How do Callaway’s latest players’ distance iron perform? Find out in our Callaway Paradym irons review.
Callaway Paradym irons review: NCG Summary
NCG SUMMARY
I love how compact these irons are for something in the players distance category. They don’t have a massive blade length or loads of offset but do have a thick enough topline that they aren’t intimidating.
These are long irons but also have a great amount of forgiveness. Perfect for someone who wants to gain on carry distance and get more out of their mis strikes.
PROS
- Long carry distances
- Fast ball speeds across the face
- Forgiving on off centre strikes
CONS
- Not as workable as other models
First Impressions
These irons are so attractive. Callaway have done such a great job with the styling. When you look at them on a shelf they really stand out. I love the navy and gold colourway and think the whole club looks premium and smart.
NCG Review
I really like what Callaway have done with the shaping here. Yes, the top line is fairly thick, but the two-toned shade helps hide this. I also think that this shaping is very confidence-inspiring over the ball for golfers who want to know there is a solid mass of golf club behind the ball to help their shot go further and straighter.
The offset is minimal which is nice, and great for golfers who don’t necessarily need lots of help moving the ball from right to left. I also really like the fact the blade length is fairly compact.
Enough of the visuals. How do they perform? Well, this was the first shot I hit with the 7-iron…
It’s safe to say I was pretty impressed.
These irons are extremely hot from the centre of the club face and I had long carry distances throughout the bag. The 162-yard carry distance with a 7-iron is over 7 yards longer than with my current irons.
The average spin rate with the 7-iron was 5434. This is clearly lower than the 7000 rpm that you might expect from a blade or smaller players 7-iron. But the height was high enough to get the ball to stop on the green with a good level of control.
With an average height of 85ft I thought these hit a really nice launch window, they were easy to launch, went high enough for optimal performance but didn’t go so ridiculously high that they got caught up in the wind.
The increase in ball speed and carry distance was consistent throughout the bag. I was particularly impressed with the 5-iron data. Again, it was 8 yards longer than my current irons, but with great high ball flight and pretty high spin numbers, which is great for control.
I was impressed with just how easy the 5 and 4-iron were to hit. These are not clubs I typically like using but I found them really easy to hit, especially the 5-iron. I would happily put this straight in play as it was easy to launch and the data was super consistent which is rare with a long iron.
The only area I really saw a gap in distance was between the pitching wedge and the 9-iron. I’m not too worried about that at this end of the bag, as it is easier to hit knockdown or three-quarter shots with a shorter iron to make sure you can hit every yardage.
Interestingly the shaping changes quite a lot in the short irons. The club head is much more rounded with a higher toe design from 9-iron down, which definitely helps the transition into your wedges.
I actually felt the control got better with these as I moved down the bag. My front to back dispersion was very good and the ball flight was super consistent.
These irons have a hollow body construction irons but feature a forged club face and urethane microspheres to deliver a softer feel. The sound and feel definitely don’t disappoint. It also seems to get softer as you move down the set to the short irons, which is great for those shorter shots where you want more feel and control.
However, on off-centre strikes, you do get a more harsh sound and feel. This is totally understandable and something I actually don’t mind as it gives you good feedback on where you have struck the ball on the face. But it is worth noting the sound and feel will change depending on where on the face you strike the golf ball.
Overall these are a really impressive set of irons. They are exceptionally long, so they are perfect for players who have lost distance or who want to hit the golf ball further. But the big thing that impressed me is just how well Callaway has balanced having more ball speed and distance without losing control. I think Callaway have nailed it with the Callaway Paradym irons.
Callaway Paradym irons review: The Details
Available: February 24th
RRP: £1199 (steel) £1299 (graphite)
Lofts: 4 20°, 5 23°, 6 26°, 7 29°, 8 33°, 9 37°, PW 42°, AW 47°, 52 52°
Stock shafts: MCA Aldila Ascent PL Blue, Project X Hzrdus Silver, True Temper Elevate MPH 95
Grip: Callaway Universal
More information: Callaway website
How do we test golf clubs?
To test this product we travelled to West Cliffs a leading European golf course just North of Lisbon. The idea was to get some warmer weather and escape our frozen British courses. It of course rained, a lot, was very windy. Each of our test team were allocated a category of golf clubs, fairways, or a specific type of driver or iron.
We gathered data on a Trackman 4 or FlightScope. We used Titliest Pro V1 for all tests. The samples we have are either fully fitted for our testers or ordered in our assumed specs. We are then able to optimise performance by swapping shafts and playing with the adjustability.
As well as that dry testing all of the product was tested on course in a comparative environment with other product from the same category. We recognise that no testing process is perfect and just aim to be fair in our treatment, transparent in our process and candid in our feedback.
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Hannah Holden
