The invention of hybrid clubs has had a huge impact on today’s golf equipment. Hybrids are more forgiving and easier to hit than traditional irons. Many players substitute their longer irons with hybrids and it’s not unusual for a player to carry two or three of the clubs. Cleveland has taken this to a whole new level with their introduction of a complete hybrid set… the HiBore Irons.
What Our Advisory Team Says…
Our Advisory Team likes the idea of a complete hybrid set, but acknowledges that they’re not for everyone…
These are a bit tough to look at but they work.
Long-mid irons look fine, although having a hybrid for a PW is quite different.
High and straight. A great club for a lot of golfers out there.
A radical departure from the appearance of a normal iron, with some design tricks to help out your game.
Most hybrid-irons feel like a hybrid, do not feel great if you're used to forged irons.
A Perfect set for the weekend warrior.
Overall Advisory Team Rating – 81%
What Our Readers Say…
Looks like our readers prefer a more traditional iron. Many we talked to still agree that this is a good game improvement option.
Overall Reader Rating – 59%
What Our Customers Say…
The Cleveland HiBore irons are one of those “love ‘em or hate ‘em” irons… you won’t find too many golfers that are indifferent. Traditionalists don’t like the look of them and higher handicappers love what they can do with them.
Performance – It’s hard to dislike an iron that is as easy to hit as the HiBore. Cleveland has developed a club that gets the ball up in a hurry and that is tremendous on miss hits. Think of these as a “wide sole on steroids”. The obvious downside to an iron like this is that working the ball is out of the question. If you like shaping your shots, don’t bother looking at these. Some golfers also mentioned that they aren’t a huge fan of wider soles on their scoring irons.
Feel – Game improvement irons are designed to make every shot feel the same. Golfers that use these irons aren’t looking for buttery feel… they want forgiveness. Don’t expect a soft, forged feel here.
Value – The Cleveland HiBore irons offer decent value for the mid to high handicapper. These irons fall right into middle of the pack when compared to the competitors.
Looks – This category is a toss up. Some customers love the look of these irons because they inspire confidence. Others hate the look of these irons because they are bulky and anything but traditional. We say go with what works… but many still rank “looks” as one of their biggest buying motives.
Innovation – The stock shaft options in these clubs are decent and Cleveland offers a good variety of upgrades. Cleveland’s customer service has always been good and their custom shop can handle most requests. The HiBore irons offer the average golfer more game improvement technology than most irons on the market today.
Overall… Cleveland set out to create their most forgiving irons to date and they’ve done just that. Some golfers find the look of the HiBore irons distracting but those that don’t care about aesthetics will be pleasantly surprised.
Overall Customer Rating – 67%
Overall Combined Rating – 69%