Best Forged Game Improvement Iron

[morgan1819]

14 hours ago, NRJyzr said:

The final MPF score is not a measure of forgiveness, but instead a measure of how close the design is to those principles Ralph Maltby believes in.  Those being a low CG with as much distance as possible from the hosel.

 

The data I was using comes from the same place.  I'm just ignoring the final score.  🙂

Great point.  For example, a hockey stick with a lead strip along the bottom would be the MPF king, but would be a nightmare to golf with.  So MPF needs to be looked at with a grain of salt.

The COG measurement, and a few other data points Maltby publishes, work well for comparing clubs though.  So if you have a few clubs you already hit well, and some you don't ...  you may be able to find a trend in the numbers.  Maltby (can) potentially be very useful in that regard.

[Humble]

Misread the title 

Edited December 18, 2021 by Humble

[brew4eagle]

2 hours ago, NRJyzr said:

 

This is the DBM he mentioned:

https://www.golfworks.com/maltby-dbm-forged-iron-heads/p/ma0225/

And here's a couple more images of the DBM Forged...

 

[Cactus Jack]

1 hour ago, Cactus Jack said:

This thread caught my attention so I spent a few hours demoing most irons mentioned by the group. 
 

In my hands the top three contenders were the Mizuno JPX 921 Forged, Srixon ZX5, and Honma TR20Ps. 
 

With the same shaft all three performed identically. Across the board, ball speed, launch, peak height, spin, decent angle standard deviations overlapped and without a launch monitor one wouldn’t be able to see a difference. Forgiveness in terms off ball speed drops on poor strikes were equal too. 
 

The only difference I could identify were subjective personal preferences. 
 

JPX 921 Forged:

 

Looks: Confidence inspiring better player looks. Some offset and a medium top line make them inviting to put behind the ball. 
 

Feel: I loved the feel. I would compare the feel to my T100s. They are dense, no hit of tech click, just solid. 
 

Srixon ZX5:

 

Looks: I played a set this year and think they look very nice. I like the straight crisp lines. The square top line and head profile frame the ball nicely. The amount of offset is a bit more than I prefer, especially in the long irons, so I bent my weak to eliminate a bit. 
 

Feel: They feel good, but back to back testing against other models, exposed the game improvement/techy design a bit. Compared to others I found the feel to be very bland. In my hands they lacked the substance of the Mizuno and speed of the Honma. Also, they felt similar across the face while the other models provided a bit more feedback in terms of strike location. 
 

Honma TR20P:

 

Looks: These look like players irons. The head is tight and compact. They look more similar to my T100s than they do game improvement. Compared to the JPX and ZX5, the Honma is smaller and looks more precise. 
 

Feel: Fast. If Miura and a P770 had a baby, it would resemble the TR20P. The feel off the face has a sparkle clack, not click, but feels fast as hell. In terms of actual ball speeds all clubs were equal, but the sensation of speed off the Honma was unique. 
 

FYI, the PGA Tour Super Store is blowing out Honma gear. Off the rack sets can be had for under $600, as opposed to the $1K+ for Srixon and Mizunos. 

For those that are interested below are a few comparison pics of my 2021 T100s and my Honma TR20Ps.
 

The Honma has a much more GI design, thicker top line and wider sole, but it’s not offensive. Offset appears to be similar, and at a minimum the offset on the Honma is not obvious like the ZX5. Hitting the Honma and Titleist side by the Honma’s are much more forgiving, especially thin/toe, and to my surprise feel extremely similar to the T100s. The T100 strike might feel a bit heavier, more mass behind impact, but centered I’d have a hard time telling them apart. 
 

 

[third-times-a-charm]

8 hours ago, Cactus Jack said:

For those that are interested below are a few comparison pics of my 2021 T100s and my Honma TR20Ps.
 

The Honma has a much more GI design, thicker top line and wider sole, but it’s not offensive. Offset appears to be similar, and at a minimum the offset on the Honma is not obvious like the ZX5. Hitting the Honma and Titleist side by the Honma’s are much more forgiving, especially thin/toe, and to my surprise feel extremely similar to the T100s. The T100 strike might feel a bit heavier, more mass behind impact, but centered I’d have a hard time telling them apart. 
 

 

 

I also just sent you a message because I'm hoping I can get this from my local store but they show $999 online -

 

But did you compare the TR20P to the V and why did you choose the P? The V seems like it would be more like the T100 and etc and the TR20P more like the P790/Apex?

[third-times-a-charm]

Ok so I'm gonna jump on what @Cactus Jack has been saying here. I just went to my local PGATSS thanks to him and grabbed a set of the TR20P irons.

 

I've been looking for a new set of forged irons with some forgiveness. It's a tough category to satisfy most people with. Some guys want something that looks like a blade but will perform like an SGI and everything in between.

 

These have a thicker topline - more so than the P770 or Apex 21 Pro - but still look very good behind the ball. Honma is VERY good in the look department on all their irons and even their 'X' series irons have less offset and good design that hides the cavity backs. The short blade length is great as well on these, same as my old irons.

 

I'm coming from Apex 19 Pros and I could hit them well but my miss is a thin strike and the Apex 19 Pros were not good with that miss. They have a high VCOG according to Malty's MPF and it seems that didnt help with that type of miss. There is no data for Honma irons from Maltby but from my wife's TW-X irons and her thin miss and mine - plus anecdotal data provided by the TXG review video on the TR20 iron series - it seems these are extremely good irons for people who miss the ball thin/low on the face.

 

I went out to play the front 9 today and wow what a difference from my Apex 19 pros. My usual trash strikes were turned into playable shots! Ive never seen an irons in this size class that has this much forgiveness to be honest. Distance is fantastic as well. Almost no loss on fat shots and toe strikes.

 

Feel is another story. They just dont have the one-piece forged feel - even less so than the Apex 19 Pros. I demo'd the P770/Mizuno HMB/Apex 21 Pro a few days ago and out of those 3 I would say these feel the most like the P770s. They are hollow with no foam and you can feel it. To be honest I dont mind because they STILL provide good feedback. It's not the SAME feedback of a 1-piece forging but it gives you the same idea. You can tell what is heel and what is toe and what is thin, but the sound and feel is slightly different. YMMV on that but personally I'm ok with it for what else the head provides.

 

TL;DR:

 

Short blade length

Actually forgiving

Topline is acceptable

Feel is good

Distance is great

 

At $599? Steal of the century.

[third-times-a-charm]

Some comparison pics with my Apex 19 Pros

 

[braincramp52]

I'm done chasing forgiving irons that have great feel. I feel I've got that set with my AP2's. 

[JMJ5150]

P770 - If you want to improve your ballstriking at some point in the future and not mask your bad shots forever..

[drumdude96]

Maltby is not getting nearly enough love in this thread.  Too much brand snobbery.  Maltby makes fantastic forged irons that are also very forgiving.  And they are inexpensive.  It's just too bad I'm a lefty or I'd probably have 12 sets of them by now. Lol.

[propman]

+1. Marketing moves clubs, a captain obvious comment.

[Tupperwolf]

On 12/18/2021 at 8:28 AM, brew4eagle said:

And here's a couple more images of the DBM Forged...

 

I absolutely love the looks of those, I've contemplated building a half set numerous times, it would cost less than $350...

[brew4eagle]

2 hours ago, Tupperwolf said:

I absolutely love the looks of those, I've contemplated building a half set numerous times, it would cost less than $350...

I built 5-P with Nippon 1050GH and Tour Velvet 360 white grips for $387.  Best $400 I've spent on the game.

[Tupperwolf]

That's fantastic. I was adding heads, shafts and grips to my cart to see the result - if you eschew the $35 and up shafts and $13 grips and go with a build like you're describing it's super cheap. Someday!

[sandpounder]

On 11/24/2021 at 4:20 AM, monks66 said:

I currently play the Mizzy JPX Pro 825's, love them, but I dont play as much golf these days, wondering if there is a forged iron out there with more forgiveness....thoughts?

Honma Beres 07 irons.  Japan forged.  Excellent game improvement irons.  I have the 2 star edition 6-11, AW, SW.  Best irons I have ever owned.  Pricey at $350 a club but there is nothing that compares imo.

[1puttTUT]

On 11/24/2021 at 8:11 AM, mattt987 said:

If you want to stick with the Mizuno line, try the JPX 921 forged

 

Unless you're a lefty 😪

[reider69]

I owned a set of Maltby DBMs at the same time I owned a set of JPX 900 forged. The Mizunos looked better, felt better, were much longer and more forgiving.  The only thing I liked about the DBMs better was the black color.  The DBMs spun a ton and toe strikes were very penal and that is my miss.  YMMV.

[NRJyzr]

43 minutes ago, reider69 said:

I owned a set of Maltby DBMs at the same time I owned a set of JPX 900 forged. The Mizunos looked better, felt better, were much longer and more forgiving.  The only thing I liked about the DBMs better was the black color.  The DBMs spun a ton and toe strikes were very penal and that is my miss.  YMMV.

 

Of course they're longer, based on club numbers, they're stronger lofted.

 

[brew4eagle]

4 hours ago, reider69 said:

I owned a set of Maltby DBMs at the same time I owned a set of JPX 900 forged. The Mizunos looked better, felt better, were much longer and more forgiving.  The only thing I liked about the DBMs better was the black color.  The DBMs spun a ton and toe strikes were very penal and that is my miss.  YMMV.

I could see toe misses being a problem on the DBM, it's a pretty long blade length so if you're out on the toe it probably twists a lot.  I'm a sweeper and my miss is thin, DBMs shine for a sweeper with the ultra low vertical COG is what I'm guessing.  Ball launches so high, so effortlessly.  It's the first clubhead I've found that looks so blade like at address, but is still sweeper friendly.  I really like the way the hosel blends to the top line, makes the whole face look usable.  Inspires confidence. 

[nlinneman20]

Wilson D7 Forged

[Slick Nick]

On 11/26/2021 at 10:51 AM, blopar said:

Srixon ZX5 or PXG 0211   I have a set if each.  Right now I'm lovin' the PXG's.

Are the PXG 0211 Forged? 

 

On 11/26/2021 at 10:51 AM, blopar said:

Srixon ZX5 or PXG 0211   I have a set if each.  Right now I'm lovin' the PXG's.

 

[ChipNRun]

On 11/24/2021 at 6:20 AM, monks66 said:

I currently play the Mizzy JPX Pro 825's, love them

 

You don't show your club mix. If the 825s start out at 4i and 5i, consider having the shafts softstepped, or maybe go to the next lighter shaft in the model. This would improve your launch, which many people need help on at the low end. Unless something has gone wrong with your swing, you can probably still handle 7i on up.

[DB Golf]

On 1/3/2022 at 2:13 PM, drumdude96 said:

Maltby is not getting nearly enough love in this thread.  Too much brand snobbery.  Maltby makes fantastic forged irons that are also very forgiving.  And they are inexpensive.  It's just too bad I'm a lefty or I'd probably have 12 sets of them by now. Lol.

I hit the Maltby TS2’s today for the first time and they were butter. Felt every bit as good as my buddies’ TM P790’s and PXG 0311P Gen4’s. 
 

Can’t wait for the TS3’s!

[dekez]

On 12/18/2021 at 10:38 AM, morgan1819 said:

Great point.  For example, a hockey stick with a lead strip along the bottom would be the MPF king, but would be a nightmare to golf with.  So MPF needs to be looked at with a grain of salt.

The COG measurement, and a few other data points Maltby publishes, work well for comparing clubs though.  So if you have a few clubs you already hit well, and some you don't ...  you may be able to find a trend in the numbers.  Maltby (can) potentially be very useful in that regard.

 

That's exactly how I use it too.  Find your Goldilocks "MPF Range" and stick to irons in that range.