Editor’s note: Looking ahead to where we take our golf equipment coverage in the future (launch season will be here soon enough!), we want to look behind us more frequently. What does that mean, exactly? Well, we want to both place new releases in their historical contexts and highlight past coverage by, as we have done from time to time, opening the GolfWRX archives. 

For this installment, we’re returning to 2019, when Skratch’s Gear Editor, Ryan Barath, was a humble writer for GolfWRX. A time when Titleist elected to turn the page from its successful AP irons to its (now wildly successful) T-Series irons, including the flagship T100 irons, which remain the most played irons on the PGA Tour. 

We pick up the 2019 launch piece with an overview of the first generation of T100 irons. 

LOOKS: Titleist T100 irons

The 2019 Titleist T100 iron has a couple of key changes to the optics that we think are a huge improvement over the AP2.

• Thinner topline
• Reduced off-set

Both of these changes were based on the input from tour staffer Jordan Spieth. Here is what he had to say about the AP2 Replacement

“When I first saw the T-100 irons and it didn’t say ‘AP2’ on it, I had to have full trust,” Spieth said. “I’m sitting there saying, ‘Man, I played the same iron that said the same thing on it since 2010, probably earlier.’ But I’ve been playing Titleist clubs since I was 12 years old, and they’ve never led me in the wrong direction and they’ve always gotten better. And the idea of a name change – really an entire change across the board with their irons – is big. But there are big changes.”

FEEL: Titleist T100 Irons

The 2019-2020 Titleist T-100 iron is equipped with a new fully-forged dual cavity construction that provides more consistency across the face as well as increased ball speed for maximum distance. The face is thinner overall but a solid “forged blade” feel is not sacrificed.

66 grams of dual-density tungsten was placed in the heel and toe of the mid and long irons to increase stability and provide a heavier hit overall.

Later, we went into detail on the T200 and T300… 

Titleist T200 Irons

On Spec’s Ryan Barath had a full testing with the T-200 irons and this is what he had to say.

LOOKS: Titleist T-200 irons

The very first thing I noticed about the 2019 Titleist T200 iron is that although slightly more rounded and bigger than the smaller 100, thanks to the tweaking of the topline, sole and toe profile, the T200 to me looks more like an older AP2 than its predecessor in the lineup, AP3. The short irons of the T200s still frame the ball very nicely and allow for workability and the chance to flight shots.

FEEL

Max Impact sounds and looks very different from any Titleist iron before it, because it is. Thanks to new materials and manufacturing techniques, along with lessons learned through the development of the Concept Series and Speed Project, the 2019 Titleist T200 has an unsupported forged L-Face that not only feels fantastic but flexes for more ball speed.

That’s what I loved about these irons, they felt so close to the Titleist T100s as far as feel and sound go, that I instantly thought of building a combo set. The ball takes off high and comes down soft. The speed is the reason stronger lofts are required for the 2019 Titleist T200 LAUNCH. The lower COG paired with the faster face and higher ball speed means that without going stronger, players are going to spin it TOO much—not something you would generally expect from a club with “stronger” lofts. but what I really loved about them was how they felt through the turf. They don’t have the feel of a midsized iron…but they do have the speed!

I loved everything about the T200 and I think that if you are getting fit for new irons, these have to be on the list to try!

Click here to see more photos and read the discussion in the forums 

The rest of the article contains insights on the OG Titleist T300 irons from RB, as well as a wealth of comparison info and photos. For a trip down equipment memory lane, head over to the full piece.