Had not watched this prior, but just had a fitting today and really liked the ai smoke HL and the jpx's. Was hitting both sets nearly identically, but the feel of the HLs seemed a bit smoother and pop through a nice hit. Picked up 7-9, P, A. Very happy with the fitting and massive upgrade from my prior set.
Jay I have the mizuno jpx hl irons which are great but I have lost yardage due to my slow swing speed do you think the callaway hl would give me back the club distance i have lost
Enjoyed the review Jay thanks. The sales blurb seperates the Max and HL by the user swing speed, average/moderate for HL and moderate/slow for Max. Tend to agree as to how relevent that is with just 1 degree difference particulalry as you can spec the HL with a cypher shaft as a no cost option.
I'm sure these work for many but I have always struggled with Irons with wide soles so they are a no go for me. I'm a 7 HCP and tried the Srixon ZX5 & ZX5 MK II and flipped them.
Well, that's that murky world of marketing I'm afraid. Same club, different name, charge more. Thanks for pointing this out to us though. I am going for an iron fitting session next month and I will add the HL to my list.
I honestly think they look better than the normal Ai Smoke irons. The cavity looks better than the terrible smoky plastic strip on the back of the normal
Another interesting video thank you. Would it be possible for you to a test of drivers using a slower swing speed. It would be nice to compare the performance the top four drivers.
I wish I was, it would make the creation of the content so much faster. This took me nearly 3 days to make due to the amount of testing went into it and the editing was heavy 👍🏻
Is there not difference in the head weighting as well as the loft ( which obviously you can match if you want to) I’m slowing down with age and fitness and swing at c 75mph but what I liked about the mizuno because it looks more appealing at address but more likely to hook, I can fade the Callaway and it feels more powerful so it’s a tricky choice they go similar distances and heights
Been badly fitted at first for Callaway Smoke Ai HL ….on 60 gr Catalyst graphite shafts……2* upright 1* weak loft….. After 2 sessions of indoor practice didn’t work at all. Waste of energy to strike the ball, no heights, ball went all on the left, low spins, distance where 10-15 y shorter……No need to say …an unprofessional job by a Certified Callaway Fitter. But wait…went for a second opinion and this low handicap golfer said to me after 2 strikes indoor….these shafts are not for you, go get a new fitting. Went to a new pro fitter…for a trial for Callaway Smoke Ai HL clubs😊 in order to get comparative data, look at my swing and change the shafts for Callaway stocks shafts Cypher 50 gr…..no upright, standard lofts……boy oh boy 😮💨….ball speed faster, distance longer by 10-15 y, ball in the middle thus a great rounded dispersion, spin + 850 rpm average, easy launch for heights….Hallelujah! Callaway Smoke Ai HL are Great clubs…but at 74 y/o , 16 handicap, I needed good and easy launch for keeping my distances and shafts are the mother of all…. My amateur advice….golfers should get second opinion on different shafts adapted to their swing & tempo. Have the best for the coming golf season. ErEf, Montréal, Canada
Interesting Jay....I was just fit for the Max Fast irons (HLs werent available yet at the fitter)....but he put me in an RCH 65 R graphite shaft as the standard 40 graphite shaft was too whippy for me (my technique needs a lot of work - I was swinging hard....just not translating it to the club :))...my swing speed was about 68-70 mph....I was a little worried that if my technique improved and my swing speed went up, these would not work well....I see from your testing that they should, even if I were to get 7-10 mph more (unlikely). So, that is good news....however, I paid $150.00 (CDN) for the priviledge :)...thanks again for the review.
Thanks for an excellent comparison Jay. As a 75mph 7 iron player, I feel that the HL should work fine for me. I have watched most of your earlier videos since finding you on RUclips recently and the big takeaway for me has been to ensure that descent angle will enable the ball to stop on the green for my speed - both the HL and Max Fast will be fine in that regard. I haven’t seen anyone here in NZ selling the Max Fast - probably because they are so similar and due to the higher price of the Max Fast. I would guess that the results for Callaway Ai Smoke HL would be very similar to Mizuno JPX 923 HL at a 75mph 7 iron speed?
There's only 1 degree of loft in it, the JPX923 being slightly weaker but that may help launch with the reduced swing speed. There is a point that every degree of loft counts as swing speed reduces. Definitely give them both a test and see which one works the best 👍🏻
Also Jay....just as a side note....I watched a review of the 3 irons from (I believe) Japan....but, there, the regular ai smoke iron 7-iron had a 28 degree loft, the ai HL had a 30 degree loft.....but, the Max Fast there had a 26 degree loft.....that makes more sense for and iron named Max Fast I would guess...not sure why the Max Fast would be positioned so differently (5 degree difference between the 7-iron lofts of the Max Fast in Japan, (i think, so Asia) and North America.
Great question, actually both are basically the same weight. You'd expect the MAXFAST to be lighter but it's not, only the components that get put on the head 👍🏻
@@AskGolfNutI played my Max Fast for the first time today, I ordered them as I need very light shafts and not everyone can offer them. To my eyes they appear to be smaller than you say yourself and this is a plus for me as I don’t agree they look chunky. They played very well. However I had a bad day. Can’t blame the irons that I hit very well though. It’s also nice that the lofts aren’t crazy.
Hi Tony, I'll be honest and say that it was some time ago and I can't remember what shafts I had in them. I will say this though that will explain a little. I am not shaft sensitive so any change or differences in shaft makes no difference, I'm very fortunate to not be sensitive to changes in either shaft weight or bend profile. 99% of golfers are affected by shaft but because in my transition from back swing to downswing I don't load the shaft in any particular way it translates to me being able to swing the same head in 2 massively different shafts and no club head dynamics change due to shaft. So in this test it's effectively like all models I ever test are in the same shaft 👍
Jay I tried them the old Adams idea techs are still keeping my money in my pocket, lol They were ahead of there time I believe. Swing on 7 at 76 now and gaining. Have a good one, great review!
I'm all honesty I'm not a huge fan of any one length irons. Reasoning behind it is generically the longer irons are compromised in peak height and descent angles whilst the wedges and lower end club go to the moon in ball flight terms and distance gapping can be an issue also 👍🏻
to me these clubs felt dead and clunky compared to my Apex forged '21. I hope Callaway will come out with something new that is forged and has a good feel.
@@Spiritdiver hi, I cannot comment on those clubs as I have not hit them. So I will take your good word on them. What I can say, is that I have up to 8 hybrid (36° loft) in my bag consisting of an assortment of Callaway Rogue, Big Bertha, Mavrik, TM Stealth and Cobra LTDx hybrids and they perform very well with good carry and total distance. Play well!
My wife got the Cleveland Halo XL AND LOVES THEM. Shots are higher, longer, better consistency. Best reason is all that has made golf more fun for her.
Your robot comments, the designer of club testing robots said recently that designing a robot for steel shaft testing is difficult because steel shafts are so inconsistent, whereas carbon shafts production. Is far more uniform. His view was, steel shafts will disappear in new manufacturing within 3-5 years, we’ve heard this before and traditionalists will push back. Tour players are increasingly gaming carbon shafts, LAB putters only use bespoke carbon shafts, because of steels inconsistent results
The HL comes with graphite options at just a touch heavier than Max Fast but without upcharge. I just think it's a touch much to ask if it's solely down to a few grams lighter 🤷👍🏻👍🏻
Some golfers swing differently indoors to out and so therefore see minor differences. Quite uncommon to see a large performance change. Although everyones review is only just their opinion, reviews with substantiated head data can be given a bit more independent credibility due to the openness of club delivery information. These 2 irons are great, and absolutely the right choice for the slow swing speed golfer looking maximise performance etc.... I just don't understand why there is the need to 2 Iron models and especially selling one £100 than the other 🤷👍🏻
Under normal circumstances I would agree with you, although I actually measured the 2 custom fitting heads and the HL actually measured 4g lighter than the MAXFAST 🤷 surely the light weight components would also include a lighter weight head. I found it very peculiar, if the shaft let's say is quite expensive, save making another head and sell the expensive light option as a slight upcharge? 👍🏻
I've watched a bunch of your testing videos now. One common factor is 90%of your shots you are slightly toe down. Obviously these are all std lie clubs. I wonder in your own set, do you have th lie set slightly upright?
Ah, your initial comment had a small spelling mistake that through me off 😊 You say it Blue Buy-You. Yep got it now 😊 I'm sure I'll forget but thank you for the pronunciation correction 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
love the review Jay especially when you do the 70mph comparison for the normal golfer
Had not watched this prior, but just had a fitting today and really liked the ai smoke HL and the jpx's. Was hitting both sets nearly identically, but the feel of the HLs seemed a bit smoother and pop through a nice hit. Picked up 7-9, P, A. Very happy with the fitting and massive upgrade from my prior set.
Jay I have the mizuno jpx hl irons which are great but I have lost yardage due to my slow swing speed do you think the callaway hl would give me back the club distance i have lost
Go for the ping g430s
Enjoyed the review Jay thanks. The sales blurb seperates the Max and HL by the user swing speed, average/moderate for HL and moderate/slow for Max. Tend to agree as to how relevent that is with just 1 degree difference particulalry as you can spec the HL with a cypher shaft as a no cost option.
I'm sure these work for many but I have always struggled with Irons with wide soles so they are a no go for me. I'm a 7 HCP and tried the Srixon ZX5 & ZX5 MK II and flipped them.
Thank you for proving these are basically the same club. When these hit the second hand market I’ll be interested in whichever one is cheaper
You may be right however shafts and lofts are different
Well, that's that murky world of marketing I'm afraid. Same club, different name, charge more. Thanks for pointing this out to us though. I am going for an iron fitting session next month and I will add the HL to my list.
I honestly think they look better than the normal Ai Smoke irons. The cavity looks better than the terrible smoky plastic strip on the back of the normal
Another interesting video thank you. Would it be possible for you to a test of drivers using a slower swing speed. It would be nice to compare the performance the top four drivers.
Great video Jay! By the way, you crack me up every time you remind us that you’re not a robot. 😂
I wish I was, it would make the creation of the content so much faster. This took me nearly 3 days to make due to the amount of testing went into it and the editing was heavy 👍🏻
Is there not difference in the head weighting as well as the loft ( which obviously you can match if you want to) I’m slowing down with age and fitness and swing at c 75mph but what I liked about the mizuno because it looks more appealing at address but more likely to hook, I can fade the Callaway and it feels more powerful so it’s a tricky choice they go similar distances and heights
Jay, that 40 gram shaft is not the only option. I order the Max Fast with the Callaway RCH 60 shaft which comes in at 62 grams. No up charge.
Been badly fitted at first for Callaway Smoke Ai HL ….on 60 gr Catalyst graphite shafts……2* upright 1* weak loft…..
After 2 sessions of indoor practice didn’t work at all. Waste of energy to strike the ball, no heights, ball went all on the left, low spins, distance where 10-15 y shorter……No need to say …an unprofessional job by a Certified Callaway Fitter. But wait…went for a second opinion and this low handicap golfer said to me after 2 strikes indoor….these shafts are not for you, go get a new fitting.
Went to a new pro fitter…for a trial for Callaway Smoke Ai HL clubs😊 in order to get comparative data, look at my swing and change the shafts for Callaway stocks shafts Cypher 50 gr…..no upright, standard lofts……boy oh boy 😮💨….ball speed faster, distance longer by 10-15 y, ball in the middle thus a great rounded dispersion, spin + 850 rpm average, easy launch for heights….Hallelujah!
Callaway Smoke Ai HL are Great clubs…but at 74 y/o , 16 handicap, I needed good and easy launch for keeping my distances and shafts are the mother of all….
My amateur advice….golfers should get second opinion on different shafts adapted to their swing & tempo.
Have the best for the coming golf season.
ErEf, Montréal, Canada
Yep they have a good choice
Interesting Jay....I was just fit for the Max Fast irons (HLs werent available yet at the fitter)....but he put me in an RCH 65 R graphite shaft as the standard 40 graphite shaft was too whippy for me (my technique needs a lot of work - I was swinging hard....just not translating it to the club :))...my swing speed was about 68-70 mph....I was a little worried that if my technique improved and my swing speed went up, these would not work well....I see from your testing that they should, even if I were to get 7-10 mph more (unlikely). So, that is good news....however, I paid $150.00 (CDN) for the priviledge :)...thanks again for the review.
Love the comparison sets you do thx Jay..👍
It's so much work, I'm hoping the video gets enough views to justify the 3 days doing it 😬
Thanks for an excellent comparison Jay. As a 75mph 7 iron player, I feel that the HL should work fine for me. I have watched most of your earlier videos since finding you on RUclips recently and the big takeaway for me has been to ensure that descent angle will enable the ball to stop on the green for my speed - both the HL and Max Fast will be fine in that regard. I haven’t seen anyone here in NZ selling the Max Fast - probably because they are so similar and due to the higher price of the Max Fast. I would guess that the results for Callaway Ai Smoke HL would be very similar to Mizuno JPX 923 HL at a 75mph 7 iron speed?
There's only 1 degree of loft in it, the JPX923 being slightly weaker but that may help launch with the reduced swing speed. There is a point that every degree of loft counts as swing speed reduces.
Definitely give them both a test and see which one works the best 👍🏻
Is there a difference in weight between the two heads? Is the Max Fast lighter ie less tungsten weight?
HL is 4g lighter 😊👍🏻
@@AskGolfNut thanks! lol it really doesn’t make sense.. I know nothing though
Also Jay....just as a side note....I watched a review of the 3 irons from (I believe) Japan....but, there, the regular ai smoke iron 7-iron had a 28 degree loft, the ai HL had a 30 degree loft.....but, the Max Fast there had a 26 degree loft.....that makes more sense for and iron named Max Fast I would guess...not sure why the Max Fast would be positioned so differently (5 degree difference between the 7-iron lofts of the Max Fast in Japan, (i think, so Asia) and North America.
Excellent review - as always!
great in depth review just a shame they have a problem in making the top line look half decent
Have you seen them yourself?
Jay - do the heads both weigh the same or is the max fast getting its “speed” from the 40g shaft and light grip ?
Great question, actually both are basically the same weight. You'd expect the MAXFAST to be lighter but it's not, only the components that get put on the head 👍🏻
@@AskGolfNutI played my Max Fast for the first time today, I ordered them as I need very light shafts and not everyone can offer them. To my eyes they appear to be smaller than you say yourself and this is a plus for me as I don’t agree they look chunky. They played very well. However I had a bad day. Can’t blame the irons that I hit very well though. It’s also nice that the lofts aren’t crazy.
Golfnut I have a question. That Max Fast graphite shaft was a Tensei correct ? What was the weight of that shaft ? Thanks.
Hi Tony, I'll be honest and say that it was some time ago and I can't remember what shafts I had in them. I will say this though that will explain a little. I am not shaft sensitive so any change or differences in shaft makes no difference, I'm very fortunate to not be sensitive to changes in either shaft weight or bend profile. 99% of golfers are affected by shaft but because in my transition from back swing to downswing I don't load the shaft in any particular way it translates to me being able to swing the same head in 2 massively different shafts and no club head dynamics change due to shaft.
So in this test it's effectively like all models I ever test are in the same shaft 👍
@ Thank you for your detailed explanation Jay. Makes sense to me. Tony.
Brilliant review and testing methods. Could marketing and online sales be a reason for the 'difference'?
Absolutely! I can't see any other reason unless I'm missing something glaringly obvious 🤷👍🏻
Jay I tried them the old Adams idea techs are still keeping my money in my pocket, lol
They were ahead of there time I believe. Swing on 7 at 76 now and gaining.
Have a good one, great review!
Another great review Jay. How does the hl compare to the Mizuno JPX923 hl ?
i would say the Smoke HL is better than the 923HL , but not as good as the 925 HL.
@andy_bickley thanks, what's the difference between the 923 and 925hl models?
@@jbh199 The new 925 range are noticeably more forgiving.
ruclips.net/video/aU0_RWpgjBI/видео.html
What do you think of the areojet 1 length club?
I'm all honesty I'm not a huge fan of any one length irons. Reasoning behind it is generically the longer irons are compromised in peak height and descent angles whilst the wedges and lower end club go to the moon in ball flight terms and distance gapping can be an issue also 👍🏻
to me these clubs felt dead and clunky compared to my Apex forged '21. I hope Callaway will come out with something new that is forged and has a good feel.
which would be best for a female with slow swing speed - Callaway AI Smoke HL? Ping G430 HL? Wilson Dynapwr Game Improvement?
Probably better to look at a set of hybrid irons like Cleveland Halo XL, Wilson Launchpad, Cobra T-Rail, Eleven hybrid set, Taylormade Stealth HD.
Very much agree with the replied comment 👍🏻
@@zazhouNone of these as I have gamed some of these. I'd go for slow swing specialists such as XXIO or Yamaha. Way better.
@@Spiritdiver hi, I cannot comment on those clubs as I have not hit them. So I will take your good word on them. What I can say, is that I have up to 8 hybrid (36° loft) in my bag consisting of an assortment of Callaway Rogue, Big Bertha, Mavrik, TM Stealth and Cobra LTDx hybrids and they perform very well with good carry and total distance. Play well!
My wife got the Cleveland Halo XL AND LOVES THEM. Shots are higher, longer, better consistency. Best reason is all that has made golf more fun for her.
How do they compare to the ai smoke paradym. It seems like the smoke model has much stronger loft but these are more game improvement?
Your robot comments, the designer of club testing robots said recently that designing a robot for steel shaft testing is difficult because steel shafts are so inconsistent, whereas carbon shafts production. Is far more uniform. His view was, steel shafts will disappear in new manufacturing within 3-5 years, we’ve heard this before and traditionalists will push back. Tour players are increasingly gaming carbon shafts, LAB putters only use bespoke carbon shafts, because of steels inconsistent results
Can they make the weight similar to steel?
@@Spiritdiver they can, and the carbon shaft will behave
smoke HL vs Apex DCB vs 923Hm-HL at 80mh? ;0)
Hmmm....Maybe the graphite sticks makes for the extra 100 bills with the 'Max Speed' version?
The HL comes with graphite options at just a touch heavier than Max Fast but without upcharge. I just think it's a touch much to ask if it's solely down to a few grams lighter 🤷👍🏻👍🏻
Jay- in Georgina from golfalot’s review she noted that the irons performed worse indoors compared to her on course review. Thoughts?
Some golfers swing differently indoors to out and so therefore see minor differences. Quite uncommon to see a large performance change. Although everyones review is only just their opinion, reviews with substantiated head data can be given a bit more independent credibility due to the openness of club delivery information.
These 2 irons are great, and absolutely the right choice for the slow swing speed golfer looking maximise performance etc.... I just don't understand why there is the need to 2 Iron models and especially selling one £100 than the other 🤷👍🏻
@@AskGolfNutif the light clubs are the expensive version, would it be the bespoke components, shaft etc being designed light?
Under normal circumstances I would agree with you, although I actually measured the 2 custom fitting heads and the HL actually measured 4g lighter than the MAXFAST 🤷 surely the light weight components would also include a lighter weight head.
I found it very peculiar, if the shaft let's say is quite expensive, save making another head and sell the expensive light option as a slight upcharge? 👍🏻
@@AskGolfNut, thought you might have done, so it’s all marketing up selling
@Pud56 258g MAXFAST 254g HL head only 👍🏻
2.0 yds per mph SS is dead on or close to Trackman LPGA averages 😂
I've watched a bunch of your testing videos now. One common factor is 90%of your shots you are slightly toe down. Obviously these are all std lie clubs. I wonder in your own set, do you have th lie set slightly upright?
2 deg 👍🏻👍🏻
You sat like blue buy-you
Must say you lost me with that comment...... Blue buy-you??? 🤷
@@AskGolfNut when you announced the name of the hole you were playing, I spelled it phonetically.
@@AskGolfNut how it's pronounced
Ah, your initial comment had a small spelling mistake that through me off 😊
You say it Blue Buy-You. Yep got it now 😊 I'm sure I'll forget but thank you for the pronunciation correction 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻