Tag: Callaway Irons

Best new golf irons you can buy in 2024

Check out Golfweek’s list of the best irons available to purchase in 2024.

As Golfweek explained in our 2024 Driver wrap-up, the undeniable trend in the world of drivers is toward higher-stability offerings that not only perform well when you hit the ball in the middle of the face, but also help you hit straighter shots and help you maintain distance when you mis-hit toward the heel or the toe.

When it comes to irons, the trend continues to be the broadening array of offers to meet the needs of different types of players. Not that long ago, equipment makers sold blades to the best players, cavity-backs to golfers who needed some forgiveness and oversized clubs to high-handicappers and beginners. Those clubs still exist, but they are complemented by better-player distance irons, sets that blend hybrids and irons for forgiveness, and sets that blend hollow-bodied long irons with precision-minded scoring clubs.

Take Ping as an example. The Phoenix-based brand now has the Blueprint T and Blueprint S for elite players, the tour-proven i230 for good players who want more forgiveness, the i525 for golfers who want a better-player’s distance iron, the game-improvement G430 and it still offers the G710 as a max game-improvement club. Brands like Callaway, Cobra, Mizuno, TaylorMade and Titleist have similarly deep stables.

That’s a double-edged sword for consumers because while a larger variety of irons means there is a better chance that brands are now making sets that match your needs (and your budget), finding those clubs can be a daunting task. Therefore, it has never been more important to seek out a good custom fitter, try several different shafts and heads and see what the data reveals.

Pro Tip: Indoor club fittings have come a long way and are convenient, but as spring approaches, if you have a chance to do a fitting outside, hitting off real grass and seeing real ball flights is always best.

Below are many of the irons that you will see in pro shops and specialty stores. Use this list as a starting point to discover clubs that might be ideal for you game.

Best golf irons in 2024

Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke, Ai Smoke HL, Ai Smoke Max Fast irons

Moderate and slower-swinging golfers will benefit from the Paradym Ai Smoke’s fast faces and low centers of gravity.

Gear: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke, Ai Smoke HL, Ai Smoke Max Fast irons
Price: $999.99 (seven clubs) with True Temper Elevate steel shafts and Lamkin Crossline grips; $1,099.99 with Project X Cypher 2.0, Mitsubishi Tensei Blue White or Eldio graphite shafts
Specs: Hollow-bodied stainless steel iron
Available: Feb. 2, but available via pre-order NOW

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Who They’re For: Golfers who want a distance-oriented, game-improvement iron that launches the ball high.

The Skinny: Callaway designers used artificial intelligence to design iron faces for the Paradym Ai Smoke and Ai Smoke HL irons to deliver enhanced ball speed for moderate-swinging players and more distance and height for slower-swinging players. 

The Deep Dive: Jon Rahm has no trouble generating distance with his Callaway irons because the 2023 Masters champion has a powerful, repeatable swing. Time and again, he hits the center of the face. However, recreational golfers who shoot in the mid-80s and 90s tend to swing more slowly. They often hit the ground first instead of the ball and make contact all over the face. On some shots they hit it in the center, but they are just as likely to strike the ball near the toe or in the heel.

Callaway’s new Paradym Ai Smoke irons are not for Jon Rahm. They’re game-improvement irons designed to help golfers overcome shortcomings and inconsistencies.

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke irons” link=”https://worldwidegolfshops.pxf.io/Gmd4MB”]

To make that happen, Callaway designers used supercomputers to study hundreds of thousands of swings of actual golfers to see how they hit shots. Using that data, the supercomputers employ artificial intelligence to create thousands of iron faces and simulate how they would perform in the real world. All those faces look the same on the outside, but the inner-facing sides are covered with thick and thin areas that act like miniature sweet spots.

That work resulted in the faces designed into the Paradym Ai Smoke irons. Attached to the hollow-body chassis of each iron, the faces flex more efficiently at impact to generate more ball speed on every shot and tighten the dispersion pattern.

There are three different Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke irons: the standard model, HL and Max Fast.

Callaway believes most golfers who need a game-improvement iron and who have a driver swing speed between 85 and 100 mph will find the standard Ai Smoke iron fits them well. While the standard Paradym irons will remain available in 2024, the Paradym Ai Smoke will replace the Rouge ST Max irons.

Callaway offers the Paradym Ai Smoke HL, which stands for high launch, for golfers who need more height and lift on their shots. The face design and low center of gravity combine with weaker lofts in this iron to make getting the ball high in the air easier, especially with the long irons. While the Paradym Ai Smoke’s 5-iron has 22 degrees of loft, the 5-iron in the HL version has 24 degrees of loft. Callaway believes this club should be ideal for golfers with a driver swing between 70 and 90 mph.

Finally, Callaway is offering the Paradym Ai Smoke Max Fast, which has been optimized for golfers who have a driver swing that is slower than 75 mph. These irons have the same weakened lofts as the HL irons, but the Max Fast irons come standard with lighter shafts and grips, which should make it easier to create more clubhead speed and carry distance.

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Callaway Paradym Star: Can ultra-light clubs unlock distance for you?

Callaway Paradym Star woods and irons deliver lightweight distance.

Every recreational golfer would love to step up to the tee and pound a drive down the middle with the power of Jon Rahm or hit iron shots with the laser-guided precision of Xander Schauffele or Rose Zhang. However, most of us lack the swing speed to create a 300-yard drive and don’t find the sweet spot in our irons often enough either.

Golfers who lack speed and who need to maximize forgiveness need equipment that is designed very differently than the gear made for elite golfers, which tends to be heavy, rigid and unforgiving on mis-hits. So, for several seasons, Callaway has offered ultra-lightweight equipment under the “Star” family, including the 2017 GBB Epic Star and 2021 Epic Star Max woods and irons. These clubs were designed for golfers who can get more overall distance by hitting higher shots and maximizing carry distance instead of roll.

Callaway has now released the Paradym Star woods and irons, a family of clubs that utilize the technologies found in this season’s Paradym drivers, fairway woods, hybrids and irons, along with ultra-lightweight components so slower-swinging golfers can generate more clubhead speed and more distance.

Callaway Apex Pro irons (2023)

The updated Callaway Apex Pro offers more consistency, better feel and controlable spin.

Gear: Callaway Apex Pro Irons (2023)
Price: $215 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold Mid steel shafts and Golf Pride Z grips.
Specs: Hollow-body construction with a forged 1025 carbon steel body, forged 455 cup face (3-5) and internal urethane microspheres. Available in 3-iron (19 degrees) through attack wedge (50 degrees)
Available: August 18 (pre-sale) / Sept. 8 (in stores)

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Who They’re For: Low and mid-handicap golfers who want a better-player’s distance iron that also delivers shot-shaping and forgiveness.

The Skinny: Using a softer metal and urethane microspheres enhances the feel of this iron, while the hollow-body construction helps increase ball speed. The updated sole improves turf interaction.

The Deep Dive: Callaway purchased the Ben Hogan brand in 2003 and sold the company in 2012, but it retained the right to use several iconic Hogan names, with Apex the most coveted. The first Callaway Apex irons arrived in 2014 along with a version for better players called the Apex Pro. At that time, before the better-player’s distance category took off, “pro” versions of irons were often simply smaller versions of the standard clubs with less offset, thinner toplines and narrower soles.

But with each passing generation, the Apex Pro has evolved more and more into its own club. With the release of the 2023 Apex Pro, Callaway is now positioning this better-player’s distance club alongside other designs for accomplished players.

Cosmetically, the new Apex Pro resembles the Apex TCB used by Jon Rahm and Xander Schauffele, but this club has a slightly longer blade and more game-improving features designed into it.

The Apex Pro long irons (3-5) have a hollow-body design and a thin 455 stainless steel cup face designed to flex more efficiently at impact to enhance ball speed. This is the same material and construction found in Callaway’s game-improving Paradym irons but in a more compact package. The 6-iron through attack wedge have faces made from forged 1025 carbon steel, the same soft material used in the Apex Pro irons’ chassis. Opting for 1025 carbon steel in mid- and short irons should soften the impact feel and enhance spin and distance consistency on approach shots.

Inside the hollow chamber of each head, Callaway added urethane microspheres, a material the brand has used for several years to reduce excessive vibrations while improving sound and feel. The key trait of the material, however, is that it does not inhibit the face from flexing, so golfers get those benefits without sacrificing speed or distance.

Callaway designed the Apex Pro irons to have a progressive center of gravity. The CG is lower in the 3-5 irons to encourage a higher ball flight, then transitions upward slightly in the mid-irons (6-8) and then even higher in the short irons (9-AW) to help golfers flight approach shots down for better distance control.

The screwed-in plate on the back of each head is adjustable for fitters and allows them to change the swing weight of the clubs based on their length and a player’s preference. To help golfers maintain speed through the turf and hitting area, Callaway designed the soles of the new Apex Pro to be slightly wider, more curved and to have a pre-worn leading edge. The trailing edge also has been rounded slightly. The sole is still narrower than the bottom of Callaway’s game-improvement irons such as the Paradym, Rogue ST or Big Bertha.

The Apex Pro will be available from 3-iron through attack wedge, and they have some technologies and look similar to Callaway’s updated Apex CB, Apex MB and Apex UT, so golfers can easily create combo sets. Callaway plans to offer pre-created combo sets such as The Player (Apex Pro 3-7, CB 8-AW) and Triple Play (Apex Pro 3-6, CB 7-9, MB PW-AW).

Callaway Apex CB, Apex MB irons (2023)

Callaway’s Apex CB and MB maximize feel and control.

Gear: Callaway Apex CB, Apex MB irons (2023)
Price: $215 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold Mid steel shafts and Golf Pride Z grips.
Specs: Forged 1025 carbon steel. Available in 3-iron (20.5 degrees) through attack wedge (50 degrees)
Available: August 18 (pre-sale) / September 8 (in stores)

While most golfers desperately want irons that can help them hit the ball farther and higher, elite ballstrikers — players with a powerful, repeatable swing — are constantly looking for something else from their clubs. If you can generate all the power and distance you require, what you need is more control. You need irons that allow you to curve the ball and control its flight, which requires a heightened sense of feel at the moment of impact.

Using feedback from tour pros, Callaway has updated its Apex CB and Apex MB irons to deliver more control and feel, while also making them easy to combine to create a blended set.

The updated Apex Pro irons, which are also an option for low-handicap golfers, have been designed with a hollow chamber in the 3-5 irons that is filled with vibration-absorbing urethane microspheres, but the Apex MB and Apex CB irons are all solid-body designs forged from 1025 carbon steel. Nothing gets in the way of the sensations created at impact from reaching a player’s hands, which is exactly the way pros, college players and elite amateurs like it.

Callaway designed the Apex CB and Apex MB with a progressive center of gravity (CG) location. There is extra mass positioned low in the heads of the long irons, to help golfers create a higher-launching shot, but the CG shifts up in the head through the mid- and short-irons to encourage a lower, more-piercing ball flight for better distance control.

Both clubs also have a leading edge that has a more-rounded, pre-worn design. The trailing edge also has more chamfer, or upward curvature, to help the Apex CB and Apex MB get in and out of the turf more efficiently.

The Apex CB was inspired by Callaway’s Apex TBC (tour cavity-back), which is the iron of choice for Jon Rahm and Xander Schauffele. Callaway made the blade length a few millimeters longer than the Apex TCB, but the brand thinks this will be its most-played iron on the PGA Tour next season while also being an option to a few more amateur golfers.

To offset the weight of the hosel and pull the ideal hitting area into the center of the face, Callaway designers removed some mass from the heel area and added tungsten to the toe section. You can see it because the tungsten is under the chrome plating. This should help to a neutral weight bias and allow players to hit draws or fades more easily.

While the Apex CB has a small amount of perimeter weighting thanks to its cavity-back design, the Apex MB is a pure muscleback blade. It has a very compact blade length, virtually no offset and a very thin topline. It has a progressive CG throughout the set and Callaway studied and modified the sole design and bounce to make it quick through the grass, so golfers can maintain speed through the strike.

Like the CB, it has a plate on the back of the head that can be switched by fitters to allow them to change the swing weight of the clubs based on their length or a player’s preference.

Cosmetically, the Apex CB and Apex MB look very similar, and they have identical lofts, with the 5-irons being 26 degrees and the pitching wedges being 46 degrees. Working with a custom fitter, golfers should be able to easily create a blended set, as many PGA Tour pros do. Callaway plans to offer the “The Elite” combo set, which will include the Apex CB 3-iron through 7-iron and the Apex MB in the 8-iron through attack wedge.

Below are close-up images of the Apex CB and Apex MB for 2023.

Callaway Big Bertha woods and irons (2023)

The newest Big Bertha family includes a slice-fighting driver and easy-to-hit fairway woods and hybrids.

Jon Rahm won the 2023 Masters Tournament using a new Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond driver and a prototype Paradym Triple Diamond 3-wood. Both are clubs designed for fast-swinging golfers who want to shape shots around the course and who have powerful, repeatable swings.

For golfers on the other side of the spectrum, Callaway has prided itself on offering game-improvement and max game-improvement clubs that are made to deliver more distance and forgiveness, often giving them the hallowed moniker of Big Bertha. The brand released the Big Bertha B21 woods and irons  in the fall of 2020, and last October saw the debut of an ultra-premium offering for slower-swinging players, the Great Big Bertha line. Now it is releasing the new Big Bertha 2023 family of woods and irons.

New for 2023: Callaway Paradym, Paradym X irons

A hollow body, two pieces of tungsten and urethane inserts help the Paradym and Paradym X irons deliver more ball speed with enhanced sound and feel.

Gear: Callaway Paradym, Paradym X irons
Price: $200 each with True Temper Elevate steel shafts and Callaway Universal grips. $215 each with Aldila Ascent PL Blue shafts or Project X HZRDUS Silver graphite shafts
Specs: A.I.-designed forged 455 stainless steel cup face with a hollow body, tungsten weights and urethane inserts
Available: Feb. 24, but available for pre-order now

Who It’s For: Mid- and higher-handicap golfers who want more distance and a softer feel at impact.

The Skinny: A hollow body, two pieces of tungsten and urethane inserts help the Paradym and Paradym X irons deliver more ball speed with enhanced sound and feel.

The Deep Dive: Ordinarily, when a golf equipment maker releases a new iron family, it replaces an existing club. But the new Paradym and Paradym X irons are not replacing the Rogue ST irons that dropped in January 2022. They are not replacing the Apex irons, either. Instead, the Paradym and Paradym X were made to be something different: forged, premium clubs created to deliver more distance, a softer feel and improved sound.

To deliver that, Callaway is utilizing several new technologies.

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Callaway Great Big Bertha woods and irons (2023)

 The new Great Big Bertha line takes the place of Callaway’s Epic Max Star family and features lightweight clubs designed to be easy to hit and maximize carry distance and forgiveness.

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Gear: Callaway Great Big Bertha woods and irons (2022)
Available: November 11

Who It’s For: Golfers with slow to moderate swing speeds who need more carry distance and forgiveness to hit longer, straighter shots.

The Skinny: The new Great Big Bertha line takes the place of Callaway’s Epic Max Star family and features lightweight clubs designed to be easy to hit and maximize carry distance and forgiveness. They are not for everyone and are pricy, but they utilize materials like unique carbon in the driver and titanium and tungsten in the irons to deliver premium performance for golfers who struggle to generate clubhead speed.

Best affordable irons for 2022

Iron out the kinks in your game and save some money while you do it.

This month, Golfweek is helping you find the most affordable equipment on the market.

Whether you’re young and new to the game, seasoned and looking for an upgrade or just want some new equipment without breaking the bank, we have you covered.

We’ve already found some of the most affordable drivers on the market right now. Look out for affordable wedges, putters and other equipment coming out later this month.

Today, it’s all about the irons!

To classify as affordable, each iron set we selected had to come in under $1,000 for a set or under $150 per iron for a seven club average. Without cutting quality, we’ve done the digging to find the best deals out there at the moment. Many of the items below are currently on sale, so act fast!

For a deeper dive on the best irons on the market, check out David Dusek’s piece from earlier this year.

Callaway 2022: Rogue ST woods and irons, Chrome Soft balls, Tri Hot 5K and Eleven putters

Get to know Callaway’s newest family of woods and irons, the Rogue ST, as well as the updated Chrome Soft balls.

Callaway and its putter arm, Odyssey, gave equipment lovers a late holiday present on Jan. 4 with the release of the new Rogue ST family of woods and irons, Tri Hot putters, the Eleven putter and updates to the Chrome Soft golf ball line.

With the PGA Tour set to restart at the Sentry Tournament of Champions this week in Hawaii, don’t be surprised if competitors like Phil Mickelson, Kevin Na, Xander Schauffele and Jon Rahm decided to add one of the new drivers or the new golf balls to their bag this week.

Below are the details on the new gear.