Just as you I was curious about 0 Iron golf club and made me wonder how in the world something like that exists.
Initially I felt that it is a putter shaped in a form of iron. But then I came to know about John Daly’s 0 Iron golf club made by Wilson.
As soon as people saw it in the hands of the John, the 0 Iron Golf Club got popular and eventually made its place into the retail market.
However, there were very few pieces launched and Wilson marked them as limited series iron clubs.
Later, the fate of the 0 iron clubs was sealed as there was no practical use of them. Some people have kept them as a collectible in their clubs collection. For some they are not even worth being there is their special collection. Rather the 0 iron club are laying in basements under heaps of dust.
But its not just Daly, the 0 iron club were also made for Davis Love and Vijay Singh. Apart from them you won’t really find them in the bag of any other professional golf player. So for amateur its merely a thing you can show as a complete collection of irons but there is no practical use.
Why 0 Iron Clubs Was Not Successful
When you think of Wilson making limited version of these irons it is pretty clear in itself that even Wilson was not seeing them as a success. Rather they thought of them as a memorabilia and made just a few of them for club collectors.
What made them of no use is very low loft angle. By 0 we think that there is no loft angle on the club heads but for Daly’s club the loft angle was 14 degrees.
So it was still not a complete 0 club. Rather the lof angle of 14 made it somewhat still useable. Because if Wilson had made it 0 angle the practicality from them would literally become 0. Here have a look at one of them below:
Because the degree is till very small, so it seems like a very low loft or almost a 0 loft iron club.
The prime reason why they failed is because you could not hit the ball to a decent distance with them. It was very hard to get any sort of elevation with these clubs.
Although the ball would get power but it would quickly deviate from its course because it hits the grounds sooner.
So the practicality goes away and rather a collectible concept is reinforced.
However, there is a way to go round this problem. You can attain some distance with this 0 degree club if you place the ball on a tee. But the tee has to be bigger than an average one. So you will gain the elevation from the ground and kind of get the loft if you are hitting under the ball with great force.
So with a tilted club face of your almost 0 iron at the point of impact you can imitate a higher loft angle and get some distance.
But why not get a 4 iron instead to do the same thing without a tee. So the purpose is lost.
Also if you are on a fairway the 0 iron are a complete mess.
What Actually is a 0 Degree Golf Club
Any guesses?
Well if you are playing golf then you may actually realise just now that you are already playing with a 0 degree club.
It is the putter inside your bag. Putter has actually no loft angle and is meant to not lift the ball up from the fairway.
A iron doing the same job should classify as putter rather than a club to hit the ball to a distance.
So technically a 0 golf club loses its existential purpose when an already better club exists.
How To Play with a 0 Iron Golf Club
It is now hard to get by a 0 Iron golf club. They majorly belong to collectors now and if you are able to find one in a garage sale then consider your self lucky.
But do keep in you mind that if collection is not the purpose rather experience is what you are after then simply play the high power shots off from a tee with your putter.
Putter is really the 0 degree club in your collection. You are going to get very similar results from a putter with a big club face then a 0 iron club would provide you.
So concluding the case, 0 iron golf club was nothing more than a marketing gimmick to sell some extra pieces to the general public at a profitable price.
Additional Comments
A 0 iron golf club is a type of club that is typically used for shots from the fairway or rough that are close to the green. The number “0” refers to the loft angle of the club, which is the angle between the clubface and the ground when the club is at rest. A 0 iron has the lowest loft angle of all the irons, typically around 20-25 degrees, which means it has a very low trajectory and will travel a longer distance than other irons.
The 0 iron is also known as a “driving iron” because it can be used to hit long shots off the tee, but it can also be used for approach shots and can be used to hit the ball out of bunkers or other difficult lies.
It is important to note that 0 iron is not a common club in modern sets of golf clubs, many golfers prefer to use a hybrid or fairway wood instead. Since 0 iron has a low loft angle, it can be harder to hit and control, especially for less experienced golfers.
John Daly’s 0 Iron:
John Daly, renowned for his colorful personality and unique approach to the game of golf, is not typically associated with finesse or conventional techniques. However, even in the world of golf, where precision and consistency often reign supreme, there are exceptions that defy expectations. One of these exceptions is the legendary story of John Daly’s “0 iron.”
In the realm of golf clubs, the 0 iron is an enigma. Not officially recognized as a standard club in most sets, it’s a club with a loft even lower than a 1 iron, and its existence in the bag of an amateur golfer is almost unheard of. Yet, it’s precisely this audacious choice that encapsulates John Daly’s unique persona and his ability to challenge convention.
John Daly’s approach to golf has never been characterized by conformity. He burst onto the scene with his “grip it and rip it” philosophy, hitting mammoth drives that awed spectators and fellow golfers alike. His unorthodox swing mechanics and carefree attitude stood in stark contrast to the meticulously cultivated techniques of many of his contemporaries. This approach paid off remarkably when he won the 1991 PGA Championship as the ninth alternate, becoming one of the biggest underdog stories in golf history.
It’s in this context that the legend of the John Daly 0 iron emerged. The story goes that during a practice round at the 2009 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black, Daly faced a shot from the rough that required both distance and precision. Unfazed by the challenge, he reportedly pulled out a club that was bafflingly labeled as a 0 iron. With this mythical club in hand, Daly took his stance and executed a shot that sailed beautifully onto the green, leaving both spectators and fellow players in a state of disbelief.
However, it’s important to clarify that the 0 iron in Daly’s bag was not a traditional club labeled as such. Rather, it was a clever piece of improvisation, often attributed to Daly’s resourceful caddie. The 0 iron was essentially a heavily modified club, typically a 5 wood or hybrid, with the loft adjusted to mimic the characteristics of a non-existent 0 iron. This ingenuity allowed Daly to navigate challenging situations on the course in his own inimitable style.
The tale of the John Daly 0 iron, whether completely accurate or somewhat embellished by the passage of time, encapsulates the maverick spirit of a golfer who refused to conform to conventions. It showcases Daly’s willingness to go against the grain, embrace creativity, and find innovative solutions to the challenges presented by the game of golf. While the traditionalists might raise an eyebrow at the idea of a 0 iron, for Daly, it was just another example of his fearless and unapologetic approach to the sport he loves.
Iron Golf Club Brands
| Brand | Model | Loft | Shaft |
|---|---|---|---|
| Titleist | T100 (check latest price) | 7° | Steel |
| Callaway | Apex (check latest price) | 8° | Graphite |
| Ping | i210 (check latest price) | 6° | Steel |
| TaylorMade | P7MC (check latest price) | 7° | Steel |
| Mizuno | JPX921 Forged (check latest price) | 6° | Graphite |
| Srixon | ZX7 (check latest price) | 7° | Steel |
| Cobra | King Tour (check latest price) | 8° | Graphite |
| Wilson | Staff Model (check latest price) | 6° | Steel |
| Honma | TW-X (check latest price) | 7° | Steel |
| Bridgestone | Tour B JGR HF2 (check latest price) | 8° | Graphite |
Iron Golf Club Specifications
| Model | Loft | Lie Angle | Club Length (inches) | Swing Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T100 | 7° | 62.5° | 37.5 | D2 |
| Apex | 8° | 64° | 37.75 | D1 |
| i210 | 6° | 62.5° | 37.25 | D2 |
| P7MC | 7° | 62° | 37.75 | D4 |
| JPX921 Forged | 6° | 62° | 37.25 | D2 |
| ZX7 | 7° | 62.5° | 37.75 | D3 |
| King Tour | 8° | 64° | 38 | D3 |
| Staff Model | 6° | 62.5° | 37.5 | D3 |
| TW-X | 7° | 62.5° | 37.75 | D2 |
| Tour B JGR HF2 | 8° | 64° | 37.75 | D2 |
Iron Golf Club Shaft Options
| Model | Shaft | Flex | Weight (grams) | Torque |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T100 | True Temper AMT Tour White | Stiff | 120 | 2.1 |
| Apex | Project X Catalyst | Regular | 75 | 4.5 |
| i210 | Dynamic Gold 120 | Stiff | 120 | 1.8 |
| P7MC | Project X LZ | Extra Stiff | 130 | 1.8 |
| JPX921 Forged | UST Mamiya Recoil ESX | Regular | 67 | 3.2 |
| ZX7 | Dynamic Gold 120 | Stiff | 120 | 1.8 |
| King Tour | KBS $-Taper Lite | Regular | 105 | 2.5 |
| Staff Model | KBS Tour | Stiff | 120 | 2.1 |
| TW-X | True Temper Dynamic Gold 120 | Stiff | 120 | 1.8 |
| Tour B JGR HF2 | MMT Taper | Regular | 86 | 3.3 |
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