TaylorMade RocketBladez Tour Iron

[Tony Covey MGS]

While I've had the chance to test out the new RocketBladez iron, I haven't seen the Tour version first hand. I never thought I'd see the day, but TaylorMade actually has me looking forward to checking out one of their irons. Sonofa...

 

Here's the side by side spec comparison:

 

 

Anyway, for lack of in-hand pics, here's some stock photography that just found its way into my inbox.

 

Behold the TaylorMade RocketBladez Tour 6-Iron (it's still not a blade-z)

 

[The Dansome]

Holy cow those are actually nice

[GolfSpy WD]

Definitely smaller than the RBZ irons though, looks very much like a player's CB. I'm very interested in hearing more about these too.

[BK in TEXAS]

Definitely smaller than the RBZ irons though, looks very much like a player's CB. I'm very interested in hearing more about these too.

X2 My curiosity is piqued.

[Super Tuna]

Really liking the looks of those actually. Nice club shape overall, looks nice in the pictures at address. I'm very curious to see how the ball speed/distance is with these with the slot added in.

 

Not as flashy as some of their offerings as well. I like it.

[Shambles]

Happy to see this new offer is moving away from the robot school of design and cartoon colors. Those clubs appeal to me.

 

 

Shambles

[furu]

Love them Emailed our TaylorMade rep here in Norway and told him to make sure both Tour and the standard version are sent to me as soon as possible.

 

Did anyone else notice the odd degrees on the Tour irons? 33.75 7i and 25.25 5i? I think this actually means that TM has put some effort into matching the clubs through the entire set. How accurate they are in production.........well, that's another discussion.

[xxio]

Everyone is concentrating on looks, which shows confidence at what you are staring down at when you have 178 yards to the pin with 168 being over water can do for you.

 

I am interested on how they achieved this "consistent distance" that even MGS mentioned in their review. Is it actually through the slot or something else? Irons are all about distance control IMHO that is THE selling point of these clubs. I think the fact they DID NOT put it in the scoring clubs of the player's irons show how good the technology is. Player's usually like "playing" with the scoring clubs.

 

I personally never try to hit a full shot with my 9 and pw because usually trajectory is what I'm trying to control most with those clubs, and I'm only a decent player. I can imagine the 6 handicap who wants his usual 145 9iron only to go only 135 may have trouble with the slot on control shots.

 

OT: I had a conversation with a fellow putter collector about Bobby Grace putters and distance control. He had that line with the inserts, DCT-Distance Control technology? It actually worked but we figured out how it worked. Every putt seemed like a mishit in terms of distance control. One the sweetspot, on the toe, on the heel all went the same distance but it went the distance of a MISHIT. Once you figured that out and hit every putt a little harder the DCT worked.

 

Based on the MGS testing done it seems TM has found a way to do something similar but in another fashion. make everything just the same amount of "hotness". No more 190 yard 5irons, none at 160 yards either. All within the 170-175 range. That there is something good when I have that same 178 yard shot over water and now i think of that bunker behind the pin at 190 yards.

[Kanoito]

Remind me of my R9

Look nice! Definitely worth a try.

[GolfSpy Barbajo]

Why am I thinking JPX-825/825 Pro? Seem to be the same market, similar looking irons...

 

Like the look and Tony's mini-review speaks volumes.

 

I am not a ho, I am not a ho, I am not a ho.....

[BK in TEXAS]

I am not a ho, I am not a ho, I am not a ho.....

LMAO :D

[Tyk]

Look at the gaps in loft. Big 5* gaps down in the scoring clubs, then only 2*-3* in the long irons? Seems backwards to me, but I guess they were running out of "hittable lofts" by the time they got to the 3 iron!

 

I don't think the clubs look any worse than most TM irons and better than some. It isn't something that gets my attention and says "I have to try this club" or anything, although I'm sure I'll pick it up next time I'm at the golf store.

[GolfSpy WD]

Look at the gaps in loft. Big 5* gaps down in the scoring clubs, then only 2*-3* in the long irons? Seems backwards to me, but I guess they were running out of "hittable lofts" by the time they got to the 3 iron!

 

I don't think the clubs look any worse than most TM irons and better than some. It isn't something that gets my attention and says "I have to try this club" or anything, although I'm sure I'll pick it up next time I'm at the golf store.

 

Yeah, I was wondering about those 5* gaps too. If that creates 15-20 yard gaps between scoring clubs, that's a big problem unless it's really easy to choke down and drop 10 yards.

[BK in TEXAS]

There are two critical factors, for me, that give this iron credibility. #1, is T's article, though it was the GI version. He went in with a healthy skepticism...

EXACTLY! T's article instantly made me stop laughing at the name

[RoverRick]

This looks like Callaway Razr Tour irons. I played with a rental set last year, and really like them. I have to agree with all those that have said it was a good looking iron and performance trumps most things. I was not a TMag fan but now play the R11 Driver and 3 Wood. I did not buy these because the marketing, or the TMag name. I did not like the RBZ's but the R11 is the real deal in my opinion. I hope I get to test the tour version, but it will be the first TMag iron in my bag ever. And I honestly never wanted to think about them before.

 

One thing I am intrigued with is the lofts and lengths. With the traditional set, I do not get an even gap with those. But at least with the RocketBallz irons when I put them in my spreadsheet of my own design, that gives me an expected yardage based on shaft length and loft, I got a more even gap than I get with the traditional set. I really do not have much gap in my PW and 9 iron. This is because there is usually only a 1/4 inch difference in length. Since I usually install my own shafts I can make the gaps what ever I want, and I do.

 

TMag looks like they have done a pretty good job getting that spread more. But the difference in a good club and a bad club is how it interacts with the turf, and there is only one way to see that, hit some balls.

 

Turf interaction. example.

Callaway X Forged 2007. Unforgiving, and not a very good club. Difficult to play.

Callaway X Forged 2009 Really a pretty good club. Still not tons of forgiveness but generally a easier playing club, and what did they change. The sole design that made it much more playable.

 

Anxious to see how this is, but according to T, it is not an issue.

[xxio]

I was discussing this with someone earlier who was wondering how much distance gain was possible. When I mentioned to him what my concern was with the consistent-"small blanket" distance technology...he made a good insight that they had made the wrong marketing campaign. Freakishly Long is not the the same as freakishly consistent.

 

Great point. People will be expecting 10 yards but will find out that the irons are consistently long but not freakishly long.

[RoverRick]

Looking at just the length and loft changes alone TMag has taken the set from what was once a 2 iron - gw and is now a 3-gw. They have made it more consistent and easier to hit. Plus they in theory added more distance with shafts and hotter faces. This is all very intriguing to me because in theory you have wide gaps between clubs but can close that gap by choking down and can cover the same, actually more, distance with 9 clubs that used to require 10. This frees up space in the bag for other clubs.

 

This is not a novel idea by TMag and it all comes down to who can deliver on this promise the best. T says TMag has delivered with this one. They may have with the last one RBZ. But this one looks good. RBZ looked like a Klingon design to me with enough offset to hit around a corner.

[luke-donald-duck]

Does anyone thing these will be replacing the TP CBs? They seem to look pretty similar.

[Shambles]

Does anyone thing these will be replacing the TP CBs? They seem to look pretty similar.

 

 

That slot in the flange worries me a little and also intrigues me. I've never played an iron with a slot there and am wondering what the effect will be for me in terms of sound and the feel of that thing going through the grass. There may or may not be a little drag on some shots where you want to play the bounce.

 

I really need to find an opportunity to play this set. Unfortunately it would cost me considerably as I cannot make up my mind about any specific set without playing it for some time and that means ownership in my case. Curiosity can be expensive.

 

 

Shambles

[skihippy]

Peaks my interest a little but not as clean as I would like it to be. They need to look toward the MP 63 if they want a clean looking club, but then you wouldn't get free advertising either when your on the golf course...

[MikeG]

The lofts are one degree stronger than "normal" on the Tours, but the lengths are the same as Mizuno's 'normal", 37 3/4" five iron, with half inch gaps and 1/4" 9 to PW.

 

Last year's R-11 irons had the same lengths as these too.

[4luvofthegame]

Wondering if the tour's are forged or cast. Would be nice if they were forged but guessing that they are cast since TM went that way a long time ago.

[Tony Covey MGS]

Wondering if the tour's are forged or cast. Would be nice if they were forged but guessing that they are cast since TM went that way a long time ago.

 

My understanding is that they are cast.

 

Everyone loves the idea of forged, but the reality is that casting processes have improved, and with few exceptions, it's getting harder to tell the difference any more.

[RoverRick]

Peaks my interest a little but not as clean as I would like it to be. They need to look toward the MP 63 if they want a clean looking club, but then you wouldn't get free advertising either when your on the golf course...

 

Compared to the last couple of TMag designs, these are practically Amish design. At least they did not put that Frankenstein bolt in the back.

[JBones]

These are the first Tmag irons that I've seen in years, that I would possibly game. Which model will the three lucky testers be receiving?

[Super Tuna]

I was discussing this with someone earlier who was wondering how much distance gain was possible. When I mentioned to him what my concern was with the consistent-"small blanket" distance technology...he made a good insight that they had made the wrong marketing campaign. Freakishly Long is not the the same as freakishly consistent.

 

Yeah but unfortunately consistent doesn't sell except to us. Look at the Razr iron campaign from last year. All the ad's talked about how they were more consistent and accurate then the burners. That went over about as well as Makrel to Nike with the hardcore Titleist guys.

[Ice]

Does anyone thing these will be replacing the TP CBs? They seem to look pretty similar.

 

The R11 irons replaces the TP CBs.

[furu]

My understanding is that they are cast.

 

Everyone loves the idea of forged, but the reality is that casting processes have improved, and with few exceptions, it's getting harder to tell the difference any more.

 

I agree. A good quality cast iron is very close to forged. Price is a huge advantage. Tour is going to cost the same as "Standard" RocketBladez with graphite shafts here in Norway. If they were forged the price would be 25-30% higher.

[xxio]

Yeah but unfortunately consistent doesn't sell except to us. Look at the Razr iron campaign from last year. All the ad's talked about how they were more consistent and accurate then the burners. That went over about as well as Makrel to Nike with the hardcore Titleist guys.

 

I agree that is why it just adds to the controversy that TM is sometimes nothing more than just a markting machine.

 

Casting has improved as long as the base material is still decent in feel. They should have gone 8620 in the Tour model, even just the short irons

[Shambles]

My understanding is that they are cast.

 

Everyone loves the idea of forged, but the reality is that casting processes have improved, and with few exceptions, it's getting harder to tell the difference any more.

 

It's just fashion in the same way women need different designers. People change for the sake of change and create reasons to justify the necessity. Feel comes from a proper fitting, mostly a proper swing with the right shaft, and forgiveness comes mostly from a bigger head, but also from a good fit.

 

A real fitter, one who understands the swing and the golf club, is probably the best thing to develop in the last decade.

 

 

Shambles