Equipment
Review: Srixon Z965, Z765 and Z565 irons
Pros: Great distance, impressive looks and feel. The Z965, Z765 and Z565 irons can hang with any iron in their respective classes, and blend well in a mixed set. Unique Tour V.T. Soles improve turf interaction.
Cons: The differences between Srixon’s Z-65 and Z-45 iron models are subtle.
Who they’re for: Anyone can play Srixon’s Z965, Z765 and Z565 irons, buy they’ll perform best for low-to-mid handicappers.
The Review
When you think of popular irons and irons played on the PGA Tour, Srixon may actually be one of the last to come to mind. Surely you’d lead with Callaway, Ping, TaylorMade and Titleist, then think of more exotic irons like Mizuno or PXG. Just because they’re under the radar, however, doesn’t mean Srixon doesn’t make some of the best all-around irons in golf.
Srixon’s no-frills approach to iron-making is refreshing in today’s golf equipment climate. The company forges its irons from 1020 carbon steel, and offers three distinct models than can please anyone from traditionalists (Z965) to forged cavity-back enthusiasts (Z765) to distance- or forgiveness-seeking crowds (Z565). Each offers the premium, detail-oriented design serious golfers desire without breaking the $1100 barrier for an eight-piece, steel-shafted set.
Their biggest flaw? Srixon’s Z965, Z765 and Z565 irons are very similar to the Z945, Z745 and Z545 irons they replace. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as the Z-45 series was well regarded in golf-equipment circles for its looks, feel and performance. The design of the Z-65 series falls into the bucket of “don’t mess with success,” but Srixon did make a few notable changes.
Srixon’s Tour V.T. Sole in a Z765 iron.
In terms of upgrades, each of this year’s Z-65 irons has Srixon’s new Tour V.T. Sole, which have a V shape to reduce turf interaction at impact, thereby improving energy transfer and consistency — especially on shots where golfers catch the grass before the ball. To further enhance the benefits of the Tour V.T. Soless, the company removed surface area around the heel and toe sections, and relief was added to backside of the sole as well.
It should be noted that because the Z965 (muscle backs), Z765 (cavity backs) and Z565 irons (game-improvement irons) each have different head shapes and sole widths, and the sole geometries are slightly different for each iron.
Srixon also made the grooves in all of the irons 5 percent larger, increasing ball friction at impact to create more consistent launch and spin characteristics, especially in wet conditions. Let’s take a more in-depth look at each iron to find out which option may be right for you and your game.
Z565 Irons
While labeled game-improvement irons, the Z565s are decidedly smaller, and have thinner top lines and much less offset than what golfers might expect in the category. And they’re forged, too. It makes you wonder why they’re tagged as “game-improvement” at all… until you hit them on a launch monitor and uncover their freakish performance.
The Z565 irons have forged, 1020 carbon steel bodies, but also employ thin, SUP10 face inserts that allows their club faces to flex more at impact. You’ll also notice a hollow cavity that sits behind the club face that isn’t used in the design of the Z765 or Z965 irons. The construction improves forgiveness and ball speed, and raises launch angle.
Surprisingly, you won’t notice much of a feel difference between the Z565 and the company’s smaller irons. Yes, the sound is slightly more hollow and higher-pitched, but it’s subtle. These are forged irons, and despite their thin club faces they deliver on forged feel — at least among game-improvement irons.
Again though, these irons aren’t just for double-digit handicappers. It’s quite common to find Z565 long and mid irons paired with either the company’s Z765 or Z965 irons in the bags of professional golfers and better golfers around the globe.
Let’s say you’re a 7-15 handicapper. There’s a good chance the Z565’s will satisfy your needs in terms of looks, sound and performance. As for any low handicappers or even Tour players out there, the Z565 irons can help you hit a few more par 5s in two, filling in distance or performance gaps at the lower end of your iron set.
Z765 or Z965? A tough call
Low handicappers have a difficult decision to make between Srixon’s Z765 and Z965 irons. The Z965’s are musclebacks that are slightly more “workable,” as blade-lovers like to say. That’s another way of relaying that they’re smaller-sized irons that spin slightly more. Both irons, though, have similar profiles with little offset and thin top lines. Both also use Srixon’s Tour V.T. Soles, and utilize a new heat treatment to make the irons more durable.
A Srixon Z965 iron at address
For cavity-back players, the Z965 blades won’t be much smaller or more intimidating than the Z765 irons. For blade players, the Z765 won’t look clunky or have too much offset. Low, single-digit handicappers could really go either way, or create a brag-worthy mixed set. If you have the game, you can’t choose wrong. But of course, a proper fitting will help you make the best decision… and with that, we’re on to the numbers.
The Numbers
To test the performance of the Z965, Z765 and the Z565 irons, we took all three models to The Launch Pad at Carl’s Golfland in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., where we tested Srixon’s new irons on Trackman with premium golf balls. We had two scratch players hit the 4, 7 and PW from each set, and the irons were built with stock lofts, lies, lengths, and Nippon’s Modus3 Tour 120X shafts.
All three 4 irons measured 38.5 inches in length and had 60.5-degree lie angles. The shafts were also the same, Nippon’s Modus3 Tour 120X, as were the grips.
All three 7 irons measured 37 inches in length and had 62-degree lie angles. The shafts were also the same, Nippon’s Modus3 Tour 120X, as were the grips.
All three 7 irons measured 35.5 inches in length and had 63.5-degree lie angles. The shafts were also the same, Nippon’s Modus3 Tour 120X, as were the grips.
It’s clear after testing that each of the irons offer distinct performance benefits, so you’ll certainly need to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your game to make the best decision. Overall, we found that the flight produced by the Z965, Z765 and Z565 irons is “flatter,” or more boring than one could expect from other lines of irons on the market, making them less likely than others to balloon.
In our test, the numbers show that Player 2, who has a slightly more shallow and slower swing speed, excelled more with the Z765 irons. Player 2, on the other hand, with a steeper and more aggressive move at the ball, found the blade irons to produce a tighter dispersion.
Both players relayed that the sole allowed them to be confident at impact, knowing that the club wouldn’t dig. The only concern is that “flippers,” or those with an early release, could have issues with the V-shaped sole due to its mass.
Notes from the numbers
- The Z565 irons produced the most ball speed, highest launch angles, overall height and the least amount of spin almost across the board.
- The Z965 irons generated the least amount of distance, ball speed and the most spin almost across the board.
- Player 2 hit the Z765 4-iron and 7-iron longer than the same Z565 clubs by 1.6 yards and 4.5 yards, respectively.
- Both players saw significant distance increases with the Z565 pitching wedge.
The Takeaway
Srixon’s new Z-65 iron series is everything you’d expect from the company after its successful and well-regarded release of its Z-45 series irons. The changes between old and new are minimal, however, so if you already have a set of Z-45 irons there’s little reason to upgrade.
That being said, if you’re in the market for new irons, know that Srixon’s Z965, Z765 and Z565 irons can hang with any iron in their respective categories. They deliver a blend of exceptional distance, impressive forgiveness and the tour-quality looks and sound better players demand. Regardless of what you pay, you’d be hard pressed to find a set of better premium, forged irons — especially if the Tour V.T. Soles are a match for your game.
See more photos, and what GolfWRX members are saying about the irons in our forums.
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[wrx_retail_links productid=”108″]
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- Daniel Berger what’s in the bag accurate as of the Farmers Insurance Open. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X
6-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 Tour (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8 X
Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3), TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC 2011 (4-PW)
Shafts: Project X Denali Blue 105 TX (3), Project X 6.5 (4-PW)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (50-12F), Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (56-14F), Callaway Jaws Raw (60-08C)
Shafts: Project X 6.5 (50), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (56, 60)
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Mini DB
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy PistolLock 1.0
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Wrap
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
Check out more in-hand photos of Daniel Berger’s clubs in the forums.
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What are the driver and shaft combinations of the best golfers in the world? For gearheads, it’s an endlessly interesting question — even if we can only ever aspire to play LS heads and 7 TX shafts.
At this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, GolfWRX got in-hand looks at the driver setups of a wealth of players.
Check out some of the most interesting combos below, then head to the GolfWRX forums for the rest, as well as the rest of our galleries from New Orleans.
Rory McIlroy
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (9 degrees @8.25)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride MCC
Alex Fitzpatrick
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride MCC
Daniel Berger
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees @9)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Wrap
Rasmus Hojgaard
Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Blue 60 TX
Grip: Golf Pride MCC
Alejandro Tosti
Driver: Srixon ZX5 Mk II LS (9.5 degrees @10.5)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS T1100 75 6.5
Grip: Golf Pride MCC Plus4
James Nicholas
Driver: Titleist TSR3 (8 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Kevin Streelman
Driver: Titleist TSR3 (10 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Sang-moon Bae
Driver: Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond (9+ @8)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 6 X
Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Russ Cochran
Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke (9 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD TP 6 X
Grip: Golf pride MCC Align 
MJ Daffue
Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max (10.5 degrees @9.5)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Green RDX 65 TX
Grip: Golf Pride ZGrip Cord Align
Check our more photos from the Zurich Classic here.
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- Rasmus Højgaard what’s in the bag accurate as of the Zurich Classic.
Driver: Callaway Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Callaway Ai Smoke Triple Diamond Prototype (16.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Utility: Callaway Apex UW (21 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei AV Raw White 85 TX
Irons: Callaway Apex Pro (3), Callaway X Forged (4-PW)
Shafts: KBS $-Taper 130
Wedges: Callaway Jaws Raw (52-10S, 56-10S, 60-06C)
Shafts: KBS Tour 130 X
Putter: Odyssey Ai One Milled Eight T DB
Grips: Golf Pride MCC
Check out more in-hand photos of Hojgaard in the forums.
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Daniel Berger what’s in the bag accurate as of the Farmers Insurance Open. More photos from the event here. Driver:...
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Tyler
Apr 7, 2017 at 11:52 am
I wanted to mix a set of 565’s with 765’s but after hitting the short irons I just decided to go with a complete set of 565’s.
I love them. I don’t have as much time to play and practice but you would never know it. Feel is great. Launch and distance was just what i was looking for.
Great clubs. I like the fact that they fly below the radar of the Bigger Companies.
Drew
Jan 9, 2017 at 11:17 pm
I have hit the Z565 7 iron with the stock Nippon NS Pro 980 stiff steel shaft on the LM at my local Edwin Watts. I was shocked, at first, that the Z565’s are as crazy long as the review test result. When I went home, I looked up the lofts and it became clear why I was hitting a forged 7 iron as long as my Callaway X-Hot 7 iron. The lofts are very strong on the Callaway’s, and the Srixon’s have very similar strong lofts. I imagine the Nippon shaft is a better fit for my swing, which explains some of the carry distance. I am definitely going to get a set of Z565’s when I find a good used set on the market. The $1000.00 price tag is the only “down side” I can see for the Srixon iron set.
Tom Duckworth
Dec 1, 2016 at 9:36 pm
Absolutely beautiful clubs. I just wonder how much the Nippon shafts have to do with the flatter ball flight. That is kind of in the DNA of these shafts
Not saying anything against the shafts I like them I have Nippon Modus 3 105s in my FG Tour V2s.
The testers got some big numbers with them. I’m looking forward to trying them.
It’s hard to find them however.
We have a club fitter here in KC that sells Miura, Epon, Ben Hogans, PXG and other high end clubs. I think it says something about Srixon that they carry them as well.
Tom
Oct 17, 2016 at 4:44 pm
Nice to see the stats that beat MP series.
Mark
Sep 20, 2016 at 9:40 pm
Chuffing V sole again. And 156 with a wedge? Dream On…..cue Aerosmith!
Jack
Sep 20, 2016 at 3:51 am
I love how these scratch players hit it as far as Dustin Johnson.
BoomCannon
Sep 20, 2016 at 10:26 am
He’s a short knocker on these forums.
carlsheen
Sep 20, 2016 at 3:03 pm
And?
Jim
Sep 23, 2016 at 12:37 am
You’d be surprised. We are on a regular basis. New Epon 703 – yeah, strong loft, but so well engineered w undercut channel cavity, low COG so produces perfect 8 iron launch & flight.
3 hcp, 5’10, athletic college Hockey player & golfer on Trackman: 92mph, 36.75″ Epon 703 8 iron with 6.5 Proj X 18° launch 135 ball speed 5500 rpm (all avg) 6 hits – all over 200 carry. 208 longest…
Tyler
Sep 19, 2016 at 5:02 pm
From my personal experience with these irons (745), I feel that the sound of these irons are sub par. Hitting multiple manufactures golf balls, they seemed to have a real hollow click. Now for me personally since sound and feel go hand and hand, the perception is that they were cheap despite the looks. I compared them side by side with Mizuno irons (MP54, H5) and there was a noticeable difference in feel sound and performance all going to Mizuno….and trust me I WANTED to like these iron, a lot !
Tyler
Sep 19, 2016 at 5:06 pm
Correction (765)
Dansrixon
Sep 19, 2016 at 4:56 pm
“When you think of popular irons and irons played on the PGA Tour, Srixon may actually be one of the last to come to mind. Surely you’d lead with Callaway, Ping, TaylorMade and Titleist, then think of more exotic irons like Mizuno or PXG. Just because they’re under the radar, however, doesn’t mean Srixon doesn’t make some of the best all-around irons in golf.”
If you don’t think about Srixon irons on the PGA Tour it is only because you are not paying attention. 6 wins this season, that is more than Mizuno and PXG combined. More than Ping as well. Srixon may be lacking in marketing but not in Tour validation. Interestingly, 4 of those wins had Srixon irons in the runner ups bag not to mention numerous other runner ups, like at the US open.
I get Srixon being under the radar for marketing reasons but they are right behind the big three on tour, with a much smaller budget. Mizuno has not been relevant on the PGA Tour in a decade. Srixon has always struggled with the marketing side of the game, but Tour validation is stronger than ever. And that is just talking about the irons…not even talking golf balls.
Justin
Sep 20, 2016 at 11:44 am
Sadly, marketing is all that seems to matter these days. The only thing Srixon spends marketing money on is golf balls. I wish more people knew how good they were, but they probably never will
carlsheen
Sep 20, 2016 at 3:06 pm
Agreed. Thanks for places like this that produce reviews for the game and not for the $$$. 10 years of letting the members say what is on their mind and supporting us is what it is all about.
Dave C
Sep 19, 2016 at 3:52 pm
What does “will utilize a new heat treatment to make the irons more durable” mean for feel? Well this treatment solve the bag chatter observed in the 745 line?
Nath
Sep 19, 2016 at 3:44 pm
Here here, half az melenials
Ezra
Sep 19, 2016 at 1:15 pm
Hi there, lovely set! I can google the specs but it would be great to add them in the article IMO…
ooffa
Sep 19, 2016 at 12:17 pm
Very nice advertisement
foo
Sep 19, 2016 at 11:33 am
Every review is 5 out of 5 stars. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a rating at all.
Warwick
Sep 19, 2016 at 11:32 am
Great article. Which smart ar*e checks lofts, lie and length? You just see how it goes for goodness sake.
Joshuaplaysgolf
Sep 19, 2016 at 3:22 pm
Because every company has tolerances for theses things. Titleist is +/-1* for loft. You should always have these things checked to make sure they are correct and fitted to your specifications. For the purpose of testing, it ensures it’s a consistent test with the labeled loft, lies, and lengths actually being the specifics the clubs are labeled as.
Scooter McGavin
Sep 19, 2016 at 4:43 pm
If Titleist’s tolerance is +/- 1* that’s news to me. Even when we had custom sets come in, they were frequently off by 2 or 3 degrees. We would rarely get a set that was good when it was received. Just to reinforce your point though about checking/adjusting them when you get them.
Jim
Sep 21, 2016 at 1:21 am
I CAN TOTALLY VOUCH FOR SHOOTER ON THIS! we check every custom OEM order, and 4/5 times a couple clubs need adjustment. Even all our ‘off the rack’ sales get double checked & tweaked.
“Industry Spec’s +/- 2°”
Nike’s were friggin terrible! crooked hosel bores, head weights off 4-5 grams…Mizuno hosels so loose the shafts need to be dimpled…
Truth is, most of our ‘beloved’ major OEM’s pretty much suck compared to smaller batch very tight tolerance Japanese offerings. Srixon really made a big step with the ‘500’ series in – ’08/09? 506,s… Great clubs, Drivers were hot too. Did have a ‘quirky’ feel. Solid, but like someone else described a ‘click’ – you might expect more from a ball than the head…There’s a lot of great product over there! Bridgestone, Honma, Maruman, ON/OFF (formerly Diawa) – of course Epon & Miura….
“Nice ad” (??) some folks are truly lost. If it ain’t TM (the largest producer of CRAP) or Titleist, it must be bogus
Tmoney
Dec 19, 2016 at 12:28 pm
I disagree. Mizuno has been right on when I’ve ordered them. I put them up there as one of the best. The only irons Ive sent back were Callaway’s for length adjustments that were off.
TCJ
Sep 19, 2016 at 11:06 am
Any love for us lefties with the Z965?
Topic_Monitor
Sep 19, 2016 at 10:57 am
Please respect fellow members and article authors. Thank You
spelling b
Sep 19, 2016 at 9:16 am
MSmizzle agreed with you…now let’s work on your typing…