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My first interaction with Titleist’s new 2023 T-Series irons was at the 2023 Memorial Tournament, where PGA Tour players began testing out the new family of irons. The new irons included an updated T100 model, a brand new T150, a redesigned T200, and a brand new T350.

In the first week, 13 players switched into at least one of the new T-Series irons, and more names got added to that list as the weeks went on. And, as more players switched, my intrigue about the irons only grew.

Then, I wrote about the new irons, covering all of the design changes and technological improvements within the lineup.

That’s all great, but, am I ever gonna get to hit the irons for myself?!

Well, earlier this month, my number was finally called, and I traveled to Oceanside, California, to go through a full iron fitting at the Titleist Performance Institute with expert fitter Chris Baingo.

As one of the most knowledgeable club fitters in the industry, Baingo took me through each of the new T-Series iron models, making adjustments along the way. I was excited to finally hit everything, especially after the months-long hype and anticipation.

I also needed some of my questions answered…

Are the T100’s really any better? Or different? Prior T100’s have looked a little small to me, so are these any more forgiving? And, did they make any changes to the feel/sound of the T-200? 

I was especially curious about the new T150 models.

How much more distance/forgiveness will the new T150’s provide, compared to the T100? Will these be my next irons?

In the video at the top of the page, as you’ll see, all of my questions were answered.

However, more than just testing the new iron designs out, I came away with an education about the importance of yardage gapping, general rules for iron fitting, and how to setup my bag with a mixed set.

I won’t spoil everything that Baingo preached in the video, but I do want to highlight one of the most impactful lessons I learned from him during the fitting: As irons progress throughout the set, there should be a 5 mph ball speed difference between irons, and peak heights should generally match through the set.

This means if your ball speed with a 7-iron is 130 mph and has a peak height of 110 feet, then your 6-iron should be 135 mph with the same peak height. If there’s a gap between irons that’s either less than or more than 5 mph with the irons, then an adjustment needs to be made.

Typically, the most noticeable and impactful gap, or “breaking point,” will be between the 5 and 6-irons, or the 4 and 5-irons. In these pockets, the ball speed difference may drop to less than 5 mph, and produce a lower ball flight. This indicates that it’s probably time to look at a 4 or 5-iron that offers more forgiving technology.

For example, in my case, I found the T150’s to have proper speed gapping through the set, until I got to the 3-iron. The ball speed difference between the T150 4-iron and T150 3-iron was dropping below the 5 mph ball speed guidance, thus indicating it was time for me to try out a T200, T350, or U505 iron option. Eventually, I landed on a T200 2-iron, equipped with a Fujikura Ventus HB Black 10 TX shaft (whereas the T150 irons 4-PW were shafted up with Project X 6.5 steel shafts).

To the point about long-iron fitting, Titleist offers long-iron fitting packages that allow consumers to do this exercise for themselves, under the supervision of a professional fitter. As I learned from Baingo, getting an iron fitting is about way more than just hitting a bunch of 7-irons against each other until you find the right one.

While you should absolutely test a bunch of 7-irons to find the right fit for your set, you should also be testing long irons in order to figure out proper gapping, and where the “breaking point” is so that you can get what you need where you need it.

A true full fitting allows the golfer to figure out the gaps in their set, especially at the top end of the bag.

OK, the fitting is lecture over. Enjoy the T-Series testing video above, and click here to see what GolfWRX forum members are saying about the full iron lineup.

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He played on the Hawaii Pacific University Men's Golf team and earned a Masters degree in Communications. He also played college golf at Rutgers University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.

4 Comments

4 Comments

  1. Wilkinson Tansan

    Sep 1, 2023 at 6:03 am

    This is one of the rare articles I learned something very useful. Thanks my man.

  2. eva

    Aug 29, 2023 at 5:29 pm

    I can’t believe I paid $19,000 for my first general test, according to a friend of my younger bs02 brother. Simply click the
    .
    .
    Link to get started………………………………….https://careershome73.blogspot.com

  3. Chuck

    Aug 29, 2023 at 3:25 pm

    It’s a really good video. Thank you. (Great job on editing.)

    So can we see the final WITB for Tursky? Specs, shafts, sw, loft/lie adjustments, etc.?

    • Bills Bills Bills

      Aug 29, 2023 at 7:44 pm

      Yeah, Retail cost for what he had done and got, and what he paid.

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Whats in the Bag

WITB Time Machine: Rory McIlroy’s winning WITB, 2018 Arnold Palmer Invitational

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At the 2018 Arnold Palmer Invitational, Rory McIlroy snapped a two-year winless drought on the PGA Tour with a stunning final round of 64 at Bay Hill to top Bryson DeChambeau by three strokes.

It was Rory’s first win at the King’s track, and he did so thanks to an incredible display on the greens, with the Irishman gaining a whopping 10 strokes over the field with his flatstick.

Here’s a look at the clubs McIlroy used that week.

Driver: TaylorMade M3 460 (8.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei Orange 70 TX

3-wood: TaylorMade M3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX

5-wood: TaylorMade M3 (19 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Rombax P95 X

Irons: TaylorMade P750 (4), TaylorMade “Rors Proto” P730 (5-9)
Shafts: Project X 7.0

Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48, 52, 58 degrees), TaylorMade Hi-Toe (60 degrees)
Shafts: Project X 6.5

Putter: TaylorMade TP Collection Black Copper Soto (with slant neck)

Grips: Golf Pride MCC

Ball: TaylorMade TP5x

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Equipment

Spotted: Bettinardi irons at the Arnold Palmer Invitational

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Bettinardi has long been known for making some of the finest milled putters in golf. And you know they have even made some really nice forged and milled wedges over the years, as well, if you have had the pleasure of hitting them. Now, it seems Bettinardi is intent on expanding even further, as we just spotted two Bettinardi iron models at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The irons — Bettinardi CB24 and MB 24 irons — also appeared today on the USGA’s conforming club list.

Let’s take a look at the two models from Bettinardi.

Bettinardi CB24 irons

As the name on the USGA conforming list states, this is a cavity back iron with the famous hexagon B logo in the cavity. The CB iron has a heavy matte finish to it that should eliminate glare. The cavity has a little bit of chrome surrounding it with the iconic Bettinardi Honeycomb pattern surrounding the hexagon “B” logo. A lot of trailing edge relief is visible and should create some fast and smooth turf interaction. The hosel says it is forged, but we can’t be sure if it is from carbon or stainless steel.

USGA Conforming List photo

Bettinardi MB24 irons

A classic muscleback blade is always welcome on the PGA Tour, and Bettinardi’s new version is a beautiful rendition. Forged like its CB sibling, the MB looks to be a little more compact. The topline is thinner and it has fairly minimal offset. A heavy matte finish is applied to this head, again reducing any glare from the sun. This iron doesn’t have a cavity in the back, but that didn’t stop Bettinardi from milling in the famous Honeycomb pattern to the top of the iron head. It’s interesting to note that the Honeycomb milling looks to be raised to maybe help dial in the CG in addition to looking fantastic.

USGA Conforming List photo

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Whats in the Bag

Sam Ryder WITB 2024 (March)

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Driver: Titleist TSR3 (9 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei AV Raw White 75 TX

3-wood: Titleist TSi3 (15 degrees @14.25)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana BF 80 TX

Hybrid: Callaway Apex UW (19 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Kai’li White 90 TX

Irons: Srixon ZU85 (3), Srixon ZX5 Mk II (4, 5), Srixon ZX7 Mk II (6-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore 6 Tour Rack (54-12 Full, 60-12 Full)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Odyssey White Hot Versa Seven, Scotty Cameron T6M

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Check out more in-hand photos of Sam Ryder’s WITB here.

 

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