Here’s a bit of perhaps obvious but nonetheless interesting bit of detail about TaylorMade’s UDI and DHY utility irons.

The majority of golfers who play a TaylorMade utility are P Series iron players. Sure, there are a few game improvement guys in the mix, but the bulk of play comes from TaylorMade’s various players (and players distance) irons. That’s not particularly surprising (I told you it was kind of obvious) given that the P series covers a wide range of players; everyone from plus handicap golfers to low 20-somethings.

And given that driving irons are predominantly tools of the better golfer, you’d expect the majority of utility users to fall on the lower half of the P series range.

The point in all of if this is that, if guys who are going to play TaylorMade utility irons are probably playing P Series irons, why not roll the UDI and DHY utility irons into the P series family?

Why not, indeed, and so TaylorMade’s pair of utility offerings will now fall under the P Series umbrella.

P Series Utilities – Does the Name Matter?

Sure, elements of the name change are largely semantic, but I suppose you can argue there is an aesthetic upside in the change.

While I’m sure there’s one guy who hates them, TaylorMade’s P Series is widely regarded as one of the best-looking iron family on the market. It’s a testament to TaylorMade’s commitment to cohesive P Series design that spans from the ultra-compact P MB to mid-high-handicap friendly P790.

Designed for seamless blending, none of the P Series models look out of place next to any other.

Part of the Stealth family, the current, or I guess now prior model UDI and DHY, while not over-the-top grotesque aren’t quite as clean as the P Series. They offer just a hint of old school TaylorMade flair.

If nothing else, making the UDI and DHY part of the flagship iron family provides a perfect excuse for TaylorMade to reshape and refine its utility offerings into something the company describes as “stunning, contemporary, and elegant.”

The cosmetic changes alone provide at least half of the justification for the tagline A Beautiful Flight. Coupled with improved (and perhaps more separated) performance, the new UDI and DHY should prove to be everything golfers expect from the P Series.

P Series UDI and DHY Models

As they say, the more things change the more they stay the same. And so, while the new utilities are part of the P Series, the core naming convention, UDI and DHY are unchanged.

The updated designs, however, are straight out of the P Series playbook. Both models feature forged 4140 faces, Thru-Slot Speed pockets, internal sound stabilization bars, and, of course, TaylorMade’s signature SpeedFoam Air.

TaylorMade P UDI

There’s an argument that the nature of utility irons skews them towards the better player, but within the TaylorMade catalog, the P UDI is the more better-player-centric of the two options.

As you’d expect, that means a more compact design (it’s smaller than the P790) with a moderate width sole, thinner (of the two) topline), less offset, and a shorter blade length.

TaylorMade describes the shape as traditional, which basically means the shape is more inline with a players iron, and only a hint of the backbar is visible at address (the PUDI got less booty).

The P UDI’s center of gravity as higher than the DHY’s, which gets you a flatter trajectory and a lower flight than you’d get from either a hybrid (rescue) or higher lofted fairway wood.

Pound for pound, it’s going to be more forgiving than the equivalent iron it replaces, but golfers looking for maximum forgiveness will likely be better off in the P DHY.

TaylorMade P DHY

By comparison, The P DHY is a larger utility iron. By the numbers, it’s 5mm longer from heel to toe, which in the iron world is a lot. It has a lower face profile which is to say the shape is less traditional and more inline with game-improvement designs. The sole is appreciable wider than the P  UDI’s and with that, quite a bit more of the backbar is visible at address.

The benefit of the larger footprint and lower center of gravity is a higher, easier to achieve ball flight with more forgiveness. To put all of this in context, the P DHY is the most forgiving iron in the TaylorMade lineup.

Stock Shafts

While there isn’t anything particularly noteworthy in TaylorMade’s choice of stock shaft (Recoil DART), the lineup has been expanded and now includes 105 X, 90 S, and 75 R (P DHY only) options. The R flex option speaks to the extended reach of the new P DHY.

The stock grip is a Golf Pride Z-Grip.

TaylorMade P UDI and DHY Specs, Pricing and Availability

P Series Utilities are available in #2 (17° UDI, 18° DHY), #3 (20°), and #4 (22°). All lofts are available in both RH/LH.

Retail price for the P Series Utility irons is $249.99. Available now.

For more information, visit TaylorMadeGolf.com.