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Best irons in golf 2023: The shotmakers

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1 year ago

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At GolfWRX, to determine the 2023 best irons, we have compiled an expert panel of fitters to help you find out which of 2023 irons is best for your game. We’re seeing new technology, more technology packed into the cavity of a club, catering toward combo sets, more consistency across the face, game improvement irons that really improve your game, and increased model segmentation against a backdrop of a few models that work well for wide sections of the fitting bell curve.

Ultimately the best way to find your personal iron set is to work with a professional fitter using a launch monitor. The difficult part is a lot of people don’t have easy access to fitters, launch monitors, and club builders—so at GolfWRX, we have done a lot of the work for you. 

We are in the era of not just maximizing distance but also minimizing the penalty of common misses for each player — this applies to irons just as much as it does with any other club in the bag. This is why, now more than ever, custom fitting is essential to help you see results on every swing you make.

We want to give you the tools and information to go out and find what works best for you by offering recommendations for your individual iron set wants and needs with insight and feedback from the people who work every single day to help golfers get peak performance out of their equipment.

Best irons of 2023: How we did it

Before starting the process of building our best iron survey, we reached out to our trusted fitters to discuss how they sort through the endless number of iron options available to golfers. The consensus was clear—the best fitters in the world see all the options available in the marketplace, analyze their performance traits, and pull from that internal database of knowledge and experience like a supercomputer when they are working with a golfer.

It’s essentially a huge decision tree derived from experience and boiled down to a starting point of options—and it has nothing to do with a handicap!

Modern iron sets are designed into player categories that overlap the outdated “what’s your handicap?” model, and at GolfWRX we believe it was important to go beyond handicap and ask specific questions about the most crucial performance elements fitters are looking at to help golfers find the best set of irons for them. From overall performance to shotmaking, to helping players achieve better trajectories and speed, we strived to ask the right questions.

These are the best iron categories we have developed to help you the reader determine what rankings are most important for your swing and game.

Best irons of 2023: The categories

Best irons of 2023: Meet the fitters

2023 Best irons: The Shotmakers

Each one of these irons was designed with a single purpose: to provide the ultimate shotmaking weapon. You don’t have to be a tour player to appreciate the pleasure of hitting a well-struck shot with a club engineered to offer superior feedback. This category is all about control—and that doesn’t mean it “has to be a blade.”

Srixon ZX7 Mk II

Their story: The players iron ZX7 Mk II features PureFrame: an 80-percent thicker portion of 1020 carbon steel forged behind the sweet spot in the body of the iron for soft-yet-solid-feeling impact. Also significant to the design: A refined Tour V.T. Sole Proprietary sole widths, bounce angles, and notches in the heel and toe of the club aid clean contact from a variety of lies.

From the fitters:

  • “While it’s not the best metric, these are the most played irons among our fitters”
  • “Srixon has been the “sleeper” iron company for a number of years now, but I think the secret is out. The ZX7 Mk II fit many different player types, from tour pro to mid-handicapper. The forging is very soft and forgiving, and the iron is very workable for the player with more ability. They didn’t change the shape from ZX7 to Mk II, and I think that’s a great thing.”
  • “Slight refinement here. A little better look and feel. Players iron with distance. Gain a bit of ball speed and distance but still have enough spin to control the golf ball.”
  • “They did a really good job of not screwing up a good thing. ZX7 was fantastic. It seemed like 50 percent of the non-contract guys in pro golf played that iron. It continues to give very consistent numbers. The better player wants a consistent number. They need to know it’s going to go that distance. This club does that very well.”
  • “Most forgiving players iron. V-Sole design gives significantly better turf interaction compared to a traditional sole.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

Callaway Apex TCB

Their story: With internal and external MIM’d tungsten weighting, Callaway engineers precisely each irons CG within the 1025 mild carbon steel body. Tour-inspired size and shaping with a straighter leading edge, less offset, a thinner top line, and a smoother hosel transition distinguishes the TCB from the stock Apex CB.

From the fitters:

  • “Good lofts for spin, and you can flight them any way you want if you have the club speed.”
  • “Classic small compact look with the endless ability to shape shots into the window a better player is looking for. We have seen lots of wins on tour this season. Players who need spin will tend to gravitate towards this iron.”
  • “One of the best players irons Callaway has made. Great shape. Looks fantastic. Feels fantastic. You can feel that weight in the back, and obviously its done well on tour. They don’t need to change anything.”
  • “One of the best players irons out there but still has the right amount of forgiveness that player is looking for.”
  • “Excellent shape, sound, and feel from an iron with a bit of forgiveness as well. Tour response is excellent, and offering the same iron to the retail market is a very positive option for golfers looking to shape the ball.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

Titleist T100

Their story: The “players iron” of the new T-Series family, the T100 iron features an all-new Tour-designed sole, which was inspired by discussions with both the tour staff and the Vokey wedge design team. It features a new variable bounce sole design, which provides less bounce in the heel and more bounce in the toe to facilitate better turf interaction and improved feel.

The new T100 face features a continuous cradle construction that aims to provide a seamless striking surface and a more uniform leading edge than its predecessor.

From the fitters

  • “A purist players club. For a better ballstriker. Not a ton of offset but still easy to launch and spin. It’s not forgiving within the category, but usually it’s not for a player looking for forgiveness. In the right window for launch. Great sound and feel.”
  • “The club that blade players transition to when they don’t want to go full muscleback…when you look down at it, it looks like a blade. You don’t see the back or the cavity. It has enough tech in it to make it forgiving on mishits. But it’s slim enough and has a thin enough topline that guys feel it has playability for shot shaping.”
  • “Still the GOAT in the high-tech players category. Titleist somehow manages to make it better looking with each update, more forgiving than they look.”
  • “Best low handicap iron head. Always performs well. Great look at address for that discerning golfer. Classic Titleist sound and feel.”
  • “Great ball speed and performance for a tour-style profile. For players looking for a classic players look combined with distance, this has to be in the mix.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece

TaylorMade P7MC

Their story: To build the TaylorMade P7MC irons, the manufacturing process incorporates a 2,000-ton pressure forging to ensure the feel and sound is dialed in. This iron is all business, and anyone comparing this to the smaller P7MB (blade) will notice its slightly longer heel-to-toe length, and just a touch more offset which makes it a great candidate for gapping. It offers a crisp feel at impact and the workability of a blade iron, but in a platform that still offers forgiveness on shots hit outside of the middle. Looks, feel, and workability—it’s all here.

From the fitters:

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

Mizuno Pro 223

Their story: The Mizuno Pro 223 irons conceal a ball speed-enhancing construction within the frame of a compact players cavity. A completely new technology platform from 4-7 iron combines Mizuno’s tested Chromoly Forging and Flow Micro-Slot – An innovation designed to produce extreme ball speeds from a small tour-ready profile. The irons deliver a face thickness of just 2.4mm (vs 2.6mm JPX921 Forged), and from 8-PW, the Pro 223 irons are constructed from 1025E Pure Select Mild Carbon Steel in a bid to offer excellent precision and control.

From the fitters:

  • “223 is tremendous. Should not be as forgiving as it is. Players clubs are getting a little too low spin, but this is still great. Definitely for the single-digit player. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how easy it is to fit. It’s Mizuno, so everybody loves the feel.”
  • “When you have something in that 32-degree 7-iron range, and it feels good, looks good, sounds good and offers what the better player is looking for. Home run. For someone who isn’t a tour level-player but wants something that looks like a Mizuno with a little bit of help, this is great.”
  • “Forged Mizuno feel with great distance and control. Compact shape but enough ball speed to hang with other players distance irons.”
  • “Iron has done great for cutting spin for a high-spin player.”

For more photos/info, read our launch piece.

Join the discussion about best irons 2023 in the forums!

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Whats in the Bag

Club Junkie WITB league night, week 12: We are back! (hopefully)

Published

2 hours ago

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Jul 11, 2024

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BK says: League play is back, weather permitting, and it feels like I have been away for years! We are going with a few brand new items in the bag this week as I try and figure out the 14 clubs I am taking on my golf weekend in a couple of weeks. Irons are the Ben Hogan PTx Tour, a progressive set that is built around multi-piece long irons and on-piece forged 9 and PW. The driver head isn’t new but the shaft is the brand new Fujikura Ventus Red with VeloCore+ technology. Finally the lob wedge is the Titleist Vokey Wedgeworks 60 A+ grand.

Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 6x (2024)

3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 Tour (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7x (2018)

7-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (20 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8s

Irons: Ben Hogan PTx Tour (4-PW)
Shaft: KBS Tour-V 110 Stiff

Wedge: Titleist Vokey SM10 (50.12F)
Shaft: Nippon Modus Tour 105 Stiff

Wedge: Titleist Vokey SM10 (56.14F)
Shaft: Nippon Modus Tour 105 Stiff

Wedge: Titleist Vokey Wedgeworks (60 A+)
Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold S200

Putter: Toulon Chicago
Shaft: Stroke Lab 

Ball: Titleist ProV1x

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Equipment

What clubs do equipment free agents choose to use on tour? We found out

Published

3 hours ago

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Jul 11, 2024

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There are 15 “equipment free agents” in the OWGR top 100, as of June 9, 2024, which is the Tuesday ahead of the 2024 Genesis Scottish Open.

“Equipment free agents” are defined here as players who do not have a sponsorship or a brand deal to play a specific company’s golf clubs. If the player has a brand deal to use a company’s staff bag, or their driver, or their irons, or their putter, or they wear an OEM hat, then they’re excluded from the “equipment free agent” list.

Full disclosure, I’ve excluded borderline players such as Maverick McNealy, Justin Rose, and Matt Fitzpatrick from the list, due to their putter relationships. I probably could have kept them in, since they use varied brands throughout their full setups, but we have to develop some basic definitions here to keep this clean.

Given the amount of golf-ball brand deals there are on tour, however, “equipment free agents” are still considered “equipment free agents” if they have golf ball deals.

Since I’m making the rules here, that’s just something everyone will have to live with for this article/research study. I do think, however, that most “gearheads” would agree with me, that an equipment free agent is someone who can play any 14 clubs that he chooses, thus, he’s an “equipment free agent.” Golf balls just don’t count in this circumstance, in my opinion, and I hope you agree.

Aside from some sort of under-the-table deal that no one knows about, as far as I can tell, and based on what I know, the 15 “equipment free agents” listed below are not compromised by any current club deals. These are players who are free to test and use any golf club, made by any brand that they want to, unrestricted by a contract.

Maybe I’m wrong, and a few of the players do, in fact, have contracts to play certain clubs, but I guarantee that I do not know about it. I’m doing the best I possibly can here to keep these results unbiased.

Also, we have to keep in mind that we’re dealing with equipment free agents here. These are players who tend to enjoy the freedom to test equipment from different brands, and they tend to switch clubs on a regular basis. So, what’s listed below could change by the week, or even by the day. However, I’ve done my best detective work, using our GolfWRX.com weekly WITB photos, using information obtained from equipment companies, and by analyzing the most up-to-date photos on Getty Images, or otherwise. Despite my best efforts, however, I’m sure to get something wrong, because these free agents switch clubs on a whim, and their bag setups often vary day-to-day.

I apologize if I got any information incorrect, but I do guarantee that the information listed below is accurate at a moment of time in 2024. For each of the 15 players, their club information is accurate as of the most recent information possible, as of the day before the Genesis Scottish Open. When you’re reading this article, however, things may have changed slightly. Or, a player listed below could have already signed a new brand deal. That’s just the nature of the “equipment free agent” business, and it’s just something we’re all going to have to accept here.

Lastly, before we get to the results, a few brief notes on the categories.

The categories here are drivers, fairway woods, 7-irons, lob wedges, and putters. For the fairway wood category, I’ve excluded the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver. It just makes things a little too confusing, because most players who have a mini driver in the bag also have a 3-wood that they use depending on the course or conditions. In this case, I used the lowest-lofted fairway wood in the bag for each player. It just kind of evens the playing field this way, because the Mini Driver is a specialty club, and it can’t necessarily be called a fairway wood – it literally has “driver” in the name! But, just know, that about 1-4 Mini Drivers are in play on a given week by free agents.

Also, I researched just the “7-iron” to avoid any confusion around mixed sets, and to avoid trying to determine what’s considered a “driving iron” and what isn’t. It’s a cleaner list going with just the 7-iron, and I think it gets us what we’re all looking for. Maybe I’ll do some further study on “mixed sets,” but for now, we’ll start with just the 7. Additionally, we’re breaking down just the lob wedge, rather than all wedges used throughout the set. Not only do I think that the lob wedge is the specific club that most people want to know about, but it’s also super messy to include all the wedges in a player’s bag, because many players use some sort of mixed-model or mixed-brand wedge set.

Anyways!

Below, I’ve compiled a list of the most popular drivers, fairway woods, 7-irons, lob wedges, and putters among the 15 “equipment free agents,” who are each ranked inside the top 100 in the OWGR.

The information compiled below is listed numerically, by most usage to least usage, and listed alphabetically.

Driver

Ping G430 LST (4 players)
Titleist GT2 (4)
Titleist GT3 (2)

Krank Formula Fire
Ping G430 Max 10K
Ping G430 Max
TaylorMade M6
Titleist TSR3

Fairway Wood

Ping G430 Max (5)
TaylorMade Qi10 (4)
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (2)

Krank Formula Fire
TaylorMade Qi10 Tour
TaylorMade Stealth Plus
Titleist 915F

7-iron

Titleist T100 (2)
Titleist 620MB (2)

Avoda Golf Prototype
Callaway Apex TCB
Callaway X Forged CB
Miura KM-700
Mizuno MP-18 SC
Ping Blueprint S Forged
Ping S55
TaylorMade P770
TaylorMade P7TW
Titleist 620CB
Titleist AP2 718

Lob Wedge

Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks (7)
Titleist Vokey SM9 (4)
Titleist Vokey SM10 (3)
Ping Glide 4.0

Putter

Odyssey (6)

Odyssey Ai One 2-Ball
Odyssey O-Works Jailbird Mini
Odyssey Toulon San Diego
Odyssey Toulon San Diego prototype
Odyssey White Hot OG #7
Odyssey White Hot Pro Rossie

Scotty Cameron (4)

Scotty Cameron 009M
Scotty Cameron GoLo N7
Scotty Cameron P5 prototype
Scotty Cameron T5 Proto

TaylorMade (3)

TaylorMade Spider Tour Limited Red
TaylorMade TP HydroBlast DuPage SB
TaylorMade Spider Tour X

L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Proto
SIK Pro C-Series Armlock

Individual Breakdown of Free Agents inside the Top 100 (according to the latest WITB information and photography)

Patrick Cantlay

Driver: Titleist GT2
3-wood: Titleist 915F
7-iron: Titleist AP2 718
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey SM9
Putter: Scotty Cameron T5 Proto

Patrick Cantlay WITB 2024

Bryson DeChambeau

Driver: Krank Formula Fire Pro
3-wood: Krank Formula Fire
7-iron: Avoda Prototype
Lob Wedge: Ping Glide 4.0
Putter: SIK Pro C-Series Armlock

Bryson DeChambeau WITB 2024

Jason Day

Driver: Ping G430 LST
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10
7-iron: TaylorMade P770
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour Limited Red

Jason Day WITB 2024

Denny McCarthy

Driver: Titleist GT2
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10
7-iron: Callaway Apex TCB
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks
Putter: Scotty Cameron GoLo N7

Denny McCarthy WITB 2024

Davis Thompson

Driver: Titleist TSR3
3-wood: Ping G430 Max
7-iron: Titleist 620MB
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks
Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #7

Davis Thompson WITB 2024

Stephan Jaeger

Driver: Ping G430 LST
3-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond
7-iron: Ping S55
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey SM10
Putter: Odyssey Ai One 2-Ball

Stephan Jaeger WITB 2024

Aaron Rai

Driver: TaylorMade M6
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10
7-iron: TaylorMade P7TW
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey SM9
Putter: TaylorMade TP HydroBlast DuPage SB

Aaron Rai 2023 WITB

Adam Schenk

Driver: Ping G430 Max 10K
3-wood: Ping G430 Max
7-iron: Mizuno MP-18 SC
Lob-wedge: Titleist Vokey SM10
Putter: Odyssey White Hot Pro Rossie

Adam Schenk WITB 2024

Adam Scott

Driver: Titleist GT2
Fairway wood: TaylorMade Qi10
7-iron: Miura KM-700
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks
Putter: L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Proto

Adam Scott WITB 2024

Brendon Todd

Driver: Ping G430 Max
3-wood: Ping G430 Max
7-iron: Ping Blueprint S Forged
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks Proto
Putter: Odyssey Toulon San Diego

Brendon Todd WITB 2024

Cam Smith

Driver: Titleist GT3
3-wood: Ping G430 Max
7-iron: Titleist T100
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey SM9
Putter: Scotty Cameron 009M

Cam Smith WITB 2024

Patrick Rodgers

Driver: Titleist GT3
3-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond
7-iron: Titleist T100
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey SM9
Putter: Odyssey Toulon San Diego prototype

Patrick Rodgers WITB 2024

Mark Hubbard

Driver: Ping G430 LST
3-wood: Ping G430 Max
7-iron: Titleist 620MB
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour X

Mark Hubbard WITB 2024

Ben Kohles

Driver: Titleist GT2
3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth Plus
7-iron: Titleist 620 CB
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey SM10
Putter: Scotty Cameron P5 prototype

Ben Kohles WITB 2024

Matt Wallace

Driver: Ping G430 LST
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 Tour
7-iron: Callaway X Forged CB
Lob wedge: Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks
Putter: Odyssey O-Works Jailbird Mini

Matt Wallace WITB 2024

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Equipment

Coolest thing for sale in the GolfWRX Classifieds (7/11/24): Handmade TP Mills full prototype Genuine 1 of 1

Published

5 hours ago

on

Jul 11, 2024

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At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals that all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, there is a listing for a Handmade TP Mills full prototype Genuine 1 of 1.

From the seller: (@aston14): “For sale is a brand new Proto T bar alignment, handmade TP Mills Fleetwood putter. All black head and black shaft all done by David Mills with special stampings in the cavity and sole and unique headcover. This has a headweight of 370g,  33.5 inch long fitted with the new Golf Pride Reverse taper grip. Only used on my indoor green, this is a stunning putter but my stroke doesn’t deserve this!! Price is $999 plus shipping from the UK.”

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link: Handmade TP Mills full prototype Genuine 1 of 1

This is the most impressive current listing from the GolfWRX BST, and if you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum you can check them out here: GolfWRX BST Rules

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