Mizuno JPX-800 Pro Forged Iron Review

Part of the JPX series (which replaces Mizuno’s MX line) The 800 Pro is what could be called a transitional game improvement iron.  The head is less bulky than the standard JPX-800 (narrower sole, thinner top line), it features less offset, and visually, to me anyway, it looks a bit more refined than the average game improvement iron.

As far as shaft length is concerned, Mizuno hasn’t done anything sneaky (not that it’s a big secret anymore) to play to the distance crowd.  Standard lengths are inline with those of their MP-53 and MP-68 irons.  Because the JPX-800 is part of Mizuno’s game improvement series, it shouldn’t come as any real surprise that the lofts are 1° strong when compared to the MP-53 and 2° stronger than the MP-68.  For some additional perspective consider the lofts of the JPX-800 are actually, on average 1° weaker than those of the previously reviewed Cobra S2 forged, and by the time we get to the 7 iron (the club we use to conduct our performance tests), the JPX-800 is actually 2° weaker than the equivalent Cobra S2.

Although it’s a bit of an apples to oranges comparison, from a consumer education standpoint, it’s worth pointing out that there is a full 4° difference between the 7-iron in the Cobra S2 Forged set, and the 7 iron in Mizuno’s MP-68 set.  Obviously 31 does not equal 35, and yet they’ve both got 7s stamped on their soles.

Material Composition: 1025E “Pure Select” mild carbon steel (Grain Flow Forged)

Like the MP-53, the JPX-800 features Mizuno’s Triple Cut Sole (most visible in the leading edge grind), which helps to ensure consistent performance from a variety of lies.  Though Mizuno bills the JPX-800 Pro as having a thinner top line (in comparison to the standard JPX), several of our testers, and in particular the lower handicap golfers, told us that the top line was a bit too thick for their tastes.

Overall Performance

I encourage you to take a look at the complete results of our performance tests on the Mizuno JPX-800 interactive page.  In addition to sorting all of our data by golfer, we’ve added the ability to filter by handicap and swing speed.

While this is only the 2nd time we’ve applied our new scoring system, the results are extremely compelling.  Because we’re so early into this new process, as much as we’d love each club to stand on its own, it’s impossible not to draw comparisons to the previously reviewed Cobra S2.  It’s somewhat remarkable, though I believe completely in the results, that after days of testing both irons, there’s a whopping .32 performance points between them.  The results certainly give some additional credence to the old adage that it’s not the arrow, it’s the Indian.

Like the S2, the JPX-800 is a very good all-around performer, which our tests suggest you should definitely be looking at if you’re  in the market for a forged game improvement iron.

MGS OVERALL PERFORMANCE SCORE: 89.27

SUBJECTIVE SCORING

We’ve talked about subjective scoring in our forum.  We’ve sent out surveys asking about how the individual subjective categories, and we’ve received comments that suggest we shouldn’t even bother including it.  We’ve taken everything you’ve told us to heart, which is why we’ve broken out our performance and subjective scoring, and provided scores for every category (down to 1/100th of a point).  I think the subjective “stuff” is a huge part of the buying process, especially in situations where the performance between clubs is extremely similar.  It’s impossible to discount the subjective entirely.

Another reason why subjective scoring matters is that, as I’ve mentioned before, there is very often a fundamental disconnect between how a given golfer thinks a club performs in his hands, and how it actually does.  Our performance tests have revealed these discrepancies time and time again, and continuously illustrate why club reviews based solely on one or two guys opinion, and that aren’t supported by any data beyond “I think” or “I feel”, are woefully inadequate.  The subjective perspective gives us an indicator of how closely perception is to reality.

Feel

More than anything else Mizuno is a company known for producing irons with unrivaled feel.  While our testers almost to a man rated the JPX-800 Pro higher than its competitors in this space, many who’ve hit Mizunos previously felt that the JPX-800 was by no way a disappointment.

Of course, the guys moving from cast game improvement clubs had nothing but positive things to say.  In the end, most of our testers rated them as an 9, although a single 8, and a couple of 9.5s were also in the mix.  Brian, who didn’t take part in the detailed performance testing, told us that he thought the weighting of the JPX-800 Pro was absolutely perfect.

For my money, the JPX-800 pro offers very good feel, but if we’re being brutally honest, it’s not on the same level with those in the MP series.

MGS Feel Score: 87.54

Perceived Distance

Given that most of our testers hit the JPX-800 on the same day they hit the S2, it’s not a huge surprise that they perceived it as being the shorter of the two clubs – it is.  That said, we’re not talking about a tremendous difference in our tester’s minds.  Though a couple rated distance as a perfect 10, most of the 10s we saw for the S2s were replaced by 9s, and the 9s were replaced with 8s.  While the JPX-800 Pro is probably longer than our testers give it credit for, their for the most part match up with the results of our tests.

Tester Perceived Distance Score: 95.21

Perceived Accuracy

We’re uncovering an interesting trend with our recent tests.  It seems golfers are more accurate than they think they are.  This of course is the complete opposite of what we see with distance (where most golfers assume they’re 10 yards longer than our tests results prove).  With accuracy, golfers seem to have low expectations, with the actual results often being better than golfers give themselves credit for.

With respect to the Mizunos, it’ not like anyone (with the possible exception of Dan) was out there throwing darts, but they certainly performed better than some of the ratings (as low as 6) suggested.  As with our perceived distance scores, a number of 9s and even a 10 helped to offset the lower rankings.

Tester Perceived Accuracy Score:  87.54

Likelihood of Purchase

Likelihood of Purchase (or LOP as I like to call it) accounts for the smallest percentage of our subjective score.  It’s the closest MyGolfSpy gets to “demand” or buzz”.  We differ from others in that we don’t ask our testers to give us rating until after they have actually hit the club.  Our LOP question is simply this: “If you were going to replace the irons in your bag today, how likely is it that you would purchase the irons you tested today”?  Asking somebody if they like an iron is one thing.  Getting them to spend their money on them is an entirely different proposition.

Maybe it’s the clubs we’ve tested so far.  As I’ve pointed out several times already, the forged game-improvement space is golf equipment’s unchartered water.  Many golfers don’t know there are clubs in this space, fewer still are looking for them.  There could also be something in the  way we’re phrasing the question, but whatever it is, LOP numbers thus far are well below what we would have expected.

From a percentages perspective, LOP barely counts at in our scoring (5% of the subjective score), but we do like the insight it provides into how golfers really feel about the clubs they’ve just tested.  While most of the feedback we received on the JPX-800 pro suggests an “I’d think about it, but not on the top of my list” mentality, a couple of scores suggest a “not a chance in the world” mindset.  As per usual, those guys were largely balanced by a couple of testers who absolutely love the JPX-800 Pro irons.

Personally, I gave them a 7.  They’re a fantastic iron, but if I’m thinking forgiveness, I probably step down to the standard model, or perhaps look at something like a Ping K15.  If I’m inclined to go performance, feel, or looks, I probably step up to the MP-53.  Such is the fate of irons in this space I think.  They offer great balance, but probably not the best of anything.

CONCLUSION

This isn’t the first time Mizuno has had a club in this space (they’ve been doing it for years), but the fact that they’re no longer alone tells me that forged game improvement irons might be developing a broader market appeal.  Granted, the JPX-800 Pro,  a transitional iron “pro” enough to find its way into the bag of Charles Howell III, is probably at the extreme end of the category, but that only serves to remind us that there are plenty of guys playing less forgiving irons than they probably ought to be (yours truly included).