Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Irons & Hybrids Review

[Mmaynard11]

Candidly I shake my head and say nope as I've not found one that I've been able to get along with. Now full disclosure, I've only tried a handful and have improved my game a bit since the last couple experiments. I'm open to it, just need someone/something that clicks.

You know I was the same way…the look and set up at address never jived with me. I think I’ve opened up several spots in the bag that could evolve into hosting additional hybrids in the future.

 

[BigMac]

I'm one of two that got fit into the Ai Smoke HL irons at the Grandaddy, so let's talk about them a bit.



I have a moderate/slow'ish swing speed (88-91 mph with driver) and am also a sweeper, which translates (for me) into low ball flight and shallow descent angle with irons. The HL irons are designed with a deep cavity back and precision tungsten weighting to create a low, deep center of gravity, and an AI face designed for higher launch and spin.

Shafts are 1/2" longer than the core AI Smoke irons, and the lofts are 1° - 2° weaker throughout the set, to further promote higher launch and spin.




Because choosing clubs from a product line can be confusing for many golfers, Callaway directed efforts toward making a clearer differentiation between their club models in the Ai Smoke line, with guidelines to assist in the selection process. As always, a proper fitting is the best answer, but pointing buyers in the right direction at least provides a place to start from. The clubhead design and Swing Code in the AI face are different for each model:




I'll dive more into my personal experiences with them in the next post....

 

[oumagic]

I like the irons a lot, but the 4H has become a great weapon for me due to its consistent and high ball flight. I will probably replace my 5i with a hybrid soon as a result. I have not been near as consistent with 5i as 4H.

 

[JonD]

So a question to the masses…what are your thoughts when you hear someone mention the word Hybrid?

For me in the past it was a club that I had in the bag because I thought it was easier to hit than long irons. Unfortunately that was not always the case. The hybrid slot in my bag tended to be just that a slot in the bag where the club was rarely used.

Fast forward to this year and the Smoke 4HL. When I went into my fitting I was worried when we got to this area of the bag. I had in my my UW and UT and lone behold when GP asked me what I was looking to achieve my response was launch high and land soft. From that point we landed on the 4HL, what I didn’t know was that the 4HL would be just that and so much more. This club delivers both that high launch and decent angle that achieves a soft landing. Fortunately that is just not it.

Benefits for me:
- My 180yd - 207yd club. Yep you may be saying that is a huge gap in yardage, and while it may be, this Smoke 4HL is so easy to ask more or or ask for less.
- Forgiveness - Forgiveness is there but I rarely feel that I need it or maybe I’m getting it without even knowing.
- Confidence- I will pull this club in varying scenarios and feel confident if I put a good swing on the ball this club will deliver. I can’t even begin to tell you how often I will pull it on longer par 3’s where I am seeing a GIR of upwards 80% more when I do.

So for those looking for a hybrid that does so much more than a hybrid look no further than the Smoke Ai HL line. High launching and distance seeking is what you will find with an added confidence in this area of the bag.

My hybrids get a ton of play, both off the tee and off the deck. The 4H is basically an anchor club for me at this point that serves as a security blanket off the tee for those days when nothings going right or I absolutely need to hit a fairway. I'm loving what I'm hearing about the Smoke lineup though and will definitely be giving them a run once I get a chance and there's not a hour long wait at the demo bays.

 

[Mmaynard11]

I'm one of two that got fit into the Ai Smoke HL irons at the Grandaddy, so let's talk about them a bit.

View attachment 9252475

I have a moderate/slow'ish swing speed (88-91 mph with driver) and am also a sweeper, which translates (for me) into low ball flight and shallow descent angle with irons. The HL irons are designed with a deep cavity back and precision tungsten weighting to create a low, deep center of gravity, and an AI face designed for higher launch and spin.

Shafts are 1/2" longer than the core AI Smoke irons, and the lofts are 1° - 2° weaker throughout the set, to further promote higher launch and spin.

View attachment 9252489


Because choosing clubs from a product line can be confusing for many golfers, Callaway directed efforts toward making a clearer differentiation between their club models in the Ai Smoke line, with guidelines to assist in the selection process. As always, a proper fitting is the best answer, but pointing buyers in the right direction at least provides a place to start from. The clubhead design and Swing Code in the AI face are different for each model:

View attachment 9252491


I'll dive more into my personal experiences with them in the next post....

Such a good looking iron. Do you see them launching higher than your previous set? How is that decent angle? Yep and I already know the answer but I want to see it again.

I wish we would have had more time to swing the entire line during our fitting.

 

[BigMac]

AI SMOKE HL IRONS (con't):

I came to the Ai Smoke HL irons from the Callaway Mavrik line. The HL is an all new clubhead design, and is significantly different from previous product lines. It's a smaller and more low profile head than the Mavrik, and the difference in construction and weighting is obvious:





Despite being a GI iron, the topline is much thinner looking than the Mavrik (and also even thinner than last year's Paradym irons). This is the Mavrik on the left and Ai Smoke HL on the right.





Feel and sound of the Ai Smoke HL are very satisfying. It's a solid feel at impact and despite the forgiveness built into the design, you can still feel (and hear) an obvious difference between a solid hit and a mishit. It's not harsh or painful, but you know you didn't center it up. The Ai Smoke HL have significantly less offset than the Mavrik line (for example, 6.3mm Mavrik vs. 3.4mm Ai-Smoke HL in the 7-iron), and I've seen a big improvement in lateral dispersion (as well as a lot less left misses).

As far as distance, it's still early in the year and I've been playing most of my rounds in colder temps with extra layers on, but it's been warming up lately and I'm starting to get a better idea of realistic distances. The Ai Smoke HLs are around 1/2 to 1 club shorter than the Mavriks for me, which makes sense given the differences in loft:




While I don't have hard numbers, it's obvious visually that I'm launching the HLs higher than the Mavriks (which is a good thing for my game), and getting steeper descent angles. My course has very firm greens that aren't at all receptive, so the steeper descent is a big help in holding greens. Ball flight doesn't balloon for me, but somebody with a higher swing speed and more optimal AoA could probably make it rain with these irons, and would most likely be better served with the core Ai Smoke models.

If you're a golfer who struggles with launch in your irons, the Ai Smoke HLs are worth a look for you. That is the demographic Callaway specifically targeted with the design of these irons, and they solidly hit the mark in every way. As a bonus, they managed to accomplish it while still presenting a good looking design that doesn't have you feeling like you're looking down at a shovel at address.

 

[brians]

In other threads I’ve gushed about how good the Callaway CB wedges are. In this one the talk is working our way up the bag to the “set wedges”. I was fitted into the AI smoke HL irons. Ball height with my moderate speed (this guy in the picture below clearly agrees)


Was an issue. These aren’t just higher lofted GI clubs. The tech team put a lot of thought into a better launching iron not just a pop up in the air higher. We spent a really large time getting the bottom of the bag correct. As I high handicapper it’s a really smart play to help knock strokes off my score.
We went with a pitching wedge, an approach wedge AND the gap wedge from the HL set. These are indeed lofted higher by a degree compared to the standard smoke.


Compared to my previous wedge set the ball flight is much higher BUT more importantly there’s been no real loss of distance. Just about 95 yd to 65 yards with approx10 yd between them. At first I was skeptical about having 5 wedges in the bag. After getting out and using them in the wet muddy spring weather I’m glad I did.
The forgiveness of this entire line gets hyped a ton and with good reason. Like the woods the irons themselves have the built in tech that I call “the sweet spot every shot”.


These have been a game saver so far. They really cut through everything and get the ball up and out quickly when the longer clubs are struggling. The approach wedge especially gets overlooked in EVERY standard golf club set as the “middle child” . In this line, they are treated as a centerpiece. If you are on the fence because of 14 clubs, consider removing a long iron and go for scores.

 

[brians]

AI Smoke “set wedges” continued.
As @BigMac pictured a few posts above, even though these are GI clubs, the top line is actually as thin as my previous hollow body clubs. The toe height being bigger is the biggest difference looks wise, but it fits the shape of the club.

Pictured “standard non GI gap wedge”

Pictured AI smoke HL Gap wedge
I ended up getting the same Tensei blue 65 G shafts as the rest of the iron set. It took some getting used to going from a 74G steel in my previous set. The hope (and so far reality) is any minimal loss of control is made up with an easier swing.
I know personality matters. But why not something pretty too? With the standard stock grip to go with the shaft and the stunning logo badging the match is perfect. EVERY time I’ve taken these out including the sim I’ve gotten comments on how good they look. It makes me feel like I’m dating the prom queen and I like it.

 

[BigMac]

These have been a game saver so far. They really cut through everything and get the ball up and out quickly when the longer clubs are struggling. The approach wedge especially gets overlooked in EVERY standard golf club set as the “middle child” . In this line, they are treated as a centerpiece. If you are on the fence because of 14 clubs, consider removing a long iron and go for scores.

That's a great part of the bag to focus on, since it's so critical to scoring. The AW is probably the most used club in my bag, I rely heavily on it for most of my pitching and chipping and it's also my highest lofted club I'll use for full swings most of the time. From about 105 yards in, the Ai Smoke HL AW does a lot of work for me.

 

[brians]

Did anyone get the HL irons? Thoughts?

I did. The height on them is incredible (without the distance loss as an added bonus!)
Are there any specific questions you have?

 

[brians]

That's a great part of the bag to focus on, since it's so critical to scoring. The AW is probably the most used club in my bag, I rely heavily on it for most of my pitching and chipping and it's also my highest lofted club I'll use for full swings most of the time. From about 105 yards in, the Ai Smoke HL AW does a lot of work for me.

It really is. There was more time spent on the bottom of the bag than expected. But it’s really paying off. It’s funny you mention the full swing.
I was timid at first and really thought these would be the mostly chipping/escape clubs. The full swing on the AW and GW have become the safest full swings in the bag. I’m really curious to see how they respond to the ground once it forms up a bit.

 

[mikeg_74]

Irons arrive tomorrow. That’s roughly 4 days after ordering lol

 

[Briton G]

So a question to the masses…what are your thoughts when you hear someone mention the word Hybrid?

High Hook is my first thought

 

[Mmaynard11]

High Hook is my first thought

I’ve had a few of those early on but no more. The easy of working the ball with a fade or draw is so simple with these.

 

[hedley_lamarr08]

I have a Recoil Dart blue shaft in this in the 85 F5 that came in the Super Hybrid. I had it lofted up to 23 degrees. 22 degrees is perfect for me. I don't know why. Its hard to think that 1 degree in the same settings on a 2 way cog would make that much of a difference but this club.... its gonna lower scores in that part of the bag for me. The King Tec hybrid is on notice if they release the 50% trade bonus on these next month. I might could get the 3 and 5H.

 

[Just_Brad]

We are coming up on just short of 4 months of having sat through the unveiling of the Paradym Ai Smoke lineup of Irons from Callaway Golf, at Callaway HQ during the 2023 Grandaddy.

So, how are we feeling about the choices that were made in fitting? Do they suit your swing, your game, or the way you play?
Is there anything about the irons that you would change, if you were given the opportunity to do so?

Overall, I think the choice of the fitters to put me into the Smoke irons was the right choice. Understanding where I was with my swing at the time, and how I would typically hit the ball, I think it fits pretty well. I would typically hit the ball high (or I think I do), and going with the Smoke irons paired with Aerotech SteelFiber i95 shafts, has helped to bring the height down and gain some extra yardage from it. The shafts themselves, being for a moderate tempo, a medium trajectory, and a medium spin profile, initially had me as a doubter (mainly because of the SteelFiber being thought of something stiffer), but thinking more about it and testing it more, seem to be a good pairing.

Before I started going haywire with my swing, I was really liking what I was seeing distance (carry and total) yardages. Both had me confident enough very early, so much so that I sold my previous irons pretty quickly. My normal straight/fade ball flight became a straight/draw, well before things started getting overcooked and became draw to hook. Some upcoming lessons are hopefully going to help get things straightened out again, and hopefully those longer carry numbers are going to stick around, as they had me very excited to be playing these for the considerable future. The only think that maybe concerns me right now is descent angles, but until I get out on the course and see how things actually react, I will reserve judgement.

Sound wise? I think when you hit them well, they make a very satisfying "Whack" sound. When you hit them poor? They still sound decent, but it is very easy to hear the difference between quality contact and poor contact, very different sounds.

What would I potentially change about the irons, if I could? This will sound weird, but at times I think the iron heads themselves almost look too small. Like I shouldn't be able to do what I am, with my swing and slower swing speeds, with an iron head this size. I remember a conversation at one point on THP about how iron head sizes would be going down, but that was because OEMs could fit more and more tech into them, and I was skeptical lol. But it has happened!

PW and 7i pics, after far too many balls hit indoors than any person should endure.

PW First:

7i next:

 

[Hawk]

Can't quote you all, but daaaaaaang. Grandaddy crew dropping some content bombs today. Nice work guys.

 

[hedley_lamarr08]

Didn't have much need for the hybrid today. Used it on a 150 yard punch out and run kinda shot from some really deep rough. Worked pretty well given the circumstances.

 

[erock9174]

Can any of the guys gaming the HL or Fast irons post pics of the soles and back of the clubs up close ? Just wanted to see how they are wearing with some use and bag chatter.
Please and thanks !!

 

[BigMac]

Can any of the guys gaming the HL or Fast irons post pics of the soles and back of the clubs up close ? Just wanted to see how they are wearing with some use and bag chatter.
Please and thanks !!

@Bryndom posted a couple pics of his regular Ai Smoke irons here, and I posted a couple pics of my Ai Smoke HLs here.

The soles of my clubs look pretty typical for playing in the desert, no surprise to me.

 

[Jeff Spicoli]

So this Smoke 4i is pretty incredible

 

[mikeg_74]

Arrived late today. Maybe an emergency range session tomorrow but being Easter unlikely

 

[Jeff Spicoli]

Arrived late today. Maybe an emergency range session tomorrow but being Easter unlikely

View attachment 9252825

They arrived quickly. Looking good. Hope you can get out soon.

 

[mikeg_74]

They arrived quickly. Looking good. Hope you can get out soon.

They did. I’d like to think my Platinum status helped move them along quicker lol

 

[Jeff Spicoli]

I had my first round today with the Smoke 4i. It replaced my Apex UT 20*. I have the Smoke 4i bent weak to help with gapping with my Apex Pro CB 5i.

First impression is that the Smoke will do exactly what I need in this spot. I feel like I’m getting all the distance and speed of the UT but added forgiveness. It is not intimidating but it’s not a chunky looking iron. There was an immediate comfort level with the Smoke that I didn’t have with the UT. The UT falls into the more demanding category of clubs to hit.

It’s a club that will be used primarily off the tee. I used it three times off the tee and once off the deck. Conditions were windy and course was still drying out so not getting much if any roll. First thoughts are it’s an easy club to hit and it’s going to take a bad swing to get it going offline, which is perfect for what I need in this spot.