Adjusting to a new set of irons

Equipment
#1

I recently bought a new set of irons. I have two range sessions a session with my coach and one tournament round on them now. I went from:
TM Rocketbladez 85g stiff shaft circa 2013, to
Titleist t100s’s Project X lz 6.0.

I went to a local fitter and tried a couple brands and shafts and settles on these. My coach thinks they look to be a good fit too. One thing we have talked about is the weight/flex of my old shafts may be helping the ball ‘balloon’ a little bit high. I love the feel of the new irons on flush contact. Great flight and spin. Off center hits they definitely let you know you miss hit it. The shaft is also 120g, which is quite a bit heavier than what I’m used to. It gives me a better sense of where the club is but doesn’t feel like a board either.

The new feel has me off just a tad with contact. How long do you think it takes to get used to a new set of irons? Or is everyone going to tell me I made a mistake and your new irons should be a better fit immediately?

#2

If you’re playing or hitting balls at lest two to three times a week, it shouldn’t take much longer than three weeks to get used to the new set, though it will take a little longer than that to get your precise distances nailed down.

#3

I played the same set of irons for 25 years and switched this season… it took me a bit, but not super long. Maybe a month to get back to good, and toward the end of the season I was hitting them significantly better than my old irons.

There are a number of adjustments to make, both large and small… definitely give it some time… if you got fit and your coach likes them, it will all be ok!

It’s a bummer the benefits aren’t immediately, but my change eventually lead to me hitting the ball better than I ever have.

#4

I’ve had them about 10 days now. They are still pretty new to me, I’ll be using them as much as I can until the snow starts flying and/or it’s too cold. I play in my garage but no launch monitor so I mainly work on center face contact. I see my coach twice a month over the winter too, and of course he has a full indoor setup.

#5

Thanks, I appreciate the feedback. I can’t say the same about my driver I got 3? years ago now. I have pounded that pretty good since I got it. There was no real change in shaft weight though on that. These definitely feel a little heavier to swing than my old irons. I will keep hitting them and get the feel down.

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#6

I can swap driver shafts and be banging balls three swings later… irons are different for me!

Hopefully the flush shots are performing as expected… that’s the key!

You’ll have them sorted out by next season, just keep banging.

I will say I got fit for irons indoors and never adjusted to that particular set on real grass… but I only bought a pitching wedge… it was fine and performed as expected just never felt great.

#7

Like so much of golf, I think a lot of it is mental. Safe assumption that your fitter and coach know what they are talking about, so it’ll just be up to you to trust the clubs and the swing. After so long with the old set, that might take a bit of time, but it’ll definitely get there. If anything, putting the clubs down for the offseason for a bit might even help this, give you a chance to forget what the clubs should feel like and allow you just to swing.

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#8

True, after 7-8 months of grinding away with the clubs you have any change is going to feel different. Maybe a little break will create a new normal for my head haha. They do feel great and I don’t really miss the center all that much or by much, yes it does happen but overall I make good contact.

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#9

They say being properly fit should be a seamless transition and in some cases it is, but you’ve added a pretty good amount of weight. That’s what will take the most getting used to. That’s a bigger deal than maybe it seems.
You’ll settle in and love them, though.

#10

Honestly, you might just be more focused on how every shot feels because you are playing new irons… it’s different so you pay more attention.

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#11

I was using Lynx Usa irons. Offset and cavity backs. I then bought a set of Lynx tour blades. I went to the range and it took about 40 shots before I could get a ball in the air. Then I clicked and shot 3 new low rounds out of the next 4. I think I was picking up the club and having a narrow backswing. I could get away with it with the cavity backs but with the blades I needed a wide takeaway to get a hit a good shot.

#12

It sounds like you will be limited to indoor practice for a few months. I’d guess that when you return to the course next Spring, you won’t even need to worry about having new irons.

#13

I had an issue when I got my new set of irons a few years ago.

Went from Mizuno MP55 to AP3.

When demoing the AP3 I couldn’t miss but something was off when I got my set. Figured out that my Mizunos were 1/4in long (think it was their standard length) but when we had matched them up to the AP3 demo, we ordered them 1/2 in long (and I’m not a tall person).

When I got them the weighting was way off and I couldn’t hit them at all. Gave the set and my old set to our pro who cut them down to match exactly. Now they’re perfect.

#14

For me, adjusting to a different lie angle is the hardest part of getting used to new irons. I usually spend a week or two missing left or right.

#15

I think playing with a new set of irons for several weeks to even a couple of months is a reasonable time period to start getting used to them. You’re likely going to have some differences in ball flight, distances (hopefully for the better).

That’s why making equipment changes at the end of the season (please don’t troll me warm-weather golfers) is usually a good idea. You can get some reps on the course, and then have the winter to practice with them.

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#16

The distance with new irons I’ve heard (and had some experience) is that you may hit them shorter (all else equal) than your old irons that have more wear on them for a bit until the new ones get “roughed” up a little.

#17

I like the tennis shoe comparison. They feel good and look good when you first get them but then you realize they aren’t quite broken in yet. After a few miles in them they settle in nicely and you love the way they feel, you just have to hang tight and not overdo it while you’re breaking them in.

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#18

:joy: :joy: where did you hear that? I’ve seen no evidence of that

#19

I can’t remember exactly - was probably just someone making up a reason I wasn’t hitting my irons as far as I expected when I first got them when trying to figure out why I didn’t like them or hit them well (then we figured out it was the length and resulting swing weight)

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#20

I can tell you unequivocally there is no “break-in” period for new irons that would result in a lower distance, and then it returning. I think you were just adjusting to them, there are many reasons why that could occur.