Quietly but surely, Wilson has created one of the most complete players’ iron ranges on the market and they may have just released their most intriguing model yet.
The Wilson 2026 Staff Model XB irons are the brand’s first ever hollow-bodied players’ distance irons.
To put that in layman’s terms, this is basically the Wilson P790s as they have slightly stronger lofts, are made to be more forgiving but designed to look as much like their blade offer as possible.
So, do the Wilson 2026 Staff Model XB irons still deliver that wow factor? Find out in our full review below…
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NCG Summary
NCG Summary
What sets these hollow-body irons apart from other on the market is how they retain the soft feel of a blade iron but with the added bit of forgiveness for more playability. They also deliver strong spin rates, so approach shots aren’t much of a worry.
Equally, the performance is consistent across the set. There are no unpredictable, hot strikes that often put players off hollow-body irons.
PROS
- Surprisingly soft feel
- Quick ball speeds
- Plenty of forgiveness
CONS
- Like the other Wilson 2026 Staff Model irons, it is still targeted towards confident ball strikers rather than higher handicappers
First Impressions
From behind the ball, the Staff Model XB does an excellent job of disguising its technology.
Wilson has deliberately made it look as close as possible to the Blade and CB, meaning you still get that clean, premium Staff Model look in the bag.
Only when you place it next to the other irons do you really notice the slightly thicker top line and a marginally bigger head. But from behind or when they are sat in the bag, I couldn’t note much difference between the models.
For a hollow-body iron, I was surprised at how compact the XB was. I found it to be confidence-inspiring rather than chunky.
On the range
Wilson’s hollow-body design and precisely positioned centre of gravity, the XB produces noticeably higher ball speeds and more carry distance than the Blade and CB. In testing, it consistently flew around five yards further with a nine iron, with ball speed increases of several mph over the other models.
What’s most impressive, though, is that the extra distance doesn’t come at the expense of control. Spin rates remained exceptionally strong, with the shorter irons often registering over 8,000 rpm of spin.
This meant I had as much stopping power at my disposal as I would expect from a set of blade irons. I have to question why any club golfer would game a set of blades or CBs if hollow-body irons can do this.
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In the longer irons, the forgiveness really shows itself. I thought the five-iron performance showed higher ball speeds, stronger carry numbers, and far more stability on imperfect strikes. This made it significantly more playable than a traditional blade-style long iron.
As you would expect these are a clear step-up in terms of their forgiveness levels over the other models in the 2026 Staff Model range. I thought this was especially the case on my strikes that came off lower in the club face and out of the toe.
Wilson has done quite a lot of work to make these sound and feel just as good as their blade offerings. I felt as though, despite hitting something that was made to be more forgiving it still felt really soft.
NCG Verdict
Overall, I think Wilson has absolutely nailed the brief with the 2026 Staff Model XB irons.
Both the distance gains and the level of forgiveness across the face of these irons make them extremely playable, but they still somehow maintain that soft feel and clean looks which make them appealing for better golfers.
A lot of golfers will be wary of hollow-body irons, I know I am at times, due to their reputation of being hard to control and hot off the face. This isn’t the case here, so don’t let past experiences stop you from giving them a go.
Wilson 2026 Staff Model XB Irons Review: The Details
RRP: £1,169 / $1399.99 – 4-PW
Grip: Golf Pride Z
Shaft: Nippon Modus Tour 110 Stock Shaft
More information: Wilson Golf
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