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Aug 04, 2023

Vokey wedges for a mid

Published on By In our forums, our members have been discussing Vokey wedges. WRXer ‘JPH’ is a mid-handicapper and kicks off the thread saying: “Am I the only one who is very inconsistent with Vokey

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In our forums, our members have been discussing Vokey wedges. WRXer ‘JPH’ is a mid-handicapper and kicks off the thread saying:

“Am I the only one who is very inconsistent with Vokey Wedges? I have three that are wonderful during practice but challenging during a round. I’m going to go back to my iron set gap and maybe return to the Cleveland cbx style soon. But honestly, have I bitten off more than I can chew? Thanks.”

And our members have been having been weighing in with their thoughts on the matter in our forum.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

Entire Thread: “Vokey wedges for a mid-handicapper? – GolfWRXers discuss”

Spotted: Keith Mitchell’s TaylorMade Spider X long neck prototype putter

SPOTTED: Ping’s new Blueprint S irons at the 2023 Wyndham Championship

Gianni is the Managing Editor at GolfWRX. He can be contacted at [email protected]

Thomas A

Aug 2, 2023 at 3:57 pm

Good in practice, but not on the course. Clearly, it’s the clubs. :\

Bob

Aug 2, 2023 at 12:46 pm

Midhandippers are not consistent enough in their ballstriking to formulate a logical opinion of how well a wedge is suited to them. Just grab one with high bounce that matches your eye at address. That’s the best they can do until they become better.

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Remember when the majority of PGA Tour players used a full set of blade irons?

Those were the days.

Unfortunately for fans of blade irons, those are days are quickly fading. Many of the top golfers in the world – even veterans who have played blade irons throughout their career – are switching into more forgiving options either through the set…or, at least, they’re using combo sets featuring blade short irons and cavityback long irons (such as Rory McIlroy).

More now than ever, golf equipment manufacturers are designing smaller, more compact cavityback iron heads that combine blade-style looks with cavity-back forgiveness.

Rickie Fowler, for example, used blade irons in college, and for more than a decade as a PGA Tour player. He even collaborated with Cobra on an ultra-custom set of shockingly small-and-thin Rev33 blade irons.

Now, in 2023, Fowler uses a full set of CB’s by way of the Cobra King Tour irons. And he’s arguably playing the best golf he has in the last five years.

This week at the 2023 Wyndham Championship, two longtime blade users have also switched into full sets of cavityback irons: Webb Simpson and Adam Scott.

Just recently, back in November 2022, Simpson switched into an ultra-custom set of Titleist 682.WS blade irons. And for years he relied on Titleist’s classic 680 models. This week, however, Simpson changed into Titleist’s new 2023 T100 irons, which are made with a dual-cavity construction.

Simpson spoke with GolfWRX.com briefly about the switch on Wednesday at the Wyndham Championship:

“I’ve been practicing with [the new T100’s] at home and I feel like, out of the rough, they’re a little better. Mishits are a little better. Just a little bit. I’m still getting used to them.”

We spotted Simpson on Wednesday with a full set of T100’s in the bag, but since he’s “still getting used to them,” the situation may remain fluid during the transition process. On Thursday during competition, though, Simpson was photographed using at least one T100 long iron.

Like Simpson, Scott used the Titleist 680 blade irons for years. He’s also recently used custom Titleist 681.MB irons, and, most recently, Miura’s custom AS-1 blades.

Ahead of the 2023 Wyndham Championship, however, Scott conducted extensive iron testing that included various head models from different brands. On Thursday, it was confirmed that Scott used a set of Titleist 620 CB irons to grab the first round lead.

Adam Scott has been a blade guy for most of his career, but you can’t really blame him trying @Titleist CB’s. Same irons Wyndham Clark and Brian Harman used to win majors this year. pic.twitter.com/DHKT9SGjgo

— Jonathan Wall (@jonathanrwall) August 3, 2023

Even Adam Scott – who is known to use the bladiest of blade irons – switched into cavitybacks.

That leaves me with just one question for amateur golfers who still use a full set of blade irons: Why?

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Driver: Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond S (9 degrees)Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 7 TX

3-wood: Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond T (16 degrees)Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8 X

Hybrid: Callaway Apex UW (21 degrees)Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 8 X

Irons: Callaway Apex TCB (4-AW)Shafts: Project X 6.5 (4-PW), True Temper Dynamic Gold x100 Tour Issue (AW)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (56-14F), Titleist WedgeWorks B7 Proto (60-T)Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold S400 Tour Issue (56, 60)

Putter: Odyssey O Works 7S Black

Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

More photos of Sam Burns’ WITB in the forums.

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Following months of Tour validation by professional golfers around the world, Titleist has officially announced that its new 2023 T-Series iron family is coming to retail. And, finally, we have all of the long-awaited tech details.

The 2023 T-Series iron models will include the T100, T150, T200 and T350 irons. In addition to the T-Series iron announcement, Titleist has also officially launched a new U505 driving iron (but more on that below).

Yes, it’s now confirmed that the T100S from the previous generation has been replaced with a new T150 model, and the previous game-improvement T300 iron has been replaced with the new T350.

These aren’t just changes to the model names, either. The T150 and the T350 are completely new designs.

A post shared by GolfWRX (@golfwrx)

When looking at the T-Series as a whole, Titleist has certainly designed more uniformity into the family. Now, the four models within the 2023 T-Series lineup have less visual disparity between them. For golfers who use a mixed-model bag setup, the uniformity can certainly help out with the bag appeal factor. (According to Titleist, 80 percent of Titleist PGA Tour staffers use a blended set of mixed models. For the amateurs, if you aren’t already using more forgiving long-iron options, it might be time to give that a try. Just look at PGA Tour player WITB’s these days.)

Notice especially the centered “Titleist” scripting on each T-Series model…and the back cavities of the T200 and T350.

You’ll also notice a more constant shape between the models when looking down from address (from left-to-right, the T100, T150, T200 and T350).

Similar-looking, yes.

But, of course, functionally different, in order to help satisfy the needs of different golfers.

For golfers interested in putting together a mixed T-Series set of their own, or simply getting the right gapping within their set, Titleist recommends aiming for a ball speed gap of 5 mph between irons. That means your 7-iron should produce 5 mph more ball speed than your 8-iron, which should produce 5 mph more ball speed than your 9-iron, and so on.

If there’s less than a 5 mph gap between irons, then you probably have two clubs that are essentially doing similar jobs, and that’s when it’s time to look at a more forgiving model, or a replacement club entirely.

That being said, let’s break down exactly what’s new and different for each of the new T-Series models. The new irons are currently available for pre-sale. Each 7-piece set will sell for $1,399 with a steel shaft, or $1,499 with a graphite.

Click here for more photos and discussion of the Titleist 2023 T-Series irons

Titleist’s previous T100 model irons were already among the most popular irons for better players, in both amateur and professional ranks, so a complete redesign probably would have disappointed many.

Titleist works closely with Tour players and amateurs, however, and they used feedback on previous models to improve upon the T100 canvas it had already, rather than disrupting what’s proven to work.

As the collective consensus proved, improving the feel of the iron was paramount.

To do that, Titleist designers enhanced the back bar that sits between the upper and lower portions of the dual-cavity construction. According to Titleist, the improvements create a more solid feel at impact, and the heads were tuned by the company’s modal testing for extra measure.

The new 2023 T100 iron models are fully forged, have CNC-milled faces, and they have dual, heavy D18 Tungsten weights in the heel-and-toe sections of the back cavities to improve forgiveness and dial in their centers of gravity.

Titleist also worked with both Tour pros and the Vokey wedge team to improve the Variable Bounce Sole. The trailing edge was smoothened and softened to help “flow faster through the turf, even after contact,” according to Titleist.

The “featured” steel shaft is True Temper’s AMT Tour White, which has ascending mass technology (3 grams per club). The featured graphite shaft is Mitsubishi’s Tensei White AM2, which also has ascending mass technology (2 grams per club).

Check out the 2023 T100 specs below (they’re the same as the previous generation).

More T100 photos here

Instead of bringing back the previous T100S design, which was basically a T100 iron that was 2 degrees stronger per club throughout the set, Titleist designed an entirely new model to satisfy the needs of that in-between golfer.

In a press release, Titleist says, “If you loved AP2 and thought T100 was ‘a bit too small,’ this is your new iron.”

The T150 is slightly larger than the T100, with a thicker topline to help increase distance and forgiveness. Like the T100S irons that came before them, the T150 irons are built 2 degrees stronger than the T100 irons, as well.

To improve feel at impact, the T150 has a muscle channel in the back cavity behind the face for a more solid feel at impact.

Like the 2023 T100, the T150 also has D18 Tungsten weights in the back cavity, and a refined sole for improved turf interaction.

Think of the T150 as having the same design package and construction as the T100, except it’s the “1.5” version. It’s slightly bigger, faster and more forgiving.

Here are the T150 specs:

More T150 photos here

If there were gripes about the former T200 irons, it was probably because of feel and sound at impact. Titleist heard your feedback on the previous T200 irons, and it listened.

The new 2023 T200 irons have a reengineered chassis to create a stiffer structure and create a more stable feeling and muted sound. They also refined the Max Impact Technology within the head to sit closer to the L-face, further solidifying the feel.

The new 2023 T200 was also designed with less offset for a cleaner look from the distance iron at address.

More T200 photos here

The T300 is out, and the T350 is in.

The new T350 irons are still built for maximum distance and forgiveness, but they were redesigned with a hollow-body construction that’s inspired by the T200. Like the T200, the T350 also uses Max Impact Technology behind the face to maximize speed and forgiveness, and dual-tungsten weights in the back cavity.

The T350 irons are noticeably larger, and with thicker toplines, than the T200 irons for golfers who need the additional surface area and stability.

If you hit the ball all over the face with your irons, or you’re looking for maximum distance, or you need something more forgiving at the top end of your set (3-6 iron), that’s where the new T350 comes in.

More T350 irons here

While not technically a “T-Series” iron, the new U505 irons were also officially launched to the retail market today.

The new utility irons are designed for the golfer who’s looking for a long-iron replacement that offers increased launch and distance. It’s not necessarily a “driving iron,” it’s more of a “utility,” which launches a bit higher and has more function from the turf.

Thus, the “U” in U505.

Titleist says the new U505 has a shorter blade length and shallower face, with redesigned Max Impact Technology, a reengineered chassis, a new Variable Bounce Sole, and the company added dampening in the muscle badge for improved sound and feel.

Overall, the center of gravity sits lower to the ground in order to boost speed and stability, and a new single-taper face design is meant to especially help with forgiveness on heel strikes.

The U505 utility irons are selling for $269 with a “featured” shaft, and $399 with a “premium” shaft.

Click here for more photos and discussion of the Titleist 2023 T-Series irons

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