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Best irons 2020: GolfWRX Members Choice (best technology-packed irons)

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What are the best technology-packed irons of 2020?

This is the “give me everything you got” list. These irons are the cream of the crop for offering technology to improve feel, distance, and ball speed. The great thing about the technology category is it’s not reserved for higher handicap golfers—it’s for anyone looking to get everything they can out of their game in an iron that also suits their eye.

At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. Needless to say, that extends to GolfWRXers views on the best irons of 2020—technology category.

Join the discussion in the forums here.

The bedrock of GolfWRX.com is the community of passionate and knowledgable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members—the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.

You can see the results for the best irons of 2020, technology packed, as well as quotes we pulled from GolfWRX members about the irons from our forum.

Also, be sure to check out all the other GolfWRX Member’s Choice iron categories below.

Best irons of 2020: best technology-packed (Top 5)

best irons 2020 best technology packed

Join the discussion in the forums here.

1. TaylorMade P790

The P790 has a hollow-body design built with an 8620 carbon steel body and forged 4140 carbon steel wrapped-face construction. The sole was tweaked compared to the original to improve turf interaction, and from address, there is a thinner top line and more progressive offset in 3 through 6-irons and a more compact blade length in the 7-PW to appeal to players of all skill levels

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

  • “I have the new P790’s and flat out they are the best irons I have owned, long easy to work, and stop well.” – Member English13
  • “I’m a 6. Long hitter and have been using player distance irons for a while…. I switched to 2019 p790s a few months ago and absolutely love em. Yardage gaps are fairly large and the faces are hot so you need to learn to control the distance and trajectory, but with the right shafts it’s been no problem for me.” – Member Jkim27
  • “I have played the p790’s for the past 2 seasons and I have really liked them. In fact, this past season was my best golfing season to date. I had more rounds in the 70’s than ever before and had my first round in the 60’s … I haven’t played a set of irons for 3 seasons in a row, in a very long time, so that means something, at least for me.” – Member Mob
  • “Took these irons out for their second-round today and shot a 75 (+4). Keep falling in love with these things. On a handful of occasions, I put a terrible swing on them and the ball flight distance and spin was just as good as a flushed shot. Even got into some tree trouble and had to hit some punch 6 iron shots and could flight the ball down super low with no issues” – Member agood3putt

For more information on the TaylorMade P790 irons, you can check out our launch piece here.

Join the discussion in the forums here.

2. Mizuno MP-20 HMB

The MP-20 HMB’s are built with the same highly flexible Chromoloy material as the 919 Hot Metals except this time forged to create a Mizuno iron like never before. They offer the look and shape of a blade but with the speed and technology of a much more forgiving club. Although it looks like a blade, hidden inside the back of the club is complex geometry for both acoustics and precisely positioning mass.

Like the MP-20 MMC, the HMB is a multi-material design but with the tungsten split into two 12-gram pieces (four more grams than previous Fli-Hi) and positioned into precisely formed pockets on the heel and toe in the back of the club. This allows the unsupported face to flex and makes the club more workable while still maintaining all the forgiveness you would expect from a hollow body iron built for speed.

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

  • “The feel of the HMB blew me away! I went 2, 4-pw in HMBs bent weak. I may add some MBs down the road but definitely won’t feel like I’m missing out on that great feel the MP 20 line has.” – Member JetMech879
  • “I was really impressed with the HMBs, I’m coming from Srixon 965s and was expecting to go with the MP-20 blades but couldn’t argue with the numbers the HMB gave me. As a low spin and ball flight player the normal cranked lofts of this type of iron doesn’t work for me, but these launched over a degree higher with around 500 rpm more spin than anything else I tried. As noted by some others they feel really good for a hollow body as well, not quite as good as the blades but way better than expected and loads of feedback.” – Member Smileys
  • “Such great soft feel like you expect from Mizuno. Look very good at address. I was on grass and they are very easy to hit and still I hit 2 bad shots one of the toe and one thin and both were only a few yards off. Very easy to work the ball.” – Member Lenny2

You can also read what other golfers are saying about the Mizuno MP-20 HMB irons in the GolfWRX forums: Official Mizuno MP-20 HMB Iron discussion and check out our launch piece here.

3. Mizuno MP-20 MMC

Mizuno has been building multi-material forged irons for close to a decade but never like this. For the first time in the MMC’d life, the titanium piece of the iron varies in mass depending on the club. It is broken up in the middle of the set to allow better CG placement, and like its blade cousin, improved turf interaction in the shorter irons.

What is also very cool about the MP-20 MMC is all of the multi-material parts (titanium and tungsten) have ZERO chemical bond—no epoxy. They fit snug based on the shrinkage rates of the different materials. The titanium and tungsten shrink less than the steel so as the forged carbon steel cools around the titanium and tungsten pieces it creates a mechanical (solid) bond. This adds up to an iron that looks smaller than the previous version, offers more “flow” in CG like all of the irons in the MP-20 series, and at the end of the day, makes it the best-engineered multi-material MP iron ever.

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

  • “Absolutely love mine with the Modus 120 – great all-rounders. I have the 5 iron HMB but could have easily played the MMC 5 iron as they launch beautifully. Very happy with my purchase.” – Member beluga99
  • “Love mine with the black 130 $-taper. I have 3 sets of irons that are all very similar, but the MMCs stay in the bag.” – Member krt22
  • “You can’t go wrong with the MMCs! They are great all-rounders! I have played the 18s and now the 20s and really would struggle to tell the difference performance-wise. Looks and feel is a hands-down win for the 20s. I have mine all set at 4 deg gapping from the 22 deg 4 iron to a 46 deg wedge, and it works out perfectly. I also have the $taper blacks in 130X. Smooth as silk!” – Member Jetmech879

You can also read what other golfers are saying about the Mizuno MP-20 MMC irons in the GolfWRX forums: Official Mizuno MP-20 MMC Iron discussion and check out our launch piece here.

4. Titleist T100

Built from the ground up with direct input from Titleist’s PGA Tour staff, the mission statement from the design team for the new T100 was to simply create the best performing tour iron ever. 

With a shape that is distinctly Titleist but completely redefined as far as offset, top line, sole width, camber, and blade length, the T100 gives players looking for a tour performance iron more playability than ever before. Co-forged with large amounts of tungsten (66 grams on average in the 3-7 irons) in the heel and toe, the T100 looks a lot more like a single-piece forged players cavity back than multi-piece forgiveness monster, but looks can be deceiving. It has the thinnest face they have ever built into a true forged players club, which allows designers to push more mass around the head and create greater ball speed.

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

  • “I have played the T100 for about a month and had a lot of range time with them… I was concerned about more offset and a larger sole than I had become accustomed to but after a month of use they are exactly what I had hoped they would be. The low amount of offset and the soles are really nice on these. They fly the distance you would expect them to and they help a little bit on slight mishits. I haven’t caught any fliers that I have read were an occasional problem with the AP series. To my eyes, these are the exact size I would like a set of irons to be. Slightly larger in the longer irons that taper down to slightly smaller in the short irons. If you are in the market for a set of irons and are a solid ball striker I would give them a serious look.” – Member Phillipsac18
  • “More firm and better/smaller profile compared to 718 AP2. Turf interaction is so good. Came from JPX 919 Tours and 718 AP2s before that and these fit right in the middle of these two sets in terms of forgiveness. Really like the T100s so far and plan to stay in this range until they release a new one in 2 years.” – Member HappyGilmore22
  • “I find the long irons easier to hit than anything I’ve owned recently which is a big selling point for me. I’m not sure if the mid and short irons are much easier to hit because I don’t really think those irons are hard to hit in any model, but the t100 have a nice feel which continues even with slight misses. If you want to feel harshness on slight misses so you get the correct feedback then look elsewhere.” – Member If_i_Could_only_putt

You can read what other golfers are saying about the Titleist T100 iron in the GolfWRX forums: Titleist T100 Iron discussion. and see our launch piece here.

Join the discussion in the forums here.

5. Callaway Epic Forged

Built with the idea of offering speed and shotmaking in one package, the Callaway Epic Forged achieves all of that thanks to technology being used for the first time in a forged iron. The most notable being the Suspended Tungsten Core—which is comprised of the densest form of this heavy element. The issue with using this almost-pure form of tungsten is that it’s extremely hard to work with when using conventional construction methods. But Callaway defies convention and used the patented Urethane Microspheres in the Suspended Tungsten Core of the Epic Forged to precisely position mass creating the ideal center of gravity. This promotes controlled launch and spin while allowing the face to flex as needed to create maximum ball speeds.

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

  • “I tested the Epic Forged 7 iron against my 6 iron. I was carrying my 6 iron 205 at about 17*. The Epic Forged 7 iron was carrying 211 at the same launch and a little higher. While the lofts on the EFs are strong, they definitely launch similar to the number on the bottom of the club. The Epic forged felt really nice” – Member Fairways _and_green
  • “I hit these today… I shouldn’t have. I almost dropped 3k right on the spot. They’re legit amazing. No spin at all, but I hit them miles in the air.” – Member joejoejoeyourboat
  • “The Epic Forged feel just incredible, no fliers, consistent distances, ridiculously forgiving with a great sound at impact.” – Member SteelHead

You can also read what other golfers are saying about the Callaway Epic Forged irons in the GolfWRX forums: Epic Forged Iron discussion and check out our launch piece here.

Rounding out the top 15 best technology-packed irons

  • Ping i210
  • Cobra King Forged Tec
  • PXG 0311 P GEN3
  • Ping G410
  • TaylorMade P790 Ti
  • Mizuno JPX919 Hot Metal Pro
  • Ping i500
  • PXG 0311 T GEN 3
  • Titleist T100s
  • Callaway Mavrik MAX

Join the discussion in the forums here.

Ongoing Members Choice Polls: Have your say!

We’re still looking for your feedback on the “best” items in several other categories, so head to the GolfWRX forums to have your say!

Check out the polls in the GolfWRX forums!

Join the discussion in the forums here.

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Whats in the Bag

Patrick Reed WITB 2024 (May)

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Driver: Ping G400 (8.5 degrees)
Shaft: Aldila Rogue Silver 125 MSI 70 Tour X

3-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (15 degrees)
Shaft: Aldila Rogue Silver 125MSI 80 Tour X

Hybrid: Callaway Apex Pro (18 degrees)
Shaft: Aldila RIP Phenom Hybrid 100 TX

Irons: Titleist 716 TMB (2), Grindworks PR-202 (4), Grindworks PR-101A (5-PW)
Shafts:  True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore (50-10 Mid), Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (56-08M @55), SM10 (60-04T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Odyssey White Hot RX Pt Customs No. 2

Ball: Titleist Pro V1

Grips: Golf Pride MCC

More photos of Patrick Reed’s WITB in the forums.

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Equipment

John Daly’s $750 custom irons and 10 must-see gear photos from the 2024 PGA Championship

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Welcome to the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky.

In the last two PGA Championships held at Valhalla, Tiger Woods won in 2000 – when he famously pointed his golf ball into the hole during the historic duel with Bob May – and Rory McIlroy won the 2014 event, basically in the dark on the final hole.

The point is, history shows that Valhalla tends to produce top-tier champions and plenty of drama.

This week at the 2024 PGA Championship, GolfWRX got its first up-close look at what some of the LIV Tour players have in their bags in 2024. We also caught back up with a few PGA Championship legends, such as Rich Beem and John Daly, and we dove into the bags of PGA Sectional qualifiers, too.

In total, we captured 47 different photo galleries this week, including 32 individual What’s In The Bag (WITB) forum threads. Click here to see all of our photos from the event, or continue reading to see my 10 equipment highlights from Valhalla.

1) Brooks Koepka’s new putter

Koepka was previously using a Scotty Cameron T5.5 putter with a slant neck, which he used to win at the beginning of the month in Singapore on the LIV tour. This week, however, he tried a T5.5 with a plumbers neck instead of the slant neck, and it’s immediately going in the bag. According to Scotty Cameron Tour rep Drew Page, Koepka already loved the head, and now finds the plumbers neck a bit more familiar to the blade-style putters he’s used throughout most of his career.

See Koepka’s full WITB here 

2) The lead tape king returns, with putting goggles

Phil Mickelson has always been one of the GOATs when it comes to lead tape usage, so it was no surprise to see his 64-degree custom Callaway wedge slathered with slabs of lead tape on the back.

The big surprise was that lefty was spotted using ProAim putting training goggles on Wednesday during his warm-up session.

The ProAim goggles are helpful to find center lines and ensure proper alignment to the target.

See Phil Mickelson’s full WITB from the 2024 PGA Championship

3) Dobyns’ old-school gamer setup

Speaking of lead tape, check out Matt Dobyn’s old Titleist 718 T-MB irons, which are so loaded with lead tape that the club is nearly unrecognizable.

Respect.

The head professional at Meadow Brook Club is making his sixth start in a PGA Championship, and he’s using a throwback Callaway GBB Epic driver with MOI-boosting lead tape and adjustable weight placements.

As GolfWRX Forum user “InTheBag” pointed out in our Matt Dobyns’ WITB thread, he has the type of setup that makes you want to hide your wallet: “I don’t know Mr. Dobyns, but one look at that bag tells me he can take your money,” writes InTheBag.

Spot on.

4) John Daly’s custom Sub70 irons and wedges

We first saw John Daly using $750 direct-to-consumer Sub70 659-CB irons and TAIII wedges at the 2023 PNC Championship, and he still has them in the bag, but he’s since stepped up the customization on the Sub70 clubs.

Does Daly ever NOT keep things entertaining?

 

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A true showman.

See Daly’s full WITB

5) DJ’s custom putter

Dustin Johnson has always been one to test multiple putters week-to-week, and he has a keen eye for different alignment lines and crowns. This week, he’s opting for a completely gray TaylorMade Spider Tour “T3.0” prototype with a short slant neck.

See the rest of DJ’s WITB from the week here

6) Patrick Reed still rocking GrindWorks irons

Patrick Reed knows his stuff when it comes to equipment, and he’s a prolific tester. Still, however, the GrindWorks PR-101A irons are squarely in the bag after his departure to the LIV tour.

The most notable new addition to Reed’s bag is this Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond 3-wood.

Click here to see Reed’s full WITB from this week

7) Beem’s Scratch set

Rich Beem, who won the 2002 PGA Championship at Hazeltine National, came to the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla with a bag full of Scratch Golf irons, which are loaded with lead tape and equipped with some of the coolest custom ferrules in professional golf.

See Rich Beem’s full WITB here

8) Jon Rahm’s 10-iron

Before going to LIV, Rahm was using a Callaway Apex TCB pitching wedge.

Now, he’s using a Callaway Apex TCB “10 iron.”

He’s also since upgraded to three Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke metalwoods, and fresh stampings on his Jaws Raw wedges. Click here to see Rahm’s full WITB from the 2024 PGA Championship.

9) “Why so serious?”

Tyrrell Hatton, another LIV player in the 2024 PGA Championship field, channels his inner Joker to ask everyone, “Why so serious?

See Hatton’s full WITB here

10) Block’s “Proto” iron, from address

As you probably know by now, Block switched out of his old TaylorMade Tour Preferred MC 2014 irons, and into a full set of TaylorMade’s new “Proto” irons. We’ve already seen the Proto 4-iron in the bags of Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa, but this is our first look at the higher-lofted irons in the set.

Here’s a look at the 7-iron from address:

See what GolfWRX members are saying about the Proto irons in our Forums

And, with that, we say goodbye to Louisville, and the second major championship of the 2024 season. We’ll see you next week at the 2024 Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas after a champion has been crowned.

Until then, don’t forget to check out all of our photos from this week at the 2024 PGA Championship!

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Whats in the Bag

Club Junkie WITB, league night week 5: Another L.A.B. putter arises

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We will be one quarter of the way through Thursday night men’s league season after this week. BK played much better last week, so he is hoping to continue that success and post another good score.

Here are the 14 clubs that will hopefully win him some skins!

Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops (9 degrees, neutral setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 6 X (2024)

3-wood: Cobra Dark Speed LS Titanium (14.5 degrees, set +1)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD IZ-7x

Fairway: Callaway Apex UW (19 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura ATMOS Tour Spec Blue 8 X

Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops 4h (22 degrees, Flat Setting)
Shaft: KBS Tour Graphite Hybrid Prototype 85 S

Irons: TaylorMade P770 Phantom Black (5-PW)
Shaft: KBS Tour 120 Stiff

Wedge: PXG Sugar Daddy II (50-13 BP)
Shaft: Nippon Modus3 Tour 120 Stiff

Wedge: PXG Sugar Daddy II (56-13 BP)
Shaft: Nippon Modus3 Tour 120 Stiff

Wedge: PXG Sugar Daddy II (60-13 BP)
Shaft: Nippon Modus3 Tour 120 Stiff

Putter: L.A.B. Mezz.1 Max
Shaft: Accra x L.A.B. White

Ball: Titleist ProV1 Enhanced Alignment

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