Taylormade launched its new Shape in Motion (SIM) iron range for 2020, vowing a seamless combination of distance and feel. The Taylormade Sim Max Irons undoubtedly provided the brand the opportunity to shake up its industry-leading iron and wood range with this gem of a game improvement iron for beginners and high-handicappers.
Specifications:
- Stock shaft: KBS Max 85 steel, Fujikura Ventus Blue graphite
- Stock grip: Lamkin Crossline 360
- Extra-thin 1.5mm face with Progressive Inverted Cone Technology
- Handicap range: High, Mid
- Best for: Male & Female players
- Hands: Both
- Set Makeup: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, PW
- Launch Date: February 7, 2020
- Launch Price: $899.99
Speed Bridge Structure
The Speed Bridge structure supports the topline for a sturdy club with remarkable distance and forgiveness, as well as improved sound and feel. It also toughens the clubhead, allowing faster ball speeds by reducing energy loss upon impact. Finally, the topline support helps reduce low-frequency vibrations for improved impact sound.
ECHO Damping System
The ECHO Damping system is a unique design that instantly eliminates jarring vibrations upon impact, improving feel without sacrificing face flexibility.
Speed Pocket
One of TaylorMade’s patented technologies, the Speed Pocket, enhances face flexibility for increased forgiveness and ball speed on shots hit low on the face.
Progressive Inverted Cone Technology
Progressive Inverted Cone Technology accurately pinpoints the structure particular to each iron face to expand the size of the sweet spot and reduce side spin. When combined with an ultra-thin 1.5mm face, you achieve maximum ball speed all around the face.
The Taylormade Sim Max Irons Set
| Club | Loft | Length | Lie | Offset | Bounce | Swing Weight |
| 4-iron | 19° | 39.125″ | 61.5° | 5.8 mm | 2° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| 5-iron | 21.5° | 38.50″ | 62.0° | 5.2 mm | 3° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| 6-iron | 25° | 37.88″ | 62.5° | 4.7 mm | 5° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| 7-iron | 28.5° | 37.25″ | 63.0° | 4.2 mm | 5° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| 8-iron | 32.5° | 36.75″ | 63.5° | 3.5 mm | 6.5° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| 9-iron | 38° | 36.25″ | 64.0° | 3 mm | 7° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| Pitching Wedge | 43.5° | 35.75″ | 64.5° | 2.6 mm | 7.5° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| Approach Wedge | 49° | 35.50″ | 64.5° | 2 mm | 7.5° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| Sand Wedge | 54° | 35.25″ | 64.5° | 1.5 mm | 9° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
| Lob Wedge | 59° | 35.00″ | 64.5° | 1.5 mm | 9° | D1 Steel/D0 Graphite |
Key Features and Benefits
Player Handicap
TaylorMade offers a diverse range of iron sets to accommodate all player types and styles. These TaylorMade SIM MAX irons are undoubtedly game improvement irons for mid to high handicap players.
Shaft Options
The steel shaft option for TaylorMade SIM MAX Irons is the KBS MAX 85. It’s an outstanding stock option available for various other brands. The KBS MAX 85 is a mid-weight, high-spin, and high-launch shaft that suits the majority of golfers pretty well.
The new shaft that TaylorMade released in 2020 is the Fujikura Ventus Blue Shaft. It’s a lightweight, mid-spin, and mid-launch shaft for golfers who prefer the feel and distance of a shaft made of graphite.
Ever since TaylorMade manufactured the SIM MAX irons, various custom shafts can also be fitted in these irons. However, both stock options we mentioned are already excellent shafts, to begin with.
Look/Sound/Feel
TaylorMade’s primary goal when building these SIM MAX irons was to improve the sound and feel prevalent to older iron models.
To improve the sound, TaylorMade employed a sound engineer to develop the Echo Damping system. This mechanism rapidly counteracts any extreme vibrations upon impact.
Meanwhile, TaylorMade’s SpeedBridge technology contributed to increased clubhead stability, allowing for a forged-like feel.
Before, golfers had to pick between the feel of forged and the performance of a cavity back. TaylorMade is working to bridge that gap and make this a much simpler decision.
These SIM MAX irons are identical to the M6 iron in many aspects. Particularly, the Speedbridge and Speed Pocket make the design of the two models fairly similar, while the SIM MAX OS is a little larger with a full sole.
Distance
The SIM MAX Irons were constructed with a 17 percent thinner clubface. The reasoning behind this is to maximize the amount of jump the ball takes off the face. Thanks to this incredibly thin clubface and Speedbridge technology, the Taylormade SIM MAX are some of the longest irons on the market.
This is no longer surprising given how lengthy the M6 irons were when they were released.
One thing about TaylorMade is that they don’t mess around with ball speed when it comes to their irons. The Sim MAX is no different and will undoubtedly assist you if distance is an area of concern in your game.
Forgiveness
TaylorMade debuted the inverted cone technology, in addition to the overall design of this iron being exceptionally forgiving. The inverted cone explains why the four-iron has more forgiveness than the pitching wedge.
The long irons are slightly more offset and feature a wider sole to aid in maintaining consistent ball speed and launch even on the tougher irons to hit.
The ultra-thin face allows the Sim MAX Irons’ center of gravity to be exceptionally low, facilitating a high launch.
Price
When they were released in the market, the Taylormade Sim Max Irons have a slightly lower introductory price for steel shafts than their graphite variant and is within the usual price tag of newly-released products.
Verdict
The majority of high-handicap golfers struggle to find the center of the face consistently. That’s a well-known fact.
TaylorMade’s SIM Max Irons is intended to simplify things by focusing on mis-hit mitigation. The iron is distinguished by an ultrathin 1.5-millimeter face and a 360-degree undercut in the cavity that generates plenty of horsepower.
The Inverted Cone Technology increases the sweet spot, but rather than keeping it in the middle of the face for every iron, it was purposefully moved closer to the toe on the long irons to create a draw bias. Also, to reduce undesirable vibrations around the perimeter, an Echo Dampening System in the lower portion of the cavity works in tandem with a mass-efficient beam spanning the rear bar. It also imparts the buttery feel of a forged-construction product to the multi-material iron.
The SIM Max fulfills all the requirements of a game-improvement model. Robot testing found that the iron was three yards longer in the carry department than the competition on average. Even mis-hits yielded favorable outcomes, and the positive feedback from players helps cement SIM Max’s place towards the top of the game improvement irons’ pecking order.
