Golfing News & Blog Articles

Are you confused about the difference between Game-Improvement and Players Distance irons? You’re not alone.

While these are distinct categories, there’s significant overlap between the two with increasingly diverse offerings.

Let’s start with a simple explanation of both categories.

Game-Improvement Irons

Game-Improvement (GI) irons focus on forgiveness with distance becoming an increasingly bigger part of the total performance equation. As the category name suggests, game-improvement clubs are meant to improve your game (relative, I suppose, to players designs, which rely more on you than the club to do the work).

Players Distance Irons

Players Distance (PD) irons take a distance-first approach with forgiveness (a little more than you’d find in Players irons but generally less than what you get in the GI category) as part of the equation.

A $649 driver just took first place in our Best Golf Driver testing. I’ll be honest: I love a great deal and $649 isn’t exactly what I’d call a deal. While the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond may be the best of 2025 at $649, last year’s Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond is worth a closer look. We’re learning Triple Diamond technology isn’t just for tour pros and the savings might make the 2024 model the smarter choice for your game.

Please note, results from our driver test aren’t comparable year over year. Rather, clubs are compared against the rest of the field for that year, and each are scored respectively

The 2025 champion: Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond ($649)

When we test golf drivers, we measure distance, accuracy and forgiveness. It’s common to see a driver excel in one category and struggle in another. The Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond ranked in the top three for accuracy and distance and in the top third of the test for forgiveness.

Despite being considered a “low-spin” design geared toward better players, it was surprisingly playable across all skill levels.

Testers found the Elyte Triple Diamond to be long and accurate, especially when hit in the center of the face. One said, “It’s really easy to swing and get through the ball. I love every aspect of this driver.”

Finding the right golf ball can be a challenge. Real ball-fitting experiences are few and far between and for fans of DTC brands like Vice, finding in-person fittings is even more challenging. As a workaround, Vice offers a fitting tool but, honestly, it’s overly reliant on swing speed inputs. It’s not my favorite.

Ballnamic is a great alternative but if you’ve got your heart set on the best Vice golf ball, there’s no guarantee it’s going to be in your result set.

So, with those hurdles in mind, we’ve put together a simple guide to explain the differences between the Vice golf balls and to help you find the best one for your game.

Before we get to that, let me first strongly suggest that you ignore Vice’s (and everybody else’s) swing speed-based golf ball recommendations.

I’ve said it countless times: there is no right ball based on your swing speed. Flight and spin (not compression) are the two most important things to consider with golf ball fitting. There’s absolutely no reason (other than a strong feel preference) why slower swing speed golfers should avoid higher-compression balls. In fact, many slow swingers will benefit from the added spin offered by firmer golf balls.

The PGA Tour's improvements to its telecasts are a key discussion point at the Players Championship, but its biggest battles remain ahead.

The post PGA Tour telecasts (finally) trending up, but biggest issue still looms appeared first on Golf.

I’m a huge fan of the Creator Classic concept.

After the first edition last August, I wrote about the success of that experiment. The PGA Tour’s first meaningful investment in YouTube golf brought impressive viewership numbers and gave golf fans a reason to watch on the Wednesday before the pros played in the real tournament.

The phrase “grow the game” is so overused that it has become a joke. But ideas like this do help golf in a very tangible way.

You could see that at TPC Sawgrass this week for take two of the expanded Creator Classic as YouTube golf superstar Grant Horvat defeated No Laying Up’s Chris Solomon and George Bryan in a playoff at the famed island green (which is really a peninsula, but I digress).

Here are the results if you are interested. The creators played eight holes (from the tips!) with the top three players getting into a one-hole playoff.

For the moment, let’s forget what a chunked wedge shot does to your score. Let’s talk about what it does to your ego. It’s brutal. Chunking a wedge feels frustrating and demoralizing, especially when these shots are supposed to be simple. Here’s the good news: with a few small adjustments, you can identify the cause of why you are chunking wedge shots and how to fix it.

Focus on the correct point of contact

Where are you trying to make contact with the ball when you have a wedge in your hand? Many amateur players attempt to scoop the ball or help it into the air which often causes the club to bottom out behind the ball.

The fix is to think, “ball first, divot after.” Picture your club making contact with the ball and then brushing the turf just in front of it.

One great drill is to put a towel a few inches behind the golf ball. Don’t hit the towel before the ball. It’s not a bad visual to have when you head out on the course for your next round.

The upper and lower body have to work together

Even on shorter wedge shots, your upper and lower body must work together. If this isn’t happening, you’ll likely feel the club get stuck and strike the ground behind the ball.

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