The appearance of the Alpha Reactions has pleased everyone (even our Frenchman who doesn’t think that the color blue should be allowed on golf clubs). These are attractive, modern-looking irons that look more expensive than they actually are. The fit and finish on these heads and shafts is good. These Alphas look and feel like quality irons.
The stainless steel Reactions are undercut cavity backs with a touch of muscleback in their design. Called a pocket cavity by Kent Sports, this deep, semi-internal cavity has a weight pod in the back to give added punch to trajectories. (See article: Undercut Cavities) The heads on these game improvement irons are moderately oversized. The progressive offsets run from a slight 1mm in the PW to a pronounced 5.5mm in the 3-iron. The Reactions set up cleanly and nicely at address. Their toplines are relatively thin by game improvement iron standards.
When hit particularly thin, the feeling of the Reactions at impact can be a little unpleasant. The majority of the time, however, it is decidedly sweet and solid. These Alphas come across as light and well balanced in the hands. Everything about them is smooth, graceful and airy. In fact, a couple of our testers tended to swing these irons too easily – as though they were soft, senior flex irons. For a while, we thought that the lengths produced by the Reactions were a bit too short for most players. It took a bit of time to realize that these smooth hitting cavity backs took well to higher swing speeds. They remain quite stable when cranked up. The Alpha Platinum shafts are filament wound graphite with a torque of 3.3 degrees. They can accommodate a wide range of swing speeds. Our stiff-flex testers had little problem controlling these regular-flex shafts.
In our article about Undercut Cavities, we use a hammer analogy to illustrate how mass located back from the impact point optimizes the force delivered by a blow. Hammers are long and pointy for a reason. If tapping small nails were all that was to be done, any shape hammer would suffice. But for driving large nails in hard and fast, mass back behind the impact point is more effective. So it is with the Reaction’s small weight-pod. When hit hard, the ball flies with a more tour-like trajectory. Its path starts low and curves slightly upwards. When hit hard, balls fly strong with good penetration. When hit easy, the trajectories are higher and more softly arched.
Forgiveness with all irons throughout this set was ample. The long irons proved to be quite manageable. While using them for extended ball-testing sessions, their results were consistently long and accurate. Our crew found that hitting the short irons and wedges was particularly enjoyable. Shots flew high and soft for good, easy distances. A SW was included with the demo set. It turned out to a friendly, likeable wedge that produced consistently decent results. It’s not a wedge for low-handicappers, but most mid- to high-handicappers should see satisfying results with it.
The Reactions will suit many players who tend to overhit their irons. They inspire smoothness and restraint. This triple combination of soft Winn grips, smooth, filament wound shafts and large, forgiving cavity backs makes for a mellow hitting experience. Those who tend to ease off on their swings through impact may prefer a more aggressive set of irons. Or, they may prefer this set in senior-flex shafts and thinner, non-Winn grips. We used the Reactions for some of our extended ball testing sessions. They proved to be very low-stress irons. During long sessions of pounding balls with various irons, all appreciated switching back to the pleasant Alphas. Range hounds will find that the Reactions are very easy and comfortable to use for protracted periods of time.
Undercut cavities, in general, add more punch to the ball, but sole-weighted irons do a better job of getting it airborne. They get a higher percentage of mass below the ball at impact. From thick lies and heavy rough, the Reactions work reasonably well, but they do lack the authority produced by sole-weighted irons. On the other hand, the Reactions hit a flatter, more dynamic shot from better lies than most sole-weighted irons. The sole-weighted irons we hit in direct comparison, such as the Titleist 762’s and Cleveland Quadpros, hit higher, more arched trajectories.
Summary: The handsome and refined-looking Alpha Reactions from Kent Sports are smooth, easy-swinging irons with undercut cavities. They have a sweet, luxurious feel to them. Forgiveness is ample on mishits. Performance parameters are good across the board and will suit a wide range of high- to mid-handicappers. The Reactions should prove more than satisfactory to those who desire a luxury, graphite-shafted set of game improvement irons, but do not want to take out a second mortgage to finance the purchase. Those who need maximum launch height might look into sole-weighted irons, however.
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