Gear: Titleist U•505 utility iron
Price: $269 each with Project X HZRDUS Black 4G shaft and Titleist Universal 360 grip
Specs: Forged SUP-10 stainless steel body and face with internal tungsten weights. Available as a 1- (16 degrees), 2-, (18 degrees), 3- (20 degrees) or 4-iron (22 degrees)
Who It’s For: Golfers who want more distance and height from an iron that can replace a hybrid and link a player’s longest iron to their shortest-hitting fairway wood.
The Skinny: Designed with a wide sole and low center of gravity, this utility iron provides more control and shot-shaping than a hybrid but is easier to hit and provides more distance than typical long irons.
The Deep Dive: There has always been a macho factor associated with driving irons and a mystique about being good enough to use one off the tee to keep the ball down in windy conditions or split the fairway on a tree-lined hole. Most recreational golfers understand that driving irons are not for them, but a utility iron, that could be another story.
The updated Titleist U•505 is too thick and chunky in the address position to be mistaken for a driving iron, even though it is only offered as a 1-, 2-, 3- or 4-iron. But that doesn’t mean it will not provide ample distance off the tee and extra versatility.
Like the other T Series irons Titleist has released, the U•505 has a forged SUP-10 stainless steel body and a forged stainless steel face designed in an L shape. The face plate wraps under the leading edge and into the sole, which helps to pull the sweetspot down and allows players to get better results on thinly-struck shots.
As you might suspect from an iron this size, the U•505 is hollow, which allows the face to flex more efficiently at the moment of impact to create more ball speed. The thin face is complimented by a system that Titleist refers to as a Max Impact Generator. It includes an internal steel post that extends down from the topline and connects to the bottom of the head in the back of the sole. In the center, Titleist has placed a thin polymer, which acts like a spring and compresses when the ball hits the face and flexes it back. The polymer snaps back and trampolines the face back into position faster than it otherwise would, which enhances ball speed and distance. The Max Impact Generator’s posts also stiffen the body at impact, which, along with a redesigned back panel that has a sound-absorbing waffle pattern on the inner-facing side, helps improve the sound shots create.
While the updated U•505 has a shorter blade length than previous versions, it still has two large internal tungsten pieces, one in the heel and the other in the toe, that boost the moment of inertia and increase stability, so shots hit outside the middle of the face fly straighter and the head twists less. The tungsten also helps to lower the center of gravity location, which results in shots that fly with a higher initial launch angle.
Titleist designers softened the leading edge to help the U•505 work through the turf more easily and gave the wide sole more curvature and bounce.
That improved turf interaction, moderate offset and a wider sole, should translate to a utility iron that accomplished golfers can use as a hybrid replacement and intermediate players who want a long-iron replacement that is easier to hit high and provides extra distance.