Equipment

Callaway Epic Forged irons: Premium speed in a forged body

Published

7 years ago

Jul 16, 2019

Ryan Barath

With the release of the original Epic irons, Callaway did something they had never done before—build an iron that oozed ball speed and hid a lot of tech in a mid-sized package. Now imagine all that technology and greater speed in a more refined shape with a forged body…that is the all-new Epic Forged.

Built with the idea of offering speed and shotmaking in one package, the Epic Forged achieves all of that thanks to tech that is 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 is using 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.

So what good is all this speed if you can’t control it?

Variable Face Thickness: Sure this tech isn’t new, it dates back to the above Hawkeye VFT driver (that was a great driver in its day), but if the Epic Flash driver has taught us anything, it’s that by looking beyond convention you can find new ways to utilize known technology. Built into the 360 Cup Face, the newly designed VFT pattern helps players achieve even more consistent ball speed and spin rates club to club. The reason this is so important: Callaway knows even average golfers want a club they can hit controlled shots with. A 7-iron isn’t any good if you’re not confident in the hitting the shot you want to.

Don’t think that we’re done talking about what these have under the hood just yet…

Since the Epic Forged irons go all the way into a sand wedge, there were some design decisions to be made to on how to make sure the scoring and recovery clubs still offer forgiveness but with even greater consistency and feel, Starting at the approach wedge and going to the sand wedge (the set goes PW, AW, GW, SW), instead of using the 17-4 SS cup face, Callaway engineers are using a forged faceplate to compliment the forged body. Inside of these still-hollow wedges, they are using a resistance welding technique to precisely locate a MIM (metal injection molded) Tungsten weight to achieve superior trajectory control.

The last piece to the puzzle.

A club will always be the sum of its parts and Callaway is pulling out all the stops with the Epic Star Forged set and the components that will accompany this technology package. The stock options will include Aerotech Steelfiber FC (flight control) and Mitsubishi Chemical’s Tensei AV Silver shaft to optimize feel and control. The other upgrade is the Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align Silver Grips (Align grips offer a textured raised rib on the bottom of the grip to help the golfer place their hands in the same position over and over again). All of these pieces come together to create a premium iron from Callaway.

The Epic Forged will be available at retail starting August 2nd. 4-SW. Retail price of $300 per iron.

Related Topics:featured

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Ryan Barath

Ryan Barath is a club-fitter & master club builder with more than 17 years of experience working with golfers of all skill levels, including PGA Tour players. He is the former Build Shop Manager & Social Media Coordinator for Modern Golf. He now works independently from his home shop and is a member of advisory panels to a select number of golf equipment manufacturers. You can find Ryan on Twitter and Instagram where he's always willing to chat golf, and share his passion for club building, course architecture and wedge grinding.

27 Comments

Reese

Oct 1, 2019 at 7:26 pm

All I know is that I hit a demo seven iron this week. Awesome feel and I hit it easily 150 yards,which, since I am seventy years old and a 20 handicap, the equivalent to my five iron. It is expensive but at my age why hold back any longer ????

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John Doe Argie

Jul 30, 2019 at 11:38 am

PW at 41 degrees? Give me a break! From a set a sticks I just expect consistency and performance, not a placebo for my ego. For that I have my therapist already….

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Martin

Jul 26, 2019 at 6:52 am

Nice looking irons, but $300 each ouch.

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Dave r

Jul 17, 2019 at 6:55 pm

Ya right $300.0 a club . There is no way one club is worth that much. R&D has not gone up 700% in the last 5 years who are you people kidding. No wonder the game is dying

Reply Report comment
Travisty

Jul 17, 2019 at 6:04 am

$300 per iron?! What is happening to golf equipment lately?!? These insane price hikes across the board just make me sad. And that’s coming from someone who can afford these if I wanted to. OEM’s are actively not growing the game by releasing $2-3K iron sets, $600 drivers, $200 wedges, $500 putters. It’s getting absolutely ridiculous.

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jgpl001

Jul 17, 2019 at 3:46 am

A little bit further up the web page you had the new MP20, now you have this ugly ducking?

Truly awful

Callaway make some good stuff, but it time to stop this nonsense, nobody will buy this stuff

Reply Report comment
Brandon

Jul 17, 2019 at 12:47 am

I don’t understand the need to rename the clubs. Why not just call the 18 degree a 2 or 3 iron and go from there???

Reply Report comment
Bobbyg

Jul 16, 2019 at 11:48 pm

Give me blades or give me death.

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Midwest Golfer

Jul 16, 2019 at 8:38 pm

Yes $300 an iron is too much. and expected of these PXG WANNABES. 41 degree PW is too strong and there would be 11 degrees difference between it and my 52 gap wedge.

Reply Report comment
- Johnny Penso
  
  Jul 17, 2019 at 10:14 am
  
  Yes, you couldn’t possibly find a wedge to bridge that gap.
  
  Reply Report comment
- cajunone1983
  
  Jul 19, 2019 at 12:58 am
  
  People get caught up on the certain clubs loft. Forget that the pw is 41° and just go with the aw as your pw and go from there. Look at the lofts and not the club. If you play a hybrid than your set would stop at a 5 iron instead of a 4 iron. I have the first Apex Irons from 2014 and I have a 5 iron and a u85 3 utility bent from 20° to 21° to make the gapping correct. Worry about putting your set together by lofts and not which club it is. The aw is the pw
  
  Reply Report comment
jim

Jul 16, 2019 at 7:41 pm

yall are upset at 300$ a club but not upset at a 41 pitching wedge…gonna need 3 gap wedges in this set.

Reply Report comment
- JP
  
  Jul 16, 2019 at 9:54 pm
  
  It’s getting plain stupid. Soon enough they’ll market iron sets by the distance the Pw flies. 190? 200? Haha
  
  Reply Report comment
- Gibson888
  
  Jul 17, 2019 at 9:38 am
  
  They’re essentially forcing you to buy a 9 club set to attempt to keep the gapping consistent. Sneaky sneaky.
  
  Reply Report comment
Books Kepka

Jul 16, 2019 at 3:11 pm

3 clams per iron?!! So uhhh….really?! Callaway iron, $300 per? Does the club swing itself? Callaway? Come on game ‘o golf, you’re better ‘n that!

Reply Report comment
2putttom

Jul 16, 2019 at 2:02 pm

300 a club ! that makes em’ a target for theft.

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Thomas A

Jul 16, 2019 at 10:48 am

Jacked lofts. That’s it, nothing more.

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- gunmetal
  
  Jul 16, 2019 at 10:52 am
  
  Amen
  
  Reply Report comment
dat

Jul 16, 2019 at 9:20 am

Insane price for insane people.

Reply Report comment
Big mike

Jul 16, 2019 at 9:00 am

Have any of the Callaway “Premium Offerings” ever been a hit? I’m thinking Epic and Epic Pro Irons which can be found now for about a third of their original price. I guess this is Callaway attempt to go after the ultra premium PXG consumer and I can’t fault them for that any more than I could PXG for chiming out with their cast,0211 irons

Reply Report comment
Patrick J Floyd

Jul 16, 2019 at 8:55 am

$300 per iron, I sell golf equipment and I can tell you this will be a tough sell. The ultra high end iron is falling away-

Reply Report comment
JP

Jul 16, 2019 at 8:24 am

“Suspended Tungsten Core—which is comprised of the densest form of this heavy element”

Really? How many different densities does one element come in? What kind of marketing babble is this?

Optimum COG? That changes player to player. So these will not be suited to everyone.

Reply Report comment
- A. Commoner
  
  Jul 16, 2019 at 12:22 pm
  
  Great post!
  
  Reply Report comment
- gdb99
  
  Jul 16, 2019 at 4:40 pm
  
  I’ve heard many reports that some OEM’s use a lighter tungsten. It’s mixed with other metals, not pure tungsten.
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Gunmetal
    
    Jul 16, 2019 at 6:19 pm
    
    Then it’s not tungsten.
    
    Reply Report comment
    - JP
      
      Jul 16, 2019 at 9:48 pm
      
      Bingo.
      
      Reply Report comment
    - PG
      
      Jul 18, 2019 at 9:48 pm
      
      That’s like saying Ti alloy isn’t Ti…
      
      Reply Report comment

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Equipment

2026 Edition: Most comfortable walking shoe? – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

1 hour ago

Jun 2, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user has asked a question sure to interest all sorts of golfers. What’s the most comfortable walking shoe of 2026?

@RobDMB posed the following question:

“Looking for suggestions/recommendations on the currently available most comfortable walking shoes – preferably waterproof. Essentially looking for something comfortable like a running shoe, but with some stability and waterproof for golf. Decent room in toe box as well. Any recommendations are appreciated. Thanks!”

Our members in the forum have been sharing their own recommendations on the best walking shoes that can also survive a number of golf rounds. 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.

SheriffBooth: “To check all your boxes I’d vote for whichever of the current Nike lineup fits your feet the best. Obviously the Victory Pro 4 and Victory Tour 4 are good enough for the two best players in the world, but the new Pegasus, Next% Tour 3, and Tempo all look really good too.”
i*windows: “when I had issues with my feet I played in Asics running shoes they were a little bit like the hoka’s above, very comfortable, now I’m back to Ecco shoes which are great.”
mshills: “Everyone’s feet are different so this will be a long list of lots of different shoes. For me, anything from Ecco’s Biom lineup. Nothing else comes close.”

Entire Thread: “2026 Edition: Most Comfortable Walking Shoe?”

If you aren’t a member, join us in the GolfWRX forums today!

Equipment

AVL gets fit for a KBS TGBlack driver shaft

Published

2 hours ago

Jun 2, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

AVL says: When it comes to the equipment you play, you have countless options. It is dizzying and exciting at the same time. What is best for my game? With a recent trip Carlsbad, California, and with that I had the pleasure to visit the KBS Golf Experience.

KBS has been a household name when it comes to steel shafts. Kim Braly is the author of countless wins in tour golf when it comes to shaft design. Now with the graphite TG Black the lineup expands. Specifically, I visited KBS with getting fit for a new driver shaft in mind, it was time to get this locked in with the new KBS Tour TG Black driver shaft.

I was met by Andrew in the shop and got to see some great merchandise, custom colors for putter shafts and snuck in a few putts before we went to the fitting bay to hit this TG Black. We based the driver off my current gamer. Plenty of options and more when it comes to getting a driver to match your gamer and beyond. Hit a few balls to warm up and we were off and running.

When I’m on the course, I like to see a little left to right ball flight with driver. Andrew and I talked about some of the things were seeing during warm ups and then started to dial in with TG Black. I was hitting a TG Black 70X. After a few swings I knew this shaft was very stable and responsive. The ball sounded really good off the club face as well. As we worked through the fitting I was talking with Andrew on some scenarios you would have on course.

I went through with hitting a lower drive with changing the tee height and trying some swings as if I was on a par 5 where you could let it rip. The shaft was feeling really solid on both kind of swings. Need to have the shaft be able to be there for you with a stock with and when you get in situational scenarios like hitting it low in the wind or letting one go downwind. The TG Black was right there.

I’m no robot and I liked how the shaft performed on strikes outside of the sweet spot: It didn’t climb too much with spin on mishits. The dispersion stayed very consistent. The first shaft was a pretty good fit, but we tested further to see what else we could capture with the data. I found with a lighter shaft, along with my tempo changing, the mishits were exaggerated but it was amazing how the club felt. Very solid.

I tried a heavier TG Black as well and it just didn’t sync up as well with my swing. I think it was one of the most important parts of the fitting was trying shafts that I normally wouldn’t hit. It was confirming to see why you play what you play. It is truly individual when it comes to fitting, and that’s the main thing I really liked being at KBS, they have seen it all when it comes to shafts.

From the fitting, we found the TG Black 70 X was the best fit for me. We went over to the workshop and Mitch built the shaft to spec. Tipped the shaft a half inch, got the grip on there, logo down of course, and soon enough it was ready to hit. I know the TG Black is going to be one to be swung with confidence when it comes to tournament time!

More on KBS TGBlack driver shafts

Most golfers know KBS Golf shafts but not many know about their graphite wood shafts. KBS is one of the leaders is golf shaft design but their reach goes much further than just iron shafts. Your whole bag can get the same high performance that your irons have whether it is a driver, fairway, wedge, or even putter. Earlier this year KBS launched brand new driver shafts; the PGW and the TGBlack to fit a wide range of golfers depending on their needs.

The team at KBS went to work on a new driver shaft and sought out feedback from some of the best players in the world on multiple professional tours. What they came up with is the new TGBlack wood shaft for those players who put control and stability first. We have seen quite a few players out on tour with the new TGBlack already like Jason Day who has the TGBlack in all of his woods.

TGBlack is a shaft designed to produce a more penetrating flight with lower spin. KBS uses high modulus carbon fiber throughout the shaft to create a stable tip section to optimize launch and lower spin. To hold all of that high-modulus material together KBS designed a special resin system to increase the feel of the shaft so even stronger, faster players can get a smooth feel from a stable shaft. Usually those two things do not always compliment each other. The EI profile of the TGBlack is smooth in order to use stored energy better to help keep ball speeds up across all weights and flexes.

KBS made sure that the TGBlack can fit a wide range of golfers with their weight and flex offerings. You can get the shaft in a 40g regular all the way to an 80g TXX stiff flex. This range will allow your fitter to test out a few options in order to find the best performing shaft for your swing!