Gear: Callaway Paradym, Paradym X irons
Price: $200 each with True Temper Elevate steel shafts and Callaway Universal grips. $215 each with Aldila Ascent PL Blue shafts or Project X HZRDUS Silver graphite shafts
Specs: A.I.-designed forged 455 stainless steel cup face with a hollow body, tungsten weights and urethane inserts
Available: Feb. 24
Who It’s For: Mid- and higher-handicap golfers who want more distance and a softer feel at impact.
The Skinny: A hollow body, two pieces of tungsten and urethane inserts help the Paradym and Paradym X irons deliver more ball speed with enhanced sound and feel.
The Deep Dive: Ordinarily, when a golf equipment maker releases a new iron family, it replaces an existing club. But the new Paradym and Paradym X irons are not replacing the Rogue ST irons that dropped in January 2022. They are not replacing the Apex irons, either. Instead, the Paradym and Paradym X were made to be something different: forged, premium clubs created to deliver more distance, a softer feel and improved sound.
To deliver that, Callaway is utilizing several new technologies.
455 Stainless steel face
Stainless steel comes in many forms, but for the first time in an iron, Callaway is using a 455 stainless steel cup face designed using artificial intelligence. The material is extremely strong, so it is good at transferring energy created by the swing into the ball. Callaway ran thousands of computer simulations to maximize the faces and create optimal hitting areas.
Speed Frame chassis
Callaway has offered hollow-bodied irons for several years, so making the Paradym and Paradym X irons hollow is not especially noteworthy. However, this is a different type of hollow-body design.
The back portion of the head has several cutout areas where steel was removed, creating a series of shapes and beams in the remaining steel. Callaway refers to this as Speed Frame construction, and each iron’s precise pattern of cutouts and beams is different. Removing steel from high areas in the chassis creates discretionary weight that can be redistributed to other places where it can improve performance.
Dual tungsten weighting
To drive the center of gravity down into the center of the face, Callaway added two pieces of tungsten to each Paradym and Paradym X iron, with the total amount of tungsten averaging 67 grams. There is a small piece on the toe, and a more significant piece was shaped into a bar and positioned internally above the sole plate. The extra weight lowers the center of gravity and encourages higher-flying shots, while the tungsten in the toe counteracts the weight of the hosel so the ideal impact spot is directly in the center of the hitting area.
To improve the sound and feel of impact, Callaway injected urethane microspheres inside the head of each Paradym and Paradym X iron. The soft material does not inhibit the face from flexing or reduce ball speed, but the urethane soaks up excessive vibrations to soften the feel and create a more pleasing sound.
Paradym vs. Paradym X
The Paradym was designed to be a better-player’s distance iron. It has a touch of offset, a moderately wide sole and a thin topline.
The Paradym X has a longer blade length, a wider sole and more offset, so it should inspire more confidence for mid- and higher-handicap golfers. The Paradym X also has stronger lofts, with the 5-iron at 21.5 degrees and the pitching wedge at 41 degrees. The 5-iron in the standard Paradym has 23 degrees of loft, and that pitching wedge is 42 degrees.
