Vice Golf Irons - 2024 Forum Review

[gingerbeast87]

1 hour ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

I was starting to feel lonely.  I hope the VGI 02 guys get theirs soon. 

NGL it's been radio silence from Vice since the initial order was placed on 8th July. They know all about the art of suspense I'm glad you're enjoying the clubs so far. Did you have the same imperfections on your iron backs as Dback?

[dback]

Here is my first impressions of the clubs and will add to my main post as well!

Unboxing, before taking any swings

The pictures show it better than I could describe but they look great. I’ve been looking to upgrade my irons and models like the takomo 101t/jpx tours/Srixon zx5 – irons with a thinner topline but enough weight and tech behind the club face to offer some forgiveness. The VGI01 absolutely falls in this same category and immediately caught my attention. I think the most impressive part of the tech for me is that it sets-up like a blade (only club I can see the cavity on is the 4 iron at 21 degrees) but enough of a cavity back and big enough clubhead to find a nice balance of looking sleek while still giving confidence.

 

Nevertheless, my first thoughts actually standing over them were conflicting – they look incredible behind the ball with the thin topline and minimal offset but at the same time had me nervous that my game wasn’t ready for them. However, two things kept me optimistic on forgiveness – they advertised increased face length and the low center of gravity. It’s a little hard to explain and maybe the pictures below can show it but the cavity back is not bulky yet feels substantial. The shape of the cavity, with how wide the middle section of the cavity is and extra material near the toe, allows the club to feel stable and give the confidence of having some forgiveness. I did notice that despite very different technology and being made 10 years apart, there are some common elements to the back of the club – this may be why I feel comfortable with the VGI01 despite the more compact design.

First Swings and Range

There were four primary adjustments going from my old adams xtd irons to the VGI01s.

·        Grip Change – through the fitting went from standard to midsize grips

·        Lighter clubheads

·        Clubs bent two degrees flat

·        The move from game improvement to players/players distance irons

I’m expecting their to be an acclimation period and I felt it my first range session. First range session was a mixed bag, it took sometime to get used to the feel of the clubs, both swinging them and feel off the face. The larger grip and lighter clubhead took some time to adust to and find the lowpoint. The club is definitely lighter than my adams irons and he distribution of the club felt different, not necessarily better or worse, just different. This led to some pretty thin shots out of the gate but also showed right away that a thinned shot is still going to have some help getting up in the air, it will be lower but generally fairly straight. Center contact felt good, though tough to fully judge with range balls. While there is some forgiveness to the clubs, mishits are going to see a performance drop-off – which was expected. The flipside being that I was able to feel what the mishit was much better than my game improvement irons. I prefer to play my stock draw shot whenever I can and that was still the ball flight I was seeing on normal swings. Other than massive chunked shots, I found the shot shape and height were more impacted than the distance – I can live with that as golf is so often about limiting variables. All-in-all I felt good but was definitely nervous about how they would translate over to the course.

Example of what a common miss looks like for me

On Course

The next day I went to a local 9 hole course while leaving my driver, 3 wood and hybrid at home. Shorter course but classic Michigan, through the woods golf. We had a group behind us so I didn’t get much chance to hit multiple shots but the round went well. Actually playing a round of golf and using non-range balls. Center strikes feel great and the ball pops off the club face. I found myself excited that I kept getting to hit long irons off the tee because almost every tee shot was a high, easy draw. I had one overdraw on me and one that was straight as an arrow leading to a right rough miss. Overall shot a 5 over round with 71% of fairways hit and 56% of greens in regulation. Fairway percentage was considerably higher than my average on the year and half the greens missed were more distance related which is to be expected with a new set of irons.

[Northern Monkey]

Got to say these irons look awesome. Love the cleanness of them

Edited July 24 by Northern Monkey

[Lefty11]

5 minutes ago, Northern Monkey said:

Got to say these irons look awesome. Love the cleanness of them

I agree with you 100%!

[TJ Hall]

I am truly impressed by the look of these irons…great job by Vice!

[Tom the Golf Nut]

4 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

 Did you have the same imperfections on your iron backs as Dback?

I just checked and mine were fine.

[Lefty11]

2 hours ago, TJ Hall said:

I am truly impressed by the look of these irons…great job by Vice!

Vice knocked it out of the park with these irons. I’ll have to wait for a lefty version.  

[StrokerAce]

interesting color choices... will be curious how well these wear. good luck and hope it all goes well!

[dback]

Starting to see a little bit of a picture take place. Weather in Michigan has been fantastic the last week so taking advantage of some on course work. So far I have been able to get out for 3 nine hole rounds and 1 full round. Two of the nine hole rounds I have played irons only, both played around 3,000 yards and were fairly tight, tree-lined courses. Figure it’s a perfect time to throw some stats out

Fairways Hit

Season Average- 35%, Rounds with New irons - 44%, Vice Iron only rounds - 50%
 

GIR

Season Average- 54%, Rounds with New irons - 54%, Vice Iron only rounds - 61%

Shotscope Distance Data: for a small sample size of on course data, the gapping doesn’t look too bad. Of note 5 iron has been my go-to off the tee and the extra distance is probably reflected there. As for the 4 iron, I play a 4 hybrid traditionally and early data verifies why I do but we will continue to monitor.

Coming into this test, I’ve played the best golf of my life so a switch in clubs had me a bit nervous, especially going to more of a players iron. I’m still adjusting and gaining confidence in them but the early data is promising. Also maybe a humble reminder that blast driver and figure it out is exciting but maybe not the best way to score 

Distance numbers are slightly longer through the bag so far, will see if that trend holds. I do plan to do some testing with a launch monitor and that will clear up the distance picture a bit more. I have some early suspicions that my spin numbers are a little bit lower.

I also ordered some pro plus lime green/black drips to match the iron paint job. Normally prefer a plain white ball but couldn’t pass up the opportunity. Not a perfect color match but close enough

[Tom the Golf Nut]

The rain finally let up and the sun is out today. It sure did a number on the course. Back 9 is closed due to standing water and the range is closed as well. So I got up early and hit the front 9. I managed to make the turn with no one on the first tee and played the front again. Struggled a bit with the driver but I got it figured out after a while. The irons stepped up again which I was glad, due to some less than stellar drives. Funny though, I birdied the same holes as I did the first time around. But my bogies were on different holes. I managed to keep everything at even par so I was ok with that.

Tomorrow I am taking the Vice irons on their first vacation and treating them to a round in Southport. Just up the road from North Myrtle Beach. Let’s see what they can do in unfamiliar territory. I’m sure they will be the talk of the group. 

[M-in2Golf]

6 hours ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

The rain finally let up and the sun is out today. It sure did a number on the course. Back 9 is closed due to standing water and the range is closed as well. So I got up early and hit the front 9. I managed to make the turn with no one on the first tee and played the front again. Struggled a bit with the driver but I got it figured out after a while. The irons stepped up again which I was glad, due to some less than stellar drives. Funny though, I birdied the same holes as I did the first time around. But my bogies were on different holes. I managed to keep everything at even par so I was ok with that.

Tomorrow I am taking the Vice irons on their first vacation and treating them to a round in Southport. Just up the road from North Myrtle Beach. Let’s see what they can do in unfamiliar territory. I’m sure they will be the talk of the group. 

Really appreciate the effort you are making for us! 

 

Trying  not to bombard you with comments. 

 

Once the range dries up, will you try another comparison between your irons? 

[Tom the Golf Nut]

35 minutes ago, M-in2Golf said:

Really appreciate the effort you are making for us! 

 

Trying  not to bombard you with comments. 

 

Once the range dries up, will you try another comparison between your irons? 

Yes, I want to do an outside comparison with a couple clubs. I can do indoor anytime but I prefer outdoors. Hopefully next week some time. We are supposed to have good weather for a while.

This was the first time I had to lower the water level in my pool. Not once but 4 times this week. 

[chisag]

51 minutes ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

This was the first time I had to lower the water level in my pool. Not once but 4 times this week. 

 

... Could you put it in a truck and send it out here please? 

[gingerbeast87]

On 7/24/2024 at 7:01 PM, Shrek74 said:

Agreed. To this point, I'm just staring at my computer screen waiting for any posts about irons in this thread since I'm super interested in these guys.

Well there is still no update on the VGI02'S from Vice, Monday 5th August will mark 4 weeks since ordering and they estimate 3-4 weeks until dispatch. I've got the VGI02's coming as has Splatt. If you think you're checking your screen for updates think what we are doing .

 

 

[fixyurdivot]

The Vice irons look great.  The ability to customize accent colors on head, ferrule and grip is a winner.  The 101's look really clean and serious... as in I got game.  I'm interested in hearing how you like the Whiz shafts - their partnership, made by Mitsubishi. I've been playing the MMT's the past years and really like them. 

Also want to hear from the 101 testers as to how mishits perform.  From what I've read these have a constant thickness face.  With so many new offerings introducing AI in face cross-sections, to improve forgiveness, this might be a key factor.

Great reviews thus far testers. 

 

Edited July 29 by fixyurdivot

[Tom the Golf Nut]

The VGI 01’s enjoyed their time away from home today. Played the Founders Club in St. James. Whew what a nice course in great condition.  Kind of a tricky layout on half a dozen holes. You needed to know where to place the ball. I only had a couple of “ oops I should have been more left off the tee” No issues at all with the irons. Aim and shoot and the ball went where it should. Good height, good distance, no surprises. First time playing this course and came in with a 75. The clubs made a good impression with my foursome. 

[gingerbeast87]

Well folks, just got the dispatch email from FedEx, clubs should be with me on Friday. We'll all soon be able to see the VGI02's!! Have a great week everyone, I know mine has just started well!

Edited July 29 by gingerbeast87

[GolfSpy_APH]

2 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

Well folks, just got the dispatch email from FedEx, clubs should be with me on Friday. We'll all soon be able to see the VGI02's!! Have a great week everyone, I know mine has just started well!

Woohoo!

[dback]

6 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

Well folks, just got the dispatch email from FedEx, clubs should be with me on Friday. We'll all soon be able to see the VGI02's!! Have a great week everyone, I know mine has just started well!

Let’s go! Looking forward to see your thoughts on them!

[gingerbeast87]

30 minutes ago, dback said:

Let’s go! Looking forward to see your thoughts on them!

100% brother!!! 

[Shrek74]

6 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

Well folks, just got the dispatch email from FedEx, clubs should be with me on Friday. We'll all soon be able to see the VGI02's!! Have a great week everyone, I know mine has just started well!

YESSSSSS!!! Can't wait to see them and hear your initial thoughts!

[Lefty11]

19 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

Well folks, just got the dispatch email from FedEx, clubs should be with me on Friday. We'll all soon be able to see the VGI02's!! Have a great week everyone, I know mine has just started well!

You must feel like a kid waiting for Christmas!  I know I would.   I hope this week flies by for you! 

[gingerbeast87]

 

 

[AaronD]

So excited about this one! Looks like we have some wonderful testers lined up! Good luck with the testing process! Such a fun product to get your hands on!

[TJ Hall]

5 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

 

 

NOOOO!!!!

[chisag]

5 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

 

 

 

... I am gonna give you a potential Silver Lining. When testing the autoFlex Dream 7 I received mine about a week after everyone else. Then when it arrived it was the wrong shaft as mine was sent to another tester and we had to exchange them. Then when it finally arrived it was 1.5" short and nobody knew why. They sent out a new one and I finally got to start testing.

... It turned out to be the best driver shaft I have ever hit and the looooooong wait was well worth it. Hopefully the Vice Irons are equally awesome for you and the wait will just be a distant memory. 

[RyanGi]

Really great timing for you to be getting these…for me! I’m about to buy new irons and looking for more info on the 102s. They’re on my short list! Can’t wait to hear what you’ve got to say about them!

[gingerbeast87]

8 hours ago, chisag said:

 

... I am gonna give you a potential Silver Lining. When testing the autoFlex Dream 7 I received mine about a week after everyone else. Then when it arrived it was the wrong shaft as mine was sent to another tester and we had to exchange them. Then when it finally arrived it was 1.5" short and nobody knew why. They sent out a new one and I finally got to start testing.

... It turned out to be the best driver shaft I have ever hit and the looooooong wait was well worth it. Hopefully the Vice Irons are equally awesome for you and the wait will just be a distant memory. 

Thanks bud that makes me feel better. James is in contact with the guys at Vice so I know it's all in good hands. 

[Lefty11]

6 hours ago, gingerbeast87 said:

Thanks bud that makes me feel better. James is in contact with the guys at Vice so I know it's all in good hands. 

Good luck @gingerbeast87!  I hope the shipping snafu works itself out quickly!

Edited July 31 by Lefty11

[Tom the Golf Nut]

This weather is killing me. Our range has been closed for weeks now. Every time they are ready to open it up it pours. I went today and the sign was up that the range was closed. I talked to the Pro and he said they just mowed it and we can open it up. With clubs in hand, Mevo in my pocket and ready to collect some outside data I hear thunder. A quick look at the radar and a sound of the air horn and then I was done. The skies opened up again. I just checked and rain is in the forecast for the next 8 days.

Well, I guess indoor data collection will be the norm for a while.