You are in the market for a new driver and after plenty of research, demo days, and lost hours of sleep, you have decided on either the TaylorMade SIM2 or TaylorMade Stealth driver.
You are asking yourself the question, do I spend more for the Stealth, or would SIM2 give me the same results for a fraction of the costs?
Well, I’m here to give you a side-by-side comparison of each to make your decision easier.
Both drivers are fantastic options for anyone looking for superior distance and forgiveness. The SIM2 will be a better option for players wanting to bring flight and spin down and the stealth is great for players looking for higher launch.
In this article I will go through my experience with both drivers as I am fortunate to have access to test each driver that I review.
I will talk about the sounds, look, and feel of both drivers, how these drivers stack up in regards to forgiveness, how these drivers stack up in regards to distance, stock shaft options available, pros and cons of each, and finally my recommendation.
Taylormade SIM2 Driver
The SIM2 driver was released by TaylorMade in 2021 and quickly became one of TaylorMade’s all time best drivers.
It is available in 8 degrees, 9 degrees, and 10.5 degrees for right handed players and is available in both 9 and 10.5 degrees for left handed players.
It comes at a stock length of 45.75” and its stock swing weight is D5.
Compared to its counterparts, the SIM 2 Max and the SIM 2 Max D, the SIM 2 is the least forgiving and lowest launching head of the bunch. Unlike the SIM 2 MAX D, it is not draw biased either.
This driver is made for the player that don’t have a problem finding the sweet spot and are looking for a lower flight.
From my experience testing all three, this is spot on how the SIM 2 plays in real life too.
Taylormade Stealth Driver
The Stealth driver from TaylorMade was released in 2022 and was the first driver in the industry to have a complete carbon face.
It is available in 9,10.5, and 12 degrees for right handed players and is available in both 9 and 10.5 degrees for left handed players.
It’s stock length is 45.75” and its stock swing weight is D4/D5.
The Stealth also comes in two other versions, the Stealth Plus and Stealth HD. The Stealth plus has more adjustability options and promotes a lower ball flight with more spin than the regular Stealth.
The Stealth HD is the same club except it promotes a draw.
Sounds, Look, and Feel
The appearance of the SIM 2 is fantastic! The combination of an all-black carbon fiber crown and a white stripe around the perimeter looks stunning during setup.
Additionally, the sound and feel are excellent, producing a satisfying mid-pitch crack upon impact and a solid sensation regardless of where the ball makes contact.
The look of the newer Stealth driver is a lot different than the SIM2. The top of the crown has a mat-black finish and will immediately notice the red face which I really liked at setup.
What I didn’t like as much about the Stealth is the sounds and feel. The new carbon face is a cool bit of technology but I found that it made me lose my sense of feel at impact and the sound of the club was a bit dead.
I’m a traditionalist when it comes to sound and feel so for me, the SIM2 wins in this category.
Forgiveness
The SIM 2 driver incorporates two key forgiveness features that significantly enhance its performance. Firstly, the forged ring construction and strategically distributed weight, thanks to the 9-layer carbon sole, plays a crucial role in promoting forgiveness.
The high-strength aluminum forged ring spreads the weight around the driver’s perimeter, resulting in remarkable stability during impact, leading to enhanced consistency and forgiveness.
A major factor in forgiveness is the driver’s moment of inertia (MOI). The SIM 2 driver boasts an impressively high MOI, primarily attributed to the 16-gram weight positioned at the rear of the club.
This weight can be customized to optimize swing weight and launch conditions according to individual preferences. To counterbalance this substantial rear weight and maintain low spin, a smaller TPS weight is situated near the face, ensuring a well-balanced and forgiving performance.
Forgiveness is where the Stealth driver sets itself apart from the competition. The Stealth head features a 60x carbon twist face which is lighter than its titanium competitor.
The lighter face allowed Taylormade to reposition weight lower and further back in the head increasing MOI and ultimately forgiveness. Just like the SIM 2, the Stealth also features an interchangeable back weight that can aid in MOI and can be switched to help with custom swing weighting.
Even though the Stealth features new carbon twist face technology, it was hard for me to tell much of a difference between the two heads in regard to forgiveness.
Both heads wanted to keep me in play on misshits so I’m going to give this category a tie.
Distance
To aid in distance, The SIM 2 driver, similar to the stealth driver, incorporates both the twist face technology and thru slot speed pocket for exceptional performance. However, the key difference lies in the face construction.
While the Stealth driver boasts a carbon twist face, the SIM 2 driver features a face made of titanium.
TaylorMade has equipped both drivers with a twist face that optimizes ball speed without surpassing the legal limit set by the USGA.
This innovative twist face design also includes curvature and weighting adjustments to improve accuracy on off-center hits, ensuring shots find their way towards the fairway with remarkable distance.
Additionally, both drivers come with a thru-slot speed pocket located behind the face. This precisely engineered milled cup enhances face flexion, resulting in heightened ball speed and overall performance, all while adhering to the USGA regulations.
In my experience hitting both of these heads, I found that the features mentioned above made both drivers exceptionally long.
The carbon twist face on the Stealth did give me a little extra distance though compared to the SIM 2 so the Stealth wins this category.
Stock Shaft Options
SIM 2
- Mitsubishi Tensei AV Raw Blue
- Project X HZRDUS Smoke RDX
Stealth
- Fujikura Ventus Red
- Aldila Ascent Red
SIM 2 Pros and Cons
Pros
- Very forgiving due to strong perimeter weighting and twist face technology
- Fast ball speed
- Lower price than Stealth
- Great sounds, look, and feel
Cons
- Not as fast ball speed as Stealth
- Promotes a lower flight with low spin so might not be right for all players
Stealth Pros and Cons
Pros
- Extreme forgiveness due to massive perimeter weighting promoted by light carbon face and light carbon crown
- Fast ball speed due to carbon 60x carbon face
- Still not the most expensive driver on the market since the Stealth 2 is out now
Cons
- Dull sounds and dull feel
- Higher launch than some faster and better players may need
Real Numbers
Below are some numbers from a fast clubhead speed off of Golf Magic YouTube, you can CLICK HERE to watch the video yourself.
| Club | Club Speed | Ball Speed | Spin | Smash | Carry |
| SIM 2 | 122.3 | 181 | 2958 | 1.48 | 310 |
| Stealth | 122.1 | 177.5 | 2851 | 1.45 | 301 |
Also, below are some numbers from a slower clubhead speed off of Rick Shield’s YouTube, you can CLICK HERE to check the video out yourself.
| Club | Ball Speed | Spin | Launch | Carry |
| SIM 2 | 157.2 | 2319 | 15.6 | 280 |
| Stealth | 156.2 | 2093 | 16.6 | 280 |
Recommendation
As you can see, in real life testing, the SIM 2 and Stealth drivers are extremely similar. Everything I have read about the Stealth is how fast the face is and I didn’t really feel that in my testing. It was nice to see real numbers reflect that as well.
When comparing the Stealth and the SIM 2 driver I think that they are each for two entirely different groups of players. The SIM 2 is for the player that values a traditional sound and feel with their driver.
It is for the players that are looking for a lower launch head that still gives the ball plenty of spin for it to stay in the air. Finally, the SIM 2 is perfect for someone who doesn’t mind playing with older technology and doesn’t always have to have the new thing.
The Stealth is perfect for the player that needs a higher launch off the tee and doesn’t care how their driver sounds or feels. Also, for some people, half of the fun of this game is having the latest and greatest technology.
Both of these drivers are fantastic and in my mind I would choose the SIM 2 as I thought it performed equally as good as the Stealth with better sounds and feel, but I think both are great options for your game.
