Quality iron play is critical to winning the 2023 Masters, and these 10 golfers rank highest on the PGA Tour for good iron shots.
With all due respect to this week’s PGA Tour event, the Valero Texas Open, and with the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play completed, much of the golf world is focusing its attention on next week’s Masters.
The first men’s major championship of 2023 is shaping up to be an epic event, with stars such Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm having played well this year.
Augusta National Golf Club will test every aspect of each player’s game, but precision iron play will be especially important because it can help golfers set up birdie chances while also avoiding card-wrecking big numbers.
Below is the list of the 10 golfers who lead the PGA Tour in Strokes Gained: Approach the Green – a statistic that measures how much of an advantage a golfer has over the field based exclusively on his play from the fairway – along with the irons those players are using.
New muscleback blades for elite golfers, cavity-back irons that blend forgiveness and feel, they’re all here.
In the weeks leading up to the holiday season and throughout January, equipment makers released several new sets of irons designed for players at every game level. New muscleback blades for elite golfers, cavity-back irons that blend forgiveness and feel and offerings made for inexperienced players and slower swingers, they’re all here.
The trouble is finding the new set of irons that will complement your game. The best way to do that is to work with a custom fitter and hit lots of different options under the watchful eye of a launch monitor, but the list of irons below will give you a great place to start your research and narrow down your search.
The updated Cobra King Tour irons have a touch of forgiveness and classic looks for accomplished golfers.
Gear: Cobra King Tour irons Price: $1,299 with KBS $-Taper 120 steel shafts and Lamkin Crossline grips Specs: Forged 1025 carbon steel with TPU insert and co-molded aluminum medallion Available: Feb. 3
Who It’s For: Low-scoring golfers who want a soft-feeling iron that delivers shot-shaping control with a touch of forgiveness.
The Skinny: A better-player’s cavity-back, the updated King Tour irons have a vibration-dampening insert to soften the feel along with the compact size and classic look that accomplished golfers demand.
The Deep Dive: Cobra’s new Aerojet irons are loaded with technologies and features designed to allow mid- and higher-handicap golfers to hit the ball farther and straighter. Elite players, however, are not looking for those traits. With their powerful, repeatable swings, golfers who shoot in the 70s want clubs that amplify control and feel, allowing them to shape shots, and most of them require a classic look in the address position.
Cobra has updated the King Tour irons to tick all those boxes while adding a touch of forgiveness that golfers won’t get from muscleback blades.
The Cobra King Tour irons have a clean, classic look in the address position. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
In the address position, the King Tour irons display a thin topline, minimal offset and a more-compact blade length than the previous King Tour MIM irons.
As with other better-player clubs, the 2023 King Tour irons are forged, but transforming the raw 1025 carbon steel into one of these clubheads involves forging the metal five times instead of just once. Cobra said the five-step forging increases the precision of the process, makes the faces completely flat and enhances feel even more.
The black TPU insert in the back of the King Tour softens feel and enhances sound. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
While the King Tour CB and MB irons are one-piece forgings, meaning the heads are made using nothing but metal, Cobra designers added a thermoplastic polyurethane insert and an aluminum co-molded badge to the back of the King Tour heads to soak up excessive vibrations.
The cavity-back shaping is created by computer-controlled milling. This allowed engineers to make subtle changes to the undercuts around the head, taking extra material out of the top of the long irons to lower the center of gravity. That should make it slightly easier to get long-iron shots up. The center of gravity gradually elevates in the heads through the mid-irons and into the scoring clubs for enhanced control.
Cobra King Tour irons have slightly strengthened lofts. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
The King Tour lofts are slightly stronger than the lofts of the King CB and MB irons, with the 5-iron being 25 degrees and the pitching wedge at 44 degrees. Cobra did this to give the King Tour slightly more power, but the iron lofts can be strengthened or weakened by a fitter by up to 2 degrees if necessary.
Who It’s For: Elite ballstrikers who demand the ultimate in feel and control.
The Skinny: Combining forged cavity-back long irons with muscleback blade scoring clubs, the Cobra King Tour CB/MB Combo set aims to maximize a better player’s ability to shape shots.
The Deep Dive: At some point in most teenagers’ lives, they see something costly, like a sports car or a luxury timepiece, and ask a parent how much it costs.
The cliché answer, invariably, is, “If you have to ask the price then you probably can’t afford it.”
A similar thing can be said of the new Cobra King Tour CB/MB Combo set. If you have to ask if you’re good enough to play golf with these irons, you should probably check out Cobra’s new King Tour or Aerojet irons instead.
The King CB and MB irons have virtually no offset. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Forged in a five-step process using 1020 carbon steel, the Cobra King Tour CB/MB Combo set blends cavity-back 4-, 5- and 6-irons with muscleback blades in the 7-iron through pitching wedge. All seven clubs in the set have a thin topline, virtually no offset and a narrow sole. The clubs have the shortest blade length in the Cobra stable, so if you are looking for forgiveness or an iron that will give you some extra pop from the fairway, you can look elsewhere.
The King CB and MB have the shortest blade length and narrowest topline of any Cobra iron. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
However, if you have a repeatable swing and can generate all the distance you need, the Cobra King Tour CB/MB Combo set can allow you to hit controlled draws and fades, knockdown shots and more. At the same time, golfers will immediately know where on the face they hit the ball, thanks to the softness of the metal.
In addition to the standard blended set, the CB and MB models are each available as full sets in a 3-iron through gap wedge. The CB is available in both left- and right-handed versions, but the MB is only available as a complete set for right-handed players.
The Srixon Z-Forged II irons are designed to maximize feel and control for elite golfers with powerful, repeatable swings.
Gear: Srixon Z-Forged II irons Price: From $1,142.84 with Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Tour and Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips. Specs: Forged 1025 carbon with progressive grooves. Available: Jan. 20
Who It’s For: Elite golfers who want tour-level feel and control in a compact, muscleback blade iron.
The Skinny: The Srixon Z-Forged II irons are designed to maximize feel and control for elite golfers with powerful, repeatable swings.
The Deep Dive: When it comes to designing irons for the game’s best players – tour pros, collegiate golfers, teaching professionals and aspiring club champions – it is as much about what designers leave out as what they add. Golfers who make solid contact shot after shot and want to make the ball curve and bend at their will are not looking for the newest distance-enhancing technologies or sound-improving materials. They want control, consistency and a classic look in the address position.
For those golfers Srixon has updated its muscleback blade and has released the Z-Forged II irons.
Extra mass behind the hitting area enhances feel in the Srixon Z-Forged II irons. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Forged from a single billet of 1020 carbon steel for a soft feel, the Z-Forged II irons have a compact blade length, thin topline and virtually no offset. They do, however, have PureFrame, Srixon’s new shaping feature that puts more mass directly behind the center of the hitting area, where a good player makes contact. While perimeter weighting and a cavity-back design can boost forgiveness for less-accomplished players, concentrating mass heightens feel and the sensations created at impact.
The Srixon Z-Forged II irons have a narrow topline, minimal offset and a classic look at address. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
As with the new ZX-7 Mk II irons, the Z-Forged II irons have a progressive groove design, with the 3-iron through 7-iron having wider grooves better suited for full swing shots. The 8-iron, 9-iron and pitching wedge have grooves that are narrower, deeper and packed together more tightly to get more edges on the ball on approach shots for added spin and control.
The Tour V.T. Sole increases the bounce to help the Srixon Z-Forged II irons maintain speed through the turf. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Finally, Srixon designed the Z-Forged II irons with the company’s Tour V.T. Sole, which has a seam running through the club’s bottom from toe to heel. The front portion of the sole has extra bounce to keep the leading edge from digging into the turf so the club can maintain speed through the strike, while the back of the sole has less bounce but significant back-edge relief.
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The ZX7 Mk II irons enhance the feel of impact for elite players with the addition of the PureFrame weighting system.
Gear: Srixon ZX7 Mk II irons Price: $1,199.99 with Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Tour shafts or KBS Tour Lite steel shafts and Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips. $1,299.99 with UST Mamiya Recoil Dart graphite shafts. Specs: Forged 1025 carbon with progressive grooves. Available: Jan. 20
Who It’s For: Golfers who want tour-level maneuverability and feel in a compact, cavity-back iron.
The Skinny: The ZX7 Mk II irons enhance the feel of impact for elite players with the addition of the PureFrame weighting system while still allowing golfers to shape the ball.
The Deep Dive: While some golfers who shoot in the low 70s (or better) still prefer a muscleback blade iron, many accomplished players prefer an iron design that provides more game-enhancing features than blades typically offer.
For them, Srixon is offering the ZX7 Mk II irons, an updated design that blends several features and a new technology to enhance feel and control.
MainFrame adds more steel behind the impact area to enhance feel. (Srixon)
Forged from 1020 carbon steel, the most significant change in the ZX7 is the addition of PureFrame. While Srixon’s game-improving ZX4 Mk II and ZX5 Mk II irons are made with MainFrame (a technology that involves channels, ridges and cutout areas on the inner-facing side of the face that increase ball speed), PureFrame creates a thicker region directly behind the center of the hitting area on the back of the head. Srixon said making this region up to 80 percent thicker amplifies the feel created at impact, which is critical for golfers who typically generate all the distance and power they need.
The Tour V.T. Sole helps the Srixon ZX7 Mk II irons maintain speed through impact. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
To help players maintain speed through the hitting area, Srixon designed the ZX7 Mk II irons with its Tour V.T. sole. It creates a ridge that runs down the center of the sole from heel to toe, with the leading-edge side having extra bounce. The back half of the sole has less bounce but plenty of trailing-edge relief. There are also notches in the heel and toe areas that reduce the amount of surface area on the bottom of the club. All those features combine to help the ZX7 Mk II irons avoid digging and press through the ground more efficiently.
As with the other ZX Mk II irons, the ZX7 Mk II irons have progressive grooves, with the 3-iron through 7-iron having wide, traditional grooves while the 8-iron through attack wedge have deeper grooves that are packed closer together. Srixon said this should help increase spin and precision on approach shots.
Srixon also added a small piece of tungsten in the toe of in the long and mid-irons to increase the perimeter weighting and boost stability on off-center hits.
The Srixon ZX7 Mk II irons have minimal offset and a narrow topline. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
When the ZX7 Mk II irons are set down in the address position, golfers will see a classic shape with a compact blade length, minimal offset and a relatively narrow topline. Interestingly, all the ZX Mark II irons have the same topline width, which can make creating a blended set easier.
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The 2023 P•770 irons have tipped more toward the better-player category, but still deliver more distance and soft feel.
Gear: TaylorMade P•770 irons (2023) Price:$1,299 with KBS Tour steel shafts and Golf Pride Z-Grip 360 grips Specs: Forged 4140 stainless steel face with a forged, hollow-bodied 8620 carbon steel body, internal tungsten weight and foam Available: January 20, 2023
Who It’s For: Accomplished golfers who want a compact club that delivers extra distance and a soft feel.
The Skinny: The 2023 version of the P•770 irons have tipped more toward the better-player category, but they still deliver more distance than you might expect from a club of this size, along with a soft feel.
The Deep Dive: Last season, Tiger Woods and Collin Morikawa blended in a TaylorMade P•770 long iron, or two, with their other irons because the clubs delivered more ball speed and a higher launch angle. However, TaylorMade encouraged recreational and club players to think of the P•770 as a slightly smaller version of the P•790, one of the most popular irons the company has ever produced. If you liked what the P•790 could do but wanted a shorter blade length, then the P•770 was for you.
Golfers who have a repeatable swing and who like to shape shots around the course but want more distance made it clear to TaylorMade that they liked the P•770. So with the 2023 upgrade of the P•770, TaylorMade has opted not to overhaul the club drastically, but instead, the company refined it.
TaylorMade’s new muscleback blade and cavity-back irons have been updated with feedback from Tour players.
Gear: TaylorMade P•7MC, P•7MB irons Price:$1,299 with KBS Tour steel shafts and Golf Pride Z-Grip 360 grips Specs: Forged 8620 carbon steel Available: January 20, 2023
Who It’s For: Elite ballstrikers who want to maximize feel and control.
The Skinny: TaylorMade’s tour-inspired muscleback blade and cavity-back irons have been updated using a new forging process and feedback from golfers like Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa.
The Deep Dive: Like most golf equipment makers, TaylorMade’s game-improvement irons, like the Stealth, and better-distance irons, like the P•790, are its biggest sellers, but the irons that golfers seem to covet the most are muscleback blades and cavity-back designs made for tour pros like McIlroy and Morikawa. No brand sells many clubs like those, but they are high-profile creations and demonstrate what designers can do for the most discerning golfers, so they are essential.
For 2023 TaylorMade has updated its flagship irons for accomplished golfers, the P•7MB and the P•7MC. They have been subtly refined because the feedback from elite players who use them has been positive for two years, but thanks to a new forging process, TaylorMade claims they will provide a better feel.
These players led the way last season and relied on specific clubs to do the job.
This week’s RSM Classic is the last full-field PGA Tour event of 2022, but technically, the 2021-22 PGA Tour season ended after Rory McIlroy won the Tour Championship back in August. Summer feels like a long time ago for people who are already feeling winter’s early bite, but we can still look back and admire the great seasons that players like Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas and Will Zalatoris enjoyed.
Aside from earning a lot of money and currently being ranked in the top 10 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Scheffler, Thomas and Zalatoris have something in common, they finished the 2021-22 PGA Tour season ranked in the top 10 in Strokes Gained: Approach the Green.
Strokes Gained: Approach the Green is the best statistic out there for measuring the quality of a player’s iron game because it reveals how much of an advantage a golfer has over the field on shots more than 30 yards away from the green (which are not hit off the tee). Scheffler, Thomas and Zalatoris were marksmen last year, setting up lots of birdie chances and avoiding greenside hazards.
Below is a list of the golfers who finished the year ranked in the top 10 in Strokes Gained: Approach the Green, along with the irons they played.
The i230 features an internal elastomer piece to reduce vibrations created at impact.
Gear: Ping i230 irons Price: $205 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 shafts and Lamkin Crossline Black grips, $230 each with Ping Alta CB Black graphite shafts Specs: Cast 431 stainless steel body with tungsten tip and toe weights, internal elastomer insert and multimaterial back badge. 3-iron through gap wedge available Available: November
Who it’s For: Golfers who want a better-player’s iron that has extra stability, a softer feel at impact and more consistent spin performance.
The Skinny: Made for tour pros and good club players, the i230 takes the place of the i210 and features an internal elastomer piece to reduce vibrations created at impact, while tungsten weights increase stability and unique grooves help normalize performance in both wet and dry conditions.
The Deep Dive: Most equipment makers bring out new game-improvement and max-game-improvement irons every season, but clubs made for accomplished golfers often stick around for a while. The Ping i210 is, shall we say, venerable, having been released over four years ago. Regardless, it was still used by Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatten and Stewart Cink through most of the PGA Tour’s 2021-22 wraparound season.
Last summer, Ping quietly brought the i210’s replacement to the PGA Tour, the i230, and now the company is making it available to everyone.
