Ping G430 Irons

Category: Game-Improvement

First Impressions

The first thing to notic about the G430’s is the size. These are large game improvement irons with thick soles, built for distance and forgivness.

The shorter hosel stands out too, with the offset of the club. It helps to lower CG and get the ball flying higher.

There’s a bit of color on the back too with the Purflex cavity badge. This dampens vibrations on mishits and it houses 7 striking zones which produce straight and high shots even when you don’t connect flush.

The visible screw in the toe stands out too. There is another weight in the hosel tip and this increases MOI across the face. These irons will fly high and straight even when you don’t connect flush.

The other thing that stands out is the lower lofts, the main reason for the distance. With that being said the CG is lower and there is an extra degree of bounce so you can still the ball in the air easily.

The 3% thinner face ensures a faster ball speed on impact and the Hydropearl 2.0 finish ensures you can game these irons effectively in any weather.

The G430’s are a serious contender overall in the game improvement market in 2023.

Ping G430 Iron Selling Points

• Lower COG and Increased Bounce
• PurFlex Cavity Badge
• 3% Thinner Face
• Stronger Lofts
• 2 MPH More Ball Speed & 7 – 10 Yards Longer
• 7 Hitting Zones Behind The Face
• Hydropearl 2.0 Finish

Distance: 97/100

Forgiveness: 95/100

Accuracy: 95/100

Feel & Control: 93/100

Overall Score: 96/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Taylormade P790 Irons

Category – Forged Irons

Taylormade P790 – First Impressions

The first thing to notice about the P790 irons is the compact, forged heads that come in a shape and style that will suit the better players.

Despite the players feel of the irons, they also come packed with technology that will add distance and forgiveness like the Thru Slot speed pocket, speed foam and inverted cone technology which allows more flex on impact.

The forged irons are actually a hollow construction, filled with speed foam which allows much greater distances to be achieved than the original P790’s and the tungsten weighting keeps the CG low for an easy launch for an iron of this type.

The original P790 irons, released in 2017, were definitely for the players but with the remodelling in 2019, these can also be used for mid handicappers looking to test the waters of players irons.

All in all, definitely not for the high handicappers.

P790 Irons – Selling Points

• 2 Tungsten Weights For Low COG
• Co Molded Cavity Badge For No Vibrations
• Lots Of Loft In The Clubs
• Flexible Hinge And Variable Face Thickness
• Forgiving And Consistent

Distance: 92/100

Accuracy: 95/100

Forgiveness: 89/100

Feel And Control: 96/100

Overall Score: 94/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Taylormade M4 Irons First Impressions

The Taylormade M4 irons have a clean, cavity back design with an extended sole in the rear which looks very comforting for beginners.

This feature also made them play very well in the rough. It is very easy to launch the ball high (and far) even from the rough. We were very pleased with the feel when we struck the ball right in the sweet spot.

However, the feel gets a little thin and the sound gets a little hollow unless you are dead-center on the sweet spot.

Taylormade M4 Selling Points

• Ribcor design
• Speed Pocket
• Thick sole
• Plenty of offset
• Premium shaft options
• Strong loft

Distance: 96/100

Accuracy: 93/100

Forgiveness: 94/100

Feel & Control: 92/100

Overall Score: 95/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Callaway Paradym Irons First Impressions

The first thing to notice about the Paradym irons is the attractive design which looks great in the bag and will have plenty of shelf appeal in 2023.

They have a player’s profile at address and are built to get the maximum distance possible.

The stronger lofts add about 5 to 10 yards to each and the feel explosive on impact.

The price point is quite high but the premium forged steel face does make up for this to a certain extent.

The irons come in 2 flavors:

Callaway Paradym Iron Selling Points

• 455 Steel Forged Face Cup
• Hollow Bodied With Plenty Of Tungsten Weighting
• Pre Worn Leading Edge
• X Version for more forgiveness
• Attractive design
• Urethane Microspheres to absorb impact
• Powerful sound and feel

Distance: 96/100

Forgiveness: 92/100

Accuracy: 94/100

Feel & Control: 95/100

Overall Score: 94/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Ping G400 Irons

Category – Game Improvement Irons

Ping G400 First Impressions

We were a bit wary of the Ping G400’s at first because they didn’t have the size of traditional game-improvement irons.

While you are looking at a shorter distance from heel to toe with the Ping G400 irons, the COR-Eye technology ensures that if you make contact with the sweet spot, your ball is gonna go far. Almost immediately, our testers were nailing shots in the 160 yard range with the 5 iron in this set.

We also really liked the way these irons sounded – particularly the long irons. The cavity badge really works to enhance sound when you hit the sweet spots of these irons. It didn’t take us very long to get the hang of these irons and start sending missiles down the fairway.

Ping G400 – Selling Points

• Hydropearl finish
• Co-molded, 3-piece cavity badge
• Good stock shaft choices
• Very easy to achieve adequate launch
• They produce easy distance

Distance: 97/100

Accuracy: 96/100

Forgiveness: 95/100

Feel and Control: 96/100

Overall Score: 96/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Cobra Air-X Irons

Category: Game-Improvement

Cobra Air-X Irons – First Impressions

At first glance, the Cobra Air-X irons look like very normal, run of the mill game-improvement irons.

And at the end of the day, that assessment is still pretty close. Like we mentioned, there are not a lot of fancy features or flashy design elements with these irons. You don’t really know what’s special about them until you take a swing with them.

By far, the most amazing thing about these irons is how light they are. Every single one of our testers experienced increases in swing speed (3.4mph on average) with these irons from the deck and off the tee.

Our only issue with these irons is a potential distance gap. The 8-iron in this set is 35.5 degrees while the 9-iron is 40 degrees. That’s a loft gap of 4.5 degrees. This could create some problems for high handicappers.

However, it should also be mentioned that most of our testers had to club down with these irons because of the distance they produce.

Cobra Air-X Selling Points

• D0 swing weight
• Good launch
• Strong loft
• Increases swing speed
• 5 graphite shaft swing weight

Distance: 94/100

Accuracy: 93/100

Forgiveness: 94/100

Feel & Control: 91/100

Overall Score: 93/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Titleist T300 – (Best Titleist)

Category: Game Improvement

Titleist T300 First impressions

The first thing you notice about these Cavity Irons is how the top line looks deceptively thin for an iron that is primarily built for distance and forgiveness.

Titleist T300 Irons – Selling Points

• Tungsten Weighting In Longer Irons
• Polymer Badge On Longer Irons For Superior Feel
• Excellent Workability In The Shorter Irons
• Impressive Distance Gains
• Less Offset For Straight Shooters
• Ultra Thin Steel Face

Who Are The T300 Irons For

The T300 Irons are for Mid Handicappers looking for maximum distance, without compromising on forgiveness.

These are also great for mid handicappers looking for more workability in their shorter irons.

Titleist T Series Family Of Irons

The T series from Titleist carries on from the AP range and it goes from T100, the best for low handicappers, the T200 for Low to Mid, the T300, for Mid To High and the T400 for High handicappers and beginners.

Distance: 96/100

Accuracy: 94/100

Forgiveness: 93/100

Feel And Control: 92/100

Overall Score: 95/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Mizuno JPX 923 Hot Metal Irons – (Best Mizuno’s)

Category: Players’ Distance Irons

JPX 923 Hot Metal – First Impressions

Straight out of the gate the JpX 923 look great, they are not big and chunky like some game improvement irons, but they are not the most forgiving irons on the market either. One thing is for sure, the 923 Hot Metal irons are built for distance.

Mizuno JPX 923 Hot Metal Iron Selling Points

• New Nikol Chromoly Material
• 3 Versions To Suit Different Golfers
• 50 Custom Shaft Options
• Stronger Lofts & More Bounce
• Around 10% More Distance Than The JPX 921’s
• 8% Thinner Face
• 18% Bigger Sweet Spot

Distance: 98/100

Forgiveness: 93/100

Accuracy: 93/100

Feel & Control: 95/100

Overall Score: 95/100

Check Out More Reviews Here:

Srixon ZX5 Irons  – First Impressions

Category: Players’ Distance Irons

The Srixon ZX5 irons are a major improvement over the Srixon Z585 irons which had a cheaper, more game improvement look about them.

Srixon ZX5 Irons Selling Points

• Multi-material construction
• Tungsten toe weights in the long irons
• “V” shaped sole
• Narrower, deeper face grooves in the scoring irons
• Milled back side

Srixon ZX5 Irons – First Impressions

The first thing we noticed about these irons is how nice they look.

Srixon got rid of the back insert which made the previous Srixon irons look a bit cheap. The Srixon ZX5’s on the other hand have the look of a premium set of forged irons.

They have a sharp, sleek look even as the cavity back pokes out a little more noticeably in the long irons.

Another reason we think the Srixon ZX5 irons would be good for mid handicappers is the amount of offset you see at point of address. The Srixon ZX5’s have a moderate amount of offset that is enough to inspire confidence but not enough to make these look like a pure set of game improvement irons.

Srixon did a good job of making the Srixon ZX5’s occupy the middle ground between player’s performance and game improvement irons. When compared to the ZX7’s you will notice that the top line is a bit thicker.

The Srixon ZX5’s also have longer blades than the ZX7’s. However, this is to be expected. The ZX7’s are definitely more of a pure set of player’s performance irons and emphasize workability over forgiveness. Still, the Srixon ZX5’s aren’t much bigger than the ZX7’s.

Distance: 96/100

Accuracy: 94/100

Forgiveness: 94/100

Feel & Control: 95/100

Overall Score: 94/100

Check Out More Reviews Here: