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Cleveland 588 Altitude Hybrid Irons Preview

SuperStroke
My 7 iron head came loose from the shaft and I can twist the clubhead. I took it to my local driving range and they did not want to touch it. They told me to return it to Cleveland, I think the hollow large club head scares them. I thought it would be a simple fix if you have the right tools.
BamBooBender said:
The head came loose on my 7 today. That's the third or fourth one now. They're not holding up very well.
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BamBooBender said:
I can understand that! Was hoping to scratch that itch vicariously through you. lol

Maybe I'll have to do it.
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Ah eff it, I'm doing it this weekend hahaha
 
I am really struggling with these so far. Nothing feels solid. Missing my G25s big time. Distance is easily 10 yards per iron shorter than Pings. Probably a swing issue but not what I expected.
 
tucsondivots said:
I am really struggling with these so far. Nothing feels solid. Missing my G25s big time. Distance is easily 10 yards per iron shorter than Pings. Probably a swing issue but not what I expected.
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Might be getting used to the change in offset. I was like this with the 545 when I first switched, eventually found them to be longer than the G15.
 
I switched to the Altitudes 6-SW set in April this year and wanted to provide some feedback to others who might be pondering them. But I wanted to get a decent amount of rounds before I posted anything.

Fellow THP member and buddy of mine “ryebread” has been gaming these for quite some time and kept telling me that of all the irons he tries he always comes back to these.

I had been gaming Ping irons and was playing a 7-SW set and was looking for that magical transitional club between my 7i and 5h. Golfsmith had a 6i Altitude so I picked it up on a whim, took it to the range and hit it. I thought, wow, this is easier to hit higher and straighter than my 7i.

When the pricing dropped around that time on full sets I felt it was time to give them a try. Bought them, shortened them ½” and took them right to the course. I was very surprised. For such a light shaft I can really feel the head throughout the swing. Much more so than my Ping irons. I’m only an R flex but the shaft feels like its perfect for my swing speed (high 60’s typically with a 6i).

Distance picked up a little. I am not going to come and say I gained 10 yds, but I would say safely that I gained about 3-5 yds per club. Disclaimer though: the Altitudes are 1* stronger than my old Pings and when comparing shaft lengths, even though I shortened the Altitudes a ½” that still makes them ½” longer than my shortened Pings I replaced them with.

Ball flight is nice and high without ballooning and very straight for me. My normal miss is an over the top pull that would usually hook pretty bad. With the Altitudes any misses seem to start out left but usually stays there without the big hook. So instead of missing severely to the left the ball might still hit the left side of the green or be just off to help out with up and downs. I do like the very minimal offset look. I think it makes setting up to the ball much easier when it comes to proper alignment/aim.

My scoring has definitely improved. I looked back at my stats sheet from 2013 which is when I bought my first set of Ping G25’s. In 2014 I replaced the G25’s mid season with K15’s. For my first few rounds of 2015 I replaced my K15’s with Rapture V2’s. For me the Pings were pretty indistinguishable in terms of overall performance and scoring for me. Very good on thin hits at getting the ball up in the air, but overall they seemed to accentuate my miss which was an over the top pull hook. I totaled all my scores in those 3 years with the Pings and averaged 88.6 with a green in regulation of 29%.

Since switching to the Altitudes I have 9 rounds under my belt with them. Still pretty green but a decent enough sample to get some early feedback. My scoring average is down 4 strokes to 84.6 with my GIR % increasing 11% to 40%. Both personal bests for me.

All and all I am really impressed with them and for the first time since taking the game more seriously my irons are not in ponder mode.

There has to be a con with any golf equipment purchase. If I had to knock anything about them it would be the finish/aesthetics. The black cavity is holding up decently but I know over time it will get dinged up. The soles aren’t as durable as the Pings, but no iron really beats a Ping when it comes to maintaining their “new” look. But the soles are holding up well and are not looking as beat up as other irons I have owned with a chrome type sole. Also I am not a fan of anything in gold color. The small Altitude logo is gold. I will probably just do a black paint fill since I like messing with that stuff.
I know some will knock the top line as being as wide as a dinner plate and sure it’s definitely big but I don’t find it distracting at all.

Some other disclaimers:
I haven’t taken a lesson for nearly 2 years and I am playing many of the same courses over the 3 year span. Actually I am practicing a lot less too than I was when I owned the Pings. I was going to the range at least 2-3 times a week in 2013 and 2014. This year I’ve only been to the range 3 times and two of those visits were before buying the Altitudes.

My only regret. Not buying them sooner.
Hopefully this was helpful to others looking for information on the Altitudes.
 
erock9174 said:
I switched to the Altitudes 6-SW set in April this year and wanted to provide some feedback to others who might be pondering them.But I wanted to get a decent amount of rounds before I posted anything.
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Great write up erock. I'm glad you are enjoying them.

I've had this set of Altitudes now for 2 years. I just keep coming back to them because nothing I've tried else is really better for my swing as I move up and down the various individual clubs.

I don't play as much as some, but the finish is holding up great. The cavity fill, with the "grit" mixed in the paint is 1000 times better than previous Cleveland hybrid irons. I have a few light scratches (sort of like a fingernail on a black nail file), but not a single "score" leaving exposed metal.

I also really like the lack of offset. After playing these for so long, nothing else that is SGI really looks good at all. And sadly, my game is definitely the target market for SGI clubs.

I know these are now "older" clubs. If someone is in the SGI market though, I'm still not sure even now there's anything better out there.
 
I am going to be putting my 5-PW set up for sale next week. Just cannot get used to the total hybrid look. Regular flex graphite shafts. Faces are perfect, no marks. Soles have minimal scratches. I bought a set of the 2015 Cleveland CG Blacks. If anyone is interested let me know. Will sell for $140, you pay shipping.
 
sabig27 said:
My 7 iron head came loose from the shaft and I can twist the clubhead. I took it to my local driving range and they did not want to touch it. They told me to return it to Cleveland, I think the hollow large club head scares them. I thought it would be a simple fix if you have the right tools.
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My 7i head is coming off again after having been repaired by a master club builder with 30 years experience. Not sure what the heck is going on, but it's getting old real fast. I've honestly had boxed set irons that have held up better than these have.
 
Weird stuff. I had my 7 fixed about a month ago, so hopefully it lasts..
 
sabig27 said:
Weird stuff. I had my 7 fixed about a month ago, so hopefully it lasts..
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I hope so too. I still like the altitudes for many reasons, but am less than impressed with the QC issues.
 
To top it off the badge came off my CXL too. :at-wits-end:
 
BamBooBender said:
My 7i head is coming off again after having been repaired by a master club builder with 30 years experience. Not sure what the heck is going on, but it's getting old real fast. I've honestly had boxed set irons that have held up better than these have.
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Do you soak them in water to clean them? I've heard of epoxy breaking down if soaked in water.
 
BamBooBender said:
My 7i head is coming off again after having been repaired by a master club builder with 30 years experience. Not sure what the heck is going on, but it's getting old real fast. I've honestly had boxed set irons that have held up better than these have.
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Hard to blame Cleveland for that though ...
 
Today was one of those days where I just could not hit an iron properly. Toe hits, heel hits, thinned some too. It was all me, and I knew it too. The Altitudes graciously minimized my faults, and still managed pars on most of the holes with the screw ups.

Hit 4 bad 7 irons in a row, but still ended up with the distance I was expecting on 3 of them. Pushed one, pulled one, thinned one, chunked one.
 
deuce said:
Hard to blame Cleveland for that though ...
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Not blaming Cleveland per se, just pretty poor durability on the set I have.
 
erock9174 said:
Do you soak them in water to clean them? I've heard of epoxy breaking down if soaked in water.
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Only for a minute, but I've never heard of epoxy being broke down by water.
 
I have left mine soaking, sometimes for an hour or more, numerous times over the past year and a half. Probably once every two weeks during golf season.

Holding up well for me thus far.
 
I'm still gaming these over a year later, in 3-7. Just love the feel, ease of use, and accuracy. Have tried other clubs but always come back and put every Altitude I have back in the bag. Only negative is my anxiety that they will never make any more or anything as good. Just great clubs for me.
 
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I'm using them for my long irons 4,5&6 I find them more consistent than the MT long irons but not a lot of difference between the Alt 4 and the 588 4 hybrid but I think the Alt 4 having a slightly shorter shaft gives it the edge.


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I just talked one of my old hockey coaches to get a set of Altitudes. He needs help adding speed and launch to his iron game... Seemed like the perfect solution. Here are his early thoughts.

Just got back from the range.

Must say - these clubs are FUGLY - but they do work. They certainly help get the ball up in the air. Tough to chunk an iron with these.

I’ll report back once I get them in play - but suffice to say, they are easier to hit than the Mizuno MP-H4’s. The Clevelands are slightly longer, club for club, but this did not have any detrimental effect. They have a bit of “clicky” sound to them.

I can easily overlook the look of these irons, if the technology helps. I am all for technology, and making it easier to hit the ball up in the air.
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How many times have we heard this response? It's so awesome. I can't wait to see if it improves his scores.
 
Good points, over 4000 entries on one set of club is crazy. Wonder which line of clubs has the most forum entries? These have to be up there.
 
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