Equipment
Forum Thread of the Day: “Those who have changed from forged/blade irons to big game improvers – did it improve your handicap?”
Today’s Forum Thread of the Day comes from mattd1 who asks whether any fellow members have changed irons from forged/blade to game improvers, and if so, had they seen their handicap improve as a result. Our members share their experiences of making the switch.
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.
- NRJvzr: “Played Eye2+ for a year. Was a seven at the start, was a seven at the end of that calendar year. The only thing that really came of it was a trajectory change; I hit the Eye2+ quite a bit higher than my previous irons and was playing low loft drivers. In bringing down the Ping trajectory, I found I subsequently hit everything lower, and could largely not play my old drivers. LOL”
- Kingcat990: “Nope. I balance between the blades of blades to Cleveland CBX irons and see no change. Like others, I see a difference in ball flight, and I will grab one club stronger when using MB’s. Other than that, it’s pretty straight forward.”
- Chuck905: “I hit the new 790s vs all the blades (mentioned here as well) yesterday, and the difference I saw was a touch higher launch and lower spin, something to keep in mind when you are hitting into greens. Or if you play windy days, the lower spin will be an advantage. Surprisingly, the new 790s felt really good.”
- farmer: “Play hybrids through the 7, to a 5 handicap. Have they helped? Yes. Are they ugly? Yes. Do I care? No.”
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.
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
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
Aaron Rai’s winning WITB: 2026 PGA Championship
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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...
Eric Cole WITB 2026 (June)
Driver: PXG Lightning Tour Max (9 degrees) Shaft: Project X Titan Yellow 70 TX 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D (15 degrees) Shaft:...
Si Woo Kim WITB 2026 (May)
Driver: Callaway Quantum Triple Diamond (8.5 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X Mini driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Mini...
Wyndham Clark’s winning WITB: 2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D (10.5 degrees) Shaft: Project X Titan Yellow 60 TX 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D Tour (15 degrees) Shaft: Project...
Richard Douglas
Sep 17, 2019 at 1:55 am
I’m a 5. I play the Sterling single-length irons from Wishon Golf. But before I made the switch, I made another. I switched from I-series Ping irons to G-series. It made a huge difference. I didn’t like the offset, but I loved the lower CG, the enhanced perimeter weighting, and the fact that the G was moved closer to the I.
“Playability” is over-rated. The vast majority of golfers have no business trying to move the ball–except in extreme cases. Hit what will produce good results more often. You’ll be happier.
(Oh, and if Ping would come out with a single-length G-series, I’d come back home in a minute.)
Alex
Aug 28, 2019 at 9:18 pm
Hit an i500 3 iron and i210 4 iron and s55 5/PW. Don’t think I’d like the bigger ones above 5 iron, but in long irons I love having more help and would never go back to an iblade or s55 long iron.
Uncle Buck
Aug 28, 2019 at 2:53 am
Yes, absolutely! I went from Callaway MB’s to Cobra F9 Speedback’s, and yes, my ball striking improved over night! Going from butter knives to shovels will improve anyone’s game dramatically. Had to check my multi-year golfing ego at the door, and glad I did. I was a pretty decent golfer to begin with, 8 hdcp., but shaved some strokes immediately with these bad boys. I’m a solid 4 hdcp. since I put these in the bag last April. I just aim and shoot. When I do miss greens it’s no more than 12-15 yards off.