“The 670's successor and a well-loved tour blade of its day. A rung-4 club by definition -- gorgeous feel for a member who has genuinely earned the strike consistency to play it.”

The 681 Forged sold in the same 2001 window as the more storied 680, sharing the 600-series' minimal-offset, low-bounce-versus-cavity blade philosophy but cast from a slightly softer 1030 mild carbon steel (versus the 680's 1025) and marketed as Titleist's successor to the 670 muscleback. It offered the traditional forged-blade package of the era — consistent minimal offset through the set, increased bounce relative to Titleist's contemporaneous DCI cavity-backs, and the buttery, low-feedback-noise feel forged blades are prized for. It sold well to serious ball-strikers and drew strong reviews, but never generated the standalone tour legend that its 680 stablemate did.

No documented tour legend of its own — unlike the 680 sold beside it, there is no sourced account of a specific pro carrying a worn-out 681 Forged set for decades. It earns 'notable' rather than plain commodity on the strength of genuinely strong owner satisfaction (4.5/5 across 25 reviews on golfreview.com) and its place in Titleist's well-regarded 2001 blade generation, but it does not clear the 2+-source cult-evidence bar the 680 does.

Better ball-strikers who prioritize feel and shot control over forgiveness or extra distance. High-handicap or inconsistent strikers will be better served by a cavity-back or game-improvement set from the same era.

• Forged from 1030 mild carbon steel, a slightly softer alloy than the 1025 steel used in the contemporaneous 680.
• Marketed as the direct successor to Titleist's 670 muscleback blade.
• Consistent, minimal offset maintained throughout the full set for maximum workability.
• Increased bounce relative to Titleist's DCI cavity-back irons sold in the same period.
• Rated 4.5/5 across 25 user reviews on golfreview.com — strong satisfaction among the better players who bought it.
• Not to be confused with the later tour-only '681.AS' prototype built for Adam Scott, which replicates the 680, not the 681 Forged.

Launched in Titleist's 2001 blade generation alongside the 680, and positioned as the successor to the 670 muscleback. Important disambiguation: this retail 681 Forged (2001) is a completely different club from the tour-only '681.AS' prototype Titleist built roughly two decades later as an exact CNC replica of Adam Scott's personal 680 set — the shared '681' numbering is coincidental to Titleist's internal SKU scheme, not a lineage connection.

No longer stocked by major used retailers like 2nd Swing (listed out of stock); eBay is the primary market, with complete playable sets typically in the $150-$300 range and rarer custom-grind or premium-shaft (Dynamic Gold, Tri-Spec) examples occasionally reaching $500-$900 depending on condition and buyer enthusiasm. It is priced as an ordinary well-regarded 20-plus-year-old blade, not as a collector's item.