Mizuno JPX 900 Hot Metal

[Minge]

The S taper may just be the ticket to get my distance back and get get a mid/high launch. Other then that the recoil 689ES or the 460 may also be a good option for me. I wish these were stock offerings with the Hot Metal but I sure cant blame Mizuno the shaft offering in the line is pretty darn good.

[AndersUK]

I tried my partners Big Bertha 6i with 460 F3 with a 175 yard shot into the wind. I expected it to balloon but it airmailed the green and landed on the tee behind the hole, approx 15-20 yards past the pin. VERY high but VERY long. My 6i swing speed is 88-90 and I was impressed how stable the shaft felt for a light weight regular flex. Recoil 95 and 110 just don't perform the same for me. The Recoil 460 turns club heads into missile launchers although it might be too light so the 600/800 series may be better.

[lc1342]

HM's are a great iron. I had them with the Project X LZ 6.0 but have recently switched to the G400 and I am in an even more happy place.

[Nessism]

The S taper may just be the ticket to get my distance back and get get a mid/high launch. Other then that the recoil 689ES or the 460 may also be a good option for me. I wish these were stock offerings with the Hot Metal but I sure cant blame Mizuno the shaft offering in the line is pretty darn good.

 

There's about a 50 gram weight range in these different shafts you mention. For most people a difference in shaft weight of 10 grams can cause a profound effect on their swing. Be careful.

[gavman07]

I have been playing the recoil 95's in HM's for a couple of months now and can echo what other have said. I tend to get a high ball flight out of this setup without ballooning. I fear that the 460's might launch to high for my personal swing. What I mean by echoing what other have said is that I didn't gain any distance when I switched to these from my old MX-200's with KBS tour 90's. I assumed because the lofts were approximately 2* stronger that I would gain a bit of distance, but the distances have remained relatively similar. (maybe a 3-5 yard gain). For me the recoil 95's offer great feel and great dispersion, but are definitely not the longest iron set-up that I tested by any measure. I am a somewhat short hitter as it is (87-90 mph driver swing speed) so distance was never a strength of my game and I value dispersion and distance consistency over pure distance. The main strength I have found with the recoil 95/HM setup is the consistency in yardage and forgiveness. If struck well the ball goes exactly where I want it to go and if struck poorly it doesn't lose/gain too much distance. In the end, there are likely much longer irons shafts out there, but the recoil 95's have been very accurate and reliable for me thus far and that is more important to me out of my irons.

 

I will place a caveat on that I have not hit a number of the iron shafts mentioned (Modus, recoil 460's, etc) and can only compare to the KBS tour 90's and R300's.

 

Does anyone currently game the Hot Metals with KBS Tour shafts and if so how do they perform? I assume they launch rather high, but that does depend on the player.

 

Nessism- What shafts did you switch from to the recoil 95's? and do you feel that the recoil 95's are any shorter in terms or distance?

[Nessism]

Shafts don't provide propulsion and increase/decrease ball speed of their own accord. It's up to the person swinging the club to create the club speed as a result of their swing.

 

When a shaft is the wrong weight and/or doesn't provide the feel through the hands that a person wants, there may be a drop in swing speed as a result. This is not a shaft fault, rather is a fitting fault where the person should be using a shaft that better meets their feel expectations.

 

Some people with a late release and/or a quick tempo at the top will load the shaft a lot and when that happens there may be dynamic loft generated at impact. If that's the case the ball flight will be higher than if there was no dynamic loft. Not all people have a swing that loads the shaft enough for this to happen, in fact most don't. The point being though that ball flight can be affected by certain shafts in certain people's hands.

 

If you are one of those people and the shaft is being over powered then there typically is a very high ball flight and ballooning trajectory. If you are experiencing this you need a stiffer shaft and/or one with at least a stiffer tip.

 

Personally, I swing with about an 87 mph 6-iron speed and love the Recoil 95 F4's. My tempo and release is very "medium" and I don't generate much dynamic loft at impact, regardless of what shaft I use. I've found the HM's to be the longest irons I've ever used. I had some Ping G's before and the HM's were longer, presumably because the face is more active and provides some spring effect. More than the G's anyway. I've used all kinds of different shafts in the last few years including KBS Tour S, DG SL S, Ping CFS S & X, Ping Z-Z65, Rifle 5.5 & 6.0, PX 5.5 and Flighted 6.0, Steelfiber i95S, and Recoil 95 & 110 S. Out of all those different shafts I never saw any significant distance increase or decrease with any of them. That's just me though.

[caniac6]

HM's are a great iron. I had them with the Project X LZ 6.0 but have recently switched to the G400 and I am in an even more happy place.

What do you like better about the Pings vs. the Mizunos? Thanks

[Minge]

The S taper may just be the ticket to get my distance back and get get a mid/high launch. Other then that the recoil 689ES or the 460 may also be a good option for me. I wish these were stock offerings with the Hot Metal but I sure cant blame Mizuno the shaft offering in the line is pretty darn good.

 

There's about a 50 gram weight range in these different shafts you mention. For most people a difference in shaft weight of 10 grams can cause a profound effect on their swing. Be careful.

 

You are exactly right and I appreciate the feedback..As you can see, I am at a loss as to what to do with my shaft issue or maybe it is just the Indian and not the arrow or the Hot Metals as just not for me. I played yesterday in fairly windy conditions and I had two par threes into the wind one 137 into about a 15 mile an hour wind and I hit the shot sky high like of the the HM and recoil combo does and I came up a solid 10 yards short with a bit of ballon effect. Learned my lesson on the next par three 144 to the flag 15-gusty wind in my face 7 iron hole high. My old missy with KBS tours would have been a smooth 9 and 8 iron. I would end this experiment if I did not love how my body feels after a round using the recoils. Loosing 8-10 yards per club when you are not a big hitter to begin with is a big deal.

 

Love the high ball flight and love the spin rate just don't love the distance. Get my distance back I would be thrilled with the HM and recoil combo.

[crazygolfnut]

The S taper may just be the ticket to get my distance back and get get a mid/high launch. Other then that the recoil 689ES or the 460 may also be a good option for me. I wish these were stock offerings with the Hot Metal but I sure cant blame Mizuno the shaft offering in the line is pretty darn good.

 

There's about a 50 gram weight range in these different shafts you mention. For most people a difference in shaft weight of 10 grams can cause a profound effect on their swing. Be careful.

 

You are exactly right and I appreciate the feedback..As you can see, I am at a loss as to what to do with my shaft issue or maybe it is just the Indian and not the arrow or the Hot Metals as just not for me. I played yesterday in fairly windy conditions and I had two par threes into the wind one 137 into about a 15 mile an hour wind and I hit the shot sky high like of the the HM and recoil combo does and I came up a solid 10 yards short with a bit of ballon effect. Learned my lesson on the next par three 144 to the flag 15-gusty wind in my face 7 iron hole high. My old missy with KBS tours would have been a smooth 9 and 8 iron. I would end this experiment if I did not love how my body feels after a round using the recoils. Loosing 8-10 yards per club when you are not a big hitter to begin with is a big deal.

 

Love the high ball flight and love the spin rate just don't love the distance. Get my distance back I would be thrilled with the HM and recoil combo.

 

I had the same situation as you so I went back to my old irons. I am now trying to sell the HM's on CraigsList.

[Minge]

Nessism....Are you a digger or a sweeper? This to could be one of the contributing factors in my distance loss, I am a live long sweeper and a groove low on these irons is not good..

[Nessism]

Nessism....Are you a digger or a sweeper? This to could be one of the contributing factors in my distance loss, I am a live long sweeper and a groove low on these irons is not good..

 

The Hot Metal irons are low bounce. They are perfectly suited for a sweeper. Diggers may not get along with them quite as well but the sole does have some camber and the leading edge is rounded so those guys should be reasonably able to use them too.

[gavman07]

Nessism....Are you a digger or a sweeper? This to could be one of the contributing factors in my distance loss, I am a live long sweeper and a groove low on these irons is not good..

 

I am a bit of a sweeper myself. Small divots. I did not notice a distance loss, but didn't gain any noticeale distance either. Coming from a set of Mx-200's with KBS Tours I assumed I would gain 5-10 yards (due to the hotter heads and stonger lofts). I gained a few yards (2-4), but nothing noticeable so I do have to assume that the combo of Recoil 95's and HM are not the hottest clubs are the market for players with our swing type. At least that's what the evidence is pointing to from above. I have no other sets to compare them to so this is all based on what others have said above and my own personal set.

 

With that said, the clubs are sweet. I don't really care if I'm hitting a 7 iron 145 or a 8 iron as long as it goes 145 regularly. That's why I have all of the irons. I have found these to be very accurate, very forgiving, and they feel great. Even if I picked up a set that went 10 yards longer, if they didn't feel as good or weren't as accurate for me personally, I wouldn't change a thing. I think the combo is great. It's also great on the body as well for the players who are getting up there in the years.

[Minge]

Nessism....Are you a digger or a sweeper? This to could be one of the contributing factors in my distance loss, I am a live long sweeper and a groove low on these irons is not good..

 

The Hot Metal irons are low bounce. They are perfectly suited for a sweeper. Diggers may not get along with them quite as well but the sole does have some camber and the leading edge is rounded so those guys should be reasonably able to use them too.

 

Thanks for your response and your contribution to this forum!!

[Minge]

I am wondering what Mizuno's series cycles are typically. Will we see a Hot Metal 2.0 by spring of 2018?

[collingsom1a]

Been a Ping Ho for over 30 years and tried these for the heck of it at a demo day and I haven't look back ever since.

 

I find these stock JPX 900 HM's longer (1-1/2 clubs longer) and with way tons more feel than my set of Ping G400's. The new Ping G400's sky the ball pretty high and are a full club shorter than the JPX 900's. The Project X 70g shafts (Reg's) are perfect, great feel and sound.

 

Never, ever thought I'd play anything but Ping. That's now changed, altho I still game the G400 driver, fairways and that's going to be extremely hard to get out of my back.

 

Going to try the new Mizuno hybrids next.

[jeffrey r]

Been a Ping Ho for over 30 years and tried these for the heck of it at a demo day and I haven't look back ever since.

 

The 900 HM’s are a great set of irons. I got fit for them early in the season, played some decent golf with them, went away from them for awhile, and then came back to them. Now, I am trying to see if they can still hang with the Cobra Forged Tec, which I recently put in the bag and have become enamored with. Definitely a superb release from Mizuno though.

[JMH1220]

The Hot Metal seems to be the GI club of the year

[I_HATE_SNOW]

Love the HM's, put Aldila 115 g Rogue shafts in mine. GW either needs tweaked stronger or changed to forged as it is 20 yards short of the PW, for me.

[JMH1220]

I don't think it has the hot face. Don't know why

[bulls9999]

Gavman07, I have similar low swing speed as you (driver distance ~225-230 yrds). I have been using Project X rifle-flighted 5.0's and although I like the weight feel, I don't get a sense of loading the club. When I try lighter weight shafts, they seem to target slow swing speeds and usually have weak tip sections and cause me to hook. I'm tempted at Recoil 95's and would love to try the F3 vs F4 (but based on online reviews, would like better to try the Mitsubishi OTi 95/105's, but that seems to be a super premium shaft....don't want to pay an extra $500+ for that). Have anyone tried the NS ProModus3 105's with the JPX9000 HM?

 

I have been playing the recoil 95's in HM's for a couple of months now and can echo what other have said. I tend to get a high ball flight out of this setup without ballooning. I fear that the 460's might launch to high for my personal swing. What I mean by echoing what other have said is that I didn't gain any distance when I switched to these from my old MX-200's with KBS tour 90's. I assumed because the lofts were approximately 2* stronger that I would gain a bit of distance, but the distances have remained relatively similar. (maybe a 3-5 yard gain). For me the recoil 95's offer great feel and great dispersion, but are definitely not the longest iron set-up that I tested by any measure. I am a somewhat short hitter as it is (87-90 mph driver swing speed) so distance was never a strength of my game and I value dispersion and distance consistency over pure distance. The main strength I have found with the recoil 95/HM setup is the consistency in yardage and forgiveness. If struck well the ball goes exactly where I want it to go and if struck poorly it doesn't lose/gain too much distance. In the end, there are likely much longer irons shafts out there, but the recoil 95's have been very accurate and reliable for me thus far and that is more important to me out of my irons.

 

I will place a caveat on that I have not hit a number of the iron shafts mentioned (Modus, recoil 460's, etc) and can only compare to the KBS tour 90's and R300's.

 

Does anyone currently game the Hot Metals with KBS Tour shafts and if so how do they perform? I assume they launch rather high, but that does depend on the player.

 

Nessism- What shafts did you switch from to the recoil 95's? and do you feel that the recoil 95's are any shorter in terms or distance?

[bulls9999]

Just got my Mizuno JPX 900 HM with N.S. ProModus3 105-Stiff and I think they're awesome. They give me 1-1.5 clubs over my previous sets (Callaway X22 Tour/Project X rifle-flighted 5.0; Adams CB2 forged/KBS 90Tour-Stiff). I've only played 3 rounds with them, so I'm comparing clubs used on holes that I know my prior club usage....one par-3 that I've previously used 6- and 7-iron (only used 8-iron when I had a tail wind) and last night, with no wind/dead wind, used a 9-iron and put it pin-high and lipped out my birdie putt. Same at other spots on the course...using less club, much less with these. The only negative, is looking down at them, there is a huge chunk of metal. I'm wondering if this is more the shaft than the head as I love this soft-butt shaft as opposed to other flavors (my rifle-flighted px's were like rebar to load; my KBS 90Tour-S, although almost the same weight, 102gm vs 106.6gm, seem softer flex).

 

I have the 4-GW set, and just used the gap wedge on the last hole (100 yrds from an uphill green) and put it to 7 feet, similar to what I would have donw with my 54* Clevelands.

 

Just got the ok from my financial manager (wife). Will be ordering a set of Hot Metals in the next couple of days if all goes well.

[Carolina Golfer 2]

I was fitted for the HM900's and thought I would really like them. After 10 rounds and a couple of trips to the driving range, I am a little disappointed with my Hot Metals. I played AP1's for seven seasons and they became a no brainier to hit. I am struggling to hit the Hot Metals solid and have a lot of thin shots and pulls. Maybe this is a good club for many but not for me. Feeling like I made a big mistake. My old irons are going back into the bag for tomorrow.

I went from AP1's to HM's and would never look back. I'm 1/2 club longer, more accurate, and the feel of the HM's is much softer than the AP1's in my opinion.

Curious which model of the AP1. I recently hit the 718 AP1 and they felt just as good, maybe not better but certainly no worst than my Hot Metals.

[I_HATE_SNOW]

I don't think it has the hot face. Don't know why

 

I know the hot face started with the 7 iron on the JPX 800's, not sure on the 900's.

[crazygolfnut]

I was fitted for the HM900's and thought I would really like them. After 10 rounds and a couple of trips to the driving range, I am a little disappointed with my Hot Metals. I played AP1's for seven seasons and they became a no brainier to hit. I am struggling to hit the Hot Metals solid and have a lot of thin shots and pulls. Maybe this is a good club for many but not for me. Feeling like I made a big mistake. My old irons are going back into the bag for tomorrow.

I went from AP1's to HM's and would never look back. I'm 1/2 club longer, more accurate, and the feel of the HM's is much softer than the AP1's in my opinion.

Curious which model of the AP1. I recently hit the 718 AP1 and they felt just as good, maybe not better but certainly no worst than my Hot Metals.

 

I played the 710 AP1 irons for seven seasons. Had the HM for about 10 rounds and returned them for the 718 AP1 irons. I now have the 718's and will be playing them for a long time.

[mliebs]

I purchased the HM's with the recoil 95 shafts last year and absolutely love the clubs. I also went from a stiff to regular flex and for the first time ever I'm not looking for new irons. Not sure about my swing speed but my driver distance is 250-260 (total) and the F3 shafts seem to fit me perfect. As others have said my ball flight with the recoil shaft is pretty high but ballooning is not a problem, in fact I'm really starting to like the ball flight.

[Radeon962]

I played a few rounds with the HM and found them very similar to my Ping G's I played earlier this summer. My biggest issue with the HM and the G's were the turf interaction. I am a sweeper and both seemed to take deeper divots for my swing.

 

I played i5's or years and then G25's for a few seasons before the G's and could never quite get used to the soles on the G's or HM's.

 

I switched to Ping iE1's and they have been great as they are like an improved, more forgiving i5. Much more consistent turf interaction and plenty forgiving on all but the worst swings.

 

 

[BlkNGld]

I was fitted for the HM900's and thought I would really like them. After 10 rounds and a couple of trips to the driving range, I am a little disappointed with my Hot Metals. I played AP1's for seven seasons and they became a no brainier to hit. I am struggling to hit the Hot Metals solid and have a lot of thin shots and pulls. Maybe this is a good club for many but not for me. Feeling like I made a big mistake. My old irons are going back into the bag for tomorrow.

I went from AP1's to HM's and would never look back. I'm 1/2 club longer, more accurate, and the feel of the HM's is much softer than the AP1's in my opinion.

Curious which model of the AP1. I recently hit the 718 AP1 and they felt just as good, maybe not better but certainly no worst than my Hot Metals.

 

I played the 710 AP1 irons for seven seasons. Had the HM for about 10 rounds and returned them for the 718 AP1 irons. I now have the 718's and will be playing them for a long time.

 

What did you learn about the HMs over that time to prompt you to move on from them?

 

I've got 712 AP1 and the HMs and 718s are on my short list.

[Nessism]

I played a few rounds with the HM and found them very similar to my Ping G's I played earlier this summer. My biggest issue with the HM and the G's were the turf interaction. I am a sweeper and both seemed to take deeper divots for my swing.

 

I played i5's or years and then G25's for a few seasons before the G's and could never quite get used to the soles on the G's or HM's.

 

I switched to Ping iE1's and they have been great as they are like an improved, more forgiving i5. Much more consistent turf interaction and plenty forgiving on all but the worst swings.

 

Bounce progression: 4 iron to PW

 

Ping G: 5* to 12*

Mizuno HM: 0* to 5*

 

This is one of the bigger difference between these two sets.

[North Butte]

I played a few rounds with the HM and found them very similar to my Ping G's I played earlier this summer. My biggest issue with the HM and the G's were the turf interaction. I am a sweeper and both seemed to take deeper divots for my swing.

 

I played i5's or years and then G25's for a few seasons before the G's and could never quite get used to the soles on the G's or HM's.

 

I switched to Ping iE1's and they have been great as they are like an improved, more forgiving i5. Much more consistent turf interaction and plenty forgiving on all but the worst swings.

 

Bounce progression: 4 iron to PW

 

Ping G: 5* to 12*

Mizuno HM: 0* to 5*

 

This is one of the bigger difference between these two sets.

 

I've never understood (or paid much attention) to this whole "sweeper" vs. "digger" thing. I'm in the category of "hacker" vs. "player" but never felt a need to know about sweeping/digging as the "hacker" thing kind of trumps that particular distinction IMHO!

 

That said, I've been playing Ping G (and earlier Ping G-series) irons for quite a while and they suit me fine. But I recently picked up a cheap deal on a set of the Mizunos (mine are actually Forged and not Hot Metal) and have been totally surprised that I don't hit any more fat shots or other bad turf interaction problems.

 

So does that make me a "sweeper"?

 

I know my iron swing really suffers when the ball is in the rough, even if it's sitting up a bit in a decent lie. I'm so shallow I have trouble hitting down and making clean contact with the ball before grass. Is "shallow" the same as "sweeper"?

 

What I find with the Forged (1 to 6 degrees of bounce, narrower sole) vs. the Ping G (5 to 12 degrees, wider sole) is sometimes I'll feel a bit more of a kick-back from the turf if I catch an iron shot high on the face. But just like the Pings, unless I really stick it in the ground those tend to come out result-wise pretty similar to well struck shots.

 

What I guess that tells me is when I'm digging in those low-bounce soles slightly it must be happening after impact. Not that I'm above literally jamming the club into the ground 6" behind the ball once a round or so but I'd do that with any club from driver down to wedge, no matter what brands...

[Nessism]

A digger will create a large divot and a picker won't. All divots should be in front of the ball, not behind, for (hopefully) obvious reasons.

 

Good ball strikers typically take a divot but it's a shallow (and maybe long) one.

 

Personally, I'm a fan of the Ping philosophy of lots of bounce and some front to back sole radius. Mizuno's tend to be low bounce, but in the HM's case the sole is very curved on the leading edge so they aren't overly diggy for that reason even if you get steep into the ball.