50 Words or Less
The Callaway Apex Ai150 irons are a beautiful blend of distance, forgiveness, and control. Ample forgiveness for the “more advanced golfer.” Slightly weaker lofts create consistent, predictable ball flight with good shot control.
Introduction
For about a decade, the Callaway Apex family has represented some of the company’s best technology, packing boosted distance and forgiveness into a player-preferred shape. Unsurprisingly, it’s a name that’s frequently mentioned by Plugged In Golf readers when talking about clubs that have remained in their bags for years. This fall, Callaway added several new members to the Apex family. I got to test the Callaway Apex Ai150 irons to see how they build on the impressive Apex legacy.
Looks
In the bag, the Callaway Apex Ai150 irons looks exceptional. The back of the blade is free of modern geometry, putting the focus on the black weight and “Apex” branding. Gentle visual interest is added through the mix of finishes – chrome at the top and something closer to a matte finish below. At a glance, the Ai150 is very similar to the Apex Ai200 [review HERE], but a second look reveals that the former is markedly thinner.
For those that want to stand out, Callaway is offering customization on the weight. Players can choose from blue, silver, copper, or the standard black. Choosing a color other than black adds $10 per club.
In my notes, I described the top line of the Callaway Apex Ai150 irons as “just thick enough for comfort.” These are definitely players irons – the top lines and soles are thin – but they’re not razor blades. There is only a modest amount of offset in these clubs, and what’s there is well hidden by the chrome finish on the heel.
Sound & Feel
Something that’s not apparent to the naked eye is that the Callaway Apex Ai150 irons use two different face materials. Per Callaway, this is a “1025 forged hollow-body design” with a 455 face cup in the 3I-7I and a 17-4 face in the 8I-AW. Not only did Callaway hide this from my eyes, they successfully hid it from my ears and hands, too. The sound and feel is consistent throughout this set.
The impact sound of the Apex Ai150 highlights their distance potential. It’s a crisp “snap” that’s average in volume, though a bit louder than other players irons. Just like the irons themselves, this sound sits on the boundary of modern and traditional.
Similarly, the feel of impact is solid but fast. The face provides moderate feedback on the quality of the strike, and there’s a special reward for those 100% perfect swings. Nothing will sting your hands unless you get to the edges of the face.
Performance
Callaway’s Apex irons promise enhanced distance and forgiveness in a club with premium players looks. They certainly have the looks, so I was eager to get them on a launch monitor to see how they stacked up in the other areas.
Of the Apex Ai models, the Callaway Apex Ai150 irons have the weakest lofts – one degree weaker than the Ai200. Thanks to the Ai10X Face, these slightly weaker lofts don’t keep the Ai150 irons from having some of the best ball speed in the category. This “player’s prefered…loft package” offers a balance of distance and control that is great for the “more advanced golfer” that Callaway has built these for.
Throughout the set, I found that the Apex Ai150 irons produced launch and spin that was on par with its peers, taking loft into account. This provided plenty of control to stop the ball on the green and flight the ball higher when called to. Though the feel off the face isn’t fully traditional, it didn’t take long for me to trust these irons to produce the controlled shot shapes I asked for.
Turning to forgiveness, I was impressed with what the Callaway Apex Ai150 irons delivered for their size. In my notes, I wrote that there’s a “big bucket of good,” meaning that you can get really nice results from a pretty big section of the club face. Even a “C” swing should get the ball to the green…if you pulled the right club.
The other side of that forgiveness and technology coin is the “jumper”. Experienced golfers know that high tech irons can have a propensity to send those 100% perfect strikes well beyond their expected distance. I’m pleased to report that I didn’t see that with the Apex Ai150 irons. On the shots that I pured, I got a couple extra yards. Nothing in my testing would make me concerned about having these irons in the bag when there’s trouble beyond the flag.
My last, surprising performance note relates to the sole. I’ve always thought of Callaway irons as having relatively large, rounded soles. The soles of the Callaway Apex Ai150 irons are average in size for this type of iron, but I found them to be fairly low bounce. At the time of this writing, Callaway doesn’t have a bounce spec published for this set, but, based on my experience, I think these would be great for players who are a little more shallow with their swing or like to feel the club bite into the turf post-impact.
Finally, since Callaway has more models on the shelf than any other OEM, it’s worthwhile to take a moment and place the Apex Ai150 within the lineup. It’s closest to the aforementioned Apex Ai200 [review HERE], just slightly thinner and less forgiving. Going up another notch in terms of forgiveness, you’ll find the Apex Ai300 irons [review HERE] and the Elyte irons [review HERE]. Players looking to move in the other direction – toward a more traditional iron – will find the new X Forged and X Forged Max irons.
Conclusion
I’ve been saying for the last few years that no one is benefitting from advanced technology as much as the better golfer. The Callaway Apex Ai150 irons are further evidence of that. In this iron, the skilled ball striker can get all the forgiveness they need without giving up the look they want and the shot control they demand.
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He founded Plugged In Golf in 2013 with the goal of helping all golfers play better and enjoy the game more.
Matt lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with his wife and two daughters.
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18 Comments
I like the look of these but can’t do the shiny chrome. I prefer matte finishes like PING or the new Titleist irons.
That was my initial thought too – whoa….the chrome! (and not in a good way).
These could be what I’m looking for….ST Pro performance without making my ears bleed?
I love the shiny chrome look. Leave the dull old look for those weaker companies
Hi Matt , how do these compare to the Rogue ST Pro irons? Any big differences in your opinion?
Lou,
I think the Apex Ai150 is a much better looking iron at address. Beyond that, I think the Apex is an iterative improvement in the same category.
Best,
Matt
I had the exact same question, so thanks for answering it.
Actually, I have one more thing to add to the question: Would you say the ST Pro is closer to the Ai150 or Ai200 (or another in their vast new lineup that I’m not thinking of)?
Jonathan,
Based on the address look, I think the ST Pro is probably a bit closer to the Ai200.
Best,
Matt
Are you sure the faces are forged? I’ve never heard of 17-4 steel being forged.
Clay,
My reading of Callaway’s explanation is that the body of the club is forged, not the face.
Best,
Matt
I’m thinking of doing a combo of the 5, 6, and 7 irons bent a degree stronger to match the lofts of my Apex CB 4, 5, and 6 iron lofts, and keeping the CBs 7-10 iron. Would you say the bounce, even though it appears “low” for this type of iron, is higher than the CBs? I’m thinking that bending them stronger will further help to reduce the bounce to match the CB bounce specs. Thanks!
Sam,
I don’t think removing one degree of bounce will make or break the Ai150 for you. I like the idea of blending those two sets.
Best,
Matt
Would A150 be more forgiving than Titleist T150? I find the T150 drop distance if you not hit the middle.
Looking for something that look good as T150 but are more forgiving on off center hits.
Trygve,
I think there is slightly more forgiveness in the Ai150, but you’re still going to lose distance when you miss the center of the face.
-Matt
Great review. If you know, how does the top line thickness and offset of these compare to the apex pro irons and the apex tcb irons
Andy,
Callaway doesn’t publish those numbers, and I don’t have those three models in hand at the moment to give you a comparison myself.
Best,
Matt
Thank you for your review. I just ordered my new Ai 150 irons with UST Recoil Dart 80R shafts. In my fitting, they outperformed every other club I tested with multiple shafts – including the JPX 925, Titleist T150 etc. At 57, I’m no longer strong or fast enough to keep gaming my old Titleist CB716 + S300 shafts (130g), so there will be quite an adjustment! I’ve been a mid-singles player for the last 30 years and these hopefully will give me a shot at the big time again – sub 5… we’ll see. Anyway – thanks for your review – it was very helpful in my decision. Cheers from Sydney – Dave