How often should you change your irons?

Getting new golf clubs is an exciting time, but how often should you change your set of irons? We asked an expert to find out.

Irons are some of the most important clubs in your golf bag. For almost every golfer, they’ll make up most of the clubs in a set, and you’ll use them on virtually every hole during a round.

While wedges should be replaced on a regular basis for almost every golfer, irons are not the same. These clubs will last much longer before performance starts to drop off. But, how long should you leave the same set in the bag?

We asked Chris Courtneidge, Callaway Golf‘s head club fitter, to find out…

How often should you change your golf irons?

“I’m sure my boss would love everyone to buy a new set of irons every single year, but that’s not going to happen. It all depends on the golfer,” he said.

“If you’ve got someone who plays once a month, doesn’t really go to the range, and just goes on their buddy’s trip, then they could feasibly use the same set for around eight to ten years.”

As Chris explains, it depends on the player, but if you’re someone who isn’t beating balls at the driving range, and only goes on one golf outing every few weeks, then a good set of irons could last you up to ten years.

That doesn’t mean you won’t see a benefit from changing them sooner than that, but your golf won’t suffer if you don’t switch it up.

But, how often should a serious golfer keep the same irons in the bag? Courtneidge had a different response.

“If you’ve got a serious golfer, someone who is hitting balls a lot, it helps to get fresh grooves fairly often. For these players, anything from around four to six years is what you want.

“The good thing about irons is that you have so many of them in your bag, and you spread your use across them, so they won’t get worn out too quickly. You certainly don’t use your irons as much as your wedges, which you should be looking to replace every year. But, eventually, the grooves on your irons will get burnt out.”

A good way to tell if you need new irons, Courtneidge explained, is to look at the face and see if you can notice visible signs of grooves being worn down.

If you can see noticeable wear and tear around the sweet spot of your irons, then that’s a sure sign that you’re going to be losing performance. You’re likely to start getting shots that won’t spin when they hit the green.

So, there’s no exact science for when it comes to changing your irons, but as a rule of thumb, if you play a lot of golf, every four to six years is a good guide.

Remember – the clue’s in the grooves!

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Lewis Fraser As bunkered’s Performance Editor, Lewis oversees the content that’s designed to make you a better player. From the latest gear to tuition, nutrition, strategy and more, he’s the man. A graduate of the University of Stirling, Lewis joined bunkered in 2021. Formerly a caddie at Castle Stuart Golf Links, he is a member of Bathgate Golf Club where he plays off four.

Performance Editor