Walther PDP Match 9mm Semi-Automatic Pistol Review

By Becky Yackley
December 26, 2023

— Read Time - 3 min

By Becky Yackley
December 26, 2023

Read Time - 3 min

The Walther PDP Match Pistol Is Competition-Ready Straight Out of the Box

The Walther PDP Match is Walther’s newest in their PDP (Personal Defense Pistol) lineup. This full-size, 9MM polymer pistol will also be available as a steel frame, and both models are sold with three, 18-round magazines.

The PDP Match is geared toward consumers who want a pistol that’s suitable for competition, right out of the box.

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Walther PDP Match Pistol Review

The Walther PDP Match Looks Great, Shoots Better

Inside the box, Walther included three grip inserts that allow you to adjust the backstrap of the grip to better fit your hand.

The PDP Match is out-of-the-box accurate and reliable for a competition shooter. The pistol provides a no-hassle way to get a gun that fits the Carry/Production Optics division requirements for competition without the need for aftermarket purchases.

The PDP Match’s accuracy was obvious. I shot two types of ammunition: Winchester White Box and hand loads. With Winchester White Box—round nose bullets, 115-grain full metal jacketed—my groups at 15 yards easily placed three rounds inside a quarter-sized group.

The gun functioned with 100 percent reliability with the Winchester factory ammo. The other ammo I used was 9MM reloads for three-gun competition, minor power factor. This round had a flat-nose projectile, and I did have a few malfunctions with these rounds, but I believe that was due to the geometry of the projectile. I possibly would have to adjust the overall length of these 9MM reloads for this particular gun.

I really liked the slide release. It was accessible, even without giant hands. It was not overbuilt and chunky like so many. And the length was a real plus. It was as if the Walther engineers thought, “Let’s treat this lever like an actual lever.” The length made it easier to apply pressure and it released successfully.

Optic Plates, Slide Cuts, Trigger & More

Walther offers one optics plate for free via online request; there is a card in the box with a QR code and the customer picks an optic footprint. There are five different optic plates available: ACRO, DPP, 509P, RMR, and Vortex. This saves the customer from having unused plates.

The slide cuts were another well-executed feature. They were aggressive and provided a very positive grip to manipulate the slide with the stock recoil spring. I was able to rack the slide with just my left hand using the slide cuts, and it didn’t require extreme effort.

The trigger was Walther’s Dynamic Performance Trigger, with an average pull weight of 4.5 pounds. It had a clean take-up for the first half, then met a wall, followed by a clean break. The only part that left me neutral was how forceful the reset felt.

The factory sights were three-dot sights with an adjustable rear sight. They could easily be replaced with aftermarket sights if desired, though they worked fine during my shooting.

A High-Bore Axis Feels Like Walther

The PDP Match, like most Walthers, is built with a high-bore axis. It gave me a feeling akin to swinging a hammer, in that the heavy, reciprocating slide sat so high above my hands. In a world of expensive molds, I understand that product lines have similar and consistent features, and a high-bore axis is a Walther trademark.

`For me that axis was uncomfortable, but given the accuracy the pistol achieved, that higher bore in no way got in the way of the handgun’s first-rate functionality.

Final Thoughts

The PDP already has a following in shooting competition circles. Luke Cao, a member of Walther’s Pro Staff, won the 2022 IPSC Pistol World title in Production Limited Optics with a five-inch PDP pistol. There are already holsters and other gear options readily available for the pistol, too.

This gun comes in with an MSRP of $1,099, but the street price should be about $1,000 or just under. MAP or Minimum Advertised Pricing on the PDP Match is $999.

I enjoyed shooting and reviewing this pistol. Having competed at matches with Luke Cao and his Walther PDP, I’m curious to see how many competitors will give the PDP Match a go.