Bryson DeChambeau: Are His Irons Giving Him An Unfair Advantage?

After an incredible 2018 which has seen him win on the PGA Tour no fewer than four times – including back-to-back events in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and a few weeks ago at the Shriners Hospital for Children Open – it’s fair to say that Bryson DeChambeau has established himself among the upper echelons of professional golf.

Bryson DeChambeau was duly rewarded with a place on the US Ryder Cup team, and although his performance in Paris was underwhelming, you’d have to think the 25-year old will have many more opportunities to put that right in the future.

Until this year, it’s probably fair to say that DeChambeau’s identity and image were more established than his golf game. The fashion, the unusual swing, the charismatic zeal and the beaming smile are all very uniquely Bryson.

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He is also a physics major, which left an open goal for his nickname: The Mad Scientist. Yet of the many quirks and trails he has blazed from an image perspective, the most fascinating and enduring one for us is his use of single-length irons. Thirty seven and-a-half inches each, to be precise – the length of a typical 7-iron.

Not without precedent

Of course, the Californian is by no means the first golfer in history to go down this road. Single-length irons are actually as old as the hills, and the great Bobby Jones surged to the top of the game while using them. That said, they’ve never really taken off.

A few brands in the past have launched their own prototypes; among them Tommy Armour Golf, who released the EQL set nearly three decades ago. Yet none have really been able to secure a place within the equipment mainstream.

That’s beginning to change off the back of Bryson DeChambeau’s continued success, with the likes of Edel and Wishon getting involved.

Cobra are the most notable brand to invest in single-length clubs, with the F8 One irons launching at the end of last year (single-length clubs also available in hybrids and wedges).

So as the clamor begins to grow for this style of golf club, the question becomes: do they yield an unfair advantage?

There is no way to categorically answer that one way or the other. Ultimately, the USGA and the R&A are the custodians of our game, and there is no indication from either party that single-length irons are in the firing line.

Our thoughts and experiences

As for our personal take on the matter, we just can’t see how these clubs cross the line. On the contrary, we think this will continue to be a niche product.

The average amateur will benefit when it comes to longer irons. The longer the club, the faster the swing speed, as a rule of thumb. That’s great for distance, but ultimately irrelevant if the strike is poor, as launch, spin and numerous other factors affect distance too.

And there aren’t many mid to high-handicap golfers who get a consistent strike with their long irons. The greater control from a shorter length club (in relative terms) thus means there is definite gain to be had for the average weekend golfer.

However, it’s not much good to a professional golfer, who does strike his or her long irons consistently well anyway, and the converse is true of short irons too. We haven’t just sampled single-length irons, we were actually fitted. And we found distance control to be a real issue from 150 yards or less.

Cobra have countered this with their progressive weighting system and advanced technology to ensure even gapping between irons and wedges, along with a normal trajectory that you would expect from each club.

But it still takes some getting used to, and none of our guys were able to establish a consistent ball flight and distance control over 18 holes, especially with the shorter irons (although it was a lot of fun trying!).

Bryson DeChambeau has spent years perfecting this, offering his own insights and first-hand expertise to manufacturers. He really believes in the product, and the results he has achieved show that the proof is in the pudding.

So if it’s something you’re tempted to consider, we’d highly recommend giving it a go. It’s still very difficult for us to imagine that single-length irons will one day dominate the marketplace: they simply aren’t going to be right for everyone.

Next. Bryson DeChambeau will be leaving flag in starting in 2019. dark

As Bryson DeChambeau continues to win, there is every chance that more and more players will start to jump on the bandwagon.

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