(Plagiarized from KCHacker)
This is the kind of post that could get me thrown off a site like this, but.....
How much impact does iron technology have, and how much does it actually help a golfer, whether it be a pro or a weekend slapper?
There are a million irons out there with new ones coming out each year. Are irons clearly better now than they were 20 years ago?
I have ho'd, bought, sold, swapped, owned and gamed small forged blades and CB's all the way up to the fugliest shovels made. When my swing is on plane and my timing is good, I strike the ball well with any iron in my hand (caveat - I don't make enough clubhead speed now to launch a 3, 4 or 5 iron high enough). When my swing/timing is off, my worst impacts still result in pretty good shots with the shovels and disasters with the player's head. The new multi-metal, multi-piece construction has given us hotter faces in irons and new designs enable jacked lofts to still launch the ball high. The biggest gains in technology for my ability have been perimeter weighting, and hybrid-iron designs. Hot faced, jacked up loft irons seem to fly on a more boring trajectory for me and run out more - that is bad for my game, as I refer high-flying soft landing iron shots. I still play my best golf with irons from Adams and PING from the turn of the century. I seem to be stuck in the designs that came out 15 years ago, but I can play my best golf with older tech. I still take my Eye 2 irons out now and then and shoot under my handicap.
For me, newer isn't better - What say you?