The Fourteen Best Irons for the Average Golfer

You have decided to use irons as a golf club of choice for reasons best known to you. As an average golfer or even someone who is just starting in the sport, picking the best iron to use may not be the easiest of tasks and which is why we have decided to help you make that choice.

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The 14 best irons for an average golfer are;

TaylorMade M4 Irons.
Cleveland Launcher CBX Irons.
Callaway Rogue Irons.
Cleveland Golf Men’s Launcher HB Iron Set.
Callaway Golf Men’s Big Bertha B21 Irons Set.
Cobra Golf LH F-Max Irons Set.
TaylorMade SIM MAX Irons Set.
Mizuno JPX919 Forged Golf Iron Set.
Cleveland Golf 2018 Men’s Launcher CBX Iron Set.
TaylorMade Golf M5 Iron Set.
Callaway Golf 2020 Mavrik Max Iron Set.
TaylorMade P760 Iron Set.
Mizuno MP-18 MMC.
Callaway X Forged.

As an average golfer, when making your choice of irons, there are a few critical factors to consider; The Shaft, Grip, Forgiveness, Feel, Launch, Clubhead, Speed, Design, and many others we’ll be discussing. Based on these factors, we have selected the brands with these qualities with an in-depth look at their advantages and disadvantages to help make your selection dilemma even less stressful.

Before we move forward, there might be some points in this article where medical terms or discussions are mentioned. It is good practice to ensure you double-check every medical information or question that may arise from any article you encounter by consulting a medical professional that relates to the case involved.

Who Is an Average Golfer?

If you score above 90 on any 72-par course, you are an average golfer. This number might seem unachievable or impossible because average golfers are usually close to beginners. However, the statistics are correct and almost the same for all ages of golf players. Therefore, if you shoot scores above 90, then you are an average golfer or high handicap, as it is formally called (7).

Overall Best Irons for Average Golfers

As an average player, you might already have a few club sets you practiced golfing with as a beginner; however, it is advisable to change your gear to more sophisticated ones as you improve in the game. The following irons are the best brands to buy your iron sets from:

TaylorMade M4 Irons.
Cleveland Launcher CBX Irons.
Callaway Rogue Irons.

TaylorMade M4 Irons

This iron golf club brand is essential in hitting high ball shots in the air without missing. It also has a low center of gravity that runs deep and a hosel for support. It is especially perfect for average golfers as it will help deliver strong shots that clear the ball path of any available obstacle due to its thickness. The varying degrees of variety of this club makes it very easy to select a loft that will suit you and help improve your shots (2).

Advantages:

Improves straight shots.
Produces high launching on shots.
Easy to recognize the loft in use, based on the levels being printed on the clubs.
It is a solid and durable brand that promises and delivers accuracy in shots.

Disadvantages:

This club is almost perfect. However, it might not suit golfers looking for perfection or physical attributes in one club.

Cleveland Launcher CBX Irons

Our winning brand for the Fairway woods golf clubs are also pros for making iron golf clubs. They are popularly known for designing their clubs with average players and beginners in mind. The CBX Iron is a great power replacement club, with forgiveness on mis-hits. It is appropriately balanced and effortless to hit with significant control. The shape of this golf gives average golfers the luxury of hitting powerful shots, whether it makes contact with the center or not. It helps to reach long distances too, with good speed and strong lofts.

Advantages:

Produces straight hits.
The loft levels of this club are also printed for easy identification.
They make great and smooth contact with the grass or coarse surface.
Mighty golf club that gives assured accuracy and forgiveness on mishits.
It is a beginner or average golfer’s savior club.

Disadvantages:

The only possible disadvantage of this club is the elimination of ball spinning.

Callaway Rogue Irons

This club is mainly known among average golfers as a shooting club. The club heads are forgiving (1), thereby reducing mis-hits and improving accuracy on shots. They also have light shafts and project great power behind shoots. They are easy to shoot with, great design, shape, and reasonable distance.

Advantages:

They have strong lofts.
They are easy to hit.
They are highly forgiving of mis-hits.
They are light.

Disadvantages:

The golf club is highly forgiving; however, this feature might make it hard to track your mis-hits and figure out where to improve or exert less power.
They do not have fast launching speed, so average golfers that swing fast might not make good use of this club.

Iron Features to Look For As an Average Golfer

As an average golfer, the biggest mistake is building your foundation in golfing with the wrong set of clubs. Buying expensive iron sets also does not equate to a good swing or game. Picking out the best irons and brand is determined by a couple of factors;

Iron Features	Characteristics
Player Irons	Although these are not essential yet, they are known as the irons for highly skilled players.
Game Improvement Irons	They produce straighter shots for mid-level golfers.
Super Game-Improvement Irons	These irons are for high handicap players. They help improve player’s games, providing balance and forgiveness on mis-hits.
Price of The Iron	In order for you to aid you in avoiding incurring too much debt, it is advisable to buy irons from previous seasons that are slightly used or opt for cheaper sets that still deliver the qualities of a good iron club (6).
Shaft Flex	The accuracy and distance achievable by a golf iron are directly affected by its flex (8). The shaft ranges from ladies and seniors to regular and from extra stiff to stiff.
The Feel	It might seem cheesy; however, it is essential to pick out a comfortable club within your stance and in-between your hands. Try out different irons at the store, especially steel and graphite shaft irons. The latter is lighter, a good vibration absorbing iron, and highly recommended for players with joint inflammation (9).
The Grip	This next feature is immeasurable and can only be described by you, the player. Holding your iron club with comfort is a characteristic of the Grip feature (4). Grips are often made from rubber nowadays; however, you might do better with a traditional iron grip made from leather.
Hosels	Hosels are located at the base of golf clubs, and they influence a club’s weight and center of gravity (3). Unlike other golf clubs, the hosels are obvious in irons, and modern irons have theirs joined far away from the hitting area.
Forgiveness	Forgiveness in golf clubs means minor damage on mis-hits or no damage at all. Therefore, it is essential to get iron clubs that are durable and highly tolerant of frequent mis-hits.
The Clubhead	The last thing is The Clubhead (5); this feature directly influences the spins you can deliver as a golfer. To control spins that determine the height of your shot, you will need a clubhead with deep grooves. It will enable you to achieve high flying shots with proper spin control and the big-sized landing impact of the golf ball on the course surface.
The Length	The length of golf irons significantly affects a golfer’s performance. A golfer’s height is proportional to the length of golf irons that must be used, for comfort, getting right angles, and taking straight shots (10).

Best Golf Irons for High Handicappers

High handicap golf players shoot an average of 90s to 100s and have a 19 to 23 handicap. If you fall under this category, the following golf irons are the most suitable for you:

Cleveland Golf Men’s Launcher HB Iron Set.
Callaway Golf Men’s Big Bertha B21 Irons Set.
Cobra Golf LH F-Max Irons Set.
TaylorMade SIM MAX Irons Set.
Mizuno JPX919 Forged Golf Iron Set.

Cleveland Golf Men’s Launcher HB Iron Set

This golf set is known for its hybrid construction that is reliable, 95% Forgiveness, 80% Feel, Distance of 90%, and control 75%. This combination produces a high ball flight. The high forgiveness percentage feature of this club is a result of its complete hollow design.

Advantages:

Light gold-colored steel shaft that increases the speed of the iron.
Long-distance shoot production from thin clubface and steel strength.
The golf has a deep-weight crown that makes it easy to hit balls.
Good forgiveness, hybrid construction for high ball flight.

Disadvantages:

The only disadvantage of this iron is in delivering short shots; the feel is lesser than expected when using it to hit for short-distance shots.

Callaway Golf Men’s Big Bertha B21 irons Set

This is a popular iron among male high handicap golfers and some pros. It gives control of 85%, a distance of 95%, a feel of 85%, and forgiveness of 95%. This golf is best known for its high ball speed delivery and distance boost. It has a hollow structure that delivers its forgiveness percentage, giving it straight and high launched shots. The big Bertha, of course, has a premium standard shaft too.

Advantages:

This golf has adjustable hosels that are long hybrids.
Extra distance is achieved with this club due to its 360-face cup technology.
Their short irons have narrow soles, while the long irons have wide soles.

Disadvantages:

This iron is expensive.
The offset of the iron’s hosel might be hard for some golfers to adapt to because the offset is substantial.

Cobra Golf LH F-Max Irons Set

This is a light weighted golf with 95% forgiveness, 80% feel, control 85% and 90% distance. The club has high speed, reasonable distance, and handicappers with an average speed on swings, which perfectly fits their abilities. The cobra golf has a high loft and cavity back that helps achieve high ball shots with ease. You’ll also get to shoot straight shots with great control because the club was designed with heel-biased weighting.

Advantages:

This iron is light, with a light shaft too that will boost your distance.
It helps to improve accuracy based on its length and advanced hosel offset.
You will be in total control of this golf iron due to its weighting, and this delivers consistency in shots.
The long and high ball launches produced from its deep undercut style.

Disadvantages:

For golfers that swing fast, the lightweight feature might pose a disadvantage.

TaylorMade SIM MAX Irons Set

This is widely known as the best overall handicap irons, with a feel at 85%, a distance at 95%, control of 85%, and forgiveness at a massive 95%. The speed bridge technology applied to this iron makes it stand out from others, as it gives support and balance to the club’s top line. It means that this iron feature gives you great forgiveness, great feel, and sound on impact and far distance shots. The new echo damping system also removes vibration on ball impact and has a flexible clubface. In summary, this iron will improve your game while giving you the utmost comfort and happy results.

Advantages:

The ECHO damping system eliminates vibration on strikes.
Optimized accuracy from its advanced inverted cone.
It helps achieve great distances based on its sophisticated speed bridge.

Disadvantages:

The lofts might come off as too intense for some players.

Mizuno JPX919 Forged Golf Irons Set

If you’re looking to control shots better, this golf club is just for you. It has forgiveness of 85%, control of 95%, a distance of 80%, and a feel of 95%. It has a good feel and grip, delivers excellent ball speed, and has a high-quality build. Having a large clubface that isn’t too thick consistently helps you deliver good ball speed on shots and good launching ability and stability.

Advantages:

The club will improve the launching ability of a user due to its stable frame.
Solid feel on ball impact.
Great control
It has a milled CNC surface that enhances ball speed.

Disadvantages:

The distances achievable by these irons are low compared to other irons.

Best Golf Irons for Mid Handicappers

The main criteria to look out for in golf irons as a mid-handicapper are forgiveness, distance achievable, and durability. If you play off handicaps between 7 to 18 and have your scores falling in-between 80 to 92, then you’re a mid-handicapper. The following irons are suitable for golfers with the above-listed abilities:

Cleveland Golf 2018 Men’s Launcher CBX Iron Set.
TaylorMade Golf M5 Iron Set.
Callaway Golf 2020 Mavrik Max Iron Set.

Cleveland Golf 2018 Men’s Launcher CBX Iron Set

This iron golf club is popularly known as one of the best iron sets for mid-handicappers in golf. The consistency and feel of this golf club are improved over time due to the location of the center of gravity in the middle of the face. It has a significantly reduced weight on the hosel based on the micro-cavity feature in the face’s middle. It gives excellent forgiveness, feel and launches high flight shots.

Advantages:

It has three flexes available in its shaft that range from stiff to senior.
Gives good forgiveness, feel, and distance.
Good grip and feel.

Disadvantages:

Although this iron is one of the best for mid-handicappers, it is not budget-friendly.

TaylorMade Golf M5 Iron Set

This golf iron was mainly designed for golf players facing struggles with reaching certain distances. It has a stiff structural design at the head area that helps improve the distance on shots. The shafts come in graphite or steel, and there are options for less stiff irons from this set. Faster speed is also attained due to its inverted cone technology and speed bridge technology that helps transfer energy from your swings to the ball.

Advantages:

Three hundred sixty degrees undercut that reduces the center of gravity to enhance ball launch angles and speed.
It is a very light golf club and gives good forgiveness for mis-hits.
Cone technology for straight shots.
It improves the player’s distance.
It eliminates vibrations on impact due to its HYBRAR compressions.

Disadvantages:

It is also an expensive golf iron.
There might be difficulty in controlling the club for some players.

Callaway Golf 2020 Mavrik Max Iron Set

This golf iron is best known for giving players more spins, producing high-flying shots, and having good stopping power on impact. Artificial intelligence was applied in the design of this iron, giving it a 360-faced cup that flexes on ball impact and, in turn delivering great speed and consistency. The Tungsten energy core is also embedded in the club, giving players the experience of an optimized center of gravity and thereby optimizing their launch and spins. It also has a good stopping power on impact, improves your high shot abilities, and eliminates unwanted vibrations on impact.

Advantages:

Good grip and feel.
Eliminates vibration on ball strikes.
Gives decent distance and forgiveness.

Disadvantages:

It possesses a soft loft that directly affects the distance achievable on shots.

Best Golf Irons for Low Handicappers

The low handicappers in golf are known as players with single digits handicaps from 1 to 9. Golfers in this category are known as elites or pro golfers and usually shoot scores in the 70s and 80s mark. The following golf irons are the best for players under this category:

TaylorMade P760 Iron Set.
Mizuno MP-18 MMC.
Callaway X Forged.

TaylorMade P760 Iron Set

This P760 set includes a pitching wedge, approach wedge, and the number 3 to 9 irons. The 700 series clubs were designed with a carbon steel hollow which gives off a nice feel and good sound effect on ball impact. The power of the iron is enhanced by the steel face feature of the club, which increases speed and distance.
These irons give a high spin, balanced speed, loft, and great interaction with course turf; allowing you to take shots from tough angles. Unfortunately, these irons were discontinued for 2021, but many are still available at the time of writing this article. The new alternative is the 700 series, similar in function and allegedly upgraded.

Advantages:

Interacts nicely with the course turf.
Excellent grip and feel.
Added yards to distances on shots

Disadvantages:

For golfers that are particular about the physical appearance of their clubs, they might not be comfortable with the looks of this iron.

Mizuno MP-18 MMC

Popularly known as “The Poster Boy of the Family,” this club was designed using steel in its shaft, which provides a stiff flex. This feature eliminates vibration on impact, gives a great feel and grip. This golf club, of course, has Mizuno’s trademark mild carbon steel irons forged with concentrated grain flow. Having traditional and recognized designs and looks, yet manufactured using computerized operations and machines.

Advantages:

It is a lovely golf iron with premium designs.
Great feel, good grip, and production of straight, precise shots.
Production of reasonable distance, ability to shoot from difficult angles, and rough turfs.
Computerized construction and good speed.

Disadvantages:

Players going for this golf club must be highly skilled in taking centered shots because this iron has a zero-tolerance for mis-hits, meaning it does not forgive at all.

Callaway X Forged

The shaft of this club is made with steel, delivering high power on shots. If you’re looking for consistency and accuracy, this club is for you. It has a strong feeling from its low flex degree, longer blades, and big-sized head. This club is easy to control, and although you cannot achieve extra yards with it, you may find improved aiming with this club.

Advantages:

It is highly forgiving.
Great feel and grip.
Mainly known for accuracy and consistency.
Premium physical design.

Disadvantages:

Making holes from far distances is possible; however, this club is not known for distances.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the Most Forgiving Iron Set?

Based on all points gathered, the most accessible golf iron to hit is the Callaway Rogue Iron, and it is very light, gives a firm grip, and is easy to hit. You don’t have to worry about mis-hits because this durable iron tolerates and forgives them.

What are the Hardest Irons to Hit?

The overall most problematic iron to hit of all the clubs listed is the Callaway Golf Men’s Big Bertha B21 Iron Set. The offset produced by this iron is solid and takes a while to get familiar and become comfortable. it has other great features that might make you overlook this disadvantage; however, it is something to consider.

Summary

It is advisable to go through each group of handicappers, check out the attributes of each handicap player and find which group suits you best. After doing this, you can select the best iron club that checks every box on your list. It is pretty normal to feel overwhelmed by an article and have questions that I might not have answered in the article. If you have further questions or need more explanations, leave a comment below.

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