Equipment
Kevin Na: “I don’t see a reason why you’d want to play a blade” – GolfWRXers have their say
In our forums, our members have been reacting to Kevin Na’s recent comments that blade irons are too difficult to hit and that he last played one in his 20’s when he was “dumb”. Speaking on Golf.com’s Fully Equipped podcast, Na said
“I can’t play a blade. It’s too difficult, and I’m a pro golfer. I think a blade goes shorter. Off-center hits aren’t going to perform as well as cavity-backs. I don’t see a reason why you’d want to play a blade. I really don’t. I played blades in my early 20s, maybe one year — when I was dumb. But I’m wiser now and play a cavity-back.
In the longer irons, I even look for more — I don’t want to say a high-handicapper club — a more forgiving club.”
Our members have been sharing their thoughts on Na’s comments in our forum.
Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.
- llewol07: “If you have not figured it out already, golf is all about playing the equipment that suits you, the game that suits you and really playing your own game. The thing I like about Kevin Na is that he seems a bit cocky and can hold his own as seen when watching him on television. That being said, most tour pros end up playing a combo set anyways and rarely do I see too many blade players. Even pros need an edge to make the game that much more easier to reproduce. Lesson here is to play what works.”
- the bishop: “Na’s remarks need to be taken in context. He makes a living playing golf. If you gave him a set of Apex MB’s and an hour on the range and went out and played with him, you’d probably say he plays blades just fine. But for him, the difference between blades and cavity backs could mean a 25 place difference in his proximity to the hole from 150 yds ranking or something similar. As ThinkingPlus said, “he plays what makes him money”.
- golfpros1: “Play the bag that fits the course and game you play. There are pros and cons with everything. Do what works for you. Most good amateurs can play blades well because they play courses that are 6500 or less with little rough. They have 7 iron or less into most greens. You don’t have to be a pro to get a short iron blade into a receptive green. Start playing 7500-yard course and hitting 4 irons into greens, and you’d be silly to play blades if you do it for any other reason than it makes you happy. It’s all relative. I’ve played blades, CBs, GIs… really didn’t make much of a difference. I found the closer to a blade, the better the short irons would be. The closer to game improvement, the better the long irons would be. So for most people, a mixed bag makes the most sense. Best of both worlds.”
- mcc0819: “Kevin Na is a relatively straight ball hitter from what I’ve seen from him. So it makes sense that a cavity back would work best for him. But someone like Tiger has a blade, and he loves to shape his shots in every which way possible. So I think it depends on the player. If you are a low handicap/scratch golfer, your ball striking would be good enough to play blades especially if you shape your shots. Blades to me equal easier shot shaping but also easier to mishit. So the question is, are you willing to take the hit on the occasional bad strike? I’m a 3 handicap and still playing CB’s because I’ll take any advantage I can get. At the end of that day, that’s what I believe works for me. If you’re a 15+ handicap and want to play blades then, by all means, go get yourself fitted for some blades.”
- soap1984: “I like Na generally, but he’s saying you’re dumb for playing blades which I’m not sure is fair. Like Tiger and Rory play them, and both mis-hit the ball the odd time, the idea is why give up “forgiveness” for no gain, even if you only mishit one shot a round. Blades shouldn’t even exist I guess in his world. If I stink with blades, I will for sure go back to the ap2, but my numbers were not statistically different on mis-hits. If Mizuno made the jpx 919 tour in lefty, I’d prefer to play those, but I want new sticks and just can’t play clubs with thick soles, so my options are limited.”
Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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Peter Malnati WITB 2025 (August)
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Pingback: Do blades negatively impact performance? Or is it all in our heads? – GolfWRXers discuss – GolfWRX
Pelling
Apr 24, 2020 at 10:27 am
I don’t think blades or cavity backs would have made much a difference when Na carded the 16 at the Valero Open…
Vas
Apr 24, 2020 at 9:56 am
I play a combo set of 785s and Z-Forged irons. Should I play all 785s? Probably, but I’ve found very little performance difference between the 7-PW in both models… and the blades look and feel better and are more fun. If I have a great weekend, the difference (if any) may be a $350 pro shop gift certificate instead of a $500 gift certificate. Eh… whatever. My old MP-29s were blades. These Z-Forged are “blades”. The performance these days is really pretty close to the player cavities anyway.
Alex
Apr 23, 2020 at 10:30 am
Kevin Na is a tool, but I couldn’t agree with him more on the blade thing.
drkviol801
Apr 23, 2020 at 8:40 am
Lmao will you look at that, golfwrx braniacs arguing with a tour pro who’s won. What does Kevin Na know about golf?
Dave r
Apr 24, 2020 at 11:07 am
Could not agree more. I never thought I was good enough or had anything to prove to hit ” blades”. Tried them once my fingers are still numb.