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I don't believe in magic, but on the occasions where I've watched up close as a professional golfer flights and flutters a long iron close to a tucked pin position, I've come awfully close.
The saying may be "Drive for show, putt for dough," but iron play has always been the bread and butter of most golfers' games - especially the great ones. Yes, Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus both drove the ball prodigious distances with impressive accuracy, and both were tremendously clutch putters, but they were able to put themselves in position to win dozens of tournaments with relentlessly excellent - and sometimes downright scary - iron play.
Just look at Scottie Scheffler and his mind-blowing 2024. While it's true that he fixed most of the putting issues that had plagued him in the past, even on weeks when he was indifferent on the greens, he seemingly hit every approach shot within reasonable birdie range.
We mortal golfers would do well to pay special attention to our iron play as well, from both an instruction and equipment-setup perspective. For millions of golfers, fully half of their 14 clubs are irons (granted, hybrids and high-lofted fairway woods are becoming more popular as long-iron replacements). They're incredibly important to building a well-rounded game.
Irons are expensive, too; it is important get custom-fitted and stick with a set of irons for multiple seasons. I have never had a set of irons for less than four years since I started playing golf seriously. A trusty set of irons can be leaned on for the better part of a decade if you manage to forge a good match. And iron technology doesn't tend to improve in leaps and bounds.
That said, 2025 features several intriguing new irons from the major new golf club manufacturers. If you read our roundup on new drivers for this year, many of these model names will be familiar; OEMs are pairing iron and driver names more than they used to, partly on the theory that each new model name might inspire mercurial golfers to buy new woods and irons in one fell swoop.
2 more trends among new irons in 2025
More MOI
Moment of inertia, a general measure of a club's forgiveness, used to be most prominent in putter design. In 2024, it became extremely important in drivers as the distance tap dried up and companies turned to forgiveness as a differentiator. Now, MOI is part of the conversation around irons, especially in the game-improvement part of the spectrum.
Goodbye to gaudy lofts?
Loft-juicing was a popular trend among OEMs for years when it came to irons in order to claim longer and longer distance performance. The loft wars devolved to the point where the gap between a given pitching wedge and a sand wedge had become comically large. Now, companies seem to be acknowledging the problems with de-lofting irons (namely, too-shallow landing angles, even with short irons) and are returning to saner setups.
Taylormade Qi irons
Play
TaylorMade has put a bold claim behind the 2025 Qi iron: that it's the straightest game-improvement iron in golf. In pursuit of that goal, the company's R&D team has put considerable effort into fine-tuning how the clubface flexes at impact using what it calls CapBack technology, which grants slightly different face-thickness characteristics to each iron. The goal: to reduce cut-spin as much as possible. Qi irons come in both chrome and gunmetal finishes.
Titleist T-Series irons (2023/2024)
Play
Released in the second half of 2023, Titleist's four-part forged T-Series irons promise a model for just about every golfer, with the Massachusetts-based brand's classy aesthetic preserved even in the more forgiving T350 and T200 models. Many Titleist professionals like Jordan Spieth are using the T-Series on Tour, with mixed sets becoming increasingly popular not just among pros but rank-and-file golfers, too.
Cobra DS-Adapt and 3-D printed irons
Play
Cobra has leveraged 3-D printing technology to help in club design and fabrication for several years, and its irons are the latest clubs to benefit from that process. By turning powder into solid metal, Cobra claims to have built a tour-quality iron that is 33% lighter, enabling them to enhance perimeter weighting. Turning to DS-Adapt, as with past game-improvement irons, Cobra uses its 360 Speedshell insert and H.O.T. Face technology to help golfers launch the ball higher and carry it farther.
Mizuno Pro Series irons
Play
Mizuno has made some of the most sought-after irons by better golfers for years, but in recent times they have also stepped up their offerings for the larger end of the golf ability bell curve. The new JPX925 Hot Metal irons represent the latest step forward for the Japanese giant. With its patented chromoly material, thin clubfaces and three different models - Hot Metal, Hot Metal Pro, Hot Metal HL - within the family for different skill levels, Mizuno is always worth considering for golfers in the market for new irons.
PING G440 irons
Play
PING offers as comprehensive a range of irons as any golf company, and the new G440 series - which echoes the G440 drivers and fairway woods, brand-new for 2025 - updates the company's game-improvement offering. This new iron model aims at a clean, austere look at address while packing helpful technology like the four-part PurFlex badge system that sits behind the clubface to increase ball speed while dampening some of the vibration. Fitters can also put golfers into a "retro-spec" version of the irons, with weaker and more traditional lofts.
Srixon ZXi irons
Play
Srixon continues to quietly make some of the handsomest high-performing golf clubs on the market. Its irons are particularly underrated. New for 2025 is a three-model suite of new ZXi-series irons - plus utility long irons - based around a new forging process that seeks to both soften feel and strengthen the integrity of the clubhead. All Srixon irons use the pro-inspired Tour V.T. sole that helps the club glide through different turf and sand conditions.
Wilson Staff DYNAPWR irons
Play
Wilson's revival of the Dynapower sub-brand under its new DYNAPWR drivers and woods continues with its irons, which come in two different models: DYNAPWR and DYNAPWR Max. Hollow-body construction and AI-assisted variable face thickness is a main story here, as is a new Energy Transfer Chassis that stabilizes the clubhead.
Tour Edge C725, E725 and X725 irons
Play
Tour Edge's value-oriented approach makes them underrated; they enjoy a loyal following and plenty of play among the PGA Tour Champions set. As with its drivers, the Exotics C725 is aimed more at mid-handicap golfers, while the E725 is a more traditional game-improvement iron. The X725 is Tour Edge's Exitocs answer to the iron-wood category. All three irons use Tour Edge's VIBRCOR insert material.
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Why not seriously rank these irons instead
of just repeating what the manufacturers are
saying. How can someone seriously thinking
about purchasing use any of this info knowing
it is mainly corporate drivel instead of an independent
assessment.
We are producing individual reviews on certain products in the future that will give you the more personalized reviews that you seek. Despite your criticisms, this is hardly "corporate drivel". It's informative for golfers shopping for new equipment. We summarize what is "new" with the written copy, and if a reader wants more, he or she can watch the videos. It helps golfers comparison shop on what's more important for their game (forgiveness vs. feel vs. distance, etc). Isn't what's best a personal choice anyway?
For Ping:
How do the new G730 irons compare to the G710's? Are there major improvements? I use the G710's now.
As mentioned in the article, forgiveness is a huge emphasis for irons this year, and Ping's G730 have tested to offer more. If you're mishits are turning out very poorly, it might be worth giving the new irons a look.