I recently decided to get a new set of irons, which came as a surprise to those I play golf with because I have had a long love affair with my Mizuno MX-20s.  However, as someone who runs a golf store for a living, you want to stay up with the latest-and-greatest in technology and playing a five-year-old set was hurting my image! (my blog will have some sarcasm, which doesn't always come across in print, so I will try to point it out)

I have always been a huge fan of Mizuno irons, especially their forged cavity-back irons because they are well-suited to my game.  I am currently a 7 handicap and hit the ball right-to-left, so I like having an iron with moderate offset that also has some forgiveness.  With the Mizuno irons, I got that, plus the feel of their forged irons is second-to-none.  I played the Mizuno Comp EZ first, and then bought the MX-20s when they first came out ('02 or '03).  Mizuno has not done much to improve on the design of the MX-20s, so I didn't feel the need to upgrade to the MX-23 (2004/5) or MX-25 (2007) when they were introduced.

In the five years that I have had my MX-20s, I have used at least half a dozen drivers, just as many different combinations of hybrids and fairway woods, ten different wedges, and probably ten putters.  It is in my nature to constantly tinker with the new toys on the market and thankfully I have easy access to do so, but my irons were a constant in my bag.

However, I began this golf season in quite a ball striking slump.  The strengths of my game are that I hit my driver and hybrids very straight, my short game is great, and I'm an above average putter.  My ball-striking has always been just slightly above mediocre, but the start of this year was really horrendous.  I became convinced that in order to reach my goal of getting my handicap under five, I would have to make some swing changes and would probably benefit from a more forgiveness in my irons (especially my long and mid- irons).

This was not an easy process for me, because my store has a couple dozen different demos and I wanted to be 100% sure of my selection if I was going to "break up" with my beloved MX-20s.

I knew from the beginning that I was most likely going to choose I mixed-set (a set made up of different club lines from the same manufacturer), because I wanted the extra forgiveness in my long irons while maintaining more workability in my short irons.  Most all sets come with a progressive offset and center of gravity, creating more forgiveness in the long irons and giving you more control in your scoring irons, but I really wanted to maximize that effect.

My first choice was to stick with Mizuno, which I still believe make the best feeling clubs on the planet and certainly the best clubs for low handicappers.  However, while I really like the MX-25s, MP-57s (a hybrid of cavity-back and blade), and MP-67s (a traditional blade with a muscle cut cavity),  the MX-25 long irons played just like my MX-20s (which I was horribly!).  The MX-950 long irons come in the form of hybrids and I just wasn't crazy about the look.  I definitely needed more forgiveness, and already have a 19* and 22* hybrid in my bag, but didn't like what I would have in the form of a 4 and 5 iron from the MX-950 set.

My second choice was with Taylor Made, and I strongly considered going with CGB Max long irons, progressing into Tour Burner mid-irons, the RAC MB blades in the short irons, and the Z TP wedges.  I really liked the look of all these clubs, even the bulky CGB MAX, but couldn't quite figure out what shaft I would use.  I wanted consistency in the shaft throughout the entire set, and each of these clubs have very different headweights and the shaft that works best with each one doesn't exactly fit the other, and vice versa.

The current Titleist line is very solid, but I couldn't come up with a combination between the AP1, AP2, and Z Forged sets that I was 100% crazy about.

I felt the same way about Callaway, although I did consider going with the FT long irons progressing into X-20 Tour mids and then X-Forged scoring irons.  What I didn't like was that the FT long irons actually had a thinner topline than the X-20 Tour mid irons.  I could have gone with the regular X-20 long irons, but it didn't make sense to get a less forgiving long iron than was available to me.

Although I did try the Bridgestone, Cobra, and Adams clubs, I knew I wouldn't give them much of a chance because I still don't equate them to being on the same level as Taylor Made, Callaway, Ping, Titleist or Mizuno.

That brought me to Ping, and the red-hot 10 series.  We have been selling these clubs like crazy and the reviews have been great.  However, I don't put a whole lot of faith in what I read or hear, and wanted to see for myself what all the fuss was about... 

I was quite impressed, and really like that PING gives you the most custom options of any clubmaker and they do a great job with these combo sets.  After demo-ing each of their current lines, I came up with the perfect set for my game. 

I chose the Rapture in my 4-iron because of it's incredible forgiveness and hot titanium face.  I had it strengthened 1 degree to 23* by PING WRX (their custom department) and got this club with a graphite shaft, allowing for more distance and a higher ball flight.  It really bridges the progression from my hybrids into my irons perfectly.  My shortest hybrid is 22* but because of the extra mass in the clubhead of the hybrid, as well as the extra length, I have a perfect 12-15 yard gap between my shortest hybrid (22*) and my longest iron (this 23* 4-iron).

I chose to go with the G10 in my 5, 6, and 7 irons, each bent one degree strong by WRX.  I initially was only going to go with the G10 in the 5 & 6, but really liked the high launch that the clubs wide sole provided, and figured that I could use the help from 160-165, which is my 7-iron carry distance.  Also, I can still moderately work the ball with these irons.  Although the natural flight is a high draw, I can move it left-to-right if need-be.  With that said, I prefer the high draw that I get naturally with the G10s for most shots.  Because of the high trajectory, I can even land shots that I've hit with a draw softly with the 5-iron!

In my 8 and 9 irons, I went with the i10.  These are my favorites of the entire set because it's such a clean look from the address position.  My 8 iron is bent one degree strong while my 9 iron is the standard 42 degrees.  These clubs are easy to work, but I don't get severely penalized on shots that are slightly thin, fat, or off the toe.  I don't have many heel mis-hits, so I can't yet speak to their forgiveness there, but would imagine it is very similar.

My wedges are the Black Nickel Tour W, with a 47* pitching wedge, a 54* wedge bent to 53*, and a 60* wedge bent to 59*.  All three have medium bounce so that I can play them from virtually any lie.  These clubs are just beautiful and feel great, even compared to the forged wedges I have played in the past.  I previously carried 46* PW, 50* GW, 56* SW and 60* LW, so I was able to eliminate the need for the fourth wedge by modifying the specs on my three new wedges, freeing up room for an extra club. 

My irons are white dot (3 degrees upright) and I have the Ping AWT (ascending weight technology) steel shafts, which launch the ball high with your long irons and give you a more penetrating ball flight in your scoring irons.  As mentioned, I have a Ping TFC graphite shaft in my four iron.  Although my swing speed (105mph driver/85mph 7-iron) calls for stiff flex, I prefer regular flex for the additional carry distance and higher ball flight.  I do play stiff flex in my wedges, which are all also a degree flatter (green dot) than the rest of my irons.

I went through a slight adjustment period with my new irons, but finally broke through yesterday with a season's best 74 from the back tees of my home course in the second round of our 54-hole medal play championship.  Unfortunately, my first round (80) was marred by some uncharacteristic short-game mishaps and the leader opened with 71-65!  I don't think I'll be able to make up 18 shots in Friday's final round, especially with a few of the state's top amateur golfers in the hunt, but feel great about my new irons and the results I'm getting.

Here is the full breakdown of what I currently have in the bag (with carry distance in parentheses):

Cleveland HiBore XL Driver 10.5* (265-270)
Callaway Steelhead III 15* 3 Wood (240)
Taylor Made Burner 19* Hybrid (225)
Taylor Made Burner 22* Hybrid (212)
Ping Rapture 23* 4-Iron (200)
Ping G10 5 Iron (188)
Ping G10 6-Iron (176)
Ping G10 7-Iron (164)
Ping i10 8-Iron (152)
Ping i10 9-Iron (139)
Ping Tour W 47* Wedge (127)
Ping Tour W 53* Wedge (110)
Ping Tour W 59* Wedge - (90)
Odyssey Sabertooth Putter

I currently alternate between the 3 wood and a 64 degree Cleveland wedge, which really gives me some shotmaking ability from tough lies and to tight pins around the greens.  When I play at my club, I keep the 64* in the bag, while I usually put the 3 wood back in the bag when I'm playing away.

Anyway,  I hope you found this interesting and somewhat insightful.  I'm going to try to blog once or twice a week about the world of golf.  If there is anything you might be interested in reading my opinion about, please let me know.

- Matt