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Top Irons : Callaway L97 or L100

• Lesthanpar 1,502 Posts

  Mon, Apr 9 2018 2:21 PM

  el3n1:

  I also rented the L100 irons and similar "deviations" could also be said about them, I think it largely depends on the type of ball that is used and how you play that ball with respect to your approach for landing and releasing to the pin or trying to stop your shots dead or maybe even spin back a bit. 

  This is probably why it appears some of the top players playing irons of similar specs, seemingly club "up" when using full BS because they lose distance when doing so and it is necessary to play an extra club in order to get the desired distance to the pin.  Just because a club is rated for 210 doesn't mean it is going to play 210y with full BS.  This may not be how you were playing it, but it can account for the differences at times.

  I didn't feel the L100 irons played qualitatively better than the L97 irons or at least from what I could tell.  They are slightly  more forgiving but with the slightly quicker meter you may be dinging fewer shots.  As a result, for me anyway the two played similarly to one another.  

  I opted to keep my meters speeds the same and stick with the L97 irons.  

  This is exactly my experience playing them. I always have played a cheaper what I call a just for fun ball and a better more expensive ball what I call my competition ball.I play a 1 dot feel ball with the level 97 irons  they are much easier to hit with the slower meter but I play the level 100 Apex with my competition ball the level 33 Cally because the meter seems to balance out with more feel to slow the meter with the faster clubs and they are more accurate if I can hit them. I still do think  the Apex Irons are much more tricky to hit especially in the wind. If I had to pick one or the other I would go with the level 97 irons for stability but the Apex sure are fun.

• Luckystar5 1,639 Posts

  Mon, Apr 9 2018 2:22 PM

  el3n1:

  I also rented the L100 irons and similar "deviations" could also be said about them, I think it largely depends on the type of ball that is used and how you play that ball with respect to your approach for landing and releasing to the pin or trying to stop your shots dead or maybe even spin back a bit. 

  This is probably why it appears some of the top players playing irons of similar specs, seemingly club "up" when using full BS because they lose distance when doing so and it is necessary to play an extra club in order to get the desired distance to the pin.  Just because a club is rated for 210 doesn't mean it is going to play 210y with full BS.  This may not be how you were playing it, but it can account for the differences at times.

  I didn't feel the L100 irons played qualitatively better than the L97 irons or at least from what I could tell.  They are slightly  more forgiving but with the slightly quicker meter you may be dinging fewer shots.  As a result, for me anyway the two played similarly to one another.  

  I opted to keep my meters speeds the same and stick with the L97 irons.  

  i, also, rented the 100s, played the pants off them, you and i exchangedon't note, ideas

   

• Luckystar5 1,639 Posts

  Mon, Apr 9 2018 2:36 PM

  el3n1:

  I also rented the L100 irons and similar "deviations" could also be said about them, I think it largely depends on the type of ball that is used and how you play that ball with respect to your approach for landing and releasing to the pin or trying to stop your shots dead or maybe even spin back a bit. 

  This is probably why it appears some of the top players playing irons of similar specs, seemingly club "up" when using full BS because they lose distance when doing so and it is necessary to play an extra club in order to get the desired distance to the pin.  Just because a club is rated for 210 doesn't mean it is going to play 210y with full BS.  This may not be how you were playing it, but it can account for the differences at times.

  I didn't feel the L100 irons played qualitatively better than the L97 irons or at least from what I could tell.  They are slightly  more forgiving but with the slightly quicker meter you may be dinging fewer shots.  As a result, for me anyway the two played similarly to one another.  

  I opted to keep my meters speeds the same and stick with the L97 irons.  

  I also, rented the 100s, and el, and I compared notes, and exchanged thoughts. We agreed on almost everything. Although I played the pants off of them, and I decided to go with them. Happy I did.  I used my own form of a spreadsheet, (paper and pen) I kept track of all I thought was pertinent, they played identical to the 97s, with one exception.  That is that my distance to the pin was 5 feet closer than my average.  My missed dings were still within an acceptable area of my target.  My distances were so close to the 97s, that I didn't have change a thing.  But, I do not use full bs, I use one quarter bs.  That's all you need if using a Nike 90. They stop very quickly.   So far, I think I made the right choice, I'm hoping to get better too.

   

• el3n1 4,502 Posts

  Mon, Apr 9 2018 4:40 PM

  I concur #lesthanpar and #luckystar... if I felt I could ding the meter consistently even though the precision is only .1 better, the forgiveness is .5 higher, I would have likely opted to wait for them myself. 

  For me, building my bag around as close to the same meter speed was important to improve my timing...next step finding one specific ball that plays well across the various courses, but that may be delayed now with the loss of the Nike's... or at least the same meter speed if switching balls remains helpful.

  I had been testing Fmagnets favorite the L61 Nike and JayW's also considered (lizard69) ball of choice the L34 Cally.  Since I am not winning ready go's at this point, I was looking at a more reasonably priced ball versus plopping down 700 or more credits everytime for the top end Nike's.  

  As I also shared with #luckystar, I can actually get by on the mobile platform playing the low end Srixon ball's either L11 Srixon or L13 depending on what sponsor apparel clothing I opt for, because well...the clothing just turns your gear into steroid enhanced clubs that can stop quickly and bomb your drives.  In some ways, it is fun but it turns a lot of holes into chip and putt, less thinking your way around the course.  Still have to make the putts though.  But, I feel more competent on the desktop platform so that is where I want to focus playing a more consistent ball... the Srixon's tend to suffer a bit when you get onto longer courses with heavy winds and without the sponsor apparel on desktop I feel the better balls are beneficial.

  Any tips or suggestions on balls would be great : )

   

• YankeeJim 25,827 Posts

  Mon, Apr 9 2018 4:47 PM

  Luckystar5:

  they played identical to the 97s, with one exception.  That is that my distance to the pin was 5 feet closer than my average.

  I maintain this is because you're paying close attention and trying harder. I played them seamlessly with the feel game I have and didn't skip a beat.

  Keep in mind, these irons replaced the now-extinct Vapors as the top of the line set and have identical specs outside of the meter speed.

  I've rented them 3 times now looking for an excuse to spend the $ and every time come away with the same knowledge--no difference. 

• Luckystar5 1,639 Posts

  Mon, Apr 9 2018 4:58 PM

  You may be right about concentration level. But if it gives me that confidence, then for me they're better.  The one thing I did notice, was the ability to stop a ball on some of the roughest greens. Beth page and St andys, and that was more of a selling point for me.  It might get me into more trouble, down the line, trying shots that I shouldn't. But then again, the bigger the risk, bigger the gain.  Or maybe the bigger the pain,,,,lol.

• Lesthanpar 1,502 Posts

  Tue, Apr 10 2018 11:08 AM

  el3n1:

  I concur #lesthanpar and #luckystar... if I felt I could ding the meter consistently even though the precision is only .1 better, the forgiveness is .5 higher, I would have likely opted to wait for them myself. 

  For me, building my bag around as close to the same meter speed was important to improve my timing...next step finding one specific ball that plays well across the various courses, but that may be delayed now with the loss of the Nike's... or at least the same meter speed if switching balls remains helpful.

  I had been testing Fmagnets favorite the L61 Nike and JayW's also considered (lizard69) ball of choice the L34 Cally.  Since I am not winning ready go's at this point, I was looking at a more reasonably priced ball versus plopping down 700 or more credits everytime for the top end Nike's.  

  As I also shared with #luckystar, I can actually get by on the mobile platform playing the low end Srixon ball's either L11 Srixon or L13 depending on what sponsor apparel clothing I opt for, because well...the clothing just turns your gear into steroid enhanced clubs that can stop quickly and bomb your drives.  In some ways, it is fun but it turns a lot of holes into chip and putt, less thinking your way around the course.  Still have to make the putts though.  But, I feel more competent on the desktop platform so that is where I want to focus playing a more consistent ball... the Srixon's tend to suffer a bit when you get onto longer courses with heavy winds and without the sponsor apparel on desktop I feel the better balls are beneficial.

  Any tips or suggestions on balls would be great : )

   

  The Srixons seem to be WGT programmer cursed for me! The WGT GI-S plays almost the same for far less. There was a handy chart someone made up long ago showing the cost of each ball. Though it is somewhat outdated now I think it is still fairly accurate. Ball cost broken down. The last figure is the average credits cost per 9 holes played.

  Srixon	Z-STAR	11+	180	2.5	120	5.71	10.5
  Srixon	Z-STAR XV	13+	200	2.5	120	5.71	11.67

  compared to 

   

  Tour GI-S

  Any

  82

  1.0

  90

  4.28

  6.37

  compared to

  Callaway

  Tour i(s)

  33+

  250

  2.5

  120

  5.70

  14.62

  The Srixons are okay but I always think I could just play a Cally level 33 for 60 credits more and have a much better ball. If I want to go cheap the TOUR  Gi-S is the  one for me. It is the cheapest ball that has a little bit of everything, 1 dot distance that seems more like 2 with the driver I have, 2 dots of spin which is adequate for most shots, 1 dot of feel which is far better than zero especially on and around the greens.BUT and this is a big BUT they do not putt as well and that is where the score is.

  So my suggestion to you is if you are really trying to score your best and play well go with a Cally level 33 even though it costs a little more (about 4.1 credits more per 9 holes played according to the chart) than a Srixon it performs far better. I played the Srixons for a long time and they are a lot of fun but they just seem to be kind of in between, like they are almost good but not quite there but they cost almost as much as a good ball.

• el3n1 4,502 Posts

  Tue, Apr 10 2018 12:23 PM

  Lesthanpar:

  So my suggestion to you is if you are really trying to score your best and play well go with a Cally level 33

  I may try these again. I had played them a couple times with my current club combination, but I moved away from them.  It may have been due to the carry distances changed too much with full BS that turned me off of them.  Honestly it has been awhile since I tried so maybe my style of play has adapted and they would be a better fit.  

  As for the Srixons, I pretty much ONLY use them for the mobile platform where the "sponsor boosting apparel" is in effect or with XP rounds on desktop with low or moderate winds.  

  I have been testing primarily the L34 Cally and the L61 Nike for the rounds I hope to post my best scores.  I just haven't heard if some feel a particular ball seems to be suited quite well for the L97 Cally irons.  And, I have read that some feel there is potentially a sweet spot in finding the right ball and club combination but this too could be a reflection on one's style of play.  

  I appreciate your insights!

• lonniescott711 4,206 Posts

  Tue, Apr 10 2018 1:24 PM

  YankeeJim:

  Luckystar5:

  they played identical to the 97s, with one exception.  That is that my distance to the pin was 5 feet closer than my average.

  I maintain this is because you're paying close attention and trying harder. I played them seamlessly with the feel game I have and didn't skip a beat.

  Keep in mind, these irons replaced the now-extinct Vapors as the top of the line set and have identical specs outside of the meter speed.

  I've rented them 3 times now looking for an excuse to spend the $ and every time come away with the same knowledge--no difference. 

  +1 YJ I finally broke down and bought the L100+ Apex irons ,just for something to do . I already had the L100+ Nike irons so no need for an upgrade . Other than meter speed there is very little difference between the two .

  One thing about them though is the spin does react differently . I use the L35+ Cally ball which has less spin than the L33+ ball . I very seldom use full back spin as I find that the clubs work best with 1/4 -1/2  depending on wind as well as course . For me the clubs were nothing more than eye candy . 

  For a player looking for a true upgrade they will be fine playing these clubs . But for anyone who already has the L100+ nikes no need to really change . The nike irons seem to have a lighter feel to them than the Apex irons . In fact the Apex irons seem to play a bit stiff in comparison . But using a ball with less spin does seem to make the Apex irons behave better .

  So try using a ball with less spin when using the Apex irons .

   

• Luckystar5 1,639 Posts

  Tue, Apr 10 2018 1:32 PM

  lonniescott711:

  YankeeJim:

  Luckystar5:

  they played identical to the 97s, with one exception.  That is that my distance to the pin was 5 feet closer than my average.

  I maintain this is because you're paying close attention and trying harder. I played them seamlessly with the feel game I have and didn't skip a beat.

  Keep in mind, these irons replaced the now-extinct Vapors as the top of the line set and have identical specs outside of the meter speed.

  I've rented them 3 times now looking for an excuse to spend the $ and every time come away with the same knowledge--no difference. 

  +1 YJ I finally broke down and bought the L100+ Apex irons ,just for something to do . I already had the L100+ Nike irons so no need for an upgrade . Other than meter speed there is very little difference between the two .

  One thing about them though is the spin does react differently . I use the L35+ Cally ball which has less spin than the L33+ ball . I very seldom use full back spin as I find that the clubs work best with 1/4 -1/2  depending on wind as well as course . For me the clubs were nothing more than eye candy . 

  For a player looking for a true upgrade they will be fine playing these clubs . But for anyone who already has the L100+ nikes no need to really change . The nike irons seem to have a lighter feel to them than the Apex irons . In fact the Apex irons seem to play a bit stiff in comparison . But using a ball with less spin does seem to make the Apex irons behave better .

  So try using a ball with less spin when using the Apex irons .

   

  Yes, I believe that to be correct about the spin, I've compared the Nike 90s vs the 94s, and I believe that the 90s are alot better for the apexes, whereas I preferred the 94s over the 90s, with the L100 irons.  Also with the 90s, they don't seem to lose as much distance when using b/s.  There isn't a lot of difference in the stats, for the 2 balls, but sure seems to play better.