5-iron lengths on Tour

[15th Club]

So the worst kept secret in Tour-level club building is that most Tour players prefer driver shaft lengths shorter, sometimes significantly shorter, than most retail clubs. 44- 44.5- and 45-inch drivers are much more common than 45.5 and 46-inch drivers. Among the men, that is. (Driver shaft lengths on the LPGA Tour are an equally-interesting, very different, but off-topic issue.)

 

And we know quite a bit about that because driver specs for Tour players are so widely published.

 

But less well published are 5-iron shaft lengths. (And, for the uninitiated, we concern ourselves with 5-iron lengths because that is the informal standard for measuring the lengths of iron sets. We check the length of the 5-iron, and not an 8-iron or 9-iron, for instance.)

 

At the dawn of the era of Mizuno irons -- and in the golden era of Macgregor -- many iron sets had 37" 5-irons. It was 37.5" for much of the 70's, 80's and 90's. It is now (again, VERY informally) 38", and a fair number of game-improvement sets at retail might have 38.5" 5-irons. And a significant number of recreational players order iron sets at +.5", resulting in, most often, a 38.5" 5-iron.

 

What is the average 5-iron length on Tour? What is the range (whose go the shortest, and longest iron sets)?

[sirparalot]

I don't know about tour players to answer your question about specifics. Here is what I do know..tour players play clubs that work for them and have them set up to work for them. I don't believe any player on tour cares how long or short their clubs are. They care that the club they have in their hand goes the distance and direction they expect it to(driver may be the exception for them). I personally have benefitted from significantly shorter clubs. My 5 iron plays to 36.5" (thats .5" shorter than the golden era clubs you referenced. My Driver is 43.5". My clubs are built to have me setup comfortably and properly. I do not have to make any compensations for any club in my bag. Other than ball position I feel the same over every level shot with every club and I find the center of the face and play pretty boring (consistent) golf. I found my way by just choking down on my clubs until they felt comfortable and allowed me to have a proper setup. In the end I ended up taking 1.5" off my clubs...by the way they were already .25 short and .75 flat (Ping red dot). Oh and I have not lost distance. I pull the same clubs I did prior to shortening them. Your mileage may vary but if you have a fairly consistent swing and you feel like you compensate depending on the club thats in your hand then play around with club lengths. You may find shorter is better.

[drvrwdge]

I have also wondered the same thing. Not because I want to model my iron lengths after the pro but I wonder how many of them actually adjust iron length for height. I know for a fact Leishman's irons are +1/2" which for Callaway would make his 5i 38.5. They are also 3* upright. I've asked several times if iron specs could be included in the WITB but I assume it can be difficult information to come across.

 

Im tall at 6'3" and a 38.5 WTF measurement. Ive played everywhere from "standard" (37.75) 5i's to +1" ( as much as 39") 5i's and basically had about the same results. Makes me curious how much there really is to the whole custom fitting thing...

[15th Club]

I just want to say (and correct myself in a minor way) that Mizuno is still making a large number of sets with 37.75" 5-iron standards. That is why I was hedging on the 38-inch "standard."

 

I'm a standard-proportioned 6'0". 43 long suitcoat. 31" inseam. Average, in other words.

 

And my own irons, built myself, have a 37.625" (fancy metrics for 37 5/8") 5-iron. And I never felt like it was any magic or special clubfitting. It was a reflection of nothing so much as the era I grew up playing in (1970's and 80's) and the irons I learned to become a better golfer with (MacGregors and Mizunos).

[huskydawg]

Im tall at 6'3" and a 38.5 WTF measurement. Ive played everywhere from "standard" (37.75) 5i's to +1" ( as much as 39") 5i's and basically had about the same results. Makes me curious how much there really is to the whole custom fitting thing...

 

For longer clubs I suspect it doesn't matter as much. When you add +.5 you are just making a 5 iron into a 4 iron length 5 iron. But when I tacked on 1" on my wedges, I felt less cramped over the ball and hit it better. I'm 6'6" for reference.

[Kingcat990]

Im tall at 6'3" and a 38.5 WTF measurement. Ive played everywhere from "standard" (37.75) 5i's to +1" ( as much as 39") 5i's and basically had about the same results. Makes me curious how much there really is to the whole custom fitting thing...

I'm 6'6" for reference.

 

Holy sh°t. And you only go to +1"-½"? You either have long arms or you must go right down after the ball

[Keithpbz]

This older from 2012 for tiger woods.

[tyorke1]

be interesting to see more tour player iron length and especially wedges

[Nessism]

Just a reminder to never try to emulate a pro regarding club specs. Those guys have clubs made specific to their needs and you should do likewise.

[tyorke1]

Thanks , I thought I could be just like Dustin. Whenever someone makes a post don't assume there want a bees, maybe just out of curiosity. Also wedge length is interesting , some like same length, some like 3/8 increments some like 1/2 inch increments. It would be interesting to compare player heights with wedge lengths and see if there's a pattern or is everyone different . Sorry for being smart but how many post you see people ask a curiosity question and someone responds with don't compare yourself to a tour player gets tiresome.

[ErichZF]

I build my clubs of a 37" 7 iron and will always do that. Not sure what over or under that is. Doesn't matter.

[jll62]

A couple of years ago I ruined a 5 iron after hitting a large hidden rock near a hazard. I had a big event coming up a couple of days later, and my instructor was able to pull some strings and get me a replacement from the TaylorMade tour department. I said "standard length" as the spec and they replied back with "retail standard" or "tour standard". As I understood it, the "tour standard" length was 1/4" shorter than retail. The RSi TP stated length was 37.75", so that means their standard length on a stock set for the Tour would have been 37.5".

 

Obviously each player will have his own fit that has nothing to do with any sort of standard length, but I found this interesting.

[bladehunter]

Couple I recall are DJ Matt jones and Phil. Phil’s I think was 1/2 over standard in irons. ( definitely over length. But could be mistaken in actual amount).

 

DJ is standard length. Which I found to be really odd for his height. But he does bend over pretty far with long arms.

 

Also Matt jones standard length on Irons.

[mr cool]

I've read in a few articles that Rickie Fowler plays his iron -1/2"

[Jagpilotohio]

I've read in a few articles that Rickie Fowler plays his iron -1/2"

 

He does. Fairway woods 1 inch under Cobra standard and Driver -1.5” at 43.5”

[Stuart_G]

Just remember that there is also no standard for how the lengths are measured by the OEM's. So just knowing the numbers is not enough, you also have to know what method is used to do the measuring in order to be able to actually compare the numbers.

[tyorke1]

Thanks Fitting is so individual, swing type, height, posture , . Tour players get the absolute best fitting , wedge lengths are always a topic for discussion,. I am interested in overall 5 iron length by the tall players are they going past 38.5 in 5 irons. It does seem to be secretive on tour not too often we see lengths. all this does not really make any difference to us other than increments used , just knowledge