Do you have a long iron in your bag?

Even as a low-handicapper, I ditched my long irons earlier this year in favor of a hybrid and 7-wood. And I’m thrilled. But there are still times I feel more comfortable with a 3- or 4-iron in my hands. A trio of new clubs have just hit the market that might make a fine compromise between a typical long iron and a hybrid.

Tour Edge’s Exotics CBX Iron-Wood sports a high-tensile steel cup face that flexes at impact for forgiveness, while generating low-spin distance. It has a thick iron appearance but promises workability. TaylorMade’s thin-faced P790 iron looks intriguing. It’s actually a full set of forged distance clubs with a conceptual nod to metalwoods of yesteryear: The cavity of its otherwise hollow clubhead is injected with a polyurethane foam, to generate ball speed, while softening both sound and feel. I can only imagine that this set’s long irons perform as good as they look. The third club, Titleist’s all-new T-MB, I’ve actually hit and was wowed by. Like the TaylorMade, this is available as a full set. Several PGA TOUR pros play the long irons. And I can understand why: The look is sultry, and the clever use of tungsten in the heel and toe makes it so easy to hit high, powerful shots that feel buttery at impact – even with the lowest lofts. I may have to re-think my bag again.

Veteran golf writer Scott Kramer has covered the golf equipment market full-time since 1990. His career has spanned senior editor positions at both Golf Pro Magazine and GOLF Magazine. He now works on a freelance basis for many consumer and trade publications, including the SCGA’s FORE magazine.