Irons for higher swing speeds

[Jeremie Boop]

Tired question probably, but I'm curious if there is a style/brand of clubs that have a lower ball flight than others? Or at least something that will have lower ball flight than my burner plus irons. This is probably not a purchase I'll be making really soon as I'm still making swing changes, but I'm just looking for some suggestions of what to look at/for. I mean I could just change the shafts in these irons and kill off some of the height they have, but I think the club head design itself is a pretty big factor in the ball flight with them. Matt let me try hitting the SLDR irons and he said those would be too high for me also. Perhaps it's a TM thing and I need to look at different manufacturer? Anyway, like I said, just looking for suggestions or opinions based on what you guys have found in your experiences. In the end I'll definitely look to get fitted for sure, and if at all possible I'm going to try to keep the price reasonable. I can't afford to throw 1000 away on irons. I'm not against picking up older irons and getting them reshafted if need be also.

[SavvySwede]

Blades will give you a lowered ball flight, especially with the right kind of shaft.

[Shindig]

What shafts are in your irons? At your handicap, I wouldn't be quick to recommend very unforgiving irons, but different shafts can affect ball flight too.

[Jeremie Boop]

Stock TM stiff shafts. I know I would be doing myself a disservice by getting blades or players clubs but the cost of reshafting would be about the same as getting a set of used irons that are less likely to fly as high as these I was thinking.

[LuciusWooding]

For high swing speeds, I'm starting to think it's more beneficial to use the extra height from forgiving clubs to hit high bombs rather than try to get rid of it. Shaft fitting is important, but honestly if I can get extra forgiveness I want to take it. Blades are really nice, but the extra launch of cavities is actually more of a plus to me than the forgiveness. If you have a high swing speed and you balloon the clubs, I'd be looking at technique as much as anything else though.

Also if you have the stock shafts in the burners, it's certainly worth reshafting and maybe slightly shortening them to bring their trajectory in line. The heads should be capable of a nice flight with the right setup. And of course any time you needed the thicker sole out of the rough or the extra launch to clear a tree, it's there for you. Plus, lately I've been favoring more of a point and shoot iron game rather than trying to dial my shots in too much.

[Hammer 4]

Can't recommend anything for you, but I have a short story to share. Last night at the range, this younger guy set up next to my stall, he looked to be in his mid 20's. At first I didn't pay much attention to him, then I saw him hit a 9i approx 160 yds. He was about 5'8-9" tall, and couldn't have weighed more than 150 to 160 lbs, I also noted how high his ball flight was, an easy 100' high. He was hitting older (2010) Callaway forged blades, with the stock stiff shafts. I thought, why would someone need, or want to hit a 9i that far and more importantly that high on a golf course. This guy played since he was 7 yrs old, and took lots of lessons.

My 9i might go 75 to 85' high, I play forged mid sized CB irons. I use to hit much lower, but I'm satisfied with my ball flight distance wise, and height wise. Then again, I'm old...lol

[Lihu]

Tired question probably, but I'm curious if there is a style/brand of clubs that have a lower ball flight than others? Or at least something that will have lower ball flight than my burner plus irons. This is probably not a purchase I'll be making really soon as I'm still making swing changes, but I'm just looking for some suggestions of what to look at/for. I mean I could just change the shafts in these irons and kill off some of the height they have, but I think the club head design itself is a pretty big factor in the ball flight with them. Matt let me try hitting the SLDR irons and he said those would be too high for me also. Perhaps it's a TM thing and I need to look at different manufacturer? Anyway, like I said, just looking for suggestions or opinions based on what you guys have found in your experiences. In the end I'll definitely look to get fitted for sure, and if at all possible I'm going to try to keep the price reasonable. I can't afford to throw 1000 away on irons. I'm not against picking up older irons and getting them reshafted if need be also.

This is your best bet. You don't need to spend a lot of money for clubs, when you get them used.

Any blade or players club will have a lower flight, and as we discussed on this forum before S300 or X100 shafts are designed to be lower flight shafts because of a slightly higher kick point than a typical game improvement club.

The burners are a high flying club, and I kind of like the high flight. Unfortunately, I can't flatten them to a comfortable lie angle that feels comfortable.

[saevel25]

Can't recommend anything for you, but I have a short story to share. Last night at the range, this younger guy set up next to my stall, he looked to be in his mid 20's. At first I didn't pay much attention to him, then I saw him hit a 9i approx 160 yds. He was about 5'8-9" tall, and couldn't have weighed more than 150 to 160 lbs, I also noted how high his ball flight was, an easy 100' high. He was hitting older (2010) Callaway forged blades, with the stock stiff shafts. I thought, why would someone need, or want to hit a 9i that far and more importantly that high on a golf course. This guy played since he was 7 yrs old, and took lots of lessons.

My 9i might go 75 to 85' high, I play forged mid sized CB irons. I use to hit much lower, but I'm satisfied with my ball flight distance wise, and height wise. Then again, I'm old...lol

100 feet isn't too high. Most PGA tour players average about 30 yards in the air, so he was averaging 33 yards. That is with in acceptable range. Most people should be hitting about 30 yards in the air for max height. Most people hit the ball too low.

For you 75-85 isn't too bad either.

[Lihu]

100 feet isn't too high. Most PGA tour players average about 30 yards in the air, so he was averaging 33 yards. That is with in acceptable range. Most people should be hitting about 30 yards in the air for max height. Most people hit the ball too low.

For you 75-85 isn't too bad either.

True, that's actually kind of ideal.

[WUTiger]

Tired question probably, but I'm curious if there is a style/brand of clubs that have a lower ball flight than others?...

Matt let me try hitting the SLDR irons and he said those would be too high for me also. Perhaps it's a TM thing and I need to look at different manufacturer?...

I tested the SLDR irons ( saevel25 and I did reviews) and found I liked the stock steel shaft, the KBS Tour C-Taper 90. This sub-95-gram shaft is custom-made for TM - you won't find it in component catalogs or on the KBS site.

The C-Taper 90 is lighte r. But, I'm 63 years old and have an arthritic hip. Jeremie , you likely generate more clubhead speed than I do, so you might try the C-Taper Lite shaft (about 105 grams in Regular, but still with a bit higher launch than base C-Taper).

Also, the C-Taper 90 and Lite are low-spin shafts, so despite the higher launch they will hold better into the wind than you might think. This is what I found with the NS Pro 8950GH (R.flex, 97 grams), a shaft which I put into my X20 Tours earlier this year.

You could also try different shafts in the NS Pro family.

So, it you play around with the KBS shafts, you possibly will find one you could use in the SLDRs. I think a wide range of players can be fit to the SLDRs, as long as they get the right shaft.

[Jeremie Boop]

I tested the SLDR irons (saevel25 and I did reviews) and found I liked the stock steel shaft, the KBS Tour C-Taper 90. This sub-95-gram shaft is custom-made for TM - you won't find it in component catalogs or on the KBS site.

The C-Taper 90 is lighter. But, I'm 63 years old and have an arthritic hip. Jeremie, you likely generate more clubhead speed than I do, so you might try the C-Taper Lite shaft (about 105 grams in Regular, but still with a bit higher launch than base C-Taper).

Also, the C-Taper 90 and Lite are low-spin shafts, so despite the higher launch they will hold better into the wind than you might think. This is what I found with the NS Pro 8950GH (R.flex, 97 grams), a shaft which I put into my X20 Tours earlier this year.

You could also try different shafts in the NS Pro family.

So, it you play around with the KBS shafts, you possibly will find one you could use in the SLDRs. I think a wide range of players can be fit to the SLDRs, as long as they get the right shaft.

I have still been kicking around the idea of buying the SLDRs from Matt, but also am thinking about Razr X Tours with ds gold 300 stiff shafts. What do you think of those?

[Jeremie Boop]

Ok, I found a different set of irons that I'm curious about. Cleveland 588 TT with stock cleveland stiff shafts. I hesitate to buy the Razr X Tours because they are said to be high launching irons which I'm trying to get away from.

[Lihu]

Ok, I found a different set of irons that I'm curious about. Cleveland 588 TT with stock cleveland stiff shafts. I hesitate to buy the Razr X Tours because they are said to be high launching irons which I'm trying to get away from.

High launch is good stuff. It can get you out of a lot of trouble in lots of places. I have never been in a situation where I want low launch except to punch under trees. If you hit a knockdown shot with a naturally thin shot you can get under most trees.

I am still perplexed why you consider it a bane? I think if you get rid of unwanted shot shapes, you should be fine with high launch. Keep your burners. If I could hit mine comfortably, I would be using those.

[saevel25]

High launch is good stuff. It can get you out of a lot of trouble in lots of places. I have never been in a situation where I want low launch except to punch under trees. If you hit a knockdown shot with a naturally thin shot you can get under most trees.

I am still perplexed why you consider it a bane? I think if you get rid of unwanted shot shapes, you should be fine with high launch. Keep your burners. If I could hit mine comfortably, I would be using those.

A golfer should have a normal trajectory with the ability to hit it higher or lower.

Prime example. I was playing 18 holes with Erik in Erie a few weeks ago. On a par 3 I hit a full iron shot into a green that had the wind slightly into us, but it was still a strong wind. I didn't hit it decent, but a little high on the clubface. The ball got launched into the air very high and I ended up bouncing the ball off the rock sea wall, and had it land on the fringe (lucky break). If I had a club that launched normally, that ball would probably have been a good 5 yards farther. I also find high launch is very hard to control the height. Like I said this can be very important if you want to negate wind, or take advantage of the wind. I rather have clubs that launch a neutral height, and be able to adjust when I can.

[Jeremie Boop]

High launch is good stuff. It can get you out of a lot of trouble in lots of places. I have never been in a situation where I want low launch except to punch under trees. If you hit a knockdown shot with a naturally thin shot you can get under most trees.

I am still perplexed why you consider it a bane? I think if you get rid of unwanted shot shapes, you should be fine with high launch. Keep your burners. If I could hit mine comfortably, I would be using those.

I see high launch as something for people who have trouble getting the ball in the air. I don't really have that trouble. In general, I just don't like the burners much. The shafts in them are taylormade stiff which, by most accounts, aren't really stiff. While I could replace the shafts in them I just feel like I'd have just as much money in that as I would just buying a different set of irons and reselling the burners.

[Lihu]

I see high launch as something for people who have trouble getting the ball in the air. I don't really have that trouble. In general, I just don't like the burners much. The shafts in them are taylormade stiff which, by most accounts, aren't really stiff. While I could replace the shafts in them I just feel like I'd have just as much money in that as I would just buying a different set of irons and reselling the burners.

I think you might be able to get DG S300 shafts for them relatively cheaply. $160 new and if you find used shafts maybe $80-$100 or a lot less?

These have a higher kick point to them and are actually stiff shafts. This is a relatively cheap way to do it.

I am starting to change around my own iron shafts. Steel shafts appear to be relatively easy to change on your own, and I haven't lost one down the fairway yet. The graphite ones are the ones that need the expensive puller.

The epoxy is around $10 for a pint. A heat gun can be had for $6 at Harbor Freight.

[Abu3baid]

[QUOTE name="Hammer 4" url="/t/75493/irons-for-higher-swing-speeds#post_1012708"] 100 feet isn't too high. Most PGA tour players average about 30 yards in the air, so he was averaging 33 yards. That is with in acceptable range. Most people should be hitting about 30 yards in the air for max height. Most people hit the ball too low.  For you 75-85 isn't too bad either.

I'm not sure why but I was under the assumption that most people hit the ball too high compared to pros and not too low? I'm pretty sure that was my takeaway.. I'll check again though.

[Lihu]

I'm not sure why but I was under the assumption that most people hit the ball too high compared to pros and not too low? I'm pretty sure that was my takeaway.. I'll check again though.

No, most people think they hit too high. The problem is that they don't hit far enough, because most people flip.

I'm pretty sure Jeremie really hits high. He has a pretty high swing speed, and the Burners are notorious for having shafts that are too flexible.