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2021 PXG Gen4 irons: Precision-driven performance

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After teasing us for weeks PXG is delivering all the tech details of their new Gen4 irons featuring the 0311 XP, 0311 P, and 0311 T irons, and we’re here to break it down.

Gen4 iron goals

  • Utilize all available technology to improve performance.
  • Optimize internal material to increase distance and feel.
  • Make them easier to dial in for each individual golfer.

2021 PXG Gen4 irons: Technology

PXG irons have always been about pushing the envelope of technology and performance without sacrificing looks or feel. Now with the release of the PXG Gen4 series—featuring the 0311 XP, 0311 P, and 0311 T irons—PXG is taking things even further with improved technology and construction methods.

“Our goal is always to excel at the process of building the best clubs possible. We start with a target and we’ll do anything to reach that performance goal – we’ve actually overachieved with the new Gen4 iron.”
– Bob Parsons, Founder PXG

Technology and design keys

Let’s start with the body, where PXG is once again utilizing a high-end, five-times forging process to shape the 8620 soft carbon steel to within tight tolerances of its final spec. This five-step process requires multiple forging dies, and unlike with casting, where molds have a much longer life-cycle, the forging dies to need to be replaced more often to keep production parts in-spec. It costs more, but the end result is a better final component.

Now to the faces of the PXG 0311 irons, which are made from HT 17170 high-strength maraging steel. This is the same steel used in the construction of the faces for PXG fairway woods and hybrids and is designed for flex and speed. This material allows the engineers to stretch the limit of face thickness and increase ball speed and save mass to be repositioned around the head to increase MOI (forgiveness).

Finally, when it comes to technology, it wouldn’t be a PXG iron if it wasn’t filled with a material to support the super-thin face, and for the Gen4 irons, engineers are using a softer more compressible material to allow the face to flex while still maintaining structural stability. More flex means more rebound, and more rebound equals more distance from shots hit around the face.

One big change – One big weight

The PXG Gen4 series is a total design departure from anything PXG has done before, and the most noticeable element—especially in the irons—is the signature smaller weight screws have been mostly removed in favor of a single larger one.

This larger centrally located weight screw in the rear of the irons eliminates the need for swing weight to be dialed in using tip weights located in the hosel. Yes, hosel tip weights are still standard in most irons in the industry and don’t generally have an effect on performance, but at a very very finite level, they alter the CG (center of gravity), and when your goal is perfection, you don’t cut corners.

Just heads up for you tinkerers though, the weights will be factory-installed and are not intended to be changed after the final build, but they will be used by fitters during the fitting process to offer another level to the PXG custom fitting experience.

Meet the PXG Gen4 iron models

0311 XP

The 0311 XP is the largest iron in the Gen4 0311 family and is intended for mid-to-higher handicap golfers who are looking for additional height and distance from their irons. The XP also features the greatest amount of offset, but can still be easily blended with other irons in the series to build combo sets if requested.

0311 P

The 0311 P is Goldilock’s “just right” bowl of porridge in iron form. It offers the perfect blend of playability and forgiveness in a medium to compact package intended for mid to lower handicap golfers. The 0311 P has a moderate amount of offset that transitions through the set which makes it the perfect candidate to combo with the XP longer irons or the T short irons…

0311T

The 0311 T’s are the smallest “hollow body” iron in the PXG lineup and offer all the same technology but in a compact profile. If you want something smaller than this, it’s going to have to be the 0311, or 0211 ST ( Super Tour ) blades.

With the 0311T, you get workability and ball speed from a blade-like club, without the worry of coming up way short if you miss it outside of the sweet spot. Thanks to the small amount of progressive offset they also combo very nicely with the 0311_ longer irons.

Pricing and availability

The entire PXG Gen 4 line of clubs are now available to be custom ordered from PXG through PXG.comand all three new 0311 iron models are priced at $349.99 a club, in-stock configurations with additional shaft and grip options available with an upcharge.

 

 

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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.

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Pingback: GolfWRX Spotted: PXG Gen 4 ST Super Tour iron? – GolfWRX

  2. Ned

    Mar 11, 2021 at 5:38 am

    There is no way any iron is two plus times the price of any other golf iron. Side by side stats will prove that.

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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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