PRGR sent over their New iD Forged iron for the 2011 fall season. The new iD Forged fits in right below the pro model iD BL iron as the new better player forged cavity back.  While the iD BL is a pure one piece forged compact cavity, the new iD Forged is designed to be a small CB with some technology in it as well.

Premium Forged with Technology…

The new iD Forged iron is forged by Endo and features a soft premium S20C body. What makes this different and more high tech is that the iD Forged is in fact technically a 4 piece iron. While the body is S20C, the inside of the cavity features two specially designed pieces of Alpha Gel which helps soften the feel at impact and reduce vibrations on miss hits.  The gel is thicker towards the sole where the two layers double up to reduce vibrations on low stuck shots on the face, and thinner towards the sweet spot to maintain a pure feel. For the face,, PRGR utilizes a 2.3mm thin SAE8655M for high COR performance and increased ball speeds. As many TSG readers know, 8655  is in fact Nickel-chromium-molybdenum steel which has a soft feel but is more durable than S20C as well as with its thin construction rather elastic. This results in a springy feel at impact with the ball jumping off the face.

Constant CG Height…

The new iD Forged features a nice face profile with taller toe and rather straight leading edge and top line. PRGR placed the CG point at 20.5mm high on all of the iD forged irons. AT 20.5mm high, its only 0.5mm below the center point of the ball. While the CG point is at the same height across the set relative to the sole, this in fact move the point from lower in the long irons to higher in the short irons due to the loft of the face of each iron. As loft increases and the the face angles upwards, that same 20.5mm from the ground equals a higher striking point on the face resulting in a lower trajectory and stronger spin for added stopping power and control around the greens. On the other hand the stronger lofts of the long irons places the CG lower on the face for more launch and carry.

Forgiving Sole…

In order to create a versatile iron for the better player, PRGR designed the sole to be thin but forgiving. It’s rounded shape features leading edge and trailing edge relief.  This promotes easier entry and exit through the turf and more pure impact. This type of sole has been used a lot by PRGR recently on all its irons and seems to be quite popular with its customers and golfers here at TSG.

Performance Impressions…

The new iD Forged iron features a thinner topline and less offset than the previous model.  It sets up quite nicely at address and with its bead blasted face frames the ball rather well. I tested this iron for a couple of days and really have nothing bad to say about it. I like its looks though I think satin around the cavity rather than mirror chrome would have looked even better. The iron sets up great and while on the smaller side its by no means tiny. I usually am not a fan of inserts and vibration type gels that are placed in premium forged irons as in the past I have always felt they deadened or muted the feel far too much. Sure they can help with vibration control but too many times its to the point where you can no longer tell where you hit the ball on the face (you need to look at the face after each shot to be sure). HOWEVER, the iD Forged is not as extreme as other models of the past and it seems designers are improving the gel and insert design. Because the iD forged uses two layers of gel, most of the insert is low on the face so when you catch a ball thin, it helps reduce the vibrations, but when you hit the ball more pure and towards the center, the gel has far less affect which is a good thing. It feels pretty good off sweet spot strikes and the face is rather springy when struck pure. The fact I can feel the springiness is a good thing.

Forgiveness wise, thanks to the sole, its quite an easy iron to strike well.  I think better players will appreciate the added forgiveness and improving mid-cappers will be able to lower their scores thanks to the irons balanced performance.  PRGR sent TSG two testers, one with PRGR’s Spec Steel III which is under 100g and plays very much like the 950GH with a mid to higher launch. The other tester had the Nippon Modus 3 which is what they call their standard-custom order shaft.  I’s only about 25.00 more per iron to get the Modus and I think for the faster swinger and better player its a worthy upgrade though for myself, the Modus 3 is too heavy and too stiff.  Players under 100mph driver speeds should opt for the Spec steel and over 100mph really go for the Modus 3.  Both testers I had were 7 irons with 32* of loft, these created a mid to slightly higher ball flight with pretty good direction.

Overall the iron is a very nice package, premium forged from Endo with technology to boot, a nice look and design and good performance to go along with it. Please look for it in the TSG Pro shop this week.