Mizuno Pro MS-801 irons

[donaldp83]

I have been looking for an older obscure set of irons to add to my collection, and decided to jump on these when I saw them. As I wait for them to arrive this week, I have been trying to find information on them and/or find reviews of people who have played them just to pass the time until I can touch them, but have found very little. Has anyone here played them? Hopefully since I found so little on them it can a fun reminder for somone who hasn't thought about them in some time...

[Foozle]

59 minutes ago, donaldp83 said:

I have been looking for an older obscure set of irons to add to my collection, and decided to jump on these when I saw them. As I wait for them to arrive this week, I have been trying to find information on them and/or find reviews of people who have played them just to pass the time until I can touch them, but have found very little. Has anyone here played them? Hopefully since I found so little on them it can a fun reminder for somone who hasn't thought about them in some time...

Don't have and have never played 801's but do have a set of MS 11 which look very similar. 

If they play alike you are in for a treat! The MS 11's are the softest feeling irons I own. 

I do think that feel is also dependant on the shaft being correct for you which might be why the MS 11's feel much softer than my TP 9's, MP 14's and MP 32's - in that order! Interesting that, in my experience, the older the Mizuno model the better they feel?!

On that basis yours should be right in the sweetspot. Enjoy and let us know how you get on.

[donaldp83]

Oh my, funny you posted those gems because they are THE ones I have been after! I WILL have those as soon as I find the right ones...

[Foozle]

38 minutes ago, donaldp83 said:

Oh my, funny you posted those gems because they are THE ones I have been after! I WILL have those as soon as I find the right ones...

I don't know where you are based but here in the UK MS 11 are like hens teeth. I have had mine for maybe 15 years but don't think I have seen another set for sale in that time! That said I don't think I have ever seen a UK based set of  801's so they are probably even rarer!

[Joe S]

1 hour ago, Foozle said:

I don't know where you are based but here in the UK MS 11 are like hens teeth. I have had mine for maybe 15 years but don't think I have seen another set for sale in that time! That said I don't think I have ever seen a UK based set of  801's so they are probably even rarer!

 

Here in the U.S. I've never run into a complete set.  I've seen pictures, and wasn't too impressed.  But last year a found a random 4 iron in a golf shop and was finally able to see what the hype is about.  Beautiful grind.  

[Soloman1]

I have a 2-SW MS-11 set I got in Japan. I still  play them often for a change of pace. I sold a set just like it years ago and I think someone here (on GolfWRX) living in Japan bought them! How rare is that. I believe the 801's have a satin finish but similar feel to the MS-11's. If they have the original shafts, they should be about 5/8" shorter than western standard length.

 

 

Edited May 12, 2021 by Soloman1

[elwhippy]

Magnificent irons and woods. 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

Seems to be from 1987, so the year before the MS-11s. From the photographs, I'd say the toe looks a bit squarer than the MS-11s, and the topline is not shaved down as much. Tasty looking iron.

 

I found these specs for the MS-801 on a Japanese website (loft then lie)

2i: 17*, 57*

3i: 21*, 58* 

4i: 24*, 59*

5i: 27*, 60*

6i: 31*, 60.5*

7i: 35*, 61*

8i: 39*, 61*5

9i: 43*, 62*

PW: 48*, 62.5*

SW: 56*, 62.5*

 

It wasn't an official Mizuno site, but it's usually about right with other Mizuno sets I've bought.

 

The standard 5i length for Mizunos then was 37.5", going up or down from there in 0.5" increments.

 

Looking at that gap between the PW and SW, I would have thought there might have been a P/S wedge offered as well, but I've not found any evidence of one. I have a unstamped set of what are very probably MS-11s that includes a P/S wedge, so maybe it was a special order only. 

 

There are also MS-801 persimmons out there...

 

As they only made the 801s for a year, they're a pretty rare find. Nice pick up.

[donaldp83]

8 hours ago, Foozle said:

I don't know where you are based but here in the UK MS 11 are like hens teeth. I have had mine for maybe 15 years but don't think I have seen another set for sale in that time! That said I don't think I have ever seen a UK based set of  801's so they are probably even rarer!

I am in the US and have never seen either in person (have seen a couple MP-11s), although I have had my eyes on the MS-11s for some time. I think I will take either. The MS-801s I had never even heard of and just had to get my hands on them. 

[donaldp83]

51 minutes ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

Seems to be from 1987, so the year before the MS-11s. From the photographs, I'd say the toe looks a bit squarer than the MS-11s, and the topline is not shaved down as much. Tasty looking iron.

 

I found these specs for the MS-801 on a Japanese website (loft then lie)

2i: 17*, 57*

3i: 21*, 58* 

4i: 24*, 59*

5i: 27*, 60*

6i: 31*, 60.5*

7i: 35*, 61*

8i: 39*, 61*5

9i: 43*, 62*

PW: 48*, 62.5*

SW: 56*, 62.5*

 

It wasn't an official Mizuno site, but it's usually about right with other Mizuno sets I've bought.

 

The standard 5i length for Mizunos then was 37.5", going up or down from there in 0.5" increments.

 

Looking at that gap between the PW and SW, I would have thought there might have been a P/S wedge offered as well, but I've not found any evidence of one. I have a unstamped set of what are very probably MS-11s that includes a P/S wedge, so maybe it was a special order only. 

 

There are also MS-801 persimmons out there...

 

As they only made the 801s for a year, they're a pretty rare find. Nice pick up.

Wow, thank you so much- Impressive info! I could not find anything like that.

[SteveNZ]

Some good info here:

 

https://mizunotp.tech.blog/

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

7 hours ago, SteveNZ said:

Some good info here:

 

https://mizunotp.tech.blog/

 

That site is one of my favourite bookmarks. The bloke has a fantastic Mizuno bag. 

[donaldp83]

10 hours ago, SteveNZ said:

Some good info here:

 

https://mizunotp.tech.blog/

Wow, great stuff! Unfortunately, no mention of the 801s but totally worth the read!

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

Just a follow-up to an earlier post. I mentioned there are MS-801 persimmons out there, and just today I saw this listing on my favourite auction site:

MS-801 Baffy

 

I won't be bidding for it because I wish to avoid a divorce😰

[Soloman1]

If I still lived in Japan, I'd buy that for sure.

 

Yahoo auction is brilliant. Everything I've bought there over the years was better than I expected, but it is Japan...

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

46 minutes ago, Soloman1 said:

If I still lived in Japan, I'd buy that for sure.

 

Yahoo auction is brilliant. Everything I've bought there over the years was better than I expected, but it is Japan...

 

I know, it's really quite tempting. It's in amazing condition, I love the red-white-red insert, and the seller is trustworthy. Everything I've bought from him has been better than expected, and his shipping costs are low.

 

But I'm under strict orders to sell off some clubs right now.

 

 

[Soloman1]

妻が怖い

tsuma ga kowai!

 

If you have some persimmon fairway woods, I might be a prospect...

Edited May 20, 2021 by Soloman1

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

本当に怖いよ〜。

 

I'm trying to downside my iron collection more, as that takes up the most room. I might look at letting a few persimmons go later, but they're the hardest to part with.

[Layton]

Hi I know this post is a bit old but I have the mizuno ms 801. 3+pw. Up for sale or trade if anyone is interested. If your interested send me a message on my Facebook Layton lee il be happy to send photos or videos of the clubs I’d love to keep them but I know my game would improve if I had a set of game improvement

[Foozle]

13 hours ago, Layton said:

Hi I know this post is a bit old but I have the mizuno ms 801. 3+pw. Up for sale or trade if anyone is interested. If your interested send me a message on my Facebook Layton lee il be happy to send photos or videos of the clubs I’d love to keep them but I know my game would improve if I had a set of game improvement

I disagree with your reason for sale, your game will improve if you persevere with the 801's. "Game Improvement" is a misnomer invented by marketing guys to sell clubs.  All game improvement irons do is let you get away with poor shots, they will not improve your swing or encourage you to try to do so. The 801's tell it like is so if you work on reducing the poor strikes with the 801's your swing and overall game will improve greatly.

They are great irons offering fantastic feel. Game improvement irons will never give you the same pleasure as a pure strike out of the sweetspot of these classic Mizuno's.

[Christen_The_Sloop]

On 5/13/2021 at 9:51 AM, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

Seems to be from 1987, so the year before the MS-11s. From the photographs, I'd say the toe looks a bit squarer than the MS-11s, and the topline is not shaved down as much. Tasty looking iron.

 

I found these specs for the MS-801 on a Japanese website (loft then lie)

2i: 17*, 57*

3i: 21*, 58* 

4i: 24*, 59*

5i: 27*, 60*

6i: 31*, 60.5*

7i: 35*, 61*

8i: 39*, 61*5

9i: 43*, 62*

PW: 48*, 62.5*

SW: 56*, 62.5*

 

It wasn't an official Mizuno site, but it's usually about right with other Mizuno sets I've bought.

 

The standard 5i length for Mizunos then was 37.5", going up or down from there in 0.5" increments.

 

Looking at that gap between the PW and SW, I would have thought there might have been a P/S wedge offered as well, but I've not found any evidence of one. I have a unstamped set of what are very probably MS-11s that includes a P/S wedge, so maybe it was a special order only. 

 

There are also MS-801 persimmons out there...

 

As they only made the 801s for a year, they're a pretty rare find. Nice pick up.

I just won an auction for these... 2-pw with DG s200 (a shaft that I really don't mind). In the collection of clubs was a Persimmon 1w with the script, "engineered for fastidious golfers." So, that fits, but it says it has an DG x400 shaft... Ahh-ha-ha-ha... I wonder what that'll go for? I already have a Cleveland with it and it's great for a heavy club to swing outside, but not much more.

 

There were a couple more clubs, not worth nothing and a Scotty Cameron m-100.... Let's just say this auction slipped through everyone's radar.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

39 minutes ago, Christen_The_Sloop said:

I just won an auction for these... 2-pw with DG s200 (a shaft that I really don't mind). In the collection of clubs was a Persimmon 1w with the script, "engineered for fastidious golfers." So, that fits, but it says it has an DG x400 shaft... Ahh-ha-ha-ha... I wonder what that'll go for? I already have a Cleveland with it and it's great for a heavy club to swing outside, but not much more.

 

There were a couple more clubs, not worth nothing and a Scotty Cameron m-100.... Let's just say this auction slipped through everyone's radar.

 

Some of the shafts in those Eighties persimmons are crazy. I've seen R500 (heavy and chippy?), S100s and S500s. X400s must be pretty damn heavy.

 

Was the persimmon a Mizuno? I don't think I've seen the term "engineered for fastidious golfers" on a club before, but the fastidious part sounds like a translation of こだわりのあるゴルファー or こだわるゴルファー.

[Christen_The_Sloop]

7 hours ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

Some of the shafts in those Eighties persimmons are crazy. I've seen R500 (heavy and chippy?), S100s and S500s. X400s must be pretty damn heavy.

 

Was the persimmon a Mizuno? I don't think I've seen the term "engineered for fastidious golfers" on a club before, but the fastidious part sounds like a translation of こだわりのあるゴルファー or こだわるゴルファー.

The x400 swings you as much as you swing it.

[archer1]

On 9/1/2023 at 10:00 PM, Christen_The_Sloop said:

I just won an auction for these... 2-pw with DG s200 (a shaft that I really don't mind). In the collection of clubs was a Persimmon 1w with the script, "engineered for fastidious golfers." So, that fits, but it says it has an DG x400 shaft... Ahh-ha-ha-ha... I wonder what that'll go for? I already have a Cleveland with it and it's great for a heavy club to swing outside, but not much more.

 

There were a couple more clubs, not worth nothing and a Scotty Cameron m-100.... Let's just say this auction slipped through everyone's radar.

I believe the "engineered for fastidious golfers" was done as a humorous gesture, on a small batch of drivers, at the request of the Tour reps; in response to having to meet Nick Faldo's often anal club look, feel and performance requirements. I was told this by a Scottish friend of mine who was friendly with both Faldo and the European Tour Mizuno Tour van staff, when Faldo was on staff. In fact, my friend still has an unhit Mizuno driver with this engraved on the sole plate, given to him by a member of the tour van staff.

[Christen_The_Sloop]

1 hour ago, archer1 said:

I believe the "engineered for fastidious golfers" was done as a humorous gesture, on a small batch of drivers, at the request of the Tour reps; in response to having to meet Nick Faldo's often anal club look, feel and performance requirements. I was told this by a Scottish friend of mine who was friendly with both Faldo and the European Tour Mizuno Tour van staff, when Faldo was on staff. In fact, my friend still has an unhit Mizuno driver with this engraved on the sole plate, given to him by a member of the tour van staff.

I've seen a few pics of that script. I believe one was on a Ballesteros model as well.

[Christen_The_Sloop]

So opened up a  huge box of clubs yesterday evening to find, a nice set of irons 2-SW, Two old steel woods, two putters (an ancient RK mizuno blade that I have no use for and a M-100 Scotty in decent shape) and the 1W I thouight was a persimmon... Turned out to be an early carbon model called Vanguard (Mizuno). 

 

Love the MS-801 look. Scotch blade, reasonable offset, super thin top line and a little leading edge relief. Downside is that they are slightly shorter than the modern sets... 

 

How much trouble is to extend them out? 

 

 

[raggal62]

9 hours ago, Christen_The_Sloop said:

So opened up a  huge box of clubs yesterday evening to find, a nice set of irons 2-SW, Two old steel woods, two putters (an ancient RK mizuno blade that I have no use for and a M-100 Scotty in decent shape) and the 1W I thouight was a persimmon... Turned out to be an early carbon model called Vanguard (Mizuno). 

 

Love the MS-801 look. Scotch blade, reasonable offset, super thin top line and a little leading edge relief. Downside is that they are slightly shorter than the modern sets... 

 

How much trouble is to extend them out? 

 

 

Cut the grips off if you don't want to save them. Extensions can be made from old shafts or wood dowels. Graphite and steel extensions made for this purpose are available from the Golfworks. Epoxy them in, cure, cut to length, and install grips. Swingweight values will be increased by approximately 3 points per 1/2".