Patrick Cantlay rolling a @TaylorMadeGolf Spider Tour X. Looks like a major equipment switch for a man that rarely changes his clubs. pic.twitter.com/eFKRSDexiX

— Alistair Cameron (@ACameronWRX) June 16, 2026

While the change seems drastic, it does come with a change in hosel that Cantlay is more than comfortable with. The new black Spider Tour X is equipped with a double-bend shaft, which Cantlay rolled with during his FedExCup-winning season on what at the time was a Scotty Cameron Phantom 5 Tour Prototype. At the time, it was a big change for Cantlay, who had been using a blade for most of his amateur and professional career.

Although Cantlay has yet to comment on the putter change, with him returning to the double-bend, he’s likely trying to remove the arc in his stroke, while also adding the stability of the Spider head.

Grinding it out around Shinnecock

With the return of the U.S. Open to Shinnecock Hills Golf Club comes a unique test – links golf.

And with that, it also begs the question, which wedge grind should be picked to battle the fescue-style grass approaches and their coarse sand bunkers?

“As you would expect, it’s a U.S. Open, so it’s going to be difficult, but there’s a uniqueness to Shinnecock,” Aaron Dill, Vokey Wedge tour director, told GolfWRX. “It is a lot like links-type golf, where you go to The Open. And so the strategy really is very similar to that, right? You have a golf course that’s set near the water. You got a lot of coastal breeze. You have firm fescue conditions, you have deep bunkers with a lot of sand. It’s very coarse sand. So I think the strategy is very similar in the sense of, okay, well how do I build some wedges for the setup that fit what’s going on here?”

More here from Dill about what he and players we’re looking for with short-game setups at Shinnecock.