Mixed Iron Set

[Freddie]

Hi,  Looking for new irons and leaning towards Callaway Mavrik Series.   I see that a lot of good golfers mix their iron sets by using more forgiving longer irons with more player type irons on the shorter end.  Two questions:

1.  If you were going to split your irons up (i'm a 15 handicap) would you go Mavrik Max on the long irons and Mavrik Pro or Mavrik standard on the short end?  Where would you make the split (7 iron and below, 6 iron and above)?

2.  Given that the Mavrik Series has faces designed for each iron individually so as to better provide the proper functionality to short, mid and long irons,  would this AI designing remove the need to split irons?

thanks,

  

[Tom the Golf Nut]

Throughout the MGS community you will always see "get fit properly". There are too many reasons to list why you should. I can tell you that I know people with mixed sets that were fit to them. They had more forgiving irons in the 4 through 7 then switched over to another model within the same brand for the 8 through pitching wedge and then switched to another brand for the gap, sand, and lob wedges. It's all about what works for your swing (taking all things considered in the swing).  If your a 15 handicap then doing it the right way will last you much longer and cost less in the long run of experimenting. I wish I would have done this years ago and maybe I wouldn't have about six or seven sets of clubs in my garage all claiming to be the cure in their day. 

I can't really help you on your second point. It is the manufactures claim that the artificial intelligence solves this problem. All golfers are different and not seeing enough testing would make me wonder if the results would be the same for everyone. I would tend not to think so in my opinion. 

[revkev]

1 hour ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

Throughout the MGS community you will always see "get fit properly". There are too many reasons to list why you should. I can tell you that I know people with mixed sets that were fit to them. They had more forgiving irons in the 4 through 7 then switched over to another model within the same brand for the 8 through pitching wedge and then switched to another brand for the gap, sand, and lob wedges. It's all about what works for your swing (taking all things considered in the swing).  If your a 15 handicap then doing it the right way will last you much longer and cost less in the long run of experimenting. I wish I would have done this years ago and maybe I wouldn't have about six or seven sets of clubs in my garage all claiming to be the cure in their day. 

I can't really help you on your second point. It is the manufactures claim that the artificial intelligence solves this problem. All golfers are different and not seeing enough testing would make me wonder if the results would be the same for everyone. I would tend not to think so in my opinion. 

Everything he said except I only have three sets in the closet (because I've given two away.)

A split set is a good idea and between 8 and 7 or 7 and 6 are the normal split point but everyone is different and every 15 is different.  You might be a 15 with a stronger iron game than I have as a 4.6 - when you look at my handicap make up I'm around a 9 with my approach shots.  I also have a shallow AOA so for that reason I need more GI and I make my split between PW and 9 iron or even sometimes between GW and PW. 

 

Ideally you'd get fit but at the very least you need to know your swing characteristics and your strengths or weaknesses if you are going to try and fit yourself.

 

Good luck!

[Freddie]

Thanks for all your feedback TTGN and revkev.  I'm planning on getting fit so making sure I have all the information to ask questions.  I've been fit before for other clubs and Irons (8 yrs ago) and I've seen good and bad fitters.  This time I want to make sure I get my money's worth.

[Tom the Golf Nut]

Finding a good fitter can be a task. Goog luck and keep us up to date.

[xOldBenKenobiX]

4 hours ago, revkev said:

Everything he said except I only have three sets in the closet (because I've given two away.)

A split set is a good idea and between 8 and 7 or 7 and 6 are the normal split point but everyone is different and every 15 is different.  You might be a 15 with a stronger iron game than I have as a 4.6 - when you look at my handicap make up I'm around a 9 with my approach shots.  I also have a shallow AOA so for that reason I need more GI and I make my split between PW and 9 iron or even sometimes between GW and PW. 

 

Ideally you'd get fit but at the very least you need to know your swing characteristics and your strengths or weaknesses if you are going to try and fit yourself.

 

Good luck!

I started hiding some irons, so the wife don't know how many sets I got laying around. 

[Hadi05]

Hahaha!

I started hiding some irons, so the wife don't know how many sets I got laying around. 

Sent from my SM-G960U using MyGolfSpy mobile app

[Firebird]

When I was looking for new clubs, Mizuno actually recommended a mixed set. I have not seen the Mavrik irons, let alone hit them but the one thing I always want is that the top line when you look down looks the same.

Edited August 11, 2020 by Firebird

[bacchus]

Agree with get fit if you can, they will determine what is best route to go. A couple things I'd keep in mind as someone who plays a split set:

1. You need to pay attention to lofts because most manufactures have jacked up lofts on the game improvement/super game improvement irons, so its not necessarily a smooth progression. It also might not be as simple of bending lofts, because if you bend it too much it will change other characteristics like the bounce.

2. From my fitting experience and things I've read/seen, fitters generally recommend 6 iron as the club to split at.  You can either have your 6 match your short irons or your long, often depends on how comfortable you are.  

3. Definitely make sure you hit all the irons, I think generally you're going to notice more of a difference between the players-type long irons and game improvement long irons than between game improvement and super game improvement long irons. So in your case you might decided you'd rather just have a full bag of the Mavrik rather than Mavrik/Mavrik Max split set. 

[Kansas King]

Getting properly fit is the answer. However, regarding where you split is probably an answer you already know. What is the longest iron you strike reliably and confidently? If that is a 7-iron, you're split will probably be there. I wouldn't get lost in the Callaway marketing hoopla talking about AI as loft, lie, and length are still the primary attributes that will affect ball flight, not where Callaway meticulously places one gram of tungsten. Forgiveness is simply a result of physics which is generally boiled down into MOI, COG, etc. That's why Callaway has three versions of the Mavrik irons as there are trade-offs with most design choices with forgiveness being a big one.  Depending on your situation the best option for the longer irons may by hybrids or loftier woods. The key thing is to go into a fitting with an open mind and get yourself irons that are best suited for your game. The Mavrik clubs are fine clubs and I'm sure you will find a good way to be fit into them. Don't get caught up with the number on the bottom of the club, the type of shaft, or length. Just try to find a good fitter and trust the process. You should also realize that if your game changes significantly or you pack on some muscle over the next five to ten years that you may need to be re-fit in the future.

[Stuka44]

Be careful mixing the Mavrik Irons.  If you look carefully the 3 mavrik types(unless they have a combo set I am unaware of) all have different lofts associated with the same numbered clubs.  You may end up with a gap between the two different makes of Marviks that you don't have a full swing club for.  I looked initially at Cobra.  They have King Forged CB/MB irons, where some are cavity back, and some are muscle back.  I eventually went with Mavrik Pro because the lofts were more aggressive than my Burner 2.0's, and allowed me to remove my 3H(190), as the new 4 iron was a degree more aggressive than  3H, can now get 190 out of 4 iron,  and at the bottom end gave me more aggressive PW loft I can get 120 out of, something I was missing.  And with 3H removed from bag could insert extra 52 wedge for 100 yard shot.  Look for lofts in new set that will fill in any gaps if there are any.  Getting fit is probably a good thing, I tried it inside and you would have thought I had never swung a golf club before.  That was early this year.  Good Luck.

[revkev]

51 minutes ago, stuka44 said:

Be careful mixing the Mavrik Irons.  If you look carefully the 3 mavrik types(unless they have a combo set I am unaware of) all have different lofts associated with the same numbered clubs.  You may end up with a gap between the two different makes of Marviks that you don't have a full swing club for.  I looked initially at Cobra.  They have King Forged CB/MB irons, where some are cavity back, and some are muscle back.  I eventually went with Mavrik Pro because the lofts were more aggressive than my Burner 2.0's, and allowed me to remove my 3H(190), as the new 4 iron was a degree more aggressive than  3H, can now get 190 out of 4 iron,  and at the bottom end gave me more aggressive PW loft I can get 120 out of, something I was missing.  And with 3H removed from bag could insert extra 52 wedge for 100 yard shot.  Look for lofts in new set that will fill in any gaps if there are any.  Getting fit is probably a good thing, I tried it inside and you would have thought I had never swung a golf club before.  That was early this year.  Good Luck.

I've been creating "self made" combo sets for years after gaming a real one that worked great for me, the Nicklaus Iron max, that was unfortunately stolen out of my trunk.  I've been fit for full iron sets since then and never, ever been satisfied, I'm a better player who needs that look in my short irons, but an older player with a shallow AoA who needs some footprint beef in my middle irons and longer iron replacements whatever those might look like, in order to get them airborne and shoot the scores that I'm accustomed to.

I've often found that when looking to create a blended set there needs to be some loft tweaking across the board, strengthening or weakening of a loft between the Players and GI middle irons, lofting the hybrid or fairway down in that gap as well.

You have to be prepared to tweak until you get it just right for your swing - that will take a fitter and then some on course/range practice on your part also.

[TexasFullSend]

Check out the Taylormade P760s. They are a combo set that ascetically doesn't look off. Basically you have a combo of players irons in the PW-8iron and then slightly players distance irons in the 7iron-4iron. each getting slightly strong lofts.

 

I would without a doubt get fitted though. Not just to find out what club head you should game but to find out what shaft model fits your swing.

[PingMD702]

I saw that Taylor Made came out with the ultimate blending chart for their new P770, P7MC, P7MB lines. I would definitely check that out since it is by far the most helpful chart I have ever seen when it comes to blending haha! I am currently debating whether to add the U500 or T100 4 iron, T100 5 & 6 iron (bent 1 degree weak), in place of my 620 CB 4-6 and keeping my scoring irons 7-9 in the CBs. I worry about gapping between the 4 utility iron and my 3h which is at 19*. What do you guys think about this? 

[Buffly]

On 8/5/2020 at 8:52 AM, Freddie said:

Hi,  Looking for new irons and leaning towards Callaway Mavrik Series.   I see that a lot of good golfers mix their iron sets by using more forgiving longer irons with more player type irons on the shorter end.  Two questions:

1.  If you were going to split your irons up (i'm a 15 handicap) would you go Mavrik Max on the long irons and Mavrik Pro or Mavrik standard on the short end?  Where would you make the split (7 iron and below, 6 iron and above)?

2.  Given that the Mavrik Series has faces designed for each iron individually so as to better provide the proper functionality to short, mid and long irons,  would this AI designing remove the need to split irons?

thanks,

  

There are so, so, so many variables that this comes down to a simple preference based on your experience when your try them yourself. 

You will need to test them to figure that out for yourself. 

The trend I have noticed is to actually focus on the stock shaft options. 

The heads are marketed to different golfers based on their ability and the head design is matched to that. The shaft is paired based off that criteria in the stock shaft. 

For instance, the Max vs Pro has a 80 vs 105 gram shaft. Max is designed to help get the ball up in the air more than Pro with the sole weighting. The lighter shaft helps slower swingers who need it. 

Along the same vein, faster swings usually mean they need a heavier shaft to match their ability. 

Yes, you can get a different shaft but, I suggest you look at what they put in the stock shaft to see who they are looking to target with their design. 

Based solely on your handicap, I would not recommend the Pro because the sweet spot is smaller. If you have a fastish swing then the Standard. If you have a slowish swing then the Max. And you can split the set where you start to have trouble finding the sweet spot. Usually, between the 6, 7, or 8. Plus, if long irons are troublesome then hybrids might even be better.

The shaft matters as a timing device - weight affects tempo. Too light - can't control. Too heavy - becomes unwieldy. 

[Buffly]

On 8/26/2020 at 1:18 AM, PingMD702 said:

I saw that Taylor Made came out with the ultimate blending chart for their new P770, P7MC, P7MB lines. I would definitely check that out since it is by far the most helpful chart I have ever seen when it comes to blending haha! I am currently debating whether to add the U500 or T100 4 iron, T100 5 & 6 iron (bent 1 degree weak), in place of my 620 CB 4-6 and keeping my scoring irons 7-9 in the CBs. I worry about gapping between the 4 utility iron and my 3h which is at 19*. What do you guys think about this? 

I feel your pain. 

I went 5w, 4h, 4 hybrid driving iron to solve my gaps. 

5 wood=3 hybrid=2 iron

7 wood=4 hybrid=3 iron

9 wood=5 hybrid=4 iron

The choice depends on your delivery tendency and consistency probability. If you are a good long iron player then the 4i might be the better choice. If you want easier height and more forgiveness then the U500.