It may sound odd for the best player in the world to be looking for more forgiveness from his irons. Yet world number one Luke Donald – 2011 PGA Tour stroke average 68.86 – has been trialling Mizuno’s new MP 59, a club that features forgiveness strongly in its design.
In truth it is easy to see what Donald might like about the MP 59. A little more compact than the MP 58 it is replacing, the iron has minimal offset and a thin topline, giving it every appearance of a blade from a golfer’s-eye view. Yet it is in the blind rear of the club where the technology really gets to work. A titanium insert, more central than the one found in the MP 58, adds meat to the centre of the face while permitting extra weight in the heel and toe. Blend in impact tone harmonics and the solid grain-flow forged feel – even the titanium insert is forged into the head – and you have an enviable blend of blade performance and cavity-back forgiveness.
“I think it will take quite a lot for Luke to switch from the dual muscle MP 62 he currently uses,” says Mizuno’s UK marketing manager Graeme Gorrie. “He is understandably reluctant to change from a club with which he has had so much success. Yet he is no different from the rest of us in wanting his bad shots to be a little better. If he can find a little more forgiveness with no compromise on feel or performance, he will be happy. In this respect the MP 59 could be an option for him moving forwards.”
Retailing at £120 per club, the MP 59’s strapline is: “Think they’re too good for you?” – a reference to the boosted forgiveness levels and expanded sweetspot that make the club more playable and accessible for more golfers, while retaining those prized MP looks and performance. For this reason alone, this iron is perhaps the star of a spurt of late 2011 launches from Mizuno, which includes wedges, putters and a utility club – though the predictably gorgeous, bladed MP 69 runs it close.
Upgraded from the outgoing MP 68, the MP 69 is also £120 per club and also has something of a forgiveness story. While the similarity of the general profile and lines mark this as a gentle blade evolution, the MP 69 features a new weighting system called a 4D muscle pad – essentially an iron-specific weight placement that alters centre-of-gravity location to promote optimal trajectory in each club. Expect some welcome assistance in gaining height with the long irons. This design has given the iron a slightly more muscular look than its predecessor.
“I would call this the most forgiving blade Mizuno has produced in the last six or seven years,” reckons Gorrie. “They feel bigger than the MP 68 and the bottom half of the blade is meatier at the back – a little like the old Cut Muscles we used to make. Everyone who’s tried them has been surprised how easy they are to hit. This is a more playable blade that retains all the player attributes of consistency and shot shaping.”
Pushing game improvement
The MP 69 sits at the better-player end of what has become a straightforward Mizuno iron spectrum. There are currently four grain-flow forged MP iron offerings, with the diamond-backed 63 and its pocket-cavity twin 53 sitting alongside the MP 59. Then, moving into game-improver territory, there are now three JPX 800 models, with the new JPX 800 HD joining the JPX 800 Pro and JPX 800.
“HD stands for High Distance,” Gorrie explains. “The key to this club is its pocket cavity, which allows a thin, flexing face and very high initial ball speeds. There is also an angled sweetspot zone – moving high into the toe – to accommodate the strike pattern of the typical over-the-top swing shape of the game-improver.”
Retailing at £80 per club, the JPX 800 HD is powered by Fujikura’s new Orochi Dragon graphite shaft as standard. A wide C-grind sole, offset and thicker top line all merge to help create an easily high and powerful launch.
The JPX 800 sub-range merges seamlessly into a new Fli-Hi hybrid, offering direct long iron replacements of 2-to-6-irons with lofts from 19º to 32º. The club employs multiple face thickness and low profile to set up a confidence-inspiring club with a fast, ready launch.
Meanwhile, Mizuno is preparing to restructure its custom-fitting operation. Of its three National Fitting Centres in the UK, only one – at Burhill – will remain active, with the Wrexham and Glasgow operations closing down.
“The National Fitting Centres have huge overheads, and you are limited to how many fittings you can do,” Gorrie explains. “Instead, we have decided to invest in the 400 or so MP Fitting System-accredited accounts we have in the UK. The staff will go out on the road as tech reps, servicing the MPFS account holders, providing support and training.”
The change has been partly prompted by demo day research which revealed that 65% of customers didn’t realise there are around 400 Regional Fitting Centres around the UK, armed with a custom-fitting cart and some with Mizuno’s innovative Shaft Optimiser technology.
The success of the Optimiser must surely have been a factor too. The clever device fits on to the shaft, delivering five key pieces of data – head speed, tempo, heel/toe down, kick angle and release factor – as the club is swung. The information is fed into computer software, which recommends shaft options. It’s a device that streamlines the potentially messy business of trying out shafts, with Mizuno claiming your perfect shaft can be revealed in just three swings.
“The average MPFS account that uses the Optimiser has increased its custom-fit sales by 89%,” Gorrie reports. “It’s just such a simple and effective process: you punch the numbers in and shaft recommendations are made. It’s so good and quick, and saves hours custom-fitting people.
“From the recommendations we quote seven-to-10 days to deliver the clubs, but aim for three-to-five.”
Mizuno’s custom-fit service reflects the product the brand produces – unfussy, professional, effective. In its understated style, it has also released a new tour-inspired wedge range (see panel) and three new CNC-milled putters. The company’s style is to release ironware in the autumn and woods in the spring, so we will have to wait until Orlando for news of a replacement to the MP 630 driver. But for now, the range of quality launches affirms a company that – like its number-one staff player – remains on top of its game.
Getting a grip
The new MP-R12 is a grain-flow forged wedge featuring a more rounded shape – the preferred option from a range of tour-tested products. The nine loft options from 50-64º offer not only different sole grinds but also different Quad-Cut groove configurations, with the more lofted faces – where the face does not compress the ball so much – employing shallower and wider grooves to boost grip. The MP-R12 comes in both a white satin chrome and black nickel finish, and will retail at £115.
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