The 0311 Gen5 family from PXG includes three iron models for a range of player skills, each with redesigned clubheads and weighting plus a newly formulated polymer core material.
Fast Facts PXG 0311 Gen5 Irons
Five step 8620 carbon steel forged bodies
CNC milled back
Hollow-body construction
Maraging steel forged face
Inverted U-shaped Power Channel
Adjustable tungsten weighting
XCOR2 polymer core
Stock shafts: Project X Cypher, True Temper Elevate 95
Stock grip: PXG
Two finishes: Chrome ($349 per club), Xtreme Dark ($449 per club)
0311 XP Gen5
Super game-improvement category
Largest clubhead, wide sole & thick topline
Lofts: 5-iron 20°, pitching wedge 41°
0311 P Gen5
Game improvement category
Smaller clubhead less offset
Lofts: 5-iron 23°, pitching wedge 44°
0311 T Gen5
Better player category
Smallest clubhead minimal offset
Lofts: 5-iron 25°, pitching wedge 46°
WYNTK
PXG is promoting the irons in their latest club family as hitting the ball greater distances with more effective control and less dispersion with increased forgiveness. How much of this is marketing hyperbole and how much accurately depicts the performance of the 0311 Gen5 irons is yet to be determined and as always, the final evaluation will be done by those who purchase them.
PXG Founder and CEO Bob Parsons, with characteristic bravado, said in the introductory announcement, “We absolutely killed it with these clubs. GEN5 is better in every way possible. From explosive distance to tight dispersion, to the oh-so sweet feel of forgiveness on every shot, these clubs are a master class in performance!”
A couple of features deserve our attention. The hollow heads are filled with a new lighter weight polymer which means head weight is pushed to the perimeter, a tried-and-true way of increasing a club’s forgiveness. The polymer also provides backing for the very thin face (the company categorizes is as the thinnest in the industry) and PXG says this improves both head stability (higher COR) and better ball speed, hence more yardage.
Rather than a slot in the sole behind the face all three models have a unique inverted U-shaped channel forged in the face’s interior put there to help energy transfer to the ball especially when impact is above the face center. Head weighting is accomplished with five tungsten screws, three towards the toe and two towards the heel, versus the four in the Gen4 model, plus there’s a large screw in the middle that may be replaced to achieve an ideal fit prior to purchase.
Of course, all this comes at a price. A seven-club set of 0311 Gen5s with a Chrome finish comes to $2,443 while in the Xtreme Dark finish they are $3,143 though this is $25 less per iron than the previous Gen4 model. Selling at these numbers puts a set at roughly a thousand dollars more than top of the line irons from the major manufacturers.
