Callaway’s secret irons are finally going on sale
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Rasmus and Nicolai Hojgaard have been going great guns at the Open Championship using Callaway’s X Forged irons – and now you can get your hands on a set
Callaway golf clubs are having a moment right now. The Elyte X came out on top in our exhaustive test of the best fairway woods for 2025. LIV star Tom McKibbin gained 37 yards off the tee after getting fitted into the new Elyte Triple Diamond Driver. And now the brand’s worst-kept secret is out with the impending launch of the new X Forged irons, which have already found their way into the bag of Phil Mickelson, Minjee Lee, the Hojgaard twins, and pretty much every gearhead on tour (we’re looking at you, Max Greyserman).
Originally confined to the Japanese market last year, the X Forged irons were largely kept under wraps by Callaway until word got out that they had created their best-looking iron to date.
The popularity overseas eventually caught the attention of stars on the PGA Tour, with Min Woo Lee and the Hojgaard twins getting their hands on a set to begin the 2025 season.
“This iron was originally designed by our Japanese team, with Japan, Korea, and all of the Asian markets in mind, so there are a lot of fingerprints that you’ll typically see on products coming out of those areas on the X Forged, specifically that high-polish chrome look, and then sort of a sharper, higher toe, which is a very Asian-preferred look,” Callaway Tour rep Johnny Thompson told the PGA Tour.
“They rolled them out in Asia, but there’s so much crossover with other tours outside of the PGA Tour, like the LPGA and DP World Tour, so you get players on those tours working with our Asian teams, who had these golf clubs available for their staff.
“Then all of a sudden they started to see them, and they’re like, ‘This is the best-looking iron they’ve ever seen.’ So they started to show up on the DP, and with a lot of Korean, KLPGA, crossover to LPGA, they just kind of trickled out that way.
“Nicolai and Rasmus both came over and had them in play, so there were guys that started to see them. Min Woo Lee played a part in sort of helping design them, concept-wise, so he basically got the first set (in America), which is not always an easy situation, where you create a really nice iron.
“He loved them, so we’re not going to take them out of his hands, but it did create a pretty envious situation where some players were like, ‘I want those, too!'”
With Lee ticking off a first PGA Tour victory at the Houston Open in March, it was no surprise to see players clamouring to see what all the fuss was about. The uptake has continued at pace since then, and will almost certainly ramp up even further should one of the Hojgaard twins manage to reel in Scottie Scheffler at the Open Championship. According to Datagolf, both are currently ranked inside the top 15 for strokes gained: approach play, which feels significant ahead of a major release coming next week.
Callaway have announced that the X Forged irons are coming to retail alongside a brand-new players’ distance model, called the X Forged Max.
Per Callaway, the X Forged is a premium, ‘better player’ iron crafted from a single piece of 1020 carbon steel. The design includes a compact cavity back, minimal offset, a thin topline, and a tri-level sole with a sharper leading edge and trailing edge chamfer for better contact.
The X Forged Max irons are also made from a single piece of 1020 carbon, but they feature a larger cavity back, more offset, a wider sole, and a super low CG for increased launch and forgiveness. In other words, they are a lot more playable for mid-handicappers.
Both stock sets come with Lamkin Crossline grips and the True Temper Dynamic Gold Mid shaft (100g and 115g).
Each club costs $220 and a full set of the X Forged Max (5-PW) are currently available to pre-order at $1,320 (US only), with shipping beginning on July 25. The X Forged (4-PW) is also coming out at the same time in America for $1,540, with UK orders priced at £1,499 and released on August 8.
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Rasmus Hojgaard is gaming a set of Callaway's X Forged irons at the 2025 Open Championship.
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Callaway's X Forged irons are now available to pre-order in Europe and America.
