Titleist T Series Irons – Taking things to the next level

Titleist has revamped their T Series iron range, making sure no golfer misses out. Thankfully they have kept the same model names and not felt the need for model rebrand. The old AP1, AP2 and AP3 just confused the heck out of me, as they were not in order of ability. The T Series iron range from Titleist is simple to understand and that suits me.

T100 – Designed for the better player who isn’t concerned with distance and focuses more on dispersion and grouping statistics.
T100S – For players that seek the workability of the T100 but need a few more yards.
T200 – Maintaining the look of a player’s club but with a little more forgiveness and speed.
T300 – The game improvement iron that will appeal to even the better golfer when compiling a combo set.

Before we dive into more detail on each iron, I would advise getting fitted, as the T Series is one of the best in the market in terms of compiling a combination set. Do not feel compelled to buy a set off the shelf and try to match your ability to the relevant iron based on looks or, even worse, guesswork. Read my verdict at the end to find out as the fitting shocked me!

T100

The modern Tour iron has found a home in the bags of players such as Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth but the latest adjustments haven’t just made things better for their leading staff players, amateurs will also benefit. Titleist has reworked the sole for better turf interaction and even drafted in the Vokey team on the wedge profile. The addition of the denser and more precise tungsten weighting has improved the centre of gravity, only marginally, but it is noticeable. The four to seven iron face were redesigned for improved spin but I could hardly tell the difference. Visually the new T100 has a more confident look, with a thin top line, minimal offset, compact blade length and the matte brush chrome finish will reduce glare.

T100S

Very similar to the T100 but the ‘S’ lofts are two degrees stronger to lower spin and boost distance. The issue with cranking the lofts is a decrease in apex height. They might travel further in distance but not carry as far. To rectify this, Titleist has added a “Muscle Channel’ to the rear of the head to increase loft and speed. The weight saving created by the Muscle Channel also means Titleist has been able to reposition the tungsten, creating an even lower centre of gravity and boosting the launch. This was clear to see when I tested the T100 and T100S irons, as the peak high of the S head was a few feet higher than the stronger lofted T100 head.

T200

In the line-up, this head caught my attention first. It just looked clean but powerful and it came as no surprise to be told this was Titleist’s most advanced iron ever. Well until they update it in a few years! It retains the short blade length, thin top line and minimal offset as the T100 but muscle plate on the rear gives away its secret. Hidden behind the forged face is a polymer core and when paired with the reworked tungsten weighting in the sole, produces great ball speeds even from off-centre strikes. It is one degree stronger in the lofts from seven iron to pitching wedge compared to the T100S but, again, the peak height is slightly higher.

T300

When they market this club as having 40% more tungsten you know instantly that you will not struggle getting the ball airborne. It shares the same polymer core insert as the T200 but with a lot more tungsten weighted towards the heel and toe in the sole. As you would imagine this game improvement iron is more offset and has a thicker top line than the T200 but it has a very clever face. The T300 has variable face thickness that is thinner towards the heel in the long to mid irons to improve what is normally one of the least effective strike areas, so you will not see much of a drop off in ball speed. The lofts are, on average, two degrees stronger than the T200 but the peak height was just one and half feet higher.

Looks
The T Series irons look and feel like a premium iron. The colours are classic and the matte finish will appeal to golfers in the region.

Performance
Compared to the previous model they are all just a little better in terms of forgiveness and distance. The standout feature was they all peaked at the same height with a seven iron, so the distance gained is in the carry and not just in total. You don’t want irons that run for miles especially on the fast greens in the UAE.

Test Results
When I viewed the new range, I was drawn to the T200. To the point I could have just easily have put it in the bag without trying it. But when it came to the fitting I was shocked. Having hit all the models I was at first paying too much attention to the carry distance figures. The T300 carried 169.3 yards, T200 158.7 yards,,T100S 158.4 yards and the T100 157.3 yards. Ball speed was the fastest with the T300 at 121 mph and the slowest was the T100 at 116.5. There was also 2,000 rpm in spin rate difference between the T300 and the T100.

Verdict
So having looked at the figures you would have probably expected me to go with a T200 / T300 combo. Based on numbers that would be the best but in reality I was fitted into a T100/ T100S combo. The reason was dispersion. With the T100 seven iron my five shot distance dispersion was just four yards. That’s tighter than I can hit my current wedge. I’ve had to sacrifice distance for accuracy but I might be able to take on more pins now, instead of always aiming for the centre of the green and hoping for the best!