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The Edel SMS Pro irons allow players to fit the CG to their swing and impact tendencies. A traditional players cavity back – don’t expect much forgiveness.
Introduction
In drivers, movable weight is almost a given. Players toggle the weights to align the CG with their most common strike or to bias the club toward their preferred shot shape. In irons, however, the heel-toe CG location is almost never discussed. The Edel SMS Pro irons aim to change that by allowing the golfer to move the CG to suit their swing and most common strike location.
Looks
In the address position, you’d never know the Edel SMS Pro irons are anything but a traditional players cavity back. The top lines are fairly thin, and there’s minimal offset. From heel to toe, this iron frames the ball nicely without much excess. The SMS Pro isn’t breaking new ground, but in this category, that’s not something people want anyway.
In the bag, this iron shows that it has some technological oomph. The three round, black weights are the dominant feature, dwarfing the “Edel,” “Forged,” and “SMS Pro” engravings on the heel and toe. A small, triangular cavity hints at a smattering of forgiveness.
Sound & Feel
On their site, Edel touts the “Precision Grain Forging” techniques that they use to enhance the 1025 carbon steel in these irons. To me, these feel good but aren’t anything particularly out of the ordinary. On center, they feel soft and rewarding, but that firms up very quickly as you move away from the center. This is valuable feedback, though it may be a little harsh for players who aren’t consistently striping it. It is good that the feel changes so noticeably because I had more difficulty feeling the impact location than I would have expected.
The sound of the Edel SMS Pro irons matches the feel well. On center, it’s close to the sweet “thud” that players love from a forged iron. As you move into the realm of toe and heel strikes, the sound transforms into a “clack.” On the edges of the face, that sound is a harsh reminder the hit the next shot better.
Performance
Edel’s claims around their SMS (Swing Match System) are not small: better club face control, eliminating the right or left miss, adding distance, and hitting more accurate shots. Having tested the SMS wedge [review HERE], I was not skeptical of these claims at all. Getting the center of gravity (or sweet spot) right is that big a deal. The Edel SMS Pro irons will deliver on their big promises, if they’re properly fit.
To appreciate the SMS Pro irons, it’s important to understand a bit about iron design. First, the CG is not always in the geometric center of the face. In fact, it might not even be in the center of the face the majority of the time. OEMs place the CG in different places for different reasons – player preference, aesthetics, biasing ball flight – but they rarely come out and say, “The sweet spot is X mm toward the heel.” Players are left to figure this out on their own. And missing the sweet spot is a big deal because it costs players ball speed, spin, and accuracy.
As in my testing of the SMS Wedge, I got the best performance with the heaviest weight in the heel of the Edel SMS Pro irons. The ball speed and spin were more consistent, and my dispersion was the tightest. I got similar numbers with the CG centered, but there was a little more variance. Putting the weight in the toe was a mess: every shot felt bad, my ball speed and distance sunk, and my dispersion was poor. While I didn’t enjoy hitting those shots, it was good to confirm just how valuable an aligned CG is.
Fitting and CG aside, the Edel SMS Pro irons are players cavity backs and are going to work best in the hands of skilled ball strikers. There is some forgiveness, but mishits can easily fall short of the green. Additionally, the lofts are a little more traditional – or weak – which means the ball speed is a bit lower and the spin a bit higher. If you want the longest 7I, this isn’t it.
Finally, Edel did a great job with the sole of these irons. They’ve long been known for having great soles on their wedges, so this is not a big surprise. The SMS Pro irons use a “Tri-Stepped Sole Design” which almost looks like a U. They’ve softened the leading edge dramatically, given the iron a narrow mid-section, then shaved back the trailing edge so the sole plays or feels thinner than it is while still providing protection against digging.
Conclusion
If you struggle with accuracy with your irons, the problem may not be you – it might be the CG of your irons. With the Edel SMS Pro irons, you can find out for sure if a better CG can lead to more consistency into the greens. Make sure to get fit, and check out the standard Edel SMS irons if you want a little more forgiveness.
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Edel SMS Pro Irons Price & Specs
Editor In Chief at Plugged In Golf
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.