Nike NDS Irons Review – Still Good And Forgiving for High Handicappers?

Nike NDS Irons Review – Still Good And Forgiving for High Handicappers?

“There was an era in which Nike Golf was churning out quality irons on a consistent basis.”

Nike Golf may be an afterthought in 2023, but I can remember a time that their clubs were highly-coveted by casual players and amateurs alike. The Nike NDS irons came out of that era.

And while Nike doesn’t make amazing clubs anymore, their old clubs are still worth a look. Today we will be revisiting the Nike NDS irons. I tested these irons to see if they are still worth gaming for high handicappers.

Are Nike NDS Irons Still Good?

“When I first got the Nike NDS irons in for testing, I was very impressed with their looks.”

I knew before I got the Nike NDS irons that they were game improvement irons. But when I actually had them in my hands, I was surprised at how understated they were. These irons don’t scream, “game improvement.” They have clean lines, the cavity back doesn’t look like a cereal bowl and the top line is moderate.

Overall these irons look really nice. The Nike NDS irons feature progressive weight ports in the heels and toes. The weights shrink in the short irons but are pretty prominent in the long irons. The offset is also prominent in the long irons but it too is progressive. So the scoring irons have a more squared look behind the ball and offer excellent distance and trajectory control.

The Nike NDS irons are cast from 431 stainless steel. While this construction is a far cry from forging, the Nike NDS irons still have a really responsive, satisfying feel. You don’t feel the ball melt into the face on contact; but there is enough substance there to let you know where you hit the ball.

The only thing that isn’t moderate on these irons is the sole. The soles are definitely on the wide side; but it isn’t gaudy. There is enough heft to let you cut through the turf but not enough to make these irons look ugly at address.

In terms of looks and feel, the Nike NDS irons are definitely still good. They can hold up against any  modern game improvement irons and then some. But how did they perform?

Are the Nike NDS Irons Forgiving for High Handicappers?

“The Nike NDS irons performed very much like the other Nike irons that I have tested recently.”

It seems that Nike was using the same playbook in the era that the Nike NDS irons came out. And that’s not a bad thing. Like other Nike irons from this era, there Nike NDS’s have only one weakness that I could suss out: distance. The distance wasn’t bad; but I’ve played longer game improvement irons.

With the 7-iron, I was getting 155.6 yards on average. Again, this is nothing to sneeze at; but high handicappers may need a bit more help in the distance department. But the Nike NDS irons really bring it when it comes to forgiveness and accuracy. The blade length is pretty long which makes for a wide sweet spot.

The perimeter weight ports caught almost all my mis-hits. Only the worst mis-hits (extreme heel or extreme toe) were being punished with gaudy spin numbers and loss of ball speed.

I really liked the turf interaction of these irons. They feel smooth off the deck. In the cabbage, they allow for clean contact. There’s not much else you can ask for. The weight ports also helped keep my ball on target. I loved the dispersion I was getting. On mis-hits, my ball never landed more than 12 yards away from the target. On pure strikes, the dispersion shrank to about 4-5 yards.

The Nike NDS irons allow for near-effortless accuracy. While they may lack distance, I would still say they are excellent irons for high handicappers because accuracy is usually the nemesis of high handicappers. The Nike NDS irons will help you slay that nemesis.

Nike NDS Vs Nike Pro Combo Irons

“The Pro Combo irons feature deep cavity back long irons, bladed short irons and shallow cavity back mid irons.”

Plus, the Pro Combo irons are forged. The Nike Pro Combo irons are truly remarkable.  They offer forgiveness comparable to the Nike NDS irons; but with a softer forged feel. If you want premium feel with forgiveness, try the Nike Pro Combo irons.