For those Callaway fans of a certain age and handicap, you are probably still pining for the Steelhead X-12 or X-14 Pro Series irons that combined forgiveness with a compact look that still gave you the feeling that you still 'had it'.
Maybe you where underwhelmed when the Steelhead XR Pro irons promised so much but left you in the dark finish. If that was you then the Rogue Pro irons could be what you have been waiting for.
At address the look like most other recent Callaway irons of this size, but they feature a thinner 360 Face Cup and a cavity with Urethane Microspheres in it to modify the sound.
This can get a touch louder in the long irons as the cavity gets bigger, but it still sounds and feels like a better player's iron.
Compared to the standard Rogue irons the lofts are weaker because the heads are not as deep front to back so you need the launch, but they are still reasonably strong for this sector.
It is quite close in style and design to the Callaway Epic Pro iron and taking them both on GC revealed similar levels of distance with a slightly higher flight from the Rogue Pro.
The Epic Pro probably looks a bit better and sounds and feels more solid, but is twice the price.
The other alternative would be the Callaway Steelhead XR Pro which I am afraid I had to compare using 8-irons as that is all Callaway could find to send me - so sales must be going well then...
Even at this higher loft the Rogue was again producing more spin, which hurt the distance as most other launch conditions were the same.
I would probably give the Rogue Pro the nod on looks and feel though, especially in this category of irons as it felt more solid and I think the chrome look is more in tune with what better players will go for.
Back to 6-irons and compared to the rest of the family, the Rogue Pro was right on the tail of the more forgiving Rogue iron.
This is pretty impressive and whilst it wasn't as forgiving as the standard model, the Pro brought back all those X-14 memories or distance, with a little forgiveness and that blade like looks that mid to high single players will love.
Of all the Rogue irons I do prefer the looks of the Rogue Pro the most as the chrome on the back and the absence of the blue flashes give it a much more aggressive look.
It is also quite a light club to swing as the True Temper XP 105 ST 15 is lighter than average for this type of club without losing and stability.
The Rogue Pro played beautifully on the course and as well as a decent level of forgiveness it was versatile enough if you wanted to varying your trajectory up or down.
It also felt quite powerful off the face for this size of iron and of Callaway's better player cavity back irons, of which there are plenty, then the Rogue Pro would probably be my choice and has the DNA to be the true heir to the X-14 Pro Series of yesteryear.
Yes, it is a little more than the slightly larger Steelhead XR Pro and similar in price to the Apex CF, but it is less than the X-Forged or the money-no-object Epic Pro irons, so on balance the Rogue Pro is probably the sensible choice for single figure Callaway players.