In this video, Joel Tadman tests the three new Mizuno JPX923 Hot Metal irons on the launch monitor and the course at Longcliffe Golf Club to see how they perform. Interestingly, Mizuno has added a new High Launch model this time around and so Joel does a little experiment to see if golfers with slower swing speeds will actually get more distance from an iron with weaker lofts. Watch to the end to find out if this is the case.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Now, it's always an exciting time when Mizuno launches new irons, especially within that JPX
00:05franchise where they have models to suit every type of player. But for 2023, there's a brand
00:10new model that Mizuno say will help golfers with slower swing speeds hit it further. It sounds
00:16counterintuitive, but it's really addressing the need for game-improved irons to provide a more
00:22playable and optimum ball fight. The trend I've seen with lofts getting stronger, even at my swing
00:28speed, I struggle to really flight the ball in these game-improvement clubs. Mizuno say they've
00:33combated that with the launch of this new JPX range, specifically the JPX 923 Hot Metal
00:40High Launch. As you can see, I've got three hot metal irons here in front of me. It's a split
00:44launch this time, so you're going to have to wait until February next year for the Tour and
00:48the Forge, which are the two models that admittedly would probably be more suited to my swing speed
00:52and my handicap. But I want to put these irons through their paces. The Hot Metal, the Hot
00:57Metal Pro and the Hot Metal High Launch in this JPX 923 range to see exactly what they're
01:02all about. But even more specifically, if I swing them slower, can I get even more distance
01:07out of that Hot Metal High Launch than I can the other two models? That's what we're here
01:11at Longcliffe Golf Club to find out. Now, if you want to find out about the technology in
01:16each of these specific heads, go to the Golf Monthly website. There's a story there. You can
01:20read all about that. We're not going to cover that in this video, but what we are going to
01:23talk about is the concept behind the changes that Mizuno have made with these irons versus
01:27the previous 921 range in that JPX franchise. So, Mizuno, as we know, they have that shaft
01:33optimiser technology where, in three swings, they can identify what shaft a golfer needs
01:38for their irons. And from all those different swings, they've captured over 350,000 swings.
01:43There were a couple of trends that really stood out, and that has really helped shape and influence
01:48the design of these new irons. The first is the fact, actually, that golfer's swing speeds
01:52are quite slow. Average was about 82 miles an hour of the 7-iron, and that has led to
01:57the introduction of this high launch model, which we've covered already. But the second
02:00trend was that golfers tended to present quite a lot of shaft lean at impact, and that's
02:05resulted in a change in the bounce and the camber to these clubs. So, you'll notice there's
02:09a lot more bounce and camber to these clubs to give you a little bit more forgiveness through
02:12the turf if you do tend to de-loft the club into impact and get that leading edge quite
02:17sharp into the ball. So, it gives you a little bit more margin for error, Mizuno, say, on
02:21your strike. So, those are the two key trends that Mizuno have incorporated into this range.
02:25I'm going to hit some shots here into this beautiful par four down here, the 10th hole
02:30at Longcliffe's Golf Club. Got the launch monitor, the full swing kit launch monitor, going to
02:33capture some data. We're going to assess the ball flight, assess the feel, the sound, everything
02:38about these clubs, and then we'll feed back afterwards. So, without further ado, let's hit some
02:41shots and see what they're all about.
02:45Oh, it's much higher.
03:07Well, so I've really enjoyed my testing session on the full swing kit launch monitor with
03:10the three new JPX923 hot metal irons. And I've also thrown in the JPX921 hot metal iron
03:17as a comparison, which we're going to touch on now. So, I'll flash up the data on the screen.
03:22You can click pause and peruse it at your leisure. But there were some trends that I noticed during
03:27the testing from the data that we got. The first being that I love how the spin is pretty
03:31high. For what is a game improvement iron range where we see lofts been stronger, spin coming
03:36down. The fact that these clubs are spinning close to 6,000 RPM, we saw with the prior generation
03:41and that's been continuing to this one. So, that's going to help players keep the ball in
03:45the air for longer and get more stopping power into greens. So, that's the first thing that
03:49I really observed across all three of the new irons. So, coming on to numbers, worth pointing
03:53out that the hot metal and the hot metal pro in this 923 range is half a degree stronger than
03:58where we were in the 921. But looking at the numbers, actually, it wasn't necessarily getting
04:02anything more out of this new version. Both were carrying similar in the hot metal, starting
04:07with the hot metal iron. Both were carrying around about that 170 range. But what I did
04:11notice was the ball flight was a little bit higher. So, even though it's stronger in loft,
04:15actually, the ball was launching a little bit higher and it was flying a little bit higher
04:18too. Notice that testing here on this hole at Longcliff Golf Club. It was like one or two yards
04:23higher through the air, which is a change that I like to see given those stronger lofts.
04:28Let me move on to the hot metal pro. Actually, this is the club I got the most out of, despite
04:32it being a slimmed down version of the hot metal. I actually hit a little bit further than the
04:36hot metal. Definitely prefer the look of it. It's got a more compact look down at a dress,
04:40whereas the hot metal iron in the 921 and 923, very similar, really comforting sparring,
04:46a little bit of offset there, thicker top line. Hot metal pro, a little bit more slimmed down.
04:51So, it definitely suits my eye as a lower handicap a little bit more. And then we move on to the
04:55hot metal high large. Now, you might think, well, this club is weaker in loft. It's two degree,
05:00two to three degrees weaker through the set than the hot metal. In the 7-iron, it's 31 degrees.
05:05So, it's significantly weaker. And as a result, the testing I did on launch monitor, my speed
05:11would suggest that it's not going to give me the distance compared to the other two models. So, it's
05:14around about seven or eight yards shorter on average than the hot metal and the hot metal pro.
05:20But we know this club is not designed for a golfer like me. It's designed for slower swing speeds.
05:25And so, now we're going to do a little experiment where I'm going to test this hot metal high
05:30launch up against the hot metal, slow my swing speed down to 75 miles an hour, and see actually,
05:37by doing that and switching into this new iron, do you get more distance? Because I think if you do,
05:43that's going to suit an awful lot of players looking for a club like this.
05:46Okay, so I'm going to start with the JPX 923 hot metal, going to hit three shots with each
05:51at that slower swing speed, and see which one gives us the most distance.
05:58Okay, it's a good hit. Swing speed 79. They only carried 115 yards.
06:15Oh, slightly slower that one. 66. That's a good shot. 70.5. One, two, one. Okay, let's move
06:40on to the hot metal. So we're looking like we're averaging around about 120 yards with the hot metal.
06:49Now we're going to try the high launch. Oh, I might have been a little heavy.
06:57Swing speed bang on. 75, 112 carry. I think I hit that a little bit chunky.
07:07That's a much cleaner strike. Higher flight, much noticeably higher flight on that one.
07:13So that's really interesting. Swing speed of 71, or 70.6, carry of 125.
07:19So that's the longest shot I've hit in this experiment so far, and not the fastest swing speed by any means.
07:30Again, noticeably higher flight. A good four or five yards higher. 71 swing speed, carry of 129 yards.
07:39So this experiment, this little experiment has proved to me definitely that I think slower swing speed golfers,
07:45mid-high handicap golfers who struggle to get the ball in the air are really going to enjoy what this hot metal high launch has to offer.
07:52And they're actually going to get a bit more distance out of this because your ball flight is optimized for your swing speed.
07:59So while these three JPX 923 hot metal irons are probably not aimed at me, I've really enjoyed my time testing these.
08:07And there's three really key takeaways that I would offer to you in terms of how these irons perform and the user experience that you will expect.
08:15The first being these irons look absolutely fantastic.
08:17I don't think they move it on a great deal in terms of looks or performance versus where we were with the JPX 921.
08:26In fact, I think like for like models, you're not going to see huge gains.
08:29You might see a little bit more distance from that stronger loft and a slightly maybe higher ball flight as well from the technology they've packed into this club.
08:36But you're not going to see huge gains I don't think versus generation to generation.
08:39But the other thing that really stood out for me was the turf interaction.
08:43So it's hard to pinpoint exactly how it felt differently, but it definitely felt different.
08:48I think a little bit more give through the turf.
08:50So maybe you're not getting, I felt like my divots were a little bit shallower, a little bit smaller.
08:56And I think your margin for error is a little bit greater if you just catch the ground slightly heavy.
09:02So that's the other thing I would kind of observe from generation to generation.
09:06I think the feel is absolutely fantastic.
09:08These clubs feel hot, but they don't feel harsh or clicky.
09:12They actually feel relatively soft, but explosive at the same time.
09:15It's an interesting combination, but through the set, it's a very pleasing feel.
09:19And I think across all three of these hot metal clubs, if you're a mid to high handicapper, there's definitely going to be something for you.
09:24Even if you're maybe a single figure, high single figure golfer, I think you'll really enjoy what this hot metal pro has to offer in terms of that visual package.
09:32Nice and compact down behind the ball, but gives really good speed, good launch and good distance as well.
09:37So lots to like about this new JPX 923 range.
09:40Hopefully you've enjoyed this video.
09:42If you do, click the like button down below and do comment on this video.
09:45We'd love to hear from you.
09:46Which iron are you most excited to try within this new hot metal franchise?
09:50If you're after those better player irons, you've got to wait until February.
09:53But I think this hot metal irons, from what we've seen so far, there's a lot to be excited about with this new JPX 923 range.
09:59But that's all for me from Longcliffe Golf Club. I'll see you next time.