Power spec or retro spec?

[BiMGuy]

Like I stated earlier in the thread, there is entirely too much thought goes into golf for an awful lot of amateurs.
Someone who can't get a ball in the air with a lower lofted iron has no business bothering about feel on approach shots from range.

I’m still not sure what ‘feel’ is supposed to be and how it makes any difference to any shot.

 

[Deleted member 1147]

I’m still not sure what ‘feel’ is supposed to be and how it makes any difference to any shot.

Other than the difference between hitting out the middle or a thin/fat/toe strike I doubt most people can feel any difference between two different clubs.

 

[BiMGuy]

Other than the difference between hitting out the middle or a thin/fat/toe strike I doubt most people can feel any difference between two different clubs.

Indeed. And feeling that impact makes no difference whatsoever to the shot you’ve just hit as it’s too late to do anything about it.

 

[Neilds]

It's not feel, it's sound - mostly

 

[patricks148]

i played players blades for a few years, but the real eye opener was playing with Hickory clubs.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Had a fitting at my club a while back for the Ping G430. I was advised to get 6 iron towards the wedges. The PW came in at 41 degrees and so I was then needing their 45.5 and 50 and 54 before I got back to my current 58 degree wedge to gap correctly. I did consider trying to get the 50 bent 2 degrees at the factory and the 54 two degrees to a 56 at the same time and using that as my go to out of bunkers but decided to hang fire. I think given the penchant for most manufacturers to offer the cranked lofts as a default many will start to follow the Ping trend and add several wedges as part of the default set option

In essence the 41 degree wedge would be the equivalent of my 9 iron the I series irons, the 45.5 as near as damn it to my 46 degree PW and then you'd have the various gap wedges from there. To me, I don't care what the club says on the bottom as long as I've tested the distances it goes on good/average hits and I know when I use it to get to a designated target it will get me there/close depending on strike

 

[Captain_Black.]

Had a fitting at my club a while back for the Ping G430. I was advised to get 6 iron towards the wedges. The PW came in at 41 degrees and so I was then needing their 45.5 and 50 and 54 before I got back to my current 58 degree wedge to gap correctly. I did consider trying to get the 50 bent 2 degrees at the factory and the 54 two degrees to a 56 at the same time and using that as my go to out of bunkers but decided to hang fire. I think given the penchant for most manufacturers to offer the cranked lofts as a default many will start to follow the Ping trend and add several wedges as part of the default set option

In essence the 41 degree wedge would be the equivalent of my 9 iron the I series irons, the 45.5 as near as damn it to my 46 degree PW and then you'd have the various gap wedges from there. To me, I don't care what the club says on the bottom as long as I've tested the distances it goes on good/average hits and I know when I use it to get to a designated target it will get me there/close depending on strike

So in essence.
Ping we're trying to flog you a power spec set of clubs that we're unsuitable for your needs & left you needing to buy extra wedges to cover the gaps at the bottom of the set.
Whereas, a traditionally lofted set would probably not have caused a gapping issue.
Clever marketing maybe, but ultimately ends up causing an issue & more money.

 

[BiMGuy]

So in essence.
Ping we're trying to flog you a power spec set of clubs that we're unsuitable for your needs & left you needing to buy extra wedges to cover the gaps at the bottom of the set.
Whereas, a traditionally lofted set would probably not have caused a gapping issue.
Clever marketing maybe, but ultimately ends up causing an issue & more money.

No. The lofts are the same. Just the numbers on the bottom of the clubs are different.

Instead of 4 to PW you now buy 6 to Gap Wedge. What’s the difference.

Unlike days gone buy I gam buy a set made op of exactly the clubs I will use rather than a full set that I might not need.

 

[Captain_Black.]

No. The lofts are the same. Just the numbers on the bottom of the clubs are different.

Instead of 4 to PW you now buy 6 to Gap Wedge. What’s the difference.

Unlike days gone buy I gam buy a set made op of exactly the clubs I will use rather than a full set that I might not need.

Rubbish.
The 6 has become a 5
The 5 has become a 4
& so on

 

[BiMGuy]

Rubbish.
The 6 has become a 5
The 5 has become a 4
& so on

Thats what I said.

A club with 50° loft used to be a PW now it’s a gap wedge. But it’s still just a club with 50° loft and goes 100 yards.

 

[D-S]

Stupid question from me, but have the lengths of clubs also changed over time? Is, for example, a 9 iron today like a cut down 7 iron if the past?

 

[Orikoru]

Rubbish.
The 6 has become a 5
The 5 has become a 4
& so on

Right, so instead of buying 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, P, you buy 6, 7, 8, 9, P, A/G. It's the same number of clubs they're just named/numbered differently.

 

[Orikoru]

Stupid question from me, but have the lengths of clubs also changed over time? Is, for example, a 9 iron today like a cut down 7 iron if the past?

I'd hazard a guess they might have got half an inch longer in line with the average height of a person being slightly taller than 50 years ago.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

So in essence.
Ping we're trying to flog you a power spec set of clubs that we're unsuitable for your needs & left you needing to buy extra wedges to cover the gaps at the bottom of the set.
Whereas, a traditionally lofted set would probably not have caused a gapping issue.
Clever marketing maybe, but ultimately ends up causing an issue & more money.

No. I was having a fitting and so I hit my own clubs including my 4H and 5H and then the new 6 iron onwards. The gap between my numbers with the hybrids and the 6 iron suggested I didn't need a 5 iron and then the rest of the set is designed to have the remaining clubs in the set to plug the gaps which by and large they did once we found an optimum shaft. It was a demo day so no obligation to buy and I had told the fitter/club pro I wanted to get my numbers before I made any decision which they were happy to provide

 

[Voyager EMH]

I like playing with these clubs.
Standard length shaft, loft and lie.

35.75 ins, 39° and I hit it 123 yards
35.5 ins, 44° and I hit it 111 yards
35.25 ins, 49° and I hit it 99 yards

They are numbered 7, 8, 9. They are 60 years old. Forgan Powerpakt.

My Ping i10 9-iron is 35.75 ins, 42° and, whadda-yer-know, I hit it 118 yards.
So a quarter of an inch longer shaft and 2° stronger loft and I get 7 more yards with a 9-iron than I can with an 8-iron. Who would've thought it after 50 years of progress?
What a revelation?

But the lofts HAVE NOT CHANGED. The numbering has changed.

If I moved to a Mizuno Pro 223 9-iron, I would have quarter of an inch longer shaft and one degree stronger loft than the Ping i10 9-iron.
Pretty sure I would get a few yards more distance.

Where will it end?

Its got to be that if it is 49° it gets a number. Wedges start at 50°. My opinion.

 

[Alan Clifford]

Very true. I can't remember which pro it was, but I saw an interview where they showed the bottom of their irons and they had written a yardage number on them. The number being for a full shot with that iron in normal conditions.. that's all they needed.

That's what I have in my head. Only I am not hitting it so far so I add two clubs

 

[KenL]

Very true. I can't remember which pro it was, but I saw an interview where they showed the bottom of their irons and they had written a yardage number on them. The number being for a full shot with that iron in normal conditions.. that's all they needed.

Indeed, that was a pro who needed precise distances. Most hackers don't know how far they hit it, hence a simple number is required for the masses.

 

[KenL]

Had a fitting at my club a while back for the Ping G430. I was advised to get 6 iron towards the wedges. The PW came in at 41 degrees and so I was then needing their 45.5 and 50 and 54 before I got back to my current 58 degree wedge to gap correctly. I did consider trying to get the 50 bent 2 degrees at the factory and the 54 two degrees to a 56 at the same time and using that as my go to out of bunkers but decided to hang fire. I think given the penchant for most manufacturers to offer the cranked lofts as a default many will start to follow the Ping trend and add several wedges as part of the default set option

In essence the 41 degree wedge would be the equivalent of my 9 iron the I series irons, the 45.5 as near as damn it to my 46 degree PW and then you'd have the various gap wedges from there. To me, I don't care what the club says on the bottom as long as I've tested the distances it goes on good/average hits and I know when I use it to get to a designated target it will get me there/close depending on strike

That's a real shock. My irons, g425 has a 44.5 degree pitching wedge and a 50 degree U (gap) wedge.

 

[need_my_wedge]

I can guarantee that @need_my_wedge will not be changing his name to need_my_bernard!

Some may call me a Bernard at times but I think you’re nailed on in this instance

 

[bobmac]

Problem solved with a sharpie