50 Words or Less
The Takomo 101 MKII irons are easy to hit and long. Ball flight is higher than the strong, modern lofts would have you expect. Clean look and traditional feel.
Introduction
The prices of irons is skyrocketing. Virtually every set from the major OEMs is over $1,000, often well over. Given that most people haven’t seen their income grow like that, is it any wonder that Takomo – a more affordable, direct to consumer brand – has become one of the hottest names in golf?
For 2026, Takomo is looking to secure their place in the hearts and bags of golfers with their MKII irons. The Takomo 101 MKII irons aim to improve on one of their most popular offerings, the 101, while maintaining a price – $579 for an entire set – that feels like a throwback to my high school days.
Looks
One of the hallmarks of Takomo’s golf clubs is a very clean design aesthetic, and that’s never been more true than in the MKII irons. In the bag, the Takomo 101 MKII irons take the look of the original 101 [review HERE] and shrink the toe logo substantially. The “101 MKII” branding is also smaller and positioned higher on the heel. There are no flashy colors, just simple black paint fill. If you want a set that’s going to look good in your bag for years, you’ll love the 101 MKII.
At address, the Takomo 101 MKII irons have a slimmer, more rounded top line than the original 101. The shaping is consistent throughout the set – not too square, not too round – though the scoring irons have a more rounded leading edge. For a game improvement iron, I find these really attractive in the playing position.
One interesting note is that the 101 MKII – Takomo’s game improvement iron – has less offset in the 9I and PW than the 201 MKII or 201T MK II [review HERE], sets that are geared toward slightly better players. However, there is a very healthy amount of offset in the 5I – 5mm. This is a pretty sharp progression, as you can see above.
Above, you can see, from left to right, the Takomo 101 MKII, Takomo 201 MKII [review HERE], and the Takomo 201T MKII 7 irons. Given the names – particularly the jump from 101 to 201 – I expected a much bigger difference. The 101 MKII does have a slightly thicker, less beveled top line, but the blade is only about 1/16″ longer than the 201. By far the biggest difference is the sole width, but that’s not something you can see at address. From a visual standpoint, you can easily build a combo set across all three models. [See Price / Buy]
Sound & Feel
Not only do the Takomo 101 MKII irons look better than many game improvement irons, they have a more traditional sound and feel, too. With a premium ball, the feel of impact hits right in the middle of the bell curve – not exceedingly soft, but not firm either. Despite being a hollow body iron, the feel is more solid and strong than thin and fast, but, again, it keeps things pretty much down the middle.
On center, the sound of impact is crisp and below average in volume. The 101 MKII has strong audio feedback: when you miss, the volume ticks up noticeably and the sound ranges from a “knock” to a “thwack.” The volume also trends up as you move from the short to long irons, but it’s subtle. It’s not something you’re likely to notice unless you’re working through the set focused on sound.
Like the 201 MKII, the Takomo 101 MKII irons have different face designs throughout the set – a variable thickness face in the 5I-8I, a constant thickness face in the 9I-GW. Also like the 201 MKII, this does not impact the feel in a meaningful way – it’s consistent throughout the set.
Want great value at the top of your bag? Check out the Takomo Ignis driver HERE
Performance
It’s doesn’t take long to figure out why the Takomo 101 MKII irons are the brand’s most popular offering. They deliver what most golfers need: the highest level of stability and forgiveness. In my testing, I was seeing losses of just 8-10 yards on fairly substantial misses, which is excellent. I found that misses on the toe and heel performed particularly well, maintaining both their intended line and distance.
The other part of the appeal of the Takomo 101 MKII irons is the enhanced distance. This set has strong, modern lofts – two to three degrees stronger than the 201 MKII [review HERE]. That translates to faster ball speeds and greater distances. I found the 101 MKII were between a half and full club longer than the 201 MKII and in line with some of the longer game improvement irons I’ve tested. The variable face thickness really shines in the longer irons – I wrote the word “electric” next to the 5I after launching a 222 yard bullet.
While the distance and forgiveness did not surprise me, the ball flight did…in a good way. Given the strong lofts, I anticipated low launch and spin. However, Takomo did a good job engineering the CG for each club to produce a medium flight with spin just a hair below average. Your iron shots won’t look like they were dropped from a hot air balloon, but most carry enough height to hold a green. The difference in ball flight between the 101 MKII and the other MKII irons was much smaller than I expected.
What allows the Takomo 101 MKII irons to have that higher launch with stronger lofts is the wide sole. It’s roughly 1/8″ thicker than the 201 MKII, which is not exactly a butterknife. That wider sole brings the CG down to increase launch angle and improve performance on thin strikes. While thin strikes do better with the 101 MKII than the other Takomo irons, I would not count it as a strength. Shots off the bottom groove will lose significant distance and fail to reach to a playable trajectory.
The tradeoff for the strong lofts and high stability is that the Takomo 101 MKII irons are not built for shot control. They aren’t terribly draw prone despite their offset, but you shouldn’t expect to fade the ball easily. You can modulate trajectory, but it takes effort. Takomo recommends these irons for handicaps from 15 to 40+, which feels right to me. There are irons with more forgiveness, but they’re going to be much larger, much more expensive, or both. [See Price / Buy]
Conclusion
Whether you’re a newer player just dipping your toe into golf or simply someone who appreciates value, the Takomo 101 MKII irons are a home run. This is a very strong game improvement set that doesn’t skimp on distance or forgiveness. It’s difficult to find an iron set that delivers more performance per dollar. [See Price / Buy]
Takomo 101 MKII Irons Price & Specs
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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16 Comments
How would you rate the forgiveness compared to the ping G440 irons.
Tracy,
The Takomo 101 MKII is good, but it’s not on that level. Full G440 review here: https://pluggedingolf.com/ping-g440-irons-review/
-Matt
I’m 70, hc 18 from the white tees. Currently playing Mizuno 921 hot metal irons. Would you recommend the 101 or 201? The Takomo tool recommends the 201
Jerry,
That depends: what do you not like about the Mizunos or what are you hoping to improve?
Best,
Matt
How would you compare these to Mizuno m15 irons?
I haven’t tested the Mizuno M15 irons yet.
Best,
Matt
Hi Matt,
Thank you for reviewing some of the more affordable DTC options out there, and giving them a fair look. I do have a question about iron sets in general.
When I was a kid (many years ago), my irons went from 2-9. My first adult set is 4-9, and it looks like modern sets lean towards a 5-9 composition. What is the reason for that? More general distance in the irons, more reliance on a wedge setup, or something else?
It’s primarily about the “loft jacking” – https://pluggedingolf.com/the-evolution-of-iron-lofts/
Your current 5-AW is the old 4-PW is the old 3-9.
Best,
Matt
Thanks for the article. I am fairly certain that the lofts did not even appear on my old clubs. I wouldn’t have known what they were.
I’ve tested ping 740, 920 hl, qauntim max, cobra king max, dyna power max 7 irons and cannot get descending angle above 40. My gamer cleveland xl halo launcher is 37 better than what I tested. Carry btw 145 to 150. Do you think I can get these above 40 descent
Terry,
I would be very surprised if the 101 MKII produced a steeper landing angle than some of the irons you mentioned.
Best,
Matt
High school days that was the price of a set of irons 10 years ago
Hi Matt,
Since you are highlighting some more affordable and perhaps lesser known brands, any chance that you or someone else could review the Tommy Armour 845+ irons? They have been $399 at Dick’s Sporting Goods for quite some time, and I’m always curious about them. A guy I know is a single digit handicap and shot in the 70’s regularly with those when I first met him. While that doesn’t mean they’re the best clubs for everyone, it at least showed me that they are not automatically junk.
We can certainly take a look into that. Thanks for the suggestion.
-Matt
Hi Matt, great breakdown as always. I’m really leaning towards the 101 MKIIs because of that clean aesthetic you mentioned, but I’m a bit concerned about the spin rates for a high-handicapper like myself. I was reading a technical comparison that suggested some DTC hollow-body irons can struggle with spin consistency on off-center hits compared to the major OEMs. Based on your testing, do you think the variable face thickness in the 5-8 irons actually stabilizes the spin enough to keep the ball on the green, or should I be looking at a higher-spinning shaft to compensate?
Jeff,
I did not see anything concerning in the spin variance throughout the set. It’s very possible that you need more launch and spin than these offer, but I wouldn’t worry about the variance.
Best,
Matt