WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: New irons from XXIO are designed to appeal to those in need of a swing speed boost. The technology behind the Prime model includes lightweight, counter-balanced shafts and a clubhead design intended to maximise rebound on shots hit low on the face.
PRICE: Cost is $499 per iron. Available at retail across Australia before the end of March.
THE DEEP DIVE: XXIO’s Prime line-up of clubs is perhaps best known for being clubs that sell at big-ticket prices. While that’s true, sometimes you get what you pay for. In this case, extreme and unique technologies aimed at making average-golfer swings more efficient and more productive.
Rather than trying to design clubs that attempt to fit all players, the new XXIO Prime clubs don’t compromise on ways to attack the specific swing flaws of slower swings. That means lightweight construction and faces designed to flex as much as possible.
The new irons feature a zippy titanium face with a structure the company refers to as “rebound frame”, a soft-rigid structure with a flexible zone in the lower body and a rigid area in the rear of the body. The combination enhances energy transfer in the lower half of the face, which is where most iron impacts occur.
RELATED: Everything you need to know about XXIO Prime woods
A larger tungsten-nickel weight in the sole of the 5 to 7-irons lowers the centre of gravity while increasing moment of inertia. The weight is beefed up, with 50 grams of weight in the 7-iron compared to the 24 grams in the previous Prime model. The extra weight not only aids forgiveness on off-centre strikes but assists with enhancing launch as well. The sole of the Prime also received attention, with it being slimmed down for a cleaner look at address.
The shafts are a proprietary lightweight graphite shaft that weighs between 43.5 and 46.5 grams for the men’s irons and approximately 10 grams less for the women’s model depending on flex. It’s not just the lighter weight, however, that makes it work. The shafts utilise the same “weight plus” technology in which weights are placed in the butt end of the club to hike the balance point closer to the hands, promoting a better hand position at the top of the backswing.
