Mizuno Long Game - 2023 Forum Review

[Swood1994]

Got out for a couple holes after work today to test out the ST-X on +1 UP. To my surprise I got my fade back and I gained some yardage over standard. Couldn’t trust where I was aiming so I ended up blocked out by some trees but the strikes/flight/curve were all very nice. Long drive of ~305. 

I’ll have more data tomorrow when I get out for 18

Edited September 9, 2023 by Swood1994

[Beakbryce]

played 18 holes in 2h 9 min this afternoon. Followed a 2 some that each played from their own cart and they were really quick. Caught them on 8 but between switching lofts on the driver and 3 wood, never really pushed them.

Last chance with the Mizuno clubs. It was hot, so hot my Sky Caddie complained about the heat and needed to be shut down! Windy. Dry. Used my laser to determine yardages after I shut down the Sky Caddie.

I reasoned that maybe with my swing speed I needed more loft so went plus 2 on the adjustable settings. 5 drives in and the average was 211. Same as 9.5 degrees. Nice high straight shots. I decided upright +1 would be a nice compromise. The ball flight was a good compromise between 9.5 and 11.5. Played the rest of the way in and unfortunately the average went down to 208. It was worse into the wind than the downwind shots could make up for. 3 drives into the wind went 200, 201, 208. One drive downwind went 226.

3 wood average went up to 194 after I went -1 on the loft. It was going to high. I have never had to turn down a 3 wood in my life. Ball flight was much better and still straight. Note: I play my Epic heaven wood at 190. 

4 hybrid remained the champ that it is. 3 shots into par 3 holes, one at 170 that I choked up and 2 at 180. Pin high all 3.

If we don't do a club head swap, which looks like it may be in doubt given the latest report from @Swood1994, I will be offering the driver and 3 wood to MGS to give me the address of another tester who might have more luck.

[Swood1994]

Got out and played 18 today. Not sure if any of you saw the "how'd you play" thread but I shot a personal best 68 (-3) with 2 eagles, 3 birdies, 4 bogeys, and 9 pars. The course only plays at 5700 from white tees (playing with a friend that is a 20ish handicap), but I am still counting this a PB.

5/12 FIR

13/18 GIR

28 putts

All distances were measured based off of total hole distance and yardage to the center of the green.

Average Driving Distance Total (Driver only): 264

Average Driving Distance minus outliers (Driver only): 294

Average 4H Distance: 220 (220,220)

Average 3-wood Distance: 265 (280,250)

The ST-X Driver had a VERY noticeable difference/improvement on the +1 UP setting. Just as in the  fitting and trackman day (should have started there) the spin was reduced and the distance was longer over standard. I had a couple monsters with a little help with the wind both at 330 yards. I did have 3 drives that were total mishits. The other mishits heel/toe strikes were noticeable but I didn't see a lot of distance loss or dispersion. I really wish I had a launch monitor because the bigger drives had to have 1800-2000 RPMs of spin (based off my feel). It would have been cool to see actual data.

Hole 6: very low strike (almost topped or at least felt like it) caught the lip of the fairway bunker and settled at around 210.

Hole 9: Pull fade that got caught up in the tree on left. 168 Total yards that set up a nice 3 wood second shot.

Hole 17: topped duck hook. I was a little nervy on this shot considering I was -4 going into a drivable par 4. 168 Total.

3-Wood and Hybrid continue to impress me. Both are played off the tee and off the deck and they are my go to if the driver is feeling uneasy or I'm not confident on a tight hole. Something that should be noted. These aren’t distance centric clubs by any means. However their accuracy seems to suit my game well. Coming off non adjustable Rogues, having adjustable heads on both of these clubs is a nice change of pace

Recap:

 

Edited September 11, 2023 by Swood1994

[vandyland]

Playing update: My first bit of hiccups with the Driver, though I am not entirely sure it was the driver. I hit TWO balls out of bounds which, to this point, through about 6 rounds with the Mizuno I had hit ZERO balls out. One was a slight block that I mean to draw and it just went very far (which I guess is a good thing), not a terrible miss. Then on the back 9 I hit a smother hook (felt like just a really bad swing) that went OB left. Ultimately, I think I have a flaw at the top of my swing that I need to address and I don't think there is anything the driver could do about that on the day. Still shot 76 and hit one over 300 on #17. Mizuno Fli-Hi and Hybrid were good on the day. 

[Beakbryce]

This has nothing to do with the test but I also had a good round today. Got up at 0330 to do some stuff and was fried by the time I got to the course. We were first off at 0615. One of those days where you don't try to kill anything but every club goes like crazy. 16 of 18 greens with 2 sandies on the holes where I missed the green. Fun times. I really want to go back to the old tees. I guess my buddies won't care. We will see. I need the challenge. 

[Swood1994]

I have a captain and mate end of the season tournament at one of my favorite courses Saturday so the Mizuno driver will definitely get a work out as I’m the long ball out of the pair so I’ll be going after a lot . Will report back on some hopefully good numbers and results from the day.

[russtopherb]

I got out for my weekly twilight 9 today, average drive was 249. I removed the outlier, a pull that hit a tree and bounced backwards diagonally for a total drive of 52 yards. Of course, it happened JUST as a couple asked if I wanted to join them. What an introduction 

Dispersion wasn't as good today, I had 3 balls that went right. Thankfully all were somewhat playable, I was able to get up the fairway even if I didn't go anywhere near as far as I would have liked due to being close to trees.

I made a point to play the fairway wood more today and I was rewarded. I had a 225 yard tee shot that was dead straight on a short par 4, leaving me a wedge in, and I hit it off the deck twice. The first was a rope that went straight when I played for a fade, so the next time I pulled it out of the bag I aimed straight... and of course, faded it. Thankfully it was just to the right of the green. I was pretty impressed with it today, and hitting it well of the turf has given me a lot of confidence to try and use it even more now. 

[Swood1994]

1 hour ago, russtopherb said:

I was pretty impressed with it today, and hitting it well of the turf has given me a lot of confidence to try and use it even more now. 

I feel the same way. Off the tee I can get pretty close (10-20 yards) to the driver distance but the dispersion on the 3-wood is far better.

[russtopherb]

Well, I knew this was going to happen eventually. Womp, womp

 

What really irks me is that it was sheer laziness on my part that caused it. 
 

The range session with these clubs at lunch was muddy as you can tell, aside from the dummy mark it was quite productive. Got the driver straightened out and the fairway was just rock solid like I’ve been seeing as of late. 

[ejgaudette]

56 minutes ago, russtopherb said:

Well, I knew this was going to happen eventually. Womp, womp

 

What really irks me is that it was sheer laziness on my part that caused it. 
 

The range session with these clubs at lunch was muddy as you can tell, aside from the dummy mark it was quite productive. Got the driver straightened out and the fairway was just rock solid like I’ve been seeing as of late. 

The worst and I always feel so silly when it happens

[russtopherb]

Just now, ejgaudette said:

The worst and I always feel so silly when it happens

Yep. I'm upset with myself - I was on a roll with some fantastic straight drives and I was picking the ball right off the tee, I had 2 in a row like that so I plopped a ball down quickly not bothering to re-set the tee. I was like "ah it's a little high, no biggie" and as soon as I hit it I went - 

OH.

NO.

I knew it without even needing to look. So disappointed right now. 

[ejgaudette]

Just now, russtopherb said:

 "ah it's a little high, no biggie"

That is the line that always starts it all

But it happens to all of us, just means your grinding

[Swood1994]

Well the golf gods giveth and they taketh away…

I probably played some of my worst golf in 2-3 years. This was no fault of the Mizuno clubs but I could not get off the tee with any club to save my life. Duck hooks for 18 holes was not very enjoyable. Luckily it was a captain and mate format so I was able to be carried the whole round. 

I went right to the range afterwards before they served dinner and got everything somewhat straightened out.

I have a doubleheader tomorrow at some of the premier resort courses in CNY (Turning Stone Casino). We are playing Shenandoah in the morning and then playing Atunyote in the afternoon. Atunyote is the big course where Dustin Johnson won his very first pga tournament at the Turning Stone Resort championship. The Mizuno hybrid and 3-wood will definitely be in play but the driver may be in time out. It will be a game time decision 

Edit: I should also add that I was running on 1.5-2 hours of sleep due to a cranky teething baby. This is my excuse for poor play and I’m sticking to it.

Edited September 17, 2023 by Swood1994

[vandyland]

Not unlike @Swood1994, I had a bad swing day yesterday. I think I started to figure it out by the back 9 but it was rough there on the front. Even still, I was able to squeeze 321 yds out of a drive on #3 right down the middle. I was hanging back on my drives and then closing it through impact which makes me miss left, a lot. Hit a few terrible pull hooks that were no fault of the driver. Amazingly, I didn't lose a ball and still somehow shot 76. But there were some ugly ones in there...I do want to focus on a few highlights....

The aforementioned 321 yd drive...this is a flat hole BUT we are starting to kill of the fairways as we prepare to re-grass over the spring. As such, this probably carried 280 and rolled 50 yds but still it was beautiful. Getting on this par 5 with Driver + 5 iron is WILD. 

another standout shot was this tee shot that flew past the green on the driveable 10th…

And finally this one, the tee was up and I shot the tree that I normally aim at as 285 so I figured I would just smooth a driver out there…well, I blasted it through the fairway and it felt SO GOOD

 

Edited September 18, 2023 by vandyland

[Swood1994]

I was able to gather my bearings after 36 holes of golf. I've come to realize that 36 holes is about 9 holes too many when playing championship level golf courses back to back (especially when you're up at 4:15AM). I do have some notes even though my plan was to try and enjoy these 2 rounds without a ton of full blown testing. I decided to Put the Paradym in play to see what my distance was like compared the Mizuno ST-X. I will preface it with outside of the Trackman data, which I will be sure to get posted this week, it felt longer. The only drives I have "data" on from Monday are the ones that were really good. All of that being said we are here for Mizuno testing. And the Hybrid got a work out! that club is still by far my favorite club out of the 3. It was my go to for most of my second shots into the par 5's and with great results. I shot 77 and 89, definitely the tale of 2 rounds.

Round #1 Shenendoah

Hole 4: Drive to the bunker, Chip out (high face), Mizuno Hybrid from 238 to 15'. baby draw.

Hole 8: Drive left fairway. Decided to try and take a tucked pin on and leaked it slightly right from 227 into the wind. A little spinny and ended up short right.

Hole 18: Drive ran out of Fairway (325 to the marsh and was about 3 yards short in the rough). 240 to the green. Lie was more propped up than I anticipated and hit a high shot to about 40 yards.

Round #2 Atunyote

A little note on this course it is very tough if you can't find the fairway. not to mention every single pin location seemed to be 3-5 paces on with bunkers/water guarding them. I said "these have to be illegal" at least 5 times to the group trying to rationalize how tough they were.

Hole 5: 230 into the wind. Tried to hit a draw into the green to take the trouble out play. Straight ball into the right greenside bunker.

Hole 12: Pulled Drive. 230 lay up to about 90 yards. I sort of over drew this ball trying to the large body of water that guards the entirety of the right side of the hole.

Hole 18: MONSTER par 5. I didn't catch my drive pure and hit the lip of the fairway bunker and just sneaked over. 2nd shot 3-wood from ~300 yards out of the rough and had 50 yards left in. Very Straight ball flight.

Summary (TL;DR): The hybrid is very consistent from 230-240 and is a very accurate club. For me its still #1 out of the 3. The 3-wood also continues to impress. It is very consistent (like the hybrid) and when hit well is a good 265-275 yard club for me.

Here are some course photo's from Atunyote (Tom Fazio Design. Dustin Johnson's first PGA Tour win).

Edited September 20, 2023 by Swood1994

[Beakbryce]

Picture from my course at Luke AFB, Falcon Dunes. This is the hardest driving hole if you are worried about hazards. Hole faces roughly south and usually plays into the predominate SW wind. Water left and long, OB right. It's pretty dang wide though so it would have to be in your head. Ya, it's been there. The second shot is the only approach shot over water. The greenside bunker is part of the Grand Canyon and sometimes hard as concrete, so I aim for the right side of the green 95% of the time. I have to have the perfect number to aim left of center. The warehouse spoiling the view was just completed. The course is right below the downwind leg for Luke jets so it gets both loud and enjoyable seeing other guys get to do what I did.

I generally aim down the right side. Every time I took the Mizuno, it got caught on that mound out on the right that extends into the fairway. That leaves a 170-180 yard shot to a left pin over water and the trap if you pull it. I hit a 6 hybrid to the middle of the green. 95% of the time the Epic driver runs by that mound.

Sometimes when the water is high, I try skipping my 4 hybrid across.

Second picture is a rainbow. Hokey I know but we don't get many here in AZ. This is the 4th hole which goes roughly west. White Tank Mountains in view. That little pot bunker that can barely be seen in the photo, about 25% from the left side, is an early round killer. 

[russtopherb]

All 3 Mizuno clubs got a good workout tonight. Let's chat about them.

Driver - Distances were 241, 237, 249, 251, 245, and 249. The 245 was infuriating, as it came on a par 5 and as I watched the ball in flight, I thought to myself "this may be the greatest drive I've ever hit on this hole". Then, I saw a giant SPLASH when the ball landed smack in the middle of the fairway. We got 3" of rain Monday and apparently a few random puddles still haven't dried out - my drive found one, and then one hopped a few feet away. I only missed 1 fairway tonight on the last hole, and it was still very playable. Ballflight is very consistent unless I put a poor swing on the club, I have to say I felt like the driver saved me on two holes tonight where I thought for sure I'd be in the rough or the trees but I was still in the fairway. Flight isn't too high, I always tend to hit low anyways, but when conditions allow I get some great rollout. 

One thing struck me tonight. I kept hitting drives and thinking "nope that one's gonna be short" but then I was either in my usual landing zone or beyond it. I genuinely think the sound of the driver makes me think I'm hitting it short since it's a dull "thwack" sound as we've mentioned a few times, vs my Mavrik Max which is a much louder sound. Interesting how that works. 

Fairway - I used the 4w (3w lofted to 17*) on the short par 4 2nd hole off the tee and was dead center of the fairway 218 out. It left me a roughly 60 yard shot to the pin, which I absolutely airmailed over and left of the green into a water hazard. That was just a poor club decision, I couldn't have been in any better of a position in the fairway for my approach. I also used it off the turf on a longer par 4 for my second shot, however I hit it fat a whopping 120 yards when I really needed it to go around 210. 

Hybrid - This club continues to impress me. I went in thinking I might have concerns over the smaller head and "player's" shape, but it is just so easy to launch. I did take it up to 23* (from the stated 22*) a few weeks ago and it's just awesome. I hit it from 191 out on the 3rd hole and put it 10' from the pin. I also used it on the long par 5 for my second shot and hit it 196, albeit way left which I think was more of an issue of the lie and my overcompensation for it. It still set me up for a 7i approach which I put on the green... and 3 putted That's not the fault of the hybrid though. 

[vandyland]

Not as cool of a round(s) as @Swood1994 but drove the ball beautifully despite not hitting it out of the center much. I was back in the LIN-Q shaft…

almost gained 4 shots off the tee and that is always great to see. Missed the one slightly heel side and flew it in a bunker, not a bad result honestly.

This drive was absolutely pasted. Perfect contact and tempo…

This one was a tiny bit toe side but still went quite a ways…

This is another one that I didn’t “catch” but they are just GOING. 
 

Closed out with this one..

Again, it seems like this isn’t the hottest driver but it is forgiving and straight. I missed the center several times and still got 280+ out of it. That is very noticeable to me.

 

[Shrek74]

14 hours ago, Beakbryce said:

Picture from my course at Luke AFB, Falcon Dunes. This is the hardest driving hole if you are worried about hazards. Hole faces roughly south and usually plays into the predominate SW wind. Water left and long, OB right. It's pretty dang wide though so it would have to be in your head. Ya, it's been there. The second shot is the only approach shot over water. The greenside bunker is part of the Grand Canyon and sometimes hard as concrete, so I aim for the right side of the green 95% of the time. I have to have the perfect number to aim left of center. The warehouse spoiling the view was just completed. The course is right below the downwind leg for Luke jets so it gets both loud and enjoyable seeing other guys get to do what I did.

I generally aim down the right side. Every time I took the Mizuno, it got caught on that mound out on the right that extends into the fairway. That leaves a 170-180 yard shot to a left pin over water and the trap if you pull it. I hit a 6 hybrid to the middle of the green. 95% of the time the Epic driver runs by that mound.

Sometimes when the water is high, I try skipping my 4 hybrid across.

Second picture is a rainbow. Hokey I know but we don't get many here in AZ. This is the 4th hole which goes roughly west. White Tank Mountains in view. That little pot bunker that can barely be seen in the photo, about 25% from the left side, is an early round killer. 

I got to play there a couple times when I lived in Litchfield Park, when dad came to visit (he's the veteran). It's a nice course, albeit tight due to being built on such a small tract of land. The F35's and F16's flying overhead were so much fun to watch as they were so low you could really see them.

That finishing hole up hill is a killer.

We played there once a bit later in the day and was on the last par 3 when 5pm hit. I was amazed how everything does stop and we all took off our hats as they played Retreat. Really cool moment.

[vandyland]

So, I think I have my headline and consensus view on the STZ 230 Driver at this point. I'm workshopping it here but what will go in my final review is something like this:

This is truly a "forgiving" driver, hit it almost anywhere on the face and it will go a respectable distance but it is never going to win any ball speed contests. 

For me and the course(s) I play, this is ideal. I feel like my distance off the tee is good/acceptable and I am willing to give up EXTREME ball speed for control and consistency when I miss the center of the face. To me, if you hit the ball in the center of the face almost all the time and/or are always in the middle of the fairway but craving more distance....this is not the best driver for you. I need to test this thing against the Stealth and their "fargiveness" claims and maybe also the Ping Driver since that is like the MOI king. I don't think this Mizuno driver is really trying to compete with the Aerojet LS or Paradym Triple Diamond. 

Interestingly enough, Mizuno is coming out with the ST-G 230 which I think is going to be their ballspeed optimized driver. That might have been a better fit for @Beakbryce

 

[Beakbryce]

8 hours ago, Shrek74 said:

I got to play there a couple times when I lived in Litchfield Park, when dad came to visit (he's the veteran). It's a nice course, albeit tight due to being built on such a small tract of land. The F35's and F16's flying overhead were so much fun to watch as they were so low you could really see them.

That finishing hole up hill is a killer.

We played there once a bit later in the day and was on the last par 3 when 5pm hit. I was amazed how everything does stop and we all took off our hats as they played Retreat. Really cool moment.

I'm glad you liked my "home" course. Especially happy you thought it was tight so everyone else can get another opinion on the course. I play there 3 times a week and love it. Did you normally play the Wig Wam or some other local course?

[Shrek74]

I'm glad you liked my "home" course. Especially happy you thought it was tight so everyone else can get another opinion on the course. I play there 3 times a week and love it. Did you normally play the Wig Wam or some other local course?

I played multiple courses in the area. Twice at Falcon Dunes, twice at Sterling Grove, twice at Verrado Victory, twice at Verrado Founders, all three Wigwam, all three Pebble Creek, twice at Palm Valley, twice at Vistancia, Estrella, and a couple others I'm forgetting. I lived West of the 303 off Camelback.

Sent from my SM-N986U1 using Tapatalk

[Swood1994]

My numbers section is up!! Be warned... It's a doozy. I tried to keep it short and sweet but I'm a data analyst. I get lost in the numbers sometimes.. But, there are some cool things that got uncovered in 1.5 hours on a trackman. My final review will be up this weekend in stages for your viewing pleasure!

[vandyland]

DRIVER NUMBERS LANDING POST

Linking to this post from my main review post, this is all the trackman numbers and ALL the on course numbers. 

Overall Trackman Average of all shots noted below: 

Overall Driving Distance Averages of all on-course tracked shots:

8/19/2023 Trackman Session

8/21/2023 Trackman Session - Lie Angle

9/7/2023 Trackman Session - LINQ vs VANQUISH shaft

Edited September 22, 2023 by vandyland

[Beakbryce]

Final Thoughts.

My main testing conclusion: QUESTION- does higher speeds work better with the Cortech chamber? Based on the other testers results I think it does. There is a physical limit for medium to slow swing speeds where less spin is a killer as the ball doesn’t have enough lift to stay in the air. This affected my results. I think Mizuno created exactly the club they wanted, low spin, shorter shaft for control, but it probably won’t work well for golfers with swing speeds less than 95 mph.

Read on for the reasons for this final conclusion and other thoughts.

First Impression

Cortech chamber sounds cool. Internal technology to make the ball go straighter and longer. Mizuno indicates the ball will be boosted by the chamber to be faster and spin less. Who doesn’t want that?

First Impression 20 out of 20 points.

Aesthetics

The clubs arrived well packed and undamaged. I wasn’t fond of the logo as it seemed to be an afterthought. The driver generally conforms to current driver shapes. I was off put by the front to back length. The 3 wood and 4 hybrid are beautiful looking and right sized. All 3 are fine looking shiny new clubs with no characteristic that makes them stand out in a crowd. I realize other testers liked the looks but I go back to the first time I saw a deep red putter and thought, “wow, that’s awesome”. I think Mizuno needs to find a color scheme that stands out in a crowd, where someone walking around a golf store would think, “I need to hit that thing”. What do you initially notice when looking at the Stealth driver? That red face. It’s just cool.

I kept being asked about the sound. It is so unexceptional that I never noticed it. After a lot of prodding, I made sure to listen and to be truthful, it’s a dull thud. Which also may help explain why I received no feedback, no knowledge of where the ball was hitting on the face.

Based on the above, I gave Aesthetics 8 out of 10.  1 point deducted for the logo and general sameness look and 1 point for sound. Looks are no better than or stand out enough from the other drivers and 3 woods on display when I browsed current offerings at my local PGA Superstore.

Numbers

The following pertains to the driver and 3 wood.

Testing on a Trackman reported similar numbers to my current Callaway Epic clubs. Shots were low and very straight. Not much curve either way. Varying the club loft and lie to the extremes didn’t result in longer drives. They did add a draw for higher loft and a tiny fade for lower loft. Shots hit out on the extreme toe and heel away from the Cortach Chamber lost a lot of yardage. Based on the numbers I expected the Mizuno clubs to be the same as my Epics on the course.

Based on these Numbers I gave it 9 out of 10 because it equaled my several generations older Epic clubs.

On course play.

Reality struck when I took the clubs out to play. I never achieved the Trackman numbers. A lot of that was our fairways, which were soaked early morning rounds to keep them alive in 110 degree weather during the testing period. Importantly, the average distance for the driver and 3 wood was 10-15 yards shorter than my current Epic clubs. That difference held up on the day I hit both clubs from each tee and landing area as appropriate. While they are straighter than my Epic woods, statistically, fairways hit was the same. The extra club needed for second shots on par 4’s and third shots on par 5’s also didn’t necessarily affect scoring unless I played the longer tees on my course. Shorter drives from the longer tees resulted in balls landing and stopping quicker on the numerous up slopes in the landing area that my Epic normally carried.

I initially felt there was a big sweet spot in the clubs conforming to the Cortech Chamber. I ended up not sure about that though as hits seemingly in the same spot on the face went anywhere from 195 yards or so to one 230+ yarder with no rhyme or reason for the difference. I think they chased the mantra of a low spin driver down the rabbit hole.

I gave the clubs 15 out of 20 for On Course play. Recreational golf is all about pointing at your buddy’s drive while cruising past to your own ball farther up the fairway. Maybe you don’t score as well, but the beat down already happened in the fairway. Am I right? 3 points for distance and 2 points for the lack of feel.

Miscellaneous: The good, bad, in between

All three were adjustable which made the testing process fun.

I question the decision to go with 45 inch driver shafts because length may suffer given all other things being equal when compared to other current clubs. I am not sure I buy into the theory that a ¾ to 1 inch shorter shaft automatically means the ball will be hit in the center of the clubface to make up yardage loss from a shorter shaft length.

I am also not a fan of the adjustable hosel. There is a picture on the website that shows what each change makes to the clubhead lie and loft. While it is easily understood and is easy to change it, there is no literature that comes with the clubs, nor on their website that explains in plain English what change occurs when an other than stock setting is selected. How hard would it have been to provide an explanation that at the plus one setting, “the 9.5 degree driver is now 10.625 degrees and the face is 1.5 degrees closed”. They should have a caption that reads for those changes, “From your standard flight path, these changes should result in a higher ball flight that goes a little left” or whatever those changes actually accomplish.

Additionally, changing a setting on the hosel rotates the shaft and the grip, so those players with a reminder rib would have to live with the reminder in the wrong spot and/or pay to regrip the club.

I gave the Miscellaneous factor 17 out of 20. Plus 3 points for adjustability, minus 3 points for lack of explanation for said adjustability to the average golfer, minus 1 point for the problem with a rib grip, and 2 points for the shorter shaft.

Play it or Trade it.

Back to my original question regarding lower spin, as it turns out, slower swing speed golfers do not want or need drastically lower spin. No lift to help keep the ball in the air. I entered the testing thinking that a straight up comparison with my current clubs would be won if the driver and 3 wood were longer regardless of feel or any other detractor. They are straight but not longer.

0 points for Play it or Trade it.

Points for driver and 3 wood: 69 out of 100.

 

4 hybrid

Maybe because this is closer to iron technology, this club is an absolute money club. I was not looking for all out distance, but rather a club that fit my yardage gap between my heaven wood and my 6 hybrid. I currently have a Big Bertha 19 (BB 19) 4 hybrid. It slots right in with the other clubs in my bag with a 180 yard flight that I can choke up and hit 170. The Mizuno slotted perfectly into those same yardages. It did that with a higher ball flight and a softer landing. This club is a pure joy to hit. It looks, visually, half the size of my BB19 although it isn’t. It forces a good swing. If a good swing is not made, there is a ton of feedback. While I am decidedly not a range rat, if I was, I would hit this a lot. The sound is pleasant.

For all factors because this club did exactly what I wanted, looks and feels great, 20 points for Initial Impression, 10 points for Aesthetics, 10 points for Numbers, 20 points each for On Course play, Miscellaneous, and Play it or Trade it.

Clean sweep, 100 points.

Conclusion and other thoughts

If I was going to get fit for a Mizuno club again, I would find a place that has the Mizuno 7 iron fitting tool that makes club and shaft recommendations based on your swing characteristics.

If I was a new golfer without developed swing speed, or current golfers with lower swing speeds, I believe the Mizuno clubs would be something to at least try. The ability in a fitting to find a straight hit should be fairly easy as that is what the club wants to do. They are $100 cheaper than other premium drivers. I am just not sure how one would progress if the club is not giving any feedback for your swing.

If one has a higher swing speed, then maybe the straight ball from this driver and/or 3 wood could help lower scores. It should be included in a fitting.

I feel it is appropriate for experienced golfers to think of this test as a competition for the Mizuno clubs to be compared with what is out there available for sale now. While there were similar numbers on Trackman, these clubs never had the distance during actual play that my generations old Epics have. I think the lower spin and shorter shaft were deciding factors. The Mizuno’s were straighter albeit just barely. Given that the current golf theory is rip it and go find it you would think Mizuno would build to what is popular. In my case, the rip is charmingly age appropriate but still what I am looking to achieve. The Epics are straight enough and longer. Plus, the Callaway Epics are just more fun to hit as they feel great. I know before I look up where the ball is going. I like that. I think that is part of what makes golf great.

I said at the beginning that I wasn’t concerned to much with feel if they were longer and straighter compared to the current bag. Because the driver and 3 wood aren’t longer than my current clubs, and lack feel, they won’t be finding a place in my bag.

 

Edited September 23, 2023 by Beakbryce

[Beakbryce]

Just had a chance to review @Swood1994 Trackman test numbers for the Mizuno driver vs the Paradym driver with on course numbers to follow. I guess you can say I have been holding my breath wondering if the latest Callaway driver would get beat by the Mizuno test driver. I guess we have an answer based on the numbers. Numbers suggest the Callaway was longer and straighter.

I can't wait to see the on course data given my experience that the Mizuno and my Callaway Epic had similar Trackman numbers but that didn't translate to on course play, where the Mizuno was shorter. Could still go either way!

[Swood1994]

9 hours ago, Beakbryce said:

Just had a chance to review @Swood1994 Trackman test numbers for the Mizuno driver vs the Paradym driver with on course numbers to follow. I guess you can say I have been holding my breath wondering if the latest Callaway driver would get beat by the Mizuno test driver. I guess we have an answer based on the numbers. Numbers suggest the Callaway was longer and straighter.

I can't wait to see the on course data given my experience that the Mizuno and my Callaway Epic had similar Trackman numbers but that didn't translate to on course play, where the Mizuno was shorter. Could still go either way!

I can give a little away before my final final review is up. The Paradym is longer on the course and slightly straighter for me, too. Overall the feel and sound of the Paradym fits my personal preference better as well. I don’t have a lot of time on course left this season with the exception of a big family tournament that means a lot to me to play well so the Paradym will stay in the bag for that. I will likely give the Mizuno a little more time on the range to see if I’m missing anything but if you asked me right in this moment the Paradym is the winner between the two. 

[srooch2]

Well, I've been in the market now for a new 5 wood and this one checks all the boxes. When I get time I'll read through all of your guys content. I'm very interested how the fairways hit off the deck vs off the tee? I usually find fairways either lean one way or the other in terms of which one they excel at. I'm needing one to do both however. My old one was a hair too deep, while it was great off the tee I struggled off the deck. Let me know how you guys feel this does in that area. (I will read back through but thought someone could let me know and save little time) Thanks a lot guys 

[russtopherb]

4 hours ago, srooch2 said:

Well, I've been in the market now for a new 5 wood and this one checks all the boxes. When I get time I'll read through all of your guys content. I'm very interested how the fairways hit off the deck vs off the tee? I usually find fairways either lean one way or the other in terms of which one they excel at. I'm needing one to do both however. My old one was a hair too deep, while it was great off the tee I struggled off the deck. Let me know how you guys feel this does in that area. (I will read back through but thought someone could let me know and save little time) Thanks a lot guys 

For me off the tee the fairway is excellent. Off the turf can be a crapshoot however I probably don’t have the swing speed to be hitting off the deck with any regularity. When I catch it clean it’s great. 

[Swood1994]

5 hours ago, srooch2 said:

Well, I've been in the market now for a new 5 wood and this one checks all the boxes. When I get time I'll read through all of your guys content. I'm very interested how the fairways hit off the deck vs off the tee? I usually find fairways either lean one way or the other in terms of which one they excel at. I'm needing one to do both however. My old one was a hair too deep, while it was great off the tee I struggled off the deck. Let me know how you guys feel this does in that area. (I will read back through but thought someone could let me know and save little time) Thanks a lot guys 

I found the fairway wood easy to hit off the tee and off the deck. Depending on what you are looking for in a fairway wood (distance, accuracy,  workability, etc). I did not find the mizuno 3-wood to be very long in general. It was closer to my Callaway 3HL (16.5°) in distance. But for me it was more accurate and if needed the adjustability can help bring it closer to a standard 3wood distance. I also found the club very easy to work both ways which helps for those tight pins.