Equipment

Review: Alpha Golf C1 Pro Irons

By Sean ⋅ February 10, 2008 ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

If you are a fan of the Long Drive circuit, you probably have heard of Alpha Golf.  They have dominated long drive competitions for years and now are making a move in the rest of the equipment marketplace.  From Drivers to Hybrids down to Putters, Alpha Golf now has you covered.  Today we will be having a look at the C1 Pro Forged Irons from Alpha Golf.

Background

Engineering and styling come together with the Alpha C1 Pro Forged irons. The extra big head and perimeter weighting made from soft 1020 Carbon Steel provide playability with forgiveness. And the deep double-forged cavity softens the impact for a remarkable feel for players of all skill levels.

• Precision forged from 1020 carbon steel for excellent feel and playability
• Large, more forgiving head size, and slightly thinner topline for perimeter weighting enhancements and double forged cavity forgiveness
• Wider sole for higher launch angles
• Modest offset hosel design for playability and broad appeal
• Nickel-chrome plating for an attractive look, and easy setup and alignment

Look and Feel

The C1 Pro irons look like a traditional cavity back forged iron.  Nice clean lines, very simple, understated cavity back.  The irons themselves are polished chrome, with a satin finish on the clubface itself.  Pretty typical.  Size and shape wise, they remind me of the old TaylorMade RAC CB irons.  Given that they are forged irons, and pretty soft, you’ll have to make sure you take care of them.  This is true of any forged iron.  Clean out the grooves regularly, make sure you do not slam your iron back into your bag after a shot and take care when hitting in rocky areas.  They ding up pretty easily, but this is the price you pay for having the sweet feel of a forged iron.

So, onto the feel.  If you are coming from the world of cast irons, be prepared to feel the sweet embrace of a well struck forged iron.  While these irons are no Miuras or Mizunos, they are quite buttery soft at the sweet spot.  Thin shots sting, hits off the heel or toe feel a little harsh, all things you come to expect from a forged players iron.  Do not…I repeat DO NOT hit a thin shot with these irons when it is 30 degrees out!  I did today, and wow that smarts!

Again, while not quite as sweet as the feel of a pured Mizuno iron, these irons do feel very nice.  I would put them in the same kind of class as the Adams Idea Pro forged irons.

The irons do feel a little hefty.  The listed swing weights are pretty common, if not a little light, but for some reason the club head felt a little heavy to me.  It may be due to the shaft the irons I received were fitted with (FST Pro Red).  I have not read much about those shafts, but they do feel pretty light.  I have a set of Adams Idea Pro irons fitted with GS-75 shafts (which are extremely light), and you get a similar feel.  It is not really a bad thing, you can really feel the club head in your swing.

In the picture above you can see (from left to right) the Alpha Golf C1 Pro, Mizuno MP-57 and the Adams Idea Pro pitching wedges.  The C1 Pro sets up nice and looks very blade like at address.  Offset is pretty minimal in the pitching wedge (as it is with most players clubs) and increases gradually throughout the set (you can see this in the earlier specifications table).

The clubface is very similar in shape to the MP-57, though the topline appears to be a little thinner at address.  I felt very comfortable with the club in my hand, nothing out of the ordinary here.

Performance

Having played with the MP-57 irons a lot recently, I felt very comfortable with these clubs very quickly.  The two irons perform similarly.  The C1 Pros seemed to be relatively forgiving on thin shots, still getting a decent amount of distance and getting the ball up in the air a fair amount.  Off the toe and heel generally resulted in a loss of distance and resulted in some big twisting of the clubhead.  But, again, this is pretty typical of a cavity back geared toward players.

The leading edge of the C1 Pro irons is pretty rolled similar to the MP-57.  It seemed to resist digging pretty well.  Playing on soft, soggy greens here in the North East, this is something one generally likes to see in a club.

Sole wise, the C1 Pro irons are a little wider than that of the MP-57 irons.  They are close in width to the Adams Idea Pro irons (as you can see below) perhaps a little more narrow at the heel.  This provides a little extra forgiveness when it comes to hitting fat shots.  But at the same time offers a little less versatility.

I had no real problem playing just about any shot I am able to play.  Low, high, hook, slice, they were all pretty easy to pull off with the C1 Pros.  In the shorter irons there certainly is not much, if any, bias built into the club.  The longer irons have a little extra offset, helping you turn the club over, and have a little extra meat at the sole to help get the ball airborne quickly.  Again, pretty typical cavity back design, all things people are looking for in this type club.

Conclusion

All in all, these are a real nice offering from Alpha Golf.  If you are in the market for a player’s cavity back, they are worth checking out.  With clubs like this, it often comes down to your own personal preference.  How the club looks to your eye, how it feels to you.  Performance wise, I think you can expect this club to do just about anything you would want a cavity back to do. 

I  like the fact that the pitching wedge actually plays at 48 degrees.  I think far too many iron sets are moving toward 47, 46 or even 45 degrees to sell added distance.  Coming from a company that has built their name in the long drive world, this is nice to see.

I certainly enjoyed playing with the clubs, they felt nice, look nice, are quite playable and even have some forgiveness to them.  Starting at $70 per club, they are certainly not bargain basement, but they will save you about $15-$20 a club over most offerings from the major club makers. You can also have a look on eBay see if there are any used sets floating around.

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