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Review: TaylorMade Tour Preferred UDI (Ultimate Driving Iron)

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Pros: Not your grandfather’s (or even your father’s) driving iron. Effortless launch, long distance and a surprising amount of forgiveness.

Cons: While more forgiving than expected, these driving irons are for the better golfer and if forgiveness on mishits a primary need, you’ll want to stick with hybrids or fairway woods.

Bottom Line: The Tour Preferred UDI offers distance and playability, two key features a driving iron must deliver to satisfy the demands of better players. With a solid feel off the sweet spot, good feedback, forgiveness on mishits and an almost effortless launch, the UDI delivers long distance off the tee and shots that hit the ground and rolls for days.

Overview

The first time I put the UDI in play during a round, I casually said on the first tee “I think I’ll hit 1-iron.” Then, as if we were in a cartoon, the heads of the other members of my foursome snapped around and looked at me bewildered and confused until someone said “you’re going to hit what?” Thankfully, I flushed that drive and then handed the Taylormade UDI 1 iron around to the group who each had the same reaction … this doesn’t look like a 1 iron.

The driving iron market is red hot right now and every manufacturer is trying to put out high performance equipment that delivers maximum distance and playability. With the UDI, Taylormade wanted to create a club with the distance and playability of a hybrid and the accuracy and workability of an iron.

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The UDI’s hollow body construction is made out of 450 stainless steel and the face is made out of thinner, stronger 455 Carpenter Steel that is designed to produce faster ball speeds. The Speed Pocket, a 3 millimeter slot in the sole, is also included in the design and allows the face to flex more at impact. That leads to a higher launch and more ball speed, especially on shots hit low on the face.

TM UDI

The UDI’s are available in three models: a 1 iron (16 degrees), 2 iron (18 degrees) and 3 iron (20 degrees) with an MSRP of $199. The stock shaft is the KBS C-Taper Lite, which is said to promote a mid-to-high trajectory and controlled spin. You can pre-order them now and they are set to ship on 8/1.

In addition to this review, check out what five GolfWRX Featured Writers, including myself, think about the UDI after spending time testing UDI 1 irons custom built to our specs.

Performance

I tested both the 16-degree 1 iron and the 18-degree 2 iron with the stock KBS C-Taper Lite S-Flex shaft outside in calm conditions on the driving range as well as the course. I was sufficiently warmed up by the time I was ready to hit the UDI and instead of going the safe route and hitting the 2 iron first, I did what a lot of GolfWRXers would do and pulled the 1 iron.

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I was sold with the first shot off the tee. I expected the launch to come out like a low bullet, but instead I had no problem getting the ball up in the air. Looking at the launch and flight, it appeared very similar to my SLDR 4 iron but clearly much longer. Once the ball hit the ground, the rollout was impressive. I was regularly flying shots 235 yards with plenty of rollout, which is a long way for someone with my club head speed.

It was hard to gauge on the range, but once I hit it on the course and the launch monitor I was able to see that I was getting 25-to-30 yards of roll and more in some cases. That is excellent off the tee, but won’t be great if you’re looking to fly shots onto greens and get the ball to stop. Just as important as distance, controllability with the UDI was very apparent. Unlike the the occasional shot with a hybrid and certainly fairway wood, I didn’t have any shots getting too far away from me.

TM UDI

Surprisingly, on average the 2 iron appeared to generate almost as much distance as the 1 iron. On the launch monitor, I averaged only 2 more yards with the 1 iron than the 2 iron. Yes, my longest shots with the 1 iron were longer than the 2 iron. But more importantly, my dispersion, launch and distance was more consistent with the 2 iron. For me that is telling and very important.

I can still generate great distance, but instead of searching for the the bombs with the 1 iron every so often, I was content and happy with the consistent distance and accuracy of the 2 iron, which still beat my hybrid. Both clubs sit between my 18-degree hybrid and my 3 wood in total distance. The higher launch and flight of my hybrid will come in handy for shots into greens, but the UDI 2 iron will generate more overall distance off the tee. Between the two clubs, the 2 iron will likely spend more time in my bag than the 1 iron.

IMG_2801

Both clubs offered the same workability. I was regularly hitting nice tight draws but could also throw a fade into the mix. Hitting the ball low, as expected, is not a problem with a stock shot and playing it farther back in my stance gives me the freedom to send super low shots down the fairway.

What I was surprised to see when I looked at the data on the launch monitor was that mishits were not as penalizing as I would have expected with a 1 or 2 iron. Ball speed did drop and there was more movement right or left, but not as much as I anticipated. That said, I can and did mishit this club. The biggest opportunity for mishits for me happened off the turf more so than off a tee. Toe hits were more penalizing than heeled shots, which is what I expected. The real performance of this club shines when hit off the tee.

Looks & Feel

TM UDI

These are some killer looking clubs. With the Tour Preferred name, you expect it to have a similar look and it does. With smooth, clean lines and edges and a mix of satin and bright chrome, the UDI irons look stunning in the bag and in your hands. The milled score lines add a nice touch of class as well.

IMG_2826

As I mentioned above, these clubs do not have the traditional thin, butter-knife look about them. Looking down at address, the thicker top lines and mass low behind the face really make you believe the sweet spot is larger than it really is. We throw around the word confidence a lot in reviews, but when you have a 1 or 2 iron in your hand, you better have some confidence. The UDI delivers.

The satin KBS C-Taper shaft further compliments the look. Some of TaylorMade’s larger irons in the past, like the RocketBladez and SpeedBlade, don’t look very serious in my opinion. The UDI on the other hand, is a serious looking club for serious golfers.

Feel is subjective, but right off the first flush hit this club had a solid feel to it. Even with the hollow construction, there is nothing hollow about the feel. Off the sweet spot, shots had an effortless, powerful feel. Mishits were very obvious. I knew instantly if I was high on the face or low and definitely knew if I was hitting it toe side or heel side.

Bottom Line

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With three different lofts to choose from, the UDI can sit in the bag as a compliment to a hybrid or even a fairway wood in certain cases and delivers serious distance off the tee and even off the turf. It’s more forgiving than traditional 1 and 2 irons, with a higher launch and excellent workability. These clubs are best suited off the tee or in situations where you want the ball to roll out.

While all three UDI lofts are suited for better players, the 1-iron is definitely made for better golfers looking for the distance of a hybrid and the accuracy of an iron. Mid-to-high handicap players will likely struggle to put the 1 iron in the bag, but the 2 and 3 iron could still be on the list of the clubs to test if you’re looking for distance off the tee with more accuracy than a hybrid.

[wrx_buy_now oemlink=”http://taylormadegolf.com/Tour-Preferred-UDI/DW-WZ071.html” oemtext=”Learn more from TaylorMade” amazonlink=”http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MB72W7O/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00MB72W7O&linkCode=as2&tag=golfwrxcom-20&linkId=J2EQU4CJZPAJ5YQN”]

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When he is not obsessing about his golf game, Kane heads up an innovation lab responsible for driving innovative digital product development for Fortune 500 companies. He is also the co-founder of RoundShout and creator of Ranger GPS, the free iOS GPS app for the driving range. On a quest to become a scratch golfer, Kane writes about his progress (for better or worse) at kanecochran.com and contributes golf technology-focused articles on GolfWRX.com.

16 Comments

16 Comments

  1. Joe

    Mar 15, 2015 at 1:17 pm

    They make a tour only 4 iron UDI, but not available to the public. I wonder why? Seems backwards, the pros should get the one iron, not us. We should get the 4 iron, not them. It’s like they want us to hit bad shots so we’ll keep buying new clubs.

  2. StraightasanArrow

    Mar 2, 2015 at 10:26 pm

    I have the ping i20 20* hybrid and I’m looking into getting a di. Im a 7 handicap and am a pretty good ball striker, should i look into this one or the rapture?

  3. moses

    Aug 22, 2014 at 12:34 pm

    “I did what a lot of GolfWRXers would do and pulled the 1 iron.”

    I love it. And then as most WRXers would/will learn you realized that the 2 iron is a better fit. 🙂

    Great review. I’m going to get the 2 iron and not bother with the 1 iron.

  4. Pingback: Get Better At Golf With These Simple And Effective Tips | Golf Mind To Win

  5. Jsjones

    Jul 30, 2014 at 5:46 pm

    And no 1 iron version for left handers. Don’t usually complain about LH club selection but I REALLY wanted that 1 iron.

    • Keegan

      Jan 8, 2015 at 6:56 pm

      Get a 2 iron and bend it 2 degrees strong then

  6. John

    Jul 30, 2014 at 3:09 pm

    You are spot on. I recently also purchased the 2 iron but on the release day Taylormade did not have custom shaft option available which was bit disappointing. I changed the shaft to Project X PXi 6.5 to get the launch and spin down but keeping the weight of the club slightly up (i use DG X100 for my irons).

    Overall the face is very hot and one of the reason I like about driving irons is that it isn’t draw biased like the hybrids on the market. Long iron is a good substitute I think.

    Overall performance I noticed is that how tight the shot deviation is as well as how long the ball travels with a piecing ball flight. I was hitting 245 yards carry on average (224 yards for my 3 iron).

    It is a highly recommended club and people should not be intimated by it. It could change the dynamics of your golf game off the tee box if it leaves a comfortable yardage range to the green on your next approach shot.

  7. Pingback: Review: TaylorMade Tour Preferred UDI (Ultimate Driving Iron) | Spacetimeandi.com

  8. Alan

    Jul 29, 2014 at 11:40 pm

    Still wont beat my rapture!

  9. Chuck

    Jul 29, 2014 at 7:23 pm

    Great job by TM. Good blade length, good shape, good topline. And most of all; PERFECT offset, which is what most manufaturers screw up on utility/driving irons.

  10. Joe d

    Jul 29, 2014 at 5:46 pm

    2 degree loft spreads…sweet!

  11. tom stickney

    Jul 29, 2014 at 5:38 pm

    As I stated in the review I did with the UDI’s with Trackman…it’s nice to have the versatility of the one-iron back in my bag! Plus the chicks dig it! 🙂

    • John

      Jul 30, 2014 at 3:10 pm

      Don’t attempt me to take my 3 wood out of my bag 🙂

  12. Mark

    Jul 29, 2014 at 4:45 pm

    I still carry a MacGregor JNP Forged 2 iron in my bag today from the 1980’s. Goes 250 off the tee dead straight. I never understood why manufactures stopped making 2 and 3 iron’s. It’s the safe bet off the tee on a tight hole or into the wind every time. I am looking forward to hitting the TM UDI iron to see if it can replace my JNP

    • John

      Jun 14, 2016 at 11:23 pm

      I agree Mark. I put a 3 iron version of one of these into my bag for that very purpose. I play off 8, hit the ball reasonably but a little erratic at times with the hybrids and woods off the tee. This club goes 190-220m range strait which makes those short par 4s and long par 3s much easier for me.
      Have not hit the 2 or 1 iron but if your looking for a long iron that’s easier to hit than your standard 2-1 irons you can’t go far wrong imo.

  13. Mike

    Jul 29, 2014 at 2:37 pm

    Excellent review. Would you be able to compare these to the older j33 airmuscle from Bridgestone? I have been playing the 2i airmuscle for years, but I am intrigued by the UDI from tm.

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Club Junkie

Club Junkie Review: Cobra’s new King Tour irons

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The Cobra King Tour irons have been proven on the PGA Tour already and will be in bags of better amateur players this year. The previous King Tour MIM irons were very underrated and offered great precision with a solid shape that many players liked. Cobra went away from the Metal Injection Molded construction and went with a five-step forging process for soft and solid feel.

Make sure to check out the full podcast review at the links below and search GolfWRX Radio on every podcast platform.

I was a big fan of the previous Tour MIM irons and played them in rotation throughout the last two years. Out of the box, I was impressed with the more simple and clean look of the badging on the new King Tour. Badging is mostly silver with just small black accents that should appeal to even the pickiest golfers. I didn’t notice the shorter blade length in the new irons but did notice that the leading edge is just slightly more rounded. Topline is thin, but not razor thin, but still has enough there to give you the confidence that you don’t have to hit it on the dead center every shot.

Feel is solid and soft with just a slight click to the thud on well struck shots while mishits are met with a little more sound and vibration to the hands.

These King Tour irons are built to be cannons and place more emphasis on consistent and precise shots. I also felt like the new irons launch easily and maybe a touch higher than some irons in the same category.

My launch monitor showed my 7 iron with an average launch angle of 22 degrees and spin right around 5,800 with a Project X LZ 6.0 stock shaft. Ball speed isn’t the ultimate focus of this iron but it did well with an average around 108mph and the iron was able to keep the speed up well when you didn’t strike the center. You will still see a drop off in speed and distance when you miss the center, but you don’t have to be Navy SEAL sniper accurate on the face to achieve a good shot. Dispersion was very tight, and while there are bigger irons with more forgiveness, this players cavity still allows good playability when you aren’t bringing your A-plus game to the course.

Cobra lists the King Tour as an iron for a Tour level player up to a 7 handicap and I think this iron could see the bags of more golfers than that. I am a 9.4 handicap, and I felt more than comfortable playing this iron even on less than perfect days.

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Iron Reviews

Review: Honma TW737-Vs Forged Irons

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Equipment

GolfWRX Member Reviews: TaylorMade 2017 M1 and M2 Irons

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One of the many benefits of being a GolfWRX Forum Member is exclusive access to Giveaways and Testing Threads. For Giveaways — we give away everything from golf clubs to golf balls to GPS units — all it takes is a forum name. Enter any Giveaway, and we select winners randomly. You’re then free to enjoy your prize as you wish.

For Testing Threads, the process a bit more involved. GolfWRX Forum Members sign up to test the latest and greatest products in golf, and then they provide in-depth reviews on the equipment. Being the intelligent golf-equipment users they are, GoflWRX Members are able to provide the most-informed and unbiased reviews on the Internet.

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In this Testing Thread, we selected 75 members to test a TaylorMade M1 2017 7-iron and TaylorMade M2 7-iron. Each of the clubs were built with the stock lofts and shafts — M2 2017 (28.5 degrees) with a TaylorMade Reax shaft, and M1 2017 (30.5 degrees) with a True Temper Dynamic Gold S300 shaft — and the testers were instructed to post their review of the clubs here.

Below, we’ve selected what we’ve deemed the most in-depth and educated reviews out of the 75 testers. We have edited each of the posts for brevity, clarity and grammar.

Thanks to all of those involved in the testing!

Brock9007

To be honest, looking down on the TaylorMade M1 and M2 irons at address, there is really not much difference. I would have to pick one up to see which is which.

The first 10 balls I hit were with M1 and 6/10 felt great, while the other 4 were toe hits, which I felt and the distance reflected that. Kinda what I expected with a club design for lower-handicap players. Distance was about 1/2 longer than my Srixon iron and dispersion was close, as well. I will say they did not feel as good as the Srixon on center hits.

Next 10 (ok, 15) balls were with the M2. Wow, can you say “up, up and away? The ball really popped of the club face, but wasn’t a ballon flight. Waited for the ball to come down and WTH, with the roll out it was 5-8 yards longer than balls hit with M1, and that is with a few toe shots. I did some smooth swings and then very aggressive swings and was a little amazed at this iron. Just like the M1, it does not have the forged feeling and does have a clicky sound (which I hate).

Bottom line: M2 is the longest iron I have ever hit. I love my 545s, but I could see myself playing M2 very easily. Matter of fact, I will be taking this M2 7 iron in my bag and play it more head-to-head against my Srixon 545 on the course.

deathbymuffin

These are both beautiful clubs. What surprised me the most is how much alike the two clubs look at address. I was expecting a chunky topline and significant offset in the M2, but it’s footprint looked almost exactly the same as the M1, outside of the chrome finish on the M2 versus the frosted finish of the M1. The M2 could almost pass as a player’s iron to my eye at address. These clubs both get A’s from me in the looks department.

The M1 felt a tad thicker than most player’s irons I’m used to, but it seemed to come with a bit of added forgiveness too. Well-struck shots felt good, with a nice mid-trajectory and with the workability that I’ve come to expect from a player’s iron. But true to TaylorMade’s claims, the M1 seemed more forgiving than a traditional player’s iron. Had a nice soft feel at impact, mishits didn’t sting and left you with a more playable result. A really nice combination of the better attributes of both player’s and game improvement irons. I’ve been playing with an old set of Tommy Armour blades, but I’ve been recently wanting more forgiveness for when I’m stuck with my B or C swing. Based on the early returns, I could definitely see myself bagging these.

I’m not sure if it’s the shaft, the design of the clubhead, or a combination of both, but the M2 is definitely a different animal than the M1 at impact. This club launches the ball high, arguably ridiculously so. I was hitting Jason Day moonbombs with this bad boy. Didn’t seem to matter what kind of swing I put on it, the ball launched high, flat and dead straight. The club was super forgiving and if not for the insanely high ball flight, I would love to have a set of these for when my swing is out of sorts. I didn’t really try to flight it at all, so I’m not sure what it’s capable of at this point. One other note was that the M2 had a clicky feel at impact. It didn’t bother me since it still felt so sweet… so strange as it sounds, clicky, but smooth and sweet at the same time. I think these clubs will be big winners with the mid-to-high handicap set.

The M1 is a fine iron, but doesn’t really stand out in any way from other irons of its class.

The M2, on the other hand, is an iron on steroids. I’m really starting to love this thing. It’s super forgiving and just goes and goes. According to my laser, flush shots were going 195 yards (my usual blade 5 iron distance) and very high. I can’t help but think golf would be a whole lot easier, particularly longer courses with long par 3s, with a full set of these in my bag.

poppyhillsguy

M1 feels softer than the M2 and I felt the ball flight was more consistent and what I want in an iron. The M1 did have a harsher feeling in my hands than I typically like, but I’m going to credit a lot of that to the range balls.

M2 flies very high. It was a windy afternoon and about 100 degrees. I love the high ball flight on the range, but I have a concern what that ball flight would be like on the course. I like to hit the ball different heights for different shots and I don’t think I could do that confidently with the M2, but I could with the M1. I don’t like the sound of the M2. It sounded “clicky” to me.

Fourpar18

Initially on the range I was scared because the M1 had a regular flex in it, so I took it easy for my initial 10-15 swings with it. Ball SHOT off the face, loud crack (didn’t care for it, but not too bad) and ball just kept rising and rising but didn’t balloon. I thought, “whoa,” that’s not what I expected…did it again…another CRACK and the ball just flew. I set another down and I paid attention to how it looked behind the ball, not much offset for a game improvement and I thought…”I could actually play this club!”  The 5-7 were EASY swings, aimed at a target of 170 yards away (my normal 7 iron distance) and with a EASY swing I was flying it by 20 yards or so. The next 5-10 I really went after it, same CRACK and ball just flew but to my surprise it was a nice draw, harder draw than the first but it was a nice 10-yard draw. This time the balls were landing just short of the 200 yard marker. Damn, 200 yards with a 7 iron! I know they are jacked lofts but it feels good to say “my 7 irons just few 190-200 yards!”

P.S. LOVE the Lamkin UTX grip!

Now, this was interesting, the M2 was quieter then the M1… weird!  Now, there is more carbon fiber added to this one and there is a “Geocoustic” label on the back. I am sure that it has something to do with all that carbon fiber but it does have a better sound. Other than the sound, it played exactly like the M1: long and straight. The REAX shaft felt a little weaker than the True Temper shaft and it flew a little higher but nothing else I could pick up.

noahdavis_7

Finally got out to the range after getting these bad boys in on Friday. My first impression of them is that they look really sharp. The graphics and design really stand out and really give these clubs a cool, modern look.

They were both a little to big IMO, as I am currently bagging Mizuno MP-68s. The M2 isa definite “game improvement iron”, while the M1 was similar in size and shape to my previous irons, Titleist AP1s.

They both really launch it, high and far. Ridiculous for 7 irons. I don’t have access to a launch monitor, but it was about a 20-yard difference between my gamer 7 iron and these (stronger lofts, as well).

The M1 definitely was more suited for my eye, and produced more consistent ball flights. It felt much more smooth and solid as the M2 had a clicky, cheap feel.

The M2 just isn’t for me. I felt like it was launching too high and ballooning, which could be due to the shaft (the M1 had the S300, while the M2 just had a stock “Reax” shaft). The feel off the face of the M2 just turned me off, to be honest.

While I don’t think I’ll be putting either model in play, I can definitely see the appeal for mid-to-high handicaps. Both irons were super forgiving, and they should be a dream to the average weekend golfer who has trouble with ball striking consistently.

golfnut5438

Looks: As expected, I preferred the M1 with less offset, slightly smaller sole and a smoother finish. Less glare looking down on the iron. I must say the M2 did not look as bulky, or have as much offset as I thought it might have.

Feel: This was a close race, probably due to the shafts as much as the heads. The M1 was just a slight bit smoother feeling on solid shots. But the M2 was not bad at all, just not quite as smooth.

Distance and performance: Our range has a slight incline up the length of the range, so specific yardage gains or losses were difficult to measure. Both irons had a higher trajectory than my gamer 7 iron. Neither sole dug onto the turf either. The lofts for both irons are a degree or two stronger than mine, so I would think they probably flew a little further than my gamers. Neither iron flew “too” high, however. Might be a little harder to hit knock down shots, though.

Final thoughts: I had hit both the M1 and M2 irons last year during a fitting day, but did not like either. This year’s model were both better in my eyes. I asked a fellow member at our club to hit both and he felt the M1 was his preferred model, and he is a 20-index player. So coming from both a single digit, and a high double-digit, the M1 won this battle of wills. I will try and see if I can locate both a 5 iron and 9 iron to see if a full set might be a winner for me.

DblEgl

I was surprised that the M2 was the winner in this brief session. It felt better, flew higher, easier to hit and about 1/2 club longer that my gamer Apex CF16. The feel/sound was better than I thought it might be, but really not up to the CF16. I could, however, easily game the M2’s.

Bstein74

Feel: I hit the M2 first, and found it to be very solid when hit on the screws. There was almost no feel off the club face at all. When I mishit it, you knew it was, but it wasn’t harsh at all. Hit the M1 next, and same type of feel when hit solid. Much more harsh when mishit though, but I knew that was coming.

Distance and performance: This is was where I was curious to see how they would play. The M2 went out high in the air, and just kept going forever. Now granted my eyesight isn’t that great anymore, but it looked like I got about 10-15 yards more from the M2 compared to my Wilson D300. The only thing I didn’t like about the M2 was how much I was able to turn it over. Got a lot more hook compared to my D300. Don’t know if that was from the REAX shaft, but would love to find a less spinning shaft to correct that.

The M1 wasn’t a great performer for me. Same height as the M2, but much straighter off the club face. Didn’t get any great distance advantage as compared to my D300. Can’t game a player’s iron anymore, and testing this one just reaffirmed that.

Final thoughts: Was very happy with the distance I gained with the M2 compared to my current gamer. Very good-performing iron for me, and something I would definitely consider changing them out if I could reduce the spin off the face. If you’re looking for more distance, you need to try these out. The M1 just wasn’t for me, but as a player’s iron, I can see it as a great option.

Bobcat271

Like the other testers, I found the M2 to launch the ball much higher and is 10-to-15 yards longer than my Adams XTD forged 7 iron. Of the two 7 irons I prefer the M1. I like the design of the M1 and its visual appearance at address. I feel more confident in trying to work the ball with the M1. The M1 gave me more feedback as to where the club head was in relation to my swing plane. If I had my druthers I would put the M1 in the bag as it stands now. Will continue to test, what a treat to compare the two irons.

myurick2

Once I started making solid contact with a decent shoulder turn, the M2 really came alive in my hands. Towering flat height, for me, and very long. No more clacky hollow feel, just a very mild pleasant sensation… then zoom. Once I started making better swings, back to the M1, which was a very nice iron. Shorter than the M2 (though not short) and a little lower ball flight. Felt nice and substantial without being heavy. Very forgiving on slight mishits.

But the M2 was the star for me. High trajectory and very long. Club felt lively and fun. Frankly, unless a player wanted a lower trajectory, or likes to hit a lot of knock downs or feel shots, I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t choose the M2. They are very attractive and a very fun iron. I think folks who say that the M2 feels and/or sounds clicky, clacky or hollow may be mishitting the iron toward the toe. I am not judging — I mishit a lot of shots at first. I agree on toe mishits the iron did not feel great. It almost felt like plastic. The ball still flew pretty well, but it wasn’t a very enjoyable experience. Not painful, just felt very dead. But when hit nearer the center, the iron felt fantastic. Light, springy and very lively. 

hammergolf

They are both good-looking clubs. Not too long heel to toe and toplines were not that distracting. M1 is more what I like to see shape wise, but M2 was not bad at all. Personally, not a fan of seeing the face slots. But I could see how some people may like how they frame the ball. 

Ace2000

M1 

– Has a very odd sound on contact, almost sounds a tad like a fairway wood “ting. Not a fan
– Looks very good at address with the brushed finish
– Most shots I hit with it seemed to fall out of the sky (very likely a lack of spin). Ball flight was much lower than I would have expected (not super low, just not much different than my 7 iron)
– Inconsistent misses. Next to no distance gains vs RocketBladez Tour 7 iron

M2

– Doesn’t look as good at address as the M1. Chrome finish at address is not an issue in even direct sunlight for me
– Feels and sounds quite nice to my ears at impact. Not a classic sound but very good considering what type of club it is
– Ball flight is very strong (comes off hot). Ball stays high in the air for awhile. Very high and lands soft
– 10-12 yards longer on average vs my 7 iron, it even had the horsepower to hang with my 6 iron
– VERY forgiving on thin strikes. Couldn’t believe how a near-top still traveled to nearly the front edge in the air and still went as far as the M1 did on a good strike
– Shaft is too light

Even though I’m a 2-handicap and don’t fit the M2 “mold,” I could see myself playing this club from 4-6 iron (although gapping would be a major issue mixing these with almost anything else) if it had a heavier shaft in it (I can only imagine how far this 4 iron must go… yikes)

M1 = 2.5/5 stars
M2 = 4.5/5 stars

tpeterson

Visual first impressions: The M1 7-iron is visually appealing to me as far as the finish and overall look. Even though it is classified as a player’s iron, it doesn’t seem so tiny that it would be tough to hit. I am not a huge fan of the bright-yellow badging, but I probably could get over it. The iron inspires confidence with its topline and a little bit of offset. The “rubber” piece on the hosel is a little bit funky to me.

I thought the M2 7-iron would look clunkier than it really is. Besides the finish being a little bit different, the difference between the M1 and M2 is actually pretty small. The M2’s topline and sole are a touch wider, but not by much. Not a huge fan of the fluted hosel since it can be seen at address. The M1’s fluting is only on the rear of the club.

I did notice that the sole’s finish did scratch pretty easily. Overall, I thought the M1 and M2 are pretty good looking, but I would definitely give the edge to the M1. I also preferred the stock Lamkin grip on the M1 vs. the ribbed M2 grip.

On course action: They both feel solid. I tried hitting both irons in all different types of on-course situations over a two week period. Both clubs launch the ball high but I would not say they balloon. For me, the M2 was about 10 yards longer and higher than the M1. Compared to my Cleveland irons, they are 1 to 1.5 clubs longer.

M1 loft = 30.5
M2 loft = 28.5
Cleveland TA7 loft = 33.5

I know this accounts for the distance gain but the ball definitely comes off hot compared to my set. I was hoping I would hit the M1 better since I like the appearance better, but that was not the case. The M2 definitely felt better for me and I felt more confident with it in my hands.

Discussion: Read all 75 reviews and the responses in our Testing Thread

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