@@teddyvarin5534 yeah I think Matt is starting his own channel when TXG was acquired by Club Champion. The excitement watching TXG is not the same anymore. 😞
8:53 - Mike literally described the exact golfer who loves 2 irons. Im very steep, very fast, iron play my strong suit and i play super tight course. Mike knows his stuff.
I've had both 2-iron and 5wood in the bag for 25+, and love them both. The deuce was always better off the tee; the 5W is too easy to hit a screaming hook off the tee.
I'm really enjoying the new format, your showing us real golf shots from average handicaps which is nice to see. not to many people bomb it like Matt so i found it to be a hard comparison some times. great info and thanks for the different variety. cheers
Solid test. Would definitely like to see a follow-up this spring on course when you have to factor in wind and course conditions. My set 3 iron works well as a driving iron, punch-shot rescue club, and keeping the ball flighted in the wind, confidence level tends to wain with the fairways, sort of a last resort club for me, personally.
I'm a mid swing (90-95mph driver) speed player, roughly 10hcp. I tried all sorts of driving irons, SGI 4-irons etc. If I hit 10 shots in a row, maybe 4-5 were decent strikes, 3-4 would be low and heally and I would see that same style of flight path flaring out to the right that Mike's first shots showed. Then I would massively trap a shot hard left and low trying to get the face closed. I finally put the ego aside and built myself up some fairway woods, initially a Maverik Max 5 and loved it. Great for long par 3s and hard dog leg Par4s where you can't bomb it over tall trees. It has now become my tee and second shot club on 500yd Par 5s, as a pair of nice 200-210yd shots leaves me with a nice easy gap or sand wedge into the green. Arrcos is showing my FIR stats are up, as is my proximity to the hole on first putts.
Nice test, guys. Really liked seeing you two take command here. … By the way, I’m not really a driving iron player, but I did exactly what Mike kind of laughed about here: put the 22° u505 in my bag as my 4 iron. I don’t think of it as a driving iron so much as just a super forgiving and high-launching 4 iron. It’s great on a local course where on a few holes I need a pretty accurate 200 yards off the tee (thinking of two dog-legs and one par 3) and can’t go long. And I put the AD DI in it which helps it launch higher than you’d ever think something that’s marketed as a driving/utility iron would and makes it hybrid-level playable from different lies. It’s a nice club.
I've owned both UT iron and 5 wood, ended up with Tsi3 hybrid #3. Forgiving enough, adjustable hosel, able to hit high/low, more workable than 5 wood but still launch high, No problem when I needed to hit recovery shots from out side of fairways and a fairway finder from the tee.
This is certainly more relatable with Ryan and Mike hitting it vs. Matty. Which while I love Matty, he's the human robot and hard sometimes to even have realistic takeaways given the quality of his swing.
This was a great video. I currently bag a 5 wood and a 20 degree hybrid, but when I’m not competing with friends I replace one of them with my Wilson staff 18 degree driving iron because it’s so much fun to hit flush. But, I can’t rely on doing that (yet) so it remains on the bench most of the time.
It’s great having 2 different deliveries. Loved Matt but watching reviews with guys who hit inside out bombs all day didn’t do as much for me as an over the top guy.
This just shows that it is not about Ian or Matt. You guys just gave us a great video that helped me understand my options. That is so insightful. Loads of respect from the UK
Honestly starting to love rb on the channel Alr lookin much more confident. And shoutout Mikey da goat. Great vid boys. Also just love how ur both right around my speed shows us a lot.
Great test! I solved this issue by going Mavrik SZ 4W (easily as long as 3w off the tee and as easy as a 5w off the deck) then g425 hybrid flat and open at 18* then a Callaway UT bent from 21* to 22* on a 4i shaft. The g425 hybrid at 55* lie angle lets me hit a cut for more height and played back in my stance with a stronger grip for a punch shot. I don’t fear the left side as much anymore with it. I used to play the p790 at 18* but it was a bit one dimensional as you showed. Great off the tee but hard to get enough height off the fairway especially off a slight downhill lie or out of the first cut.
The irony of seeing this. I had a Titleist fitting the other day and wanted to hit that very iron but in a 4i. What an absolute disaster! I’ve as swing speed that’s barely 80mph with irons and I haven’t had anything bigger than a 5i in the bag for 12yrs. Now I know why. I’m gaming Mizuno CLK 4hyb and love it, but I was just hoping to hit a long iron again, especially for when i play links courses here in North West England. Gutted! However they put me in the TSi1 20°hyb with Aldila TSi Ascent 50 shaft in A-2 and my head blew off with love. That club is a rocket ship, and I was getting numbers out of it like I hadn’t seen. Plus the launch went in such a way that it wouldn’t balloon the same way I know my 5wd or the current hyb would. Such a great club Thanks for this vlog, gents
Great video gents! As someone who tends to hit the ball high naturally, I replaced a 5 wood with a MP20 HMB and love that it brought my ball flight down considerably. Misses are far worse than with my old 5 wood but I do much prefer the look of an iron and the ball flight.
Interesting data and appreciate different perspectives. As a high speed guy, I have the exact opposite confidence where I much prefer a utility iron to a 5/7 wood. I’m not worried about thinning it or launch/ trajectory to get it up, I’m worried about consistency left and right. The gear effect of a slight toe or heel hit with the wood is going to go more off the center line to me. These clubs are 250+ yard clubs for me, and the longer the hit the more punishing side spin is. so every degree left or right I miss has a much more severe consequence than the golfer that hits these clubs more around 200 yards and in. So I want an anti-gear effect spin killing iron with a real stiff well fitted shaft. Furthermore, it’s a third option for me off the tee to have a lower trajectory in high wind conditions. I can hit a stinger with confidence where as if a wood sails up on me with a little wind in the face or across it’s going to amplify that gear effect much more. TLDR: if you are worried about Mishits fat or thin get the wood. If you worried mishits heel or toe (gear effect/side spin) get the utility iron.
RB & Mikey, You guys met my expectations of how TXG now addresses the average (although you are both better than average) golfers. This is one of the best videos of the year so far & I can only expect that it will get better. Ian, your lads can now afford you more time with your family as they do represent your brand extremely well. Great communicators with each other & with us the viewers. They Knocked it out of the park. But I still look forward to your elite player sessions as well, since we all know that you, Ian, are the best, most honest & knowledgeable club fitter on UA-cam. Just wish you were in the U.S., so I can set an appointment with your team. All boxes checked. Again, AWESOME video. Great job RB & Mikey.
Shout out to you two for stepping up and still making these videos entertaining and informational. Losing Matty sucks, but you guys also deserve the acknowledgement for being great personalities and respectable players and providing us great content. Thank you!
I will second, third and fourth that these are great and relatable video for us average guys. That being, I also miss watching Matty boy smash it! But I can get my Matt fix on his channel! Keep up the good work boys!
You said it Mike use it for a 4 iron. Kept my ts2 19* hybrid and felt the u505 was a little chunky for my eye so I got the u500. Nice setup for me I play in a lot of wind.
Same here. I play the Srixon utility instead of the set 4i. My pure hits feel better than any club in my bag and misses tend to still be long enough to be useful.
Great test. Love the dynamic between RB and Mike - clearly (and understandably) a lot more comfortable for Mike than presenting with Ian. Makes it more interesting to see 2 similar speed swings but very different delivery. Only thing missing was a few shots into a 220y par 3 on course and off a tee. Would love to see them both do a similar test with 21* options - 7w vs 3/4h vs 3/4i.
Great video here guys. Well done ! 👏 I feel there are pro and con of each club, everything is a compromise of course. This is why for the last few seasons I bag a 18 ^ driving/ utility iron and a 16^ 4/5 wood. Around 15 to 20 yard distance difference. The DI is a gift on a windy day, the wood is there to clear hazards and stick a long approach. To have this setup I had to sacrifice the 3 wood option. I don't miss the 3 wood much, either choke down the driver or use the 5 wood.
Only 4% of golfers drive the ball 300yds. Only 4% of golfers have a handicap of 4 or better and about 4% of the comments now on TXG are asking for testing from that type player. Good businesses and business owners know their math. 96% of TXG's clients will be like the 96% of people actively subscribing to and commenting on this channel. Good for you and your Team Ian for appealing to the 96%. From the tone of their comments they are grateful for finally getting more attention.
I’m similar to y’all, maybe a little more speed but a little more inconsistent striking (13hcp). the reason I went to a driving iron (forged tec 18.5 degree) is because of left/right misses. hybrids and woods instantly bring right and left into play more, whereas irons seem to stay in the short stuff way more often for me. not that I disagree with the video, but for me missing a green 10-15 yards short isn’t nearly as detrimental to my score as being pin high in the trees.
You make a great point - a shorter shafted club can be easier to control for a number of golfers and in some cases more accurate. It's the same argument I have made about blade / small cavity back irons vs GI clubs for players that want to reduce the amount they miss offline
I currently am playing around with the following: 17 degree driving iron 19 degree hybrid. I hit the hybrid and the driving iron basically the exact same distance (240-260 yards) on solid contact despite the 2 degree difference. The big difference for me is the shot shapes. The driving iron is a nice low penetrating flight. I never moon ball it and misses are at worst 20 yards off target left or right. The hybrid launches higher has good roll out but tends to have bigger misses. If I am on a tee box with a tight fairway, I am grabbing my driving iron every time. I also personally like the look of the iron over the hybrid a bit more. I never hit my driving iron off the deck however. If I am attacking a par 5 or long par 4 then I'm grabbing my hybrid. TLDR: My driving iron and hybrid go the same distance despite loft. Driving iron off the tee for tight fairways and hybrid off the deck for long par 4 or par 5 approach shots.
Great test. For a while, I played a 5 utility and really love it; nice high flight and soft landing for a longer iron. Since I had more wedges than I needed, I dropped one and added a 4 utility. Again, the way I hit it, it gave a beautiful flight, easy height. My issue was distance; at my swing speed, I found that I didn't hit the 4 utility significantly longer than the 5, so the club because redundant. I took it out of the bag and added a hybrid, which has gapped much better. I've never loved hitting woods off the fairway, so the hybrids were a better fit, but the idea is the same, it's bigger, wider, and has more weight down low to give confidence.
This is why I love golf, you have 14 slots for tools of your choice to make millions of possible shots. The top of my bag is a 9* driver, then a lengthened 4w, then a standard 3 hybrid, and then my 3 UDI. I live in the central midwest, and if you can’t keep it down out of the wind, it’ll spin up and destroy any distance. A low chasing UDI can out-distance some of my most well-struck drivers some days!
RB answered a question for me the other day, but could you guys do a video on AOA with the driver and how it changes flight and spin rates. You both are a lot closer to my swing speed then Matt or Ian so I think that would be helpful. Thanks again RB for the Ping swing chart showing optimal distance with AOA. Really glad to see more of Mike and RB on the channel.
Great video! Loved this one. I always get tempted to bag a DI, but playing a 5 wood turned down and a 7 turned down has been the best setup I have ever had.
I use both, 18° Fli-Hi bent one degree strong and with heavy graphite shaft for windy days + rollout, and a 5wood for height on long approaches or teeshots. I don't use a 3wood, since it tends to be worse than both other clubs from the "deck" and only a few yards/meters longer than both off the tee at my speed.
I agree with a couple of the others comments .. Love Ian take and Matty's ,when he was on the channel, but having you guys do some of the testing I think resonates more with the majority of your followers. Matty for me was the fact he's a lefty as well. Keep up the great vids gents.
I play a 3 wood, 2 hybrid and then replaced my set 4 iron with a 4 utility iron. Seems to work, but may look at replacing the 2 hybrid with a nice 5 wood. Thanks for the video guys!
I am 53 soon to be 54. In my 30s my swing speed with driver was 110/115. Most swings on the course were probably 105 to 110. Now I am 10 mph slower. Light weight shafts seem to hurt my game. I am playing steel fibers 110cw in my irons. My irons are 6-pw, 50, 54, 58 wedges. Hybrids are 25 and 22 degree, 90 gram shafts. 18 degree 5 wood and 14 degree 3 wood, 70 gram shaft . I also use a 21 degree UW and replace my 22 degree hybrid at times. My driver is set a 9 degrees, high 60 gram shaft. I use a bridgestone tour b xs. I play a premium ball for feel and performance on and around the greens. I see a huge difference when I use a budget ball on chipping, putting and iron dispersion. I am playing at a 12 hdp my best was 6 hdp when I was playing all the time in my 30s. Last two yrs making adjustments with some injuries and less clubhead speed. What premium ball or type of ball will help with higher trajectory/more carry yet still good in the wind? I open to experiment and your recommendations. I have used budget Callaway balls because they are what my club carries. Ball flight is higher and longer, but wedges and putter with these type of balls are suspect for me.
Great job fellas! This was an informative lesson well presented. Thank you. I would be interested in you two presenting a comparison including hybrids.
Enjoyed this comparison. Loved watching two good players who happen to be fantastic fitters do this video. Kind of like listening in to two guys talking shop about hitting new clubs mixed in with fitting ideas. Always something different which keeps my attention!!! Thanks.
Good job guys. I have a 22 degree 4 iron that I use of tees and can hit about 185 of turf. I also have a 22 degree hybrid that I hit about 200 same loft but used in totally different ways.
Don't forget about hybrids! I go from a TSi2 15* fairway (DI 7x), TSi2 21* Hybrid (D1 @ 20*, DI 85x), and T100 4 iron (24* DG TI X100, TXG built my set of T100 irons!). I feel like I have better directional control with the hybrid than a 5 or 7 wood, and I can hit the hybrid almost as high as a fairway.
I love my U505 3 iron as a replacement for the hybrid, although I generally use it off the tee on tight courses. I'm not afraid of any clubs, but I have never had great success with fairway woods off the turf so I typically grab a long iron. I may add a 5 wood TSR to the bag this year as an alternative to the 3W.
Great test fellas. Personally I'm a driving iron guy- absolutely love my 2021 X Forged UT, but I am really curious about how the Apex UW would stack up.
Mike and Ryan great show Ian will be thinking 🤔 I can take a break from the camera. Me being a relatively low ball hitter the driving iron is out of the question. 17 degree 4 wood and a 22 degree 7 wood are my weapons of choice , both easy to launch and hit straight.
I am now 70 and about 15 years ago I bought a very used set of Hogan blades from the 80s for about 100 bucks. I only hit the 1 iron off a tee but I hit it straight. I gave that set to a 65 year old friend because he hit them so pure.
If you are willing to GAP your Irons & Wedges in larger gaps, you can make room for 2 more clubs at the long end of the bag. Wedges (59, 53), Irons (47, 42, 37, 32, 28, 24) - that's 8 clubs + putter + driver = 10. Then 4 more. You can then do 21-degree hybrid or 7-wood, then 18-degree hybrid or 5-wood, 16 2-hybrid or Driving Iron, 13.5-15-degree 3-wood. This is how I've set up my bag and I love it.
I’m stuck between keeping a long iron or moving to something else. I have a 4 iron I rarely use. It is more of a hit a punch shot out of the trees club. In theory, it is my 190-195 carry club, but I’m rarely at that distance to need to hit it, and I don’t have confidence in it. I always feel more comfortable hitting a 5 iron to carry 180 and having it roll out near 190-195 or hitting my 3H when I really need to make sure I carry any hazard. That thinking has made me psych myself out of hitting the 4 iron and I haven’t even used it in 3 months on the course or at the range
Would love to see a similar test except with fairway woods. Delofted 5 wood versus a lofted/standard 3 wood with both set to same loft. How do the flights/distance change between both.
This video misses the point. A driving iron is used for driving off the tee only. A short, tight par 4 or a twisty, 3 shot par 5. The test should not be hitting to a green. That is not how a driving iron should be used. I carry a driving iron, which goes low and straight and runs out even when mis-hit thin off a tee. I also carry a hybrid or 5 wood for long approaches. My driver swing speed is slow, around 100 mph so I can double up without leaving any big gaps elsewhere
Hi all. Watched today as was working. I honestly miss Matty, but have to say I am loving Mikey and Ryan. You are both relatable to the average golfer and I love it. Keep up the great work !! Can't wait for your next vid.
Solid info. I keep telling my dad to give hybrids a try if a 3 iron is a struggle for him. Funny enough, even the 5H from Top Golf gave him better results than the 3i lmao! But he’s a stubborn mule at the end of it…
From lessons I give and a fitter I would always push people towards the more reliable lofted woods. That however goes against my set up, with a 2-iron in the bag, I find I hit lofted woods a little too hight for my liking.
Great vid. I have started gaming a 5 wood in the last 12 months. Took my 19’ hybrid out and put in the 5 wood. Much more versatile for me, and still sport a 21 deg (4) hybrid. Can take some off the 5 wood for that (3) hybrid gap. Love my epic flash sub zero 5 wood.
Ryan and Mike, great video here. Q: Would you change your overall conclusion (at all) if you had to choose between 5W and 2i in conditions that were WINDY? Interested to hear your response...
It's a great question Jay, and speaking for myself I would still prefer to use a fairway wood instead of a driving iron for the sake of forgiveness. Easy to make up come down then down go up 😃
I’m glad most of you like the content, but for me it’s a huge bummer. I really need some better players sprinkled in to these tests/reviews I can’t relate to how these two hit the ball at all.
It’s really nice to see results with more familiar distances for more players. More relatable material and of course you guys always provide valuable information. 👌🏼
This might sound mean but it shouldn't, but I love the relatability with Mike and the speeds more relatable to us average golfers!! Miss Matt but this a good replacement and perk!
Great comparison… I use the SIM driving 3 iron… swing it between 111-113mph… great off the tee any where between 270-280yds with max to 290yds on tight doglegs vs. a 5w. Love to flight it down when playing in the Northeastern US wind. Use the tsi3 3wood which I max out to 325yds so that helps with gapping on the top end of my bag…
Great job guys. Would like to see the difference between 5 wood and hybrid. I’m at that point where I’m trying to decide which is better and more versatile
We were going to include a comparable hybrid but wanted to demonstrate the extreme ends of the spectrum in the same loft by using a driving irons vs a fairway wood.
Love it, great job boys. Ian said he took his fw out his bag and replaced it with a hybrid because it was easier to use out of the rough. If it's a choice between the two, which are you picking and why? Thanks guys.
I think it really depends on the driving iron. I got an original G-crossover 4iron at 21° and even of the deck, that thing goes crazy high and pretty long.
I carry a 5 wood and a 2 iron in the bag over having a 3 wood. My t200 2 iron off the tee is just unbeatable especially if there is any wind. It’s a consistent 250-260 and tends to find the fairway far more often than my woods. Off the deck though, it is not very playable so that’s where the 5 wood comes in. I’ve found that out of the fairway I can get the 5 wood to around 250 with a far more consistent strike than a 3 wood (which only goes 15-20 yards further when flushed). And realistically if I’m needing to cover any further than I can reach with a 5 wood, I’m better off laying up to a distance to use a full swing, spinning wedge shot to attack the pin
I wish this channel wouldn't 💩 all over driving irons so much. For high swing speed players struggling with face control, the driving/utility irons are a game changer. The left/right miss is a major concern for players like myself and I trust my long irons a lot more than my fairway wood and hybrids. Do a review comparing slices and snap hook between hybrid, fairway and long iron please.
I agree. I am a higher swing speed player and hit my DI 240-250. These results are much better than I have with 5 wood. They fail to explain that it 1000% player specific. It’s about confidence. I can hit it high or low. So they hit a longer, lighter club further as expected. I enjoyed the content but I doubt they opened any eyes with this one.
Touched on it in the vid but you are the wrong demo to test the DI comp. It colors your opinion since it's not truly an option to choose. Next time if possible get a fast player in with one of you guys like Matt
I have a 5 and a 3 wood in the bag. My thought on switching the wood out for a small hybrid or driving iron is I rarely use the 5 wood and many times I'm torn with laying up or hitting it out of the rough (bermuda grass mainly where I play so it's not super dangerous to hit longer clubs out of the rough). I feel a smaller club can get through that grass a bit better on deeper lies. That said, my 5 is good out to 250 and fairly accurate so I don't hate it by any extent.
This year I will try "the best of 2 worlds" bagging both a Sim DHY 3 and a Sim Ti 5w @17 degrees. To open up for this I replaced my 50 & 54 wedges with a 52.
My driving iron is SO much straighter off the tee than my driver or any fairway woods in the bag. I dont even think about using driving iron off the ground. Instead i carry 4 wood and 7 wood and those are exclusive for shots to the green. For tee shot = driver or driving iron. Fariway shot= 4, 7 wood. 6 degree gap in wedges works well for me too. 46 PW, 52GW, 58SW. I feel like with this set composition, every club in the bag has its purpose... 👍
I always equate driving irons to flashy sports cars. They're great to look at and say you have one, but it probably makes more sense to get the AWD SUV.
These guys do a nice job. Good communicators. While I can't help but admire Ian and Matt....miss him, these are relatable to us average golfers.
Yeah, I used to watch TXG a lot cos it was Ian and Matt, they’re just different vs other golf channels.
What happened to Ian and Matty?? Tbh, this channel isn’t quite the same.
@@teddyvarin5534 yeah I think Matt is starting his own channel when TXG was acquired by Club Champion. The excitement watching TXG is not the same anymore. 😞
Did Matt leave the channel?
@@staggg_
Yes...I don't know the details, but I do know that he is no longer there.
I love how you guys are testing clubs with more average swing speeds. I find it something I can relate to better! Keep up the great work!
I would love to have seen a hybrid in the mix too. Love the fact that both of you tested to show some differences.
8:53 - Mike literally described the exact golfer who loves 2 irons. Im very steep, very fast, iron play my strong suit and i play super tight course. Mike knows his stuff.
I've had both 2-iron and 5wood in the bag for 25+, and love them both. The deuce was always better off the tee; the 5W is too easy to hit a screaming hook off the tee.
I'm really enjoying the new format, your showing us real golf shots from average handicaps which is nice to see. not to many people bomb it like Matt so i found it to be a hard comparison some times. great info and thanks for the different variety. cheers
Content has been great guys. You all get along really well and RB has been a great addition to regular content.
Solid test. Would definitely like to see a follow-up this spring on course when you have to factor in wind and course conditions. My set 3 iron works well as a driving iron, punch-shot rescue club, and keeping the ball flighted in the wind, confidence level tends to wain with the fairways, sort of a last resort club for me, personally.
I'm a mid swing (90-95mph driver) speed player, roughly 10hcp. I tried all sorts of driving irons, SGI 4-irons etc. If I hit 10 shots in a row, maybe 4-5 were decent strikes, 3-4 would be low and heally and I would see that same style of flight path flaring out to the right that Mike's first shots showed. Then I would massively trap a shot hard left and low trying to get the face closed. I finally put the ego aside and built myself up some fairway woods, initially a Maverik Max 5 and loved it. Great for long par 3s and hard dog leg Par4s where you can't bomb it over tall trees. It has now become my tee and second shot club on 500yd Par 5s, as a pair of nice 200-210yd shots leaves me with a nice easy gap or sand wedge into the green. Arrcos is showing my FIR stats are up, as is my proximity to the hole on first putts.
Chris, I’m curious about your opinion of Arrcos. I’ve seen some bad reviews, but I still want to give it a try.
I too struggle with the after several faded-out short shots hitting a trapped rocket to the left out of bounds!! golf!!
Nice test, guys. Really liked seeing you two take command here. … By the way, I’m not really a driving iron player, but I did exactly what Mike kind of laughed about here: put the 22° u505 in my bag as my 4 iron. I don’t think of it as a driving iron so much as just a super forgiving and high-launching 4 iron. It’s great on a local course where on a few holes I need a pretty accurate 200 yards off the tee (thinking of two dog-legs and one par 3) and can’t go long. And I put the AD DI in it which helps it launch higher than you’d ever think something that’s marketed as a driving/utility iron would and makes it hybrid-level playable from different lies. It’s a nice club.
Fantastic video. Literally been thinking about this exact comparison for myself. RB is a great addition and much more relatable golfer.
Love love seeing both of you guys taking turns in the bay and great topic. Definitely golf games that I can relate to.
👏🏻
I've owned both UT iron and 5 wood, ended up with Tsi3 hybrid #3. Forgiving enough, adjustable hosel, able to hit high/low, more workable than 5 wood but still launch high, No problem when I needed to hit recovery shots from out side of fairways and a fairway finder from the tee.
Loving the change up. You guys swing similar speed to myself so amazing to see the results...
Keep it up 👍⛳
Great job guys! I like the consistent banter. You both seemed more comfortable in front of the camera. 👊
This is certainly more relatable with Ryan and Mike hitting it vs. Matty. Which while I love Matty, he's the human robot and hard sometimes to even have realistic takeaways given the quality of his swing.
agree, can we move on from all the tears please
Ian will be very proud of this video you've done a stellar job lads
Couldn’t be more proud of the lads!! 🙌🏻
This was a great video. I currently bag a 5 wood and a 20 degree hybrid, but when I’m not competing with friends I replace one of them with my Wilson staff 18 degree driving iron because it’s so much fun to hit flush. But, I can’t rely on doing that (yet) so it remains on the bench most of the time.
It’s great having 2 different deliveries. Loved Matt but watching reviews with guys who hit inside out bombs all day didn’t do as much for me as an over the top guy.
This just shows that it is not about Ian or Matt. You guys just gave us a great video that helped me understand my options. That is so insightful. Loads of respect from the UK
Where should you blend 5wood to a hybrid? Maybe the next video?😜
Honestly starting to love rb on the channel Alr lookin much more confident. And shoutout Mikey da goat. Great vid boys. Also just love how ur both right around my speed shows us a lot.
Great test! I solved this issue by going Mavrik SZ 4W (easily as long as 3w off the tee and as easy as a 5w off the deck) then g425 hybrid flat and open at 18* then a Callaway UT bent from 21* to 22* on a 4i shaft. The g425 hybrid at 55* lie angle lets me hit a cut for more height and played back in my stance with a stronger grip for a punch shot. I don’t fear the left side as much anymore with it. I used to play the p790 at 18* but it was a bit one dimensional as you showed. Great off the tee but hard to get enough height off the fairway especially off a slight downhill lie or out of the first cut.
The irony of seeing this.
I had a Titleist fitting the other day and wanted to hit that very iron but in a 4i.
What an absolute disaster!
I’ve as swing speed that’s barely 80mph with irons and I haven’t had anything bigger than a 5i in the bag for 12yrs. Now I know why.
I’m gaming Mizuno CLK 4hyb and love it, but I was just hoping to hit a long iron again, especially for when i play links courses here in North West England.
Gutted!
However they put me in the TSi1 20°hyb with Aldila TSi Ascent 50 shaft in A-2 and my head blew off with love. That club is a rocket ship, and I was getting numbers out of it like I hadn’t seen. Plus the launch went in such a way that it wouldn’t balloon the same way I know my 5wd or the current hyb would.
Such a great club
Thanks for this vlog, gents
Great video gents! As someone who tends to hit the ball high naturally, I replaced a 5 wood with a MP20 HMB and love that it brought my ball flight down considerably. Misses are far worse than with my old 5 wood but I do much prefer the look of an iron and the ball flight.
Interesting data and appreciate different perspectives. As a high speed guy, I have the exact opposite confidence where I much prefer a utility iron to a 5/7 wood. I’m not worried about thinning it or launch/ trajectory to get it up, I’m worried about consistency left and right. The gear effect of a slight toe or heel hit with the wood is going to go more off the center line to me. These clubs are 250+ yard clubs for me, and the longer the hit the more punishing side spin is. so every degree left or right I miss has a much more severe consequence than the golfer that hits these clubs more around 200 yards and in. So I want an anti-gear effect spin killing iron with a real stiff well fitted shaft. Furthermore, it’s a third option for me off the tee to have a lower trajectory in high wind conditions. I can hit a stinger with confidence where as if a wood sails up on me with a little wind in the face or across it’s going to amplify that gear effect much more. TLDR: if you are worried about Mishits fat or thin get the wood. If you worried mishits heel or toe (gear effect/side spin) get the utility iron.
Great video - I would love to see more of the two of you doing videos like this. Maybe 4i vs hybrid next ?
RB & Mikey,
You guys met my expectations of how TXG now addresses the average (although you are both better than average) golfers.
This is one of the best videos of the year so far & I can only expect that it will get better.
Ian, your lads can now afford you more time with your family as they do represent your brand extremely well. Great communicators with each other & with us the viewers. They Knocked it out of the park.
But I still look forward to your elite player sessions as well, since we all know that you, Ian, are the best, most honest & knowledgeable club fitter on UA-cam. Just wish you were in the U.S., so I can set an appointment with your team.
All boxes checked.
Again, AWESOME video. Great job RB & Mikey.
Shout out to you two for stepping up and still making these videos entertaining and informational. Losing Matty sucks, but you guys also deserve the acknowledgement for being great personalities and respectable players and providing us great content.
Thank you!
Well said James!! 👏🏻👏🏻. The boys are doing great!!
I will second, third and fourth that these are great and relatable video for us average guys. That being, I also miss watching Matty boy smash it! But I can get my Matt fix on his channel! Keep up the good work boys!
You said it Mike use it for a 4 iron. Kept my ts2 19* hybrid and felt the u505 was a little chunky for my eye so I got the u500. Nice setup for me I play in a lot of wind.
Really, really enjoyed this video, feels like you guys are getting more comfortable and your ‘real’ world abilities are very relatable. Great job 👏
Im more into using like a 23-24 DI instead of a standard long iron. Having a graphite shaft in a long iron makes it much easier to hit.
Same here. I play the Srixon utility instead of the set 4i. My pure hits feel better than any club in my bag and misses tend to still be long enough to be useful.
@@marshallw4492 Yes for sure, When I went to a lighter graphite shaft that changed everything.
Lighting has been looking really good in the past few videos
Great test. Love the dynamic between RB and Mike - clearly (and understandably) a lot more comfortable for Mike than presenting with Ian. Makes it more interesting to see 2 similar speed swings but very different delivery. Only thing missing was a few shots into a 220y par 3 on course and off a tee. Would love to see them both do a similar test with 21* options - 7w vs 3/4h vs 3/4i.
Great video here guys. Well done ! 👏
I feel there are pro and con of each club, everything is a compromise of course. This is why for the last few seasons I bag a 18 ^ driving/ utility iron and a 16^ 4/5 wood. Around 15 to 20 yard distance difference. The DI is a gift on a windy day, the wood is there to clear hazards and stick a long approach. To have this setup I had to sacrifice the 3 wood option. I don't miss the 3 wood much, either choke down the driver or use the 5 wood.
Only 4% of golfers drive the ball 300yds. Only 4% of golfers have a handicap of 4 or better and about 4% of the comments now on TXG are asking for testing from that type player. Good businesses and business owners know their math. 96% of TXG's clients will be like the 96% of people actively subscribing to and commenting on this channel. Good for you and your Team Ian for appealing to the 96%. From the tone of their comments they are grateful for finally getting more attention.
Not missing a beat, boys. Great content. Think Mikey is growing on everyone after being an 'unknown'
I’m similar to y’all, maybe a little more speed but a little more inconsistent striking (13hcp). the reason I went to a driving iron (forged tec 18.5 degree) is because of left/right misses. hybrids and woods instantly bring right and left into play more, whereas irons seem to stay in the short stuff way more often for me. not that I disagree with the video, but for me missing a green 10-15 yards short isn’t nearly as detrimental to my score as being pin high in the trees.
You make a great point - a shorter shafted club can be easier to control for a number of golfers and in some cases more accurate. It's the same argument I have made about blade / small cavity back irons vs GI clubs for players that want to reduce the amount they miss offline
Watch out Ian, these guys are easy to listen to. You are training your replacements, great job!
Does that mean I get Mondays’s off!!
I currently am playing around with the following:
17 degree driving iron
19 degree hybrid.
I hit the hybrid and the driving iron basically the exact same distance (240-260 yards) on solid contact despite the 2 degree difference. The big difference for me is the shot shapes. The driving iron is a nice low penetrating flight. I never moon ball it and misses are at worst 20 yards off target left or right. The hybrid launches higher has good roll out but tends to have bigger misses.
If I am on a tee box with a tight fairway, I am grabbing my driving iron every time. I also personally like the look of the iron over the hybrid a bit more. I never hit my driving iron off the deck however. If I am attacking a par 5 or long par 4 then I'm grabbing my hybrid.
TLDR: My driving iron and hybrid go the same distance despite loft. Driving iron off the tee for tight fairways and hybrid off the deck for long par 4 or par 5 approach shots.
Great test. For a while, I played a 5 utility and really love it; nice high flight and soft landing for a longer iron. Since I had more wedges than I needed, I dropped one and added a 4 utility. Again, the way I hit it, it gave a beautiful flight, easy height. My issue was distance; at my swing speed, I found that I didn't hit the 4 utility significantly longer than the 5, so the club because redundant. I took it out of the bag and added a hybrid, which has gapped much better. I've never loved hitting woods off the fairway, so the hybrids were a better fit, but the idea is the same, it's bigger, wider, and has more weight down low to give confidence.
This is why I love golf, you have 14 slots for tools of your choice to make millions of possible shots. The top of my bag is a 9* driver, then a lengthened 4w, then a standard 3 hybrid, and then my 3 UDI. I live in the central midwest, and if you can’t keep it down out of the wind, it’ll spin up and destroy any distance. A low chasing UDI can out-distance some of my most well-struck drivers some days!
RB answered a question for me the other day, but could you guys do a video on AOA with the driver and how it changes flight and spin rates. You both are a lot closer to my swing speed then Matt or Ian so I think that would be helpful. Thanks again RB for the Ping swing chart showing optimal distance with AOA. Really glad to see more of Mike and RB on the channel.
Glad you found that chart useful Daniel, and thanks for checking out this video!
Mikey starting to feel a bit more comfortable in front of the camera, loving it. RB great as always, hes a natural lol keep up the great work!
Great video! Loved this one. I always get tempted to bag a DI, but playing a 5 wood turned down and a 7 turned down has been the best setup I have ever had.
I use both, 18° Fli-Hi bent one degree strong and with heavy graphite shaft for windy days + rollout, and a 5wood for height on long approaches or teeshots. I don't use a 3wood, since it
tends to be worse than both other clubs from the "deck" and only a few yards/meters longer than both off the tee at my speed.
Love this, just confirms the use of a driving iron for me. It's a stellar tee club for me.
I agree with a couple of the others comments .. Love Ian take and Matty's ,when he was on the channel, but having you guys do some of the testing I think resonates more with the majority of your followers. Matty for me was the fact he's a lefty as well. Keep up the great vids gents.
I play a 3 wood, 2 hybrid and then replaced my set 4 iron with a 4 utility iron. Seems to work, but may look at replacing the 2 hybrid with a nice 5 wood. Thanks for the video guys!
That is pretty much my bag... althought I'm never changing that Hyb2 ever
Doesn’t have to be either or. I bag a 3 iron and a 7 wood. Two totally different roles on the course.
I am 53 soon to be 54. In my 30s my swing speed with driver was 110/115. Most swings on the course were probably 105 to 110. Now I am 10 mph slower. Light weight shafts seem to hurt my game. I am playing steel fibers 110cw in my irons. My irons are 6-pw, 50, 54, 58 wedges. Hybrids are 25 and 22 degree, 90 gram shafts. 18 degree 5 wood and 14 degree 3 wood, 70 gram shaft . I also use a 21 degree UW and replace my 22 degree hybrid at times. My driver is set a 9 degrees, high 60 gram shaft. I use a bridgestone tour b xs. I play a premium ball for feel and performance on and around the greens. I see a huge difference when I use a budget ball on chipping, putting and iron dispersion. I am playing at a 12 hdp my best was 6 hdp when I was playing all the time in my 30s. Last two yrs making adjustments with some injuries and less clubhead speed. What premium ball or type of ball will help with higher trajectory/more carry yet still good in the wind? I open to experiment and your recommendations. I have used budget Callaway balls because they are what my club carries. Ball flight is higher and longer, but wedges and putter with these type of balls are suspect for me.
Great job fellas! This was an informative lesson well presented. Thank you.
I would be interested in you two presenting a comparison including hybrids.
Again!!!! Knocking it out the ball park. On my way to buy a 5 wood.
Enjoyed this comparison. Loved watching two good players who happen to be fantastic fitters do this video. Kind of like listening in to two guys talking shop about hitting new clubs mixed in with fitting ideas. Always something different which keeps my attention!!! Thanks.
Good job guys. I have a 22 degree 4 iron that I use of tees and can hit about 185 of turf. I also have a 22 degree hybrid that I hit about 200 same loft but used in totally different ways.
Don't forget about hybrids! I go from a TSi2 15* fairway (DI 7x), TSi2 21* Hybrid (D1 @ 20*, DI 85x), and T100 4 iron (24* DG TI X100, TXG built my set of T100 irons!). I feel like I have better directional control with the hybrid than a 5 or 7 wood, and I can hit the hybrid almost as high as a fairway.
I love my U505 3 iron as a replacement for the hybrid, although I generally use it off the tee on tight courses. I'm not afraid of any clubs, but I have never had great success with fairway woods off the turf so I typically grab a long iron. I may add a 5 wood TSR to the bag this year as an alternative to the 3W.
Team Driving Iron over here! Where my homies at?
Great job by Mike and RB, enjoyed this one!
Well done without Ian there! Good to see you two continuing to get more and more comfortable! Excellent review!
Great test fellas. Personally I'm a driving iron guy- absolutely love my 2021 X Forged UT, but I am really curious about how the Apex UW would stack up.
Mike and Ryan great show Ian will be thinking 🤔 I can take a break from the camera. Me being a relatively low ball hitter the driving iron is out of the question. 17 degree 4 wood and a 22 degree 7 wood are my weapons of choice , both easy to launch and hit straight.
I have both in the bag! Driving iron 17 deg and 5 wood at 19 degrees. Don’t have a 4 iron (never need it).
I am now 70 and about 15 years ago I bought a very used set of Hogan blades from the 80s for about 100 bucks.
I only hit the 1 iron off a tee but I hit it straight.
I gave that set to a 65 year old friend because he hit them so pure.
Ryan, the new guy, is already way better in front of the camera. Great addition - Great work guys!
If you are willing to GAP your Irons & Wedges in larger gaps, you can make room for 2 more clubs at the long end of the bag. Wedges (59, 53), Irons (47, 42, 37, 32, 28, 24) - that's 8 clubs + putter + driver = 10. Then 4 more. You can then do 21-degree hybrid or 7-wood, then 18-degree hybrid or 5-wood, 16 2-hybrid or Driving Iron, 13.5-15-degree 3-wood. This is how I've set up my bag and I love it.
No Ian!? The students have become the masters 😂 This was extremely helpful to see the data behind these
Great video boys 👏🏼
I’m stuck between keeping a long iron or moving to something else. I have a 4 iron I rarely use. It is more of a hit a punch shot out of the trees club. In theory, it is my 190-195 carry club, but I’m rarely at that distance to need to hit it, and I don’t have confidence in it. I always feel more comfortable hitting a 5 iron to carry 180 and having it roll out near 190-195 or hitting my 3H when I really need to make sure I carry any hazard. That thinking has made me psych myself out of hitting the 4 iron and I haven’t even used it in 3 months on the course or at the range
Would love to see a similar test except with fairway woods. Delofted 5 wood versus a lofted/standard 3 wood with both set to same loft. How do the flights/distance change between both.
This video misses the point. A driving iron is used for driving off the tee only. A short, tight par 4 or a twisty, 3 shot par 5. The test should not be hitting to a green. That is not how a driving iron should be used. I carry a driving iron, which goes low and straight and runs out even when mis-hit thin off a tee. I also carry a hybrid or 5 wood for long approaches. My driver swing speed is slow, around 100 mph so I can double up without leaving any big gaps elsewhere
Great job Mikey and RB!!!!
Hi all. Watched today as was working. I honestly miss Matty, but have to say I am loving Mikey and Ryan. You are both relatable to the average golfer and I love it. Keep up the great work !! Can't wait for your next vid.
Solid info. I keep telling my dad to give hybrids a try if a 3 iron is a struggle for him. Funny enough, even the 5H from Top Golf gave him better results than the 3i lmao! But he’s a stubborn mule at the end of it…
…nearing 60 here and have just made the switch myself, no regrets, and it’s improved my game considerably…
From lessons I give and a fitter I would always push people towards the more reliable lofted woods. That however goes against my set up, with a 2-iron in the bag, I find I hit lofted woods a little too hight for my liking.
I’m liking this RB and Mike combo - I can relate to their swings a lot more
Great vid. I have started gaming a 5 wood in the last 12 months. Took my 19’ hybrid out and put in the 5 wood. Much more versatile for me, and still sport a 21 deg (4) hybrid. Can take some off the 5 wood for that (3) hybrid gap. Love my epic flash sub zero 5 wood.
Great video! 👍🏼
Ryan and Mike, great video here.
Q: Would you change your overall conclusion (at all) if you had to choose between 5W and 2i in conditions that were WINDY?
Interested to hear your response...
It's a great question Jay, and speaking for myself I would still prefer to use a fairway wood instead of a driving iron for the sake of forgiveness.
Easy to make up come down then down go up 😃
I’m glad most of you like the content, but for me it’s a huge bummer. I really need some better players sprinkled in to these tests/reviews I can’t relate to how these two hit the ball at all.
It’s really nice to see results with more familiar distances for more players. More relatable material and of course you guys always provide valuable information. 👌🏼
This might sound mean but it shouldn't, but I love the relatability with Mike and the speeds more relatable to us average golfers!! Miss Matt but this a good replacement and perk!
Great comparison… I use the SIM driving 3 iron… swing it between 111-113mph… great off the tee any where between 270-280yds with max to 290yds on tight doglegs vs. a 5w. Love to flight it down when playing in the Northeastern US wind. Use the tsi3 3wood which I max out to 325yds so that helps with gapping on the top end of my bag…
Wow, what a change in energy with these new videos. I know you will be successful, but the excitement to keep on watching is hard to do.
Reassured me after receiving my 7W !
Would love to see simulator set to 20 to 30 km wind and try flighting both clubs as I always get on my course most days
Great job guys. Would like to see the difference between 5 wood and hybrid. I’m at that point where I’m trying to decide which is better and more versatile
We were going to include a comparable hybrid but wanted to demonstrate the extreme ends of the spectrum in the same loft by using a driving irons vs a fairway wood.
Love it, great job boys. Ian said he took his fw out his bag and replaced it with a hybrid because it was easier to use out of the rough. If it's a choice between the two, which are you picking and why? Thanks guys.
I think it really depends on the driving iron. I got an original G-crossover 4iron at 21° and even of the deck, that thing goes crazy high and pretty long.
I carry a 5 wood and a 2 iron in the bag over having a 3 wood. My t200 2 iron off the tee is just unbeatable especially if there is any wind. It’s a consistent 250-260 and tends to find the fairway far more often than my woods. Off the deck though, it is not very playable so that’s where the 5 wood comes in. I’ve found that out of the fairway I can get the 5 wood to around 250 with a far more consistent strike than a 3 wood (which only goes 15-20 yards further when flushed). And realistically if I’m needing to cover any further than I can reach with a 5 wood, I’m better off laying up to a distance to use a full swing, spinning wedge shot to attack the pin
I wish this channel wouldn't 💩 all over driving irons so much. For high swing speed players struggling with face control, the driving/utility irons are a game changer. The left/right miss is a major concern for players like myself and I trust my long irons a lot more than my fairway wood and hybrids. Do a review comparing slices and snap hook between hybrid, fairway and long iron please.
I agree. I am a higher swing speed player and hit my DI 240-250. These results are much better than I have with 5 wood. They fail to explain that it 1000% player specific. It’s about confidence. I can hit it high or low. So they hit a longer, lighter club further as expected. I enjoyed the content but I doubt they opened any eyes with this one.
Good job guys ! I love to see non pro golfers try clubs.
Can’t get along with fairways and hybrids are a little borderline too. Have the U505 2 iron and I absolutely love it.
Touched on it in the vid but you are the wrong demo to test the DI comp. It colors your opinion since it's not truly an option to choose. Next time if possible get a fast player in with one of you guys like Matt
Appreciate the video. My hesitation about 5wood is hitting balls out of the long rough. What’s your experience with 5wood in the long round so far??
I have a 5 and a 3 wood in the bag. My thought on switching the wood out for a small hybrid or driving iron is I rarely use the 5 wood and many times I'm torn with laying up or hitting it out of the rough (bermuda grass mainly where I play so it's not super dangerous to hit longer clubs out of the rough). I feel a smaller club can get through that grass a bit better on deeper lies. That said, my 5 is good out to 250 and fairly accurate so I don't hate it by any extent.
Seen a lot of pros now carry a 7wood at 20 or 21 and a driving iron at 18 but hit the 7 wood further.
This year I will try "the best of 2 worlds" bagging both a Sim DHY 3 and a Sim Ti 5w @17 degrees. To open up for this I replaced my 50 & 54 wedges with a 52.
I play 5 wood for stableford and a 2 iron for medal. Plus my course is a parkland, so there's more under than over...nice test.
My driving iron is SO much straighter off the tee than my driver or any fairway woods in the bag. I dont even think about using driving iron off the ground. Instead i carry 4 wood and 7 wood and those are exclusive for shots to the green. For tee shot = driver or driving iron. Fariway shot= 4, 7 wood. 6 degree gap in wedges works well for me too. 46 PW, 52GW, 58SW. I feel like with this set composition, every club in the bag has its purpose... 👍
I always equate driving irons to flashy sports cars. They're great to look at and say you have one, but it probably makes more sense to get the AWD SUV.