Why do the lofts on irons keep getting stronger?
Your 7-iron may be the same as someone else's 5-iron
It’s a common question on the golf course: “What club did you hit there?” But, unless the person you’re asking is someone you play with regularly, so you know exactly how far they hit their clubs compared to how far you hit yours, it’s a pointless question.
The problem is that there is no industry standard when it comes to iron lofts, meaning the ‘7’ stamped on the sole of one 7-iron may mean something very different to the ‘7’ stamped on another. The numbers help you sequence your irons, but beyond that, they are almost meaningless.
So if someone wants to hit a club with the same loft as you, they may actually need to hit an iron one or two clubs removed from the one you just hit.
– How much do lofts vary from manufacturer to manufacturer?
– Why do lofts vary so much from one set to another?
– Why have lofts changed?
– Isn’t more distance a good thing, anyway?
Rob McGarr has some answers over at Today’s Golfer
