Last week we talked about iron options for slower swing speed players. We even dug into the lofts for a bit. This week, lets talk about the lengths of these new irons and how do you fit them.

If you’re a super sleuth, you looked into the specs of the new Paradym Ai Smoke irons and the Smoke HL Irons. In that discovery, you found out that the lengths of the clubs looked funny. A Smoke 7-iron is 37.25″ (most 7-irons are 37″). You say “Ohhhhh, I see what they did. They made them longer.” Look again, says the Callaway guy. Start with the 9-iron. The 9-iron is 36″ long. “That’s Normal. What did they do??” In the Smoke, we designed them at +5/8″ longer between clubs instead of +1/2″, so, a set will gain 1/8″ in length between each club starting with the 8-iron. The 7-iron will be 1/4″ longer than a traditional 7-iron. If a player makes it to a 5-Iron, he will be 1/2″ longer. Why? The answer should be obvious. As the clubs get longer, many players can’t hit them high enough or long enough to carry them. This little bit of extra length helps that.

Now to the Smoke HL Irons… You already looked, didn’t you? These are 3/4″ between clubs starting at the 8-iron, so a player will pick up 1/4″ on each club in the set after the 8-iron. This 7-iron is 37.5″ and the 5-iron is 39″ (compared to a “standard” 38″ 5-iron). Consider the players who play these sets of irons, and this is a very nice advantage.

Question, though… How do you fit them? We fit off the 7-iron. These 7-irons are longer. If we fit a player into a STD length 7-iron, are we fitting a player into a club that is too long? Perhaps. Let me lay out a few scenarios for you. If a player fits into a STANDARD 7-iron length, that would be a 37″ club. If we:

a. put him in a standard length Smoke set, the 9 iron and wedges will be correct, but the longer clubs above will be longer than what he measures for.

b. put him in a set at -1/8″ or -1/4″ depending on the set, the 7 iron will be correct, but the short irons will be too short, and the long irons will still be too long.

c. try to order a set with traditional lengths. Don’t go there. The swing weights will be off on every club. Remember 3 swingweight points per half inch, so the HL 9-iron would be at D2, the 7-iron would be at C9, the 5 iron would be at C3. This set would be unplayable.

The swingweights for option (b.) would be light as well.

Consider this. The set is designed this way. It is designed to INCREASE the distances between clubs to give a more appreciable difference in distance between each club. If you have a strong swing speed player playing the new Smoke iron, he might gain a yard or two on each club, and it could be up to 5-6 yards or more by the time he gets to a 5-iron. Almost every player looking at this set needs this. No need to over think things. If the player fits STD, order the irons STD length.

More food for thought. The hybrids… do the same thing. They are an extra 3/4″ LONGER (in the HL), but they have the SAME loft. So, these may not be true direct iron replacements. For example, in the Smoke HL Set, the 6-iron is 27* and 38.25″ long. The 6 hybrid in the same set is also 27*, but 39″ long. The theory here is that players move into hybrids when they can no longer launch their irons high enough to get the ball in the air and keep it in the air long enough to get the carry distance they need. A hybrid will help that. A FW Wood will help it more. The extra length on the shaft is making up for the lack of distance generated by the 6-iron. This makes sure that a player hit’s the replacement hybrid long enough.

If you look at the Ai Smoke hybrids (not the HL), you will see the lofts are WEAKER and the lengths are LONGER. This helps get the ball up in the air while getting the appropriate distance. Remember that this set is designed for a faster swing speed player.

As with anything, please make sure you have a player hit shots with the hybrid to know it will gap correctly with the iron set you are using. You COULD alter the length of the hybrid to get the yardage you need. If you are selling these hybrids as a standalone club, please fit for the yardage the player needs, not the number on the sole.

I hope this helps. Happy Fitting. Adapt, Learn, and Grow.