Category: Clubs

Two years ago, we loved Callaway’s Epic. It introduced a new design concept, Jailbreak, that paid noticeable benefits on the course. Understandably, Callaway sold a ton of drivers.

In 2018, Callaway introduced the Rogue. It was an improvement over the Epic in terms of forgiveness and was a very good driver (we liked it), but it didn’t fly off shelves the way that the Epic had. Maybe Epic owners didn’t want to upgrade their $500 drivers that quickly. Heck, maybe the teal color scheme didn’t appeal to golfers as well as the Epic’s green.

But Jailbreak truly delivered in both drivers, so when Callaway started to talk about adding its AI-designed Flash Face technology to a new Epic, we couldn’t wait to tee it up.

Continue reading “Callaway Epic Flash and Epic Flash Sub Zero Drivers Review”

The Mizuno JPX919 family debuted last fall with three members (and recently added a fourth). I compared launch monitor results from a few range sessions with 7-irons in the Hot Metal, Forged and Tour models. My findings are below, but first let’s take a look at what goes into these irons.

Continue reading “Comparing the Mizuno JPX919 Irons”

Callaway had a huge hit in 2017 with its Epic woods. In particular the Great Big Bertha Epic Driver earned its way into a lot of bags. On several occasions last year, I found myself in foursomes with three or four Epic drivers in play. That’s testament to a very popular driver.

To follow up on the Epic, Callaway debuted the Rogue this year to much fanfare. Like the Epic, the Rogue features “Jailbreak Technology,” those two bars behind the clubface designed to produce more distance through increased ball speed. In the Epic, that technology not only captured the imagination of golfers, it also produced noticeable results.

So when the announcement of the Rogue line came out in January, we took notice. The Rogue driver promised the distance of Epic in a more forgiving package. That would be one incredible combination if the Rogue could deliver.

Continue reading “Callaway Rogue and Rogue Sub Zero Drivers Review”

“Irons to touch your soul.” That is the tagline for the Mizuno MP-18 irons released recently. I’ve been playing a set of Mizuno irons, except for maybe a year, for the past 20 years starting with the T-Zoids so I’m guessing my soul is their target audience. I’ve always looked forward to seeing what they have in store with their latest releases. Back in 2014 I had a chance to review the MP-4’s and have had them in the bag since.

This year, they introduced the MP-18’s as the latest update to their catalog of irons. I was able to get my hands on a progressive set of both the muscle back and split cavity (SC) irons. More and more players are using this type of setup and, with the introduction of new irons and technology, I thought it was time to give them both a try.

How do the new MP-18’s stand up to their predecessors? Do they touch my soul? Read on to find out.

Continue reading “Mizuno MP-18 Iron Review”

The Titleist iron line has traditionally skewed toward the “better” player. With the exception of the AP1, the brand’s irons favored workability and distance control over forgiveness. Previously, there was a pretty big jump from the everyman’s AP1 to the tour-popular AP2. Now Titleist has added a true “mid-AP” iron with the AP3, a “better players’ distance iron.”

Irons in this category are expected to deliver extra distance while still providing the feel and consistency that mid- to low-handicappers need.

Titleist bills the new AP3 iron as its longest and fastest player’s iron ever. The AP3, which fits between the AP1 and AP2, is intended to provide some of the forgiveness of the former with some of the shotmaking ability of the latter for players wanting more distance and forgiveness without sacrificing feel. Add one and two and you get three. Now the name makes sense!

AP3 truly represents the best of both worlds. We’re giving you the distance and forgiveness of a game improvement iron packed into the look and feel of a player’s iron.

Josh Talge, VP Marketing, Titleist Golf Clubs

That’s a pretty tall order. The AP1 is very popular among mid- and higher-handicap players (though the long irons sometimes find their way into the bags of better players). The AP1s strong suit is forgiveness and ease of getting the ball in the air. The AP2 is widely played on professional tours and by a sizable number of lower handicap players, where its feel and consistent distance pays dividends. Can the AP3 really combine the best of both worlds?

Continue reading “Titleist 718 AP3 Irons Review”

When Callaway acquired the Ben Hogan brand all those years ago, better players were curious what would come of the Hogan designs, names, and ethos. Callaway was, at the time, producing great clubs but was seemingly focused much more on game-improvement and super-game-improveement irons, while the Hogan brand targeted primarily better players with simple, austere designs that evoked a sense of history and longevity over fanciful new technology and flash. Would Callaway use the Hogan IP to bolster their better player lineup, or did they just want the Apex name and the Hogan designs, patents, etc.?

For a few years, many feared it was the latter, as few clubs Hogan-like clubs were introduced, and even as recently as 2016 the “Apex” name was stamped onto clubs that didn’t resemble the old Hogans very closely. But, over the past several years, Callaway has seemingly boosted their stable of PGA and LPGA Tour pros. They’ve continued to introduce irons aimed at the game-improvement and super-game-improvement segments, but they’ve also strengthened their commitment to players clubs with wider releases of clubs designed for the better player.

After a series of irons like the Apex Pro and the 2014 Apex MB, the 2018 Callaway Apex MB fully returns to the Ben Hogan roots. Easily the best looking irons Callaway has released within the last decade (hey, this is my review, after all!), the Apex MB unabashedly says “I’m not giving you a ton of help, but if you can handle me, I’m going to be your new best buddy.”

Continue reading “Callaway Apex MB (2018) Irons Review”

Miura has an almost mythical background. The company, once upon a time, forged the blades carried by Japan’s respected samurai. Nowadays, the company forges blades (and cavity backs) for players who look to defend their honor against Old Man Par rather than those who would do harm against Japanese nobility.

I still play primarily with a set of Miura Tournament Blades I reviewed back in 2011. In fact, I still carry a 3-iron in that set (it passes the modern-day “butter knife lookalike” test). The 3-iron is nice, but it doesn’t see a lot of action: it’s not the most forgiving 3-iron ever made (understatement!), and I generally only pull it from the bag when I need a 230-yard shot that won’t get up into the wind like a hybrid would.

So, when I heard about the ICL-601, I was excited to see if I might be able to replace my 3-iron with a “driving iron” style iron to offer more forgiveness and an ability to hit it from a wider variety of lies. And, of course, I was looking forward to see whether the “Miura feel” carried over into a polymer-filled, hollow-body “iron.”

Read on to see what I thought after putting it through its rigorous paces.

Continue reading “Miura ICL-601 Driving Iron Review”