Cleveland Golf 588 Altitude

Brand: Cleveland Golf
Game improvement iron: 588 Altitude
Best price: £349
Loft: 27-degree Lie: 62.25-degree
Length: 37.88” Swing Weight: D3
Shaft: CG Traction 85 Grip: Lamkin

Summary: Designed for mid to high handicappers with slower swing speeds, the super game-improvement Cleveland Golf 588 Altitude irons are a blended hybrid-iron set. Every club in the set is engineered to get the ball up into the air easily for both playability and performance. The clubs feature what Cleveland calls Full Hollow Construction. In essence, the clubheads are hollow, with the exception of internal weights that create a lower, deeper centre of gravity to improve both forgiveness and a higher ball flight. Each club in the Altitude set has a forged face to enhance feel and ball speed, along with a bendable hosel. To fit different swing types, the hosels can be bent up to 3-degrees upright or 2-degrees flat and the loft can be bent 2-degrees weaker or stronger.

Appearance: Not the prettiest stick in the world but golf is no fashion show after all. The big, bulbous-looking head shouts “hit the ball, I’ll get it up in the air”, yet it's far too bulky-looking for us to get excited about - lots of clubhead down by the ball with a very thick sole. It's essentially a hybrid and a maximum game improvement club after all, but no doubt there will be many players out there that love this sort of thing. 2.75 (out of 5)

Feel: Soft impact sensation and very much like the Adams Idea Hybrid we tested in the over £400 test in terms of feel. The overall weighting doesn’t overpower you and helps stabilise the head on toe and heel hits. Feels weird to hear a hollow, clippy hybrid sound on a 6-iron shot but that doesn't bother us too much. Weight of shaft will suit the higher handicapper. 7.5 (out of 10)

Performance: The name says it all. At times, the ball goes so high you can serve drinks on its flight and yet, it still manages to clock up the mileage. The wide sole and deep CG makes the 588 Altitude very easy to hit, while the consistently high, soft ball flight makes it possible to land shots on a beach blanket. Very accurate sticks, too. Off-centre hits never stray too far from the target line and lose little distance. All in all, above average distance and very straight. Even thinned shots work out well, and we found it's almost impossible to slice. Not a great deal of workability, though we don't believe that will bother the high handicapper too much. 8.5 (out of 10)

Verdict: Great club for someone just starting out the game or player that needs help with heel and toe hits. Yes you'd probably swipe it left if you saw it on Tinder but don't let the looks put you off. You don't paint pictures on a scorecard remember. Decent distance on offer considering the height it travels. Best price of £350 looks reasonable. 18.75 (out of 25)

Next up, Cleveland 588 MT iron