What irons do you think offer the best combination of forgiveness and appearance?

[leftylama]

Hard to beat T100 or Apex Pro

[Wardonation]

MIM hands down IMO

[nsxguy]

On 5/22/2021 at 10:29 PM, t20 said:

I'm planning on going through an iron fitting sometime in the near future. I would say irons are the strongest part of my game, but I'm definitely still in need of at least some margin of forgiveness. That being said, I am looking for something that can provide a decent amount of forgiveness while still providing some good feel and not looking overly chunky. I've been researching a lot of different clubs, and some that have caught my eye are Callaway Apex (or the deep cavity option if I need it), Mizuno jpx hot metals, or some towards the hollow body market like TM p790s. So, any recommendations on irons that look a little bit sleeker but still offer a reasonable amount of forgiveness to seek out and try?

 

Nobody can tell you what looks good to you.

 

Go to the Maltbie guide, check out the most forgiving irons and see if you like the look.

 

If you do, make a note of them and then go try 'em.

[adamnbomb]

Srixon ZX7

[RudeJim]

As of right now, here’s the top 12 most mentioned irons:

9 votes

ZX5

7 votes

i210

6 votes

T100 (not including T100S)

ZX7

5 votes

Z785

King Tour MiM

4 votes

Forged Tec

921 Hot Metal Pro

Apex

P790

MP20 MMC

0311P

[beluga99]

Another vote for Mizuno MP20 MMCs.  Still love mine after nearly 2 years.  Looks, feel and forgiveness.

[Nixhex524]

On 5/22/2021 at 7:31 PM, MelloYello said:

I feel like Srixon is king right now. I've seen tons of good players playing them locally. 

 

My z785 irons are shockingly friendly and the new models look basically identical. 

 

I agree with this.  Just about every time I play my 785s, I hit a shot that makes me say "that ended up way better than I hit it".  They are WAY more forgiving than they look while retaining a nice compact shape.

[BlackOut2]

P790 for me. Tried all the above mentioned in a fitting and had the best N/S dispersion of any of the clubs (for me). I tend to miss low or in the toe and lose very little on those misses.

[SwooshLT]

44 minutes ago, Nixhex524 said:

 

I agree with this.  Just about every time I play my 785s, I hit a shot that makes me say "that ended up way better than I hit it".  They are WAY more forgiving than they look while retaining a nice compact shape.

 

ALMOST as good as an i210 shot!😜😜😜

I kid, I kid

[Hawkeye77]

My Callaway Legacy Blacks are IMO the best combo in appearance and forgiveness I've ever had, and had many.

 

But, I've relegated them to the basement in favor of some zx7s and I'd say the zx7s have a little leg up in appearance and not quite the forgiveness, but they are now my main irons and my second favorites of all time.  I love them, but the Blacks aren't ever very far away.

[nilopol]

Ping i210,  unfortunately have to wait 8-10 weeks to get them.  Ordered 4/15 with expected ship date 6/15.  

[moadhia]

Ping g425 . 

[evoviiiyou]

Looking wise hard to beat the P790. All that performance/forgiveness in a blade looking head. No frills visually with lots of frills internally. I loved playing them a few seasons back. Still tops in my books for looks with ample forgiveness. 

[TonyDAnnunzio]

Another vote for the i210...  they are truly amazing irons that live up to the hype.

[Natural1]

ZX5. 2 months and about 20 rounds in. I think they are my favorite irons of the last 20 years or so.

[Keifer1988]

My honma 747p irons look amazing at address, switched to them from my Ping s57's and never looked back. 

[fundustrial]

No me mention of 0311Ts? 
 

I have the Gen 3s and think they look great (nice profile and topline without being intimidating) and find them more forgiving than my Apex 19 combo set. 

[Tiptx1122]

Need I say more

[dodgyman]

I’ll add another vote to ZX7s, and I don’t even play them. I love my MP20s, but of all the CB irons out there these may be the only ones that don’t look like a downgrade. 
 

Can’t speak for performance as I’ve not hit them, but they’re really nice irons for sure.

[Fairway14]

Ping Blueprint.

[philleeeeep]

On 5/23/2021 at 2:22 AM, Aviador Naval said:

IMO, nothing will ever top the 714 AP2 for a mix of decent appearance and feel and utterly shockingly ridiculous forgiveness for its size.  It was a true full GI iron in a medium sized 'players' chassis.

 

If you need something modern, try Srixon ZX5 or Ping i210.

truth be told, I got these back in 2015 after Spieth-mania, even though I was in the 15-18hc range. Thought I was "overreaching" with a players iron, but I was shocked how forgiving they were with such a compact size.

[TarHeelGolfer2325]

I had (still have) the 2019 P790s and I think they are the perfect combination. You can feel on the face where you mishit, to allow for correction, but it provides enough stability to no punish you too bad. I recently got the 770s but plan on keeping the 790s to possibly use in the 4/5 iron. 

[TeeJeff]

Apex DCB.  They look like Apex 21 but even more forgiving.

[driveandputtmachine]

On 5/24/2021 at 1:56 PM, Audi A-Fore said:

 

Bottom line, get the most forgiving club you're willing to look at. Everyone has a different definition of "forgiving", "feel", and "chunky", so you're the best person to narrow down the numerous suggestions here (almost all of which, I agree with). Top lines are subjective, depending on what iron you're coming from and used to. I have a friend who has played butter knife blades for his whole life including his Miura Tournament blades, he went to a cavity back Miura in the 4-5i and says "it feels like cheating", but even T100 toplines are "too chunky" for him (which I find laughable). 

 

For me, GIR's are an area I'm always trying to maximize, but I also play a lot of partial/touch shots from <140y in. In my longer irons, I'm mostly thinking, high and straight, so I want more forgiveness and care less about feel. If this rings true to you, I would recommend a combo set as many have said here, this will give you the look/feel you are asking for on the shorter irons (even if it is just 8i,9i, + wedges), then something you think is more forgiving in the top end (again, even if it's just 4-5i). Most manufacturers have skewed their offerings to be flexible to blend sets as needed.

 

For reference, I play the Apex '19 combo w/ the cavity back Pro's up to AW-7i and standard Apex in the rest of the set. I like the new Apex's, but would probably blend in the Apex TCB or Forged in the short irons, as I prefer a non-hollow iron for the shorter clubs. I also like the Srixon ZX7/ZX5 combo, and have been a fan of the JPX line for awhile. That said, I have no need to change now, the Apex 19's give me everything I want. 

Anyone not playing high level amateur tournaments or professionally for the most part would benefit from anything over 140 or 150ish going for the middle of the green.  Forgive this generalization as I know there are great iron players who have tons of tee shot penalties, or can't putt very well, but these are few and far between.

 

I played Division 1 college golf, tried my hand as a professional, got my status back and played in some state and us amateur events in my mid to late 20's.   Even in state events I watched guys shoot at flags they shouldn't.  The pros get away with it for two reasons.

1. Their swings are VERY grooved.

2. When they do short side themselves they are getting up and down for par well over the majority of the time.

 

Pros and elite level am's ability to hit greens, hit the ball close, and get up and down when they don't is what sets them apart from state level am folks and most clubs club champion level type players.

 

Since getting my wrist fixed and aiming for the center of the green, or a part of the green that will minimize my mistake, my handicap has dropped tremendously again.  After wrist surgery I was a 5.8.  I am now creeping back to scratch, and it is because I know my limits.  I don't practice my short game(at all) so when I miss a green I get up and down maybe 35-40% of the time.  

 

Arccos shows my strokes gained as such versus a +1 handicap over my last 7 rounds as.......

1. My driving as a +0.3(mainly affected my minimizing distance on doglegs to always have a shot at the green, longer drives would make it go up) Distance is 0.0, accuracy is +0.7 and penalties takes away -0.4.

2. My approach game is a +0.1 (I do not hit as many close to the hole as it thinks I should) This has improved by 1.1 since I enacted the middle of the green equation. 50-100 is -0.2, 100-150 is +0.3, 150-200 is +0.3, and 200+ is -0.3

3. Short game is a -0.2 (See even Arccos agrees I should practice my short game. (This has improved 1.3 to get to negative 0.2).  up and down from 0-25 is only 47%, and up and down from 25-50 is only 30%.

4. Putting as a +0.5.  0-10 is +0.1, 10-25 is 0.0, 25-50 is +0.3, and no putts from over 50 feet.  Putts per hole is 1.7, putts per round is 31.1, and putts per GIR is 1.8.

 

Having Arccos is so eye opening as far as strokes gained goes, and tells you where you are killing yourself, and where to work on your game.

[ChipNRun]

On 5/22/2021 at 9:29 PM, t20 said:

That being said, I am looking for something that can provide a decent amount of forgiveness while still providing some good feel and not looking overly chunky.

 

Maybe, an iron you have been fitted for?

[lefthack]

This.

 

Edited June 25, 2021 by lefthack

[Shanker84]

I've got a black combo set of Hogans, 4-7 Ptx Pro and 8-pw icon blades and love them. I'm a 15 handicap and a don't have a problem hitting them although that being said, I'd say they probably excel more in the looks department than the forgiveness department. 

[Stinger83]

IMO the older Titleist AP2's were as good as it gets for a medium profile club with a lot of help. 

 

The newer ones are less forgiving

[Moonlightgrm]

I like the Titleist t100 and if you need more forgiveness, the t200 is a great iron, too. I was torn between both but went with the more forgiving iron. I like the performance that I am seeing with my t200 irons. 

[nlinneman20]

Wilson D7 Forged