Honma TR20 B Irons Review

Some golfers just aren’t satisfied unless they have a blade in their hands. I’m as guilty as anyone. There is no denying the sheer beauty that comes from looking down at a set of the best blade irons. 

That’s why I was eager to try out the TR20 B irons from Honma. In this review, I give all my thoughts from testing: the good, the bad and everything in between. 

First of all, let’s start with the looks, and for me, this club is about as good as it gets. From a purely visual perspective, I love the slightly grainy finish that Honma has gone for with this one-piece muscleback, as well as the subtle design on the back of the blade.

And behind the ball is excellent too. While the topline is thin, they are still inviting to hit, especially as you work through the bag. The lack of offset is also a big plus in this department, but it does make the longer clubs quite intimidating. For those who want supreme looks in the mid-short irons, a combo set could be the way to go.

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Onto the feel and it’s soft, very soft. To an extent, it’s what you would expect from a proper blade but it’s still impressive nonetheless. The immense feedback can, in part, be attributed to the S20C forged head, which isn’t a typical material used in club construction.

Middle strikes feel incredibly good, while the slightly wider surface area between the heel and toe means there is some forgiveness to work with as well. In addition, the high-toe, low-heel design gives the TR20 B a slight draw bias, which will be music to the ears of the overeager faders out there.

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At the moment I use a set of cavity-back irons, so when it came to distance I lost out with the TR20 B. However, some of this deficit can be attributed to the fact that they are shorter than those currently in my bag, as well as the fact that they hadn't been fitted to me.

The main issue I found was that I struggled to flight the ball into the wind. In flat calm conditions, they were a dream, offering up tremendous control, but into a fresh breeze, these did not perform as well as I expected. 

Again, they haven’t been optimised for my swing, which will have played a role, but no matter what I did, the ball seemed to balloon in the air. It was particularly noticeable given I play virtually all of my golf on a links course. 

Despite this, I would recommend the Honma TR20 B irons to anyone looking for a new set of blades. With looks and feel to rival anything on the market, I've no doubt getting fitted will be the key to unlocking that missing bit of performance.