http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/7.page JForum - http://www.jforum.net NEED new irons, but how could I not resist the temptation of the Hireko 25% holiday discount plus $5.95 shipping? :lol: My previous irons were max game improvement irons patterned on the Ping Rapture with Rifle 5.0 shafts. After hitting the Callaway X-20 Tour irons at a local Dick's on their golf simulator with really good results (average 6 iron carry distance 150 yards, average total distance 160 yards, and one bombed out to over 180 yards :-o with a medium flight trajectory and fairly tight center to left-of-center dispersion -- not one shot out to the right), I thought I would give the XK Pros a go to see if I could play with a "better" iron, i.e., smaller head and less offset. And I was intrigued by the Hump shaft. So an experiment of sorts.

My first trip out to the driving range with the XKs was not confidence inspiring. I had a bad case of Kevin Costner "Tin Cup" shanks! :shock: After I had time to think about it, I concluded that I was taking the club back instead of up on my backswing. My next trip to the range I was hitting the ball pretty consistently and sweet. No problems making solid contact with the slightly smaller club head and less offset. In fact, I like the way the club sets up with the smaller head and reduced offset. Conventional wisdom is that the larger head, thicker topline, and more offset on max game improvement irons is supposed to help inspire confidence at address, but I don't have any lack of confidence with the XK Pros. Distance-wise, probably about the same as my other irons. And I think a little more penetrating ball flight. I need to hit my old irons and the XKs back-to-back to confirm these impressions. Directionally, pretty straight or slightly right-to-left. An occasional slight fade with the 5 and 6 irons. And I love the feel of the 431 stainless -- soft and sweet! That and the notch/wing cavity back design make for a pretty forgiving club. The Apollo Hump shaft also seems to suit me pretty well.

I've also had a chance to play 9 holes on an executive length course. Except for one shot that I hit a little fat (which still went relatively long and straight), every iron shot was a good one. I'm anxious to see how I hit them on a full-length course where every iron in the bag will come into play.

BOTTOM LINE: :thumbup: :thumbup: Although the Acer XK Pro is targeted at the "better" player (I'm not sure I know what that means exactly and I don't know that I qualify as one), I think a decent/average player (I'm a bogey golfer who is probably capable of playing better than bogey golf) with a good, consistent swing could hit these without losing anything vs max game improvement irons. And even without the holiday discount and cheap shipping, they're a great value. The $$$ saved vs buying name brand equipment will be better spent on lessons, time at the range, greens fees, golf vacation, and maybe even a SkyCaddie. :D ]]> http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7344.page http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7344.page
So here's my full set for less than $1,000:

- Tour Edge Exotics 10.5 driver bought on eBay for $180
- Tour Edge Exotics 3W bought on eBay for $120
- TaylorMade Burner 3h bought on eBay for $105
- TaylorMade Burner 4h bought on eBay for $105
- Acer XK Pro 5-PW from Hireko with holiday discount for $140 (!)
- Hogan Apex 52 degree gap wedge bought on eBay for $50
- Hogan Sure Out 56 and 60 degree wedges bought on eBay for $70 (for both!)
- Odyssey Black Series #7 putter with UST frequency shaft bought on eBay for $150

Everything bought on eBay was either new or very lightly used (e.g., a few whacks on the driving range) in mint condition.]]> http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7351.page http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7351.page http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7354.page http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7354.page
Jeff Summitt]]> http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7356.page http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7356.page puttnfool@gmail.com wrote:

Nice review. If you've never played the Humps they can be a little tough to get used to, but once you do, that penetrating ball flight is wonderful. I've been playing Hump S's in my irons for a while now and I love them.

So far, no real problems getting used to the Hump shafts. I like them a lot. And based on the 2008 DSFI data, seems to be a good match for my 5 iron swing speed of 70mph.]]> http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7358.page http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7358.page the_penas@yahoo.com wrote:

puttnfool@gmail.com wrote: Nice review. If you've never played the Humps they can be a little tough to get used to, but once you do, that penetrating ball flight is wonderful. I've been playing Hump S's in my irons for a while now and I love them.  So far, no real problems getting used to the Hump shafts. I like them a lot. And based on the 2008 DSFI data, seems to be a good match for my 5 iron swing speed of 70mph.

The main thing I noticed was a huge difference in feel compared to "normal" shafts. Honestly, I was surprised when I saw how low the Hump S rated in the DSFI chart compared to the DGS300 that I was using.]]> http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7361.page http://www.hirekogolf.com/jforum/posts/2836#7361.page