The story behind the blade irons you never knew Tiger Woods used

Every golfer knows that Tiger Woods has used custom Mizuno, Titleist, Nike and TaylorMade blade irons throughout his professional career. But did you know, before he switched to Mizuno irons, Woods used Daiwa Advisor DG-273 irons in 1992 and 1993 as he was dominating the junior circuit?

If you’ve never heard of Daiwa Advisor irons before, you’re likely not alone.  Currently, Daiwa (who still makes golf clubs under the ONOFF name) is better known worldwide for its production of fishing rods, but the company once had its day in the sun in the golf world.

In fact, Ian Baker-Finch won the 1991 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Golf Club using a set of DG-273 blade irons.

The Advisor DG-273 irons were designed in collaboration with David Graham, who won the 1979 PGA Championship and the 1981 U.S. Open Championship. The “273” model number is a reference to Graham’s 273 (7-under par) final score in the ’81 U.S Open at Merion.

Although they were chrome blade irons, they weren’t actually forged as you might expect. Daiwa described the DG-273 musclebacks as the first ever irons on the market to be investment cast from carbon steel.

The irons caught a young Woods’ attention due to their longer blade lengths than what was on the market at the time.

“I am very simple when it comes to my blades,” Woods told GOLF’s Jonathan Wall in 2018. “I like them a certain length. I’ve played blades basically since I was 16-years old, and so I’ve traditionally liked a longer-size blade. Not the Hogan PCs or Apex, which are basically the little bitty ones. Mine are a little bit longer. You know, I remember playing old Daiwa Advisors that Ian Baker-Finch used to play, David Graham played, and so I liked that little longer head. And I like the top line a little bit on the thinner side.”

Woods was particular, and still is to this day, about his iron profiles and specs. What he doesn’t care about, however, is what’s stamped on the back.

“You can put a dancing monkey on the back of a club, I don’t care,” Woods said. “I don’t care what it’s stamped like. Just so it looks good in the playing position.”

If you’re currently selling old Daiwa DG-273 irons, a congratulations is in order. Based on this story, the value of old Daiwa Advisor DG-273 irons just went up.

To hear more gear insights from Jonathan Wall and True Spec’s Tim Briand, subscribe and listen each week to GOLF’s Fully Equipped podcast: iTunes | SoundCloud | Spotify | Stitcher