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Club Junkie Review: Srixon ZX7 Mk II and ZX5 Mk II irons

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Srixon’s ZX7 and ZX5 irons were some of the most well loved and talked about irons over the past two years. When replacing an iron with that kind of resume, the first rule is to not screw it up! For a more detailed review, please take a listen to the Club Junkie below or on any podcast platform. Just search GolfWRX Radio.

When I first put my hands on the ZX7 Mk II and ZX5 Mk II irons, I was impressed with the look and they are instantly recognizable as Srixon irons. The ZX7 Mk II has a traditional design without any plastic or metal badge in the cavity, it is just painted matte silver. Srixon let the ZX5 Mk II go with a very small and simple badge that is a combination of matte silver and chrome.

I like the look of both irons from address as well since they look so similar. The ZX7 Mk II has a slightly longer blade length and minimal offset that the lower handicap player will enjoy. But the ZX5 Mk II got most of that DNA as well. While being a little larger than the 7, it has great proportions and just a hair more offset. Both irons have a little thicker topline that is a little more squared than I expected but by no means distracting. Both irons feature Srixon’s famous Tour VT sole for fantastic turf interaction through a variety of turf conditions and swings.

Srixon ZX7 Mk II

I played the original ZX7 irons and loved them, along with many golfers! First shots with the new ZX7 Mk II reward you with an extremely soft and solid feel. The new PureFrame design puts more mass behind the center of the face and even with less than quality range balls you get to feel that ball compress while leaving the laser etched face. I have no doubt that with a real golf ball you will get that solid thud when the ZX7 Mk II strikes it on the turf.

While this iron is a single piece forged cavity back, it does offer some forgiveness on less than perfect shots. The club is very responsive and gives you immediate feedback, but still helps keep some ball speed and launch. Shots hit low on the face came out flat but the iron was able to keep some of the launch you need to produce a shot that wouldn’t kill your round. Consistency is a big feature with these irons and the most precise players will love the fact they can depend on their yardages when it matters. Dispersion for me was also tight with the ZX7 Mk II offering me a straight to just a slight fade ball flight. I could still turn it over and hit a draw but normal swings didn’t really include the left side too much.

Launch was a little lower than the ZX5 Mk II, but about a 1* or so but still easy to elevate for a lower ball hitter like myself. I haven’t been able to test out the Tour VT sole yes since all my testing has been off mats, but I have no doubt it will perform really well in the soft Michigan conditions like the previous ZX7 did.

Srixon ZX5 Mk II

The last version of this iron impressed me for all that it does in an impressive package and the ZX5 Mk II still amazes. The looks are great and Srixon did a great job of putter a bunch of ball speed and forgiveness in such an attractive package. The feel is really good for a multi-piece head, soft and with just a small click at impact. While you might lack just a touch of that ball compressing off the face feel, you will gain the feel of the ball jumping into the horizon. The ZX5 Mk II just feels fast and you can tell that thin face, with MainFrame technology, is working hard to up the ball speed. The great thing about the MainFrame fast is that I have not found a hot spot yet and believe me I have hit it all over the face.

Distance control is good and mishits still will give you plenty of carry to get it on the front or close to the green. Ballspeed was about 2 mph faster than the ZX7 Mk II for me and it spun about 100-150 RPM less with a 6-iron. The sole is noticeably wider than the 7 but still glides through mats with the same speed and should offer a little extra forgiveness on shots hit just a little behind the ball.

Overall, I think Srixon did exactly what they needed to with the ZX7 Mk II and ZX5 Mk II irons. They made slight improvements and didn’t change the great attributes of each iron. Will players who were fit into ZX7 and ZX5 irons notice a big difference and be forced to change? I don’t think so. These will be for the player who is looking for new irons and has heard or read the great things about the previous generation; they will be impressed.

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I have been an employee at GolfWRX since 2016. In that time I have been helping create content on GolfWRX Radio, GolfWRX YouTube, as well as writing for the front page. Self-proclaimed gear junkie who loves all sorts of golf equipment as well as building golf clubs!

3 Comments

3 Comments

  1. MJ

    Jul 22, 2023 at 2:04 am

    You obviously don’t proofread your writing before posting it

  2. Pingback: GolfWRX Deep Dive: Srixon ZX Mk II irons – GolfWRX

  3. K

    Feb 2, 2023 at 3:04 pm

    Top line way too thick, but it’s for the frame or whatever, but it’s still too thick

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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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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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