2018 Official Forum Member Review - Wilson C300 Irons

[hckymeyer]

Official Forum Member Review - Wilson C300 Irons

 

 

 

cnosil                       Stage 1              Stage 2

gaussman1             Stage 1              Stage 2

tony@CIC               Stage 1              Stage 2

russtopherb             Stage 1              Stage 2

[cnosil]

Sorry about the delay in getting my stage 1 posted; was out of town on a business trip.  I will apologize up front for not necessarily being as creative as some of the reviewers on this forum.  I am an IT person and when I do write something it is generally a technical document.  As a result my review will tend to be more analytical in nature. 

 

Intro:  

My name is Chris I am 52 years old and I live in Southeastern Virginia.  I started playing golf when I was about 14; unlike a lot of people that post their story there wasn't anyone in my life that pushed me toward golf or inspired me to play.  The first memory I have about golf was hitting golf balls in a cemetery behind one of my friend's houses.  We had some clubs and balls and would hit them from one end to the other.  Thinking it might be fun to actually play golf I asked my parents to sign me up for some lessons.  I didn't play that often due to the inability to get to a course and wasn't very good when I did.  After high school golf fell off the radar as life continued…college, job, and marriage (you know the usual stuff).   Back in the early 90s I started getting back into golf a little bit and was still pretty bad but I enjoyed playing.  At this point I was playing 9 holes after work with my father-in-law.  After a while I decided that scoring in the 90s wasn't where I wanted to be so I took some more lessons with an instructor that I clicked with.   Within 2 lessons I went from scoring in the 90s to shooting a round of 76.  My game was coming together and I was hooked with some new-found confidence that I could actually play this game.  In about 2002, I had a friend invite me to play with his Sunday group; about 20 guys, ranging in age from late 30' up to 70s.  Time has taken its toll on that group, some have passed away, so had financial crunches, others just moved on.   Today, I play golf as long as the temps are over 40*F and am just as happy playing by myself as I am with friends.  I enjoy the time outdoors, the scenery, and the challenge of the game.  I am pretty analytical in nature and like to understand the mechanics of the swing and how club dynamics impact a golf clubs performance.  In my mind feel is derived from understanding and applying the mechanics.

 

About My Game:  

I currently play to a 7 handicap and have been as low as a 4.  One of my strengths is my tee game where I hit 63% of the fairways.  My weakest area is short shots when I miss the green; however, I think I can relieve a lot of pressure of that aspect of my game if I hit more greens with my approach shots.  Currently, I hit about 8 greens in regulation and have to get up and down more often that I like. 

 

As for my ball flight, I generally play a fade off the tee and draw the rest of my clubs. My ball flight is mid/high to high with my irons and mid with my driver.  The mistake I try to miss with is when I turn my hands over and hit that low pull hook.  My miss on the clubface is low and toe hits.  I have a smooth moderate tempo swing and driver swing speed is in the 100-107 MPH range.

 

https://youtu.be/c98-r2Huwrc

 

Current Equipment:

I just love the game of golf and trying new equipment.  While I am always eager to demo the latest and greatest my bag typically stays pretty consistent from year to year. Now that I have found MGS I get my equipment cravings satisfied by visiting the MGS Headquarters and participating in the Most Wanted Testing.  There is a lot to like about new clubs and often there is an urge to put something new in the bag, but I don't change clubs very often.  When I do decide to upgrade it does not have to be professionally fit.  Although it may not be fit, it will have been tried numerous times in the store and tested on the course.  Generally, I buy used and I have a store near me that lets you demoused equipment on a trial bases before you have to purchase. 

 

You can see my current bag setup in my signature.  Instead of talking about the whole bag, the discussion will focus on irons since that is what this test is about.  I used to change irons often but have only had 2 sets of irons in my bag since 2004.  I am currently playing Callaway X-Hot Pro irons that have been in my bag since 2014.  I was not professionally fit for those irons but went to several demo days and settled on the Project X Flighted 95 shafts. 

 

 

First Impressions

What do I think of these irons and why did I apply to test them.  In January I had decided to do full bag fitting at Club Champion to see how my current setup compared to my ideal setup.  One of the biggest areas for improvement was my irons.  We tested a variety of the Players-Distance irons/Crossover irons such as the Ping I200, Taylor Made P790, Callaway Rogue Pro, and the JPX 900 Forged.   I recently learned about this iron category as it fits between the players irons and the Game Improvement Irons and is designed for the player the likes the look or a player's iron but wants a bit more forgiveness and distance.  The “winner” for me was the Taylor Made P790 irons with KBS Tour shafts.   Why aren't those clubs in my bag???  The simple answer is the $1299 retail price was more that I was willing to invest. 

 

Fast forward a month and I happened to walk into my local golf shop while they were holding a Wilson demo day.  To be honest I have always known about the history of Wilson golf clubs but in the last 10+ years felt that while they had some tour level products they were more of an entry level player type company.  During the demo day I tried the C300 and C300 forged and came away very impressed with the feel, playability, quality and appearance of these clubs.  The price tag $800-$900 depending on whether you went with the C300 or the C300 Forged.  At the demo day learned about the C300 line and Wilson's Power Hole Technology.  In the C300 Forged the long irons through the 8 have urethane filled holes that are designed to increase face deflection to help increase distance.  Do they work? Hopefully we will find out as part of this review process.

 

Next up, MGS posted a tester's wanted thread and after confirming that I could get the KBS Tour shafts, best shaft for me based on Club Champion fitting, I quickly threw my name into the hat for a chance to put these irons through their paces.   Once selected, the next challenge was figuring out how I wanted them configured.  Wilson custom fitting offers an array of shaft combinations (stock, aftermarket, and exotic) and grip options.  I will say Wilson seems to have a fondness for KBS shafts as they seem have every KBS option available for drivers through irons; you just need to find the profile that fits your game.  As mentioned earlier, I am analytical in my approach to golf and my loft, lie, and length selection process was just that.  I elected to go with the 8 iron set comprised of 4-PW, GW and match specs as close as possible to the P790s that I was fitted for.

 

 

 

In reviewing the chart above, you can see the high lofts present in the longer irons the gradually approach the lofts of my current irons as you pass the 9 iron.  I went 1 degree flat to match up the lie angles with the shorter irons from the P790s recommended spec.  I left the length at stock to provide myself the option to chop off the additional quarter inch to match my fitting.

 

My first impression was fear as I saw the UPS driver bringing the box to the front door was fear.   Fear because the box was bent. 

 

 

Once I opened the box, I felt relief as I saw the irons were not impacted. 

 

 

It was a nice touch to include a letter showing my custom specs.

 

 

Lampkin/Wilson Staff Grips:  High quality grips that do draw attention to the clubs.  Gives the clubs a polished look. 

 

 

Upgraded KBS Tour 120 shafts:  All installed with the label pointing down to give a clean look at address.

 

 

 

When comparing to my current irons they are roughly the same overall head size and have the same thickness topline.  The C300s do have a wider sole so it will be interesting to see if there is any difference with turf interaction. 

 

 

 

Where are we going from here?

My primary goal for these irons is to minimize dispersion, get consistent trajectories, and maybe even pick up a few yards on my current clubs. Through this review I intend to walk through the process I would follow if I were evaluating clubs for inclusion in my bag.   Where are we going heading into stage 2 and what questions am I trying to answer.

 

• How do these irons compare to my current gamers and my Club Champion fitting? We will do a deep dive into the numbers. 
• Does feel change between 8/9 where the power holes no longer exist?
• Do the clubs help me hit more greens?
• How workable are these irons?
• Do I create any distance gaps at the top or bottom end of my bag?
• Can the higher lofted C300 Forged irons compete with the lower lofted irons generally associated with the Players-Distance/Crossover category?

 

Stay Tuned and Let's find out!

[cnosil]

Stage Two - The Review – July 2018

 

Intro

Coming out of stage 1 I had some questions I was going to try and answer based on my initial impressions.  I know they are right above this post but I will go ahead and post them again to keep you from having to scroll up and look at them again.

• How do these irons compare to my current gamers and my Club Champion fitting?
• Does feel change between 8/9 where the power holes no longer exist?
• Do the clubs help me hit more greens?
• How workable are these irons?
• Do I create any distance gaps at the top or bottom end of my bag?
• Can the higher lofted C300 Forged irons compete with the lower lofted irons also in the Players-Distance/Crossover category?

 

As you start testing, lots of thoughts go through your mind on how you should test the clubs and what the readers want to hear.   The difficult part about testing irons is determining how to separate shaft dynamics from club head dynamics since this test is more about the head than the shaft. As indicated in stage 1, I went through my normal process to evaluate the clubs; which it looking at their performance.   Since receiving these irons, I have spent time on the range, on the launch monitor, and for the ultimate test on the course.    I am not a range rat so most of my time on the range would be spent learning the individual clubs and how to get them to perform which would occur during my pre-round warm-up.  The majority of my testing was accomplished using the QCQuad at MGS LXB and on course performance during my weekly 18-hole rounds, occasional free time rounds, and 9-hole golf league matches.  During the testing periods this equated to 6 league matches, 3 sessions on the launch monitor, and approximately 15 rounds of golf. 

 

Looks (10 out of 10 points)

 

 

The C300 forged irons are a fairly classic shape with graphics that aren't overwhelming.  The black lettering and logos also lean toward the classic styling of what you associate with Wilson clubs.  The one slight negative is that the C300 badging on the back of the clubs is a sticker and will have an unknown longevity.   If you aren't a fan of chrome, these may not be the clubs for you, as they have lots of shiny surfaces even at address (toe and heel sections of the club).

 

While the look is plain compared to other clubs in the marketplace, they do stand out in your bag.  They must look appealing to other golfers because I have had more comments about the clubs in the short time I have used them than any other club that has been in my bag.

 

For me, the club combined with the Red, White and Black Lampkin grips results in a timeless looking club. 

 

 

 

Other testers have mentioned some significant wear with the clubs.  For me, the only negative would be that I am starting to see some of the paint fill on the 6 and 8 iron numbers starting to chip.  While not the end of the world,  I looked at the numbers on my Callaway (played 4 years) and Cleveland (played 10 years) irons and they have all of their paintfill.  The faces of the clubs seem to be holding up well as illustrated by the Gap wedge (used for chipping), and my 6 and 7 irons.   I also include a picture of the back of the gap wedge since I use the back of the wedge to knock balls off the chipping green. 

 

Gap Iron Face and Back

 

Six Iron Lettering

 

Eight Iron Lettering

 

Seven Iron Face

 

Sound & Feel (8 out of 10 points)

 

Forged vs Cast, the eternal debate and in my opinion comes down to personal opinion.  Hit the sweet spot and they feel the same, start missing and depending on club construction you may get a harsher feel.  Since feel/sound is about the sensation of vibration through the shaft and handle different club configurations may feel different.  For me I would describe the feel as dull thud approaching non-existent.  By non-existent I relate it to that feeling on a perfectly struck ball where you just don't feel the ball coming off the face.  The feel is consistent throughout the set even as you transition from clubs that have the power holes to those that do not (9 iron, PW, GW).   The sole of the C300 Forged is on the wide side and may help with the dull/softer feel as the club doesn't seem to dig into the turf. 

 

My biggest complaint about the clubs is that for me it was hard to feel off center hits.  Even if there isn't a loss of performance, the feedback received during the swing is important to learning.   As an example, my Callaway XHot Pro irons I have a tendency to miss toward the toe and can feel that impact.  Even when I hit the toe or heel side on the C300 Forged, the feel in my hands doesn't change significantly unless I am reaching an extreme point where the shot results help tell the story.  Thin shots had more of a clicky sound and feel. 

 

 

Range Performance (20 out of 20 points)

 

 

I'll divide range performance into 3 sections: launch monitor, range, short game (chipping/pitching) practice area. 

 

Launch Monitor:

 

Upon receiving the clubs, the first thing I did was do some head to head comparisons on the GC Quad launch monitor.  Launch monitor sessions were done with the 6 iron and the swings were full swings with no attempt to work the ball.  While the images only show 10 shots from a single session, the overall results from the session had the clubs running basically neck and neck.  The C300 Forged as expected with more loft launched higher, spun a bit more, and descended steeper.  Overall assessment is that these clubs performed equally when compared with my Callaway XHot and the TaylorMade P790 (Trackman) I was fit to at Club Champion. 

 

Launch Monitor P790 (Trackman at Club Champion)

 

Launch Monitor xhot Pro

 

Launch Monitor C300 Forged

 

Driving Range:

 

My range time was typically used to lean to hit the clubs.  I attempted to work through any issues I encountered on the course and see how easily is was to maneuver the ball.  First impressions and continued impressions where that the ball flight with these irons was high.  When compared side by side with my current Callaway irons other than the significantly higher ball flight I was able to maneuver the ball equally with either one.   As I went through partial shots, draws, fades (actually attempted fades), low shots, etc. I was very impressed with the clubs.  After range sessions, I would still say there was no advantage or significant difference that would cause me to select to my current irons or the C300 Forged. 

 

Chipping/Pitching practice area:

 

For me, this is one of my problem areas with golf and something I spend quite a bit of time practicing.  My approach to chipping is that I will use progress through my irons based carry and roll distance needs but more often than not I will pull the gap wedge.  The gap wedge is also used for partial swing pitches.   Perhaps it is the wider sole on the C300 Forged, but this is where the clubs started to separate for me.  I seemed to very quickly learn my distances and was able to start hitting my landing spots consistently.  Moving the ball forward and back in the stance resulted in expected trajectory changes with no change in fell or control.   Advantage: C300 Forged.

 

On-Course Performance (35 out of 40 points)

 

Here is where push comes to shove, how do these clubs perform on the course?  Range time even though you are trying to hit targets could be considered easier since there is no pressure or consequences for a bad shot.  On the course you get one shot and the clubs need to respond in an anticipated way.  

 

 When put into play on the course I found that I was ½ to 1 club longer with the C300 Forged compared to my current irons.  While I didn't put face tape on the irons I believe it is attributable to shafts that helped me time my swing better and better face contact.  Part of the reason I say this is that after realizing I was hitting the clubs longer I was able to easily adjust my swing to dial back the distance or put some extra effort to dial up the distance without sacrificing left/right dispersion.  I don't have any statistical data to verify my performance, but I feel like I am getting better overall dispersion and distance control with these clubs.   The more I play with them, the more I am noticing that the ball is ending up hole high on approach shots.  Shots from fairway bunkers and rough performed as expected.   

 

For me these clubs were the total package, solid performers, predictable distances, and better than expected performance with weaker lofts that we are seeing on new irons.  With the extra distance I now have a little bit of a gapping issue between my Gap wedge (49*) and sand wedge (54*).  Fix would have to be another gap wedge and either replacing or making my 58* my sand club.  With my Callaway irons I start the set at 5 iron, I have been playing the C300 Forged starting at the 4 iron.   While the 4 iron is hittable, I would prefer a bit more height and may replace the 4 iron with the hybrid I removed from the bag.  Since people I am playing with are commenting on how well I am hitting the irons, I guess they will remain in the bag for a while longer.    

 

My points off on these irons are related to the shaft selections.  Wilson has put together a great package at a great price provided you fit into one of their stock shafts which is primarily KBS options.  With a $200+ add on for some shafts that are generally stock options with other manufacturers you really need to do your homework.  While the club head plays a large part in the performance, the shaft can make or break the club's performance. 

 

 

Play it or Trade it? (18 out of 20 points)

 

I like the irons and they have earned a spot in my bag for the foreseeable future.  Having the opportunity to be an MGS Most Wanted Tester, I have the opportunity to test most of the irons that are available in the marketplace.   While these aren't the longest clubs in the market and my handicap seems to be going the wrong way, I think these clubs are good for my game. 

 

Are these clubs for you?   Hard question for me to answer since every has their own needs from a set of irons.  Anyone looking for clubs that offer forgiveness, are toward the players iron end of the players->GI->SGI spectrum, and high launch then these should be given a chance.  Wilson has put together a solid offering that should be given a test drive by any player looking for irons.  The difficulty may be finding a set at your local retailer to try before you buy.

 

Conclusion

 

For those of you who just to the last page of the book, this is the section for you.   Started my year going to Club Champion to find some irons to help be improve consistency. The results of that fitting were Taylor Made P790s with KBS Tour shafts that improved dispersion and distance.  Fast Forward to being selected to test the C300 Forged with KBS Tour shafts against my Callaway X-Hot Pro irons.   How'd the do???

Quick answers to the Stage 1 questions:

• How do these irons compare to my current gamers and my Club Champion fitting? On par with or slightly better depending on category.
• Does feel change between 8/9 where the power holes no longer exist?  No changes in feel noted
• Do the clubs help me hit more greens? Possibly, I feel like I am a bit more accurate than with my current clubs.
• How workable are these irons? Was able to control trajectory and hit fades and draws
• Do I create any distance gaps at the top or bottom end of my bag?  Bottom end; too much distance between GW and SW.
• Can the higher lofted C300 Forged irons compete with the lower lofted irons also in the Players-Distance/Crossover category? As long as you aren't looking for the most distance possible then I think they compare well.

 

The C300 Forged even though they are higher lofted resulted in longer distance and tighter dispersion than my gamers with some improved shot control ability when I make a more or less aggressive swing than normal.  The biggest selling point for me was how the 9i-GW improved my short game performance.  For now, these clubs will remain in my bag.

I am not the only one that is taking notice of how well these clubs are performing. I have received several comments about how well I hit the irons and how nice they look by some of my golf league competitors.

Bottom line if you want forgiving irons with great feel, classic looks, and high ball flight these may be the irons for you. 

 

Final Score: 91 out of 100 - Definitely an A-rating for me. 

 

 

[gaussman1]

Many of you know me as Gaussman1. I think it's time to pull back the curtain and reveal the secret behind this username- My last name is Gauss. And I am a man.

This original username was crafted at the dawn of the internet and has lasted many years because I am lazy and don't feel like thinking up new things.

What I do like, love actually, is the game of golf. I live in central Indiana and was raised across the street from an Indianapolis Parks Department muni. As kids my brother and I spent countless hours chipping and putting against each other as we waited for dad to finish playing. As we got old enough to play on the course we would spend sunup to sundown in the summers going round the little track and struggling to clear the creek that crosses many of its fairways. I watch my father now struggle with that same creek that he sailed over with ease for 40+ years and see one of the many ways way in which golf is a metaphor for life. My brother was a much better young player but I was the one who was hooked on the game. Now at 48 and 49 years old respectively he wishes he had stuck with it a little more and I wish I was a just little bit better. As someone turning 49 in a few weeks and carrying a 1 handicap for 25+ years that seems a little greedy but that's golf. We will never be good enough. Anything that could help me be just a little bit better is worth a try, which is how I stumbled on this ragtag collection of lost golfing souls to begin with. May God help us all.

 

Currently I have the Callaway Rogue SZ driver and 3 wood and a big question mark in the irons. Last year I had Srixon Z765s with the Nippon 120 shaft. They were supposed to be Extra Stiff but I accidentally bought a set that was Tour X flex. I managed to survive the season with them but knew that I was going the wrong way in speed to live with those clubs. That XX shaft is built for lumberjacks.

 

 

 

In January I had shoulder surgery to repair a bone spur and some torn labrum tissue. I knew this season was going to start slower than last year so the telephone poles had to go. I snagged a set of Ping I200s but the wider sole doesn't match up well for me and I can't drive them down in the wind. I don't know if it's the head, or AWT shaft, or a combination of the two, but high and higher are not ideal trajectories for a 120 yard wedge into the wind. Still Desperately Seeking Irons.

 

My typical 150 yard shot is an 8 iron with a little draw and the shot that I'm afraid of is a going draw, particularly with wind from the right. I'm the all-time champ at missing that shot left and I'm constantly short sided, so I flop more than a European Soccer player. Not exactly a great scoring strategy. I would love to be able to flight it down without turning it over and hold it a little left to right from time to time. Maybe new clubs will improve my ball striking! I've tried that before without much success but I still believe in the theory and don't want to give up on it prematurely. When I saw the Wilson test I was intrigued. I actually gamed the V2s a few years back for part of a season (I don't remember why I gave them up, they seemed fine) and I've been a fan of the brand since my first iron purchase back in about 1986. That was a used set of Wilson Staff Fluid Feels with the red bore-through pin. I can still see their tiny little faces begging me to try knock-downs, fades, hooks, anything but a straight ball. I've always had a soft spot for forgings and but for the occasional Ping dalliance my irons over the years have usually said Mizuno or Titleist or Srixon. Nothing feels like a forged iron at impact and I'm anxious to see if the C300 Forged can inspire that same sort of reverence. Some irons feel so sweet you almost want to apologize to them for mis-hits. Sorry about that 5 iron. You know I'm not good enough for you.

 

 

 

First Impressions

I could do unboxing pics but you guys have seen club boxes before. Clubs come in them. They're brown and rectangular. The clubs were professionally wrapped and the spec sheet inside was a nice touch. Everything matched up exactly with my order specs (KBS Tour 120 Stiff, Standard Loft and Lie), and I will put them on a loft/lie machine in Stage 2 for verification. The clubs themselves are visually stunning. The cavity and the WS scripting on the hosel are just gorgeous. The only slight negative is the numbers on the clubs are a huge stamp and one of my regular playing partners joked that they looked like the Reader's Digest Large Print version. At least I could read them!

 

The 7 iron couldn't wait to be hit and buckled in the front seat while I was still putting the others in the bag. The wedges sat together in the back and gossiped about everyone else. Wedges think they're special

 

 

The box does have a slogan in big font that says More Win. Did they mean Win More? Or More Wins? I'm honestly shocked that this is the slogan. How about Play Better? Or Wilson Golf- Modern.Classic. Do you need me to write ad copy for you, Wilson? I don't know why that bothered me so much but it's the first thing you see and is such an easy thing to get right and it's such an amateurish tag. From the looks of the clubs they've clearly got serious golf people working on the products but there is a disconnect between there and marketing. Maybe they can workshop it on a reality show.

 

That is typical of the areas where I think Wilson struggles to differentiate itself as a golf company instead of just some large generic sporting goods catch-all. The Wilson website has golf listed in the same sub menu as Pickleball, Fast Pitch Softball and something called Padel. You can buy a Padel Paddle from Wilson for just under $200 which looks a lot like something I got whacked with during fraternity pledging. If you go directly to WilsonGolf.com at least that redirects to the /golf  homepage. There you see the FG Tour V6 irons which are classy looking (but do seem like they occupy the same space as C300 Forged) and the upcoming judges on Driver to Driver Season 2 which feels gimmicky.  There's also info on how to win a trip (A Power Trip!) by doing a C300 fitting.

 

I scroll down to the C300 icon which invites me to #poweryourplay. My play is being #powered by something called Power Hole Technology which is just an awful slogan and not really even accurate. When is a hole not a hole? When it's filled, which is the case with Power Holes. They are slots carved out of the sole (and topline in the standard 300) and then filled in with urethane. The end result of this should be more face flexion and higher ball speeds across the face.

 

Power Holes seems like another marketing flop. I'm picturing the pitch meeting for this and an executive saying “is Power Holes really the best we can come up with?” and getting “well sir, Speed Slots was already taken” as a response.  The elastomer filling is there to absorb vibration and also for a tidier fit and finish than you would have if you actually played golf with clubs that had holes all the way around the head. Anyone who had to dig mud out of their original Rocketballz fairway will be able to appreciate that the holes are filled in here. Although there is a lot going on in the soles of the 300 Forged because of the Power Holes, you don't see any of it at address with this model. What you see is a very traditional looking topline. Not quite as thin as a modern blade but in no way thick or cumbersome at all. They are all shiny chrome and classic looking badging and are visually quite striking, particularly over the ball. The Wilson Logo on the grip is traditional and classy.

 

 

The website also says “C300 irons with double the power, double the irons and double the distance technology”. I looked everywhere trying to find out what exactly was being doubled before I realized they just meant there are two sets of C300s. Standard and Forged. So, you know, double.

 

I know it seems like I am being tough on Wilson and I am. The website is convoluted and the marketing is gimmicky and cheesy. It's as if these clubs are being marketed to some regional big box chain for a Father's Day Blow Out. You would never catch Titleist or Callaway slapping Power Holes on one of their premium iron sets. And neither should Wilson. Because in Stage 2 we're going to see launch monitor data and on-course comparisons. And we're going to see that this is a premium set of irons.

[gaussman1]

Stage Two - The Review {7/31/2018}

Wilson C300 Forged – Official MGS Forum Review by gaussman1

Intro

My apologies for the delay in getting Stage 2 up. I was waiting to get a re-shaft done of my gamers and then ran into snags using my club's launch monitor. I finally got a friend to help me out with his SkyTrak simulator, but then it was Open Championship week and I wanted to wait that out. Now it's a bit more quiet so let's get to it. My basis for the stage 2 review was pretty simple, I just decided to stick them in the bag for 60 days and see what happened. Like most golfers I've got enough ego enough to think that I can play with pretty much anything. Since my handicap has stubbornly refused to budge in 25+ years maybe it's true that my level of mediocrity can be duplicated regardless of equipment. My Handicap Index on May 1^st, 2018 was 0.6.  My Handicap Index on July 15^th, 2018? 0.6.  My current Trend handicap = 0.6. This is after 24 actual and tournament Rounds played with C300 Forged. My golf game is the movie Groundhog Day

 

Looks (5 out of 10 points)

From over the ball the C300 Forged looks the part. I want a club that has some safety built in but also gives me the appearance that I can hit shots. It's relatively compact but not so much so that it's intimidating. The toe section is rounded off nicely and appears relatively short from the top. The faceplate strike area is brushed or subdued as it appears in the pic here but you can see how the chrome on the sides is highly polished. It is almost a mirror surface, which looks really cool but does have big time glare issues with the shorter irons in full sun.

• The graphics in the back are quite striking, but this club loses minor points for using decals instead of engraving and major points for paint issues. I have never seen paint peel like this on an iron set before and it seems as if this is a near universal issue for the MGS testers. Wilson claimed to have not heard of this issue before which means either we got the one bad batch or they aren't selling enough units to have feedback. More on my talks with Wilson Golf later but here are the photos.

 

 

• The overall look comes together nicely over the ball and presents a very confident look. Turning the club over though it all falls apart for me personally. The power holes still look gimmicky and the paint is literally falling apart on the back badging and some of the toe sections. As I mentioned in Stage 1 the numbers on the clubs are quite large for no real apparent reason. It just doesn't add anything and does look a little cartoonish. Players in the forged category almost universally want the club to look serious and understated and these are anything but. Flashy and loud may sell pants to guys my age but they don't move forged iron sets.

 

Scene- Pitch meeting Part Deux

Suit- “Ummm. These are busy. This is a club we're marketing to serious golfers, right?”

 

Marketing rep- “Sir, all of this stuff shows our customers how good it is! How else would they know if they couldn't see it?

 

Suit- Well, they would know by hitting better shots right?

 

Marketing Rep- C'mon sir. It's all about the optics these days. You have to tell a visual story. Plus using that cheap paint factory overseas has saved us enough money we can put paint everywhere! We can even paint these huge numbers on the sole!”

 

Suit- (gets on Indeed, updates resume)

 

• Sound & Feel (7 out of 10 points)

Striking the ball these clubs deliver a good forged feel. They have a smooth, solid thump, like an ax hitting a tree. The feel (or pitch) does get a little thinner as you move out of the short irons into the power hole clubs, but is still solid across the face. Are they top of the scale? For me, no. The best feeling clubs I ever owned were Srixon i302s. They were really soft and really solid at the same time. I don't know if it was because they were 6x struck forged or 1025 carbon but striking the ball felt like artwork. I've never had another Srixon iron feel as soft. If those were a 10 in feel these are a 7. They are fine. Even though they are forged I would say they feel closer to an AP2 than a Mizzy or Srixon forging.

 

Range Performance (14 out of 20 points)

 

            My favorite range drill is one I stole from Cameron McCormick (JS' coach) called the heart matrix, where you try to hit 3 fades then 3 draws all on different trajectories to the same target. If you were able to do it with pro tracer from down the line they would make a lovely little heart shape. To be fair, I can't perform this drill very well. My swing is a bit inside out and a bit shut so I am always fighting off a hook and I'm partial to irons with a slightly longer toe to get the CG moved out away from the hosel. I couldn't find CG charts for C300 Forged but my left miss is much more in play with these than my gamers. With my gamers I can at least make a straight line for the fade then fill in the draw line nicely. With C300 I create a hook matrix. 3 draws from the right edge then 3 more from the left. I can hit a dead push if I try real hard but really struggle to fade these. If I'm just beating balls the default is high draw. If I wanted help turning the ball over I would probably be delighted.

Looking at the SkyTrak Simulator data we don't really see a hook story, which won't really surprise anyone who has done indoor club testing and gotten very different results on course. After warming up we hit 6 balls each and threw out the worst one so this is admittedly a very small sample but we went back after the official test and hit more shots without getting any outlier data so I'm fine with this representation. Looking at the data I argue that C300 Forged holds its own with some heavyweight competition, though player 1 ball speed was down significantly from the others with 7 iron. I blame player 1 for that.  He's terrible.

 

 

On-Course Performance (30 out of 40 points)

 

 

Overall, the performance was draw and more draw, so not great for me but good enough that I see the value for a different player. For future models I think you're stuck with Power Holes as a feature as this seems to be the main visual difference between these and FG Tour V6 (this and a hundred bucks). If they're going to stay at $899 I would really like to see an expansion of the stock shaft offering to include Nippon Modus and KBS C Taper, but it doesn't really make a lot of sense for a stronger player to be fighting off a high launch head with a low launch shaft. I would suggest C300 be less expensive and reserve the stouter shafts for FG Tour. But I digress.

After missing greens left the first few weeks I finally just started aiming further right than I would like for the last month and playing the draw and my scoring has been normal, as evidenced by my handicap above. I am however playing my way around these clubs rather than firing at targets and have been looking forward to getting my gamers back in the bag.

I've been basically just aiming right edge and hoping to get it on the green somewhere. During testing I took my gamers back out on a few occasions and there is a drastic difference for me between the two. My gamers I can hold straight and drive through the wind and on course the C300s are all just fighting the draw. I'm guessing KBS Tour vs Nippon Modus plays a factor in this result, but Nippon was not an option for testing. My home course has a couple of approach shots with hazards left and the latter half of testing I have resorted to just opening the face, squeezing with the left hand and trying to miss wide right. That is effective enough to get around but it's not great golf.

 

Play it or Trade it? (12 out of 20 points)

C300 Forged is out of the bag already, but that's not really the reason for the low score. I know we're not really thinking about $$'s in this section but these do occupy a nice price point in the market. I think they would be much more attractive for $100-200 less. $899 is not high for a forged club, but it sounds high until you start looking at all off the forged sets over $1000. At $799 you could garner a few more eyeballs. At $699 they would occupy a real niche and show separation from FG Tour. I'm sure Wilson thinks that price point would devalue the brand but let's be realistic for a moment- some of the larger retailers only carry Wilson's cheap stuff anyway. How many C300 Forged are they selling at $899?

 

They are nice looking irons over the ball, and I like the feel but really have to allow for quite a bit of draw. If you asked me to play a money game tomorrow my Srixon Z765s are going to be in the bag (in fact, they are there right now). The C300 Forged are quite easy to hit up in the air but I do struggle to drive them through the wind or get shots to hold their lines. The wind blows where I play so I'm a little relieved to be going back to my gamers.

A player who is looking for a little higher launch and maybe a touch of help turning the ball over but still wants that forged look and feel would be an ideal fit for C300 Forged. The question for me becomes whether Wilson Golf is a worthy place for your money. We're pushing $1000 after tax and pretty good isn't good enough for that kind of cost. You need to wow me. One way you can do that is with great customer service. Unfortunately….

 

Conclusion

I was concerned enough about the paint issue that I called Wilson Golf. Or I tried to, but there is no golf customer service number. Wilson Sporting Goods has a general customer service phone number only. So I called Wilson Sporting Goods. I'm not giving employee names from this call as this part isn't great and I don't want to get anyone in trouble. A very nice lady answered the phone and explained that for a warranty issue the process is to go back to the website, scroll down through 3 pages and then click 4 icons and complete 2 puzzles to receive a skeleton key. Proceed through the labyrinth and past the gorge of eternal peril where the skeleton key will unlock a secret door. Behind that door is a warranty form. Kidding aside, this next part is 100% accurate- Fill out the form and submit 3 pictures under 5MB in size and you will get a response from the warranty team within 1-2 business days. Upon approval they will email you a return form. Ship the clubs back with the original proof of purchase and then after receipt of the clubs and inspection and approval by the Warranty Team you will be emailed a voucher to go back online and build another new set. This process takes however long it takes. Several weeks? At least. Months? In all honesty, yes I could see being without clubs for a couple months while you go through all this. How cheap does $899 seem now?

I asked if there was actually anyone in the golf division I could speak to. She said yes if I wanted to hold. About 10 minutes later a gentleman who we will call Wilson Golf picked up the phone. Yes, he is on the golf team. He actually deals with the specialty retail accounts, not customers. No one deals with customers other than general sporting goods customer service. I was intrigued, because I could not find any retailers in my area initially to demo clubs for spec purposes. I asked how many specialty retailers they have stateside.

WG-“Oh, thousands”

Me- “For golf? Because I looked at Golf Galaxy and Dicks and green grass and couldn't find them anywhere. GG and Dick's don't even carry them online

WG- “Well for golf specifically it's a smaller number. If a retailer sells footballs or soccer balls that counts as a specialty account”

Me- “OK, how many golf?”

WG- “I'm not sure. I do find one called Club Champion in your state.”

Me- “Yes they are a custom fitter. So there's one. If I had purchased at the only account in my state and had this paint issue could I just take them back?”

WG- “Yes. Then they send them to us and after the warranty team reviews the clubs we issue a voucher so the new clubs can be ordered online.”

Me- “You won't just send a replacement set to your account?”

WG- “No. We need them back first, then after inspection and approval you have to order online.”

Me- “Ummmm. That doesn't sound great for the player. I had a crack in the hosel of my 3 wood from a major OEM and the replacement arrived within 3 days of my pro calling his inside rep. I got the new club before we shipped back the old one. You guys really need to receive and inspect the club before you issue a replacement to your account holders?”

WG- “Sorry, man there's only 3 of us on the golf team here. Stuff takes time to go through the process.

Me- ????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   3 PEOPLE ON THE GOLF TEAM !!?? Smacking myself in the head.

“Are these made stateside?”

WG- “No they're made overseas. I'm not sure where. I'll check into the paint issue though. I haven't heard about that before.”    

Me- “That's odd. 3 of the 4 testers here have reported the same issue. That's a high percentage from a very small sample.”

WG- Crickets

Me- “Moving on, these seem like they're for basically the same player as the FG Tour V6. Why would a player buy this instead of the FG?”

WG- “Well they're $100 cheaper.”

Me- “Can't argue with that. Thanks for your help.”

WG- (Hangs up. Considers life choices. Updates resume)

 

So as is probably obvious by now I have mixed feelings about C300 Forged. The clubs look good over the ball and perform fine. A little too much high hook for me but that's the price of having KBS Tours instead of C Tapers as a stock option in my opinion. They're not the top of the line in this category but they're also not priced to be. I do still believe them to be priced too high to have much sell through, even without my concerns about the health of Wilson as a golf company. And that is where I really struggle to recommend. There are lots of tier 2 companies out there in the golf world. Some of them make soft goods (Snell, Vice), some of them make putters and wedges (Edel, Bettinardi among others) and a few turn out hard goods (Fourteen and Tour Edge come to mind). But they are all GOLF COMPANIES who make it their mission to be the best they can be at what they do. I think the motto of each of these smaller outfits is probably “We Try Harder”. 

Wilson is not a golf company. They are a large sporting goods catch all. They don't seem to have any more emphasis on golf than on tennis or baseball. They have obvious QC issues at overseas production facilities and virtually no resources internally for golf. They don't try harder. Their top end models are not carried in store or even online at Dick's or GG (but old cheap, closeout models are) so that means they are hard to find, hard to try, hard to buy and definitely hard to return.  If I'm spending $1000 on new clubs I'm buying them from someone who specializes in golf instead of Pickleball. I would be more comfortable with 2 year old end of life cycle new clubs from Ping, TM or Callaway because I know what I'm going to get on the service side.

My instinct is that Wilson Golf is going down a path that can't really continue. I just don't see how they can sell effectively to avid players by using the big box sporting goods model. Can you imagine trying to compete against Callaway or Titleist as a sporting goods company? It would make more sense to me for Wilson to compete against the big box retailers of the world by opening their own sporting goods stores and selling their own SKUs there. It's probably more likely that Wilson Golf ends up as a Special Make-Up Brand that's only carried in places like Dick's or PGA Tour Superstore. Either way, I am struggling to recommend Wilson Golf as a golf company worthy of your money, which means I am struggling to recommend C300 Forged.

These clubs are fine. They're pretty good actually. But Wilson Golf as a company I think has serious deficiencies and I can't recommend you invest your money here as opposed to with a major OEM. My conclusion would be an earlier line - hard to find, hard to try, hard to buy and hard to return.  

 

 

Final Score: (68/100)

 

[tony@CIC]

One of my favorite sayings about my golf game is that I should have started at 6 not 60.  Until I picked up the game for real, I played once a year in a business event whether I wanted to or not. As lifelong sailors my wife and I just didn't have the inclination to golf since it competed for time and money with sailing. We only started playing 6 years ago after I retired and seriously the past 3 years once we sold our sailboat.  Initially we started playing as an activity we could do together – many times running out in the late afternoon and early evening to play 9. We are fortunate to live adjacent to a marina and golf club on Catawba Island (Arthur Hills links course) in northwest Ohio so it's a quick golf cart ride to the first tee. We even had the same instructor who started us down the right path and had a Club fitting for Ping's. Being a bit of an overachiever, I quickly found out that I wasn't satisfied with a mid 60's score (yup that's for 9). Note: I often tell my friends it's the hardest thing I've ever done, including running a business, being a pilot and sailing the Great Lakes.

 

 

Even though we've been serious for 3 years, it wasn't until I joined MGS 15 months ago that I realized how much I didn't know about the game, the equipment and the rules. So, a special shout out to the forum members, I have learned a tremendous amount from you on this very addictive sport. And an even bigger shout out to the Mods who selected me for the C300 test.

 

Today I'm playing in the low to mid 90's although I'm sure like most golfers I have that ‘blow-up' round (too often). My goal this year is to get consistently into the 80's from our combo tees (6000 yds with a rating/slope of 70.2/126. That means more greens in regulation need to be in my future!  The issues with my game are:

 

Driver distance and accuracy: My instructor at CIC has really helped me nail the swing path for a bit of a draw – a benefit for a lefty on our course since our water hazards are on the left.  Distance is inconsistent, and I'd like better accuracy. The solution is continued work on strength training, the mental game, but also club fitting (Could a G400 be in my future?). I'm still playing the same G20 Driver I got fitted for 6 years ago when my game was totally different. It's been a workhorse with probably tens of thousands of hits.

 

My G20 irons 6-PW are from the same fitting as well (standard True Temper shafts). Average distance with a 7 iron is about 135 + yds.  That's with an intentional 1/2 - 3/4 swing, because I tend to lift-up with a full swing resulting in a topped ball.  Last year I upgraded my hybrids to the G30's (19*,22*,26*) and threw a G400 crossover 3 iron into the mix for those days my driver wasn't working😊.  FYI, I did get fit for the crossover 3I which ended up being -1 lie as well.  I love to chip - especially out of the bunkers and upgraded my wedges last year to RTX 3.0 – 52*, 56*, 60*. BTW the chipping is a testament to practice, practice, practice. One big issue, however, is the gapping of my current wedges – my PW is 44* and next is a 52*. 

 

 

So why did I enter the Wilson test?  While I know there's a lot of marketing by golf club manufacturers, I was intrigued by Wilson's distance and accuracy statements. Specifically: “Explosive power and accuracy, propelling shots farther and straighter including toe and heel shots”. More accuracy with toe and heel shots?? Hmmm we shall see.

 

 

 

So, the first big day has arrived, my C300 irons came in and they look GREAT especially next to the G20's which are a bit utilitarian looking but have served me well. I ended up ordering 4-GW with -1 lie, std length and loft, KBS 90 steel shafts. The shafts have slightly higher flight and less spin than the True Temper shafts on the Pings. The GW is 48* which takes me closer to my ideal wedge gapping of 4*. So, PW=44*, GW=48*, the RTX 3.0 at 52*, 56* and 60*.  Drop those in my bag next to the driver, 19* hybrid and faithful Ping Scottsdale putter and I'm ready to go.

 

 

We're fortunate that in addition to the driving range at our club we have two rarely used practice holes and the Club has a launch monitor I can use as well.  My plan is to do a side by side test with the irons on those practice holes.  However, ever since the irons arrived we've been plagued by torrential rains, in spite of the rain I was able to sneak out onto the course and try the GW on a short par 3. Hmmm pretty nice -  all of the balls I hit were just a few feet from the pin. Birdy time?

 

 

I can't wait for the stage 2 testing to begin. Will I get explosive power?  Will I get straighter heel and toe shots?  The truth will be in the data so let the testing begin……….

 

 

 

 

[tony@CIC]

Stage 2 Wilson C300 Irons.

Hello everyone and welcome to my stage 2 for the Wilson Irons.  But first here is a quick recap from Stage 1, Day 1:

 

So the first big day has arrived, my C300 irons came in and they look GREAT especially next to the G20s which are a bit utilitarian looking but have served me well. I ended up ordering 4-GW with -1 lie, std length and loft, KBS 90 steel shafts. The shafts have (supposedly) slightly higher flight and less spin than the CFS shafts on the Pings. The GW is 48* which takes me closer to my ideal wedge gapping of 4*. So, PW=44*, GW=48*, the RTX 3.0 at 52*, 56* and 60*.  Drop those in my bag next to the driver, 19* hybrid and faithful Ping Scottsdale putter and I'm ready to go. Additionally – I am comparing these the C300s to my Ping G20s, since that's my best frame of reference.

 

As background I am a high handicapper and even though I'm relatively new to golf, I'm improving every day and gaining more and more confidence with my clubs/distances. Initially I took a step back as I learned to hit the C300s, but now I'm back on track (shooting a 90 today) and expect to be in the high 80's by the end of this fall. I'll play anywhere from 100 – 125 times in a typical season and play in men's league, club championships as well as fun golf events with my wife.

 

As a result, the C300s have gone through an extensive workout with at least 10 range sessions and 25+ rounds with the full set. The range sessions and corresponding testing were with the 7i and 9i as they are my typical warm-up clubs. Additionally, the direct comparison between the C300s and the G20s were at the same outdoor range session (hitting Pinnacle range balls), therefore allowing no difference in weather; temp, humidity, wind, pressure, etc. For the data, I used an ES-14 LM which is an older and shop-worn unit.  I believe that this was the reason for the inconsistencies in the carry data and is not indicative of my results on the course. On the LM data, I knocked out the outliers – both high and low to come up with median numbers. Typically, I log distances that average 5-7 yds longer than the data from the LM shows. Lastly, anticipating your question, I did have the lofts checked at Golf Galaxy and they were identical between the brands. 

 

Look. Feel, Touch of the Wilsons vs Pings: Score 8 out of 20

The C300s out of the box were great looking – they were bright and shiny. However, it didn't take long for them to look scuffed up as you can see in the comparison photo below. I have always been fastidious about my clubs; therefore, I protected them to and from the course in covers to avoid nicks. With that said, after an extensive workout these past two months, they looked as if someone took a steel wool pad to the sole. Will they buff out? Not sure but I will try this winter with a buffing wheel.  Surprisingly the “Power Holes” didn't cake up with mud as some members have questioned even with the wet course conditions we experienced this year. Disappointedly the face shows ball marks on a par with my G20s which have had several hundred rounds on them. Additionally, the back which again is protected most of the time with covers has scratches as well.  For those that brought up the question after stage 1, the urethane filler in the ‘Power Holes' stayed intact as did the paint for the tool mark and logo.

 

Both photos show a comparison of the C300s vs. G20s. The scuffing on the sole is evident as well as the ball marks in the photo on the right (C300 on top-G20 on the bottom).

 

A close up of the ball marks on the face  - again C300 on top and G20 on the bottom (after several hundred rounds)

 

 

 

A couple of missing features I consider ‘nice to have': I did order the clubs with Golf Pride grips. In the photo you can see the comparison between grips. On the bottom is the Golf Pride MCC on my G20, in the middle is the Wilson branded Golf Pride grip and on top is the Golf Pride grip that came with my Ping G400 #3 Crossover. Hmmm what's missing? How about an alignment aid to help us higher handicappers.  The other ‘nice to have'; the Pings not only have a tool mark on top of the club but also on the face. FYI, as part of my pre-shot routine, I check the alignment and double check to make sure I pulled the right club out of the bag, so I consider both to be important and yes, I have hit the wrong club.

 

Sound and Feel: Score 8 out of 10

Initially, the C300s felt and sounded clunky – after 2 rounds I thought this would be a tough test - as I'm just not liking the sound or feel. Then something clicked; not only was I hitting them well on the course, but I'm getting extra yardage except for the 4i. For some inexplicable reason I'm just not hitting that club well, so it came out of the bag and another G30 hybrid took its place.  

 

On the range I intentionally (well ok maybe unintentionally) mis-hit them. It appears they are more forgiving off the heel than the toe. Overall these clubs sound and feel smooth and I like that as well!

 

Range Performance/Data: Score 18 out of 20

Recorded LM data points: 25 with each club and as previously mentioned the highs and low numbers were knocked out in the data to arrive at the median. On the numbers below; I never got the G20s to the same clubhead speed as the C300s – not sure if that's a result of the lighter shaft on the C300s. The weight of the heads is pretty even with the G20s at 258 and the C300's at 265, although the KBS 90 shaft is lighter by 25g.   What surprised me on the C300s was a higher backspin and slightly longer carry distance.  ES-14 error on the backspin? Pinnacle ‘Range Rocks'? The trajectory also appears to be higher with the C300's than with the G20's.  The higher trajectory is my preference since the courses I play have hilly fairways and elevated greens.  Keep in mind that this is my first experience with a LM, I was probably paying as much attention to the LM as I was hitting the ball. And for those of you into the details, I've included partial data from ‘Maltby Playability Table' (by the way thanks to Shankster for passing along the link to the data).

Note: Actual measured loft for both the G20 7i and C300 = 31*, both G20 9i and C300 9i = 39*

Note: The loft on the Ping 6i is interesting in the MPF data since my G20 7i was measured at 31*

 

The ES 14 recorded all of the range sessions as straight, but I can attest to a wider dispersion with the Pings than the Wilsons. Could it be the result of working harder with the C300s to get them on target? Or just working harder at getting better? Probably a bit of both.

 

On course performance; Score 35 out of 40

From the 5i to the GP, not only do they feel and sound good, they're also getting me closer to the target. For example, we have a short par 3 -  I used my G20 PW (44*) which was slightly long so I choked down on it about an inch. Now I can comfortably reach the green with my C300 GP (48*). Additionally, now I rarely mis-hit irons and prefer the long irons to my hybrids, even off the tee. So it's time to update my yardage book with the new distances!  

 

 

Play Them or Trade Them: Score 15 out of 20

Overall, I am pleasantly surprised by the performance of the C300s and I have a more favorable impression of the brand. Prior to this test I would have dismissed the brand completely and limited my selection to those brands we typically consider first; Ping, Titleist, Callaway, Cobra, etc. However, to get to the level of those brands Wilson needs to fix the scuffing, scratches and ball marks either through stronger metals or finishes. The overall look of the clubs after a couple of months of play is very disappointing and I would have been very upset if I paid the retail price.

 

In spite of the cosmetics, I will continue playing with them since they are a bit longer and have a higher trajectory than my G20's AND I really do like playing with them!. Additionally, my scores are better by about 5 strokes since I started playing with them. While I can't definitively attribute the better scores sole to the C300s, they haven't hindered my game either. At some point I'll replace the grips with my preferred GP MCC and as mentioned previously will try to buff out the scuff marks on the sole.

 

With a Total Score of 84 out of 100 next time you're in the market for new clubs at your local fitter, you should consider the C300 and not totally discount them in favor of the other brands.

 

 

I have to give a very special thanks again to the mods for selecting me. Before this I was working at getting better and even though I was fitted for my G20's, I never paid attention to club specifications and never used a LM. I know for most of you this is 'old hat' but for me it was a great learning experience. Thank you I learned a lot! 

[russtopherb]

First and foremost, I want to give a huge THANK YOU to MGS and Wilson/Staff for giving me the opportunity to test and review the new C300 irons. To say that I'm excited is an understatement, which you'll understand more about shortly.

About Me & My Game (or lack thereof…)

I “played” golf as a kid with my father and grandfather, which started as mostly me putting and walking the tree line to scout for balls, before I got a hand-me-down set at around 11 years old. I stopped playing at 14 when music & drumming took over my life; I took up the game again roughly 6 years ago after yet another knee injury forced me to give up running and roller hockey. The doc suggested I walk a lot more to exercise, which gave my wife a perfect reason to present me with a boxed set of clubs for Father's Day that year.

Living in Massachusetts, my golf season runs roughly April through November. Being a dad who loves being involved with his kids' activities, I spend a lot of weekends in the fall and early spring travelling around New England to band competitions; this limits my golfing time even more, but I am 100% OK with that. My 12yo son is headed into his second season in PGA Jr League and I get a thrill out of following him around the course during his matches during the summer, helping to keep score and trying my hardest not to give any advice.

Handicap & Goals

I'm currently a 21 handicap, mostly due to being a weekend warrior while also being stubborn when it comes to playing smart off the tee. One of my goals this season was to make better club decisions to put me in better spots to score, with the end goal being a handicap of 17 or lower. I also tend to play a lot of executive courses with my son and my father, who just had his second knee replacement 2.5 years ago.

Mmmmmm…. shiny!!

Being chosen to review the Wilson/Staff C300 irons is great, because they'll go head to head with my current gamers, the D200s. I also previously played the D100s for a season as well, so I'm familiar with W/S build and performance.

Once I got the email that I had been chosen to take part in the testing, I leaned towards just having the stock setup sent to me. I figured that many weekend golfers who are in my position would probably buy off the shelf, and wanted my test experience to reflect that. After thinking about the opportunity a bit more, I decided to take some time off of work to head to the closest shop that carries W/S for a quick fitting.

After I hit the C300 irons in a few different shaft and flex combinations, I ended up in pretty much the stock configuration! The only change we made was to go with mid-size grips, so I'll be reviewing the C300 irons with KBS Tour 90 shafts in R flex. Apologies for not having pics of the monitor from the testing session; given the timeframe I was more focused on getting the right fit, vs. the right pic. I did snap some comparison pics of the C300s vs. the C200s while I was waiting, however (C200 on the bottom).

One thing I like about the D200s as someone with a 95mph driver swing speed is the distance they give me. However, I'm also a fairly low ball hitter, and as a result tend to not hold greens on longer approach shots. I know from previously demoing the C200 irons that the Power Holes help provide incredible height without ballooning, and soft landings to help hold greens. My expectation is a higher ball flight with hopefully the same distance I'm getting now, so we'll see if that's what I end up with.

I'll be testing at my local range, which offers a nice grass area. Unfortunately both indoor sims near me closed prior to this past winter, so getting on a monitor may not happen. I work close to an executive course where I can get in some on-course testing prior to work; given my checkered history with hybrids I'm keeping the C300 4i in the bag for tee shots and the inevitable punches from out of the woods when I stubbornly refuse to leave the driver in the bag on longer courses.

C300 Irons - The First Impressions

My irons arrived just around 7PM at night, while I was out with my wife & son. I immediately opened the box when I got home like I was a kid on Christmas morning.

The first iron I grabbed was the 7i, and boy was it beautiful and shiny. However, closer inspection showed a big glob of glue on the ferrule. This pic doesn't actually show how bad it was, as I immediately started picking away at it with my thumbnail as soon as I saw it.

To be honest, that worried me so I quickly unwrapped the rest of the heads, and thankfully that was the only club that showed any issues. And let's be honest, it's not a huge issue by any means; had more clubs showed remnants of glue or scratching on the heads, it would be a different story.

Coming from SGI irons, even though I hit the C300s well when testing out shafts, there's still a bit of nerves when moving up a category of iron. However, putting the C300s side by side with my D200s shows that they're pretty close in size. So much so that aside from the power holes and a bit less junk in the trunk, I don't really see much immediate difference at address

 

 

The soles are definitely thinner, and more rounded off by the toe. The C300s definitely give off that better player's vibe, for sure.

For a fun comparison, here's the C300 4i next to a forged TaylorMade RAC blade that I picked up a few years ago for $3 at a local used items store. It looks absolutely huge in comparison!

The cavity looks fantastic. I don't mind the D200 cavity at all, I have always liked the red/silver/black color scheme that a lot of Wilson/Staff irons have used. But boy, when you see them side by side, the C300 looks so streamlined and clean. Very, very nice.

To say that I'm chomping at the bit to work on this review is an understatement. By all means - please ask any questions you may have, and if you have some ideas on ways to better test or present results, I'm all ears. Or, well, since this is all online, I'm all eyes I have some regular golfing buddies who range from 30 handicaps all the way through club champions, so I'm looking forward to putting the C300s into their hands to get their impressions as well.

 

 

 

[russtopherb]

Stage Two - The Review 7/16/2018

 

Wilson/Staff C300 Irons (cast) – Official MGS Forum Review by russtopherb

 

Intro

 

Wilson/Staff has always been known to bring excellent looks, technology, and pricing with all of their product lines. While some purists may look askance at that statement about looks while pointing at the “power holes” in the C300 line (and its predecessor the C200s), one can't help deny that the new C300 line of irons are some darn good looking and performing clubs.

 

Before we jump into the nuts and bolts of this Stage Two review, I want to recap my game, as that may help you get a better understanding of my thoughts as you're reading. I'm currently sitting at a 21 handicap, and usually play around 20 rounds per year - many of which are 9 holes. I'm a bit of a range rat, usually getting in 2 sessions per week when possible. I moved to the cast C300s after gaming their chunkier, more forgiving older brother in the D200 line for almost 2 seasons. So not only did I get to move to a sweet new set of sticks, I also moved up a category from SGI to GI. 

 

Let's see how things went!

 

Looks (6 out of 10 points) 

 

The C300 irons have a clean look that is immediately appealing, especially when you're coming from a larger iron like I did. The “power holes” stand out, especially against the shiny chrome finish, but once you've swung the irons a few times, you never notice them again. 

 

The cavity graphics are MUCH improved over the previous C200 line. The simple chrome and black paintfill give the C300s a look of, dare I say, elegance when compared to some other irons in this category. 

 

Unfortunately, the score here takes a definite hit on two specific issues. 

 

First, the paint has been coming off of the badges on nearly all of the irons since the first few weeks I got them. Now, I don't expect paintfill to look perfectly new forever, but the speed of which the paint began to disappear is disappointing, and it's a sentiment echoed by some of my fellow testers.

 

 

 

Second, the chrome finish has been scratching noticeably for me on both the face and the soles. Here's a link to a post I made about how scuffed up my 7i face was getting. While the scuffing eventually went away for the most part thanks to elbow grease and a Magic Eraser, the soles and faces seem to mark up very easily. If you like your irons to look brand spanking new for quite some time… this may be a concern.

 

 

 

Sound & Feel (8 out of 10 points)

 

I'm pleased to say that the solid “thwack” sound that was introduced with the C200s is intact with the C300s. So much so that I had a golfer peer over into my bag at the range once and ask what I was hitting after hearing a number of iron shots. And let me tell you, that sound is ADDICTIVE. When your bucket is done, you have to resist the urge to go buy another just so you can hear how awesome those irons are. 

 

I was fit into the KBS Tour 90 shafts when I got these irons, and the overall feel of the combination of shaft and head is very nice. The face of these irons feel more lively than my D200s, which is to be expected. When I catch one on the toe, I can tell from the feel and the slight pitch change in the sound. The feel there can be harsh, but that's the price you pay for a miss-hit. 

 

Thin shots are noticeable as well in your hands, far more so than my D200 irons. But not all is bad here - you get the same sound, just a lower ballflight that still almost ends up near where you were expecting the ball to be. 

 

Range Performance (15 out of 20 points)

 

The C300 line promises more consistent distance and height vs. it's competitors, and for the most part that's been very true in my experience. Good shots are rewarded with towering ballflight and soft landings, with a medium trajectory that takes off before climbing up to it's apex. 

 

Fat shots, as I discovered on the range and later on the course, tend to be problematic if that is your miss. The sole doesn't excel at cutting through the turf like some other models do. I've learned to work around that, simply by paying more attention to my own swing and weight transfer. Higher handicappers, or folks who have more of an arm swing due to lack of flexibility and weight transfer, may see this as more of a concern.

 

I'm honestly not at the point where I can really draw or fade the ball on command. However, I will say that with a little work I was able to move the ball in both directions. Sometimes even on purpose.

 

Some golfers talk about those mythical “hot spots” on some iron faces. Thankfully, I can say that's most certainly not a problem with the C300s that I observed. These irons are very consistent when it comes to distance; while I may have dropped balls further left or right of a flag on the range than I wanted, the distances were very consistent across all of the irons. Wilson/Staff talks about how the power holes help turn the entire iron face into one giant hot spot, and the consistent distance I've seen backs that claim up. In this picture below, you can see where 5 shots were hit on the club. All of them went pretty much the same exact distance, save for the one out on the toe that was perhaps 6-7 yards shorter.

 

 

Given that these irons are designed to give you excellent launch & height, I've found it more difficult to flight the ball lower on purpose, such as when you'd need a punch shot to get out of the woods. 

 

On-Course Performance (25 out of 40 points)

 

I made a point to hit some Par 3 courses with the C300s so I could focus exclusively on iron play. My first few times out I was missing long due to getting acclimated with them, as I found them to be anywhere from 5 to 7 yards longer than my D200s on well struck shots. Once I settled down, I found that I was able to pull clubs successfully based on the distance I needed to hit, without too much indecision. Again, consistency with these irons for distance is fantastic.

 

The biggest area of concern for me out on the course with the C300s is dispersion. This became apparent the more I played them from various lies, vs. just bashing balls from a perfect lie at the range. Is most of that on me for not being able to play more often, and have more skill in getting out of trouble? Absolutely. However… for someone in my shoes, you want an iron that'll do it's best to get you out of trouble quickly, and in a good spot for recovery. I didn't personally find that to be the case with the C300s, even in the shorter scoring irons, whereas my D200s give me max confidence that I can escape trouble relatively easily. I found that my main swing flaw, the fat shot, was far more penal out on the course than it was with my D200s, which continued what I saw on the practice range.

 

The unexpected pleasant surprise for me in this whole set is the Gap wedge. It's performed a number of roles for me on the course, and quite admirably. I've used it for chips around the green from various distances, and 50-70 yard shots where I needed to land the ball in a small area and have it stop relatively quickly. I got used to gripping down on the GW and taking half or three-quarter swings to give me the distance and trajectory I needed, and it's been a pleasure to hit.

 

Teeing off with the longer irons is extremely easy, and I had no problem pulling the 4i or 5i on tight par 4s or doglegs. Having long irons that you have confidence in is huge, even if you may only use the 4i for tee shots or punch outs. 

 

I was a bit apprehensive about playing these irons on a links style course. That concern was unfounded, as I was able to hold my line in some stiffer winds. I didn't see any ballooning on the course at all thanks to the height the power holes provide, and I purposely used balls ranging from the W/S Duo all the way through the TP5 to gauge how the performance may or may not have been affected by the ball in combination with the irons. Just based on my own swing, these irons plus a lower compression ball work great together in all conditions.

 

Play it or Trade it? (15 out of 20 points)

 

Here's where I need to be brutally honest with myself about the state of my game, and with you, the reader who may be looking to purchase these irons. 

 

These are some excellent irons - the performance is there, and they have a great price point in comparison with some other iron sets currently on the market. They look good for the most part, and with the amount of shaft and grip options at your disposal you shouldn't have any problem coming up with a combination that'll work out great for you if this category of clubs fits in your bag.

 

That being said, here are my concerns with the set. 

 

Wear & Tear - As noted above, these irons showed wear quickly. The soles, the faces, the paintfill… and to me, that's pretty disappointing. If I spent $800-$900 on these irons brand new and I saw that happen, I'd be miffed. I've always wiped the irons down on the range and course, and I use warm water with some detergent and a toothbrush to clean them thoroughly after every round. The chrome finish and paint just haven't held up in my opinion.

 

 

 

 

Forgiveness - The sole design on these irons, for my swing, is not forgiving. I feel that a lot of other higher handicappers may be in the same boat. If I chunk a shot with these irons, the sod is flying and the ball isn't, and boy can you feel it. With my D200s, the ball's not going as far, but it's still out a lot further than fat shots with the C300s. Pickers may have no problem with these soles, but if you take a divot routinely, keep the sole/turf interaction in mind. 

 

Consistency - I never had a problem worrying about distance with these irons on the course. The end results were almost always correct when it came to pulling the right club for the right yardage. If I put a good swing on the ball, it went the expected distance nearly every time. The dispersion, however, was much more exaggerated for me than with my D200s. 

 

I don't pin hunt - I always aim for the center of the green. With the C300s, after 10+ rounds and numerous range sessions, I still wasn't sure if I was going to put the ball in the center, on the fringe, or well off to the side. Yes, some of that is definitely on me and my swing.

 

However I can't discount the fact that the same shot from the same location with my D200s usually ended up far closer to where I was aiming. I would would play two balls and purposely alternate which iron I used first, so as not to take a bad swing first then make a better one once I was more comfortable with the lie and distance. The D200 was closer to where I wanted the ball to land in nearly every instance.

 

The weighting of the club may have something to do with the consistency, as I cannot get a good feel for where the clubhead is during the swing. I have a fairly light shaft in these with the KBS Tour 90 and the midsized grips shouldn't be that much of a factor either, given that I've played midsized for at least 3 seasons now. However I definitely “lose” the clubhead on the downswing, which may be playing a big part in all of my side to side misses.

 

I'm going to reiterate - these are some great irons. Excellent height without ballooning, extremely consistent distance, and very nice sound and feel. They are, in my opinion, solidly in the Game Improvement category when my game really needs Super Game Improvement irons. The C300s may be perfect for me down the road after I have more practice and rounds under my belt. They may be perfect for you right now if you're a mid-teens handicap who plays every week. However, as an involved dad with 2 kids and a desk job that doesn't allow me to play during the week… the C300s haven't been the best fit. I erred on the higher side with the score here, because I don't feel it's fair to fault the irons for doing or not doing something given my main misses & swing flaws.  

 

One good thing for me with the C300s in the bag the past few months is that they made me focus more on making a good swing. When I get on the course though, I want to be thinking about the ballflight and my score, not whether or not I'm going to leave the ball well short after a chunk, or if I'm guaranteed to be stuck in one of the greenside bunkers because the ball isn't going close to where I'm aiming. In short, I want to be worrying about playing golf, not playing golf swing.

 

Conclusion

 

The Wilson/Staff C300s irons bring some exciting and proven technology in a well priced, sharp looking package. If you're looking for consistent height and ballflight, along with solid looks and sound, the C300 cast irons should absolutely be on your “must try” list. Based on my own experiences with this line of clubs, I feel they are best suited for improving players with handicaps in the mid teens to single digits. If the state of your game requires you to have a set of irons that are “point and shoot”, you may want to try these before you buy them. 

 

If you prefer your irons to look as brand new for as long as possible, you might want to consider iron covers and whether or not you want to spend the time wiping down the clubs with a wet towel after every single shot. The chrome finish and paintfill look beautiful in the bag and in hand, but they will both wear quickly. 

 

The C300s are a great all-around package for a large segment of golfers who like clean looks along with a great feel & sound to go with consistent distance. If you're in the market for Game Improvement irons, don't discount the shield when you're out looking for your next iron purchase - demo the C300s, and you'll be glad that you did!

 

Final Score: (69/100)

 

 

 

 

[russtopherb]

Hey everyone, I've got my Stage 1 posted for you to read. This is my first MGS review, so I'm excited to see what I can bring to the table, especially from the higher handicapper point of view.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or if there's anything you'd like to know about prior to my Stage 2 review. I've got 3 range sessions in with them so far and headed out to the course this coming weekend, so fire away!

[Nunfa0]

Hey everyone, I've got my Stage 1 posted for you to read. This is my first MGS review, so I'm excited to see what I can bring to the table, especially from the higher handicapper point of view.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or if there's anything you'd like to know about prior to my Stage 2 review. I've got 3 range sessions in with them so far and headed out to the course this coming weekend, so fire away!

Great stage one!! How do the shafts in the C300 compare to your D200? Are they the same flex, heavier or lighter and are they the same length?

[MaxEntropy]

Hey everyone, I've got my Stage 1 posted for you to read. This is my first MGS review, so I'm excited to see what I can bring to the table, especially from the higher handicapper point of view.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or if there's anything you'd like to know about prior to my Stage 2 review. I've got 3 range sessions in with them so far and headed out to the course this coming weekend, so fire away!

 

Excellent start! I know it has been said before, but I really enjoy the stage 1's - I feel like a get to know people better. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

 

EDIT: somehow I missed that Tony had posted his Stage 1, too! Good read, Tony!

[Nunfa0]

We're fortunate that in addition to the driving range at our club we have two rarely used practice holes and the Club has a launch monitor I can use as well.  My plan is to do a side by side test with the irons on those practice holes.  However, ever since the irons arrived we've been plagued by torrential rains, in spite of the rain I was able to sneak out onto the course and try the GW on a short par 3. Hmmm pretty nice -  all of the balls I hit were just a few feet from the pin. Birdy time?

 

IMG_5226 (1).JPG

 

I can't wait for the stage 2 testing to begin. Will I get explosive power?  Will I get straighter heel and toe shots?  The truth will be in the data so let the testing begin……….

Nice start Lefty, keep hitting the gap wedge like that and you will soon be reaching you goals!

[tony@CIC]

Hey everyone, I've got my Stage 1 posted for you to read. This is my first MGS review, so I'm excited to see what I can bring to the table, especially from the higher handicapper point of view.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or if there's anything you'd like to know about prior to my Stage 2 review. I've got 3 range sessions in with them so far and headed out to the course this coming weekend, so fire away!

Great photos - nice read!

[russtopherb]

Great stage one!! How do the shafts in the C300 compare to your D200? Are they the same flex, heavier or lighter and are they the same length?

 

Thanks for the kind words!

 

The KBS Tour 90s I have in the C300s are 101 grams, vs the Elements Chrome I have in the D200s which come in at 59 grams. Length is the same. I'll be honest - the weight difference has been the biggest adjustment so far, with less offset in the C300s coming in a close second. I've had to really think about my tempo with these clubs vs the D200s. Given the shaft weight differences, I "feel" the C300 clubhead differently, if that makes sense.

[Nunfa0]

Thanks for the kind words!

 

The KBS Tour 90s I have in the C300s are 101 grams, vs the Elements Chrome I have in the D200s which come in at 59 grams. Length is the same. I'll be honest - the weight difference has been the biggest adjustment so far, with less offset in the C300s coming in a close second. I've had to really think about my tempo with these clubs vs the D200s. Given the shaft weight differences, I "feel" the C300 clubhead differently, if that makes sense.

I totally understand, I rented some clubs a month back and it felt like the heads were twice the weight of my clubs even though the main difference was in the weight of the shaft!

[cnosil]

Nice stage 1 guys. I on out of town on a business trip so I will be posting my stage 1 when I return. Looking forward to getting a chance to getting mine out to the course

[JAGolfore]

Nice start guys! Keep up the good work.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

[goaliewales14]

tony@CIC - I was in the same boat as you last year with the gapping issues on the wedges.  My Srixon Z545's stopped at PW which was 44*.  I was carrying a 48*, 52*, 56*, and 60* vokey wedge to help with that.  Trouble is that left me open on the top towards the 3 hybrid range.  I ended up getting a wedge fitting and they suggested just ordering the GW of the Z565's and then carrying a 56* and 60*.  We matched the shaft and everything of the GW to my irons since you are most likely taking full shots with GW.  Glad to see this set is helping you out with that gapping!

[Golfspy_CG2]

Hey everyone, I've got my Stage 1 posted for you to read. This is my first MGS review, so I'm excited to see what I can bring to the table, especially from the higher handicapper point of view.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or if there's anything you'd like to know about prior to my Stage 2 review. I've got 3 range sessions in with them so far and headed out to the course this coming weekend, so fire away!

Great job on the Pics and Stage 1 Russ.   Love the comparison, of the SGI D200 and the TM RAC on the other end.   I have had really good success with that Tour 90 shaft in the past, and your driver SS is higher than mine, so I anticipate you'll adjust to it very quickly and have some really good results.   Looking forward to the journey with you!

[gaussman1]

Stage 1 is up!

https://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/23686-official-forum-member-review-wilson-c300-irons/?p=410871

[Golfspy_CG2]

Guassman, telling it like it is in his Stage 1.  Take note everyone, this is all we ask for in your reviews, be honest on your thoughts.    I also laughed out loud at the Wedges thinking they're special comment...Hilarious!

[GolfJunkie302]

Great intros guys!

 

Sent from my SM-T580 using Tapatalk

[Golfspy_CG2]

Nice Job Tony, quite a statement about Golf being harder than anything you've done before, including piloting a plane.    I love that its' something you and your wife enjoy doing together!  

[ole gray]

Hey everyone, I've got my Stage 1 posted for you to read. This is my first MGS review, so I'm excited to see what I can bring to the table, especially from the higher handicapper point of view.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions or if there's anything you'd like to know about prior to my Stage 2 review. I've got 3 range sessions in with them so far and headed out to the course this coming weekend, so fire away!

 

Don't worry as you have natural talent with this reviewing stuff and by the way, great pics! Looking forward to your stage 2.

[deejaid]

Nice start fellas!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[russtopherb]

Great job on the Pics and Stage 1 Russ.   Love the comparison, of the SGI D200 and the TM RAC on the other end.   I have had really good success with that Tour 90 shaft in the past, and your driver SS is higher than mine, so I anticipate you'll adjust to it very quickly and have some really good results.   Looking forward to the journey with you!

 

By my third range session I was definitely more comfortable with them. My first session I was digging absolute trenches with them, my second was filled with weak fades, but my third was so much better once I started getting used to the shafts. They just load and feel different, that's all there is to it. 

 

I'll be headed to a Par 3 course this weekend with my son & dad, weather permitting. So it'll be a great workout for all of the irons. 

 

I'll also say that chipping with the PW is pretty solid & consistent. I really enjoyed using that one on the chipping green. 

[Nunfa0]

Stage 1 is up!

https://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/23686-official-forum-member-review-wilson-c300-irons/?p=410871

Love it Gaussman and I really like the look of the forged set of yours.

[gaussman1]

Love it Gaussman and I really like the look of the forged set of yours.

Thank you! They really are sharp looking clubs and I'm excited to report on my initial fitting and now launch monitor data on this current set in Stage 2

[tony@CIC]

I'm really sorry G20's but after playing these Wilson's for a week I'm going to have to bench you. Yes I know you've been there for for me through birdies and bogies but these Wilson's are coming on strong. There's a chance they may not make it through stage 2 testing and yes I know Power Holes are a marketing gimmick but the truth will will come with that launch monitor data. In the meantime enjoy your early retirement.