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How old is too old for irons? – GolfWRXers discuss

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In our forums, our members have been discussing older irons. WRXer ‘R5Two’ kicks off the thread, saying

“I pulled my old Titleist 695 CBs (cr 2006) out of storage to hit a few balls. I have seen many videos about how much faster the ballspeeds are these days, but I don’t know if I care. I’m a blade guy. Isn’t a hunk of metal a hunk of metal? 

How old is too old for forged irons? What are we missing? Non-confirming grooves maybe? Maybe a little forgiveness?”

And our members have been sharing their thoughts in our forum.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

  • PEI_Golfer: “Irons are all about accuracy and distance control, not ball speed… Nothing wrong with the 695’s (my first OEM set of irons); I still bring out my 690.CB’s from time to time and OG Nike blades.”
  • Tar_Heel_93: “I’m with you. I prefer a solid forged iron. Not looking for a lot of tech. Here are the irons I am testing for next season. Apex MBs have been in the bag for several seasons. Others are recent additions. Titleist CB and Wilson Staff CB have Tungsten in the mid and long irons. However, so far my favorite CB is the Bridgestone J33 CBs circa 2006.” (Photo above proved by Tar_Heel_93)
  • mrfuz: “I recently regripped my old 690MBs and pulled out my Eye2s. They’re not replacing my Sim2 Maxes, but they’re fun to play with.”
  • HoosierHacker89: “695 CB irons are great! One of my all-time favorites. I found them to be really forgiving especially the long irons. This was one of the few sets I was confident in the 4/5 irons. I played a set of Srixon 765 irons the last 3 years. Honestly can’t say there was much if anyone difference in the heads Of both sets.”

Entire Thread: “How old is too old for irons?

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Gianni is the Managing Editor at GolfWRX. He can be contacted at [email protected].

7 Comments

7 Comments

  1. Mike

    Jan 14, 2022 at 4:34 pm

    I think the main differences are the lofts. But I do think a comparison would show that a 2021 iron will fly a bit higher w/ the same distance) as a 2005 iron.

  2. Hunter

    Jan 14, 2022 at 10:56 am

    I learned to play with TaylorMade Tour Preferred TD blades from the late 80’s. I then switched to Hogan Apex Plus irons and played them for many years. 5yrs ago I found a set of the old TM blades and started playing them again. I was loving them, but then I snared a set of Ping i210s, and the difference is night and day. I can miss-hit the i210s and still find the green. They go 10-15yds further than the TM blades. While I still like the look of blades better, I’ll never go back to playing them. The benefits of newer technology far outweighs old school looks.

  3. JungleJimbo

    Jan 13, 2022 at 9:25 pm

    To GolfWRX team/Gianni Magliocco: As you’ve used a contributor’s photo (i.e. @Tar_Heel_93 ‘s), as your thumbnail/ Leading photo…
    i think you should attribute a photo credit, in this article?

    Link to photo: https://forums.golfwrx.com/topic/1852273-how-old-is-too-old-irons-edition/?do=findComment&comment=23972310

    • Hugh Givzaphook

      Jan 13, 2022 at 9:47 pm

      Found the only guy in the world who gives a %$#@

  4. Ping Eye 2

    Jan 13, 2022 at 7:28 pm

    ………Don’t you know I’m still standing better than I ever did
    Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid
    And I’m still standing after all this time
    Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind

    I’m still standing. Yeah, yeah, yeah
    I’m still standing. Yeah, yeah, yeah……….

  5. Everardo

    Jan 13, 2022 at 7:17 pm

    Just did a test myself with two sets of irons that were 15 years old vs a newer set from last year. My older sets (were fitted for me mind you) and performed the same or better than the newer set. So I’m selling the newer set since they have better resale value. I had all 3 sets checked for loft, lie, length, flex, etc to make it a fair comparison and tested them all on the same calibrated launch monitor, same ball and over multiple days just to keep things fair.

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Whats in the Bag

Kevin Tway WITB 2024 (May)

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Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X

3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 80 TX

5-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (18 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 90 TX

Irons: Wilson Staff Utility (2), Titleist T100 (4-9)
Shafts: Mitsubishi MMT 100 TX (2), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (4-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F @51, 56-14F), SM7 (60-10S)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (48-56), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (60)

Putter: Scotty Cameron T-5 Proto
Grip: Scotty Cameron Black Baby T

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Plus4

More photos of Kevin Tway’s WITB in the forums.

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Did Rory McIlroy inspire Shane Lowry’s putter switch?

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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.

The timing of Lowry’s putter changeup was curious: Was he just using a Spider putter because he was paired with McIlroy, who’s been using a Spider Tour X head throughout 2024? Was Lowry just being festive because it’s the Zurich Classic, and he wanted to match his teammate? Did McIlroy let Lowry try his putter, and he liked it so much he actually switched into it?

Well, as it turns out, McIlroy’s only influence was inspiring Lowry to make more putts.

When asked if McIlroy had an influence on the putter switch, Lowry had this to say: “No, it’s actually a different putter than what he uses. Maybe there was more pressure there because I needed to hole some more putts if we wanted to win,” he said with a laugh.

To Lowry’s point, McIlroy plays the Tour X model, whereas Lowry switched into the Tour Z model, which has a sleeker shape in comparison, and the two sole weights of the club are more towards the face.

Lowry’s Spider Tour Z has a white True Path Alignment channel on the crown of his putter, which is reminiscent of Lowry’s former 2-ball designs, thus helping to provide a comfort factor despite the departure from his norm. Instead of a double-bend hosel, which Lowry used in his 2-ball putters, his new Spider Tour Z is designed with a short slant neck.

“I’ve been struggling on the greens, and I just needed something with a fresh look,” Lowry told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship. “It has a different neck on it, as well, so it moves a bit differently, but it’s similar. It has a white line on the back of it [like my 2-ball], and it’s a mallet style. So it’s not too drastic of a change.

“I just picked it up on the putting green and I liked the look of it, so I was like, ‘Let’s give it a go.’”

Read the rest of the piece over at PGATour.com.

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Webb Simpson equipment Q&A: Titleist’s new 2-wood, 680 blade irons, and switching to a broomstick Jailbird

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With seven career wins on the PGA Tour, including a U.S. Open victory, Webb Simpson is a certified veteran on the course. But he’s also a certified veteran in the equipment world, too. He’s a gearhead who truly knows his stuff, and he’s even worked closely with Titleist on making his own custom 682.WS irons.

On Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship, I caught up with Simpson to hear about his experience with Titleist’s new prototype 2-wood, how Titleist’s 680 Forged irons from 2003 ended up back in his bag, and why he’s switching into an Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser broomstick putter this week for the first time.

Click here to read our full story about Simpson’s putter switch on PGATOUR.com’s Equipment Report, or continue reading below for my full Q&A with Simpson at Quail Hollow Club on Wednesday.

See Webb Simpson’s full WITB from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship here

GolfWRX: It seems like you’ve been a little all over the place with your irons in the past six months or so, and now going back to the 680’s. Is that just a comfort thing? What’s been going on with the irons?

Webb Simpson: Titleist has been so great at working with me, and R&D, on trying to get an iron that kind of modernizes the 680. And so the 682.WS took the T100 grooves, but kinda took the look and the bulk and the build of the 680’s into one club. They’re beautiful, and awesome looking. I just never hit them that well for a consistent period of time. It was probably me, but then I went to T100’s and loved them. I loved the spin, the trajectory, the yardage, but again, I never went on good runs. Going through the ground, I couldn’t feel the club as well as with the blade. So last week, I’m like, ‘Alright. I’m gonna go back more for…comfort, and see if I can get on a nice little run of ball striking.’

So that’s why I went back.

 

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A post shared by GolfWRX (@golfwrx)

OK, that makes sense. I know you had done some 2-wood testing recently. Is that in the bag right now?

It’s like day-by-day. I used it at Hilton Head every day. Valero, I used it one round. And this week, me and my caddie will do the book every morning, and if it’s a day where we think we need it, we’ll just put it in and take the 3-wood out. I love it because it’s a super simple swap. Like, it doesn’t really change much.

Yeah, can you tell me about that club? I mean, we don’t really know anything about it yet. You know? I haven’t hit it or anything, obviously.

It has grooves like a 3-wood. Spin is perfect. And it’s honestly, like, everything is in the middle of a 3-wood and driver number. Trajectory, spin, carry, all of it. So, a Hilton Head golf course is almost too easy to talk about because, you know, there, so many holes are driver 3-wood.

Valero, our thinking was we had two par-5’s into the wind, and we knew that it would take two great shots to get there in two. So instead of hitting driver-driver, we just put it in. And I used it on those holes.

Hilton was a little easier because it was off-the-tee kind of questions. But Colonial will be a golf course where, you know, there’s a lot of driver or 3-woods. It’s kind of like a backup putter or driver for me now. I’ll bring it to every tournament.

So it’s, like, in your locker right now, probably?

Well, it would be. It’s in my house [because Webb lives near by Quail Hollow Club, and is a member at the course.] It’s in the garage.

Oh, yeah, that’s right. Do you know what holes you might use it out here if it goes in play? 

Potentially 15, depending on the wind. Second shot on 10. Could be 14 off the tee. The chances here are pretty low (that he’ll use the 2-wood). But, like, Greensboro would be an awesome club all day. I’m trying to think of any other golf courses.

There’s plenty that it’ll be a nice weapon to have.

It’s interesting, the wave of 2-woods and mini drivers. Like, it’s just really taken off on Tour, and all the companies have seemed to embrace it.

Yeah. The thing I had to learn, it took me, like, at least a week to learn about it is you gotta tee it up lower than you think. I kept teeing it up too high. You need it low, like barely higher than a 3-wood. And that was where I got optimal spin and carry. If you tee it up too high, you just don’t get as much spin and lose distance, I don’t know if that’s just a mini driver thing.

And you obviously have a Jailbird putter this week. What spurred that on?

Inconsistent putting. I’m stubborn in a lot of ways when it comes to my equipment, but I have to be open minded – I just hadn’t putted consistently well in a while. And I’m like, ‘Man, I feel my ball-striking coming along. Like I feel better; for real, better.’

If I can just get something in my hands that I’m consistent with. Being on Tour, you see it every year, guys get on little runs. I can put together four to five tournaments where I’m all the sudden back in the majors, or in the FedExCup Playoffs. You can turn things around quick out here. I’m like, ‘Man, whatever’s going to get me there, great.’

My caddie, David Cook, caddied for Akshay at the Houston Open and he putted beautifully. Then, I watched Akshay on TV at Valero, and he putted beautifully. And, I’m like, ‘I’m just going to try it.’

I’ve never tried it for more than a putt or two, and I just ordered what Akshay uses. It was pretty awkward at first, but the more I used it, the more I’m like, ‘Man, it’s pretty easy.’ And a buddy of mine who’s a rep out here, John Tyler Griffin, he helped me with some setup stuff. And he said at Hilton Head, he wasn’t putting well, then tried it, and now he makes everything. He was very confident. So I’m like, ‘Alright, I’ll try it.’”

And you’re going with it this week?

Hundred percent.

Alright, I love it. Thank you, I always love talking gear with you. Play well this week. 

Thanks, man.

See Webb Simpson’s full WITB from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship here

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