Equipment
Game improvement irons vs Players irons – GolfWRXers discuss
In our forums, our members have been comparing and contrasting game improvement irons with players irons. WRXer ‘ DaveLeeNC’ has seen his handicap rise from single digits to 10.6 as he’s reached his 70s, and says:
“I was considering going to ‘full-blown GI irons’ as an experiment. Are GI irons really that much less controllable? I have hit a few at the range and that was not obvious to me, but I am guessing that my reaction might be different after a couple of rounds.
I can’t be the only guy who has gone down that path, so I was curious about experiences in this regard.”
And our members have been sharing their thoughts on the subject in our forum.
Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.
- MOShii: “I think Game improvement irons require less effort to hit, which is definitely a good thing if you are older. They do feel a little jumpy/springy maybe because of the stronger lofts and because of that they do feel like they spin less, but you can always offset this by using a different ball or experiment with graphite shafts to increase your trajectory/peak height or both to get more control with your approach shots. Just because they are “game improvement” doesn’t mean they aren’t workable. If you hit with a draw swing or a slice swing the ball will still curve. It just softens up the curvature a touch.”
- CDLgolf: “I’ve bounced back and forth between Ping g or i series irons for the last 20 years. My scores are the same with either. I don’t find the game improvement irons any less accurate. When I put a good swing on it, the ball goes where I want it to. For me, it’s just what I feel like looking at at the time. Sometimes the larger game improvement irons give me more confidence, and sometimes the smaller i series do. I regularly play with 2 guys 70+ who both shoot in the mid to low 70’s and both use G series irons and play well with them. I’ve never heard them complain that they are not accurate with those irons.”
- martinbns: “I’m 57, play to a 10 on a dozen rounds a year so for me it’s GI irons, I play Mizuno 825 GW to 5I then 3&4 hybrid. Over the years I have played lots of golf with guys sporting “players” clubs and other than them not liking too much offset I never see them bending shots on purpose with any degree of regularity. I have a straight to slight fade natural swing; I can make my 825’s draw but oddly can’t hit a bigger fade. As we all get older our margin for error goes down as we lose distance, why make the game harder?”
- INeedMoreGolf: “I’m 32 next month, and I have the reverse experience that you have.. I started with super gi irons then gi and now players irons. In my experience so far I’ve played best with gi and now the players irons… I have the mp 20 MMC, and although they are players irons, they are quite forgiving but smaller like I like. I think you switching to gi irons will be very beneficial for all the reasons you probably think. I think there is no shame at all in playing a gi iron either. Let’s be honest we can all thin, chunk, shank, push or pull. any iron weather its pi gi or sgi.”
Equipment
Neal Shipley, AKA, the “Big Fridge’s,” custom stamping
Neal Shipley was the first to admit that he enjoyed his food while in college. But since his days at Ohio State, he’s slimmed down and earned a PGA Tour Card.
That hasn’t stopped him from having fun with his wedge stampings, though it’s led to some misunderstandings.
On the 54 (degree), we have ‘Big Fudge,'” Shipley told GolfWRX. “It was supposed to be ‘Big Fridge,’ so this happened a little while ago. ‘Big Fridge’ was a nickname between my college teammates and I, with ‘fridge’ meaning stomach, a big stomach.

“We told the Ping guys to put … ‘Big Fridge’ on it, and I think maybe some bad cell service or something, and they thought I said ‘fudge,’ so they put fudge on it.”
On Shipley’s 50-degree he also continues the food theme, this time with his go-to order at the “Golden Arches,” and his stamping “DONS 7.”
“The number 7 meal, the two cheeseburger meal, that was my McDonald’s order, back when I would have McDonald’s frequently,” Shipley shared.
Equipment
From the GolfWRX Classifieds: L.A.B. Purple DF3 with Masters cover
At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.
It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.
Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @raw10628 has a L.A.B. DF3 putter and Masters putter cover up for grabs.

From the listing: “Some great items here today, time to thin out and make room for next set of gear. All prices include shipping.
LAB DF3 Purple 33.5” 68° lie with TPT – $725. LAB Masters release DF3 cover – $150.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules
Whats in the Bag
Maria Torres WITB 2026 (June)
Driver: Ping G440 LST (9 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 5-M4

3-wood: Ping G440 Max (15 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4

5-wood: Ping G440 Max (19 degrees @18)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4

Hybrid: Ping G440 (23 degrees)
Shaft: Oban Isawa Red Hybrid Shaft 04 Flex 70 Gms

Irons: Srixon ZXi7 (5-P)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i80

Wedges: Cleveland RTZ (50-MID, 54-FULL, 58-MID)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i105

Putter: L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i
Shaft: ACCRA Putter Shaft

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

wally detler
Sep 10, 2020 at 8:23 pm
BEst ever!