Feel Competitor Irons

The holy grail of club building has always been the design of an iron that has the power of a blade and the forgiveness of a cavity back. Many have tried, but none have been able to hit that magic formula… until now, that is. Feel Golf Company ended the search in 1988 with the introduction of their Competitor irons. The big idea: pressure cast heads plus perfectly matched shafts and head weights ensure flawless balance and greatly improve accuracy and distance. That's it; no gimmicks or tricks, just superior craftsmanship and engineering. By making a set of clubs with a more natural swing balance, a more controlled ball flight is virtually guaranteed, even on off center hits.

Sounds great, but does it really work? Like magic. We tested a set of limited edition Fly Yellow Competitor irons with stiff flex True Temper steel shafts and Feel's original X-Line Full Release Grips and were blown away by the way that they hit. The pressure cast technology and superb balance do a great job of keeping the swing steady from backswing to finish. The feel of these irons at contact is absolutely amazing; Feel's black Gun Metal finish on the sole and face provide a "slippery" feel as the head cuts through the ball. You can actually feel the transfer of energy go where it should, into the ball rather than dragging through the turf or throbbing in your wrists and elbows.

If you're worried about the Gun Metal finish wearing off of the sole over time: don't. This finish is really an Ion Impregnation rather than a "painted" finish, meaning that it will actually wear into the metal of the club head the more you use it.

How consistent is the balance of the Competitor Irons? Feel's CEO and Founder, Lee "Dr. Feel" Miller, PhD had this to say, "If you really want to see the (balance) quality and why they perform so well, do the following: Take each iron, place on your finger and find each clubs balance point. Mark that point with a black marker and go on to the next iron. When done, line them up evenly and look at your marks and see them be in the same line as the step of the shaft. Except for the wedge, which will have the same balance point mark as the 7 iron. Try that with any other club manufacturer."

Unable to decline such a challenge, we did just what he said. Using a set of Feel's Competitor irons with a Gun Metal finish, we marked each club's balance points on the shaft and lined up the grips. The results are shown on the left. Just like he promised, the marks lined up perfectly. Visible proof of the exceptional feel of these irons.

Also worth mentioning are Feel's Full Release Grips. The Full Release Grip uses Taper Tip Technology that allows the left hand portion of the grip to be carried loosely in the fingers due to the much smaller grip diameter in the left hand. The right hand also uses a more relaxed grip due to the Release's larger diameter at the bottom of the grip as compared with traditional grips. The grip fits comfortably and naturally in one's hands, thereby reducing the hand and wrist tension and increasing club control. They take a little getting use to, but after about two holes, you'll never want to use a traditional grip again.

A word of caution if you decide to go with the Fly Yellow irons: though the gun metal finish on the sole and face is permanent, the yellow paint on the rest of the head will chip and wear around the edges over time. Feel has gone out of their way to make the fire baked paint the hardest, most durable paint possible, but you'll need an additional set of iron head covers to keep these beautiful clubheads looking their best for years of play.

Bottom line is if you're looking for a set of irons that will improve your accuracy without sacrificing power, then Feel Golf's Competitor irons have you covered. Available in 3 - Pitching Wedge (optional 1 and 2 iron available) in Satin, Gun Metal or Fly Yellow, for about 800 dollars you can pick up a set wherever clubs are sold or online at www.FeelWedges.com.