Irons that work on very tight fairways

[Bogeyboy15]

This summer I bought a set of Cleveland Halo Launcher irons. I was playing in North Carolina off lush fairways and they worked great, very happy for the most part. I am now down in Florida playing on some real tight fairways Launchers aren't working so well. I think I need to pick up a set of irons that will suit me better in these conditions. Any suggestions? appreciate it in advance.

[gdb99]

Thinner sole. Or just play your current irons a little back in your stance to get a more descending blow.

 

[scooterhd2]

Srixon. Great off tight AZ fairways. 

[lefthack]

I agree, thinner sole, but you will be giving up some forgiveness.

[lefty1978]

Any Mizuno blade made in the past 20 years.

[LeoLeo99]

It's not only the clubs.  You can get away with slightly fat contact on lush fairways with a fluff lie.  

[abenjami]

17 minutes ago, lefty1978 said:

Any Mizuno blade made in the past 20 years.

 

Or MMC's.

[bobfoster]

Actually - I just had the same experience. Played mostly this year (didn't travel much) on northeast courses with lush, mostly bentgrass fairways. Played last week, however, in Florida - poa grass (tight, thicker root systems). I already use clubs with relatively thin bottoms (Mizzy MP-20 MMCs).

 

I don't change clubs, I change my swing. In the north, I'm a digger. Swing relatively upright, hit down hard and take a pretty deep divot. The same swing on poa would hurt my wrists, forearms, and elbows, so my swing flattens, becomes something closer to a picker rather than a digger - much smaller divot, and not nearly as deep. My $0.02.

Edited November 17, 2021 by bobfoster

[TwistedSister]

Srixon  765 or 565's 

[Pepperturbo]

1 hour ago, Bogeyboy15 said:

I need to pick up a set of irons that will suit me better in these conditions. Any suggestions?

Tight, firm fairways call for low bounce, sharper leading edge and narrow sole, irons.  The problem with those irons, most people that play digger type irons and conditions, don't adapt their swing mechanics very well to sweeper conditions.  It's not that people can't adapt, many do.  Its most people don't have swing flexibly or ability to flatten their swing on command.

 

I play 620 MBs with slightly shaved soles and sharp leading edge, so sweeping and spinning the ball under any conditions works nicely for me.  Tighter and firmer the conditions, the better.

Edited November 17, 2021 by Pepperturbo

[gdb99]

Just another thought, I don’t change irons when I go from my home course in New England on bentgrass to South Carolina on Bermuda grass. Maybe you just want to buy a new set of clubs. 😁

Edited November 17, 2021 by gdb99

[R5Two]

I'm going off the wall here but Ben Hogan is having a great sale. Get some blades! 

[toddba11]

Wilson Staff Blades 2020, thinner sole, but nice for tighter lies…………and not that hard to hit……..

Edited November 17, 2021 by toddba11

[Sean124]

These are fantastic off tight fairways. 😜

[animalgolfs]

I used Ping Eye 2+ irons from 1988 to 2003 when I lived in FL 

 

The only other set that really worked were MP14 

 

Rolled leading edge- bounce & back grinds.

 

Think Cleveland Dynamic Sole grind

 

[wam78]

Wilson Staff MB or CB.  Fantastic irons!  The CB have a little more forgiving sole, but not overly wide.  They have a really nice sole that glides through the turf.  Had no issues with them in Dallas playing off hard pan.

[BombinJim]

On 11/16/2021 at 9:38 PM, Sean124 said:

These are fantastic off tight fairways. 😜

Yes they are!

[Kmagnuss]

I just switched from Mizuno MP33 and MP20 blades to some Titleist 718 AP2's...  I used to be a picker/sweeper with the Mizuno irons but with the worn leading edge on the AP2's it's A LOT easier to take a smooth divot here in FL.

[lefty1430]

Watch Lee Trevino on YouTube.  He learned to play on Texas sun-baked hardpan.  Played the ball back in his stance, open face and stance.  Result was a low cut with tons of spin.  Worked for his wedge play as well.  

[Reich_PS]

I love hitting miura's but I will say the best club I have ever hit and would trade my clubs for are the latest Ben Hogan Icon irons!  Those were so pure and glide through the turf.

[monty09]

34 minutes ago, lefty1430 said:

Watch Lee Trevino on YouTube.  He learned to play on Texas sun-baked hardpan.  Played the ball back in his stance, open face and stance.  Result was a low cut with tons of spin.  Worked for his wedge play as well.  

 

 

 

THE GOAT

[scooterhd2]

On 11/16/2021 at 5:06 PM, bobfoster said:

Actually - I just had the same experience. Played mostly this year (didn't travel much) on northeast courses with lush, mostly bentgrass fairways. Played last week, however, in Florida - poa grass (tight, thicker root systems). I already use clubs with relatively thin bottoms (Mizzy MP-20 MMCs).

 

I don't change clubs, I change my swing. In the north, I'm a digger. Swing relatively upright, hit down hard and take a pretty deep divot. The same swing on poa would hurt my wrists, forearms, and elbows, so my swing flattens, becomes something closer to a picker rather than a digger - much smaller divot, and not nearly as deep. My $0.02.

 

Agree that a swing change may be necessary for different conditions, but how much of that is the club allowing you to make those changes? MMCs are pretty versatile. If you had T300s it may not be as easy. 

 

[Milfordlefty]

On 11/16/2021 at 5:40 PM, Bogeyboy15 said:

This summer I bought a set of Cleveland Halo Launcher irons. I was playing in North Carolina off lush fairways and they worked great, very happy for the most part. I am now down in Florida playing on some real tight fairways Launchers aren't working so well. I think I need to pick up a set of irons that will suit me better in these conditions. Any suggestions? appreciate it in advance.

Take a look at the Cleveland Launcher UHX (prior model) or Launcher XL (new model) irons. They have the V Sole tech like Srixon irons (Srixon is parent company to Cleveland) and you can match up same shaft/grip/loft/lie as on your Halo Launcher irons. Launcher UHX as pre-owned to save some $ or Launcher XL if you want some shiny, new things.

[larryd3]

Titleist T200 or T100S.  

[bobfoster]

21 minutes ago, scooterhd2 said:

 

Agree that a swing change may be necessary for different conditions, but how much of that is the club allowing you to make those changes? MMCs are pretty versatile. If you had T300s it may not be as easy. 

 

 

Fair point. Kind of interesting - people commonly talk about whether a club is forgiving vs. not forgiving. But grass itself is the same. Northern grass (IMO) is more forgiving. The denser southern grasses (used because they can survive hot weather a lot better) requires a bit more precision. Better to have a narrower sole, relatively sharp leading edge and minimal bounce.  

[mcounci2]

Your launchers will be fine- just give the ball a descending blow.  Other clubhead designs are going to be even less forgiving to what must be thick hits.

[scooterhd2]

10 minutes ago, bobfoster said:

 

Fair point. Kind of interesting - people commonly talk about whether a club is forgiving vs. not forgiving. But grass itself is the same. Northern grass (IMO) is more forgiving. The denser southern grasses (used because they can survive hot weather a lot better) requires a bit more precision. Better to have a narrower sole, relatively sharp leading edge and minimal bounce.  

 

Exactly. Remember Morikawa's iron change before winning the Open on firm turf? He switched from P730s to P7MCs. 

 

 

There’s a marginal difference in the sole geometry between P7MC and P730. While they both share a compact profile and sole width that’s on the thinner side, the P7MC features a sharper leading edge than the P730, with marginally less bounce. The slight change in sole geometry was helping Morikawa strike the ball fractionally better with improved turf interaction. What pro and Tour rep also learned was that the firm turf conditions in England were also causing Morikawa to launch his P730s fractionally lower than what he was used to seeing back home in the States. The opposite result played out with P7MC during testing, where Morikawa saw a fractionally higher launch than he was used to seeing back home.

[Jifmoli]

Really, people suggesting blades or tour player clubs to someone using halo irons? If the poster is good enough to hit blades, he can hit halos from tight lies as well. 

 

Don't hit the halos as if it is a hybrid but as an iron, so ball first turf after. If it is a visual thing then get more traditional looking irons. Srixon v sole is good but don't get the 7 series unless you hit it like Matsuyama. I have an older set of z355, ,must be from around 2014: v sole, forgiving and look nice behind the ball. But any game improvement iron will do

[Soccerrick10]

If you are looking for something a little less expensive because you won’t be using them full time, try the PXG 0211 ST.  They are a very forgiving blade with great turf interaction.  I have a set from 7-G for those exact conditions.

 

Best of all, they are on sale at $100 per club.  Really a hidden gem.

[Billfitz]

On 11/16/2021 at 5:56 PM, gdb99 said:

Thinner sole. Or just play your current irons a little back in your stance to get a more descending blow.

 

That. It's as much the technique as the clubs. A shallow sweep swing works fine when there's enough grass under the ball, but when there isn't a steeper swing makes it easier to hit the ball before hitting the ground. I sweep my hybrids and long irons, moving the ball back as I go with less club. That results in a steeper swing with the shorter clubs, and it shows in the divot. I have none with the hybrids, a very shallow divot if any with the 5 and 6 iron, and progressively larger divots as I go from the 7 to the wedges. If I had to deal with firm conditions I'd move the ball further back with the longer irons than on softer conditions. If I always played on hard pan I might not even use hybrids, just long irons with short soles. Moving the ball back tends to promote a fade, so you may have to readjust your aim to take that into account. When I want to fade with the longer clubs I move the ball back.