MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons Review

PGA Professional Joe Ferguson has been putting the MacGregor MT-86 OS irons through their paces out on the course…

Photo of the MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons
(Image credit: Future)
Golf Monthly Verdict

A truly distance-focused iron that delivers on its promise of powerful ball speeds and impressive yardage output, but crucially without sacrificing launch or height. The MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons are a good value option for golfers seeking maximum distance with a confidence-inspiring look.

Reasons to buy
  • +

    Good distance and ball speed output

  • +

    High launch despite strong lofts

Reasons to avoid
  • -

    The high gloss finish can glare in bright sun

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I’ll be honest, I have not tested many MacGregor clubs over the past few years, perhaps categorizing them as a brand from yesteryear in my mind, used by some of the historical figures of the game. However, MacGregor has been quietly ticking along, producing equipment aimed more at the value end of the market, and I wanted to see what its latest distance iron had to offer. Could it be a dark horse to rival some of the best distance irons in the game? Let’s find out…

Photo of the MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons

(Image credit: Future)

My first impression of the MT-86 OS irons was overall fairly positive. They offer a confidence-inspiring aesthetic with a slightly larger profile than their counterparts in the MacGregor family, the MT-86 Pro irons. Down in the playing position, they present a pretty clean yet substantial look, which provided me with a nice, reassuring sense of confidence from the start. The topline, while relatively substantial, is a touch thinner than some of its competitors in this market, such as the Ping i530 or Callaway Ai200, offering a bit more of a ‘playery’ visual than maybe I had anticipated.

Photo of the MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons in behind the ball

(Image credit: Future)

Much like with its sibling, the MT-86 Pro, I don’t love the shiny chrome finish. I think it dates the iron a little, and once again, if I am being super picky, I would much prefer to see a longer ferule as the super short ones used here always diminish the elegance of the transition between clubhead and shaft to my eye.

Photo of the MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons face on

(Image credit: Future)

The technology story is very much the same as the MT-86 Pro, so I would advise you to pop over and read that review for full details, but essentially what we are looking at is a hollow body, super thin (but strong) face, and a toe biased weighting system designed to optimize CG.

Performance-wise, I was suitably impressed by what I found. The strong lofts (7-iron comes in at 30.5˚) delivered some very impressive distance results, but what surprised me most, however, was that this lack of loft didn't negatively impact the launch angle as it often does. Despite the aggressive lofts, the MT-86 OS irons produced a consistently high ball flight, facilitating some excellent carry numbers and a more than playable descent angle for stopping power and control on even very firm greens. This combination of strong lofts and high launch would suggest that the design of the internal weighting and face technology is doing its job well.

Photo of the MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons

The high-gloss finish does produce quite a lot of glare in brighter conditions.

(Image credit: Future)

The feel off the face is definitely a powerful one, and you can feel the familiar springy sensation so often synonymous with this type of iron. Even on slight mishits, the ball seemed to jump off the face with speed, offering a clear demonstration of the high COR face design.

Much like with the more compact MT-86 Pro irons, I liked what I saw from the MacGregor MT-86 OS irons. The slightly more user-friendly looks, combined with the strong distance output with no compromise on launch, are a nice combination. If these sound like the type of performance characteristics that could benefit your game, then the MT-86 OS should absolutely be on your testing list.

Photo of the MacGregor MT-86 OS Irons in the playing position

(Image credit: Future)

In fact, if you do want to test them, you could take advantage of the online MacGregor demo program, which allows you to purchase a demo 7-iron for $100 and return it after 30 days (or sooner), where you will get your $100 refunded as store credit.

A 4-PW set will cost you $899.99, and you can choose between steel (KBS Tour) or graphite shafts (UST Recoil) in flexes from Senior to Extra Stiff. You can also customize your length requirements on the website at the purchase stage.

Joe Ferguson
Staff Writer

Joe has worked in the golf industry for nearly 20 years in a variety of roles. After a successful amateur career being involved in England squads at every age group, Joe completed his PGA degree qualification in 2014 as one of the top ten graduates in his training year and subsequently went on to become Head PGA Professional at Ryder Cup venue The Celtic Manor Resort. Equipment has always been a huge passion of Joe’s, and during his time at Celtic Manor, he headed up the National Fitting Centres for both Titleist and Taylormade. He’s excited to bring his knowledge of hardware to Golf Monthly in the form of equipment reviews and buying advice.

Joe lives in North Devon and still plays sporadically on the PGA West region circuit. His best round in recent years came earlier in 2023 where he managed a 9 under par 63 at Trevose GC in a Devon & Cornwall PGA Tournament.

Joe's current What's In The Bag?

Driver: Switch between TaylorMade Qi35 and Callaway Elyte TD - both with Fujikura Ventus Black 6-X

Fairway wood 1: TaylorMade BRNR Copper Mini Driver - Fujikura Ventus Black 7-X

Fairway wood 2: Callaway Apex UW 17˚- Fujikura Ventus Black 9-X

Irons: TaylorMade P7CB 3-PW with Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts

Wedges: Callaway Opus 50, 54, and 60 degrees - Project X LS 6.0 shafts

Putter: LAB Golf Oz.1 (zero shaft lean)

Ball: TaylorMade 2024 TP5x

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet 60R

Bag: Vessel Player IV Pro DXR Stand

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