Pros: Very forgiving, with good distance. Offset helps keep my shots straight.
Cons: The finish, while quite attractive, will easily show blemishes and scratches.
The Bottom Line: The X-18s are a nice blend of forgiveness/performance for all levels of golfers. Low handicappers can still work the ball but may want to opt for the Pro Series.
I love golf. I enjoy the challenge and the game keeps me grounded with constant lessons in humility :). I also like the fact that competition (for us non-Tour players) is mostly against yourself and the course. Winning a friendly wager is nice but constant improvement is (or should be) the ultimate goal.
I had been playing with King Cobra II oversize irons for the past six or seven years. Very nice irons but the golf bug, which had been lying dormant, sprang to life full-force this year and I got the "itch." You know what I mean. So the hunt was on.
I stayed away from classic blades because as much as I like the way they look, I'm not good enough to wield these sticks on a regular basis. I looked at a lot of clubs like Callaway's own Fusion line, TaylorMade RAC, Ping G2s, etc. It was a tough decision since I would argue that beyond a certain price point, it's hard to find irons that are bad anymore. It's a matter of finding a set you feel comfortable with and pulling the trigger. And that's how I ended up with the X-18s after LOTS of personal testing. I find the X-18s to be very forgiving, with very good distance. On solid hits, I love the way the ball jumps off the face of these clubs. Callaway has also done a very nice job in the looks department. These irons are light years apart from the original Callaway irons, which to my eye were unattractive.
Lots of features with these irons. Here are some that influenced my decision to purchase these clubs:
* Perimeter weighting - the clubs (up to the 9 iron) has an actual hollow area in the back cavity to push more weight to the perimeter. According to Callaway, this thins the clubface so the hitting area is enlarged for more forgiveness.
* Extreme notch weighting - This is Callaway's fancy term for pushing more of the weight to the heel and toe to help the clubhead resist twisting. The result should be a more forgiving club. Makes sense to me. If you have all the weight in the middle of the clubhead, solid hits will be great but any sort of miss will more easily twist the head left or right, resulting in poor accuracy and loss of distance. The more weight you can position towards the heel and toe of the clubhead, the more forgiving the club will be. From my results, I can definitely see the benefit of what Callaway has done. Mis-hits still travel a fair distance and this helps builds my confidence in these irons.
* More traditional head design - Callaway irons have always been on the chunky side. They've improved with each new offering and the X-18 is svelte compared to the original Big Bertha irons. Let's just say that in my opinion, looks won't get in the way of people buying these irons.
I ended up getting #5 to #9 iron, PW, approach wedge, and SW. I decided on hybrids to replace the #3 and #4 irons since I've always had a hard time hitting these clubs consistently.
There are a lot of shafts options available in both graphite: SYSTEM, ICT Tour, RCH Pro Series M75i,
and steel: Constant Weight Uniflex, Royal Precision Rifle Irons, Royal Precision Tour Flighted Rifle Irons, True Temper Dynamic Gold, True Temper Dynamic Gold w/Sensicore, True Temper TX90.
Lots of folks underestimate the impact of the shaft in club performance - don't make that mistake. I strongly suggest you get a professional club fitting (which should be free if you end up buying from the club fitter) since hitting with these different shafts is really the only way to decide which shaft is for you.
These are very nice irons. If you are in the market, at least give this set a shot.
Fantastic prices with ease & c...(Stock status: N/A)
With each iron containing years of knowledge built into a new, sleek package, the X-18 irons incorporate the player-trusted and Tour-tested performanc...More at Amazon Marketplace
Fantastic prices with ease & c...(Stock status: N/A)
Callaway Mens X-18 Irons feature: Available Separately: #2 Iron • AW: 51° • SW: 56° • LW: 60° True Temper steel shaft available in Uniflex ...More at Amazon Marketplace
X-Series Irons from Callaway Golf have been long favored by some of the best players in the world because of their performance-enhancing technologi...More at eBay
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