Was the Callaway Rogue iron line a bust?

[miles2go]

Or maybe just an interesting marketing experiment by Callaway to test whether PXG’s market strategy was valid?

Not commenting on the drivers or woods since I have never hit them. I have demoed the Rogue regular and Pro versions of the irons. It was my experience that the premium priced Rogue regular irons were very similar in performance to the regular XHot and CFS lines, which both seem like really decent GI irons. Either can be had for a significant discount to the Rogue.

The Rogue Pro is puzzling in that it seems to fall between the Apex Pro and the Apex Regular (CFS?) but does not have a premium “feel” or any discernible performance advantage (for me). I actually preferred the XHot pros over the Rogue Pros.

I don’t own any Callaway irons at the moment but have owned lots of them over the years and I am a bit of a Callaway fanboy. Just interested in WRX community thoughts on the Rogue iron line.  

[wilymo]

Can’t really say If they were a bust or not but I do think us WRX’ers kind of live in a bubble as to what we play and buy. I doubt anyone on here had any interest in the Rogue line making it seem like a bust but I can also say that I play with a couple older guys that game the irons and love them. The majority of the guys I see at the course play older stuff or game improvement stuff and have no idea what a high end shaft looks or feels like. I do agree though that the Rogue Pro line seems to have some overlap.

[bigfishbk]

I'll preface this by saying I went from 2006 big berthas to rogues 2 months ago. But I freaking love them. Obviously the new tech helps, but I demoed srixon, taylormade and cobra irons and for me the rogue were most consistent on any miss hit, had highest ball speeds/best distances, and just felt the best. I know the lofts are about 3 degrees stronger per club from my bb's, but I hit the rogue about 15ft higher and still gained 12yds on average per club. It's exactly what I was looking for.

[1Mordrid1]

I wouldn't call them "premium priced", especially with all the $1200 + iron sets out there now.

I think the Rogue irons were a victim of Callaway's marketing and release schedule. With the Steelhead XR released right before and the Apex 19s released shortly after, there was just not a lot of time to market them. They are actually a very under rated iron that can be found really cheap now.

[ChipNRun]

The full Rogue line didn't make it a full two years in availability. I hit the Rogue Pro, Rogue and Rogue X at the 2018 St. Louis Golf Expo in February.

By summer 2019, the Rogue Pro was in "what's left" backorder. General production had stopped, and what was in supply chain was all that was available.

Callaway and local golf shops said the Rogue and Rogue X were still available. Then, the two disappeared about New Year's day from the main Callaway website.

The Rogue and Rogue Pro models flew well at the 2018 expo and one outdoor demo day. I would probably have gone with the Pros shafted with Recoil 95 F3 (regular) flex. A Callaway rep said I might want to get a 4i and 5i in the standard Rogue head for better launch.

The Rogue X never impressed me. It felt strange at impact. A few months later I went to a local golf shop "launch monitor" party, and the shop owner had some Rogue X irons he got on trade-in. Three of us compared our irons (X20 Tours for me) with the Rogue X matching irons, and the Rogue X had a major dispersion problem for all of us, compared to our own irons.

In 2017, Callaway did a "quick time" with the Steelhead XR and Steelhead Pros. It seems it got phased out after about nine months. I was thinking at Christmas that year of getting the Steelhead Pros, but it turned out they were no longer available for fitted orders - just what was left in supply chain.

I worry Callaway is creeping back into the arms race of 2011-12 with TaylorMade - new models popping out all over.

[TheBear95]

I think it is pretty hit or miss with these yearly GI/SGI iron offerings that TaylorMade and Callaway release with their woods/driver branding. For example, it seemed that the XR iron line did really well for Callaway a few years ago, and of course, Rocketbladz was a hit for TaylorMade. However, I don't believe these clubs were anything different compared to the models that followed or precedent. Their popularity seem based on how well the wood release did, which is why TM and Callaway brand these irons with their drivers in the first place.

[Muffy]

Wasn’t it the Epic line that was ultra premium priced, Callaway marketed as their R&D head was given an “unlimited budget” to design? How so a bust? I would guess they didn’t expect to sell a lot of sets, but a test of the ultra high price market.

[DMartini]

what @Muffy above said, Epic & Epic Pro were the no holds barred swing for the fences Tech monsters, was lucky enough to hit a Pro demo 7 iron with PZ LZ when the first released Epic line a few years back, awesome club.

i personally love XR Pro, dont like Rogue Pro and am quite impressed with Mav Pro, if you Google Rogue Pro images the black out option looks very CF16 Apex looking (if you squint hard enough).

[miles2go]

You are right. I forgot that it was the Epic..not the Rogue that was the premium line. There are just so darn many.

[JasonPetermann]

Rogue Pro flew under that radar for what it was. I played them for over a year and really enjoyed them. The size was pretty great and the performance was also great for me.

[6x6]

I was playing the original Apex irons and really liked them. However, after getting a little older with tendinitis being problematic, I thought it was time to try graphite shafts. I went with the Rogue Pro and they have been great for me, no regrets. Although, the TM P790 which came out at the same time has remained in the forefront with some changes, while Callaway moved on from the Rogue completely.

[nikeblades00]

Rogue pros are solid irons. I actually prefer them to the p790s in playability. The 790s look better. But these things have a thinish top line for being a distance club. Get the right shaft and they can be very accurate and forgiving irons.

[BB28403]

there are 2 lines from Callaway at once. The Maverik is taking the Rogues place. Once that rollout is done/ product cycle, then the new Main line / Epic line will be released.

i can’t really follow callaway’s Logic except maybe 2 diff demographics.

next year maverik will be replaced by Avenger! Or Assassin or Speedy Gonzales... who knows

[MattyO1984]

I must admit that I cannot recall ever seeing them out in the wild. As a good WRX’r I tend to look at other guys bags to see what they have in there and I have never seen them out and about. I am not sure if that makes them a bust or not. I guess they were always going to be a relatively small seller.

[Sean2]

I have seen a number of Rogue X irons. As to woods/drivers, I see a lot more Epic Flash.

[Paddy_2_Iron]

You aren't kidding Do you think they are as forgiving as the BB 2019?

[1Mordrid1]

The Big Bertha are a SGI iron, so they are aimed at 2 different player types. I did not hit the 2019 BB at all, but I know a lot of people liked the performance, but the finish wore off quickly and made new clubs look like they had been in play for years. Leaving several people very unhappy.

[hef63303]

Rogue a bust? You mean the Number 1 selling iron line in 2018 and 2019? Yes, I do work for Callaway. Just trying to figure out what you call a bust.

[miles2go]

Chalk one up for my ignorance. I had no idea they sold well. As a poster above noted, I have never seen a Rogue iron set in the wild so I just ASSumed.

Of course I play at a lot of goat tracks so that might explain it.

[hef63303]

No issues here. You probably just need to get out and play more! Tell your boss you need some more time off.

[bkirkley09]

Rogue line was a good line of irons but as mentioned prior the people on this site compare the callaway and taylormade reasonable priced clubs and move to a specialty set. I would try them if a decent shaft wasn't an upcharge but all they offer stock in the Mavrik is 90-100 gram shafts and everything else in an up charge almost. I just never liked the color schemes on irons give me classic black and silver and they look great but adding orange or teal I am out. Again I am just one person though so my opinion has no bearing on the sales of these clubs. They are number one selling because they are the cheapest option off the rack but i agree I do not see them in the wild that often. My father in law bought rogue Xs and loves them but he is 73 and probably would benefit from more actual loft and less power bat.