Gear: Srixon ZX4 irons
Price: $1,299.99 (steel), $1,399.99 (graphite)
Specs: Hollow-bodied irons with 431 stainless chassis, internal tungsten weights and forged HT 1770 stainless steel face.
Available: March 5
Moderately-sized irons designed to provide more distance and forgiveness represent one of the fastest-growing segments of the equipment market. Many elite golfers are adding a club like this and using it as a driving iron. On the local level, accomplished players who want more distance like them because they look like traditionally-shaped irons but pack a punch. With the release of the new ZX4 irons, Srixon is offering mid- and higher-handicap golfers a club that looks like those better player’s iron but is designed to give them a lot more distance and forgiveness.
To provide that, Srixon designed the ZX4 irons with a body cast from 431 stainless steel but attached a forged HT 1770 stainless steel face. On the outside, the hitting surface looks like a typical face, but there are a series of grooves, ridges, and valleys on the inner side. Srixon refers to it as MainFrame technology, and those features are created during a milling process while a high-speed bit passes back and forth and shaves off tiny ribbons of material in specific areas. The design team used sophisticated computer systems to simulate different internal face patterns before discovering the one that most effectively spreads the sweet spot across the widest area.
Each of the ZX4 irons is also hollow, so the MainFrame face can flex more efficiently and produce more ball speed at the moment of impact.
Internal tungsten weights in the long and mid-irons help lower the center of gravity location and encourage higher-flying shots that come down more vertically, so they stop faster on the greens.
Designers also added a wide Tour V.T. sole to the ZX4 irons. With a seam running down the center from toe to heel, the Tour V.T. sole helps the clubs enter and exit the turf more efficiently, even on step swings, to help golfers maintain speed and avoid digging.
From an aesthetic standpoint, the ZX4 irons blend seamlessly into the new ZX family. Yes, they have a thicker topline and sole than the ZX5 and ZX7, and there is more offset, but the design is clean and should inspire confidence at address.
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