Titleist 716 CB Review

Pros and Cons of the Titleist 716 CB Irons

The Titleist 716 CB (Cavity Blade) is what I like to refer to as a “muscle back” design. Titleist describes the player who would benefit the most from this design as ”golfer seeking shot control with forgiveness and forged feel”. The same tungsten treatment used in both the AP1’s and the AP2’s is also prevalent in the CB model. The tungsten serves to; lower the CG (Center of Gravity), enlarge the sweet spot, increase stability by lowering the torque and maximize forgiveness. As is the case in other Titleist irons, the tungsten is used only in the 3 – 7 irons.

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Distance

With the 716 CB irons, it is not so much about overall distance than it is about distance control. They have not delofted these irons as some of the other manufacturers’ irons in this class have done. Although the distance is nice, better players are far more interested in distance control.

Feel

The predecessor to the 716 CB irons was, of course, the 714 CB. The difference with the 716 CB’s is the use of tungsten. Not only does tungsten affect the CG, it also affects the MOI (Moment of Inertia) which greatly adds stability to these irons, especially the longer irons. The more stable the club at impact, the better feedback you get from both center hits and off-center hits. The “muscle back” that I referred to earlier is a term I use to describe the feeling you get from both seeing the extra mass behind the sweet spot and feeling it at impact. The fact that these irons are forged also contribute to the soft feel throughout the set.

Forgiveness

It is true that both the AP1’s and AP2’s rate higher in the forgiveness category over the CB’s, however, these irons are geared towards a lower handicap player that is a more consistent ball striker. The forgiveness afforded in the CB’s comes from the tungsten infusion. As mentioned in the introduction, the tungsten affects many things in the area of forgiveness; larger sweet spot, lower CG and increased stability. All in all, I believe the CB’s combine forgiveness and distance quite nicely.

Looks

The size of the CB irons is not that different from the AP2’s (the CB’s are slightly smaller). The topline is best described as solid…not thick like a cavity back and not thin and intimidating like a blade. There is a classic look to these irons that is prevalent in most Titleist product.

Custom Fitting Options

Titleist users tend to be dedicated golf enthusiasts who know the benefits of having your clubs custom fit. All of the basic fitting issues can and should be addressed by a club fitter. With the material being a forged steel, your lie angles can be adjusted somewhat more than the AP1 or AP2 irons.  A new one is offered by Titleist and True Temper. It is called the Dynamic Gold AMT (Alternating Mass Technology). Basically the shaft weight increases by 3 grams in each club. By the time you get to the shorter irons, it is the same weight as a traditional Dynamic Gold shaft.

Specifications

• Right Hand/Left Hand
• Forged steel club head
• Available 2 through PW
• Steel (Dynamic Gold AMT)
• D2 swing weight

PROS

• Speed from the high density tungsten, low CG design
• Speed on off-center hits from the co-forged, high-density tungsten weights
• Precise, Tour-proven trajectory through the set from the optimized CG progression
• Precise turf performance with less dig from the pre-worn leading edge
• Solid forged feel and feedback

CONS

Average distance. A bit on the heavy side. Overall, not many bad things to say about this model.

Are These Clubs for You

The Titleist 716 CB is an excellent choice if you don’t quite want to make the jump to a full-blown blade style club. It would also satisfy a player who might be finding his/her blades a little too unforgiving. Definitely a players club that will give performance oriented golfers satisfaction if they choose this iron.

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