14 handicap desperately needing new irons pls help

[gdb99]

On 11/19/2022 at 2:43 AM, ovodeano said:

I got rid of my G425 irons w dynamic golds 105s. shaft was way too light and flexible. didn’t like how chunky the heads are. need something with  some bounce and great turf interaction for someone who tends to hit under the ball

Ping irons generally have more bounce than other manufactures.

Sounds like you have some speed if those shafts are too flexible.

I would go to a store and hit as many sets as you can, to see what looks good to your eye.

Set up a fitting to find an appropriate shaft, and test a few of the heads you liked the look of.

Then set up some lessons with a local Pro. 

Don't hit under the ball! I don't even know what that means! 👍

Good luck and enjoy!

[ovodeano]

1 hour ago, gdb99 said:

Ping irons generally have more bounce than other manufactures.

Sounds like you have some speed if those shafts are too flexible.

I would go to a store and hit as many sets as you can, to see what looks good to your eye.

Set up a fitting to find an appropriate shaft, and test a few of the heads you liked the look of.

Then set up some lessons with a local Pro. 

Don't hit under the ball! I don't even know what that means! 👍

Good luck and enjoy!

problem is I booked a Fitting and the a****** fitter wouldn’t recommend anything until he said I got lessons to my swing lol. waste of 175 

[gdb99]

13 minutes ago, ovodeano said:

problem is I booked a Fitting and the a****** fitter wouldn’t recommend anything until he said I got lessons to my swing lol. waste of 175 

They charged you for a fitting that didn't happen???

I would be demanding my money back.

If you had the fitting, and he didn't want to tell you what to get, I would buy the head you liked the look and feel of and the shafts that felt the best and had descent numbers, then book a lesson package. If you REALLY need new irons right away.

Or, get some lessons with your Ping irons. You may end up liking the Pings. They will get you into low single digit handicap range easy.

[Jim E]

14 minutes ago, ovodeano said:

problem is I booked a Fitting and the a****** fitter wouldn’t recommend anything until he said I got lessons to my swing lol. waste of 175 

Buy whatever irons you want. If you have at least 80 mph swing speed with a 7 iron you can play anything. Forgiveness is BS. Bigger GI irons only help people with slow swing speeds. Go try the irons you like to look at and try a few different shafts. Buy, play, and have fun.😀

[North Butte]

2 hours ago, gdb99 said:

Don't hit under the ball! I don't even know what that means! 👍

 

I only know of one thing under the ball and that's the ground. If you hit that, it'll hurt you more than it hurts the ground I assure you. 

[ovodeano]

2 hours ago, gdb99 said:

They charged you for a fitting that didn't happen???

I would be demanding my money back.

If you had the fitting, and he didn't want to tell you what to get, I would buy the head you liked the look and feel of and the shafts that felt the best and had descent numbers, then book a lesson package. If you REALLY need new irons right away.

Or, get some lessons with your Ping irons. You may end up liking the Pings. They will get you into low single digit handicap range easy.

ended up sending my g425 irons back couldn’t stand them. playing my old cf16 until I find new ones 

[bird_4_3]

I would not sleep on the Cleveland Xl Launcher irons.  I have 2 sets and they are fantastic irons.  

[vtpachyderm]

7 hours ago, ovodeano said:

problem is I booked a Fitting and the a****** fitter wouldn’t recommend anything until he said I got lessons to my swing lol. waste of 175 

Not what you wanted to hear I get that, but he saved you a pretty good chunk of change if he identified that you have to fix your swing before buying a new set of clubs. If you have all the data, nothing stopping you from making a purchase based on the fitting, it's just that he is being honest enough to say whatever he recommends will probably be irrelevant as your swing gets better.

 

I'm assuming the fitter came with a few good recommendations which is why you chose to go there and thus he's just asking to be paid for his time that he took to let you try different head shaft combos. I don't get how people can think because a fitting didn't work out that they shouldn't be compensated for the time spent - if you make a purchase, then yes, the fitting should be discounted, but if you can't find something that fits - you should still pay for the time.

[T_Golf_23]

On 11/20/2022 at 7:53 PM, ovodeano said:

problem is I booked a Fitting and the a****** fitter wouldn’t recommend anything until he said I got lessons to my swing lol. waste of 175 

Have heard that before….. again…. I am not a huge fan of mainstream fittings for so many reasons . 

Edited November 23, 2022 by T_Golf_23

[T_Golf_23]

On 11/17/2022 at 6:27 PM, ovodeano said:

I'm a 14 handicap looking for new irons between game improvement and player distance irons. the ones im currently eyeing are the 923 HMpro, t200, t100, 223, aoex 21, and lastly the zx5. My iron striking is a bit above average for my handicap. would love some suggestions.

Have you considered just going full ho’ and buying all the sets and playing them. And then you keep them for when one misbehaves. That way you can just keep rotating sets…… it’s clearly the quickest way to drop your handicap. 

[el_caporal]

On 11/20/2022 at 10:15 PM, ovodeano said:

ended up sending my g425 irons back couldn’t stand them. playing my old cf16 until I find new ones 

Not sure I’m much help but refreshing to hear someone else hated that iron lol. I almost bought a set blind but ended up hitting a few heads while demoing shafts… Hit 3 balls w/ them (and “hit” is generous)… “get this f*cking club FAR away from me!” And I’m long Ping loyal but after 3 years off, fitted into PXG 0311P in August, love the heads but we shafted/ weighted into my pre-injury 25yo swing/ strength (KBS Tour 120S, +2sw, mid grips), which I thought I’d be playing back to. Realized recently, not ideal/ possible… or a long ways off. Hence, ongoing shaft demos and PXG’s temporarily sidelined. 

 

Well, pops is coming in town and not flying/ shipping his bag… so I found a set of i-E1’s in great shape for $210. Played 36 w/ them today, and 2nd ride was my best so far (84, as ex-12 playing at ~18). I really think PXGs are in a class of their own, had considered bailing… but now just can’t wait to dial in on the shafts (PX IO, Modus3… dark horse is SteelFiber). Will say that 923, ZX5, and i525 all had some pretty nice merit through my first round of head comps/ shaft testing. 

[Pastit]

On 11/23/2022 at 11:17 PM, T_Golf_23 said:

Have you considered just going full ho’ and buying all the sets and playing them. And then you keep them for when one misbehaves. That way you can just keep rotating sets…… it’s clearly the quickest way to drop your handicap. 

It would be slightly cheaper to buy a bin of last year’s demo irons from a fitter and work through them. 

[dekez]

While well intentioned and good advice, I dont think "get fit" is very helpful.  The OP is looking for suggestions for clubs to try based on the experiences of his peer group.  We might as well not have a forum if every answer is "get fit."

[bigdawg]

1 hour ago, dekez said:

While well intentioned and good advice, I dont think "get fit" is very helpful.  The OP is looking for suggestions for clubs to try based on the experiences of his peer group.  We might as well not have a forum if every answer is "get fit."

 

Agree with this. That's why people come on this Equipment forum - i know thats why i do. 

 

And the poster wouldn't be the first person to get fit to a set of irons off a matt (indoor or outdoor), post some great numbers, everything looking good - then go out on the course and find turf interaction to be a huge - unaccounted for - variable. So fitting isn't a cast iron guarantee of course success. 

 

So, he is looking for suggestions on where to begin his search. Let's give him that. 

Edited November 29, 2022 by bigdawg
typo

[hd.softail]

OP, been playing golf 30+ years and I'm a 6 hdcp who plays chunky, offset GI irons that are 15 years old. Here are a few of my thoughts for what it's worth.

 

-In my opinion and I think as was suggested by another poster, what irons I play is likely the least important part of my bag, provided I have been fitted for the correct lie, shaft and swingweight. Don't forget SWT, a very important and overlooked element in my opinion. Probably why my irons are 15+ years old.

 

-Play the biggest and most forgiving irons that still look good to you. One of the best Pros I ever got lessons for played GI Wilson Fat Shafts, Crossfield plays ZX4s and take a quick look at the number of Pros playing PING I230 irons. If Pros are playing I230s, that means I should be playing something more forgiving like the I525 or G425. If Srixon Pros are putting ZX5 in their 4 and 5 irons, then I should be putting ZX4s or Hybrids up there at least.

 

-I'm going to finally get some new irons this winter and will get ZX4 MK2, JPX 923 Hot Metal or T300. In my opinion and to answer your question, at 14 I would be looking at: ZX4 MK2, JPX 923 Hot Metal, Titleist T300, Callaway DCB, PING G430. "IF" you wanted to make the game harder, I would go no less forgiving than: ZX5, Hot Metal Pro, I525. Personally I think the T200, Apex and I230 aren't forgiving enough, at least not for me. I hit the ZX5, Hot Metal Pro and I525 and felt they still weren't forgiving enough for what I wanted out of my irons.

 

All that said and in the end, you can play whatever iron you want really. It's up to you what you value in your golf game for the final decision but I will reiterate, the most important decision you'll make is to get fitted for the correct shaft and set the lie angles/SWT properly.

 

Good luck!

[Wham49]

just looked at a set of t200 at the local play it again sports. look nice then noticed that the P wedge was 43 degrees, that is crazy, why would people need that low of loft. I still use a 48 lofted P wedge 

 

so looks like if you play them you will need like 5 wedges to cover the gaps

 

 

[Brobespierre]

On 11/20/2022 at 9:15 PM, ovodeano said:

ended up sending my g425 irons back couldn’t stand them. playing my old cf16 until I find new ones 

 

I had the same experience with G-425. I don't really know why, all of my internet research suggested they would be great, but I just could not get a long with them.

 

I went to i210 and they were much better in terms of strikes, but I was not a good enough ball striker, misshits were too punishing, so I eventually switched out to ZX5 and have been very happy.

 

If you are unable to get a long with the G425, it's something to do with your delivery and miss that is not syncing with the club, because G425 is one of the most forgiving irons out there right now.

 

Could be the sole width, could be the length of the blade that is affecting your set up based on how you see the club next to the ball, etc. etc. and all the things folks have said.

 

Recommendation #1 - stick with the CFS 16 until you can get your strikes in a better place and then go back to a fitter.

 

Recommendation #2 - if you REALLY want something new, stay away from T-100 and T-100S, you're not there yet. T-200 has a shorter blade length than the one you mentioned, so if you have a toe miss it will likely not be your friend. Go to a golf shop and hit the ZX5 (i'm biased to these) and the HMP and the P-790 and any other Player's distance and see which ones you like and you can get a no-upcharge 120 gram shaft since the 105 was too light, and just go from there.

 

Recommendation #3 - After you test the player's distance irons at the shop, go on the bay and get a used set of that iron's previous version with a 120 gram shaft for half the price. 921 Hot metal pros with LZ 5.5's are pretty cheap.

 

 

[ovodeano]

11 hours ago, Brobespierre said:

 

I had the same experience with G-425. I don't really know why, all of my internet research suggested they would be great, but I just could not get a long with them.

 

I went to i210 and they were much better in terms of strikes, but I was not a good enough ball striker, misshits were too punishing, so I eventually switched out to ZX5 and have been very happy.

 

If you are unable to get a long with the G425, it's something to do with your delivery and miss that is not syncing with the club, because G425 is one of the most forgiving irons out there right now.

 

Could be the sole width, could be the length of the blade that is affecting your set up based on how you see the club next to the ball, etc. etc. and all the things folks have said.

 

Recommendation #1 - stick with the CFS 16 until you can get your strikes in a better place and then go back to a fitter.

 

Recommendation #2 - if you REALLY want something new, stay away from T-100 and T-100S, you're not there yet. T-200 has a shorter blade length than the one you mentioned, so if you have a toe miss it will likely not be your friend. Go to a golf shop and hit the ZX5 (i'm biased to these) and the HMP and the P-790 and any other Player's distance and see which ones you like and you can get a no-upcharge 120 gram shaft since the 105 was too light, and just go from there.

 

Recommendation #3 - After you test the player's distance irons at the shop, go on the bay and get a used set of that iron's previous version with a 120 gram shaft for half the price. 921 Hot metal pros with LZ 5.5's are pretty cheap.

 

 

went ahead and got the 923 hot metal with project x LS

[ovodeano]

11 hours ago, hd.softail said:

OP, been playing golf 30+ years and I'm a 6 hdcp who plays chunky, offset GI irons that are 15 years old. Here are a few of my thoughts for what it's worth.

 

-In my opinion and I think as was suggested by another poster, what irons I play is likely the least important part of my bag, provided I have been fitted for the correct lie, shaft and swingweight. Don't forget SWT, a very important and overlooked element in my opinion. Probably why my irons are 15+ years old.

 

-Play the biggest and most forgiving irons that still look good to you. One of the best Pros I ever got lessons for played GI Wilson Fat Shafts, Crossfield plays ZX4s and take a quick look at the number of Pros playing PING I230 irons. If Pros are playing I230s, that means I should be playing something more forgiving like the I525 or G425. If Srixon Pros are putting ZX5 in their 4 and 5 irons, then I should be putting ZX4s or Hybrids up there at least.

 

-I'm going to finally get some new irons this winter and will get ZX4 MK2, JPX 923 Hot Metal or T300. In my opinion and to answer your question, at 14 I would be looking at: ZX4 MK2, JPX 923 Hot Metal, Titleist T300, Callaway DCB, PING G430. "IF" you wanted to make the game harder, I would go no less forgiving than: ZX5, Hot Metal Pro, I525. Personally I think the T200, Apex and I230 aren't forgiving enough, at least not for me. I hit the ZX5, Hot Metal Pro and I525 and felt they still weren't forgiving enough for what I wanted out of my irons.

 

All that said and in the end, you can play whatever iron you want really. It's up to you what you value in your golf game for the final decision but I will reiterate, the most important decision you'll make is to get fitted for the correct shaft and set the lie angles/SWT properly.

 

Good luck!

went ahead and got the 923 hot metal with project x LS

[cwodutch]

22 hours ago, Wham49 said:

just looked at a set of t200 at the local play it again sports. look nice then noticed that the P wedge was 43 degrees, that is crazy, why would people need that low of loft. I still use a 48 lofted P wedge 

 

so looks like if you play them you will need like 5 wedges to cover the gaps

 

 

^^^This!! The modern strong lifted irons leave massive gaps in the bottom end of the set. I play T200s with 5 wedges. P, 48, 52, 56 and 60. Distance isn't everything, and dialing in the wedges got me down to a 10. Highly recommend the Titleist T series for their accuracy. Hit anything you consider buying off the grass first, mats don't give the same results as the grass does

[North Butte]

20 years ago my irons+wedges consisted of nine clubs covering the range from 25 degrees (4-iron) to 61 degrees (LW).

 

Today my irons+wedges consist of nine clubs covering the range from 26 degrees (6-iron) to 62 degrees (LW).

 

The numbers on the soles have changed. The lofts have not. Well, OK mine have gotten one degree weaker over the past 20 years. 

[hd.softail]

12 hours ago, ovodeano said:

went ahead and got the 923 hot metal with project x LS

Great pick, clubs you can play no matter what handicap you are, enjoy! Paige Spiranac is on her 2nd set of these I believe and she's a heck of a lot better than us.

Edited November 30, 2022 by hd.softail

[TreeHugger73]

35 minutes ago, North Butte said:

20 years ago my irons+wedges consisted of nine clubs covering the range from 25 degrees (4-iron) to 61 degrees (LW).

 

Today my irons+wedges consist of nine clubs covering the range from 26 degrees (6-iron) to 62 degrees (LW).

 

The numbers on the soles have changed. The lofts have not. Well, OK mine have gotten one degree weaker over the past 20 years. 

 

This. All that has changed is the number the manufacturer is slapping on the bottom. There are no giant gaps, just people that don't know how to properly choose 14 implements of destruction.

[ksteezyy]

mizuno hot metal line!

Edited November 30, 2022 by ksteezyy

[bernieceo]

I would find a good outdoor fitter for iron as turf interaction is key with them. I'm a similar handicap and got fit by Ben Giunta, he fit me for Srixon ZX4's, with KBS90 stiff 1.25 inch over and it has help out my game a ton. I'm step and the Srixon V-Sole helps me get the club through the turf better and the 4 model gets me better height on the ball.  

[mkidding]

P790 is one of a kind honestly. I have at least 4 friends switching from another set of almost new irons into P790 this year. One of them is a 4-5 handicapper and he switched from Callaway Apex MB directly to P790 and claims that he can probably get closer to scratch with it.

[Northandleft]

I bought a set of apex 21 DCBs. (5-P) 5-8 iron I sweep beautifully but 9-P I chunk more than I want. Picked up a P apex 21 (not DCB) with the same shaft   …no more chunk. I have divided  my iron game into two segments based on distance in the lower irons and accuracy from 150 in. 
Here is the relevant point.

For many mid HCP players low irons are mentally different clubs than the higher lofted ones. Do some hard thinking on your iron game and build a combo set. Most manufacturers will give the option and many now encourage it. (Callaway apex have 5 irons that can work together) So IMO the iron search is more complex than a list. 

I believe the 8 club iron set is dead. 
That’s my opinion, look forward to thoughts. 

[me05501]

IMO finding the right iron SHAFTS is critical. Once you're swinging a shaft that has the right flex, bend point, weight and feel it's way easier to hit the center of the club face reliably. Then you can find the head that looks, feels and works best for you. 

 

I think way too many of us have rejected certain clubs or categories of clubs because we were swinging them on the wrong shafts. You can't really judge an iron head until you're centering your contact to the best of your personal ability. 

[GolfingLefty18]

Honma TW-X 

[platgof]

Look up the ZX5 on the forums, quite a following. The Maverik's are off the charts in forgiveness, highly recommended. 

Edited December 1, 2022 by platgof
forgot something