Xander Schauffele Settles Driver Test Debate with 'Cork Bat' Analogy
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World No. 3 Xander Schauffele was one of the players who opened up about the whole driver debate at the PGA Championship.
He continued that conversation this week at The Memorial Tournament, a PGA Tour Signature Event.
At Quail Hollow, news leaked that the USGA deemed Rory McIlroy's driver illegal, and he had to change it ahead of the tournament. After that went public, he did not speak with the media for the rest of the week, but Schauffele did plenty of talking.
The two-time major winner went to bat for McIlroy at Quail Hollow. He also hinted that McIlroy was not the only player with a 'hot' driver that week.
World No. 1 and eventual PGA Championship winner, Scottie Scheffler, also had to switch his big stick before the second major.
"It really is normal. I didn't even understand sort of the public's negative opinion on it," Schauffele said from Muirfield Village, host venue of The Memorial.
"We don't know when the line — we have no clue. Unless our driver physically cracks and you start hitting these knuckle balls off the tee that disperse everywhere, then you know your driver's broken."
DUBLIN, OHIO - MAY 28: Xander Schauffele of the United States plays his shot from the 15th tee during the Golden Bear Pro-Am prior to the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday 2025 at Muirfield Village...
DUBLIN, OHIO - MAY 28: Xander Schauffele of the United States plays his shot from the 15th tee during the Golden Bear Pro-Am prior to the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday 2025 at Muirfield Village Golf Club on May 28, 2025 in Dublin, Ohio. More
Photo by"It's not like a cork bat," he explained. "That's just not how golf works. You either swing and hit it hard or you don't."
It is not like players can make a driver hot like people can do with baseball bats. Corked bats are modified bats filled with illegal material to help the ball travel farther. These bats are controversial because they can give players an advantage, and Major League Baseball banned them.
Schauffele explained that it isn't nearly as easy to identify in golf.
"When a guy has a cork bat in baseball, it's, like, a big no-no," Schauffele noted. "You know what I mean? And in golf, too, when a driver creeps, you shouldn't be able to play it. But at the same time, it's not quite the same thing."
"The trickiest part is that no driver and no shaft is the same," Schauffele noted. "They can have the same writing and logos on them, but the makeup of each head and shaft is slightly different. No club is the same. As soon as you make us change, there's a bit of a grace period where you have to get used to it."
In typical Schauffele fashion, the 31-year-old was pretty blunt about the whole topic.
"I thought it was kind of crazy when you test thirty guys, and the other 120 get to roam around - it's kind of weird."
Xander Schauffele weighs in on driver testing ahead of the Memorial Tournament ⛳️ #PGATour
📺 https://t.co/ep1KR1Iwrv pic.twitter.com/3X3iaLSJ6P — Niall McGrath (@niallmcgrath4) May 29, 2025
"Do I think any guy is out here is like, 'Oh, I have a hot driver. Like, I'm going to hit it a mile this week?' No. This is my driver that I've been hitting for a year, and I love it, and no, I don't want to switch. I think that's more the attitude. And yeah, I thought it was crazy when you test 30 guys, and there are 120 who get to roam around. It's weird."
Schauffele knows it can be challenging to make the change during a major week, and his comments show that the heat McIlroy received was unwarranted.
At the same time, there is not a lot of information out there on illegal drivers. Many speculated about it and continue to, but the 9-time PGA Tour winner set the record straight.
More Golf: Jack Nicklaus Picks Side on PGA Tour Players Controversy Skipping Media
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