Callaway Apex DCB Vs Srixon ZX4 Irons Comparison Overview

The Apex line of irons from Callaway is regarded as a premium line that is intended for mid to low handicappers.

But the Callaway Apex DCB promises to be more accessible to high handicap players while retaining some of the premium appointments that have made the Apex line so desirable.

The Srixon ZX4’s represent the same sort of pivot towards the game improvement iron market from a company known for making premium-grade irons. So which company was more successful in their foray into the GI iron market? Let’s compare them.

Callaway Apex DCB irons Overview

“The Apex DCB irons feature the same fully forged bodies that the other irons in the Apex series boast.”

However, when you compare the Apex DCB to the other irons in the Apex family, you can see that you are dealing with a bigger iron. The DCB’s have wider soles and blogger head profiles than the other Apex irons.

Nevertheless, these are fully forged irons with full cavity backs and tungsten weighting placed to lower CG. The Apex DCb irons certainly launch high and the moderate offset of the long irons makes it easy to square up on full swings.

However, short game performance was lacking. Spin rates were low and the bulkier heads made for difficult working. The APex DCB irons are best as replacements for your longer irons if you are looking for more consistency and a better feel.

Srixon ZX4 Irons Overview

“The main feature driving the performance of the Srixon ZX4’s is the hollow-body construction.”

This essentially allows the face to “float” and flex freely. Indeed, we were getting better ball speeds with the Srixon ZX4’s than with the DCB’s. Of course, ball flight and stability was compromised a bit.

However, the deep, tight grooves of the Srixon ZX4 scoring irons made for much better short game control when compared to the Apex DCB’s. The Srixon ZX4’s also delivered a lower, faster trajectory which made for better overall distance.

On top of all that, the Srixon ZX4’s feature forged faces so you get the same quality feel as you do from the DCB’s.

“The Srixon ZX4’s were hands down the better game improvement irons. They retain premium feel better than the DCB’s, and more importantly, they are more forgiving. While the flight can be erratic with the Srixon ZX4’s, we would say Srixon was more successful at producing an effective GI iron.”

Callaway Apex DCB First Impressions

Callaway-Apex-DCB-Irons

We knew that the Callaway Apex DCB irons targeted mid to high handicappers but they don’t feel like it.

Right from the gate, we were blown away with the feel of these irons. The feel of the forged 1025 carbon steel is amazing. It allows for a solid feel at contact with feedback you would expect from tour-grade irons.

Assisting with the soft feel of these irons is the layer of urethane microspheres included in the head. We also liked that the sole had a substantial footprint.

This will play well with high handicappers at it just looks more comforting at point of address.

The Callaway Apex DCB irons are available with graphite UST Mamiya Recoil Dart shafts and steel True Temper Elevate ETS 85 shafts.

The graphite shafts will certainly be more beneficial for high handicap players so those were the ones we tested.

The 4 and 5 irons are what we tested first and we were impressed with the distance and launch. The set starts with a 4 iron at a considerable 20 degrees of loft then jumps up to 23 degrees in the 5 iron.

The Callaway Apex DCB irons certainly impressed with their feel, distance and launch.

Srixon ZX4 Irons – First Impressions

With Srixon making these big changes to their iron line up, it makes sense that we talk about the technology before we dive into our first impressions on the ZX4 irons.

Srixon have stabilized the ZX4 irons by adding a milled pattern on the back of irons’ face, this technique maximizes COR, and gives you increased ball speed and more distance.

The ZX4’s has hollow body construction design, this gives you loads forgiveness, which allows you to strike the ball across the entire face, without losing ball speed. It also allows Srixon to make the iron look great, while in your bag and at address, while still giving you a lot of forgiveness and distance.

Srixon has placed tungsten in the sole of ZX4’s long and mid irons (4 iron to 7 iron), this lowers the center of gravity, and gives you a higher launch. The ZX4 irons have a forged HT1770 Steel face, the forged face increases speed and distance, it also has a 431 Steel body, which takes away vibrations for a softer feel off the face.

Srixon has incorporated a V-shaped sole, it helps the club slide smoothly through the turf, even when striking the ball badly. ZX4 irons also feature their sole notches.

Srixon have changed the grooves in the ZX range, the 8 iron to PW are sharper, narrower, and deeper, giving you more spin, allowing you to stop the ball on the greens easier than ever.

From the start we could see some incredible ball speed from the ZX4 irons. At address the topline is not as big compared to your average game improvement iron, which we loved.

You can however see the back of the club as the lofts get stronger. This may be off putting to some.

The V-shaped sole is great, the club slid through the turf with ease on every shot. The forged face is great, the sound and feel off the clubface is incredible for a game improvement iron.

With all this tech, you unfortunately lose some workability. It is easy to work the ball left to right, but to control the trajectory is not easy.

Our team mates with faster swing speeds found they hit a few ‘hot shots’ that carried well over the flag, this isn’t ideal, however as a high handicap player, you won’t be getting many of these.

Callaway Apex DCB Selling Points

They feel amazing
They have a larger head shape than any other Apex iron
Good amount of offset for beginners and mid handicappers
Good for both mid and high handicappers
50 grams of internal tungsten weighting in the long irons
Forged design

Srixon ZX4 Irons Selling Points

Multi forged construction, giving you more distance and forgiveness
V-Shaped helps with turf interaction
A lot more compact than your traditional game improvement iron
There are Sharper, narrower, and deeper grooves in the 8 iron to PW
Stabilized frame increase ball speed and distance

Who are the Callaway Apex DCB Irons For?

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The Callaway Apex DCB irons were designed for players with a handicap of 10 and higher.

The Callaway Apex DCB irons clearly have something to offer both mid and high handicap players. However, for high handicap players, the DCB’s will mostly be beneficial for distance, feel and launch. They don’t offer much help with off-center shots.

The Callaway Apex DCB irons could certainly stand to be a little more forgiving but they would still be a solid choice for beginners ready to break through to the mid handicap range.

Callaway Apex DCB Final Assessment

Distance: 94/100

Accuracy: 95/100

Forgiveness: 92/100

Feel and Control: 93/100

Overall Score: 94/100

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Who Are the Srixon ZX4 Irons For?

The Srixon ZX4 irons are aimed at your mid to high handicap golfers. They are incredibly forgiving with loads of distance.

We could see a lot of people going into a combo set with the ZX range, for a mid handicap player to use the ZX4 irons in their longer irons can really help with the forgiveness, as your longer irons are definitely harder to hit.

Most game improvement irons look thick and chunky, but the ZX range is far from that.

The Srixon ZX Family of Irons

The Srixon ZX range has a few more models to their range, this really gives all levels of golfers the option to play the ZX range, and allows you to build combo sets. We were really impressed by this, because most golf club manufacturers don’t make such an extensive range that caters for all handicap levels.

ZX7 irons are your low handicap irons, they are tour cavity irons. Srixon have moved the weight to the perimeter, this helps with forgiveness. It has an incredibly soft feel and sound off the face. They are extremely easy to work, which allows you to control the ball with ease, the narrow sole, thin top line and minimal offset gives this iron a fantastic look at address.

The ZX5 irons have the same DNA as the ZX7 irons, but there are a few differences, these are mainly there to give you a bit more forgiveness and distance. The ZX5 irons feature a slightly longer blade, wider sole, and more offset, this appeals to the mid handicap golfer. We love the ZX7 and ZX5 irons as low handicap players could play the 6 to 4 iron in their longer irons, this will help with forgiveness.

ZX Utility isn’t a part of a full iron set, it is a driving iron. It has a thinner top line and smaller profile compared to the previous generations. It complements the ZX7 and ZX5 perfectly in the longer irons.