Unofficial Review: Mizuno JPX-921 Tours

[DannyDips]

I recently got fitted for a new set of Mizuno JPX-921 Tours and thought I'd share the experience, track improvement and give others a review of the irons. December 4th, I was fitted at Fairways and Greens in Knoxville, TN (https://fairwaysandgreens.com) by David Sumilus. They were my closest custom Mizuno fitter and I've always played Mizuno irons going all the way back to some MP-11s I played in high school. This was the first time I've ever been fitted for brand new clubs and if you can afford it I strongly recommend it. For me personally, I have the feeling that my golf game has leveled off to a point with my old equipment and if I wanted to get better I needed to get fit for some of the latest technology. My previous iron set included 4-PW of Mizuno MP-15s with DG S300 shafts. The fitting experience as a whole I strongly recommend, I got to try out the whole new Mizuno line and at least half a dozen or more shafts. 

In the end the set up that worked best for my game was the Mizuno JPX-921 Tours, upright +1, with Modus 105 X flex shafts. I will say when on the range, the moment we switched to the Modus 105 X shaft I hit about 8 balls in a row straight at the target with a penetrating ball flight. I couldn't have been more pumped to get them ordered after that.

Fast forward 6 weeks to January 17th. (Yes, that's how long US custom orders are taking now 6 weeks instead of the usual 4 weeks, thanks COVID...)

Everyone in the Facebook Mizuno Golf group knows this day as "Blue Box Day" and it didn't disappoint. 

 

The first thing I wanted to do was test them out but with wacky Tennessee weather it has actually been difficult to get out. Luckily for myself, I purchased a Skytrak last year and have an entire "garage golf" set up for practice. At least 3-5 times a week I spend an hour or so working with them and hitting shots. So after working with the clubs about a month and half I have made several observations. 

• Shorter irons (PW-8I) carry distances have remained mostly the same, while Mid Range to Long irons (7i-4i) have increased in distance slightly (5-10 yards). 
• Shot dispersion and shot shape have tightened and become more far more consistent. 
• Mishit shots seem to have slightly more forgiveness than the MP-15 irons.

This is a sample of a 5 iron with the JPX-921 tours. MP-15's carry was almost always 185 maybe topping out at 190. 

So far I'm beyond impressed with the Mizuno JPX-921 Tours. They seem to hit the ball straighter, with more consistent ball flight, and better carry distances gapping with the longer irons. I know some of the accuracy gains are probably not just from the new club face but having the correct length and lie for my swing. I'm super excited to start the 2021 Golf Season and once the weather improves I'll be sure to keep everyone updated on my continued progress with them. 

 

 

[Golfspy_CG2]

Congrats on the clubs, they are beauties for sure.  That's a nice pick up in distance there.

Glad you got fit and any authorized Mizuno fitter usually does a great job with the DNA analyzer, it has usually been spot on for me in my selection. 

[cksurfdude]

Nice! Congrats on finding your new babies

Several years ago while searching for a new set of irons, I hit the JPX-825 .. man those were sweeeeet! *IF* you caught the sweet spot .. which I did once .. so I needed something much more GI...

[DannyDips]

Took the irons to the course for their first round last Thursday, to say I was pleased would be an understatement. Straight penetrating ball fight and much improved iron accuracy was so exciting to see. Driver let me down for sure or the round would have been solid. I did have a few shots that seemed to have less spin when landing on the greens that previous irons but that could be the ball I was using (Mizuno RB-Tour) as I wasn't playing the Srixon XV or ProV1 I did last season. Going to try and get out tomorrow for more work with them. 

[TBT]

Nice irons....I’ve never hit Mizuno irons but I’ve wanted to give the Hot Metal line a try


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

[DannyDips]

Played my first semi-competitive round this past Saturday, a four-man charity scramble. Just took down some notes on using the JPX 921's:

4 Iron- Hit once on a tee shot into a shorter hole. Not well struck probably carried 180.

5 Iron- Don't believe I pulled it from the bag.

6 Iron- Hit once, second shot into a par 5 from 179. Bunker. 0/1 GIR

7 Iron- Hit twice, GIR on 170 par 3 and Bunker from 180 downhill second shot on par 5. 1/2 GIR

8 Iron- Hit once, Ball above my feet, trying to hit a draw... chunked fat. Poor shot. 0/1 GIR 

9 Iron- Hit Three times, Twice on par 4s both GIR, Once on a par 3 to a bunker. 2/3 GIR

PW- Hit once, Par 3 with a GIR. 1/1 GIR.

52-60 (Not JPX 921 clubs)- 8/10 GIR. Mostly shots from 80-100 yards but these should hit the green most of the time.

Round Thoughts:

This seems to be an improvement in my GIR from the MP-15s. 4/8 GIR using the JPX 921s. Most of my misses were pin high. Couple of shots were offline but not nearly by as much as before. I'm pumped to use them more this summer and have a good year with them. 

[CHASM]

On 3/3/2021 at 3:44 PM, DannyDips said:

I recently got fitted for a new set of Mizuno JPX-921 Tours and thought I'd share the experience, track improvement and give others a review of the irons. December 4th, I was fitted at Fairways and Greens in Knoxville, TN (https://fairwaysandgreens.com) by David Sumilus. They were my closest custom Mizuno fitter and I've always played Mizuno irons going all the way back to some MP-11s I played in high school. This was the first time I've ever been fitted for brand new clubs and if you can afford it I strongly recommend it. For me personally, I have the feeling that my golf game has leveled off to a point with my old equipment and if I wanted to get better I needed to get fit for some of the latest technology. My previous iron set included 4-PW of Mizuno MP-15s with DG S300 shafts. The fitting experience as a whole I strongly recommend, I got to try out the whole new Mizuno line and at least half a dozen or more shafts. 

In the end the set up that worked best for my game was the Mizuno JPX-921 Tours, upright +1, with Modus 105 X flex shafts. I will say when on the range, the moment we switched to the Modus 105 X shaft I hit about 8 balls in a row straight at the target with a penetrating ball flight. I couldn't have been more pumped to get them ordered after that.

Fast forward 6 weeks to January 17th. (Yes, that's how long US custom orders are taking now 6 weeks instead of the usual 4 weeks, thanks COVID...)

Everyone in the Facebook Mizuno Golf group knows this day as "Blue Box Day" and it didn't disappoint. 

 

The first thing I wanted to do was test them out but with wacky Tennessee weather it has actually been difficult to get out. Luckily for myself, I purchased a Skytrak last year and have an entire "garage golf" set up for practice. At least 3-5 times a week I spend an hour or so working with them and hitting shots. So after working with the clubs about a month and half I have made several observations. 

• Shorter irons (PW-8I) carry distances have remained mostly the same, while Mid Range to Long irons (7i-4i) have increased in distance slightly (5-10 yards). 
• Shot dispersion and shot shape have tightened and become more far more consistent. 
• Mishit shots seem to have slightly more forgiveness than the MP-15 irons.

This is a sample of a 5 iron with the JPX-921 tours. MP-15's carry was almost always 185 maybe topping out at 190. 

So far I'm beyond impressed with the Mizuno JPX-921 Tours. They seem to hit the ball straighter, with more consistent ball flight, and better carry distances gapping with the longer irons. I know some of the accuracy gains are probably not just from the new club face but having the correct length and lie for my swing. I'm super excited to start the 2021 Golf Season and once the weather improves I'll be sure to keep everyone updated on my continued progress with them. 

 

 

 

[CHASM]

Just now, CHASM said:

 

Danny - i have an apt next week @ F & G - 5- 7 index - have played mizuno mp 52 - steel / stiff - looking for your thoughts on jpx921 vs MP 20  also current golf bud just acquired ping I 210 with graphite shafts & loves them.  since i am 72 going with graphite probably last real set of irons - always loved mizuno dispersion numbers thanks, cm 

[DannyDips]

On 4/23/2021 at 11:58 AM, CHASM said:

Danny - i have an apt next week @ F & G - 5- 7 index - have played mizuno mp 52 - steel / stiff - looking for your thoughts on jpx921 vs MP 20  also current golf bud just acquired ping I 210 with graphite shafts & loves them.  since i am 72 going with graphite probably last real set of irons - always loved mizuno dispersion numbers thanks, cm 

Fairways and Greens is an awesome spot to get fit and they will take good care of you. During my fitting we started off hitting my old clubs (MP15s) then JPX921 forged, JPX tour, and MP 20s. We skipped the Hot Metals because the fitter said if I had been used to hitting a forged iron (MP15) they would feel like hitting the ball with a brick. After a dozen or so shots with all three my spin rate numbers were closest with the JPX921 Tours. In fact, they were significantly closer in dispersion making the choice very easy. I was hitting into a net during this part because it was raining but for feel the MP20s felt almost identical to my MP15s. The mishits you could tell were going to end up in trouble and you could feel the difference. I went into the fitting wanting an iron that was slightly more forgiving but still had that Mizuno feel I've always played, and I couldn't be happier getting the JPX921 Tours. 

The best part was the shaft fitting. We probably switched shafts a dozen times and once we found the right one it was very noticeable. I think it hit 8 balls right at the target pure. (We went outside to the covered driving range at this point) They will figure out what shaft works best, and I'd bet you'll be able to tell too. You'll really enjoy it. 

Also, I'm pretty sure they fit PING clubs too so if you want to try the Ping i210s before you decide. My golf instructor here in Crossville fits Ping clubs and if I hadn't always played Mizunos I'd probably end up going to him for a new set of irons. I've just always looked down and saw the top line of a Mizuno and felt them at impact and I can't swap to something else. It’s a confidence thing I tell myself. 

[DannyDips]

May 14th and 15th I got together with some friends from college. We met at Paris Landing State Park where we played Friday and then drove down to Dickson, TN on Saturday to play GreyStone GC and then Montgomery Bell State Park in a four-man scramble. 54 Holes in two days certainly put my new Mizuno's to the test. I had some general thoughts from the weekend that I'd like to share.

• I've noticed that when I try to overswing, I seem to "spin-off" the ball and hit this weak push fade off to the right. Now when I stay behind the ball and slow everything down just a touch. The irons fly just as far (or further) and straighter. Its almost like I feel like solid hits require less work to get good ball flight and distance than my old MP-15s. 
• I'm still enjoying the forgiveness on mishits. Misses to the sweet spot are not nearly as penalizing as before.  
• Longer Irons, 4 and 5, have become far more useful tools. Couple of the holes we played the first day required 200-210 yard tee shots and it was easy to groove a 4 or 5 iron down the middle of the fairway with a baby draw on it. I also hit a 6 iron to about 3' on a par 3 on Friday which is always nice.

The courses on Saturday were certainly more bomb and gouge, especially the scramble cause we bombed driver pretty much every hole. But I'm still super pleased with the JPX921s. It also helped we came home with the win Saturday evening and raised a ton of $ for disabled veterans. 

 

Next week I'm headed to the beach for a week vacation. Should get a ton of golf in so its time to start grinding and really working these babies out... 

[M. Parsons]

On 4/26/2021 at 5:30 AM, DannyDips said:

Fairways and Greens is an awesome spot to get fit and they will take good care of you. During my fitting we started off hitting my old clubs (MP15s) then JPX921 forged, JPX tour, and MP 20s. We skipped the Hot Metals because the fitter said if I had been used to hitting a forged iron (MP15) they would feel like hitting the ball with a brick. After a dozen or so shots with all three my spin rate numbers were closest with the JPX921 Tours. In fact, they were significantly closer in dispersion making the choice very easy. I was hitting into a net during this part because it was raining but for feel the MP20s felt almost identical to my MP15s. The mishits you could tell were going to end up in trouble and you could feel the difference. I went into the fitting wanting an iron that was slightly more forgiving but still had that Mizuno feel I've always played, and I couldn't be happier getting the JPX921 Tours. 

The best part was the shaft fitting. We probably switched shafts a dozen times and once we found the right one it was very noticeable. I think it hit 8 balls right at the target pure. (We went outside to the covered driving range at this point) They will figure out what shaft works best, and I'd bet you'll be able to tell too. You'll really enjoy it. 

Also, I'm pretty sure they fit PING clubs too so if you want to try the Ping i210s before you decide. My golf instructor here in Crossville fits Ping clubs and if I hadn't always played Mizunos I'd probably end up going to him for a new set of irons. I've just always looked down and saw the top line of a Mizuno and felt them at impact and I can't swap to something else. It’s a confidence thing I tell myself. 

Just curious...did they use the Mizuno Shaft Optimizer on you to get a baseline?

[DannyDips]

4 minutes ago, M. Parsons said:

Just curious...did they use the Mizuno Shaft Optimizer on you to get a baseline?

They did not. They started with DG S300 shafts that matched my MP-15s. Then we hit probably 10-12 shafts on the driving range with a trackman to look at spin rates, trajectory, etc. As I had said above it was really obvious when the Nippon Modus 105X was put in. The ball just flew straighter and had very small dispersion.    

[DannyDips]

This past weekend was my favorite golf tournament of the season I always play in, the Bobby Nichols Golden Eagle scramble to benefit Tennessee Tech Athletics. I was fortunate enough to play four years of baseball at TTU and I mark my calendar every year for this three day two man scramble event. I've also been blessed with the same solid partner for the previous six years. 54 holes of golf in one weekend definitely put the JPX 921's to the test, so I've jotted down some of my thoughts. 

Friday June 11th

The course was very wet. Every par 3 (except one) was set at exactly 150 yards for all the hole in one contests, which falls between 9I and 8I for my yardages. Looking back over my notes I hit my JPX 921's eight times, three of those were punch out shots under trees. That leaves five solid, full swings, two with the 8I, two with the 9I and a 7I on the one par 3 over 150 yards. Three of those shots were right of my intended target, two were left and long. Which has kind of been my miss with my iron shots, they either spin off short right or they start at the target and draw long. I'm going to give myself some grace for Friday because the two weeks prior I had intended to practice and play a lot but was sidelined with an eye infection. 

JPX-921 Tours - GIR 0 for 5

Saturday June 12th

The course (different course) was super wet... much worse than Friday. This course had par 3s set at various distances. I hit 11 shots with my irons, two 4I, two 5I, two 6I, one 7i, one 8I, and three 9I. The theme of this day was scrambling, only one of those iron shots found the putting surface and it was about 15 yards long. One was a punch shot, five of the 11 missed the green long, three missed right and one missed left. We really struggled as a team this day, it might have been the wet playing conditions or just a bad day but it seemed like we were scrambling all day long. Every time I made solid contact it felt like my ball was flying 10-15 yards longer than my intended distance, I'm not sure if it was adrenaline or altitude or miss calculating elevation change but lets just say everything was off and seemed to be consistently off over the green. 

JPX-921 Tours - GIR 1 for 10

Sunday June 13th

We played the Saturday course again, much dryer conditions this day . The tournament flights the two man teams into groups with similar scores and maxes the Sunday score to diminish sandbagging. Our poor back 9 on Saturday put us in the sixth flight (of eleven) with 14 other teams, I knew we'd have a really good chance to win. Everything was sharper on Sunday. I hit twelve shots with my irons, 4I twice, 5I once, 6I twice, 7I twice, 8I once, and 9I four times. After Saturday, I played each club 5-10 yards longer and it seemed to work much better. I had seven GIR with my irons, three shots long, one right and one left of the green.  

JPX-921 Tours - GIR 7 for 12

Final Thoughts

It still looks like I have plenty to work on after the weekend. I've always felt like the strength of my game comes from "Bomb and gouging" courses, by hitting it deep and then hitting solid wedge shots. Part of the reason I got these Mizuno Irons was to improve a glaring weakness in my iron game. I think the issue is two fold; distance control and start line. I need to work hard the next couple weeks on a consistent ball flight and consistent start line, I made a slight adjustment on Sunday that seemed to help and I'm hoping to have it all ironed out (Pun intended ) very soon. 

And just as an aside, we played well enough on Sunday that we got into a three way tie for first in our flight and after an alternate shot chip off... came home with the W. 

[TM19]

Came for the club review, stayed for the golf updates! 

Beauty irons and excited to hear how you've been gaming with them. Cheers! 

[DannyDips]

On 7/10/2021 at 8:57 AM, TM19 said:

Came for the club review, stayed for the golf updates! 

Beauty irons and excited to hear how you've been gaming with them. Cheers! 

Cheers! I’ve had a super busy last couple weeks (Kids birthdays, holidays, etc.) but man the 921s are sweet. I get at least 4-6 hours of practice in a week on my Skytrak to stay sharp and I’m super pleased with the results.