2020 Official Member Review: Wilson D7 Forged Irons

[fixyurdivot]

42 minutes ago, Thin2win said:

I'm going to get 1 more round in before writing up my review, looks like it is going to be cold and rainy. Guess I'll be able to report how they handle adverse climate and the cold. 

I applaud your commitment to the cause!  

[Thin2win]

12 minutes ago, fixyurdivot said:

I applaud your commitment to the cause!  

I'm here for the people. Lol. 

[revkev]

I applaud your commitment to the cause!  

Hey it’s been super wet for me, too. I lost an umbrella today. :(

Three significant rain showers during our round.


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[fixyurdivot]

8 minutes ago, revkev said:

 

Hey it’s been super wet for me, too. I lost an umbrella today.

Three significant rain showers during our round.


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Well then you get a hand too.   

[GregGarner]

On 9/15/2020 at 11:00 PM, greggarner said:

Ball flight is noticeably lower and more penetrating and if that holds, that's immediately going to make these real contenders to stay in my bag permanently

Side-by-side on comparable strikes, I found this pretty interesting. D7 in yellow, i210 in red.

PW:

6i:

4i:

[Thin2win]

10 minutes ago, greggarner said:

Side-by-side on comparable strikes, I found this pretty interesting. D7 in yellow, i210 in red.

The PW looks about the same. 

The 6i looks noticeably lower, and the 4i looks about the same again. 

[fixyurdivot]

15 minutes ago, greggarner said:

Side-by-side on comparable strikes, I found this pretty interesting. D7 in yellow, i210 in red.

PW:

6i:

4i:

Really awesome comparison Greg!  That is a great way to illustrate ballflight differences.  The 4i and PW look pretty similar but there is a big difference in the 6i.  Would you describe yourself as a lower than average ball height hitter and do you have any issues with stopping power with the i210 mid irons?

[GregGarner]

2 hours ago, fixyurdivot said:

Really awesome comparison Greg!  That is a great way to illustrate ballflight differences.  The 4i and PW look pretty similar but there is a big difference in the 6i.  Would you describe yourself as a lower than average ball height hitter and do you have any issues with stopping power with the i210 mid irons?

Prior to the D7s, I've always had a very (VERY) high ballflight. My current i210s are Power Spec (de-lofted) and the DG S300's are hard-stepped, all trying to get the flight down. The D7 mid-irons seem much more effective at getting my flight down.

As for spin, I get plenty with the i210s. The ball seems to 'float' before coming down. With the D7s, I've actually had a few that have struggled to hold their flight and then hit and run out. I haven't been able to get access to a launch monitor, but I suspect my carry yardages between the sets are actually really, really similar and the D7s are just running out more. Good for long/mid irons. Not so good when I'm hitting an 8i that lands next to the flag and then runs out well past... Just something to get used to, I suppose.

[fixyurdivot]

15 minutes ago, greggarner said:

Prior to the D7s, I've always had a very (VERY) high ballflight. My current i210s are Power Spec (de-lofted) and the DG S300's are hard-stepped, all trying to get the flight down. The D7 mid-irons seem much more effective at getting my flight down.

As for spin, I get plenty with the i210s. The ball seems to 'float' before coming down. With the D7s, I've actually had a few that have struggled to hold their flight and then hit and run out. I haven't been able to get access to a launch monitor, but I suspect my carry yardages between the sets are actually really, really similar and the D7s are just running out more. Good for long/mid irons. Not so good when I'm hitting an 8i that lands next to the flag and then runs out well past... Just something to get used to, I suppose.

I wonder if a higher launching shaft on your mid thru long irons would help?  I know lots of players now bag mixed category clubs but not sure if they also mix up shafts? 

[GregGarner]

1 hour ago, fixyurdivot said:

I wonder if a higher launching shaft on your mid thru long irons would help?  I know lots of players now bag mixed category clubs but not sure if they also mix up shafts? 

For the D7s, I switched from Dynamic Gold to KBS Tour-V, but those are supposed to have pretty similar launch/spin characteristics. I'm not unhappy (at all) with a lower flight, but I wouldn't mind getting some spin back on my mid and short irons.

And yes, I know what I need to do is get some lessons and stop flipping at impact. But new toys are more fun.

[revkev]

 

I don’t rely on spin that much with anything longer than wedge and despite the rain the greens were firm on Sunday. I found I was within the normal range in regards to run out though. But the longest iron that I hit on Sunday was 6 iron.

 

I was pin high or a bit past it all day. That made me happy

 

 

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[MattF]

I continuing to see improvement using the clubs, they may or may not be a touch shorter than the Bridgestones...we'll see.

[revkev]

Heads up for tomorrow - look for something bigger from me then.

[revkev]

Okay a day latter than I had wanted but my review is up.  Thanks again to MGS and Wilson - I will certainly be looking for any follow up question and also am planning to post more as I have not had as much on course experience with these irons as I would like.  If last week's round is any indication these irons will be in my bag for some time.

[Rickp]

Wilson D7 forged irons – Official MGS Forum Review by Rev Kevin Loughran 10/16/2020
Intro
As I start out I wanted to thank Wilson and MyGolfSpy for this great test opportunity!
I am as the screen name suggests, the Senior Pastor of a fairly large church and school community who is 64 years old.  I primarily play at two private clubs, mine, The Bayou Club in Largo, FL, and St. Pete Country Club in St. Petersburg, FL.  You will see in the following video that I’m between a 6 and 7 iron at 150.  I have a moderate swing tempo with a driver swing speed from 90-95 and currently have a 4.4 handicap index.  I have played Ping G30’s for the past three years, prior to that I was gaming Wilson C200’s and before that the C100’s.  I was fit for the C100’s and G30’s. 
My issues with each of those iron sets has been the transition from middle irons to short irons and PW to my SCOR wedges.  My typical miss with iron is left or thin and right.  When you look at my ARCCOS data I am more accurate with 7 iron than 9 iron or wedge and that is a problem.  I’m only at 50/50 hitting greens with my short irons when I should be thinking about getting it inside of 25 feet.
Here I am hitting a 7 iron:
 
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I did not get fit for this test because I had just met with my fitter met to adjust an iron set.  I used the specs from that adjustment session to have my order placed with Wilson:  D7 forged 4-GW, 2 flat, Mamiya Recoil 460 R flex, plus .5 inches, Tour Velvet 1 extra wrap.
 
First Impressions
COVID has made everyone’s life interesting.  We were selected for this test in early August, put in our orders shortly thereafter and then waited. My irons arrived on September 14 and were exactly as promised, the lies were all 2 flat and no loft was off by more than .5 degree of what was listed on the Custom Fit sheet.  A special shout out to Wilson for overnighting these to us once they were ready.
 

 

Wilson has touted its “power hole” technology since it released the C200 irons.  While I was a bit longer with the C200’s I found the C100’s, without the holes, more consistent and more forgiving. 
If I’m not mistaken this is the third iteration of that technology and the promise on the website is that “the power hole placement has been optimized for the forged heads, increasing face deflection and contact time between ball and the face of the iron.”  It also states a bit about Wilson’s Power Chamber technology that fills the Power Holes and the Forged 8620 Carbon Steel Cavity construction that give the “look and feel of a traditional forged iron with game-improving distance.”

 
From the beginning, when I applied for this test, I was wondering about several things.  Could my more moderate swing speed and shallow AoA approach handle a gamier sole?  Also, how would I do with far less offset than what I have become accustomed to?  Could I actually hit a 4 iron?  At the same time I really wanted to shore up the issues that I was having hitting my short irons. 

 
The practice areas at Bayou were ideal for this test.  I was able to try my irons from a variety of lies (on the range) and my trusty little Rapsodo gave me a lot of good data.  The one thing that it doesn’t record though is ball spin.  I did also have them on the course on four occasions.   I would say that it took me close to the full month to get used to the irons as they were a radical departure from what I was used to. 

 

I had originally intended to have a trackman session as a part of this test but contact tracing shut my fitter down for two weeks.  I will be able to post that data in a follow up.  I doubt that I will have anything earth shattering for you there though.  Players Distance irons launch higher and spin less than Players irons with the idea being that you will stop the ball through trajectory rather than spin.
 
Let’s see how all of this has played out.
 

 
Looks

I normally don’t care much about this but in this case I do.  I’ve been searching for an iron that will fit my swing profile with a thinner top line and a less exaggerated difference between the PW or GW and my bottom of the bag wedges.  These truly fit the bill.  I’m going 10/10 here.
 

 
 
Sound & Feel
I do actually care about sound although I will get used to a sound if the club produces results.  There’s really no need to get used to anything with the D7 forged irons though.  These clubs have a very nice report, like a pistol shot on the range.  I love the way the sole interacts with the turf.  It took a couple of weeks for me to get used to that feel but this is what I want out of a club – there’s forgiveness, I can tell when I miss hit the ball but I still get something out of balls hit a bit off the toe or down a few grooves. 
 10/10
 
Basic Characteristics
 This is where it gets interesting.  The stock shot is a nice high shot with a hint of draw.  What I’ve found is that I handle less offset really well.  I have a much larger draw with my G30’s and have to allow for it.  That’s fine when it’s working but I will miss shots left when I get tired or right when I swing too hard and don’t release.  Not with these D7’s.  Distance is very similar but there is no comparison in regards to dispersion, as you’ll see below. 

 
Please note that these are carry distances, not total.  On course results show that I hit the 9 iron between 120 and 125. 5 iron however does not work for me.  In fact, I carry my 6 iron as long as my 5 with a much nicer ball flight and there is no comparison between the 5 iron and 9 wood. (The 9 wood is pictured in purple above)
In regards to workability I’m not a player who works the ball right to left or left to right.  I can hit a cut with these if I need to, on the range at least.  Still, I find them difficult to curve much.  What I can do is hit them up or down.  The 5^th hole at a course that I frequently play has a line of trees that obscure the entire right half of the fairway.  It’s a medium length par 4 so for me driver 8 or 9 iron.  I dropped a few balls behind the trees and had no trouble launching over them and onto the green.  At the same time, I am able to flight the ball down.  I have not had that shot in quite a while.  Welcome back!
I’m going 16/20 here because I know that some guys like to work their shots.  I think that they would not be happy with these.  Also I love the way that they look but I’m coming from GI irons.  I’m looking forward to reading what someone going the other way, from a players club, to these, thinks.
Performance
I know that this category is often the guts of the review.  Weather and COVID though changed a lot of things for me in regards to what I had originally planned.  I took a staycation the first week of October and planned to play three times during it.  Two of those three rounds were washed out and the one that I started stopped after 5 holes.  I have managed to get them on the course 4 times and played numerous simulated holes on my practice range. 

 
For one of my practice rounds I was able to move up to the front tees and go iron only.  They really do fit my eye and the optic between GW and SCOR 52 is far more appealing than whatever else has been filling that spot. 
I was able to play a for real round last Sunday and hit them great.  Especially heartening were my short iron shots.  Everyone flew hole high, many were straight at the pin and all had enough stopping power even out of heavy rough.
 
My stock shot is a medium high draw which should be apparent in each of the earlier shot videos.  These babies produce that one for me only it is far less pronounced than with my gamers.  That’s good IMO.  I had no issues using them to punch out under tree limbs or from a fairway trap.  They have plenty of forgiveness for my game.  Shots that are down a few grooves tend to fly a bit left for me while toed hits start right and come back on target.  Any time I practice with the launch monitor the dispersion pattern is tight.  Data with my former irons would show fairly tight patterns but always left of target.
I’m thinking the forgiveness and tight dispersion is due to the Power Holes so Wilson gets prop for its technology.  I suspect that less offset has moved my shot pattern from left to nearly dead on center. There was some chatter early on in this thread about those holes picking up dirt.  I’ve not experienced that at any time during the test.

 
I maxed out at 6 iron in terms of the proper ball flight, carry and consistency.  I hit some very nice shots with 4 and 5 iron but am not consistent enough to game them.  However, this is not the fault of the D7 forged but rather an idiosyncrasy of my swing type.  My legitimate concerns would be that the hot face makes it tricky to use these for bump and runs around the green or to use the GW for shots that require a bit of spin as well as the difficulty in really getting them to curve for a player who likes to work the ball both ways.
In some ways this category remains in process for me as I’ve become familiar with the irons and will play much more golf with them.  Let’s just say that I believe this may be the start of a beautiful friendship. 
 27/30
 
Miscellaneous
I’ve been waiting for this category since I was selected.  I do have a question for Wilson.  Why this name?  For some time they’ve had the C and D categories.  I knew that I was a C (Control) player.  I did try a friend’s D7’s and liked them but with their offset, I hit them even farther left than the G30’s.  I don’t know that Wilson will be able to get the word out to the general public that these are Player’s irons while having the D designation in the name. 
The clubs themselves look great in the bag.  They have a wow factor to them.  One of our assistant pros hit mine on the range a couple of weeks ago and loved them.  I played with an assistant at another course last weekend and his comment at the end of the round was, “You really hit your irons great today, Rev.”
8/10 Deducting two points for the name.
 
Play it or Trade it?
Playing the 6 – GW 
Score here is simple enough, 20/20
Conclusion
These really are a must try for anyone interested in this category.  There’s a reason why they won the coveted MGS Most Wanted Player’s Distance Iron award.  They are ideal for an aging lower handicap or someone who is honest enough to admit that he needs a little distance boost, realizes he’s not spinning the ball back 10 feet with his short irons and wants a nice looking club with some forgiveness, good feel, high launch and great ball flight.
The downsides are the hot face when hitting shots around the green and some difficulties in working shots. The Wilson D7 forged irons are an ideal fit for a player like myself, older still with some game looking to shave off those last few strokes towards scratch at an extremely competitive price point with lots of options for customization.  I’d also say they are also a good fit for a lot of mid cappers who could use an iron that is a no brainer when it comes out of the bag – high and straight approach shots are what these babies were built to produce and they don’t disappoint.
Final score 91/100




 
 
 
 
 
 

Well done Rev! I guess the Wilsons found a home for a few years!!



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[russtopherb]

Great writeup @revkev! Glad to see them working out so well for you.

And I agree on the naming convention thing too. These really feel like C irons from everything you guys have posted. 

[revkev]

Great writeup [mention=16651]revkev[/mention]! Glad to see them working out so well for you.
And I agree on the naming convention thing too. These really feel like C irons from everything you guys have posted. 

I will say that they are much more player ironesque than the C irons that I gamed. Smaller blade, thinner top line, less offset for certain.


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[chisag]

5 hours ago, revkev said:

Okay a day latter than I had wanted but my review is up.  Thanks again to MGS and Wilson - I will certainly be looking for any follow up question and also am planning to post more as I have not had as much on course experience with these irons as I would like.  If last week's round is any indication these irons will be in my bag for some time.

 

... Excellent review Rev. The Wilsons are not in my wheelhouse but I really enjoyed reading your review. 

[revkev]

@Greg - very nice review - I notice that we had some very similar experiences with difficulties working shots and the hot face for shots around the green

 

I’d like to hear more on the look of the D7 forged as opposed to the i200. I was surprised at some of the comparative pictures that you posted. The D7 appears to fare well.

 

 

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... Excellent review Rev. The Wilsons are not in my wheelhouse but I really enjoyed reading your review. 

 

Thanks, you are most kind. You were the one who called this category the wave of the future for better Ams. I think you’re right

 

 

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[bens197]

Nice job fellas. These were fun to read and while I don’t have any specific questions, I appreciate the effort in raising the bar for the rest of us when it comes to submitting reviews. 

[GregGarner]

1 hour ago, revkev said:

@Greg - very nice review - I notice that we had some very similar experiences with difficulties working shots and the hot face for shots around the green

 

I’d like to hear more on the look of the D7 forged as opposed to the i200. I was surprised at some of the comparative pictures that you posted. The D7 appears to fare well.

Dang! This was one section I had to cut after my first draft was ~4000 words (can you tell I'm a PhD student?)

I think they fare *very* favorably. The i210s are the second-prettiest irons Ping has ever made (hello, Blueprint) but I actually prefer the head shape of the D7s, especially around the neck and hosel. Both sets do a great job at address creating a compact package that effectively hide the subtle game improvement features on the back/sole.

That being said, I prefer looking at the Pings in my bag, even though you can't play with a club until it's out of your bag

[HardcoreLooper]

My review is up.

Thanks again to MGS and all the mods for making this a wonderful experience!  I'm honored to be a part of such a great group of testers.

[HardcoreLooper]

9 hours ago, revkev said:

Okay a day latter than I had wanted but my review is up.  Thanks again to MGS and Wilson - I will certainly be looking for any follow up question and also am planning to post more as I have not had as much on course experience with these irons as I would like.  If last week's round is any indication these irons will be in my bag for some time.

Great review, @revkev!  I've really enjoyed reading your insights throughout the testing, and especially in your review.  I'm glad to see that they're working for you as well.

[HardcoreLooper]

2 hours ago, greggarner said:

Dang! This was one section I had to cut after my first draft was ~4000 words (can you tell I'm a PhD student?)

I think they fare *very* favorably. The i210s are the second-prettiest irons Ping has ever made (hello, Blueprint) but I actually prefer the head shape of the D7s, especially around the neck and hosel. Both sets do a great job at address creating a compact package that effectively hide the subtle game improvement features on the back/sole.

That being said, I prefer looking at the Pings in my bag, even though you can't play with a club until it's out of your bag

@greggarner - Great review!  I'm sorry that these weren't a no-brainer to keep them in the bag, but I definitely enjoyed reading all of your observations throughout the testing.  It's interesting to see the differing opinions on workability.  There's so many different ways to play this great game.

[fozcycle]

Really enjoyed your review Hardcore, you captured the essence of Wilson Staff in the forged D7’s. As I read your performance review, I cold picture myself striking the irons. I went from F8’s to D7’s and am glad I did.


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[Thin2win]

Still adding in some media that I couldn't get to work the first time, but stage 2 is up!

[Thin2win]

@revkev I purposely didn't read anyones reviews until I got done with mine. I didn't want to get all jaded or have things pop into my head that weren't there in the first place. But I find it noteworthy that we both took exception with the naming Wilson used on these.  

 

[MattF]

My review is up.

https://forum.mygolfspy.com/topic/40126-2020-official-member-review-wilson-d7-forged-irons/?tab=comments#comment-671044

[Rickp]

The Review 10/19/2020
Wilson D7 Forged – Official MGS Forum Review by MattF
 
Intro:
Good afternoon viewers. Another MGS test is done and dusted, or is it?

For those of you who are new here (and some of you that just ignore me ) my name is Matt (or Matthew if I'm in trouble with my old Mum) and I'm the resident ratbag and birthday wisher here.

Quick run down, I was born and raised in Sydney and moved to Ohio in 2005 to marry the bane of my existence...so far so good. I took up playing golf when I moved here to get in good with my FIL and haven't stopped getting frustrated since. I'm 49, have 3 kids (2 daughters 21 and 19 who live with their Mum in Sydney and a 13 year old son here who doesn't listen). I play to about a 15 handicap, which is about the absolute outer limit of who should think about playing players distance irons. I current swing a driver right around 100mph and irons have topped out between 89 and 92mph. I can hit some very nice shots and some that'll leave you scratching your head.

The Wilsons will be going up against my beloved Bridgestones that I've been gaming for the last 2 years.


 
First Impressions:

When a box arrives on your doorstep for testing, you turn into a 6 years old girl at Christmas, I don't care how old you are, it just happens.

The packaging was good, the clubs were secure. There was a packing list with the specs (maybe they should have double checked...more on that a bit later) and the grips were loose in the box as requested.


The Results:
Looks: 10 out of 10
These irons just look sharp. Nice chrome finish paired with the Project X Catalyst 80 shafts, absolutely stunning. They don't have a knife blade top line but they're certainly not fat either, I'd say they're just right.

I honestly don't have much to say about the power holes look, because I don't know about you, but I can't see them when I'm hitting them, so it makes no difference to me.

They don't have a too much junk in the trunk as you can see by the 6 and 9 irons in comparison to my Maltby DBM's and the Bridgestones, they have a slightly larger sole, but it's not huge.






Feel: 8 out of 10
8 out of 10 you say, why not 10...because. These feel very solid when struck, even off the toe. In fact, they don't have that hand stinging wrist killing feel like the Bridgestones do when you hit a bad one. However, they also don't have that "no feeling" when you hit a ball perfectly. I can feel that with the Bridgies, like you didn't hit the ball at all, I didn't have that with the Wilsons. I knew every time I hit the ball. Yes, I could feel if it was a good one or a bad one but not that "did it miss the ball or what" feeling. Basic Characteristics: 18 out of 20
When the clubs arrived I checked them over (not carefully enough I came to find out) and looked at the specs vs the Bridgestones.

Here's the Tour B's.


 
Here's the D7's.



As you can see from the 4-8 iron they're either .5° weaker or stronger than the Bridgestones, 9 and PW are the same and the GW is 1° stronger. Lies are about .5° either way. The Wilsons also play a bit heavier than the Bridgestones. The Project X Catalyst shafts are a heavier shaft than the Recoils I usually play, but I'm in love with my EvenFlow shafts and they should fit in nicely.

On Course Performance: 27 out of 30
All things being equal, they should be longer, right? They're not. Here are my P averages from ShotScope. Black are Bridgestone and yellow are Wilson.




With the exception of the 8 iron, I'm either even distance or 5 to 15 yards shorter.
However, they have to be about the best irons I've ever used for when you stuff up a shot. Hit it on the toe, the ball is more or less going in the direction you want it with only a small loss of distance. My other clubs just can't compete with that, ever. Miscellaneous: 5 out of 10
This is a big one and a lesson learned. When you get your new clubs, after the initial 6 year old girl reaction, do yourself a HUGE favour and check each and every club thoroughly. I didn't. You saw above that the 8 iron is longer than my gamers despite every other club either even or 15 yards shorter. Well yes it was longer, but it just pushed right almost each and every time. I didn't have that problem with the other clubs other than when I just hit a bad shot. I tried out the 7 and 8 iron yesterday on a par 3, the 7 when straight as a string, the 8...a push off to the right. I spec'd mine with 6.0 (stiff) shafts, as you can see with the spec sheet that I posted and that's what I got except for the 8 iron which came with a 5.5 (regular). Here's the 7 (top), 8 (middle) and 9 (bottom)...what's wrong with this picture?



The Mods have contacted Wilson and we'll see what happens. Play or Trade?: 17 out of 20
Time will tell. I do like them, a lot, but the distance loss is a hang up. I'm going to continue working with them over the winter and see if they truly earn to oust the Bridgestones. Final Score and Conclusion: 85 out of 100
85? Yeah, the distance loss and the wrong shaft were issues for sure.

Being the highest handicapper for this test may be good or bad. My inconsistency right now won't do any clubs any favours, however, I feel like someone like me can game these clubs without fear. They're easy to hit, go relatively straight and besides, they just look so good.

Well done! That shaft mixup is surprising.


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[edingc]

Excellent reviews, everyone! Glad to hear Wilson has another great product. These clubs are gorgeous.