Trouble Choosing: ZX5 vs ZX7

[captwilks67]

11 minutes ago, gsrjc said:

I had posted in another ZX7 listing. I went:

 

ZX4 - 4 iron standard loft

ZX5 - 5 and 6 iron standard loft

ZX7 - 7-pw standard loft except pw is at 45 degrees to go with my 3 Edel wedge lofts of 50,54,58

 

ZX4 felt soft like ZX7. ZX5 was a little more clicky but not as bad. ZX7 ball heights were 100-110 feet. ZX5 ball height was 90-100 feet and ZX4 was 85 feet. I had the OG same combo set but went ZX5 4-6 and I will say this MKII is more forgiving. 

/cdn-cgi/mirage/5d5bb370b7998967048154a03478ab3993bdc9105a23cf7d2ea0aeed1fe171bc/1280/cdn-cgi/mirage/5d5bb370b7998967048154a03478ab3993bdc9105a23cf7d2ea0aeed1fe171bc/1280/https://wrxcdn.golfwrx.com/uploads/monthly_2023_01/658BC769-E1A5-4180-B3B6-2E939BCC6191.jpeg.20dc56f593d180767f39a09ea37d5ff0.jpeg

/cdn-cgi/mirage/5d5bb370b7998967048154a03478ab3993bdc9105a23cf7d2ea0aeed1fe171bc/1280/cdn-cgi/mirage/5d5bb370b7998967048154a03478ab3993bdc9105a23cf7d2ea0aeed1fe171bc/1280/https://wrxcdn.golfwrx.com/uploads/monthly_2023_01/B3BDF16E-A224-4DA4-87AF-02F74BB5B61F.jpeg.e9f8c7b61cc5aa9cb655b8745ce78fe9.jpeg

How do you feel the zx5 compares to the zx7? 

[gsrjc]

Just now, captwilks67 said:

How do you feel the zx5 compares to the zx7? 

When I tried them out they were a little more clicky but with my pure pro standard grips and 1+3 wraps it’s significantly toned down. I can see tell a slight difference but nothing of an issue.  I find them very comparable. 

[anth]

What wedges do you play? Are you happy with them? What lofts are they?

 

Because there is a big difference between a 44 degree PW with a hot face (ZX5) and a 46 degree one piece forged iron (ZX7).  All other specs being equal they just won’t fly the same distance.  So you need to examine your distances and understand which PW will work for your gapping, and then take it from there.

 

[FifeRiviera]

Honestly the ZX5 are good enough for Big Ol Shane Lowry, They're all the club you need!

 

2023 the year of forgiveness. 

[ezpz]

I have a combo set and I'm glad to have the zx5 4-4iron. You won't be able to tell the difference at address unless you're hyper sensitive visualy. There is a difference in sound and feel however the zx5 is easier to launch. Both irons are forgiving on misshits and zx7 is not hard to hit and in your case you'd probably want to get into some kind of combo set but where you cut off is up to you.

[Maluka]

14hcap. I have combo set. Zx5 4 to 6 iron. Zx7 7 to pw. The zx7 are so great in the 7 iron and up. So forgiving. I spent a month wondering if I could play all zx7. So I bought a set of 785 second hand on the cheap to find out. Can’t hit the 5 or 6 iron at all in the 785. Turns out my ball striking is good enough for the players 7 iron but not yet good enough for the 6. So I’m very glad I got a combo. I’d say go all zx5 or do a combo but whatever you choose stick with zx5 in the long irons.

Also I didn’t change the loft on the zx5 6 or zx7 7 iron and they gap perfectly for me. 

[Dr.Potat]

21 hours ago, captwilks67 said:

I get riled up easy. Yeah I’m probably gonna do exactly what your saying. I do love my edel wedges tho. My g430 driver arrived and so I’m thinking about doing a complete new set and filling it out with 430 4 hybrid, 5 and 7 wood. 50,54,58 zip cores. 

You won’t regret going ZX5’s the whole way through. The little bit of added forgiveness won’t hurt, I was in the same spot a couple years ago and couldn’t be happier with the purchase.
 

FWIW it sounds like I was in the same boat trying to break 90 before I got the irons and I’ve gone from a 20 to a 13.9 handicap, because of lessons not the irons, but my point is that I feel no reason to change or combo the set as I’ve improved. They still do everything I want them to. 
 

An option for your gap wedge would be to look at the CBX. I don’t use it around the green just on full and partial shots and it is automatic for me, no sacrifice in spin compared to the RTX zipcores but so easy to hit. 
 

I went ZX5 4-PW, CBX Zipcore 50, RTX zipcore 54, and RTX Zipcore Full Face 58 (incredible bunker club). 

Edited January 31, 2023 by Dr.Potat
Too nautical. Used in the same boat reference twice.

[Albatross Dreamer]

With the change in size from mk i to mk ii I think it's a much easier conversation. One thing I was pondering is if someone has a full set of ZX7s and doesn't want to buy an entirely new set of irons if it might make sense to buy the mk ii ZX5s for long irons only and combo it with the old ZX7s. Someone tell me this is crazy vs makes sense.

[gsrjc]

8 hours ago, anth said:

What wedges do you play? Are you happy with them? What lofts are they?

 

Because there is a big difference between a 44 degree PW with a hot face (ZX5) and a 46 degree one piece forged iron (ZX7).  All other specs being equal they just won’t fly the same distance.  So you need to examine your distances and understand which PW will work for your gapping, and then take it from there.

 

I play Edel T grind wedges set at 50, 54, 58. Agreed on the pw distance. I didn’t even consider a ZX5 full set as I previously had the OG combo set so I stayed the same for MKII except added the ZX4 4 iron instead of the ZX5. My ZX7 PW is 45 degrees as I found my gapping between that the 9 iron to be too large for me personally. Now I’m at 10 yard gaps with it being what I have. 

[sdaniel]

19 minutes ago, Albatross Dreamer said:

With the change in size from mk i to mk ii I think it's a much easier conversation. One thing I was pondering is if someone has a full set of ZX7s and doesn't want to buy an entirely new set of irons if it might make sense to buy the mk ii ZX5s for long irons only and combo it with the old ZX7s. Someone tell me this is crazy vs makes sense.

The ZX5 mkii has been slimmed down to match the old ZX7 in the long irons. So doing the combo of the new ZX5 and the old ZX7 would be a pretty seamless transition in sole widths and top line thickness. You might notice a bit of difference in offset in the transition but not much.

[bigdawg]

I went through this process last year and it didn't work out as well for me as it did for other posters. I went full set of ZX5's. I got fitted but the fitting was indoor and when i got out on the course I found, to my cost, that turf interaction on the ZX5's did not suit me 7-PW. Way too much bounce and camber for my taste (coming from a compact, narrow sole, players iron). I just struggled to find the middle of the face on the ZX5 due in main to the soles. I would describe myself as a decent iron striker, mid-handicap, 85mph clubhead speed 7 iron, and a picker not a digger. In hindsight, I should probably have gone 7-PW ZX7 and 4-6 ZX5 as I demo'd the ZX7 and was able to hit them pretty well - albeit not as long as the ZX5's due to weaker lofts. But you could strengthen the lofts a degree or two on the ZX7's to get gapping right to match the longer irons. My suggestion would be go combo on these for what its worth. 

[gsrjc]

44 minutes ago, sdaniel said:

The ZX5 mkii has been slimmed down to match the old ZX7 in the long irons. So doing the combo of the new ZX5 and the old ZX7 would be a pretty seamless transition in sole widths and top line thickness. You might notice a bit of difference in offset in the transition but not much.

Good point. Didn’t even think about that. 

[sheamclkel]

In my experience the more forgiving option is generally the best bet! I would order the ZX5 and if you found you really hated the short irons then replace with ZX7 at that point.

 

 

[Albatross Dreamer]

7 minutes ago, sheamclkel said:

In my experience the more forgiving option is generally the best bet! I would order the ZX5 and if you found you really hated the short irons then replace with ZX7 at that point.

 

 

Honestly going either way could work. My personal inclination would be to order a full set of ZX7s first then play them and see exactly which spot I start to lose quality and start the ZX5s there. Whereas the other way around I'd be sort of taking a guess where I should start the ZX7s. But I think it might depend which way you lean for a full set as well.

[Albatross Dreamer]

1 hour ago, sdaniel said:

The ZX5 mkii has been slimmed down to match the old ZX7 in the long irons. So doing the combo of the new ZX5 and the old ZX7 would be a pretty seamless transition in sole widths and top line thickness. You might notice a bit of difference in offset in the transition but not much.

That's exactly what I was thinking. Looking at the new vs old specs for sole width the ZX5 mk ii 7 iron is only 0.5mm wider then the old ZX7 one. So basically indistinguishable.

 

On another note I wonder how them slimming down the ZX7 soles even more affects playability, if at all. Across the set it's ~2mm narrower in the mk ii then old ones.

[gsrjc]

13 minutes ago, Albatross Dreamer said:

That's exactly what I was thinking. Looking at the new vs old specs for sole width the ZX5 mk ii 7 iron is only 0.5mm wider then the old ZX7 one. So basically indistinguishable.

 

On another note I wonder how them slimming down the ZX7 soles even more affects playability, if at all. Across the set it's ~2mm narrower in the mk ii then old ones.

Off the mat I couldn’t tell a difference for the ZX7. It’s too cold where I am at the moment to play outside. 

[sheamclkel]

30 minutes ago, Albatross Dreamer said:

Honestly going either way could work. My personal inclination would be to order a full set of ZX7s first then play them and see exactly which spot I start to lose quality and start the ZX5s there. Whereas the other way around I'd be sort of taking a guess where I should start the ZX7s. But I think it might depend which way you lean for a full set as well.

Absolutely agree. One way would be more cost effective depending on where you believe the split in clubs would be.

 

In general, when I fitted I would always lean on forgiveness if players were between 2 models. I feel the benefits always out weight the draw backs of the more forgiving clubs.

Edited January 31, 2023 by sheamclkel

[Orange Hog]

21 hours ago, AzRoger said:

It seems to me the OP is shopping in the wrong class of irons, would be much better off with the ZX4's or clubs in a similar class.

 

I was thinking the same thing.  Too many people are sleeping on the ZX4 irons.  Honestly, with the changes they made to this iron from the previous line I don't know what purpose the ZX5 serves now.

 

In my set I went ZX4 in the 4 iron and ZX7 in 5-PW.  Honestly, this is my favorite 4 iron of all time.  It's so easy and fun to hit!  While I absolutely LOVE the ZX7 irons, I honestly don't think I'd have a single ounce of regret going with a full 4-PW set of ZX4.

[gsrjc]

I was watching a mark crossfield YouTube video recently and all of his irons are ZX4. 

[lefty74pgh]

I currently play the Z585, but if I were to get new irons I would strongly consider the ZX4. I need to hit these irons.

[mantan]

My vote is get the 5s. They are fantastic clubs and you're not realistically going to outgrow them. If the 7s fit you better now than get them. But the 5s are not going to hold you back.

 

 

 

[Seidinho]

Definitely go zx5. The mkii has fixed the problems of thicker soles the 5 series had in previous iterations. Potentially combo with zx4 in longer irons.
 

Absolutely no reason to go zx7 with the goal of breaking 90. 

[captwilks67]

I keep going back and forth, though currently have my mind set on ZX5s or a combo set split at the 6/7. Have yet to decide whether I should strengthen or weaken lofts. My mind tells me I should strengthen the lofts of the ZX7s and that would give a touch more offset as well. But haven’t made my mind up yet. 
 

the ZX5 argument is holding in my mind currently though and I’m thinking going full set though. I’ve got speed and distance, just need ball striking. 

[liamw]

I’m a lower cap going from Miura CB 301 to Srixon ZX4.

 

I’d say get a set of ZX4 and a lesson

[mr_duffer]

I'm a single digit player and used ZX5's all last year. On this years MKII's, I've ordered 5-6 ZX5 and 7-PW ZX7. Same shafts as last year.  Personally, I think you would love the 5's as long as you get fitted with the correct shaft.

Edited February 1, 2023 by mr_duffer

[dmeeksDC]

10 hours ago, captwilks67 said:

I keep going back and forth, though currently have my mind set on ZX5s or a combo set split at the 6/7. Have yet to decide whether I should strengthen or weaken lofts. My mind tells me I should strengthen the lofts of the ZX7s and that would give a touch more offset as well. But haven’t made my mind up yet. 
 

the ZX5 argument is holding in my mind currently though and I’m thinking going full set though. I’ve got speed and distance, just need ball striking. 

I think we all should talk to Shane Lowry. He’s looking for a caddy right now you know. And if any of us were his caddy, we’d see even Open champion Shane Lowry plays the ZX5 in 4 and 5 iron and ZX7 6-P.

 

That right there tells me I should go full set ZX5, or even ZX4/ZX5 combo. Last thing I want is to go to Ireland, run into Shane Lowry at Lahinch or Portmarnock, and he’s got a more forgiving set than I do. Not a good look. He’ll be drinking out of his Claret Jug and mocking me. 

 

 

[captwilks67]

27 minutes ago, dmeeksDC said:

I think we all should talk to Shane Lowry. He’s looking for a caddy right now you know. And if any of us were his caddy, we’d see even Open champion Shane Lowry plays the ZX5 in 4 and 5 iron and ZX7 6-P.

 

That right there tells me I should go full set ZX5, or even ZX4/ZX5 combo. Last thing I want is to go to Ireland, run into Shane Lowry at Lahinch or Portmarnock, and he’s got a more forgiving set than I do. Not a good look. He’ll be drinking out of his Claret Jug and mocking me. 

 

 

Your not wrong. I’d have been drinking all 18 though ; ) 

[edwelly]

I recently bought the ZX5 4i-6i and ZX7 7i-PW (ZX7 bent 1 degree strong) with the Modus3 120S. There replace a set of Bridgestone J40 CBs. 
I got to play 9 holes this past weekend and I found the ZX7s easy to hit (I am a 12hcp). I think the combo set is the best of all the options. 

 

NOTE: this are related to the MKI irons as these were on sale for $500 off. I did not test or hit the MKII irons. 

 

PM me if you got specific questions I can help with. 

-Erik

[bird_4_3]

I think many should consider 5 &6 hybrid and 7-pw Zx5.  That is what I am doing.  I can hit the hybrids (Srixon) great and this combo is a real winner.  

[tssgj65]

On 1/30/2023 at 11:35 AM, Long Shot said:

I am a lower index, but play a combo ZX7 and Zx5 (4-5 in ZX5 and 6-P in ZX7, i have used this combo since 785/585). I just got my MK 2 set a few weeks abo and I must say this is the first time the 5 series feels as soft and good as the 7's. The 5's have wider soles and will give you extra protection from the fat shot (in my opinion fat thin dual miss usually starts with a fat shot, then the fear of hitting fat leads to a little pull up and thin shots). But 5's are definitely anti fat with their sole design. I say go all 5's, and if you improve this year you can always blend in some zx7's at the top of the set, but they both feel really good.  

I am a +1.2 at the moment.  Just got my ZX5 4-5 and ZX7 6-9.  I transition to a Vokey 46 degree PW.  Great set!