How to Choose Golf Irons? Don’t Miss Another Season.

When hitting tee shots, unless it is a par three, you generally do not have to worry too much about exactly where to place the ball. Most of us try to send the ball anywhere from which we can play our second shot to the green, or at least near the green on par fives. On par threes or shots to the green, however, the situation changes somewhat, because a good score depends on hitting the green or an area around it from which we can comfortably play a chip for one putt.

We do not recommend underestimating the selection of your iron set, because your sporting enjoyment and potential for improvement rise and fall with it. When purchasing, you can take a more relaxed approach and be satisfied with a standard configuration straight off the rack in the shop, or you can have yourself measured under expert supervision and get clubs tailored precisely to your build without any additional charges.

It is also a good idea to be prepared for a fitting and have a rough idea of which clubs might be right for your game. It is not efficient to arrive at a fitting wanting to try a little of everything. Choose two or three models and you can confidently leave the rest to the trained specialists at authorised fitting centres.

So how do you narrow your selection down to models worth testing? Here are a few tips.

Head design

There is probably no one who does not like shiny blades, but very few people can actually play them. Do not choose clubs based on the player you might grow into, because before that happens, you will hit so many poor shots that you will return to cycling or swimming.

For the right selection, it is important to place yourself in the category corresponding to your playing skills and potential. To simplify things, we will create three groups. You belong to the first group if you are a recreational player who plays fairly often and hardly ever practises. You belong to the second if you are an advanced recreational player who plays often and practises regularly. The third group consists of highly advanced competitive players who play often and also practise frequently.

Heads for recreational players

The main aim of this category of clubs is to offer greater forgiveness, easy playability from different surfaces and maximum distance. By distributing weight around the perimeter of the head, it was possible to enlarge the effective hitting area of these irons, which has two benefits: minimal distance loss and a better feel at impact. You do not have to strike the ball precisely in the centre of the club for the shot to come off beautifully—the clubhead will take care of much of it for you!

Another advantage is the so-called progressive design. Irons are generally divided into short, mid and long irons, and the sole width, offset, head size, lofts and other characteristics are adjusted accordingly.

Long irons have wider soles and a centre of gravity farther from the face. Together with their high forgiveness, this makes them easier to play on longer par threes or second shots into the green. You can easily launch the ball on an ideal trajectory and significantly improve your scoring position. Mid and short irons have recently become more similar to clubs for advanced players. They look more athletic, offer better feel at impact and, thanks to higher spin, provide greater control once the ball lands on the green. Progressive design helps you achieve greater distance with long irons, where the manufacturer expects some roll, while with short irons, where roll is generally undesirable, the ball will stop within a few feet of the pitch mark.

Heads for advanced recreational players

Clubs for advanced players are characterised by an athletic head design that makes it easier to shape shots. Most irons in this category have a narrower sole, a thinner top line and a smaller sweet spot. The manufacturer assumes that these players have a consistent technique and can launch the ball on the ideal trajectory for an optimal landing angle and spin.

Thanks to the use of new materials and technologies, these clubs have become highly sought after by a broad range of players, from intermediate and ambitious golfers to tour professionals. As with clubs for recreational players, this category includes sets with progressive head designs, making long irons easier to hit. These are balanced for a higher trajectory with a steeper landing angle for better control when the ball lands on the green. With short irons, the main emphasis is on feel at contact for balanced spin and distance.

Design for competitive and performance players

Almost every golfer has tried hitting a ball with blades at some point and remembers the unpleasant vibrations in the arms when they missed the sweet spot—and, conversely, the clean, soft feel of a perfect strike. With this type of club, the manufacturer assumes that the player strikes the ball perfectly and therefore gives them the ability to play all kinds of shots. The clubheads are smaller specifically to provide the golfer with the best possible feedback and contact with the ball and ground. The focus here is primarily on precision and maximum control. Even the slightest change in the head’s position at impact produces a different type of shot, and that is what competitive players enjoy.

To shoot low scores, players must be able to hit shots in a wide range of directions and trajectories, and Blade-style models allow them to do this perfectly. The main characteristics of blades are a thin top line, narrow sole, small sweet spot (effective hitting area), minimal offset and higher lofts.

Cast or forged? The advantage of forged clubs is better feel and feedback when contacting the ball. The main advantage of cast clubs is their longer lifespan. It cannot be stated unequivocally which type is better or for whom.

Understanding shafts

If you have narrowed your selection down to two or three club models, you have already completed the most difficult part. If you decide to visit a fitting centre, a professional will take care of the rest. If you opt for a standard configuration, you are out of luck and will have to settle for the shafts selected by the manufacturer.

With shafts, the most important factors are weight and flex. With the shafts fitted as standard, the risk is that manufacturers generally follow the rule that the more forgiving the clubhead, the lighter the shafts installed in it. A powerful player just starting out in golf therefore has few opportunities to find highly forgiving irons fitted with heavier shafts. An advanced player with a slower tempo and slower swing speed, on the other hand, will practically never come across a combination of heads for competitive players fitted with lighter shafts. Your swing tempo will indicate whether you should play graphite or steel shafts and what weight they should have.

Graphite shafts weighing 55 to 80 g are recommended for players with a smoother, slower tempo. We would divide steel shafts into three categories: light, approximately 85 to 100 g; medium, 100 to 120 g; and heavy, over 120 g. As swing tempo becomes faster and more dynamic, the weight of the shafts a player should have in their irons should increase accordingly. The second parameter is shaft flex, which we select according to swing speed. As with drivers, there are also charts for irons where you can choose shaft flex based on your carry distance, but these are only indicative figures. The only way to get the right answer is through quality launch-monitor data and an expert who can evaluate the results.

The right grip will improve feel on your shots

The grip is the point of contact between you and the club. We can agree that, compared with using the wrong shaft, you can probably still play with the wrong grip, but why make things more difficult for yourself?

With grips, their thickness is the most important factor. Grips that are too thick can restrict your wrists at impact, causing shots to finish to the right of the target. Thin grips, on the other hand, increase wrist action, causing the ball to finish to the left of the target. Grip thickness should also be considered by anyone experiencing wrist or forearm problems. You do not need to squeeze a thicker grip as tightly, which reduces tension while holding the club.

Women’s hands are smaller than men’s, so women generally use a women’s grip size. Men have several options: standard men’s, midsize or jumbo grips. All are selected according to the size of your hand, with further adjustments possible by adding layers of tape. The easiest way to determine the right thickness is by your glove size: if you use S or M, a standard thickness will probably suit you; otherwise, you will need to adjust the grip. There is an enormous range of brands, materials and colours on the market, but we recommend choosing according to firmness. Some rubber is softer, some firmer; some grips are smooth, while others are corded (textured). The advantage of corded grips is better traction for players with higher swing speeds, while smooth grips suit players with a strong grip who may find that corded grips chafe their palms. Another advantage of softer grips is their ability to absorb vibrations from mishits. The final thing you can consider is the grip colour. Some people are happy with black, but why not make looking at your clubs more enjoyable with blue, red, pink or green? It is not uncommon for players to combine grip colours within their set. Anyone who plays in all weather conditions should also bear in mind that smooth grips become very slippery even in light rain, complicating your technique.

At the CityGolf authorised fitting centre , you can try various combinations of heads and shafts so that you always receive an equipment recommendation with which you will play your best golf. Take the time to choose your ideal iron set. It is always better to play for par with greater forgiveness than to carry a blade a mile. Enjoy your game.

Why not use your handicap as a guide when choosing your irons? Be careful if you see a chart dividing irons by handicap. It may certainly reveal something about a golfer, but irons definitely cannot be divided into categories according to handicap. A player with a handicap of 30 may have an excellent iron game and be able to play clubs for advanced recreational players without difficulty, even though their tee shots are inconsistent and their short game is a weakness... Conversely, a player with a handicap of 10 may have an excellent short game and putting, making up for mistakes made with their irons. Such a player has two options: practise with clubs for advanced recreational players or try irons for recreational players with greater forgiveness.