What Distance Do You Hit Your 7-iron? | Club Speed & Iron Model Comparison
Вставка
- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- 7-irons are all built differently. Today 7-irons have lofts ranging from 26 degrees to 35 degrees. Do you hit your 7-iron the optimal distance? Can you stop the ball on the green with the optimal landing angle? Is the ball flight high or low? Does the ball spin back or have topspin? Just because a player in your group is playing a certain iron it doesn't mean it's similar to yours. When club fitting the goal is to get the golfer in the most optimal carry distance, landing angle and total distance. This is why certain irons are stronger or weaker in loft. Using the Trackman optimizer you can learn a lot about how far your 7-iron should go.
For this videos test, Thomas Campbell PGA Member and Director of Instruction at Swing Lab conducts a test with swing speeds ranging from 70-90 mph and with three different types of irons. These are Game Improvement Irons (Taylormade Stealth - 28*), Players Distance Irons (Taylormade P790 - 30.5*) & Traditional Players Irons (Taylormade P7MC - 34*) comparing all the differences so you can learn the optimal 7-iron distances based on your club speed & iron type.
Swing Lab Performance Golf is a high-performance golf training & fitting facility that opened in February 2023. We are located in Lakeville, Minnesota and utilize top of the line technology to revolutionize the way golfers improve their game. Our technology includes Trackman, Quintic, Zen Green Stage, Putt View & Swing Catalyst. We also offer club fitting services for all the major manufacturers including Callaway, TaylorMade, Titleist, Mizuno, Cobra & Srixon / Cleveland Golf come see us to gain some distance, improve your dispersion or to make more putts.
For more info on Swing Lab Performance Golf check out our website: www.swinglabpe...
Subscribe to the Channel: / @swinglabperformancegolf
Follow us on Instagram: / swinglabperformancegolf
Thomas Campbell Golf:
www.thomascamp...
I play the stealth irons, s300 shafts as my swing speed is around 85 and play Callaway Supersoft ball. I've always hit more up with irons and I consistently carry 165 with my 7 iron and my landing angle is around 42 degrees. When I got fit, I wanted more distance with my irons vs my old set as I was only carrying about 140 with my previous 7 iron. It's all about how YOU hit the ball. I'm extremely happy with my stealth set :)
finally a useful video correlating swing speed with the type of iron you should use!
Great test Thomas. I've seen something similar before where the tester varied his angle of attack but kept the swing speed the same. In almost all cases the player, with an angle of attack 3-5 degrees down on a 7 iron, gets better results with traditional lofted clubs. Only where the angle of attack was more neutral (flippy) do the modern stronger lofted irons make more sense.
Interesting. I average -4.3 and 78-80 mph 7 iron speed. I recently tested the T150s (32 degree 7i) and loved the spin, launch, and peak height I saw. Distance was only about 142-145 carry but it was controllable. I’m looking forward to breaking these things in.
Driver is for distance, every other club is for precision. It doesn’t really matter how far you can hit your 7 iron as long as it goes a predictable distance.
Not really.. Knowing you carry it 206, as demonstrated, is pretty useless if you can't stop it.. I agree it needs to be predictable, but you also need other number to be good for it to be effective / optimal.
and if you can stop it then why would it be bad to have distance? It wouldn't be.
My 7 goes about 160 on average nowadays. If I’m swinging well, it can go around 185. At this point in my life (age 61) I’m willing to live with the inconsistency, as I’m beginning to find more consistency with the longer distance. Thing is that those swings are the ones that feel easiest, almost effortless. Irons are Mizuno MP54
Agreed, you need to be able to stop it.@@davetunks792
I’m 68 years old and my 7 iron is about 140 yards. My swing is around 78 miles per hour.
Great idea - excellend execution. Really clear to me.
I was literally wondering this as I was on the range today if my numbers was OK for around 82 mph. Really interesting to see this across speeds ans iron lofts. 👍
Keep making videos where mortal/average swing speeds are used 😅
Shaft type and length….how tired am I, wind, temperature, humidity
Really great video here, Thomas. High quality breakdown that’s simple and easy to understand. I love how you broke down the different speeds with different types of clubs. Most channels just switch from club to club but don’t change the swing speed to relate different level golfers 💯⛳️👍🏼
Appreciate the comment! Loft or speed is your friend to generate the ideal landing angle - Thomas
@@swinglabperformancegolf I've had to face just this problem, 10 years ago I fitted at a 6 iron speed nearing 80, but since then, I've had back problems and dialed my speed back a lot, and these players irons don't go anywhere, they come out low, feel like I'm hitting a rock. I've picked up a lot of shots from a lot of distances with fairway woods and the like, where I can put a five wood off the grass pretty high, shape it from 150 or 160, bounce in front have a chance at a green. my scoring is still about the same. At the same time, I'm having to hit a 7 or 8 from 130, but have lost trust in my mid irons, I'm kind of screwed from 145 to 120. I'm pretty happy 110 and under with my 9 through wedges. I'm thinking a strong 6 through 8 or even 9, with extra sole, extra distance, extra height, will give me more shots at the green.
Wondered why I haven’t seen Thomas on the 2nd swing videos. Now I know why. Glad to have found you again Thomas!
Glad you found this channel! - Thomas
This a great video!!! Thanks a lot for doing this!!! What would be super interesting as well would be to compare e.g. a 7i with different shaft flex and weight with the same as well as different swing speeds 🙂
This is a good video but I think there are a couple of caveats involved here.
This vid highlights the best clubs for good ball strikers and their clubhead speeds. To be honest, good ball strikers probably have played for quite a few years and already know these things. I myself have changed to a player distance iron (the P790s to be exact) because I am 56 and my clubhead speeds have dropped enough to make using my older Hogans no longer viable. It sucks to get old. I actually tried the precursor to the Stealths (Sim2s) and found that I hit them pretty far but struggled to control the left right movement due to the offset. I'm a decent striker (not nearly as good as you) so I know the Sim2s were not the clubs I should be hitting.
My issue is that someone that is relatively new to the game or not necessarily a decent striker of the ball might come away looking at clubhead speed as the biggest reason to purchase a set of irons and I disagree with this. If you look at your efficiency in your strikes they are much better than the average golfer (which is expected) and significantly better than someone that is nothing more than a 'casual' golfer. If someone has a 90mph swing speed but can't hit the center of the club to save his life then putting that person in P7MBs probably would be disasterous. Probably at least the P790s if not the Stealths would be an easier club to learn to play. As the swing improves and strikes improve then consideration for harder to hit irons should happen.
This is a great point. The caveat is primarily for new players who are young and athletic and have swing speeds that are beyond their abilities. The lower swing speed players almost across the board would benefit from playing either a players distance iron, or game improvement iron both for the additional distance, but also for the additional forgiveness on off centre hits.
You're also right....getting old sucks. I am making the move to Titleist T200's this offseason to combat some of the distance woes, mostly on off centre hits, but also feel like hitting one club less into the greens will help get a tighter dispersion. I'll be 56 this summer and I'm hoping to move my handicap to the the lowest it's been in my life in the upcoming season!!
Very informative video, as usual.
Do you feel it is ridiculous to call these irons by the number shown on the clubhead? Isn't it better to compare a 34-degree iron with another brand's 34-degree iron?
These are the specs of the 5-iron, 6-iron, and 7-iron of the three brands.
26, 30, 34
23.5, 26.5, 30
21, 24, 28 (this last set had a slightly longer length of shaft as well)
The last brand's 7 iron was nearly the same loft as the first brand's 5-iron! The first brand's seven iron has more loft that the last brand's 8 iron!
You stated that your 7-iron has the same loft as the first brand and you normally hit a 7-iron about 180. How far do you hit your 5-iron? It's probably about as far as the last brand's seven iron (200+ yards).
I think there needs to be some consistency in what we call a 7-iron across all brands or, when we do comparisons, we should really be comparing same lofts regardless of the useless number under the sole of the clubhead.
Was this test using the same shaft for all speeds? If it was, that would explain the results. Had you used the shaft to match the speed, the spin should have increased with each rise in speed, wouldn't it? Using the right shaft to match the head is paramount for any golfer, hence why a good club/shaft fitting is recommended.
What you should be hitting? 1. I am over 53 2. Very bad ankle. 3. 2 full spine compressions. 4. 4 years of competitive mountain bike racing.. So my body is a dam mess.. i probably wont change from my Ben Hogan Apex Plus, looks are a 10,softness is buttery,.. so my 7 is a 165 club.. unless i pure it.. than its a 185... bad shot,ugh 140ish..golf sure is odd game
I think the stronger lofted irons are targeted at the player that swings slower and delivers more loft at impact than you are delivering.
Tell that to Bryson Dechambeau.
What’s troubling with this is the Stealth is targeted at higher handicappers who very likely have slowish swing speeds. This very reason is why Mizuno and Ping have “High Launch” versions of their GI Irons.
This is why they always use fast swingers for club reviews!
It’s for these reasons I think all clubs should have their loft stamped. Like you have on driver, woods, wedges and even usually hybrids. Most irons don’t do this and it causes confusion too often. I always wondered why my playing partners smashed irons longer than me but not the woods and hybrids - turns out their irons are all 4-5 degrees more aggressive. Their 8 iron is equivalent to my 5-6 iron. What happens though is they have massive gapping between 9/PW and their wedges which normally start at a 52. They then get super pissed that the 52 never flies (they see it as close to their PW but in realty with their irons the degree gapping is like 11-12 - far too big). For me the gap between PW and my 52 is only 6.
Standard lofts are much much better for most half decent players. But having lofts stamped on all irons would help those new to golf massively. Also would stop the silly ego nonsense of how far you hit a 7iron!
Totally agree. I started as a kid in the late 70's playing old school forged blades - thin top line, no offset, standard lofts. To this day I still play clubs that fit that description. My current clubs are TaylorMade circa 2010 - even bought the 2 iron when I ordered the set. Only had 4 sets my entire life, never fell for the marketing hype that has guys buying new sets constantly chasing distance or accuracy.
I disagree as shaft also contributes to distance and height. I use Srixon Z785s with 130g shafts and couldn't care less if someone else uses Stealths with 95g shafts.
Even if the loft was stamped ppl can still get it adjusted so it means nothing or could extend shaft length.
Play your own game as there is also the extra consideration of dynamic loft...
Iron Lofts are Published by every Manufacturer for each Model made. It's an easy enough search, even for older models as comparisons.
The Numbers are Stamped for Identification purposes, 7 goes Farther than 8, 6 goes Farther than 7.
Thank you Thomas 👏. Finally, someone doing a straight forward test to clearly demonstrate that at ALL swing speeds, loft is your friend (albeit maybe not for flippers). And you dispelled the marketing hype, often used in fittings, that claims GI tech creates height and landing-angle that offsets the lower spin from the lower lofts. Clearly this is NOT true for slower swing speeds (for good strikers of the ball). Unless you are a links-only player, PD and GI clubs make the game harder, not easier.
Everyone's launch conditions are different. I am not a "flipper" and have been playing Mizuno JPX921 Tour irons (traditional lots like the P7MC) the past couple season. I was fit for the Titleist T200 irons a couple weeks ago and based on back to back testing with my own clubs, the T200's launch higher, have a higher peak height, and better landing angle. I've been playing golf for 38 years and while I don't hit the centre of the face every shot, I'm a decent player, with a decent swing....just not blessed to be very tall, and a little past my prime at 56. I swing at about 80 mph on 7 iron and am honestly looking forward to getting the new set and bringing my HC down this summer.
@@chrisgilligan4968 Here's to year of good golf, and lower handicaps, Chris 🥂
@@rufussthoo4083 Amen to that!! Cheers!🍻
without changing shafts to match swing speed (you didn't say anything so no idea what you did), not sure how this data means much but interesting to see
It used to go 150 yards but now, at 64, 10 years later and 75 lbs later it is only going 135 yards.
I must get back in shape and in turn I need to get my speed back up from 71 mph to 78 or so.
Great video! very informative. I have Cobra F9 irons and my 7 iron carries about 145 but rolls out to 160...cannot hold a green. I miss my old Irons that went higher and shorter but landed softer. Swing speed is 75-80
A simple adjustment could be bending your current irons 1-2 weaker which will increase spin and stopping power. You may lose a couple yards in carry but could be worth it - Thomas
Maybe I'm a moron but does this show that TaylorMade P7MC works rather well at swing speeds around 70 mph, and that you are better off with those irons compared to the other ones? I'd be happy to hear some thoughts on comparing these same irons but with the same lofts; e.g. how would the stats differ between a P7MC 7 iron (34°) versus P790 8 iron (35°) and a Stealth 8-9 iron (32° and 37°), which have similar lofts. Alright, God bless and cheers!
Lofts that are the same or within one degree difference and swung at the same clubhead speed will produce much closer carry and total distances and spin rates.
@@zazhou Thanks m8! In the meanwhile I found this, ua-cam.com/video/vdPxpkXkhNU/v-deo.html, which gave me a lot of answers.
What this video doesn't take into consideration is quality of strike. Thomas hits the centre of the face on virtually every shot. For a golfer that swings slower, it is often (but not always) the case that they aren't as good a player, and don't hit the middle as often. This is where the other 2 clubs will outshine the players club like the P7MC....when you don't hit the middle on that club - your carry distance could be easily 15-20 yards short of what you hit when you hit it solid. With the more forgiving clubs that difference shrinks considerably....which will make a significant impact on the scorecard!!
I’ve always enjoyed how you explained things, Thomas. This is more helpful in explaining which clubs might be best suited for which players compared to marketing campaigns which group too many players together by handicap. I think swing speed is very insightful. I also think it’s good to see how taking a bit off affects distance and dispersion when you’re more concerned about contact and club face rather than distance.
Fantastic video! It answered so many questions I had in mind!
This is a great test/comparison…supports some of my thoughts/theories…I’m a slower swinger these days due to age (54), having had both hips replaced, and other physical limitations due to arthritis…however, I’m a solid striker of the ball with a fair amount of forward shaft lean…so, when I try to play a player distance iron or GI club, i find they fly much too low…is that because the CG is lowered on them for people who tend to swing without shaft lean and hit it really low on the face? That’s part of my theory…I tried playing a set of JPX 923 HMPs and hit them too low…tried the P790s, same thing…So, now I’m playing T150s and they seem to be a good blend with a nice height in the 80s with a 7 iron and between 43-45 degrees landing angle and about 160 on the distance…my 7 iron swing speed is now in the low 80s…two years ago after surgery and before the last two years of rehab and stretching it was mid to high 70s…
this is one of your best, and definitely one of 'the' best and clearest explanation/illustration of connecting player to proper club. well done!
Lofts on irons are so ridiculous now. My PW is 47 degrees. Played with my best friend’s kid the other day and he’s hitting a PW over 150 yards. I looked it up and it was a 43 degree loft. Clubs on average are 1-2 clubs stronger lofted than they were 20 years ago.
Wow. 28 degrees on a 7 iron? When I started repairing/building clubs, that was a 5 iron. The length is a little less than the 5's of that era, 37.25 vs 37.5. And a 5 iron with 21 degrees? When I started playing in the early 70's, that was a 2 iron! That 4 iron is almost as low a loft as Jack Nicklaus' 1 iron, or Tiger Woods' 2 iron. This is the old design conveyor belt in action. Drop the low numbers off one end, and add wedges at the other. Change the number on the bottom of the club, basically. Except here, they didn't add an extra wedge, they spread the loft gaps out to 6 degrees instead of 4, or 5 in more modern designs. That's going to make distance gaps wider, and will lead to less precise shooting around the greens. That's the exact opposite of what you want with a wedge in your hand.
As for the other end of the set, well the 4 and 5 iron are simply too long and too low in loft for an average mid to high handicapper to hit well. They don't get enough back spin to offset sidespin, and with the longer clubs their usual over the top swing pattern will cause less square face contact, so sidespin will be more of a problem. They also probably won't have the swing speed to get these clubs up in the air to carry for good distance, or stop on the green. These are sold as game improvement clubs, but they are really just the opposite. All they do is flatter golfers with artificial promises of extra distance, IMO.
Great video with good info! I'd love a turn on trackman to just get real numbers.. if that was my numbers I would go out on course only swinging 85 90% at 80 85mph because man your dispersion was way smaller overall, your 90mph was good long and short but wide left to right all very good information to have in the bank. I'm just jealous of the track man really, plus I'm from small NZ and no one close has one close or to get lessons from!
Look into getting a Garmin launch monitor. It isn't quite as good as the GC Quad or Trackman....but it sells for about $700 Canadian.
A really good review, the Stealth should be described as a short 4 iron not a strong 7 iron. So many of my friends now carry 4 or 5 wedges and now struggle to hold the ball on a green with a hazard in front using irons that are too strong. I will have to hang on to my current irons.
There is definitely "going to far" with irons like Thomas mentions in the clip. Most of the players distance clubs use CG to create a higher ball flight so that you have a better landing angle. If you're coming in with a 7 iron that spins at 6500 with a landing angle of 40 degrees or a 8 iron (stronger lofts) that comes in with 6200 spin and 44 degree landing angle you should be able to stop it more quickly, not less. Hitting the irons longer does create the need for more wedges at the bottom of the bag, but it probably means less hybrids or woods at the top of the bag....it's a give and take to find the right gapping for your game and the courses that you play.
This was super interesting. Never knew about the iron number times 1000 rule, and I loved the *optimal* vs what was actually swung.
Mine only goes 130 but I use old blades from the 90’s
Might be worth checking out some newer technology. Doesn't have to be brand new. Pay attention to your stopping power with lofts that may be stronger than your gamers - Thomas
i swing my 7 iron at 95 mph, but i am a beginner golfer, with some geotech kaisas irons (game improvement i guess) i get it to 170 yards^^ So i guess i should work on my mechanics first? What exactly should i look at the most? I take a 1 hr lesson every 1 or 2 months, my attack angle seems fine, but what else should i maybe focus on? Just looking for suggestions, obv hard to tell without seeing a swing.
Great looking swing, by the way. I must say it is difficult to find a club "fitter" instead of a club "salesperson." Very interesting information. Thanks!
How would these numbers be impacted by playing a higher spinning golf ball?
Well the club/shaft/ball combo is all about hitting the correct spin window
But if you’re just talking about the ball journey withs in two months and you would lose a bit of distance
@@JaxReds i feel that for players like me that need the distance help, I would be curious to see the impact a higher spinning ball has when hit by rocket launcher irons.
@@louispounds7486 yeah its interesting, I can actually attest to this
I’m left-handed and my fitter could only get the paradigm irons for his fitting event in a lefty
To sum me up as a golfer I’m really fast I play. My seven iron at 210-20 yards.
He wanted me in the chrome soft ex already anyways, but we tested the paradimes with that kind of as a joke and I was reaching carry numbers of 247 yards with a fade. I wasn’t even hitting a draw.
.
Those things are so long. It genuinely made me consider putting a four iron in the bag as a driving iron.
@@JaxReds damn, first I’m jealous of that speed/power. Amazing!!
Sounds to me like you are a candidate for true cavity back irons.
Why not compare clubs with similar lofts - ie 33-35 degree which would cover 7 iron in one set and 8 iron in others? This would allow a comparison between distance, dispersion and landing angles where loft is not a major variable in the test
I agree with you. Maybe I'm missing something. I would think that you would compare clubs that you hit the same distance. If you hit a game improvement 7 iron "too far," your comparison should be whatever players club you hit that distance....which may be a 5 iron. What am I missing?
I think this is more of a test of lofts over a club’s forgiveness, and how that relates to a players iron control at different swing speeds. I had a fitter try and put me into players distance irons with a 30* 7 iron, like the P790, and the launch and land angles were not ideal. I need more loft at 80 mph 7 iron swing. This is exactly what this video shows.
The problem lies in most Manufacturers only provide "Shaft Replaceable" 7 Iron heads. The rest of the Irons in any particular model would extrapolate out from the "7 Iron Performance Numbers".
Although this video is really interesting, it is a bit counterproductive. On a golf course, you are not just "hitting 7 iron". You are supposed to reach the distance you need. If you need to play 175y, you can take your P7MC 7 iron, or if you would be using P790, your 8 iron, or if you would be using stealth - even 9 iron.
I am not a pro, in fact, it is my second season, and I play Mizunos 921 hot metals (aggressive, 7i is 28.5 degrees). I do hit a bit far, sometimes getting crazy 200y from 7i, but I know how to hit a high cut if I need to stop the ball. F.e. can hit my PW at 110y with high cut and stop the ball on the landing spot.
My point is that aggressive loft with my high club head speed allows me to use SHORTER irons on longer distances, making the shot just easier.
I have an old set of traditional lofted irons and to reach 160 meters I have to use 5 iron, or 8 iron from this 921HM. Guess which one is more consistent...
I have the stealth and hit my 7i on average 180yds. Not sure about my swing speed, spin and such but I stick almost every green I hit with it. I play the MaxFli SoftFli balls. I guess it all truly depends on the persons swing and such regarding how much spin and landing angle they get. And I also don’t believe the roll out and such on these simulators along with most of their numbers. I’ve seen guys get fitted using one and goes out on the course and it’s way different in every way
How far does a 34 degree loft go. Old 7 iron vs
24 degree new 7 iron old 4iron.
I play Wilson dynapower irons. My 7 iron goes 145 average about 75 mph club speed
I got the stealth 2 weeks ago when I picked up golf (played college baseball) and I carry it 195 yards. Maybe I should I don’t more research before buy my iron set
The main concern is if you have speed you may get some well struck shots that can surprise you and fly the green. If you are consistently hitting the distance then a little more distance never hurts - Thomas
Perfect video
So hit the P7MC with your speed and it will go 205ish - how do those numbers compare to the stealth 7i you were hitting? Or pick the iron from each set that goes 180 and do that comparison - is it still a problem? Who cares what number is stamped on the bottom
Great video most informative.
Really useful. I just ran out into the backyard to test my own 7iron speed and distance!
Love this video. Helping me a lot who just started checking his data more regularly. I’m in between most stats at 82mph swing of the p790 and p7mc with my rogue st pros.
Would be really cool to see a 9i and 5i to compare an entire bag!
Thanks a lot
All these reviews ignore the distance gain when talking about spin and landing angle. If you are hitting one particular iron 25-30 yards longer then you need to compare the iron from the shorter set that produces the same distance as the longer one. Or, compare the iron from the longer set that produces the same distance as the 7 iron from the shorter set. When this is done, landing anbgles almost always favor the longer irons. Why does everyone always ignore this?
This was a fantastic video, Thomas. One of the best I've ever seen on club Fitting/specs on YT and I watch them all. Very Indepth info across the board with the full set of data to show each club,s showing the optimal range as well really puts it into perspective where you could/should be. The only other thing I'd like to see is almost the exact same test with someone that doesn't play at scartch or plus level. Someone that isnt' going to hit the highest possible smash factor for irons. But still more of these with you would be great.
Perhaps the same with driver. Different lofts at say 85, 100 and 115 mph swings.
Summer distance with my KBS (stock 120s) P7MB (last model) = 175
When the round gets going and I get tired usually drops to around 163ish. I wish I could keep my stamina up. What really kills is slow play and waiting for the group in front of us. Especially if we’re at the tee.
I used to play Ping i15's (33deg) and switched to Mizuno Pro 225's (30deg)... i15's were a 155-160 carry with a low/mid ball flight and 225's are a 160-165 carry with a high(er) ball flight. At 56, I dropped from a solid 8HC (prior 5 years) to a solid 5HC over the last 9 months I've owned the Mizuno's. I did take two 1-hr iron lessons prior to getting the Mizuno's but I honestly think the drop in HC was due more in part to (10yr) newer irons.
I found similar differences. I am currently playing Mizuno JPX921 Tour irons (34 deg 7 iron) and have been fit for Titleist T200's (30.5 deg 7 iron). I found that in fitting I was carrying the T200's about 12 yards further and like you I was getting a higher trajectory, better peak height and landing angle numbers. I'm playing to a 12 HC as of the end of last season. I have had rounds, and long strings of holes over the last couple years that tell me I could be much lower.....I'm really looking forward to next season and the difference the T200's will make in my game. I am doing some lessons in the off season for the first time in a really long time - so I won't know for certain if it is all on the clubs, but I'm expecting to be in the 7-8 HC range by the middle of next season.
@@chrisgilligan4968 I'm sure the combination of the New T200's and a couple lessons will do wonders for you... my routine to drop my HC was range time once a week and I played once a week. Started with chipping for about 1/2hr, I hit 10 balls from each spot for about 30-40 minutes. Then l hit a large bucket focusing on irons (P, 7 an then 5 or 4 iron) and really focused on achieving the proper ball flights. Then I putted for about 40 minutes so total routine was about 2.5hrs, 3 hrs max. I've since moved and my new course only allows hitting off of mats so for the last 5 months, I've rarely practiced. I now play twice a week consistently but my HC rose from a 4.8 to a 7 (currently a 6.5). I recently shot a 74 with 7 birdies, 3 dbl bogeys and 3 bogeys. I also just shot a 43, 36... I really, really miss my weekly range time, its so important to consistently lowering your scores. Good luck and enjoy those new clubs!
Is there anywhere I can get the optimal stats per club? Like in a link or anything you can share?
Seems to me the traditional lofts are optimal for all 3 swing speeds.
If you can compress the ball like him
Love to see test with a reg shaft for all speeds not your normal x flex . A 70 mph would be nowhere near your shaft
For this test I used the exact same shaft for all three heads. It wasn't x-flex the shaft used was the Modus 105 S. But you are right 70 mph would be much closer to a lighter regular flex or possibly even graphite - Thomas
It used to go 150-155 yards but now, at 64, 10 years later and 75 lbs heavier, it is only going 130-135 yards. 😢. I must get back in shape and in turn I need to get my speed back up from 71-72 mph to 78-80 or so. If not, I just can’t play very good golf. ⛳️
This is a very informative video. Thank you so much for the free advice. I have no idea how fast I swing by there, but I have been measured at 95-98 with my driver on the TrackMan. What swing speed do you think that translates to 7 for a iron with 34 degrees of loft, assuming I swing consistently?
I swing my 7 roughly 100mph. I wish I knew all this prior to buying clubs a couple years ago as I was told to get game improvement irons based on my handicap with nothing mentioned about my speed. I’ve been thru 3 sets of clubs in the last year and have now settled on the p7mc’s. Still averaging 190 carry with 135 ball speed. But more spin and higher decent angle has made it much better for me.
My 7-iron distance is 165 yards which I think is pretty normal and play P770 irons. I initially got the 790’s and my 7 was going 180. I couldn’t get use to it. I’ve played with a 34 degree 7 iron for as long as I can remember and at 33 degrees, it was something I’ve gotten use to.
You should be comparing de clubs for precision in the distance you make, this means, if you hit the 7 stealth 230, you should compare it with the mc club with which you make 230 (5i?). Of course the more distance, the less precision, doesn’t have anything to do with the iron number. Maybe your 7stealth is more precise than the 5 mc…
Would have been a better and more accurate test if you had changed shafts as you changed your speed to match. Lighter more flexible for the 70 mph would most likely have produced a little higher launch and spin. Also the Optimizer is basically useless for irons unless your really close to the stated 35.5 loft that Trackman is optimizing. If you would have hit the Stealth as a 5 iron the Optimizer would have been pretty close to perfect probably because its Optimizing off of 27 loft.
i dont understand the objective of the video. the P7MC shows the best optimum result across 70, 80 and 90 mph club head speed. what does that explain? does it mean anyone with decent striking but slower speed @ 70 mph club head speed, should use a muscle cavity?
Does it make sense to all name them « 7 irons » and to compare them ? Wouldn’t it make more sense to compare clubs with the same loft? I’d be interested in seeing how a stealth 8 iron would compare… Beware when you go fitting as a High handicap you will be happy to see that some of your shots go so far… and the fitter (and you) will forget all the shots that go all around the place because of the high loft. You buy those lovely powerful GI clubs, you go play and then you think that one day you’ll make progress ans stop sending your shots around. It’s not the club fault, it’s yours…
Best way to improve ur game is to fix/tweak ur swing. No club will make u better than fixing ur swing. If u want distance, then fix ur swing. Having strong lofted irons r useless imo. Especially when they r like 26 for 7 iron. Just use ur 5 iron at that point.
I think if you Highlighted Distance, Height, Spin, and Landing Angle it would have been easier to absorb.
I would have to throw this Video up on my TV Screen to properly view all the Data presented.
Seems like a lot of these hollow body irons are not generating enough height or spin for slow or mid speed golfers. Mizuno may be on to something with their 923 HL irons.
Those irons that have their center of gravity adjusted and are not super strong lofted but stronger than a more traditional loft are a great option. 923 HL has been very popular - Thomas
Reviews that compare the number on the bottom instead of comparing lofts are practically useless. All the reviewers do this! I want to know how clubs of equal or at least close to being equal lofts perform. Why is this so hard to understand for reviewers.
bottom line is, you can hit further and lower with less loft, or shorter and higher with more. Isn't that kind of obvious? I think I'm missing something to take away from this video :)
Your tables of numbers do not show anything to me, we can’t read the numbers or what they are, you should highlight the figures you are talking about. Overall a waste of time me watching it.
Great analysis. But Thomas, you don’t hit the ball further, you hit a ball farther. Farther for physical distances and further for figurative distances.
Glad I found you Thomas. This is an interesting topic in choosing irons based upon swing speed. I am currently swinging the new Taylormade Stealth irons. I left Ping. I had g425 irons. Over the years (now 74) I have lost distance. My swing is now in the low 70’s. I am happy with the distance, dispersion, and landing angle with Stealth. I hit my 7i carrying 145-150 which makes me mentally satisfied. I am a 9 handicap. You are absolutely right on matching speed with the proper irons. Thank you for the video. Looking for more videos from you in the future.
I just checked my 7 iron swing speed at 60 on my prgr no wonder it only goes 130, it’s 30.5 loft
Great to see you again Thomas. I was wondering where you went. I have the P7MC, and my numbers are bang on your 80mph set.
That's unusually low spin for a 7 iron... that's why it's carrying so far... Tour average for a 7 iron is about 170 carry.
would be interesting to see the numbers from the equivalent lofts rather than the random number they have written on the bottom of the club
That would be a good video as well. The challenge is all the manufacturers send us their 7iron fitting components. I will track down some 6-8 irons to complete a same loft video - Thomas
Club numbers are only for organizing your set... they actually mean nothing in practice...
It's the loft of the club that matters. Manufacturers are using lower and lower lofts on their irons in an effort to claim to be the "longest", when in reality you're just swinging a 42-44⁰ claiming to be a "Pitching Wedge" (my 9i is 42⁰).
Learn your lofts and how you hit them, and you'll do much better than simply going by club numbers...
I have t300s and about 88mph club speed. My 7 iron normally goes about 175, maybe 180 if I middle it. I get little to no rollout on the course. Are you saying I should look into another iron? I know I have a shallow AoA (about -1 to -2). Would I benefit from a thinner sole club? On the other hand you’re getting 1.5 smash which makes me think I need the forgiveness since I’m more around 1.3-1.4.
The Titleist T300 replaced the 718 AP1 Irons.
The latest T Series Changes the T300 Label to T350.
The T200 remains the Same.
T200 replaced the 718 AP3, and is the current "Player Distance " Iron vs. Your "Player Improvement" T300.
Short story - test a T200 also during your Fitting - if you plan to stay with Titleist.
The T150 replaces the T100S version.
We have similar numbers. I have Mizuno Hot Metal Pros. 7 iron is 29 degrees. Driving range balls go about 175-180
@@HamuelTheGrey 29 degrees for a 7 iron? Holy cow… my 5 iron is 28
Thomas how do you get a smash factor above 1.45 my smash is below 1.4 for irons mostly 1.3 or so ....
Good information but there are a couple of exceptions to this experiment. The main one is that the huge increase in distance is not factored in. If your distance improved by 30 yards from the MC to the Stealth then you should be comparing the club from each set that hits the ball the same distance. For example; what club from each set is needed to hit the ball 175 yards. That would be at least 2-3 clubs less with the Stealth andwould no longer be a 7 iron. With less club your overall height, landing angle and spin would increase significantly.
Who cares it's not about the number. The t400 are delofted and they go farther less spin.
Would be interesting if you made shaft change - bend point stiffness and torque etc...
I’d like a test with all the same lofts. That would be a better test. Who cares what the number on the bottom of the club is.
I' m checking perhaps to much you tube reviews, and yours are great!
Currently i'm playing me MP53 and looking for new clubs, my 7 iron clubspeed is approx 80 mph ,launch mid high and my Hcp is 11 needs to go back to single, age 58
Question is what to choose: T150 or T200 of 223 or 225 pro, or even a JPX923 forged
Aim is 153 Yards and at least 5000 spin.
Please advise me.
And regarding driver what suites me beter TSR2 or Stealth 2?
Both great drivers but what is more forgiving?
Many thanks, Hans
155yds....at 63 years old.
I remember it was 175 twenty years ago.
First of all - it's a great test that you've put together here. Comparing 3 models and also across 3 different swing speeds....the only thing missing is the drop off in consistency of strike towards weaker players (you hit the centre of the face on pretty much every shot). Following up on the question of the thumbnail - would you say that there is a sweet spot in terms of how far you hit your 7 iron as it relates to scoring? Would a decent player who swings at 80 mph expect to see an improvement in scoring by moving from the players irons to the players distance irons?
I'm in the ~80 mph 7 iron camp (~12 handicap)...I'm currently playing the Mizuno JPX921 Tour irons....very similar the the P7MC irons (I carry the 7 iron ~155). I have been fit for the Titleist T200 irons mostly for consistency of distance on off centre hits (in fitting I was carrying the 7 iron ~167). I'm not playing enough to hit the centre of the face on every shot and find with my current irons I'm losing 15+ yards on misses - whereas with the T200's most misses the drop off is 5-10 yards due to the additional forgiveness. With more shots hitting the green, or being a short chip from the fringe instead of a more difficult pitch from further back I'm expecting to save a few shots a round. Also seems like I am getting a higher peak height and better landing angle with the T200's than my current set...so even though the spin numbers are down by a few hundred revs, I am anticipating similar stopping power on the greens. I'm wondering if I should expect to see scoring benefits from hitting the irons further? Is there any logic in expecting tighter dispersion hitting an 8 iron into greens where I would have to play a 7 with my current set? The corresponding lofts are basically the same, but the club is shorter which in theory should offer some measure of better control - no??
I swing my 7 roughly 100mph. I wish I knew all this prior to buying clubs a couple years ago as I was told to get game improvement irons based on my handicap with nothing mentioned about my speed. I’ve been thru 3 sets of clubs in the last year and have now settled on the p7mc’s. Still averaging 190 carry with 135 ball speed. But more spin and higher decent angle has made it much better for me.
Nice to find you Thomas. I was wondering where you went to. I have a GC3 and swing around 80-84mph. When I absolutely center strike it with my 34 degree blade I see smash at 1.30-1.34 and balls speeds 106-110 max with spin around 7k. With a 32 degree Miura CB-302 cavity, ball speed, carry and smash stays the about the same for all numbers except spin which drops to the 5500 range. I don't understand how you are seeing ball speeds so much higher unless GC3 and Trackman just have differences? Also, I play at 5500 feet elevation and it seems like the extra spin of the blades help the ball stay in the thinner air up here. Do you have any thoughts? Thanks
Because the loft is changing, instead of comparing by the number on the club, could you do a video comparing spin, land angle, etc for carry distance. Its more useful on course for me
This type of comparison is more about helping golfers get themselves into the right type of club for their game. In terms of on course yardage...you need to do a gapping session with your own clubs and your own swing and find out how far you hit all of your clubs....there's much more to how far the ball will go than what the clubhead speed is. Your launch conditions will vary significantly from Thomas'.
Should go half way between your 6 and 8 irons🤷🏻♂️
My numbers with my i210 7 iron match exactly yours for 70mph swingspeed traditional loft. I think you're saying they're broadly optimal numbers. I've been thinking of moving to something to give me more distance but from what you're saying I should stick with what I have??
Thomas ty I've been following you for years now and I can always count on efficiency with your reviews so ty, not sure you'll answer this question because I believe your still a fitter too, does a shaft matter for a set of Irons with a mid to low teen HC, who's boarding on being senior?? I'm pretty educated with flex, wieght, and lenth, I upgraded my Mizuno pro 225 with the i95 reg, steelfiber, without trying stock first? it comes out to a pretty hefty price tag when all said and done and wasn't sure it was necessary! Thanks Thomas!
I game t100s my clubs are stuck in limbo with ship sticks while I’m on vacation. Played a rental set of stealth and stealth hd the last 2 rounds. Have had no clue how far they go or how they land. I’ve hated them both. The woods worked out ok for me even with softer flex shafts.
I play T100 irons. My 7i carry is normally 160-165. I could hit it 175-180 in a P790 but I couldnt get it to stop quickly so took less distance for more consistency.
I’m 67 senior golfer. 7 iron distance only 120 with club speed mid 69’s. Playing Callaway Mavrik irons with regular stock graphite shaft. Thoughts on possible changes? Love your videos. 😊
Lol! Can't even get my driver 190! Old man swing speed!
Just started golf, so working on my ball contact first which has gotten much better.Distance not a concern at the moment. Great video!
Very useful. Although I am 82, I still play forged blades with traditional lofts. They are Chicago Classics by Bob Evans design, forged in Taiwan probably around 1995 and virtually identical to Mizuno MP-33s that I previously owned. Evans was head of tour operations and product management for McGregor Golf. My 7 iron loft has been measured at 34 and once at 35. Not sure why the fitter's numbers differed. Anyway, with age I of course get less carry, height, spin, descent angle, etc. and worry about it. I have been working a lot at the PGA Superstore practice bays in order to get actual data for all my clubs and to improve my swing. But as things stand at the moment, with my own ball, in this case the new Mizuno RB Tour x, I can get ball speed 96-97, no club speed data available on their Foresight GCHawk overhead monitors, launch angle 22-24, back spin 4350-4450, height 70-75, descent angle 42-43.5, carry 132-135, total 143-147. These numbers seem to correspond quite well to yours at 70mph, keeping mind that with your slightly higher ball speed I would get a bit more spin and carry, but I am getting a bit more height and a bit higher descent angle. So I feel quite encouraged by your test results, for which I thank you. It also gives me renewed confidence in continuing to play my forged blades because I just like the feel and look of them. I could get maybe one club more distance by playing a stronger lofted club, but it would not help stop the ball on the green, which is very important, and there is no need to spend $1,300 or so on new clubs.
Interesting, my Cobra Airspeed Irons show 31.5 deg for the 7 iron and your chart shows 34 deg
At age 62 my driver swing speed is just 82, but no idea of the speed with a I7, I bet closer to 70
I can not carry my I7 150 yrs as I tend to sweep my irons
A bit misleading unless you’re changing shafts to optimize each swing speed. A 70mph player won’t be using the same shaft as a 90mph player.
Just bought a set of the Stealth irons. Was getting near identical spin numbers to you in the high 4000 rpm range. Had them bend all the clubs 2* weak as I was carrying near 215 on the sim. Hope I can make sense of them.
When someone swings the 7 iron 70 mph they usually go to a game improvement iron but as you showed today the Stealth, at that speed, has no stopping power. How do you fit that person because usually they need a game improvement iron?
What shaft? that can make a difference to all clubs not the loft surely
This is why Mizuno created the Hot Metal High Launch line. It has the technology and forgiveness of the game improvement Hot Metal line but with more traditional lofts.
Was using callaway apex lofts that made my 7 iron go 180. Now I’m hitting mizunos that go 155-165 😂. I prefer having more distance control and being able to use 10 yard increments vs 15
Thanks for the vid. Really interesting. You were much more accurate swinging at 70mph!
185-195 yards King Cobra Copper mim tour