How many of you "seasoned" golfers have gone to distance irons?

[braincramp52]

I'm finding myself kind of torn on what to do this upcoming season. I having a hard time dealing with distance loss in my irons but I don't want to give up the feel and look of a smaller footprint iron like my V6's. I know most everything is dependent on lofts but I was wondering how many of you have sacrificed a little feel and looks and went to a distance iron? And did you regret it or has it been a huge improvement? I'm 68 and although I'm distance challenged I have a repeatable enough swing that I can play about anything up to a 6 iron. I played Wilson Staff blades last year and hovered between a 3 and 5 handicap (9 hole) all season. I know it's easy to say just hit a extra club but for me the shorter the iron I have in my hand the better off I am.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

I'm, errr, not as seasoned as you, but I have lost speed due to injuries. What sort of shafts are you playing? Lighter shafts might help a little. I went to to carbon shafts in my modern set that are pretty stout, but lighter overall than the steel shafts I was playing before. I find them easier to swing but at that same time I don't need to hold back.

That said, some lighter shafts don't work for me. I don't like the Modus 105or 120 shafts at all.

Distance irons often means reduced spin, which might be detrimental overall to your scoring, so another option is to replace your longest iron with a high lofted hybrid.

[braincramp52]

32 minutes ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

I'm, errr, not as seasoned as you, but I have lost speed due to injuries. What sort of shafts are you playing? Lighter shafts might help a little. I went to to carbon shafts in my modern set that are pretty stout, but lighter overall than the steel shafts I was playing before. I find them easier to swing but at that same time I don't need to hold back.

That said, some lighter shafts don't work for me. I don't like the Modus 105or 120 shafts at all.

Distance irons often means reduced spin, which might be detrimental overall to your scoring, so another option is to replace your longest iron with a high lofted hybrid.

I have regular flex amt's. I can stop a two piece ball in its tracks so I already create too much spin. I do switch out long irons for hybrids on a whim. 

[TheDeanAbides]

How much distance are you losing? What's your current 7 iron carry?

[braincramp52]

47 minutes ago, TheDeanAbides said:

How much distance are you losing? What's your current 7 iron carry?

7 iron is 125-130. Loft is 35 degrees. 

[MPAndreassi]

If you like a smaller footprint and want something with stronger lofts, the T100•S are a very good option. 

[braincramp52]

7 minutes ago, MPAndreassi said:

If you like a smaller footprint and want something with stronger lofts, the T100•S are a very good option. 

Yea, I've been checking them out. 

[Feelingofgreatness]

There is no way I'd play a blade if I could only hit a 35* 7 iron 125. 

The fact you play to a 3-5 handicap with that length is amazing, unless you are playing from only 5000 yards. 

Much more fun hitting a shovel 7 iron 175 yards but that's only my opinion

[MPAndreassi]

3 minutes ago, braincramp52 said:

Yea, I've been checking them out. 

They feel plenty soft as well. Mine got here around the end of November, and I’ve been playing them in 30-40 degree temps. No harshness in them at all. There’s softer stuff out there, but these feel just as good as anything of a similar style. 

[braincramp52]

3 minutes ago, MPAndreassi said:

They feel plenty soft as well. Mine got here around the end of November, and I’ve been playing them in 30-40 degree temps. No harshness in them at all. There’s softer stuff out there, but these feel just as good as anything of a similar style. 

What was your irons before?

[MPAndreassi]

9 minutes ago, braincramp52 said:

What was your irons before?

Before these I was playing Callaway CF16s, took a couple of years off and came back realizing how clunky they looked and how much I didn’t like the offset. Tried a bunch of sets and decided on the Mizuno MP20 MMCs but just couldn’t get along with the sole design of them on the golf course. Then I switched into the Titleists. Of all the sets I’ve ever played this is the first time buying backup sets has ever entered my mind. They just fit me and my swing that well. 

[braincramp52]

Just now, MPAndreassi said:

Before these I was playing Callaway CF16s, took a couple of years off and came back realizing how clunky they looked and how much I didn’t like the offset. Tried a bunch of sets and decided on the Mizuno MP20 MMCs but just couldn’t get along with the sole design of them on the golf course. Then I switched into the Titleists. Of all the sets I’ve ever played this is the first time buying backup sets has ever entered my mind. They just fit me and my swing that well. 

Did you pick up a distance increase over the CF16?

[MPAndreassi]

3 minutes ago, braincramp52 said:

Did you pick up a distance increase over the CF16?

Hard to say as I’ve only played these in the cold weather so far, but I haven’t given up any distance in the cold. Which is probably a good indication that they’ll be longer once it warms up. 

[braincramp52]

25 minutes ago, MPAndreassi said:

Hard to say as I’ve only played these in the cold weather so far, but I haven’t given up any distance in the cold. Which is probably a good indication that they’ll be longer once it warms up. 

Yea, you're right. Cold Temps suck up distance

[TheDeanAbides]

1 hour ago, braincramp52 said:

7 iron is 125-130. Loft is 35 degrees. 

Definitely worth getting some help then. 

[braincramp52]

13 minutes ago, TheDeanAbides said:

Definitely worth getting some help then. 

At least that was my distance last fall. I won a hitting net this winter and my contact has improved quite a bit in a short time. I'm also getting to my front foot much better and not staying on my back

[jomatty]

My new 5 iron is an epic forged 6 iron.  The lofts are stupid strong on them so that made sense for my gapping.  They hit the ball so high and long though.  I wasn’t able to stop my i500 5 iron nearly as quickly and the distance is almost identical.  They are not great looking, but they aren’t as bad as you might think.  It might be worth looking at anyways.

[drumdude96]

Definitely check out the Mizuno JPX 921 Hot Metal Pro irons.  Kind of a best of both worlds between strong lofts and not looking too much like a shovel.  I'm still in love with my JPX 900 Hot Metals, or else I'd be looking at the 921's myself.  The 900's are what finally kicked my G25's out of the bag for good.  Mizuno has been on point with the last few JPX iron releases.  They are just so good. 

[braincramp52]

2 hours ago, Feelingofgreatness said:

There is no way I'd play a blade if I could only hit a 35* 7 iron 125. 

The fact you play to a 3-5 handicap with that length is amazing, unless you are playing from only 5000 yards. 

Much more fun hitting a shovel 7 iron 175 yards but that's only my opinion

My main 2 courses are 5400 and 6000 yards from the yellow tees. I'm 68 and I never swing anywhere close to 100%. That's why I've been injury free for 35 years of playing.

[braincramp52]

12 minutes ago, drumdude96 said:

Definitely check out the Mizuno JPX 921 Hot Metal Pro irons.  Kind of a best of both worlds between strong lofts and not looking too much like a shovel.  I'm still in love with my JPX 900 Hot Metals, or else I'd be looking at the 921's myself.  The 900's are what finally kicked my G25's out of the bag for good.  Mizuno has been on point with the last few JPX iron releases.  They are just so good. 

 I would but the lefty sets switch to the tours at the 5 iron. Besides, Mizuno shows us lefties very little love so I'm not their biggest fan either.😀

Edited January 9, 2021 by braincramp52

[Feelingofgreatness]

1 hour ago, braincramp52 said:

My main 2 courses are 5400 and 6000 yards from the yellow tees. I'm 68 and I never swing anywhere close to 100%. That's why I've been injury free for 35 years of playing.

That makes sense. 

If I was playing from 5400, I probably would not focus much on distance either. Imagine most second shots are less than 140y in. 

[TheDeanAbides]

3 hours ago, braincramp52 said:

Yea, you're right. Cold Temps suck up distance

It's not as much as you might imagine. Roughly one yard for every ten degrees F.

[braincramp52]

33 minutes ago, TheDeanAbides said:

It's not as much as you might imagine. Roughly one yard for every ten degrees F.

 

My experience is it's much more than that. Where did you get those figures? It's real easy to lose 10-15 yards off my driver when it gets under 50 degrees around here. 

[braincramp52]

1 hour ago, Feelingofgreatness said:

That makes sense. 

If I was playing from 5400, I probably would not focus much on distance either. Imagine most second shots are less than 140y in. 

Oh yeah! Makes the game a lot of fun.

[jomatty]

1 hour ago, TheDeanAbides said:

It's not as much as you might imagine. Roughly one yard for every ten degrees F.

At least the cold balls go further. As for heavy winter air and five layers of clothing, that is a distance killer.

[TheDeanAbides]

22 minutes ago, jomatty said:

At least the cold balls go further. As for heavy winter air and five layers of clothing, that is a distance killer.

Not to mention tight muscles and stiff joints. Damn, I'm getting old! 

[TheDeanAbides]

49 minutes ago, braincramp52 said:

 

My experience is it's much more than that. Where did you get those figures? It's real easy to lose 10-15 yards off my driver when it gets under 50 degrees around here. 

https://www.golfdigest.com/story/proven-by-science-do-colder-golf-balls-lose-distance-and-does-leaving-golf-clubs-in-the-cold-affect-their-performance

[braincramp52]

2 minutes ago, TheDeanAbides said:

https://www.golfdigest.com/story/proven-by-science-do-colder-golf-balls-lose-distance-and-does-leaving-golf-clubs-in-the-cold-affect-their-performance

 

I think they need to try a different science. I don't buy what they're selling. There are other places that say 2 yards for every 10 degrees so I guess we can believe what we want. Different parts of the country play a part also. I have seen distance increases in colder temps when the ground gets frozen.😀 

[NRJyzr]

Not sure I quite fit into the "seasoned players" category, but I'll add my two cents anyway.

 

I'm not a fan of modern distance irons, for various reasons, but I see where some aspects may actually work well for those who swing slower than they once did.  The loft gaps don't appeal to me, making the short irons 5*, while bunching the longer clubs in the set, seems silly to me.  For someone with slower swings, those 5* gaps may work better than it would for someone like me, and they may not, or likely not, be using the tighter spaced longer irons, anyway.

 

Not a fan of the strengthened lofts, either, but I won't go into that.   🙂

 

[nsxguy]

23 hours ago, Feelingofgreatness said:

There is no way I'd play a blade if I could only hit a 35* 7 iron 125. 

The fact you play to a 3-5 handicap with that length is amazing, unless you are playing from only 5000 yards. 

Much more fun hitting a shovel 7 iron 175 yards but that's only my opinion

 

Borderline incredible actually. And down from an 8 no less (I assume he just hasn't update his profile lately)

 

His 5400 yard course is probably rated at least 4 shots under par so to have a cap between 3-5, let's call it 4, means multiple rounds under par in his 8 best of of last 20 and his 8 best averaging right around par.

 

Very impressive.