Is feel all that important or looks

[Tiptx1122]

We all know what we play has to perform up to our expectations but this is about feel and looks. PING has been making some progress but from what I've read the Blueprints as the one that have the best feel to the whole PING line up. The G line up look way too busy but all PING do perform well as that is why so many people play them.  Most who play them don't complain about the feel.

 

Well when it comes to feel PXG's has it going on as they started out so ugly to starting to get decent thats if your ok with a bunch of screws as it gives off a mixed feeling, and Srixon's are pretty soft with excellent turf interaction for some it's a hate or like relationship.  Srixon have been making a name for themselves especially since Hideki won a Master and Brooks switch to them but don't forget he was using Mizuno's when he won his 4 Majors.  

 

Now I'm not sure how Mizuno does it but nothing feels like a Mizuno as it doesn't matter if it's cast iron or forged they have perfected what a pure shot should feels like. What's amazing is how their cast irons feel much better than most forged irons. Mizuno blades have always held their own as being the premier looking blades as the JPX line finally caught up and have been making some very nice looking irons as well.  I'm sure other brands such as Callaway, TaylorMade, Titleist etc owners have much to say about their clubs. So without this being a flaming war chime right in and let's hear what your thoughts are about what you think about your set.

 

[Ri_Redneck]

I CANNOT play an ugly club. I hit Ping drivers well, but have never been able to get over the look. Irons with offset, no way. Grey or raw irons, get outta here. Polished or satin chrome with very little offset is all I seem to be happy with. I play Mizunos, but also like Cobra, Titleist, Callaway and other irons with the before mentioned characteristics. I like the feel of my MP5s, but it's not an absolute necessity. I played with a rented set of T100 irons and they were fine.

 

BT

[Milfordlefty]

IMO, you can play an ugly club that feels right, but not a good looking club that feels bad. But, we human males are visual creatures and like shiny things.

[phizzy30]

I play the New Level 623-M and technically, they are forged blades but way more forgiving with longer heel to toe length and more offset.  Think Z-forged.  They feel more solid like Miura's but still plenty soft.  Reasonably priced, looks and feels good and performance is up to par with anything the OEM's put out. 

[fred faldo]

guess your definition of ugly is what matters, I have never been repulsed by Ping irons and played multiple G series and the i5's as well. It take something along the lines of the Cleveland VAS for me to say absolutely not. In my life there have been blades, GI and  SGI sets and have grown to accept thicker top lines but other then the VAS and Jerry Barber no shanks any club that helps the score can make the bag. I may be forgetting a few models but those two went to the front of my "ugly" line that made them unplayable. JMHO

Edited March 26, 2023 by fred faldo

[Mp14forlife]

It's both looks and feel but I would absolutely default to feel and performance before looks because if something feels good and performs well you will absolutely come to LOVE the look of the club. So absolutely try a club even if it's "ugly".... but I can't stand folks making up their minds about looks without seeing a pic at address or looking at address. I couldn't care less about all the screws/weights on pxg irons cause they're on the back of the club, it doesn't matter whatsoever what the back of a club looks like, you judge looks by the at address look.

I play jpx 919 tours, they feel good enough and look great but perform really well for me. Srixon has come a long way on feel and the zx7 feel better then the 919s, can't stand the v sole tho, just didn't perform as well. 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Mp14forlife

[Striker Ace]

You'll see a lot of tour pro's with big money on the line playing ugly equipment. 

[BirdieBob]

Some like the firm deep dense feel of the Tiger blade; some like the marshmellow softness of the PXG hollow iron; some like the crispness of a cavity back.  

Some like offset; others no offset...some like large heads; others small.

 

Take your pick plenty to choose from!

 

For me its looks, feel, sound first then the best performing iron.

 

[Righty to Lefty]

I could care less how a club looks and all that matter is that it talks to my mind's eye and I can feel it tracking around me while I swing it.  If it happens to be visually appealing, great, but I care about a club's weight, swing weight, and turf interaction more than looks.  I have a set of Cleveland 588 Altitude irons  and also a set of Miura irons and I hated the Miruras until I got them set up like my 588s in regards to weighting, swing weighting, etc.

 

My 588s may be "ugly" but I absolutely love them and will play them until I beat the faces off them!! I suppose if I did it all over again I would get a hollow body iron like the Titleist TMB and weight them up and I would have the best of both worlds but they came out after I already had my other irons but in today's markets you can have both so there is no real reason to compromise on either looks or feel. 

[Joepa324]

It would probably be a little easier for me to play the Titleist CNCPT CP-04s, but they were a little chunky, so I went with the Titleist CNCPT CP-03s because I liked the look much better.

Edited March 26, 2023 by Joepa324

[RacineBoxer]

For 15+ years I thought feel & sound was overrated. But once you get into some clubs that sound terrible it becomes a big deal. At least it did for me. The first "problem" club for me was my G425 irons. I thought they sounded/felt way worse than my G15/G400 irons. The second club that was a problem for me was the PXG Gen 4 driver - just horrible sound. 

[mantan]

It makes a huge difference to me.   While they don't have to be sleek and sexy, they do need to visually appeal to me.  I mean I played PING ISIs for years, those are definitely not good looking clubs by traditional standards. In the best fitting session I had, he told me upfront to be brutally honest if I didn't like a club at address. It was his experience that if you didn't like how the club looked, you'd always have that doubt if it was the best fit.

 

I experienced it recently with the 923 HMs. I thought I could get over the larger size because the numbers were good.  (didn't listen to the advice in the other fitting session.)

 

I didn't like them from day one and never played well with them.  They felt really good, especially for a cast club. But I never felt comfortable swinging it.

 

 

[PEI_Golfer]

Looks have to play a good portion of this thought.  I was a long time I20 user and figured with all the rave reviews of the G25s, they might be a good option as I play and practice less and supposedly still had a good look.  Finally picked up a set and couldn't even take them to the range, hated how they looked and couldn't be bothered.  I don't mind a bigger top line and offset, but it was too much for me.

 

I'm sure they perform well, or tons of people are just blowing the typing honeymoon smoke with new gear, but I couldn't do it. 

 

I have also loved the feel of some irons, but they weren't going to perform as well as other options (for me) that aren't as 'pretty'.  So they never get a real look again.

[iNeedMoreGolf]

All i own is what looks and feels good to me. If its lacking in one area i don't want it. Needs both. Looks good is confidence to play good and like the club. Feels good is to know how the club works and gives extra levels of touch.

Edited March 26, 2023 by iNeedMoreGolf
....

[PedronNiall]

Looks and feel both inspire confidence. Can't play a club that doesn't suit my eye in the bag or at address and won't enjoy a club that feels/sounds off through the ball. 

 

Certainly not paying $500+ for anything hobby-related that isn't aesthetically pleasing. 

[Springsteennut]

I lean toward performance. If I hit it well I don’t care what it looks like or how it feels.

[MikeW2]

Club has to look right to my eye in the address position, if it doesn’t seem to sit right I’m not interested. Next hurdle it has to feel right as I swing/make contact. If a club is cosmetically pleasing in the bag after passing those first two hurdles that’s a bonus.

[kcarrgolf]

I’d say looks probably hold more weight for me, sad to admit.  At least every club purchase starts that way for me.  I have to like what I see when I look down at it, and that includes the cosmetic look as well as the shape and the way it sits.  When it comes to feel, I think the shaft is what I notice more than clubheads.  

[RogerinNewZealand]

Jdm Sonartec tin can sounding driver i had 6 years ago....ahh..sold fast... all my Bridgestones eg J33cb and nice Mizunos feel good look good . Have sold mp58 that were just average. I have more sensitive hearing than many people so The Tone eg at Impact matters more to me than many others. 

 

[hammergolf]

I could play a club I didn’t like the looks of if it felt good and performed. However, I won’t play a club that looks good, performs, but feels/sounds bad.

[dayvei214]

Going through this exact issue... Trying to decide if I should trade in my honma tr20b for Mizuno pro 221... 

 

Both feel great but something about these honmas just looks special.

 

Miz pro look great also... But it feels almost a bit generic? Feel is butter squishy soft while tr20b is a dense soft. 

 

Any input on this would be appreciated Also!

[SE Gamer]

13 hours ago, Milfordlefty said:

IMO, you can play an ugly club that feels right, but not a good looking club that feels bad. But, we human males are visual creatures and like shiny things.

 

Looks are make or break for me as well. Although I wouldn't say I could play a club that feels bad. But could play a good looking club that feels kind of blah. 

As far as looks go, I'm sensitive to top line and offset. Like something that appears thinner and the less offset, the better. I do think mfgs these days have gotten really good at making top lines seem smaller. Switched to some Callaway Rogue ST Pros from a 15+ year old set of Snake Eyes 600B blades. And while the ST Pro's top line is larger on paper, it really doesn't look all that much different at address. Or, maybe I'm just not as sensitive as I once was to top line appearance.

[philly2kuk]

I’ll play whatever club gives me results. The sound and feel of taking money from my playing partners matters more.

[WristySwing]

21 hours ago, Tiptx1122 said:

We all know what we play has to perform up to our expectations but this is about feel and looks. PING has been making some progress but from what I've read the Blueprints as the one that have the best feel to the whole PING line up. The G line up look way too busy but all PING do perform well as that is why so many people play them.  Most who play them don't complain about the feel.

 

Well when it comes to feel PXG's has it going on as they started out so ugly to starting to get decent thats if your ok with a bunch of screws as it gives off a mixed feeling, and Srixon's are pretty soft with excellent turf interaction for some it's a hate or like relationship.  Srixon have been making a name for themselves especially since Hideki won a Master and Brooks switch to them but don't forget he was using Mizuno's when he won his 4 Majors.  

 

Now I'm not sure how Mizuno does it but nothing feels like a Mizuno as it doesn't matter if it's cast iron or forged they have perfected what a pure shot should feels like. What's amazing is how their cast irons feel much better than most forged irons. Mizuno blades have always held their own as being the premier looking blades as the JPX line finally caught up and have been making some very nice looking irons as well.  I'm sure other brands such as Callaway, TaylorMade, Titleist etc owners have much to say about their clubs. So without this being a flaming war chime right in and let's hear what your thoughts are about what you think about your set.

 

 

I'm of the camp that I will hit anything as long as it works well for me.  I spent the past month demoing drivers and it came down 3: TSR2, G430 Max, and Paradym.  I wanted consistency.  The TSR2 looked the best but it had a tendency to get a loose on mishits.  Feel and sound were top notch.  The G430 was super straight and I was just about to pull out my wallet when I decided to give the Paradym a try.  It had everything the Ping had + an extra gear the Ping lacked (probably because of the heavier head on the Ping).  I hit around 5 balls that were in the exact middle of the head, no more than 10 yards either side of the middle (so a fwy hit every time), and with ball speed that netted me an extra 5-7 yards total consistently over the Ping.  It just so happened that the feel on this driver was the best of the bunch (probably because it was middled every time).

 

On the flip side, I am playing irons that are well regarded as some of the worst feeling in the industry when it comes to forged.  I would also agree with that statement.  However, they launch high, straight, and like the Paradym driver, gave me an extra gear at the same loft.  I can't argue with results, so in the bag they went.  The way I approach it is that we use a bag of tools to help us achieve the lowest score possible.  It shouldn't matter what they look like or feel like as long as work.

 

To round it out more scientifically, feel will always trump looks.  Feel is the only thing we have connecting us to the golf ball.  If the shaft doesn't feel good, our timing will be off and subsequently we will not be able to make a good pass at the ball.  I can look down at a club that doesn't fit my eye, but if the shaft feels terrible, there is no way I am going to be able to hit the thing straight.

[Tiptx1122]

I'm talking irons but Looks are important when it comes to size, don't care for a lot fat soles or thick top line. Something with a little offset is ok but performance matters the most I agree. Don't care for colorful badges. Performance, looks, feel, and sound are how I judge my irons as most sets have 3 out of the 4 going for them. My other distraction would be the price as money is really not the subject but by spending more does not make them any better when it comes to performance.

 

Some big name company's have great marketing as it does sell also I never cared for who on tour plays what. Over 90% of them play because they are paid to play a certain brand. Actually some of them not under a contract plays some of the ugliest clubs ever as I mean some look so beat up with so much lead tape. Here we are like to go thru 3-4 sets of irons in a year 

 

 

[JourneyToBreak80]

Mostly for me it is what inspires the most confidence. Typically if a club looks great it inspires confidence as well. But if I can't hit the thing for crap it doesn't matter how good it looks anymore. 

 

I can't personally get into SGI that are more like a slim hybrid. But I have played some of the more "clicky" players irons and didn't care when the ball was going where I wanted it too. 

[SollyinGA]

I need looks, feel and sound, but if there was a club that magically put me inside of 10 feet on every approach shot I’d take it and run. 
 

Since no club can do that for me, I’m good with my 923 Tours/223s.

 

I played with P790s for about a year. I could never get over that clicky sound. The fliers weren’t helping either, but as soon as I heard that sound, I was already looking. 
 

I liked the performance of the G425 driver but couldn’t take it home because of that PBR sound.

 

So yes, it bothers me.

Edited March 27, 2023 by SollyinGA

[Naptime]

Sometimes I practice with my eyes closed.  So feel is more important for me. 

[JStang]

Looks > Feel. Feel happens after the ball is struck so it doesn't really affect anything until after the ball is gone. Of course feel is an important buying factor but if it looks good and performs well that's the main thing.

[Tiptx1122]

Yes Looks will inspire confidence as that is why I like a more compact looking head with my irons. I hope I never have to end up playing golf with some SGI that look like a slim down hybrid. I hope I didn't just jinx myself Lol!