Callaway Paradym Irons - 2023 Forum Review

[jimhack]

Really excited to see the comments of these testers.  

[funkyjudge]

On 4/4/2023 at 1:05 AM, Golf2Much said:

Introduction (April 6, 2023)

This has been an incredible MyGolfSpy last couple of days.  First, I received my “500” forum ranking.  That was followed by winning Season 1 of the MGS Championship Tour.   Last, but not least, I was selected as a Callaway Paradym X irons reviewer.  I still find it all hard to believe!

I was born and raised in Rochester, New York.  After graduating with degrees in Plastics Engineering (yes, I know, “The Graduate”) I returned home and had a 27-year technology, business development and management career at Xerox.   In 2007 I left Xerox, moved to Key West, Florida and have enjoyed island living ever since. 

Since retiring, I’m living up to my display name, Golf2Much!  Last year I played over 130 rounds of golf with all but 2 on my home course.  My index currently is 11.4, but within the last year it was as low as 9.2.   

When I’m not playing, I’m still busy with golf. I’m the Vice President of the Lower Keys Golf Association which raises money to support local junior golf and high school golf teams.  I also maintain the local GHIN system. If that wasn’t enough, about six months ago I became a Florida State Golf Association/USGA course rater. 

My home course is the Rees Jones designed Key West Golf Club.  The classic layout has narrow fairways, small greens with false fronts and penalty areas, water or mangroves on each hole.   The course demands driving and approach shot accuracy to score.

My playing style is easy to describe:  I’m the golfer I used to hate when I was young!   On par fours I drive the ball 170-190, come up short of the green with a fairway wood second shot, chip on and one putt for par.   The shots gained numbers against my handicap peer group below highlights exactly what I’m talking about. 

Seeing those numbers, you can almost hear “hey you kids, get off my lawn!”

Some of the above shortfalls are due to being 66 years old and having enough physical limitations that many wonder how I can even play golf at all!   I’m expecting a few more yards out from my new Ping G430 Max driver, so my focus has turned to my iron approach shots.

I currently play Ping G30 irons with Fujikura EXS 60i R2-Flex shafts that I bought the used seven years ago.  My data suggests that maybe it might be time to upgrade!

Enter the Paradym X’s.   Callaway refers to them as player type, game improvement irons with “distance and forgiveness.”  Given my situation, they seemed a perfect fit. 

I use the Shot Scope H40 and tags for shot tracking, so I will be providing comparable data between both sets.   I'll be sharing some of that baseline G30 shot tracking and performance data leading up to my review and why the Paradym X's might be a game changer for me.  My expectation is to use that data as the basis for whether the Paradym X's stay in my bag.  Even as a lifelong Ping iron player, if the Paradym X's out perform they will stay in my bag!

The last new set of irons I owned were Callaway Big Berthas back in the mid 1990’s.  Now almost 30 years later I have the pleasure of trying their latest irons.  I can’t wait to put the Paradym X’s in play and share my findings with you!

 

Rochester, NY, eh?  I'm originally from Lockport, and lived in Rochester for about 11 years after my discharge from the USMC (7 of those years were spent attending RIT).

[Golf2Much]

13 hours ago, funkyjudge said:

Rochester, NY, eh?  I'm originally from Lockport, and lived in Rochester for about 11 years after my discharge from the USMC (7 of those years were spent attending RIT).

In the smaller than we want to admit golf world, there's often less than six degrees of separation.  

[GregB135]

Great starts guys,

Can't wait for the unboxing and test process!

[Golfspy_CG2]

On 4/4/2023 at 1:06 AM, MattWillGolf said:

Introduction

I would like to thank My Golf Spy and Callaway Golf for the opportunity to be a tester for the Paradym X Irons. This is my third testing opportunity for the Forum: I previously tested the Evnroll ER11v putter and the Shot Scope Pro LX+.  I have been an off and on golfer since my mid-20s, after getting out of the Army in the late 80s. I was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and grew up across the street from Sharp Park Golf Course (an Alister MacKenzie design) in Pacifica, CA but I never played the game as a kid. I once came home from school to find a broken bedroom window and a golf ball on my bed. The first course I ever played a full 18 holes on though was Harding Park, host to the 2020 PGA Championship. Speaking of the PGA Championship, I am excited to be attending my first major, the PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, NY this year. I have Saturday tickets. I hope to run into some fellow spies.

My professional life started in the U.S. Army where I was trained to maintain and repair medical equipment. Upon my discharge from the U.S. Army, I joined a medical imaging equipment manufacturer where I worked for 31 years specializing in Cardiovascular X-Ray. That company had moved me all over the U.S. My first move took me from California to Connecticut for several years. Work then moved back across country to the Seattle area. In 2018, my wife and I moved cross country once again to be closer to family, this time to Central New York, just outside of Syracuse. In 2019 my job changed and joined the ranks of semi-retirement which now allows me more regular golf, weather permitting as I am fair weather golfer. At the end of April, I will be joining the ranks of the fully retired. We have one son, a former Navy FMF Corpsman who is now in nursing school in California. We are also excited to have a daughter in law join our family next February.

My current home course is Radisson Greens in Baldwinsville, NY. It is an 18-hole par 72 course at 6360 yards from the white tees. The course was designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. I have a Monday through Thursday membership there and I get out a couple of times a week. The course is very challenging, but I love the layout. It is tree lined and tight in spots with water that I have a real skill in finding.

I play golf because I enjoy being out walking the course and if good scores come then it is a bonus. I also am an equipment junkie. Not that I have the budget to truly act upon this addiction, but I do enjoy the design and aesthetics of golf equipment. And if I ever won the lottery, I’d become a putter collector.

On the equipment front, my first set of clubs was a Wilson box set with wooden woods. At lot has changed in the equipment world since then. My Ping G400 Max was the first time I was fitted for a club, and I have yet to find a reason to change it. I have two sets of irons that I switch between depending on course conditions. They are Ping G25 irons (I won these through work) and a set of PXG 0211 irons. I play the Pings in the wet conditions we have at the start of the season then switch to the PXGs as the course dries out. I have a PXG 0341 3 wood, a PXG 0211 3 Hybrid and the 4 iron in my set was swapped out for a Ping G410 Crossover #4. My current sand wedge is a Callaway Mack Daddy CB 54°/14°. It was a My Golf Spy review and Most Wanted win that led me to trying Evnroll putters. I ended up with a mallet putter for the first time when I purchased the ER7. I was initially attracted to the idea of a higher MOI putter but really like the feel and consistency of the roll the ER7 gave me. I tested the Evnroll ER11v putter and gamed that for a bit but switched back to the ER7 due the “feel”.

  

I am also a member of the “Pushcart Mafia” with a Clicgear 3.5+ pushcart. This is probably the single best golf accessory item I have ever owned. The Grooveit Brush ranks a very close second.

This will be my first experience with Callaway irons. The Paradym X irons fit firmly in the game improvement category and as a high handicap golfer they should fit into my game. This is what drove me to put my name on the list of test candidates. In what I have read about these irons at their release the lofts are much stronger than any irons I have gamed to date. The 7 iron loft for example sits in between the 5 and 6 irons of my Ping G25 irons. I don’t really anticipate getting caught up in the number on the club in comparison with my Ping irons but will have to keep in mind the lofts. I am concerned about the build of the set as there will be a hole in my bag with regards to not having a wedge in the 50°degree range.

I won’t have access to a Trackman or any similar device to provide measurements. But I will install the tags from my Shot Scope Pro LX+ to see how these irons perform on the course. Most of the testing will occur on course. I will be looking at ball flight and accuracy. I would like to see higher ball flights and more forgiveness. Based on my readings, these clubs should offer me both of those things. And should I get those from these irons, these clubs will remain in my bag. The bottom line will be, am I hitting more greens and more fairways.

4/5/2023

The Fitting

I visited the Turning Stone Golf Sportsplex for my Paradym X iron fitting. Turning Stone Golf Course is in Verona, NY. The Turning Stone Atunyote Course hosted the Turning Stone Resort Championship four times. Notable winners include Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar.

My fitting experience is limited. I was fitted for my Ping driver and measured for Ping irons. As I learned there is difference between fitting and measuring. My Ping iron fitting was for a Green Dot in the Ping world which is 2 degrees upright. So this was what I considered my starting point.

I met my fitter Pat. I informed him that I wanted to be fit for Callaway Paradym X irons as I was selected to test them for the My Golf Spy Forum. He has never heard of My Golf Spy. But the person I scheduled the fitting with had and was excited when I showed up for the fitting. We then headed to the indoor range at Turning Stone. He had me take a few warmup swings with my 7-iron. He quickly stated, “That club is too short for you, you will need to go 1 inch longer”. Admittedly as a high handicapper I was a bit nervous to be fit and watched in such an open environment. Pat used humor and some tips to settle me down. The fitting fee was $100 as I wasn’t buying the irons from them. The “lesson” from Pat made the fee a real value.

After the warmup we headed over to the club area to configure the iron to be tested. Pat selected a Paradym X 7 iron head, 2 degrees upright. I let him know that I was limited to stock Callaway offerings, and he selected three shafts to try. Two steel shafts, an Elevate MPH 85 gram and an Elevate MPH 95 gram. He also selected the HZRDUS Silver 65. All the shafts were Regular flex and plus 1 inch. Pat stated up front that he didn’t think the graphite shaft would be right for me. And the fitting subsequently bore this out.

With my swing dialed in after the help from Pat, I started hitting golf balls. Everything was being monitored by a Trackman. This was my first experience with a Trackman. I have to say it's pretty cool. We started with the 95-gram shaft which I hit it pretty well and the best in terms of total distance was 165 yards. He then had me try 85-gram shaft which performed even better topping out at 171 yards. With the steel shafts I had a nice high ball flight that was between straight and a fade. Pat then had me try the graphite shaft. I was hitting them almost as far, but the shots were going left in a draw that Pat was afraid could turn into a hook. He felt I was more consistent the steel shafts. So, steel it is.

My final configuration is Paradym X irons, 5 through AW at 2 degrees upright. The shaft are True Temper Elevate MPH 85 grams, regular flex plus 1 inch. For the grips I chose Golf Pride - Z Grip CHEV Black (50g) with one extra wrap. The 7-iron session topped out at 171 yards total distance with 78.7 MPH swing speed.

 

I’m pretty excited to get the clubs now. I was very happy with my fitting experience with Pat. I even took his card and will set up some lessons with him in the future.

Great intro and fitting recap Matt!  As you may or may nto be aware, I've been playing the Paradym X since Februjary, although limited rounds so far.     They are simply fantastic looking and feeling and performing irons.

Question what was your previous 7 iron distance, I know you mentioned you won't focus on the 7 to 7 comparions due to lofts, but indulge me on this one       Either way 7 or the lof of a 6-171 is pretty darn good distance. 

 

[MattWillGolf]

37 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Great intro and fitting recap Matt!  As you may or may nto be aware, I've been playing the Paradym X since Februjary, although limited rounds so far.     They are simply fantastic looking and feeling and performing irons.

Question what was your previous 7 iron distance, I know you mentioned you won't focus on the 7 to 7 comparions due to lofts, but indulge me on this one       Either way 7 or the lof of a 6-171 is pretty darn good distance. 

 

I’m more than happy to indulge your curiosity. My 7 iron is…

 

 

 

 

 

my 140 yard club.

[Navart]

1 hour ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Great intro and fitting recap Matt!  As you may or may nto be aware, I've been playing the Paradym X since Februjary, although limited rounds so far.     They are simply fantastic looking and feeling and performing irons.

Question what was your previous 7 iron distance, I know you mentioned you won't focus on the 7 to 7 comparions due to lofts, but indulge me on this one       Either way 7 or the lof of a 6-171 is pretty darn good distance. 

 

171 7i that is fantastic! Congrats again on being selected and I look forward to the further use and on course experience with them!

[Manny]

Not complaing, but how do some people get to do multiple evaluations, and some never get picked?

Asking for a friend.

[ZackS]

34 minutes ago, Manny said:

Not complaing, but how do some people get to do multiple evaluations, and some never get picked?

Asking for a friend.

I am new here but this seems to be a good place to answer your question 

 

[Golfspy_CG2]

18 hours ago, MattWillGolf said:

I’m more than happy to indulge your curiosity. My 7 iron is…

 

 

 

 

 

my 140 yard club.

Cool....we're about the same you might be 5 yards longer.  But my previous 7 iron was closer to 125 to 130  

[Golfspy_CG2]

15 hours ago, Manny said:

Not complaing, but how do some people get to do multiple evaluations, and some never get picked?

Asking for a friend.

Zack made a great point and shred an important thread for anyonhe to read that is interested in how to get involved in testing opportuities. 

And while I'm not in charge of selections anymore, but was for a few years.  I can safely say, having 38 posts in 3 years is not really considered "active" on the forum.  And while the the selection staff never makes total post count the number 1 priority, it is certainly factored in the equation.   For example of the Callaway irons, the OEM is making a $2,000 x 4 investment in provding these clubs for reviews.   MGS staff needs to be 100% confident that not only is the tester not going to take the clubs and never be heard from again, but will provide an indepth qualty review. 

You might ask, how can "my friend" ever provide a quality review if he's never given the chance to review.  That's a fair and great question.   Usually a first time tester or new member who is picked to test early on, will be selected for a test that isn't as high dollar of risk.  Maybe a golf ball review, or gloves or some training aid etc.     But there are also times where a brand new member--say less than 2 or 3 months--has proven over that short time he/she is committed to the forum and has established a confidnece in the moderator staff that they feel confident in selecting them for a test. 

All this is to say, if you or your friend is truly interested in testging, read that thread, get involved in many different sections of the fourm, don't just focus on one section, the more the user name appers throughout the forum, the more "known" it becomes to the staff and other members.

Hope this helps in addtion to the How to be a Tester thread. 

 

[Cameronpaulm]

So most of the testers are gonna be the same people everytime? I won't waste my time filling out a tester form if so

 

^ I made an ignorant comment. Thanks for those who informed me on the process of selection for testers and congrats to those who get to try some new metal.

 

Edited April 11 by Cameronpaulm
Misinformation

[Cab]

6 minutes ago, Cameronpaulm said:

So most of the testers are gonna be the same people everytime? I won't waste my time filling out a tester form if so

Neither will I 

[cnosil]

8 minutes ago, Cameronpaulm said:

So most of the testers are gonna be the same people everytime? I won't waste my time filling out a tester form if so

1 minute ago, Cab said:

Neither will I 

 

 

Nope, did you read the how to be a tester thread?  

it ties back to forum involvement.  If you choose not to read the thread and simply apply to be a tester, you won’t be selected.  The mod team is trying to identify people that have the commitment to perform the necessary actions that are part of testing and that is shown via forum engagement.  

[Golfspy_CG2]

6 minutes ago, Cameronpaulm said:

So most of the testers are gonna be the same people everytime? I won't waste my time filling out a tester form if so

Where do you get that idea.   Almost every testing has a first time tester including some of the "bigger" tests.  if you actually spend some time looking at the selections over the past couple years you would see how off the mark your comment is.   But you gotta do what you gotta do. 

[Golfspy_CG2]

1 minute ago, Cab said:

Neither will I 

Great first post after 5 months of membership 

[Cameronpaulm]

3 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Where do you get that idea.   Almost every testing has a first time tester including some of the "bigger" tests.  if you actually spend some time looking at the selections over the past couple years you would see how off the mark your comment is.   But you gotta do what you gotta do. 

I just noticed similar names on the three tests that got announced today. Im not here to cause issues or anything of that nature. I'm new to the community and was genuinely asking. I respect golf spy for all they do and I will continue to learn the community. Sorry for causing any issues. I can delete my comment if you'd like. I really didn't even know it would be posted publicly. Like I said I'm new to all of this blog and my golf spy website. Apologies if I stepped on any toes. And congrats to the testers!!! I've demoed the paradygm irons they are in for a treat!! Love everyone

[Cameronpaulm]

8 minutes ago, cnosil said:

 

 

Nope, did you read the how to be a tester thread?  

it ties back to forum involvement.  If you choose not to read the thread and simply apply to be a tester, you won’t be selected.  The mod team is trying to identify people that have the commitment to perform the necessary actions that are part of testing and that is shown via forum engagement.  

THANK YOU FOR SHARING. APOLOGIES MY GOLF SPY AND CONGRATS TO THE TESTERS. I WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSIONS IT WAS "RANDOM" BUT KNOW THAT I HAVE THE INFO IN MY FACE I UNDERSTAND. SORRY AGAIN EVERYONE. ONLY HERE TO LEARN AND SHARE INFO DONT WANT ANY ISSUES 

[cnosil]

10 minutes ago, Cameronpaulm said:

I just noticed similar names on the three tests that got announced today. Im not here to cause issues or anything of that nature. I'm new to the community and was genuinely asking. I respect golf spy for all they do and I will continue to learn the community. Sorry for causing any issues. I can delete my comment if you'd like. I really didn't even know it would be posted publicly. Like I said I'm new to all of this blog and my golf spy website. Apologies if I stepped on any toes. And congrats to the testers!!! I've demoed the paradygm irons they are in for a treat!! Love everyone

It is a touchy subject.   The forum is a great place to converse with other golfers.  If you look at the biggest complainers about the forum testing it comes from new people that only have 1 or 2 posts or only apply for the testing.   As mentioned the mods are selecting people with some background on the forum so that people that get selected don’t just walk away and don’t honor their commitment.  Typically newer members get selected for small tests and once credibility is established you can possibly be selected for bigger tests.  I’fyou look at some of the recent people selected, they have 100 or so posts so it can happen.   Read the thread I linked and get involved and you could possibly be selected to test; it’s early in the year so there will be lots more testing.  

[MattWillGolf]

43 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Cool....we're about the same you might be 5 yards longer.  But my previous 7 iron was closer to 125 to 130  

All I know is if I get to thinking too much about the number on the bottom of the club, its gonna mess with me.  I'm also wondering if the shafts being 1 inch longer will have an influence on the distance I see with these irons as well. I'd have to defer to those with more knowledge on that one.