Club Choice

[Dave_Hill_GPGC]

Hi All,

I'm in the very lucky position that the wife has offered to buy me a set of clubs (fitted) for my 40th Birthday later this year.

I now have a quandry, what to pick....

Taylormade SLDR irons
Ping i25
etc
etc....

I am a 12 Handicapper, currently playing Cleveland CG Tour blades (and struggling below 7 Iron if I'm honest)
I have some Taylormade RAC TP Forged too, but they're getting tired.

I suppose what I'm asking is what do people of a similair handicap play, what would the experts recommend and what are people's general opinion of the playability / forgiveness of what is out there on the market at the moment.

Thanks,

Dave.

 

[Bobirdie]

I have played cavity backs all my days. I am a decent ball striker but would never play blades. I want all the help I can get lol.

I have had a few sets of irons over the years mizuno mp62, taylormade r9tp and I am currently gaming cobra cb forged irons.

Looking back the r9 tps were probably the best irons ive had forgiveness wise playability nice to look down on aswell

 

[Bratty]

I've just swapped out my r9s for Ping i25s., I tried:
Ping i25
Titleist APs (whatever the easier ones are) - didn't work as well as the i25s on mis-hits.
Callaway Apex - first time they were lovely, but two other sessions revealed a bit clicky off the face, and not worth £100 more than the i25s
Ping Anser forged - terrible feel
Nike Covert 2.0 - so easy to hit, best on test (hadn't hit the pings at this point), but just couldn't get used to the thick top edge and clunky look.
TM Tour Preferred - not enough forgiveness for me.

Just go try as many sets as possible and when you have 2 or 3 favourites, hit them 3 or 4 seperate sessions.

Happy 40th!

 

[virtuocity]

I'm a 14 handicapper and I still struggle with my swing and change it more than my choice of golf balls. I really don't think custom fitting is for me- I reckon I'd get more out of trying 10 different sets of irons at the range than paying for a custom fit.

Have the SLDR irons improved on the Rocketbladez enough to change my game? No chance.

Have the i25s (you should consider G25s if you're struggling with 6 irons downwards by the way) improved on the G15s so much that I'd cut my handicap by a couple of shots? No.

So, if your goal is to improve your ball striking, guess what you should spend your cash on (god- I'm aware that I'm about to sound like Homer)? That's right- lessons.

Pick yourself up some Rocketbladez- £300. That gives you £200 change from the SLDRs to get 10 half hour lessons from a good pro.

Unlike some forumers, I don't get lessons every two weeks. I get them when I need them but EVERY time I get a lesson I either get back on track or improve. Look at my handicap progress this year in my signature. Obviously, I've had a decent year but have been creeping up recently. So what did I do? I went and got a lesson today and now I'm hitting a much better ball.

HOWEVER- there's nothing like spending a tonne of cash on the best, newest equipment so if that's your priority (and there's nothing at all wrong with it) then book a fitting session, get the sexiest looking clubs you can and enjoy!!!

Just ask yourself beforehand what it is you want out of your hard-earned!

 

[pbrown7582]

Unless you are sure you particular want a certain club don't pick go hit them all and chose the one you like best.
The idea of buying rocketbladez £200 cheaper than sdlr is a great one and would be a plus 1 from me too.

 

[Ethan]

Get advice from a pro about what suits you.

I currently play blades, and I happened to play in a new threesome today, one of the others used blades and the other guy used players cavity backs.

We agreed that modern blades are not nearly as hard to hit as people traditionally think, provided you have them fitted and are using suitable shafts.

I have tried the SLDR irons, as a curiosity, and they are pretty easy to hit. The shaft is a TM version of the C taper lite, although their version os perhaps a bit too light.

The OP, as a 12 handicapper, could also consider the TM CB, or a CB/MC mixed set, or some Mizunos. The Mizuno range has some nice MP irons and the JPX Forged are a good players club too. Look out for another JPX model coming in shortly. I would also consider a AP1/AP2 mixed set of Titleists, or the Callway Apex.

 

[JCW]

Hi , I have just gone to TM Tour preffered CB irons , easy to hit from blades , handicap down as well as a result

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Just hit a load and go with what you feel confident with and which clubs you feel happy with in your hands

 

[Doh]

SLDR irons are so easy to hit I tried them recently and I am very tempted. However you do really need to try as many possible as has been said. Just like a kid in a toy shop.:thup:

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I went for a fitting last year. Had no pre conceived idea but came away with the G25. I ended up getting another fit this year for the I 25's as I didn't like the chunky look of the G's in the short irons. The original fitting was great and because I had no preference on maker I tried a load. If you can find somewhere that has a wide choice my suggestion is to not try and narrow it down before you go but trust the fitter and the launch monitor data to find what works best. Personally of a similar handicap I'd be looking for a cavity, even a small one to give a degree of forgiveness

 

[Rooter]

Hi , I have just gone to TM Tour preffered CB irons , easy to hit from blades , handicap down as well as a result

these would be my first choice to try if i had the choice. i have had a hit at the range and they were very very nice!

 

[MadAdey]

I think you need to have a good think about what you want. If you struggle with hitting anything apart from your short irons then I would stay away from clubs like the i25s and other player style cavities. Or the other option is to go with a something like the i25 8-PW, 5-6 G25 then have rescues for your long irons. Get a combo set, so you can have the player cavity short irons but then get game improvement long irons. If you got them from a proper fitting centre then they would be able to set the lofts up so the transition between the 2 sets keeps a good distance gapping.

 

[Bratty]

I would be willing to bet the i25 6-4 irons are easier to hit than the CG Tour blades the OP is currently using, though.

To th OP, don't discount anything until you've tried them once or better still, twice.

Good advice about mixed sets from MadAdey, as there are a good few manufacturers whose sets would work as a combo. Make sure that the feel is similar, which is something I almost missed (but as usual, advice from the forum saved me!).