Martin Hopley
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Having had Speed Pocket slots in the soles of irons for a while, last year TaylorMade introduced them on the faces of the RSi irons.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

There were three models in that range and going forward, the larger headed RSi 1 set continues, which is good to see as that was the best of the bunch.

However, replacing the RSi 2 and RSi TP models is the TaylorMade PSi iron, which is promoted as a 'Players Performance' iron, hence the P for 'Players Slotted iron' in the PSi name.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

The PSi still features the straight face slots as before, but it is in the head construction that TaylorMade has made big changes.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

TaylorMade PSi Irons

The Speed Pocket now features a cut through slot that connects with the undercut cavity to enable it to flex more and maintain ball speed across the face.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

Married to this is what TaylorMade call a Dynamic Feel System (DFS) to cushion vibration at impact using dampening compounds and a multi-material badge.

The shape of the cut-through cavity and the amount of dampening changes as you go through the set depending on the loft of the club.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

This it all does very well in a mid-sized head that looks good and feels good with a nice solid sound.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

The top line at address is also midsized and I think any single figure golfer would be pleased with the look of these.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

Especially as the relative head size is maintained through the set and does not get progressively smaller.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

If they are too big for your eye, then there is also a fully forged PSi Tour iron coming with a slightly smaller head, narrower sole and a thinner top line.

Back to the standard PSi and the technology does not stop there as TaylorMade claim to have optimised each iron individually with whatever materials they can lay their hands on.

As part of this they have also fine tuned the lofts, resulting in all of the clubs except the 3-iron & SW having a loft ending in 0.5°.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

TaylorMade did this optimisation thing in the RSi 2 set and I had my reservations about the flow of the set as a result, so I was interested to see how the PSi would feel as I went down through the set.

The 3 to 5 irons are reasonably sized for better players and feature a tungsten toe weight to improve the stability and this it does reasonably well. The sound and feel was not quite as hollow as before, but inevitably the larger cavity back in the 3 and 4-irons did have hollow undertones.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

The sole slots and face slots continue to work together on the 6 and 7-iron and these irons were probably my favourites of the set as they were a good size, but the forgiveness made them excellent cast better player irons.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

The sole widths were generous without being chunky and a small grind across the rear of the sole made it play narrower than it looks.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

In the 8-iron the sole slot disappears and the head changes to a forged steel construction with face slots. This also feels a little better and it made me wonder why the whole set was not forged heads with slots.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

On speaking to TaylorMade's Chief Technical Officer Benoit Vincent, I discovered it goes back to the 'optimum design for each iron' strategy. He said that longer irons need more ball speed so casting is better for that. Shorter irons need more feel so forging is better, but the trade off is a softer face and relatively less ball speed at impact.

To be fair TaylorMade has managed the performance gap well at this crossover point so that the distance gap between the 8 and 7-iron is the same as between the 7 and 6.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

Finally in the 9-iron and wedges, the face slots go too and you are left with a fully forged head with a small cavity back that feels pretty good. With the dampening it sounds better than the previous forged wedges in the RSi 2, but it is not quite in the same league as a peripheral weighted forged blade.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

Given all the changes in head style and manufacture, I was carefully looking at the flow of the set and I feel it is better than RSi 2. I accept that this is purely subjective, but the lack of a consistent head construction and material theme bothers me theoretically, especially switching from cast to forged heads during a set.

That said, the blend of cast and forged heads does work well and apart from the feel, it was hard to notice any difference in performance between the two styles.

TaylorMade PSi Irons

The extra thought and materials that have gone into the PSi iron is reflected in the premium price and as ever, the proof is in the hitting. In terms of their own range, the PSi is probably the best forgiving better player iron that TaylorMade has done and it should be a strong challenger in this category.

Golfalot Rating: 5 stars
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TaylorMade PSi Irons - Product Details

UK Launch06 November 2015
UK Launch RRP£799
USA Launch06 November 2015
Handicap Range
Low
High
GolferMens
Hand AvailabilityRight
MaterialSteel
Swing WeightD2, D3, D4
Shaft NameC-Taper 105 (Steel), Mitsubishi Rayon Kuro Kage (Graphite)
Shaft TypesSteel, Graphite
Shaft FlexRegular, Stiff
GripTM Lamkin UTX REC
DesignCavity Back
Set Makeup4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, PW
Additional Clubs3, GW, SW
Manufacturer's WebsiteTaylorMade Website

User Reviews

Nick
July 2018

I love these irons but have also had a problem with the name plates on the back of the clubs. I was pulling my 7 iron out of the bag one day and cut my finger..... now almost all of the clubs have exposed edges from where the name plates have come away from the head, leaving sharp edges. I took them into American Golf who contacted TaylorMade. I was subsequently fitted for a new set of P790's free of charge and swapped them for my PSI's. I was given the choice of M3, M4 or P790's but having read the reviews on the M3 and M4's i chose the P790's. Taylormade know that it is a problem with the clubs and if they are still in the warranty period they should exchange them for a newer model as they are not producing the PSi's anymore.

Ryan 8hc
July 2018

The PSi tours are my favourite TaylorMade iron since the 05 TP CB. They are easy to launch, feel pretty good, similar to the AP2, and give impressive distance for a players iron. The short irons are awesome. I also had a set of the regular PSi and they were ok, but these are great. Super thin and compact.

Tracy J
May 2018

Ditto to what Tom said above about the name plates on the back of these irons separating from the iron and leaving sharp exposed edges. Horrible design flaw. I got cut by one. Attempted to press the sharp corners on the worst ones back in, but then my 14 year old grandson got poked by one when he was using them. I have finally just started removing them completely as they start to fail. I am going to send pictures to Taylormade to see if they will do anything.

Tom
April 2018

The PSi irons perform well, but they have what I consider a design flaw. The "Taylormade" name plate on the back of the irons tends to separate from the back of the iron resulting in a very sharp and dangerous exposed edge. There is a bandage on my right index finger as I type this covering the gash I got putting my 5 iron back in the bag.

bill russell
July 2017

I am 65 years plying 12 handicap and I have been playing with Taylor made R Blades steel shaft. Have just purchased a set of Psi graphite. Brilliant buy.

Allan Sweeney
June 2017

Being a blade player all my life playing off 5 handicap when younger but now into my seventies and now playing off 15 I was a bit worried when buying the PSi Tour irons but i have found them fantastic as well as being forgiving they have given me better ball flight and greater length than with my older blades. 100% great buy for me even though some of my friends were telling me I would not be able to handle them I am so glad to be proving them wrong.

May 2017

Love these irons. Went from Callaway X to these. Thought I'd struggle with them but if anything has definitely improved my game

April 2016

This set is good! Forgiving club for me was what I was looking for and they recommend this! They are an amazing set!

March 2016

Much more forgiving than advertised. I used to play Taylor MC and then went to Callaway XR PRO. Tested the PSI in the store and wasn't totally convinced. I borrowed a set, after two rounds I'm sold! Easier than the MC with nice feel and awesome sound! This has to be the best balanced set, the A wedge is great, the long irons are easy and so long. Nice high trajectory coupled with the strong lofts give some remarkably long irons. Look=4.5, Trajectory=5. Feel=4. Sound=5. Accuracy=5.

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