2012 Hot List: Most-Viewed Clubs

By Ashley Mayo Photos by Stuart Tyson and Cathy Crawford

March 15, 2012

Ping i20 irons

Price: $800Lofts: 6-iron: 30; PW: 46Tech Talk: The heads are made from stainless steel and feature a tungsten weight in the toe for added forgiveness. The clubhead gets progressively smaller from long irons to short irons to promote control with the scoring clubs.Player Comments:L: "There's almost no variance in flight pattern, and that's what I look for."M:"It feels like I'm cheating with these. It's like the entire club is a sweet spot."HOT: Numerous fitting and custom options (including 12 lie-angle offerings!) combine with technological know-how (a lower moment of inertia around the shaft axis to assist the shaping of shots) to produce an iron that captured our attention and satisfaction in a way few others did.NOT: A cast club in a field consisting primarily of forged irons sticks out--no matter how good it is.INFO: ping.com

TaylorMade RBZ Fairway Wood

Price: $250Lofts: RocketBallz: 15, 17, 19, 21, 24; RocketBallz Tour: 13, 14.5, 18Tech Talk: The purpose of the deep, narrow sole slot is to help the face flex more at impact (as close to the USGA limit as possible) to increase ball speed. Despite the club's large face, an extremely thin, webbed crown helps position the CG low and slightly forward. The goal is to create more ball speed while reducing spin.Player Comments:L: "The distance was huge! The club was light, and I was able to move it freely. Impact felt surprisingly sweet for a club with a slot."M:"You can get under the ball even on tight lies." . . . "Teed up, it's fantastic."HOT: It's hard to get springlike effect from the smaller face of a fairway wood. TaylorMade makes a strong case it's done that.NOT: Some of our testers found this 3-wood launching lower compared to the other fairway woods.INFO: taylormadegolf.com

Callaway RAZR x irons

Price: $700Lofts: 6-iron: 28; PW: 44Tech Talk: The company's RAZR technology places 30 grams in the back cavity to push the center of gravity (CG) low and deep. This helps golfers launch the ball high with speed because of stronger lofts than previous Callaway irons.Player Comments:L: "If you're a digger, the sole is shaped perfectly to get a good result on a chunky shot."M:"Why invest in lessons when you can buy these?"HOT: A Hot List Editor's Choice selection last year, the RAZR X remains a strong option. The irons are designed for mid- to higher-handicappers, but they look, feel and perform as if they were made for a scratch player.NOT: A UniFlex shaft is unacceptable. Callaway has seven custom steel shafts with multiple flexes. Make one the stock offering.INFO: callawaygolf.com

Ping G20 driver

Price: $300Lofts: 8.5, 9.5, 10.5, 12Tech Talk: Designed with a low-density titanium, the G20 saves weight that is repositioned for stability and a lower CG. A lightweight, high-balance-point shaft shifts seven grams into the clubhead to enable the golfer to deliver more mass at impact at the same swing speed.Player Comments:L: "It excels in forgiveness. You know you're going to hit a fast part of the face." . . . "The head seems overly big."M:"All shots flew within a 10-yard window. Even when I hit it all over the face."HOT: The G20's moment of inertia was among the highest we measured. It exudes compassion like a St. Bernard on patrol. In a word, they've designed confidence.NOT: For a company that invented modern fitting, it's time the G-series went adjustable.INFO: ping.com

TaylorMade RocketBallz irons

Price: $700Lofts: 6-iron: 28; PW: 45Tech Talk: The 3-, 4- and 5-irons are made from 455 Carpenter Steel and feature a hollow construction to maximize distance. The large face is very thin (as little as 1.8 millimeters in some spots) to optimize springlike effect.Player Comments:L: "The forgiveness is beyond terrific. The ball just wants to straighten out no matter where I hit it."M:"The topline is wider than thick-sliced bacon, but the heft lets you know you're just going to kill it."HOT: It's not the most attractive iron on our list, but that doesn't really matter when you have so much technology. We also like the 85-gram steel shaft as well as the ability to bend the hosel for lie and loft adjustments.NOT: The RocketBallz name caused more than a few snickers from our testers.INFO: taylormadegolf.com

Callaway RAZR Fit driver

Price: $400Lofts: 8.5, 9.5, 10.5, 11.5Tech Talk: This is the first Callaway driver to offer adjustable weights and a rotating hosel. Users can change the center of gravity (CG) with the sole weights and adjust the face angle using three hosel settings. The face has been redesigned to save weight (four grams) and improve off-center ball speed.Player Comments:L: "My longest shot came on a toe hit." ... "The best sound I've ever heard on a Callaway driver -- it has a nice crack instead of a thud."__M:__My initial impression was that it didn't seem that different. But then I hit it. Wow." ... "It gives you feedback, and it's forgiving."HOT: Callaway is late to introduce serious adjustability in a driver, but this one might justify the wait.NOT: A version made for tour players has even more adjustable options. Why not offer this to the rest of us?INFO: callawaygolf.com

TaylorMade R11S driver

Price: $400Lofts: 9, 10.5Tech Talk: The three areas of adjustability include a rotating hosel with eight settings, two movable weights and a soleplate with five positions. The 80 combinations (32 more than last year's R11) cover a range of 3 degrees of loft, 6 degrees of face angle and four millimeters of CG movement.Player Comments:L: "A one-stop shop. Whatever issues you have you can fix them with this."M:"Just the right shape; a good equilateral footprint. This is toward the maximum side of loudness without going over it."HOT: No one executes adjustability with TaylorMade's sophistication. Making the head 460 cubic centimeters (thanks to an ultra-thin crown) is a bonus.NOT: With 80 options, more players might give up well before they find the proper setting.INFO: taylormadegolf.com

TaylorMade RocketBallz driver

Price: $300Lofts: RocketBallz: 9.5, 10.5, HL; RocketBallz Tour: 9, 10.5Tech Talk: With an emphasis on speed through lightweight shafts and a thin crown, both versions feature the company's trademark adjustable hosel with eight loft/lie angle settings. The standard model has a draw bias and weighs 299 grams. The deep-face Tour version sits neutral.Player Comments:L: "Once the ball gets up in the air it won't come down. The adjustability is easy to fine-tune. The only things I'd criticize are the whack shaft graphics and the name. But neither of those contact the ball, so I'm OK with it."M:"You can't mis-hit it if you try, and it feels awesome."HOT: Here's a driver that plays bigger than its total weight feels. We like the shorter shaft, too.NOT: Why mess up pure white with Snooki-like tattoos?INFO: taylormadegolf.com

TaylorMade R11 irons

Price: $700Lofts: 6-iron: 28; PW: 45Tech Talk: A weight port is used to achieve precise swingweights and CG locations in each iron. The set features compact short irons and long irons with wider soles.Player Comments:L: "When you're getting close to single digits, this would be a club to look at. The balance and feel are beyond reproach."M:"The look transitions well from club to club. That's comforting."HOT: We like the progressive variable-thickness design that features thinner faces in the long irons (to increase ball speed) and thicker faces in the short irons to promote control. This is a nice choice for those who realize that shooting in the 70s is a once-a-year (not a once-a-week) occurrence.NOT: These are too shiny in the sun. We expect more from a company that has so effectively reduced glare in its woods.INFO: taylormadegolf.com

Titleist 910D2/D3 driver

Price: $400Lofts: 8.5, 9.5, 10.5, 12 (D2 only)Tech Talk: There are 16 settings on the two-way adjustable hosel that's designed to manipulate loft and lie angle independently to better isolate launch characteristics for individual players. The line now includes a sub-55-gram shaft option and the highest loft on a Titleist driver in 15 years.Player Comments:L: "I changed the shaft and the loft and saw a better ball flight. That speaks well to having those options."M:"Titleist just knows how to make a club feel good. The club is long without being loud." . . . "Just delicious. All that work of getting the right setup was worth it. Great feedback on your shots, and surprisingly forgiving."HOT: Elegant, powerful, smart; the driver Q would have designed for James Bond.NOT: Alphanumeric-adjustable settings are not intuitive.INFO: titleist.com

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