Callaway Rogue Pro v Titleist 718 AP3

[lsteinfeld]

I had my first fitting this week for golf clubs and was hoping to receive some advice on the Callaway Rogue Pro irons v. the Titleist 718 AP3 irons.

I currently have the old school Taylor Made R7 draws that I have played for the past 9 years and am ready to get some clubs that I can work a little more and get with the new technology.  During my fitting I tested Taylor Made, Callaway and Titleist.  I struck the Rogue Pro's and 718 AP3's the best out of all the irons and am torn between the two.  Price really isnt a factor in my purchase since I am sure I will have these irons for a while.  Some information from my fitting (7 iron) is as follows: 

Swing Speed: Rogue Pro 101.9 AP3 101.1

Ball Speed: Rogue Pro 138.5 AP3 134.6

Yardage: Rogue Pro 201yds AP3 185.7yds

Spin was about 6000 for both, launch angle (forgot the exact term) was about 21 degrees with both, smash factor was between 1.35 and 1.40 with both if i recall correctly dont have that documentation with me.  

The standard deviation was fairly good on both, the Rogue Pro was a bit better because of one outlier with the AP3 that I wasn't too concerned with.  Any advice on these two iron sets would be greatly appreciated!  My concern is that the Callaway Rogue Pro technology is fairly new and the fact that Titleist has a great reputation for irons keeps pulling me towards them even though I struck the Rogue pro better.  Thanks in advance.

 

[iacas]

What's your handicap index?

200-yard 7-irons may have you fitting better into something that's not as SGI and is a bit more controllable. More of a players iron.

[lsteinfeld]

iacus thanks for responding. I am consistently a 85-90 player. I Just recently (2-3 years) started golfing more. I don’t think I’m quite ready for players irons...I am a bigger guy who is pretty athletic which is why I can get after it. 

[allenc]

6 hours ago, lsteinfeld said:

My concern is that the Callaway Rogue Pro technology is fairly new and the fact that Titleist has a great reputation for irons keeps pulling me towards them even though I struck the Rogue pro better.  Thanks in advance.

 

I wouldn’t be concerned with any of that.  They are equally reputable companies and there is no reason to think one makes a better iron.  Just because the Rogue “technology” is new, if that’s even true, does not mean it will explode in an airplane like an Android phone or something.  You tried them, they worked, you liked them better.  That’s all there is too it.  If you’re concerned try them (and others) again and see if you get the same results.

[lsteinfeld]

Thanks for the response allenc!

[mvmac]

8 hours ago, lsteinfeld said:

The standard deviation was fairly good on both, the Rogue Pro was a bit better because of one outlier with the AP3 that I wasn't too concerned with.  Any advice on these two iron sets would be greatly appreciated!  My concern is that the Callaway Rogue Pro technology is fairly new and the fact that Titleist has a great reputation for irons keeps pulling me towards them even though I struck the Rogue pro better.  Thanks in advance.

I hit the Rogue Pros the other day. Nice looking heads for a players game improvement iron, biggest negative is that they don't sound great. Pretty similar design to the AP3. I'd say go with what you like the best, I wouldn't worry about the tech being newer. 

[georgep]

I've been playing the AP3s for a few months. I have an 8.3 index, for what that's worth (doesn't really tell you how I play, just how many). They do a great job of rescuing your bad shots while still allowing you to work the ball when that's needed. Unlike some players distance irons, these have been consistent for distance (ie., good contact/swing produces XXX yards, +/- a predictable number). 

I've only hit the Rogue Pro into a net, so I can't really compare the two. 

My full review on the AP3s will be up on the blog very soon..     

[lsteinfeld]

georgep, thanks for your response.  I look forward to reading your review on the AP3's.

[arturo28mx]

The shafts in the irons you tested have a lot to do with the numbers you produced. Was it the same shaft on both models?

[onthehunt526]

On 2/23/2018 at 3:27 PM, lsteinfeld said:

I had my first fitting this week for golf clubs and was hoping to receive some advice on the Callaway Rogue Pro irons v. the Titleist 718 AP3 irons.

I currently have the old school Taylor Made R7 draws that I have played for the past 9 years and am ready to get some clubs that I can work a little more and get with the new technology.  During my fitting I tested Taylor Made, Callaway and Titleist.  I struck the Rogue Pro's and 718 AP3's the best out of all the irons and am torn between the two.  Price really isnt a factor in my purchase since I am sure I will have these irons for a while.  Some information from my fitting (7 iron) is as follows: 

Swing Speed: Rogue Pro 101.9 AP3 101.1

Ball Speed: Rogue Pro 138.5 AP3 134.6

Yardage: Rogue Pro 201yds AP3 185.7yds

Spin was about 6000 for both, launch angle (forgot the exact term) was about 21 degrees with both, smash factor was between 1.35 and 1.40 with both if i recall correctly dont have that documentation with me.  

The standard deviation was fairly good on both, the Rogue Pro was a bit better because of one outlier with the AP3 that I wasn't too concerned with.  Any advice on these two iron sets would be greatly appreciated!  My concern is that the Callaway Rogue Pro technology is fairly new and the fact that Titleist has a great reputation for irons keeps pulling me towards them even though I struck the Rogue pro better.  Thanks in advance.

 

Did they reset the launch monitor to 7-iron? Those numbers look a little high.

Performance wise... I would honestly go with Rogue Pro. (This coming from the poster child for Exotics). I've hit both... The dispersion is tighter with the Rogue Pro. Now if it was AP2 vs Rogue Pro... AP2 would win that one...

 

On 2/24/2018 at 12:14 AM, mvmac said:

I hit the Rogue Pros the other day. Nice looking heads for a players game improvement iron, biggest negative is that they don't sound great. Pretty similar design to the AP3. I'd say go with what you like the best, I wouldn't worry about the tech being newer. 

Mike when you going to review the Exotics CBX Blades? When I make the East team for the Newport Cup in 2019? (It's good to have goals, I guess). Or, as soon as I send you a set? Anyway, the Rogue series in general is "loud" and "clicks", but they perform well numbers wise. I liked the Rogue Pros better when I hit them. The AP3's were kind of, meh... But I guess it's up to the OP which he likes better.

 

[lsteinfeld]

arturo28mx thanks for the response!  The shaft on the Rogue Pro was a XP105 Stiff and the shaft on the AP3 was the AMT Red Stiff.  Thoughts?

onthehunt526 they did reset the launch monitor after each club.  I hit into a range and not a net / screen.  Both irons felt great and went further than my current irons.  My concern with the Rogue Pro's are hot spots and the sound as you all have mentioned.  Thanks for your thoughts! 

[Foot Wedge]

24 minutes ago, lsteinfeld said:

My concern with the Rogue Pro's are hot spots and the sound as you all have mentioned

Did you experience any hot spots with the rogues? You mentioned your dispersion was a touch better with these and if you didn't have any fliers I wouldn't worry about it.  Since it's the 'pro' version, they should be designed for more consistent distance as opposed to maximum distance, so that shoudn't be much of a concern.

Tough to offer insight on the shafts other than what product pages and our local shaft experts can tell you.  XP 105 will be for easier launch and AMT shafts get heavier as the club gets shorter.  Promotes a bit of extra speed with the long irons and control with scoring clubs.  @arturo28mx is spot on. It's all about how they jive with your swing.  I tried the same head (APEX CF16) with stock the XP95 S300 and a Project X LZ 105 6.0 and they were worlds apart.  I sprayed the stock shaft and the LZ 105 was a straight, high flight, and 10 yards more carry with stupid tight dispersion.