Iron lofts

[chickenfarmer]

I have four different sets of irons - however, the seven irons loft range from 28 degrees to 35 degrees.  I hit them (on center strikes) between 152 and 175 yards. That’s like a two club difference!  Why don’t they make irons that just have the loft?  Is it ego - “I hit my 7 iron 175 yards”?  Or should I just accept that “modern” 7 irons are similar in loft to “old fashioned” 5 or 6 irons?  Possibly yearning for a Niblik or Mashie . 
Making mountains out of molehills…

[CLenahan]

Yes, part of it is the ever present race for distance.

That being said, the loft on my old x-forged was 34*, the loft on my T300 is 29*, but the launch and descent is significantly better on the T300 despite the stronger loft.  My x-forged descended at 35*, the T300 at 47*, which means easier to hit and stick greens.  We get a little caught up in loft, but that is a fraction of what is important.

[RickyBobby_PR]

It’s design and ensuring the clubs of each set go thru a specific launch window. GI irons tend to be higher launching and lower spinning compared to the different players irons. So the lofts get stamped based on their launch window. Like almost everything in club design there are no standards for what loft is just like lie, length, materials used, flex, torque and so on.

there’s a video on YouTube from a master fitter at TPI that was conducting an iron fitting for the first release of the T series irons iirc with one of the guys from WRX. I can’t find it right now but it dives into the launch, spin and distance of each club from titleist and what’s trying to be achieved.

Too many people get hung up on the number on the bottom of the club. The number on the bottom of the club should be irrelevant. The things that matter are to know what distance you each club in a set and that the distance is consistent for each club each time you make the swing swing on it. Example, one flushes their 7i and it goes 150, it should go 150 everytime it’s hit flush. 

[chickenfarmer]

Yeah, I should be focusing on land angle.  Is there a club that’ll give me good distance, direction and descent?!?!  That’s what my game needs . 

[cnosil]

11 minutes ago, chickenfarmer said:

 Is there a club that’ll give me good distance, direction and descent?!?!  

Try a bunch of clubs or get fit to see what gives you the best results.  What works for my swing may not work for your swing.  

[RickyBobby_PR]

37 minutes ago, chickenfarmer said:

Yeah, I should be focusing on land angle.  Is there a club that’ll give me good distance, direction and descent?!?!  That’s what my game needs . 

Land angle is an effect of other things like launch, spin, peak height. And the optimal is dependent on the golfer.

All clubs can potentially due that, but nobody can tell you which club and which shaft will work best for your swing. 
 

Either go test a bunch of stuff and see what works or go to a reputable fitter that will get you in the right setup

[chickenfarmer]

Yeah, I plan on testing Srixon zx5/7, Titleist T150/200, Mizuno JPX 923, Taylormade P770/790 and PING i230.  Hopefully my fitter can get the best combination for my game.  

[Hook DeLoft]

2 hours ago, chickenfarmer said:

Yeah, I should be focusing on land angle.  Is there a club that’ll give me good distance, direction and descent?!?!  That’s what my game needs . 

If you're looking for a steeper land angle, try the Mizuno JPX 923 Hot Metal HL's.  They are a weaker lofted version of the regular Hot Metals.  I have always been a low ball hitter and they have me hitting high, steep landing shots that stop on a dime.

[chickenfarmer]

I’ve always been a Mizuno fan and have had three iterations of MPs as well as T-zoids (yeah, I’m old! ).  The 923 Forged were the ones I wanted to test, but if my fitter suggests Hot Metals, I’m willing to try.