2024 Better-Player Distance irons

Callaway Apex Ti Fusion irons

Callaway Apex Ti Fusion irons blend a soft stainless steel body with a titanium face.

Gear: Callaway Apex Ti Fusion irons
Price: $300 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold Mid Gunmetal steel shafts or Mitsubishi MMT graphite shafts and Golf Pride Z grips
Specs: Forged 1020 stainless steel body with brazed titanium face, internal urethane microspheres, adjustable back weight, and diamond-like coating
Available: NOW

Who it’s for: Low- to mid-handicap golfers who want more distance, feel, and consistency.

What you should know: Callaway Apex Ti Fusion irons blend a soft stainless steel body with a titanium face designed using artificial intelligence and internal urethane material to create more ball speed, a softer feel, and more consistency.

The deep dive: “Ladies and gentlemen, have fun.” Something like that must have been said to the club designers and engineers at Callaway before they created the new Apex Ti Fusion irons.

While the new Apex Ai200 and Ai300 are game-improvement clubs for the masses, the materials and technologies packed into the Apex Ti Fusion enabled Callaway’s club makers to elevate their design approach for a slightly-better set of players.

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The story with the Apex Ti Fusion irons is all about the hitting area. The forged stainless steel body is similar in design to the new Ai200, although it is slightly smaller. However, the cup face given to the Apex Ti Fusion irons is very different. While the new Ai200 and Ai300 have forged stainless steel faces, the Apex Ti Fusion irons feature titanium faces.

Callaway is not claiming that the Apex Ti Fusion irons are the first titanium irons in golf, but the Carlsbad, California-based company developed a new way to bond titanium to stainless steel, a process that typically is not possible. The new manufacturing process allows the thin, titanium cup face to flex more efficiently at the moment of impact for increased ball speed instead of being slowed by the stiffer stainless steel that holds it.

To maximize the titanium face’s performance, Callaway designers used artificial intelligence to simulate and test different face patterns and designs, then determined which would produce the best performance for each club in the set. As a result, the long iron faces were optimized to enhance distance and forgiveness on mishits, while the short irons and scoring clubs feature more spin consistency for better distance control and accuracy.

BUY: Callaway Apex Ti Fusion irons

Historically, titanium-faced irons have been made for mid- and higher-handicap golfers who want more ball speed and distance, and the addition of a titanium hitting area certainly helps to do that in the Apex Ti Fusion, though the Apex Ti Fusion is geared toward a different audience. As the numbers in Callaway’s new nomenclature get larger, irons get bigger and more forgiving. For instance, the Ai300 is bigger and more stable than the Ai200, but the Ai200 has less offset, a smaller blade length, and aims to appeal to better golfers. The Apex Ti Fusion can be thought of as a 150, slightly smaller than the Ai200, and its dark finish makes it appear even slimmer. Golfers can expect the Apex Ti Fusion irons to perform more like the updated Apex Pro released last year. Still, thanks to the titanium face, the irons should provide more distance and better performance on mishits.

The Apex Ti Fusion irons’ lofts are modern, with a 5-iron at 23.5 degrees and a pitching wedge at 43 degrees. An attack wedge is available that comes standard at 38 degrees.

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Below are several close-up images of the new Callaway Apex Ti Fusion iron

TaylorMade P·770 irons (2024)

The P·770 is a better-player’s distance iron.

TaylorMade’s first P·770 was released in 2017 alongside the P·750, and it was a better-player’s cavity-back iron, but in 2020, it was updated and radically changed. The cavity-back design was gone, and in its place, the 2020 P·770 featured a hollow-body construction that featured a look in the address position that accomplished golfers would appreciate.

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That club was updated again in 2023, and now TaylorMade has updated it again for 2024. The new P·770 irons have the same script on the side and brushed chrome finish that the other P Series irons have been given, so from a visual standpoint, golfers and fitters can opt to use them as a complete set or blend the P·770 with P·790, P·7CB or even P·7MB irons to create a blended but cohesive set.

Who are the new TaylorMade P·770 irons for?

The P·770 is a better-player’s distance iron. It is for low-handicap golfers who want a compact head shape but who also desire more ball speed and some forgiveness.

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What should you know about the new TaylorMade P·770 irons?

In the address position, golfers may notice TaylorMade has designed the topline of the updated P·770 to be thinner, but looking at the clubs, they might not notice the leading edge of the 3-iron through 7-iron have been smoothed and pre-worn. The sole is still slightly wider than the P·7CB and P·7MB, but it is thinner than other TaylorMade irons. According to TaylorMade, the tight leading-edge radius and thin sole should help the P·770 get in and out of the turf more efficiently while also creating a higher launch angle with the long irons.

The P·770 irons have L-shaped faces that are forged using 4041 stainless steel. They are designed to wrap under the leading edge and into the sole, and the 3-iron through 7-iron have been designed with a Speed Pocket slot that is positioned directly behind the leading edge. The slot, which is covered by a polymer to keep water and debris out of the heads, allows the lower portion of the hitting area to flex more efficiently on low-struck shots for increased distance.

TaylorMade fills the inner chamber of the P·770 with SpeedFoam Air, a light material that soaks up excessive vibrations to enhance sound and feel. Making the center of the club lighter also pushes more overall weight to the perimeter, which boosts stability without making the clubs larger.

Designers also strategically positioned tungsten weights inside each head, with the precise location and amount of tungsten varying by club. This allows TaylorMade to lower and elevate the center of gravity (CG) location based on what the club is designed to do. TaylorMade refers to this as FLTD CG, with the long irons having the most tungsten and lowest CG, so they produce a higher launch angle. Progressing through the set, the CG location rises, so the short irons feature the highest CG locations, so shots come off lower for increased accuracy and control.

The P·770 lofts are typical for modern, better-player distance irons, with a 3-iron at 19 degrees, 6-iron at 29 degrees and 9-iron at 41 degrees. The P·770 pitching wedge has 45 degrees of loft, and there is an attack wedge available that has 50 degrees of loft.

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How does the TaylorMade P·770 compare to other TaylorMade irons?

The TaylorMade P·770 is very similar in construction and appearance to the P·790, but the P·770 is smaller and has a shorter blade length and slightly thinner topline.

The P·770 is slightly larger than the new P·7CB, but the P·7CB is a solid-bodied club while the P·770 is hollow. Therefore, the P·770 should create more ball speed and distance, and its slightly larger size should make it more forgiving and stable on mis-hits. The P·770 will also hit the ball higher and with less spin than the P·7CB.

How much do the new TaylorMade P·770 irons cost?

The TaylorMade P·770 irons cost $1,399.99 (seven clubs) and come standard with True Temper Dynamic Gold Mid 115 steel shafts and Golf Pride Z grips.

When will the new TaylorMade P·770 be in stores?

The TaylorMade P·770 irons will be available for pre-sale on July 31 and should be in stores starting on September 6.

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TaylorMade P•UDI, P•DHy utility irons (2024)

TaylorMade P•UDI, P•DHy utility irons create lots of distance and a low ball flight.

Gear: TaylorMade P•UDI, P•DHy utility irons
Price: $249 each with UST Mamiya Recoil DART shaft and Golf Pride Z-grip
Specs: Hollow-body design with forged 41040 stainless steel face, vibration-dampening foam and tungsten weight. Available as 2-, 3- and 4-iron.

Who It’s For: These utility irons are perfect for golfers who want a versatile club that can be used as a long-iron alternative. It flies lower than a hybrid but higher and farther than a typical long iron.

The Skinny: The P•UDI and P•DHy are designed to be clubs that bridge the gap between a player’s last fairway wood and first iron, producing a hybrid-like distance with a lower ball flight and iron-style control.

The Deep Dive: Every golf has a gap that needs to be filled between the clubs they play off the tee on par 4s and par 5s (driver and 3-wood) and their longest iron. To bridge that gap, players have choices that include high-lofted fairway woods, hybrids and utility irons. For most players, hybrids offer a blend of distance and versatility that is tough to beat, but some players want to create a lower ball flight, so they shy away from hybrids and fairway woods and gravitate to utility irons. In windy conditions and on especially firm courses, a piercing shot that can be turned with a draw or fade can be handy.

For a decade, TaylorMade has offered clubs labeled UDI (ultimate driving iron) and then DHy (distance hybrid), including last year’s Stealth UDI and DHy. For 2024, its newest offerings have been linked to the brand’s P Series in name and appearance.

TaylorMade P•UDI — The P•UDI has a traditional sole width and Speed Pocket slot. (David Dusek/Golfweek)

The P•UDI and P•DHy utility irons, with a soft chrome finish, look like extensions of the P•790 or P•770 sets. They share some technologies with those clubs, too, but the P•UDI and P•DHy are only available as 2-, 3- or 4-irons. They also come standard with a graphite shaft, indicating that TaylorMade intends for them to be played, in nearly every case, off the tee.

The P•UDI and P•DHy have each been designed with a forged 4140 stainless steel face attached to a stainless steel body, creating a hollow chamber inside each head. Like the 2023 P•790, the back walls have thick and thin areas that create a honeycomb look and save weight, and both clubs have an internal tungsten piece that enabled TaylorMade designers to shift the center of gravity (CG) location. It is slightly higher in the P•UDI, which helps the club produce a lower ball flight than the P•DHy, but both clubs still create lower shots than a similarly lofted hybrid.

TaylorMade added a Speed Pocket slot in the sole of the P•UDI and P•DHy to help the lower portion of the hitting area flex more effectively on low-struck shots.

TaylorMade P•DHy irons — The P•DHy has a lower profile and longer blade length than the P•UDI. (David Dusek/Golfweek)

To enhance sound and feel, the P•UDI and P•DHy have SpeedFoam Air injected into the hollow cavity inside the head. It soaks up excessive vibrations but does not impede the face from flexing or reducing ball speed.

In addition to creating a lower ball, the P•UDI has a shorter blade length and less offset than the P•DHy, and TaylorMade claims the club is more forgiving than the P•790. The company says the P•DHy is the most forgiving iron in its stable, including all the P Series irons and even the game-improvement Qi10 iron. In the address position, the P•UDI looks like a standard better player’s iron, but golfers will see some of the back of the P•DHy, but for many golfers, the sight may be reassuring and confidence-inspiring.

Below are several in-hand images of the P•UDI and P•DHy.

TaylorMade P·770, P·790 Copper irons

The TaylorMade P·770 and P·790 Copper look old, but play modern.

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Gear: TaylorMade P·770, P·790 Copper
Price: $1,499.00 (4-PW) with KBS C-Taper Lite Black shafts and Golf Pride TaylorMade Victory Copper grips”
Specs: Hollow-bodied irons with 8620 carbon steel chassis, forged 4140 steel face, vibration-‘dampening foam.

Who It’s For: Golfers who love the look of vintage clubs but who also want to experience the benefits of modern, distance- and feel-enhancing technologies.

The Skinny: The TaylorMade P·770 and P·790 Copper are identical to the previously-released versions of the P·770 and P·790 but have been given retro styling and details that pay homage to TaylorMade’s 1980s offerings.

The Deep Dive: For the past few years, golf footwear makers have been revisiting popular shoes from “back in the day” and releasing updates and modern interpretations, adding better materials and technologies while trying to maintain what made the shoes appealing in the first place.

With the release of the Copper Collection, TaylorMade is doing the same thing. Two weeks ago, the BRNR Mini Driver Copper was released, complete with a throwback logo on the sole and a shaft that was cosmetically designed to harken back to the old Burner Bubble shaft from the 1990s. Now, the brand is releasing the P·770 Copper and P·790 Copper, two better-player distance irons that are identical in design to the previously-released P·770 and P·790. However, both clubs look like they would have been at home in the bags of players at Baltusrol Golf Club back in 1983 when Lee Janzen was battling Payne Stewart at the U.S. Open.

The TaylorMade Copper family, including the BRNR Mini Driver, P·790 and P·770 (TaylorMade)

Both irons feature a hollow-body design that allows the forged 4140 stainless steel faces to flex more efficiently at the moment of impact, resulting in more ball speed and distance. They also have a Speed Pocket slot in the sole that helps to enhance performance on thin shots and TaylorMade’s FLT CG system. It shifts mass inside the heads, so the center of gravity (CG) location in each iron is optimized. In the long irons, it’s lower to help get the ball up more easily, while in the scoring clubs, it is elevated to help keep the ball down for enhanced distance control.

The hollow chambers in both clubs are filled with SpeedFoam Air, a second-generation material that absorbs vibrations, enhances sound, and removes weight from the center of the club.

The smaller P·770 has a body made from 8620 carbon steel, while the P·790 has a thick-thin back wall construction to save weight.

But let’s be honest, all those performance features are available in the standard P·770 and P·790. If these clubs spark your interest, it’s because of the copper-toned finish and the retro style. You like the way copper-toned irons create a throwback look to your bag and how the old-school grips feel in your hands. You probably also like the use of TaylorMade’s original logo on the toe instead of its current logo.

TaylorMade says the copper finish will “mature over time,” but for golfers who love the throwback style of the P·770 and P·790 Copper, that will only enhance the vibe.

Below are some close-up looks at the P·770 Copper and P·790 Copper irons

Rory McIlroy using prototype TaylorMade iron at 2024 Valero Texas Open

McIlroy has a new club in the bag the week before he goes for the Career Grand Slam once again at the Masters.

When it comes to drivers, Rory McIlroy has been more than willing to upgrade into TaylorMade’s newest, latest and greatest every year since he signed an endorsement deal with the company is 2017. Irons, however, are another story.

The four-time major winner has used a prototype set of RORS Proto irons fitted with Project X 7.0 shafts for nearly all his rounds, occasionally adding a TaylorMade P·760 2-, 3- or 4-iron based on the course setup and conditions. Those clubs, which Jon Rahm played when he was a TaylorMade staff player, were released in 2018, so it was noteworthy when McIlroy was spotted on the range preparing for the start of the Valero Texas Open with a prototype TaylorMade 4-iron.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5TrRsAAW4z/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

McIlroy was asked about the club during his pre-tournament press conference.

“So after I went to Vegas, I went out to The Kingdom [TaylorMade’s test center in Carlsbad, California] for two days. I needed to get into a fresh set of irons, my irons were like two years old maybe, so they were getting a little worn,” McIlroy explained. “They just produced these couple of proto, I guess like are they the MC replacements maybe, I think? I’m not sure what they’re actually going to be called. Yeah, I have no idea.”

Commenting on how the 4-iron played, McIlroy said, “They performed really well. It’s just as fast as the 760 that I was using. Launch is a little higher actually, which was surprising, and it’s just sometimes I felt like when I hit my 5-iron in the blade and then the 4-iron in the 760, it was such a different feel. To go from a 5-iron now to that 4-iron, it feels a little closer to what I feel in the 5-iron. So just a little bit more responsive, but didn’t lose any performance from it, which is great. Yeah, it will be in the bag this week.”

As a true muscleback blade, McIlroy’s RORS Proto irons have extra mass low in the head, behind the area where he makes contact with the ball, but his prototype 4-iron is clearly a better player’s cavity back iron. The current P•7MC has a very similar shape and similar milling design on the back of the head, as well.

McIlroy’s prototype is fitted with the same Project X 7.0 Rifle shaft and Golf Pride MCC grip as his other irons and wedges.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4 category=1364]

Ping i530 irons

Ping i530 irons are better-player distance clubs made to enhanced distance and forgiveness.

Gear: Ping i530 irons
Price: $205 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 steel shafts and Golf Pride 360 Tour Velvet grips. $220 each with Ping Alta CB Black graphite shafts
Specs: Forged C300 maraging steel face with 17-4 stainless steel chassis

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Who It’s For: Golfers who want the look of a better-player’s iron combined with the distance of a game-improvement club.

The Skinny: These hollow-bodied, better-player distance irons look like blades but were made to generate more ball speed and distance while also offering enhanced forgiveness and feel.

The Deep Dive: Ping recently released the Blueprint T and Blueprint S, the new irons that comprise the “precision” offerings in Ping’s stable designed for pros and accomplished players. With its machined back and classic looks, the just-released i530 appears like it fits into that category too. However, several hidden design features and technologies set it apart and position it as a better-player’s distance iron.

The i530 replaces the i525 iron that was released in 2022, and it has a hollow-body design that is similar to the design of Ping’s metalwoods. The thin, forged C300 maraging steel face is welded to the 17-7 stainless steel body, which creates a hollow chamber inside the head. This hollow-body design allows the hitting area to flex more efficiently at the moment of impact, so golfers can generate more ball speed and distance.

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To improve the sound and feel of impact, engineers added a polymer to the back of the face. It soaks up excessive vibrations without restricting the bending of the hitting area at impact, so it does not reduce ball speed.

When golfers see the back of the i530, they might think the milled area is there for show, but each machined line represents an area where steel was removed from a high location in the head. Machining the back and making it thinner created discretionary weight that designers were able to reposition in the form of an internal mass pad that is 10 grams heavier than the pad found in the i525. Consequently, the i530 has a lower the center of gravity (CG) location, which should help golfers create a higher launch angle and more stopping power on the greens. A bonus of positioning extra mass low in the head is it puts more steel directly behind the area where golfers tend to hit the ball, which results in extra ball speed.

To make the i530 more forgiving without making the clubs larger, Ping designed each head to house a high-density toe weight that compliments a weight added to the hosel area. The added mass increases the perimeter weighting of the heads, making them more stable on off-center hits.

In addition to a Hydropearl 2.0 finish that improves performance in wet conditions, Ping gave the i530 MicroMax grooves. Introduced on the i59 and the i230 irons, MicroMax grooves are packed more tightly together in the hitting area to enhance performance in all types of moisture conditions and reduce the effect of flier lies.

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Below are several close-up images of the i530 irons.