Back in December, THP: The Magazine took a look in the Tool Shed section at the new irons from Bridgestone Golf’s J38 line and we came away extremely impressed. Early thoughts from testers included “Great Feel” “Classic Design”, and so much more. Last month, THP had the opportunity to review the new for 2010 Bridgestone J38 driver and came away thinking that the new J38 line from Bridgestone Golf was one of the best we had seen to date. With the new irons hitting stores everywhere, THP wanted to take another up close and personal look at the J38 Dual Pocket Cavity clubs and put them to the test on the course for a few more rounds.

Looks
The Bridgestone J38 Dual Pocket Cavity irons are extremely traditional and classic looking. You won’t find busy graphics or badges in the cavity at all. You will find a small “B” logo and the an engraved J38 in black and gold that is also relatively small. The word “Forged” is stamped under the logo and the words “Dual Pocket Cavity” are stamped near the sole. Laying the club down next to other “players irons” you will notice that these have a midsize club head. Slightly larger than that of many blades out there, but still definitely smaller than the GI (game improvement) irons that are coming out now. Outside of the clubhead size, the J38 Dual Pocket Cavity irons offer most of the features found in the aesthetics department when looking at irons. Thin topline and minimal offset stand out the most and are traits that many lower handicap golfers prefer in their quest for irons.

Performance
So what is Dual Pocket Cavity? Simply put, it is the feature of having two cavities in the back of the club, that is there to remove weight and re-distribute it for more perimeter weighting, while still allowing for some solid weight right behind the sweet spot in the cavity. In our upcoming summer issue of THP: The Magazine featuring Fred Couples on the cover, THP asked him about these very irons. Couples has never really had success playing off the rack irons before, but he is enjoying an incredible season on 2 different tours with the J38 Dual Pocket Cavity irons from Bridgestone Golf.
We were able to put these in play for close to 10 rounds of golf and countless range sessions and my opinion is the same of the testers that tried these out for the magazine article. One word comes to mind when hitting them, and that is “Pure!”. When hitting balls, the feel that you get when well struck is down right “buttery” soft. In our testing, comparing them head to head with other clubs in the same “category”, the J38 Dual Pocket Cavity irons were smooth, velvety, and very much a throwback to what many consider the “prime years” of golf clubs.
Moving the ball (workability) was a breeze as we saw no issues hitting it low, high, left, or right. The ball flight was higher than some, but still penetrating and the surprise here was that they actually offered some forgiveness throughout the heel and toe. Do not confuse these with a larger clubhead GI iron in terms of forgiveness, but that is not what these are looking to be. One thing that stood out to me was that switching between GI irons and GE (game enhancement) irons has always been a struggle for this reviewer because of the huge difference in lofts. Some will not be happy about this, but I was thrilled to see that Bridgestone went with some stronger lofts in this set. The PW is 46 degrees for an example. It made changing up and learning distances all over again far more easy and will do the same for most golfers that get a chance to try these out.

Who Are They For
THP recommends these irons for low to mid handicap golfers that are looking for top performance packed into a classic looking iron. Matching up with these elegant heads are the very high quality Project X Flighted Shafts. They will offer a slightly higher ball flight than those coming from True Temper Dynamic Gold, but we found the flight to be great for moving the ball around the course.
Overall
Bridgestone Golf, a company known as an innovator in golf ball technology and the #1 ball fitter out there, has really stepped up their game this year on the equipment side of things. The entire J38 line screams performance and this set of irons will put smiles on faces of golfers everywhere looking for maximum performance and workability with amazingly soft feel. Price on the new set is around $799.99 and to be honest, we expected them to be a little more than that. For more information on these irons or any other products that Bridgestone Golf has, check out their website at www.bridgestonegolf.com.
Till Next Time
Josh B.
another quality review brought to you by THP! i love the look of these but alas, can’t spend too much time looking.
Wonderful review. I love the look of these irons, I hope to get a chance to try these out some time. These are exactly what I’ll be looking for when I am looking for new irons.
Nice review. These are a “smooth” looking club and sounds like they are just as smooth to swing. I know what you mean about switching around and keeping the distances constant, just did that again yesterday, and have to think these would fall closer in line to the set’s I play now with a little better feel.
Great review! How would you compare these to the R9 irons?
Seth,
They are very different. Slightly smaller head, less offset and definitely thinner topline. Geared more towards performance and workability.
Good review JB. These really are good looking irons.
These look great . I love the no badge and paint look. I wish they would incorporate that into some of the game improvement sets.
Thanks for the review, these irons are among the best looking on the market and it’s nice to read that they perform as well as they look!
Nice review again! I play the J36 combo and love these irons but I was wondering how the J38 compare to the J36, are these much improved?
Olivier,
I feel as though they are totally different. Better in my opinion, but very different. I would definitely recommend trying them.
Great review! I am curious to know if you had a chance to try the J38 cavity back. Do you know how the J38 cavity back differs from the pocket cavity? (in terms of performance, feel, etc…)
Great review – and an amazing set of irons. Definitely for someone that is a much more consistent ballstriker than I am though.
Great clubs after getting use to them. The 5.5 PX flighted are likely more than anyone (non pro) will ever need as far as stiffness. Give em a chance, be patient and I bet you’ll never buy another club again. I love them for their accuracy, workability and power/distance if needed. I can carry my 5 iron 200 yards and land it soft which I have found to be exactly what I am looking for. These long irons are fantastic and well the short irons are even better. Grab a new high end 3 and 5 wood, a couple of new wedges and the score really should go down. It did for me 76 yesterday and that was a bad day with the short stick.
Right-on review. I’ve been playing the J38 DPC’s since April. As noted, a great blend of performance, workability, and forgiveness. Additionally, the clubs have a classic look and feel to them – not sure you’ll find another set that is such an overall performer. Suggest you definitely take a look if your in the market for irons.
Great review. Glad I found this sight. I was deciding between Mizuno Mx300 and Adams CB2 until these entered the mix. Any comparative input? I would play them in PX 5.5 or NS Pro 950. I have played the Adams one round and once at the range in the PX..nice feel and long (checked website and all are 1/4 inch longer than others). Hit the MX300 and J38 indoors. Slight edge to J38 mainly based on look at address and the assumption that the slightly larger head may provide more forgiveness. But wonder if any can match Mizuno forging? Thanks ahead.