Titleist DCI 762 Irons Review – Are They Forgiving & Good for High Handicappers?

“22 years ago, Titleist began a shift in the DCI (Direct Central Impact) series of irons with the DCI 762’s.”

All you need to do to decipher the difference between the Titleist DCI 762 irons and older DCI models is look at them. Compared to older DCI irons, the Titleist DCI 762’s have a more compact profile and even a shallower cavity back.

Still, these are billed as game improvement irons. In my recent round of testing, I have been focusing on the DCI line. So I was really interested to test the DCI irons that began the shift to a more modern game improvement design. Are the smaller Titleist DCI 762 irons still good for high handicappers? Read on to find out.

Titleist DCI 762 Irons Overview

“Like all Titleist DCI irons, the 762’s are cast from 431 stainless steel.”

This is a material that is outdated by today’s standards. However, the Titleist DCI 762’s feature something that previous DCI models didn’t: a carbon/mylar composite cavity badge. This feature was very conflicting to me because what I really liked about older DCI irons was the clean cavity back look. Older DCI irons didn’t have any badges. The Titleist DCI 762’s have a thin badge that makes them look a bit busier; but also gives them a softer, more modern feel.

In fact, the cavity badge was the major feature that separated the Titleist DCI 762’s from older models. But the differences don’t end there. The Titleist DCI 762’s have a shallower cavity and smaller overall footprint than previous DCI irons.

The intent was to increase workability: something that older DCI irons woefully lacked. Like older models though, the Titleist DCI 762’s have progressive offset. Overall, these are high-launching irons. However, compared to previous DCI irons, the Titleist DCI 762’s have slightly stronger lofts: the 9-iron checks in at 42° compared to 44° that we saw in the DCI Gold and Black sets.

Are the Titleist DCI 762 Irons Forgiving?

“Despite the more compact profile, the Titleist DCI 762 irons are still forgiving.”

The progressive offset helps a lot. It is still very easy to turn the long irons over and get an accurate face angle. Dispersion was tight (no more than 11 yards off-line) and I didn’t have to alter my swing very much. The Titleist DCI 762’s are essentially point-and-shoot irons and in my book, that means a lot.

Staying on the fairway is a breeze with these irons so I would say that they are very forgiving. They don’t hold up very well to modern GI irons in terms of distance. The steep launch angles were actually hurting my carry distance. But that was mainly because I already tend to launch the ball mid/high with my swing. For lower-launch players, this shouldn’t be an issue at all.

The only real gripe I have about these irons through the purview of forgiveness has to do with feedback. The cavity badge makes mis-hits feel smooth and almost undetectable. For the most part that’s a good thing. But I couldn’t tell where I was mis-hitting on the face. This made correcting my swing a bit difficult.

Are the Titleist DCI 762 Irons Good for Beginners & High Handicappers?

“It’s hard to argue with a straight shot.”

That’s by far the best thing these irons do for beginners and high handicappers. The Titleist DCI 762’s will help you stay on the fairway. That being said, these irons aren’t the best for beginners and high handicappers. They feel very nice but mute a lot of the valuable feedback that new players need from their irons.

And if you are already a high-launching player, it will be very easy to send the ball ballooning too high, get up in the wind and lose carry distance.

Should you Buy the Titleist DCI 762 or the Titleist DCI Gold Irons?

“The Titleist DCI Gold irons were the first DCI irons.”

Compared to the Titleist DCI 762’s, the DCI Gold irons have an oversized profile and a cavity back you can eat cereal out of. Overall, the Titleist DCI Gold irons are more forgiving but you get virtually no workability from them. So if you are a pure beginner, I would recommend the Titleist DCI Gold irons over the 762’s. But if you have already broken 90 and have your eyes on 75, the Titleist DCI 762’s will serve you better.