Am I crazy to use classic "vintage" irons?

[LeoLeo99]

My vintage clubs are only 40 years old.  People did break 80 back then. Although, if money is on the line, I'm bring my shovels and titanium.  

[LeftyMac]

My son is 25 and plays a half set of Muirfield 20ths.   1, 5, 7, 9 irons and an old Cleveland Diadic wedge.  Lately he's gone from a 1950 Mac 653 to a LH2W to the Muirfield metal wood (which he hits stupidly well considering how awful it is).  He decided to get fitted for a new driver.  Latest Titleist TS2 got him an extra 20m on average.  Interestingly when they looked at the numbers for his irons compared to AP2's there was nothing much in it.  He hits it pretty well and the Muirlields have X100's in them.  The lesson probably is that if you have a bit of clubhead speed and strike it pretty well then you aren't going to gain a lot with a new set of irons vs blades.  If you don't have a lot of clubhead speed and don't hit it particularly well then a set of game improvement shovels is going to be a big improvement over blades.

[BURKMI19]

1 hour ago, LeftyMac said:

My son is 25 and plays a half set of Muirfield 20ths.   1, 5, 7, 9 irons and an old Cleveland Diadic wedge.  Lately he's gone from a 1950 Mac 653 to a LH2W to the Muirfield metal wood (which he hits stupidly well considering how awful it is).  He decided to get fitted for a new driver.  Latest Titleist TS2 got him an extra 20m on average.  Interestingly when they looked at the numbers for his irons compared to AP2's there was nothing much in it.  He hits it pretty well and the Muirlields have X100's in them.  The lesson probably is that if you have a bit of clubhead speed and strike it pretty well then you aren't going to gain a lot with a new set of irons vs blades.  If you don't have a lot of clubhead speed and don't hit it particularly well then a set of game improvement shovels is going to be a big improvement over blades.

Your son is a good example here regarding irons.  If we analyze the lofts of iron heads and lengths of shafts of current new irons versus irons from the late 1980s for example, there is a huge difference.  A "modern" iron/PW is upwards of 3-5 degrees stronger loft and an inch longer than something from the 1980s.  If you take an old forged head and gave it stronger loft and a modern length shaft, there isn't going to be any difference from today's forged model.

[baloo]

It's a funny question by the OP. Who's crazier:

- Golfer A spends $100 on a vintage bag, irons, and persimmons. Hits them at the range and course, accepts the challenge and outcomes, has a good time. 

- Golfer B spends $3,000 on a fitted set of of OEM clubs. Hits them on the range and course. Bag looks shiny and has a good time... Until he needs to spend $300 on a new driver shaft to lower spin by 200 revs, or replace the wedges after a year, or looks at his scores and realizes he's still a 15 hcp.... 

 

The point is golf is to have fun unless you're in the minority that makes it your career. Stay focused on that and play the gear you like. As they say, "sanity isn't statistical." 

 

BTW, I do have a few modern clubs (6) and rotate them in depending on situation, so I'm not a complete modern club hater. But, they aren't as fun IMO and lack feel and craftsmanship.

[FirstFlight]

It's been a fun ride for many decades, trying many styles and generations of clubs. Give em all a good try and stick time...you'll gain stories, scars, opinions, enjoyment and wisdom. Way more gains than mis-concieved losses. 

 

*golf, like firearms and archery...should be fun to try to shoot well, with any generation of implement. It's the archer, not the arrow.

[Swingingk]

13 hours ago, BURKMI19 said:

Your son is a good example here regarding irons.  If we analyze the lofts of iron heads and lengths of shafts of current new irons versus irons from the late 1980s for example, there is a huge difference.  A "modern" iron/PW is upwards of 3-5 degrees stronger loft and an inch longer than something from the 1980s.  If you take an old forged head and gave it stronger loft and a modern length shaft, there isn't going to be any difference from today's forged model.

Well... yes and no - in my opinion of course.  I think it depends on how you look at it.  If you compare irons of the same number you are correct - huge differences that take a lot of work to "correct".  If you ignore the number and compare irons of similar lofts the rest of the specs usually match up very close.  Just think of your old 7 iron as you would your new 9 iron and you should be close enough to get started.  That's really the secret to playing old irons.  When a golfer has that epiphany it opens a whole new world of amazing equipment.  Resistance is futile!  😂

[sdandrea]

On 2/22/2021 at 10:34 AM, pingfool said:

there is something about chipping with offset wedges that fits by technique.

Amen!

[sdandrea]

I think PING Eye 2 irons are nearly 38 years old now (OG was 1982?). I use a "modern" driver, FW, and hybrid,  but those Eye 2s are as effective as anything built today. 

Edited April 5, 2021 by sdandrea
Correction

[Joe S]

2 hours ago, sdandrea said:

I think PING Eye 2 irons are nearly 50 years old now (OG was 1982?). I use a "modern" driver, FW, and hybrid,  but those Eye 2s are as effective as anything built today. 

 

I wonder, at any given moment, what percentage of golf courses have a set of Ping Eye 2's being played on them?  I bet it is very high.  I see them all the time.  

[miamistomp]

 When I walk a twilight 9 - I rock a set of Eye 2 becus...

[cold_war_era_golfer]

6 hours ago, sdandrea said:

I think PING Eye 2 irons are nearly 50 years old now (OG was 1982?). I use a "modern" driver, FW, and hybrid,  but those Eye 2s are as effective as anything built today. 

Hang on there!  I was born on 1982 and don’t think I’m “nearly” 50!  Lol

[GSDriver]

On 2/22/2021 at 8:28 AM, BURKMI19 said:

Okay, so admittedly I am someone who has struggled to accept the technology changes over the last 15 years.  Do I agree with most of it, no I don't but I understand the premise behind helping amateur golfers with distance and consistency.  I may never get into adjustable hosels and moveable weights, and this leads to my question here which I would love feedback about.  If anyone has applicable life experience that is great too.  I am seriously contemplating putting a classic set of irons in the bag this year.  By classic I mean something at least 20 years old and my front runners right now are the MACGREGOR JNP JACK NICKLAUS, HOGAN EDGE FORGED, and WILSON STAFF FG-17.  All of them are great in different ways, and being that Michigan golf isn't coming for a couple months I have time to work this out.  But I am really curious as to thoughts, comments, or recommendations of other irons I could consider.  

-Cheers mates!  

I bought Hogan Edge played them until Edge GS, then went to JNPs...had Staff Goosenecks too.  All very playable sticks, new ones are like cheating.  Always fun to whoop some guy with custom PXGs or the like with your old school sticks.

 

If can find decent sets, they should be cheap enough to buy 2!

 

Cheers!

[sdandrea]

On 4/1/2021 at 12:12 AM, coldwareragolfer said:

Hang on there!  I was born on 1982 and don’t think I’m “nearly” 50!  Lol

Geezer math!  I fixed it. 😂

[Bigarch]

My Eye 2's are back in the bag permanent.  Tired of screwing around with clubs I don't like and can't hit any better than the Eye 2's. Hit a lot of irons over the years that I liked but never had a set of clubs in my bag that I've ever hit better.

[vintageplayer]

Most of the focus on playing with vintage golf clubs has been, so far, on the long game.  For the long game, I play with Spalding Robert T. Jones irons (the "Fish Scale" model) and a Spalding Robt. T. Jones 2 wood.   I have tried modern equipment but didn't score much better at all.  I discovered that playing with vintage equipment was more enjoyable and had zero impact on my scores. 

 

What about vintage putters?  Like many other golfers, I have tried multiple styles of putters over the years-Ping, Bullseye, Odyssey, Tommy Armour, and others.  But I have finally settled on an A.G. Spalding Bros. Olympic Putter. I am not even sure how old it is (could be nearing 100)  but it the best putter for me. 

 

 

[Jiggered]

Like my irons, I rotate my putters, have about 50 going from 1930s hickory to around 1990s, mostly blade styles.

 

They're all individual and have their quirks, a few are favourites but I don't let them know that.

[Foozle]

6 hours ago, Jiggered said:

Like my irons, I rotate my putters, have about 50 going from 1930s hickory to around 1990s, mostly blade styles.

 

They're all individual and have their quirks, a few are favourites but I don't let them know that.

Wise words Jiggered. I don't think it does any harm making your clubs aware they have competition for your affections!

I don't agree with " treat them mean to keep them keen" but did have a golfing friend who had a particularly dark corner of his garage he reserved for misbehaving clubs and swore they played better after a week in there!😁

[Tumbleweed_1968]

Last Sunday my golf partner, who I have not seen for at least one year, showed up at the course sporting TM Burner drivers. His was from 2018, like a turtle on a stick. Mine was of the bubble shaft variety, unsure of the age. At least 20 yrs old?

As an aside, he paid $20 for his. I paid $2.

I out drove him a couple of times & he out drove me a couple of times. I hit mine about the same as I hit my persimmon 2 wood, so....

Anyway, I shot a 42. He shot a 41. Par is 32. We had fun. My first round of the year. Used my mildly vintage minimalist set.

Today I got the "real" vintage set ready for tomorrow. 2, 4 wood. 7 & 9 iron, PW, SW, putter - all older than I am at 60. Using a vintage Wilson bag on a pull cart and walking. 

My point: I have fun, play decently enough, don't hold anyone up, and enjoy myself more than I ever have when I was more competitive and played with the latest wiz-bang gear.

Although I watch the modern game I don't play it. Quite frankly it's not in my budget and neither are the greens fees. So I stick to smaller courses and the forward tees. 

To the OP: play what you want and what makes you happy.

Life is too short (and good health) to turn a game into work. My 2 ¢.

[disco111]

I'm an avid thrift store searcher, thanks to the wife getting me started, and just about every weekend or at least every other weekend I turn up at the first tee with my group with a different set of old(er) irons. In fact it's become almost a betting pool on what I'll show next with. I play them for that weekend or two and then sell them or pass them on to younger high school guys looking for clubs. That was until 3 weeks ago after I picked up a set of Hogan Edge Forged with graphite shafts with a Hogan staff bag in great condition. Took them to the range and they felt great. Went into the club house and had a playing partner bend them 3 degrees stronger through the set. First time playing them with the group on Saturday, went birdie on one, almost an ace on number two (6 in) birdie on 3 and then got back to normal. Also played from the white men's tees as I normally play from the seniors and for some reason it just suits me better. Anyway, the point being is that these sticks play as well as anything offered today and cost a heck of a lot less. (Got the bag and clubs for $20)............  

[Nard_S]

12 minutes ago, disco111 said:

I picked up a set of Hogan Edge Forged with graphite shafts with a Hogan staff bag in great condition.

I rented those on my honeymoon, way yonder back. Always regretted not buying a set after because they were a treat to play with. Better than what I owned at the time.

[whowhispers]

Crazy for using classic clubs? Absolutely not. As long as they are

adjusted for length and lie, the shaft flex is 'thereabouts', and you

take into account the weaker lofts, you will be fine. It is still hitting

a ball with a stick, and if you can make good contact consistently

with the older equipment, the feedback in terms of sound and feel,

IMO, is more rewarding.

 

I have a bunch of Wilson, MacGregor, Hogan, etc, gear that I hope

to have a nibble at again sometime this year, and raise a club in

salute at your pursuit of vintage goodness.

[tomc262]

On 3/10/2021 at 12:26 PM, deejaid said:

You know, this thread has been nagging at me for awhile.   Maybe it was the trolling response that we “hit our drives 150 yards” and slow down play.  Why is it always assumed that playing with older, less tech-dominated clubs means that you can’t play at a high level?   I enjoy playing classic clubs but I also enjoy playing the clubs that work best for my game, which just happen to be classic clubs.   
 

I’ve bought tens of thousands of dollars worth of golf gear in my 35+ years playing the game and none of it has made me a better player.   My game actually only really started improving when I began playing blades and persimmon full time.   I actually started learning how to manipulate the club to work the ball.   I learned to use a single wedge all around the green; opening it up for flop shots, hooding it to run low.  I’ve learned more about balance and control hitting a smaller head persimmon driver, paying way more attention to my swing arc and the face angle at impact.

 

The clubs I put in my bag I understand.   Everything written on the web says my narrow sole, no-bounce irons should be impossible to hit, but why then do I find large modern clubs more difficult to hit while I can stand over the ball with a blade iron and have complete confidence?

 

 

And to the guy worried I’m going to slow him down with my “antique clubs and 150 yard drives”,  I shot a 77 last Saturday on a 6500 yard tree lined course hitting 13 of 14 fairways with the bag in my signature.  What did you shoot?
 

 

 

 

 

 

THIS!

[tomc262]

On 3/31/2021 at 11:12 PM, cold_war_era_golfer said:

Hang on there!  I was born on 1982 and don’t think I’m “nearly” 50!  Lol

Yeah, I was born in 75 and started playing in the mid-80s.  Lots of balata and blades to start.  Super heavy cut down Wilsons.  My BeCu's are from 86 and my FG17's are from in there somewhere...don't remember when I got them.  Currently reshafting some CB92's that will go into the bag as soon as Golfworks gets the shafts back in stock.  I have my Penna D and 4w but don't play them all that often.  I've been messing around with the J's weapon as of late because it was the driver I couldn't afford in high school and the FT Titanium 3w is fun to hit.  

[Puppetmaster]

7 minutes ago, tomc262 said:

Yeah, I was born in 75 and started playing in the mid-80s.  Lots of balata and blades to start.  Super heavy cut down Wilsons.  My BeCu's are from 86 and my FG17's are from in there somewhere...don't remember when I got them.  Currently reshafting some CB92's that will go into the bag as soon as Golfworks gets the shafts back in stock.  I have my Penna D and 4w but don't play them all that often.  I've been messing around with the J's weapon as of late because it was the driver I couldn't afford in high school and the FT Titanium 3w is fun to hit.  

 

Very similar golf career and timeline here. I still have two sets of Eye2s stored at my parents' house, the steel set is the "+" version and BeCu is non "+". I think both of the sets are 1-SW, assuming nothing has been garage-saled off w/o my knowledge.  Tons of Burner Plus with various steel and graphite shafts... DG, HM-40, Flextwist, etc. 

 

Part of the fun in this game is equipment, I realized that from a young age, unfortunately. I've enjoyed tons of recent equipment from putters to drivers, but there is something so satisying about taking out a set of your favorite old clubs for a round or three. It doesn't even matter what generation they're from, just any older set. I still use my Maxfli Aussie blades and Revolutions every year, along with a Bullseye 5-A Heavy Blade. I also have my precious Burner Plus 4W with S300, which is comparable in size to a modern hybrid. Got my first and only hole-in-one with that, so it is kept safely in the home office most of the time. 

[cold_war_era_golfer]

I have an 8:10 tee time across the border in WI tomorrow morning.  Am I crazy to use classic vintage irons?  No.  Am I crazy to be super excited going through my sets of irons deciding which one to take?  Which putter the Iron Master or the Arnold Palmer Personal?  Maybe an Achushnet Bullseye?  Crap, which persimmons?  Yeah, I'm crazy but I'm gonna have more fun than 95% of the guys out there tomorrow morning.

[BIG STU]

On 5/28/2021 at 7:07 PM, cold_war_era_golfer said:

I have an 8:10 tee time across the border in WI tomorrow morning.  Am I crazy to use classic vintage irons?  No.  Am I crazy to be super excited going through my sets of irons deciding which one to take?  Which putter the Iron Master or the Arnold Palmer Personal?  Maybe an Achushnet Bullseye?  Crap, which persimmons?  Yeah, I'm crazy but I'm gonna have more fun than 95% of the guys out there tomorrow morning.

Yep that summs it up for me. Yep I have so much stuff that I can pick and choose and try stuff. Now I have not played true vintage since I have been hurt. Right now my back will not allow me to swing a heavy persimmon or a steel shaft. Right now I am swinging modern ( to some extent) Forged CBs with graphite. I played my beloved Mac Hogans but the steel shafts send vibration up my back. Hoping by fall I can play my vintage stuff some. But before injury I was playing when and where I wanted to with what clubs I want to. Yep and I certainally had fun. 

[North Butte]

If you're talking really old clubs, it mostly comes down to whether you can control your low point and reliably come shallow into impact and catch ball before turf. If so, just find some with a shaft you can play (there wasn't nearly as much variety in shafts back then) and that look good to you. Yeah they might be more punishing than modern clubs on toe hits and such but that's not a huge deal. 

[WalkerTexas]

I brought out my Arnold Palmer set just today. Tru matic irons and woods. I know there are far better out there, but Palmer is the reason I got so into golf in the first place. One hit on the range with the driver and an instant smile. It's strange how that is just unavoidable when you hit a wood well. So to answer you OP, no you're not crazy!

 

While I play my "vintage" clubs a half dozen times a year.. I do my best to bring them out every year on Arnold Palmer's birthday (Sept. 10). Probably my favorite memory with the persimmon driver is pulling up to a foursome and they let me play through.. Pulled out my tru matic wood, and that caught everyone's attention (great 😑).. being a 90's baby (new thread record 💪 😉) one of the guys in the foursome asked me why I would play with my grandpa's clubs. Which didn't bother me, we all had a chuckle. Then I lined a beautiful drive right down the center of the fairway (my best drive of the day if I'm being honest) which outdrove all of those guys. Now I'm not a crazy good golfer, I certainly had some bad drives earlier in the afternoon. But after that drive, these guys went ballistic! "I didn't think people still played with those things!" or "I've only seen those at Goodwill." I couldn't help but let them know that "my grandpa's clubs" outdrove their new $300+ drivers! 🤣

Edited June 9, 2021 by WalkerTexas

[BIG STU]

On 2/22/2021 at 8:30 PM, thepunch_out said:

My equipment over the past year or two has progressively gotten older and older. It started with a driver fitting which determined I have a strong preference for a heavier swingweight, smaller head design, and a shorter shaft. As the salesman laid out all of my options ranging from $500-850, I thought to myself that this club has already been made and it's available for waaay cheaper than what he was quoting me. The club I was looking for wasn't the newest Titleist, Mizuno, or TaylorMade. What I was looking for was a nice block of persimmon. Much like @coldwareragolfer I'm an 80's baby, so these clubs were long gone from the golf scene by the time I first picked up a club. I had no idea what to expect aside from the stories of how impossibly hard to hit they were when compared to modern gear. What happened next changed my whole outlook on golf and why I play. The first time I pulled that old club out on the tee box and let one fly, I simply could not wipe the smile off my face. Here was this 50 year old Toney Penna that just ripped one down the fairway with a slight fade and rolled out to a comfortable 250 yards, I was floored. It was easily the most pure feeling golf shot I had ever felt. There was no metalic ping piercing your ears, just a nice easy "thump" and the feel in my hands was unlike any drive I had ever hit, it was nirvana. Since then, I've built a nice collection of classic persimmon woods that get regular play and a few sets of classic irons from the past 40 years that rotate in and out as well. Golf has never been more enjoyable for me and it's not because I stopped focusing on score, I'm too competitive for that unfortunately. The old stuff may handicap you a couple of strokes, but I'm not making my living on the course, so what's it matter? 

What is fun is if you are on the range ( and no I do not hit range rocks with my persimmons) and start hitting a persimmon good. The clank guys ( modern drivers) will start looking because of the sound. One guy asked me why I was hitting that antique junk. I told him because I still can!!

[pingfool]

ISI nickels out again this morning. Getting ready for 6/25 ping vintage day