Price
$130 per iron
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Why We Like It
- The hollow-body, hybrid-style iron is designed to help golfers get the ball in the air. The irons feature a variable-thickness face and oversize heads.
- Grooves that stretch across the face improve launch conditions for shots hit outside the typical groove area by providing more spin consistency.
- Also on the face is a blast called “HydraZip” along with a laser-milled-line system designed to create additional roughness to enhance friction. Combined they increase the launch-angle benefit, which this player type needs.
- Rails on the bottom of the 4- through 7-iron prevent digging on shots where distance is needed.
- Paint fills on the bottom grooves assist golfers with alignment at address.
- 7-iron: 29 degrees; PW: 43 degrees
what our testers said
handicap
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Gary
37, Handicap 13
10+ years testing
The progressive look is an improvement on the all-hybrid sets. The presence of the rails accelerates through the set. I liked how much the longer clubs are consistent and forgiving. They were almost easier to hit than the pitching wedge. A halo of protection from mis-hits. I got a hammer-like feel at impact.
Alejandra
26, Handicap 5
4 years testing
The hybrid shape is confusing, especially on the short irons. Fortunately, it's fully hidden at address. The face is wide and you get quiet, soft feel at impact, like playing the drums on a rubber training pad.
Matt
52, Handicap 11
3 years testing
The topline looks like it could use a diet. With less turf interaction, I feel like I would have been able to turn it over and get a nice flight and distance, but this would not allow for that.
Scott
37, Handicap 14
9 years testing
It was explosive off the face and kept rising. When you think you've hit the apex, it still has another 10 percent to go. Super long and high. Recalibrate your distances and you should be good to go.
Ryan
49, Handicap 10
7 years testing
If you want to hit it into the air and have it land soft, you could do a lot with this. There's a lot of extra help in this club. Don't try to fight it, trust it, and it will reward you with keeping the ball on line and launching it high and straight. It begs you to stay in your lane. It almost feels like the easier you swing, the better the result is going to be.
SEE ALL (12)
Gary
37, Handicap 13
10+ years testing
The progressive look is an improvement on the all-hybrid sets. The presence of the rails accelerates through the set. I liked how much the longer clubs are consistent and forgiving. They were almost easier to hit than the pitching wedge. A halo of protection from mis-hits. I got a hammer-like feel at impact.
Alejandra
26, Handicap 5
4 years testing
The hybrid shape is confusing, especially on the short irons. Fortunately, it's fully hidden at address. The face is wide and you get quiet, soft feel at impact, like playing the drums on a rubber training pad.
Matt
52, Handicap 11
3 years testing
The topline looks like it could use a diet. With less turf interaction, I feel like I would have been able to turn it over and get a nice flight and distance, but this would not allow for that.
Scott
37, Handicap 14
9 years testing
It was explosive off the face and kept rising. When you think you've hit the apex, it still has another 10 percent to go. Super long and high. Recalibrate your distances and you should be good to go.
Ryan
49, Handicap 10
7 years testing
If you want to hit it into the air and have it land soft, you could do a lot with this. There's a lot of extra help in this club. Don't try to fight it, trust it, and it will reward you with keeping the ball on line and launching it high and straight. It begs you to stay in your lane. It almost feels like the easier you swing, the better the result is going to be.
Alex
40, Handicap 11
6 years testing
These have a hybrid look but the bulky head is plain enough that you don't focus on it at address. Since it's heftier than a conventional club, it's tough to get it through the zone. That said, the 5-iron was much more comfortable to hit because of the shape of the club.
Shane
36, Handicap 15
5 years testing
So much height and spin. The shot was overpowered by anything but the slowest swings. The shaft can't handle any genuine speed. But it does produce that same high spinny shot every time. That's reliability a bad player is going to benefit from.
Ryan
46, Handicap 14
2 years testing
I was getting good ball speed with slower swing speeds, so the tech really could help the right golfer move the ball farther than ever.
John
55, Handicap 11
1 year testing
I was able to hit more shots with these than others in the category. Dispersion was small from side to side but the distance wasn't quite there. I felt like I had to swing harder. When I swung under control, the ball stayed in control.
Jin
30, Handicap 13
1 year testing
I had trouble getting a feel for these but I was getting decent height on my shots, even mis-hits.
Daniel
33, Handicap 12
5 years testing
One of the higher ball flights. I really felt it was too high and it was negatively affecting distance, especially in the wind. Feels clunky through the ground.
Wei
55, Handicap 13
9 years testing
I liked the crispness of the feel at impact, and there was a fair amount of forgiveness in the long iron, maybe because it isn't really a long iron—it's more of a hybrid. I do not like the thickness of the topline of these clubs. Visually, it's very distracting— something about the balance between the proportions, size of the clubhead and the topline.
Gary
37, Handicap 13
10+ years testing
The progressive look is an improvement on the all-hybrid sets. The presence of the rails accelerates through the set. I liked how much the longer clubs are consistent and forgiving. They were almost easier to hit than the pitching wedge. A halo of protection from mis-hits. I got a hammer-like feel at impact.
Scott
37, Handicap 14
9 years testing
It was explosive off the face and kept rising. When you think you've hit the apex, it still has another 10 percent to go. Super long and high. Recalibrate your distances and you should be good to go.
Shane
36, Handicap 15
5 years testing
So much height and spin. The shot was overpowered by anything but the slowest swings. The shaft can't handle any genuine speed. But it does produce that same high spinny shot every time. That's reliability a bad player is going to benefit from.
Ryan
46, Handicap 14
2 years testing
I was getting good ball speed with slower swing speeds, so the tech really could help the right golfer move the ball farther than ever.
Jin
30, Handicap 13
1 year testing
I had trouble getting a feel for these but I was getting decent height on my shots, even mis-hits.
Daniel
33, Handicap 12
5 years testing
One of the higher ball flights. I really felt it was too high and it was negatively affecting distance, especially in the wind. Feels clunky through the ground.
Wei
55, Handicap 13
9 years testing
I liked the crispness of the feel at impact, and there was a fair amount of forgiveness in the long iron, maybe because it isn't really a long iron—it's more of a hybrid. I do not like the thickness of the topline of these clubs. Visually, it's very distracting— something about the balance between the proportions, size of the clubhead and the topline.
Matt
52, Handicap 11
3 years testing
The topline looks like it could use a diet. With less turf interaction, I feel like I would have been able to turn it over and get a nice flight and distance, but this would not allow for that.
Ryan
49, Handicap 10
7 years testing
If you want to hit it into the air and have it land soft, you could do a lot with this. There's a lot of extra help in this club. Don't try to fight it, trust it, and it will reward you with keeping the ball on line and launching it high and straight. It begs you to stay in your lane. It almost feels like the easier you swing, the better the result is going to be.
Alex
40, Handicap 11
6 years testing
These have a hybrid look but the bulky head is plain enough that you don't focus on it at address. Since it's heftier than a conventional club, it's tough to get it through the zone. That said, the 5-iron was much more comfortable to hit because of the shape of the club.
John
55, Handicap 11
1 year testing
I was able to hit more shots with these than others in the category. Dispersion was small from side to side but the distance wasn't quite there. I felt like I had to swing harder. When I swung under control, the ball stayed in control.
Alejandra
26, Handicap 5
4 years testing
The hybrid shape is confusing, especially on the short irons. Fortunately, it's fully hidden at address. The face is wide and you get quiet, soft feel at impact, like playing the drums on a rubber training pad.
NO REVIEWS
There are no tester reviews here.
Range Results
We tracked 27,000 shots through player testing and then had them analyzed by our team of scientists. These graphics reflect the relative performance our players saw for each club in the category.
Surviving The Hot List: Celebrity Intern
From the Manufacturer
Cleveland Halo XL Full-Face
The HALO XL Full-Face Irons were inspired by a single idea: bigger is better. A larger, Hybrid-Iron profile gives these a confidence-inspiring look, and is meant to give avid golfers forgiving distance, high-launching ball flights, and straighter shots. Cleveland Golf’s XL head designs shifts more mass away from the center of the club, increasing MOI for more forgiveness than a traditional Iron shape.
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Callaway
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$143 per iron
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Callaway used AI analysis of average-golfer impact points to selectively thin areas on the face to maximize ball speed. The face also wraps around the topline, sole and toe to further widen the springlike effect.
A metal-injection-molding process fashions the internal tungsten weighting to better position the center of gravity.
That weight is encased in urethane microspheres that helps deliver a soft feel.
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Cobra
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Most of the same technical features of the DS-Adapt irons are used here but with a longer blade length, thicker topline, more offset and a wider sole—all things that are highly useful to players in this category.
Feedback from clubfitters that weaker-lofted irons benefit less skilled golfers resulted in lofts here that are about 2 degrees higher than other irons in this category.
Concentrating weight low and back is key to achieving easier launch and more speed. That’s accomplished via a steel weighting system inside the head that gets weight in the proper position while allowing maximum flexing of the face.
3 / 12
Mizuno
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High-strength chromoly 4140M steel is used for the face. The hitting area is thinned around the perimeter, increasing rebound for maximum ball speed.
The wide sole teams with tungsten weighting low in the head of the 4- through 7-iron to help golfers get the ball up in the air.
Internal ribs are used to provide a softer feel yet explosive sound at impact.
4 / 12
Ping
G730
$185 per iron
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An enhanced metalwood-style variable-thickness face uses a special heat treatment to allow thinning of the 17-4 stainless-steel.
The large head and wide sole offer increased stability and instill confidence.
The rear badge is a 10-piece construction that uses two plastics and has five bending regions to assist face flex for higher launch and a steeper landing angle.
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TaylorMade
Qi HL
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The multi-material cap back is lighter than the steel it replaces and wraps around the high-toe area. The reduced weight in that area makes it easier to square the club at impact, reducing the chance of hitting a slice.
The center of gravity is lower in the long irons to boost trajectory and progressively rises, allowing for controllable short-iron shots that don’t balloon.
The irons feature extreme heel-toe weighting to provide stability across a wide swath of the clubface.
6 / 12
Yonex
EZone GT
$175 per iron
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Hot List Gold
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An L-shaped maraging-steel face wraps around part of the sole. The steel is durable, allowing it to be made thin to easily flex. This creates more speed and helps launch shots higher in lofts that are extremely strong.
The hollow-body construction uses forged S45C steel for a soft feel. The face actually uses two steels (one for the main irons and another for the gap and sand wedges).
The irons use a graphite back plate and stabilizer bar that allow the face to bend while maintaining an acceptable sound and feel.
7 / 12
Cobra
Air-X
$114 per iron
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$114 per iron
Through weighting, center-of-gravity placement and relatively weaker lofts, the irons provide the kind of launch-angle boost slower swingers need.
The variable-thickness face was inspired by Cobra’s driver. By tweaking the thickness and size of each “zone,” ball speed can be optimized across the face.
The lightweight Air-X starts with a cast head that is two grams lighter and a 41-gram grip that is six grams lighter. Saving eight grams makes the club easier to swing faster.
8 / 12
Cobra
T-Rail
$143 per iron
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$143 per iron
An excellent choice for players more concerned with how many good shots they hit during a round than their score.
Designed using AI, the forged face insert uses stainless steel in a variable-thickness pattern that increases the area of the sweet spot.
Fifteen zones range in thickness from 2 to 2.2 millimeters. The result is a face that is slightly larger but doesn’t weigh more.
9 / 12
PXG
Wildcat
$150 per iron
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Hot List Silver
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The set uses a 6-hybrid then 7-iron through sand wedge. All are designed with a large amount of offset and a bigger overall profile—perfect for the beginner or occasional player looking for a club that’s easy to hit.
The irons have a hollow body filled with a polymer for feel and rebound. The outer cavity badge has a weight-saving insert. The mass saved is relocated to the perimeter for improved forgiveness.
As with all PXG irons, the face insert is made from HT1770 maraging steel and is razor thin at just .05 of an inch. That and the channels around the perimeter provide a chest-puffing trampoline effect.
10 / 12
Tour Edge
Exotics X725
$130 per iron
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$130 per iron
A new entry in the Exotics family takes the company’s all-time best-selling iron-wood concept and turns it into an ultra-premium Exotics version.
The diamond face with its three shapes and thicknesses boosts speed, particularly on off-center strikes, and uses less weight that allows for a deeper center of gravity.
The shallower clubhead, thicker topline and additional offset all work together to help golfers get the ball in the air while minimizing the tendency to slice.
11 / 12
Wilson
Dynapower Max
$128 per iron
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$128 per iron
This is an all-iron set (as opposed to the hybrid-like Launch Pad model).
Wilson used analytical tools to develop its first ever cupface construction in which the face wraps around the topline and sole to get more distance in a pleasing look.
Mass was added to the topline to improve stability. This delivered better results on strikes caught high on the face while helping to mute the sound.
12 / 12
XXIO
13
$157 per iron
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Hot List Silver
$157 per iron
These irons use a titanium face plate that is thinner for greater flexing.
An L-shaped internal groove etched deep into the interior of the iron’s stainless-steel body further enhances spring, especially for shots struck low on the face.
In clubs up to the 7-iron, 31 grams of tungsten are used to drive the center of gravity low and back, fostering a high ball flight to optimize carry distance.