Most golfers spend more time messing with the top of the bag than any other section: debating long irons versus hybrids, wondering where to make the key, shuffling in an iron to fix a height problem. I just went through it, adding a Titleist T350 5-iron to improve launch while keeping the T250 for the rest of the set.
A recent Titleist tour truck video with Cam Young showed exactly why these decisions matter: tour fitters don’t build long distance iron setups. They build them around ball speed windows and trajectory control.
Tournament fitters mix patterns to create the right ball speed window
In the video, Cam Young’s bars go from:
- 631.CY in bars 6–9
- T100 on the 5-iron
- T200 in 4-iron
This flow is not about adding distance. It’s about ensuring that the larger, more forgiving heads create the extra ball speed needed for proper launch and descent angle in the long iron window.
Tour fitters usually ask for approx 5–6 mph increased ball speed when they move a player to a larger chassis. This speed bump creates:
- A higher departure
- More peak height
- A steeper descent angle
- Better ability to hold greens from long distance
The T100 and T200 aren’t “distance irons” in Cam’s bag, they’re trajectory tools.
Why ball speed matters more than distance
Two long irons may go the same distance, but they work completely differently.
- Too little ball speed → low launch and flat landing
- Excessive ball speed → shallow descent angle and no stopping power
- Wrong head size → wrong height and rotation window
That’s why even one of the fastest players on Tour carries a 21-degree hybrid. It gives him ball speed, launch angle and descent that a long iron can’t always produce.
How amateurs can use this
You don’t need tournament-level speed to benefit from the same approach.
When deciding which long irons, fixtures or hybrids to carry:
- Look for 4–6 mph of ball speed separation when swinging into a more forgiving head.
- If your long irons fly down and take forever, you may need them a bigger club and more speed.
- If your short irons fly too high, a more compact head it can help you control speed and rotation.
- Don’t force yourself to play a 4-iron if a hybrid or hollow-body model releases and lands better.
Final thoughts
Tournament fitters don’t build the long iron end of the distance bag. They build it around ball speed, height and angle of descent. If you want long irons that work instead of punish, start paying attention to the speed windows your clubs create. It’s one of the easiest ways to make your bag work smarter without changing anything about your swing.
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