Improved ball striking after practicing with forged irons

[newtogolf]

At the suggestion of my instructor I purchased a set of Ben Hogan Apex 2 irons in great condition off of eBay.  They arrived in great shape and I had them regripped, checked for loft and lie.

I have been practicing at the range with them for about 2 weeks and got to the point where I was hitting them pretty consistent and about the same distance as I had been my Diablo Edges.

Today I brought the Diablo Edges to the range as I'm playing a round this weekend and wasn't going to use the Hogans (2i - 4i still fade too much) and found that my distances with them had increased about 15 yards per iron which I thought was pretty significant.  My instructors explanation is that the Hogans forced me to improve my ball striking, and the stiffer Apex 4's compared to Callaway uniflex are the reason for the yardage gains with the Diablos.  Make sense to you guys?

[Shindig]

My instructors explanation is that the Hogans forced me to improve my ball striking, and the stiffer Apex 4's compared to Callaway uniflex are the reason for the yardage gains with the Diablos.  Make sense to you guys?

Makes sense to me; if you hit the ball well with an unforgiving club, you'll hit it at least as well with a game improvement iron. Your good shots will be good -- after all, hitting the center clubface maximizes important factors like ball speed. Your bad shots won't be as bad on the course, although they will be on the range (which is where we want the bad shots to stay).

[newtogolf]

Thanks, logically it made sense, but was also a bit of a concern that I was "mis-hitting" my Diablos so bad that is was costing me 15 yards and didn't realize it.

Originally Posted by Shindig

Makes sense to me; if you hit the ball well with an unforgiving club, you'll hit it at least as well with a game improvement iron. Your good shots will be good -- after all, hitting the center clubface maximizes important factors like ball speed. Your bad shots won't be as bad on the course, although they will be on the range (which is where we want the bad shots to stay).

[ks8829]

I agree,  I play Mizuno mp 33 blades for the last 3 years and my scores have never been lower.  The feedback from blades that sometimes you do not get on certain cavity back irons.  I tried to hit my Ping Eye 2 but could not stand the bulkyness and feel that I was not getting from all contact.

If you practice with a 8 or 7 blade iron this alone will help you on the driving range with feedback, you don't need to get a whole set of blades irons.

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by ks8829

I agree,  I play Mizuno mp 33 blades for the last 3 years and my scores have never been lower.  The feedback from blades that sometimes you do not get on certain cavity back irons.  I tried to hit my Ping Eye 2 but could not stand the bulkyness and feel that I was not getting from all contact.

If you practice with a 8 or 7 blade iron this alone will help you on the driving range with feedback, you don't need to get a whole set of blades irons.

The OP may get even more benefit from an older blade like the Apex IIs. A modern blade like the MP-33 is easier to hit - better for scoring. I have some older blades (ca. ~ 1960) and every shot takes 100% focus to hit the sweet spot and keep the face aiming at my target through impact. The next round with newer blades (ca. 2002) feels like I'm playing Game Improvement irons. That's why I call my easiest to hit blades "Game Improvement Blades".

[ERdiesel]

Agreed on playing blades will "force" you to get better or force you to quit altogether.  With that said, if you want a single club to help you with ball striking, get a tour striker.  This will not only "force" you to get better but get better where it counts, at the point of impact.  You can still flip with a blade and post a decent score, you can't really flip with the tour striker.

[Meesh]

http://3jack.blogspot.com/2010/02/blades-vs-game-improvement-irons.html

http://3jack.blogspot.com/2010/05/blades-vs-cavity-backs-debate-continues.html

check these articles out. some good information about Cavity Backs Vs. Blades.

[AlexRhysKing]

Good advice, will definitely give that a go!

Thanks

[newtogolf]

Still practicing with the Apex II's and playing rounds with the Diablo Edges with positive results at the range and on the course.  In fact the practice with the blades has really improved my ball striking and accuracy with the longer irons (3i & 4i) to the point I'm using them over my hybrids.  One thing I'm noticing is I'm really beginning to prefer the look of the Apex II's at address compared to the Diablo Edges and feel like the Apex II's are easier to line up and aim with.  I'm not sure if this is due to the additional practice time with the Hogans or a natural occurance when one plays both blades and SGI irons.  I'm tempted to leave the Diablo Edges home next round and see how it goes with the Hogans.

[The Gill]

Don't get romanced by distance per iron. I'm willing to bet your Diablos are .5 to 1 club stronger.

[tshapiro]

When I decided to buy a nice set of clubs I bought two sets configured exactly the same... the only difference... one set is cavity back the others are blades.  My intention was to practice with the blades and play with the cavity backs.  That only lasted a few months as it's been years since I've brought out the cavity backs. I feel my ball striking is better and the smaller head seems more workable in various situations.

[newtogolf]

I'm not sure what you mean, if you're referring to loft there's no question they are, but I hit the Hogans further.  I hit the Apex II clubs on average about 15 yards longer, could be the Apex II's have the Apex 4 stiff shaft and the Diablo Edges are uniflex.

Originally Posted by The Gill

Don't get romanced by distance per iron. I'm willing to bet your Diablos are .5 to 1 club stronger.

[newtogolf]

I bought the Apex II's cause they were pretty inexpensive and given what I read here didn't think I'd hit them very well.   They took some getting used to, but at this point I'm actually hitting them better than the Callaways.  I plan to take them on the course nex time and see how I do with them when I have have to hit them off real grass and non perfect lies.

Originally Posted by tshapiro

When I decided to buy a nice set of clubs I bought two sets configured exactly the same... the only difference... one set is cavity back the others are blades.  My intention was to practice with the blades and play with the cavity backs.  That only lasted a few months as it's been years since I've brought out the cavity backs. I feel my ball striking is better and the smaller head seems more workable in various situations.

[deronsizemore]

Originally Posted by newtogolf 3

Today I brought the Diablo Edges to the range as I'm playing a round this weekend and wasn't going to use the Hogans (2i - 4i still fade too much) and found that my distances with them had increased about 15 yards per iron which I thought was pretty significant.

Not surprising since your Diablo iron's lofts are all 1 or two degrees stronger. Depending on when the Hogan blades were last checked for loft/lie, your Diablo's may even be stronger than that.