Most weeks on the PGA Tour, golfers can be rewarded for playing bomb-and-gouge-style golf, hitting tee shots as far as possible to set up short irons and wedges into the greens. With holes often cut just a few feet from the edges of greens or tucked behind bunkers, in the United States the pros play an aerial game.
For this week’s British Open, however, all eyes are on the Home of Golf, the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland. On that course and other seaside links courses, the game is different. The sandy soil drains amazingly fast and the wind typically howls, serving as the course’s primary defense. Tee shots hit high into the air with drivers and fairway woods can be pushed and pulled offline, then bounce and roll as far as 100 yards, bringing pot bunkers, knee-high fescue and gorse bushes into play. Distance is still rewarded, but control is critical and judging how far shots will roll is important.
And with very little rain in the forecast for the 150th Open Championship, conditions likely will be firm and fast, so many players may add a low-lofted driving iron to their bag.
Back in Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus’s days, 1-irons and 2-irons were muscleback blades, and being able to hit one solidly was a badge of honor. Today’s driving irons, however, are often hollow and in many cases have multimaterial constructions that help them deliver more ball speed. They are also more forgiving than anything the Hawk or the Golden Bear ever played.
While some players may opt for a game-improvement long iron or a long iron from a distance-enhancing, better-player’s set (Tiger Woods had two TaylorMade P•770 irons in the bag at the PGA Championship), there are several other driving irons and utility irons that could find their way into players’ bags this week at the Open Championship.
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Callaway X Forged UT irons (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Available as a 2-, 3- or 4-iron, the Callaway X Forged UT has 1025 mild-carbon steel in the chassis and a thin 17-4 stainless steel face. An internal tungsten weight lowers the center of gravity to make getting the ball airborne easier, but the ball flight is still lower than a hybrid or fairway wood. Urethane microspheres suspended in a foam-like material fill the inner chamber and soak up excessive vibrations. More …
Cobra King Utility iron (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Very few irons offer players and fitters the ability to adjust the club’s loft, but the Cobra King Utility iron – available as a 2-, 3- or 4-iron – has an adjustable hosel so the loft can be increased or decreased within a 3-degree range. The hollow-bodied design allowed designers to add tungsten to the back of the head to lower the center of gravity, while the forged, L-shaped face plate helps broaden the sweetspot. More …
Mizuno Pro Fli-Hi driving iron (David Dusek/Golfweek)
Available as a 2-iron (16.5 degrees), 3-iron (19 degrees) or 4-iron (21.5 degrees), the Mizuno Pro Fli-Hi has the same MAS1C maraging stainless steel that Mizuno uses in its fairway woods and hybrids for extra ball speed. A 21-gram tungsten weight inside the hollow body encourages a higher ball flight, but this is a true driving iron for players who want a piercing, wind-cheating trajectory. More …
PXG 0311 GEN5 driving irons (PXG)
Available only as an 18-degree 2-iron (but marked as an X), the PXG 0311 X GEN5 driving iron has many of the same technologies found in the rest of the GEN5 irons. The body is forged five times before the back area is milled, while tungsten weight screws are added to the heel and toe areas. The inner chamber is filled with a lightweight polymer that supports the ultra-thin face and soaks up excessive vibrations. More …
TaylorMade P790 UDI (TaylorMade)
TaylorMade just released the Stealth UDI, but pros at St. Andrews are more likely to use this hollow-bodied driving iron because it has a slightly thinner sole and topline, making it more visually appealing to better players. Available only as a 17-degree 2-iron, the club has the same SpeedFoam Air, L-shaped forged 4140 stainless steel face and 8620 carbon-steel body as the standard P•790 irons, along with a Speed Pocket slot in the sole. More …
Titleist U505 utility club (David Dusek/Golfweek)
The U•505 (available as a 1- through 4-iron) has a wide sole and a forged SUP-10 stainless steel face shaped like an L that wraps under the leading edge, which allows the face to flex more efficiently on low-struck shots. Its internal Max Impact system helps the hitting area snap back faster to create more ball speed. Tungsten weights in the heel and toe increase stability. More …
Wilson Staff Model Utility Irons (Wilson)
This club is available as a 2-iron (18 degrees), 3-iron (21 degrees) and 4-iron (24 degrees) and has a hollow-bodied design that allows the face to flex more efficiently for increased ball speed, along with a weight screw in the sole that pulls down the center of gravity. More …
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