WHAT IT DOES: The use of a cupface to wrap around part of the topline and sole (through the 9-iron) is one of two technological highlights of note. The other is 50 grams of tungsten encased in urethane with microspheres (tiny bubbles of air within the urethane) to foster trajectory control while allowing the face to flex more at impact. The use of artificial intelligence also allowed engineers to more rapidly figure things out, in this instance, designing faces for each individual iron in the set to optimize performance.

WHY WE LIKE IT: The player who needs a little more help had been shut out of the Apex line until this forged, game-improvement iron came along. The cupface and tungsten don’t just improve center shots, they broaden the area of the face that can flex. Having the high-strength material for the cupface design allows golfers to recover spin rate and have ball-speed consistency in ways you can’t get with a face plate, especially on shots hit low on the face where many middle-handicappers make impact. Don’t overlook the stock steel shaft. True Temper’s Elevate ETS 85 is about a third lighter than a standard Dynamic Gold shaft and can help boost swing speed. Read more >>