Tour Edge Hot Launch 521 Irons & Iron Woods
With two very different golf clubs in the Tour Edge Hot Launch 521 irons family, the C521 irons and E521 iron woods deliver incredible forgiveness, strong performance, and just flat out make the game easier. The Hot Launch C521 irons are designed for the more competitive player looking for performance, distance, and forgiveness. The Hot Launch E521 iron woods are extreme game improvement clubs with incredible forgiveness designed solely to make the game of golf easier for the player that will take all the help they can get. Regardless of which iron you go with, they come at one of the best values in the golf business. Strap in, there’s a lot to cover here!
The Looks
Both the Tour Edge Hot Launch C521 irons and E521 iron woods have definitive game improvement looks. The C521 irons have traditional game improvement looks from address with noticeable offset, a thicker topline, and a longer face. This is, of course, by design for this type of iron and what you should expect. Tour Edge did a good job of smoothing out the cavity to make the iron look less bulky with its sleek black, silver, and blue color scheme. Another nice touch here is what Tour Edge calls the “Champfered Face” which essentially blends the face into the topline with a bevel. This allowed Tour Edge to make the face taller without making the topline look thicker. Overall, competitive players who need/want the tech of the C521 but desire a more traditional look will want to go this route.
You first have to remember that the Tour Edge Hot Launch E521 iron woods are for players less concerned with looks and just want to be able to hit the ball straighter, farther, and higher. Ok, you still want the club to look good too. As such, the Hot Launch E521 iron woods are designed to do just that by borrowing “metalwood properties” to maximize speed and distance. This is also comes through in the E521’s appearance. From address, yes, the club is a little bulky but Tour Edge did a good job of blending the topline into the black body of the club. Take a look at the sole of the club and you get your first glance of the innovative Houdini Sole which we’ll cover later. Yes, the offset is significant, but this plays a major role in the overall forgiveness of these clubs.
How Does it Feel?
Though both clubs feel extremely forgiving across the face, these two clubs feel quite a bit different which is to be expected. The Tour Edge Hot Launch C521 irons feel silky smooth throughout the swing with the stock Aldila Rogue shaft and crisp through the turf. Pretty much any shot you hit feels hot off the face, even when you dig a little deeper than you expected. Frankly, I was blown away with how many shots I swore were dead based on how fat I hit it, but still jumped and didn’t really lose distance.
Feel is where you really start realizing the “metalwood properties” of the E521 iron woods. By giving the E521 a hollow body with extreme perimeter weighting, the iron wood is well balanced and easy to control throughout the swing. Like the C521, the E521 has good jump across the whole face, but the overall forgiveness is quite a bit higher. This is largely to do with the Houdini Sole and how it interacts with the turf. The unique sole design reduces the amount of sole area on the club, which reduces drag through the turf by 35%. This means that even on fat shots, the thicker sole will track through the turf cleaner and more of the face will make contact with the ball. The end result is a clean skim through the ground and solid impact.
How Does it Sound?
Both Tour Edge Hot Launch 521 irons have sounds that match up perfectly with their feel. The C521 irons have a nice full-bodied “snap” pretty much everywhere on the face aside from super extreme misses. A good shot results in kind of a “whoosh” through the turf, even with a moderate divot. Should you take a thicker, deep divot, the sound will fall somewhere between a rip and a thump.
Common theme here, I was really impressed with the E521 in this area. I’ve seen many irons and iron woods similar to these that sound very metallic and very fairway wood-ish. I understand that some people may not care as long as the performance and feel are there, but I just don’t like to have that in this area of the bag. Impressively, the E521 iron woods didn’t sound anything like that whatsoever to me. As long as you find somewhere in the quite forgiving face, the sound is a tight “whack”. There is a hint of a metallic tone that will be more prominent at lower swing speeds.
C521 Irons On-Course Performance
Like I mentioned at the beginning of the review, the two Tour Edge Hot Launch 521 irons are designed to perform very differently. The more competitive player looking for more traditional looks, but extra forgiveness and distance is the target audience of the C521 irons. There are some clever design implementations utilized to create a lower and “further back” center of gravity (CG). It starts with the wider sole bringing more weight low, but that also allowed for the cavity to be cut deeper. By doing so, the CG is moved a little more toward the rear of the the club. Then by adding some weight in the toe, the face’s sweet spot is elongated. You might be thinking “more toe weight means fade bias” but this is comfortably managed by the offset hosel. That design combo creates an easy launching straight flight with a hint of built-in draw.
One thing worth noting is that the C521 irons are “power lofted”. That means they’re lofted a little stronger in each club for more distance and less spin, which is common in modern distance irons. From that perspective, the natural inclination for the C521 to launch higher pairs well with stronger lofts to avoid balloons and still get good carry yardages.
E521 Irons On-Course Performance
Everything about the E521 iron woods is designed for forgiveness and making the game easier. I referred to the Houdini Sole managing turf interaction earlier, but it really does make it easier to keep the face square and reduce the suffering you’d normally expected from hitting fat shots. That Houdini Sole also lowers the CG and moves it further back in the club to make it much easier to launch and get carrying. Then there’s the shallower face which promotes higher launch angles to make getting the ball in the air easier – much like a fairway wood. Even at slower swing speeds, the E521 iron wood makes it incredibly easy to get the ball up in the air.
Take everything I just mentioned and add in an offset design which promotes squaring the face at impact. Between my own testing and collaborating with my friend, Kris McEwen, we found this “slice-fighting offset design” to be the real deal. We couldn’t slice the ball if we tried and even small fades proved difficult. If you’re a player looking for extreme forgiveness and help keeping their irons straight, that’s exactly what you’ll get in the E521 iron woods. I honestly can’t even begin to tell you how easy these iron woods are to hit. Just unbelievably impressive. You’ll have to see for yourself.
Final Thoughts – Tour Edge Hot Launch 521 Irons
Listen, all I really have to say to wrap up this review is that the Tour Edge Hot Launch 521 irons and iron woods are extremely impressive and come at a price point where the quality will be difficult to beat. It’s unsurprising that the HL 521 irons and iron woods turned out to be good, BUT I didn’t expect both sets of clubs to actually be as great as they were. The C521 irons were incredibly impressive to me and seemed almost effortless to play.
As much as I enjoyed the C521, the E521 iron woods totally stood out the most to me. The E521 iron woods were easily one of the most forgiving sets of “irons” I’ve ever hit. I couldn’t miss right if I tried, and let’s be honest, I’m not a perfect golfer. Plenty of bad swings were made where the E521s not only bailed me out, but gave me a good result that I definitely didn’t deserve. My final verdict: I would wholeheartedly recommend the E521 to anyone that just wants their iron game to be easy. As Kris McEwen says, “the E521 iron wood is a cheat code.” He’s not wrong.
Stock Tour Edge Hot Launch 521 Irons & Iron Woods Specs
Hot Launch C521
Aldila Rogue Shaft
| Club # | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | PW | AW | SW | LW |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loft º | 22º | 25º | 28º | 31º | 35º | 40º | 44º | 49º | 54º | 59º |
| Lie º | 61º | 61.5º | 62º | 62.5º | 63º | 63.5º | 64º | 64º | 64º | 64º |
| Length | 38.75″ | 38.25″ | 37.75″ | 37.25″ | 36.75″ | 36.25″ | 35.75″ | 35.5″ | 35.25″ | 35″ |
Hot Launch E521 Ironwoods
Fubuki HD Shaft
| Club # | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | PW | AW |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loft º | 20º | 23º | 26º | 29º | 32º | 36º | 40º | 44º | 49º |
| Lie º | 60º | 60.5º | 61º | 62º | 62.5º | 63º | 63.5º | 64º | 64º |
| Length | 39.25″ | 38.75″ | 38.25″ | 37.75″ | 37.25″ | 36.75″ | 36.25″ | 35.75″ | 35.5″ |
Does each club come with a headcover like in the photos?
In the E series, every club EXCEPT the wedges comes with a headcover, yes.
Where can I go buy a set?
Hit up their site, they have a dealer locator.
Do the E521 single iron come with head cover?
My understanding is yes.
I think I’m probably a perfect target user for the E521’s – 60 years old, slow club/swing speed, just been playing a few years, and not too proud to take all the help I can get.
I had a chance to hit some balls with the E521’s during a club fitting – these felt great, and made for solid ball contact and easy flight. I put in an order, but these must be flying off the shelf. My driver and hybrid will be delivered ASAP, but the ironwoods won’t ship for 2 months (early May).
The E521 ironwoods almost seem like a hybrid to me, so I’m a bit confused as to when I might reach for a 5 hybrid club vs the 5 ironwood.
Could you explain the use case or differentiation between the hybrids and these particular E521 ironwoods?
Thanks,
Molly
Just think of your ironwoods like an iron. The 5 hybrid is a degree stronger, but the club shape also lends itself to different launch and distances. There’s also an argument to be had that you might use one or the other depending on your comfort level with the club.
Thank you for the prompt reply. Once I have both the hybrid and the ironwoods, I will take them to the range and compare distances, and pay attention out on the course as well.
And it does make sense when you suggest that my comfort level with the club will dictate selection. Comfort level, superstitious vibe, or generally feeling cursed by a particular club at a given moment….. ???
It is possible you’ll find the two clubs overlap a bit. I just know from my experience, I’ve never seen a hybrid really play 1:1 with its iron counterpart. Like for me, if I want to replace my 3 iron with a more forgiving hybrid, I’d put a 4 hybrid in its place. So my set would go 4 hybrid, 4 iron, 5 iron, etc… But that’s just me!
Hi Bill,
Just thought I’d provide some info regarding the E521’s. I place an order for a set of the ladies E521’s on March 4 after a fitting with a local dealer. I got the driver right away, and we were told that the ironwoods wouldn’t arrive until early May.
I check in mid-May, and Tour Edge said it would be the end of the month. We checked again last week, and were told August!
I finally gave up, because it seemed like whatever rough date they were telling us had no basis in reality. My local golf shop said that Tour Edge was wanting them to place orders now for next spring! I ordered some Callaway Max W irons (I’ve got a combo newbie-ish & 60-year old lady swing ?). The Callaway clubs should be available (custom fit) within 2 weeks.
I figured that you might want to know that Tour Edge is clearly having supply chain issues. It’s too bad, because I think I was the perfect target audience for these clubs. Hopefully, they will figure out their issues, because I think there is a need for a low to mid-range price custom fit club for many golfers.
I’m curious if you have heard from other golfers having these problems with Tour Edge lately.
Thanks,
Molly
I personally know that that line specifically has been extremely in demand (probably after all of our content about how good it is, obviously) and that, like everyone, the supply chain has been severely impacted so keeping up with the huge demand. I would implore anyone looking to get into these clubs specifically to be patient. They’re worth it.
is it necessary to keep the covers on the e521 iron woods as it is a pain to keep taking them off and on
No, it’s up to you if you want to use the covers or not.
1.) Can these clubs be bent to adjust the lie, how much does is cost per club ?
2.) can they be ordered with mid sized grips ?
1) Cost depends on where you take it to get worked on and what they charge. In terms of loft and lie adjustments, are you talking the C or E series?
2) yes, I believe so. Check the Tour Edge site.
Just bought a set of E521, these hit the ball on average 20 yards farther than there iron counterpart. I am 60 with an 85mph club head speed, typical fade bias, which has no becom draw bias.
Who are these designed for……..what handicap?
It’s not really about handicap, but more about how you strike the ball and what you’re looking for out of the gear. I’d say the E521 Series is definitely geared toward the players that need all the help they can get. The C521 is geared toward the player that’s comfortable swinging the club, but can definitely benefit from some extra forgiveness.
Where can you buy them
I’d start with Tour Edge’s website as they’re sold all over the place, but they also have this list of online retailers on their site.
https://www.touredge.com/onlineretailers
Do you think the lower lofted E521 can replace traditional hybrids or fairway woods?
Fairway woods might be a stretch, but I suppose hybrids in some cases, sure. But at that point, I’d likely just go with an #521 hybrid.
Are you doing a demo in the villages of Florida this year
We aren’t Tour Edge, but you can click a link in the review and reach out to them directly through their website to see if they can help you out. Good luck.
I had a set of Cleveland Launcher turbo and observed a severe loss of distance compared to my M2 irons (130 yds v. 150 yds). Is this a similar problem with the E521 ironwoods regarding distance.
I don’t think there’s any real way to evaluate it. Do you have any idea what caused the loss in distance between the two other clubs? Like, did you compare any speeds, launch angles, spin rates, smash factors, angle of attacks, flights, dispersion, etc between the two?
Regardless, there wouldn’t be any way to blindly determine if you’ll experience something similar with a third club without hitting it and seeing exactly what your shot/swing data looks like.