The New Callaway Paradym Irons

I honestly don’t know how Scott Manwaring and his team did this.

“This” means packing the technology of Rogue ST Max and Apex 21 into an iron the size of Rogue ST Pro. I’m going to tackle this introduction to the new Paradym Irons in a VERY concise and simple message because it needs to be hammered home just how unique these irons are.

I have hit them more than a few times at this point, and my knee-jerk reaction (always) is I NEED THESE IN MY LIFE. At 46 years old, they offer every feature I would “need,” not “want,” in an iron.

So let’s not stand on ceremony and get right into what has happened here.

Introducing Paradym Irons

The Core Tech:

Our Most Powerful A.I. Designed Forged 455 Face

From an R&D perspective what feature of the new Paradym irons are you most proud of? What was the biggest breakthrough?

“A couple of things that I can point to are 1) The spin and speed integrity across the face, when you can add that kind of control to a package that fast it essentially creates a “have your cake and eat it to” scenario. In R&D there is always a tradeoff but in this case I really cant point to one. 2) would be the shape, what we have is a SGI iron in a better players profile. It’s no easy task to achieve that level of performance in a design that sharp but with AI and our new internal structure, we did. Im really excited to see the scope of players that end up putting these in play. “

Scott Manwaring Director of R&D Callaway Irons & Hybrids

Industry-leading A.I. face technology is applied to a high-strength Forged 455 face, creating our most powerful forged iron face ever. Each face is uniquely optimized for more speed, higher launch, and increased spin consistency.

Strong and springy, this face is not only made for speed but dialed in for spin and iron-to-iron launch with the help of AI. Basically, they fly and spin like a 7-iron but go as far as a 6-iron.

Fast Ball Speeds from Forged 455 Face Cup and Hollow Body with Speed Frame Construction

The all-new Hollow Body design features speed frame construction for added stiffness to the body and support for the high-strength Forged 455 Face Cup. This unique construction is the catalyst that stabilizes a thinner face for incredibly fast ball speeds.

In my opinion, speed frame construction aids more in tighter dispersion than anything else. Like Jailbreak, it stabilizes the club head to harness energy across the face and gives the player a “center punch” performance out of a huge portion of the face.

Exceptional Feel from a Forged Face and Patented Urethane Microspheres

A forged face and patented Urethane Microspheres deliver the ultra-soft feel and premium sound that discerning players demand.

This is what separates all recent Callaway irons from the competition. Forged, Cast, it doesn’t matter; they all provide a soft feel with plenty of feedback, even at the SGI level. I’m a huge fan of Urethane Microspheres. In an iron class that tends to sacrifice feel for the performance, Paradym does not…at all.

Improved Launch via Dual Tungsten Weighting

Up to 67g of external and internal tungsten weights are placed precisely to enhance launch conditions and improve speed on mis-hits. This increase in forgiveness is the difference between hitting the green and coming up short.

That is a TON of tungsten, especially in a players-looking package. In my first test session, what I noticed more than anything was speed and spin retention out of THIN strikes. The ball still carried the number, got up in the air, and fell out of the sky at a steep angle. I could play these, hit them thin all day, and play really good golf.

Refined Players Shaping

The Paradym iron features a player’s look in a forgiving package. A pre-worn leading edge is designed to cut through the turf more efficiently for even more forgiveness.

As mentioned earlier, this shocked me and my boss, Jeff Neubarth. HOW? We have an iron that flies like an Apex DCB in a package you might find on TOUR. The look of Paradym will lure in the better players, especially those in the 35+ territory.

I don’t care how loyal you are to typical players’ cavity-back; the look and performance of these irons are simply undeniable.

The Performance

How much further can R&D go in the players distance iron category? 

“We have a TON of runway” 

Scott Manwaring Director of R&D Callawa Irons and Hybrids

I’ll use my first test session in Sept to tell this story…

15 Shots Hit with Each on GC Quad (7-Irons) w/ True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100. Kept all shots in the test.

Rogue ST Pro (32 Degrees of Loft, D3)

AVG Carry: 172 (181 Max)
AVG Spin: 6679
AVG Launch: 15.8
AVG Ball Speed: 123
AVG Land Angle: 48

Paradym (31 Degrees of Loft, D3)

AVG Carry: 179 (185 Max)
AVG Spin: 6414
AVG Launch: 16.9
AVG Ball Speed: 128
AVG Land Angle: 50

At the same spec and 1 degree stronger, I picked up 7 yards of carry, 2 degrees of launch, and a steeper land angle. YES, I lost 200 RPMs of spin, but I gained the launch, and the ball is coming in steep, so it’s a non-issue.

The Look

Paradym:

Same footprint as Rogue ST Pro with a slightly refined leading edge and better turf interaction. This new design comes in handy, especially on the short irons allowing the club head to glide through all types of grass a little faster. If I was going to be nit-picky about my Rogue ST Pro gamers, it’s that the short irons wanted to dig a bit when I needed to get steep on it.

Paradym X:

Closer to Apex 21 than Apex DCB in look. YES, they are beefy with a wider sole and thicker top line, but it’s nuanced. Although it’s larger in profile, it doesn’t have that obvious SGI look.

The Sound

Very similar on both to Apex 21 and Rogue ST Pro. Although they are hollow bodies, they don’t offer that acoustic. Solid, almost hammer-like at impact.

The Models

Paradym is for better mid to lower-handicap players. Mid handicaps will feel like they are hitting something you would find on TOUR, and better players looking for an edge and a serious uptick in speed and overall performance.

Paradym X is for higher handicaps and players needing help with launch and speed in a premium FORGED package. It’s what we would call a Super Game Improvement Iron.

My Take

As each year passes, Iron performance continues to chase the impossible. With so much attention paid to Driver tech, what is being done with irons is simply astonishing. To think I could hit an iron that looks like my Rogue ST Pro gamers and offer EVEN MORE performance makes my head explode. The next step is building up a whole set at WUNDER spec and go PLAY. I will take help anywhere I can find it, especially if I sacrifice nothing to get it. That’s the Paradym shift across the board…NO SACRIFICES.