Mizuno carry: 225 long irons distance related to MP20 MMC

[RoyalMustang]

I hit a Mizuno 225 4-iron yesterday and was blown away about how much easier it was to hit vs MP20 MMC. Don't get me wrong: I've hit some great 4-irons with my MMC and gotten home in 2 plenty of times on our par 5's, but the 225 just felt like cheating in comparison. You have to strike the MMC pretty darn well to get the height you want in that 4-iron. The 225 gives some height and forgiveness even with a slight mishit. 

 

I am thinking of putting in a 225 4-iron and possibly 5-iron, perhaps even 6, at the top of my bag. The 5/6 are especially important for me as my course has three par 3's in that distance range: one at 190 and two holes at 210. I'll take any advantage I can get on those holes. I'm already getting plenty of spin: a well-struck 6-iron isn't rolling out more than a couple of feet, so losing a bit of spin is no biggie. 

 

On paper, the lofts are identical between sets, but anyone would argue that a 225 is a hotter iron. 

 

What distance increases should I expect with the 4/5/6 for the 225 vs the MMC? This way, I can either weaken the lofts a bit to keep my current carry intact, or just roll with it and maybe use the 4-iron as a part-time replacement for my 3H. FWIW, my preferred MMC carries (which is 80% effort and choked down an inch) are roughly 185/200/215. I can get 10 yards more on a full swing but find my accuracy suffers. 

 

Ideally I need to get in front of a LM but that's tough when you don't already have the clubs handy. 

[Kenny Lee Puckett]

IMO with the performance difference between a MP-20 MMC and MP-225 you might as well be comparing an iron to a hybrid. The MP-225 iron is for a player who doesn't have the speed/ball striking for other MP offerings, but wants to play an "MP" none the less.

 

If you got an itch to scratch? I'd pursue that single MP-225 4-iron for your amusement (you might pack it in the bag some days at certain courses, others you might not).

 

I would 100% recommend pass on going any further with the additional 5-iron, 6-iron.

[RoyalMustang]

37 minutes ago, Kenny Lee Puckett said:

IMO with the performance difference between a MP-20 MMC and MP-225 you might as well be comparing an iron to a hybrid. The MP-225 iron is for a player who doesn't have the speed/ball striking for other MP offerings, but wants to play an "MP" none the less.

 

If you got an itch to scratch? I'd pursue that single MP-225 4-iron for your amusement (you might pack it in the bag some days at certain courses, others you might not).

 

I would 100% recommend pass on going any further with the additional 5-iron, 6-iron.

 

Can you elaborate on why the 225 wouldn't be a good choice in anything under a 4-iron? Not enough spin? Too many distance fliers? I like my irons consistent; obviously there is more induced error in a long iron and it's not always easy to hit a number +/- yards from 200 out. 

[Kenny Lee Puckett]

yes, with the cover distances your current MP-20 MCC  4/5/6 already offer those MP-225 5-iron/6-iron cover distances will get really wonky (too far). I wouldn't go anywhere near them.

 

just a single MP-225 4-iron won't introduce any significant problems, you might find it enjoyable to have it around as an option, and at times you might not carry it all and put the MP-20 MCC 4-iron back in the bag.

Edited October 3, 2023 by Kenny Lee Puckett

[RoyalMustang]

29 minutes ago, Kenny Lee Puckett said:

yes, with the cover distances your current MP-20 MCC  4/5/6 already offer those MP-225 5-iron/6-iron cover distance will get really wonky (too far). I wouldn't go anywhere near them.

 

just a single MP-225 4-iron won't introduce any significant problems, you might find it enjoyable to have it around as an option, and at times you might not carry it at all an put the MP-20 MCC back in the bag.

 

Cool, thanks!

 

From a video I saw, the distances on the TM for the 223 vs 225 were a good 12 yards. I'd just be taking a ton off; the 6 is basically a 5 compared to the MMC. 

Edited October 3, 2023 by RoyalMustang

[Pepperturbo]

3 hours ago, RoyalMustang said:

I hit a Mizuno 225 4-iron yesterday and was blown away about how much easier it was to hit vs MP20 MMC. Don't get me wrong: I've hit some great 4-irons with my MMC and gotten home in 2 plenty of times on our par 5's, but the 225 just felt like cheating in comparison. You have to strike the MMC pretty darn well to get the height you want in that 4-iron. The 225 gives some height and forgiveness even with a slight mishit.

I am sure 21.5' loft, you'll get a lot of attaboy agreement there.   Certain club designs are meant to feel like cheating.

 

That 4i is like my 21' T100 3i.  The best this ole guy gets with 23' 4 iron is 195-200yds.

Edited October 3, 2023 by Pepperturbo

[RoyalMustang]

22 hours ago, Kenny Lee Puckett said:

yes, with the cover distances your current MP-20 MCC  4/5/6 already offer those MP-225 5-iron/6-iron cover distances will get really wonky (too far). I wouldn't go anywhere near them.

 

just a single MP-225 4-iron won't introduce any significant problems, you might find it enjoyable to have it around as an option, and at times you might not carry it all and put the MP-20 MCC 4-iron back in the bag.

 

Good call. I wrangled up a set of 225s to play 9 with yesterday. The shop here had a demo set in a flex that works for me; S300. They are soft but I've played them before and been just fine; it's good for timing.  On the 9-holes I played, I hit the 4. 5, 6, 7, and PW. On the par 3s, I played several balls. 

 

Flat out, I know what you are talking about. They just felt unpredictable, height, dispersion, and distance wise. It's almost like you have to have a perfect swing to get consistency out of them, or a bad enough swing that it gives you a measure of consistency that you wouldn't otherwise have. My wedges were really good as was my driver, but every time I pulled one of the 225's out of the bag, I had a "weird" result. It was a practice round and on the 180 yard par 3, I was hitting into a small headwind, so I basically hit 6-iron minus 10 yards. Usually my miss, if I have one, is a slight draw left, but my on-green rate on that hole is 65%. I was spraying the ball all over the place, and of the 7 balls I hit, only 2 made it on the green. Both of those lacked enough spin to stay on.

 

I played that same hole as a practice hole the other day and hit 4/7 with my MMC 6-iron, with the 3 misses being close and my expected "miss" and all 4 yielding what would be reasonable birdie opportunities.    

 

On the 210 yard par 3, I hit 5 balls with the 5-iron. It felt like I was shooting a shotgun filled with golf balls at the hole. Short/long/left/right. Anywhere but on the green. Again, on my previous practice round with the MMC, I hit 5 balls there; 2 were on, one was just short, and 2 were in good par save positions just left (my normal miss). 

 

On the long par 5, I had a 230 to target out of slight rough, so I hit the 4-iron. I striped it. I like that club for whatever reason, but the 5 and shorter felt like a total mismatch. 

 

I have always wondered "so why can't better players choose a player's distance or more forgiving iron? Wouldn't they be more forgiving for everyone if that person can handle the lack of spin"? I can't say why but these didn't mesh at all with me. I remember trying the T200 last year with the same feeling. 

 

 

[RoyalMustang]

21 hours ago, Pepperturbo said:

I am sure 21.5' loft, you'll get a lot of attaboy agreement there.   Certain club designs are meant to feel like cheating.

 

That 4i is like my 21' T100 3i.  The best this ole guy gets with 23' 4 iron is 195-200yds.

 

Yeah, I really like the 4-iron. I've hit it a few times now; I borrowed it from a friend who got it and didn't much care for it. 

 

I'm sticking with a player's iron overall: these 225's aren't for me. I have my MMCs and my combo MB21/Apex Pro. The Apex Pro is technically a "player's distance" iron but I choke down 1/2" and it gives me tons of spin, a little less height, and has the same accuracy I can get from the MMC. I had 187 to the pin last week, took a little off the 6-iron, and landed it 2 feet past the hole and spun it

back to 7 inches away. I was close to my first hole-in-one, and on a real par 3 to boot! Modern blades up to 7/8 iron are great as well. 

 

hey, if I hadn't asked the question, I wouldn't now know the answer! 

[cmatthews77]

I have a 225 4-iron in my bag and like it but I'm not really a 4-iron player.  Long irons are by far the weakest part of my game (2 handicap) and I had been playing a 4-hybrid with my last set but I didn't have a club I could hit solid and low into the wind on a particular par 3 at my home course so wanted to try a 4-iron again.  Very happy with it.  Have the 223s in the 5-9 and I've thought about trying the 225 in the 5iron but will probably stick with the 223 there.

[RoyalMustang]

12 minutes ago, cmatthews77 said:

I have a 225 4-iron in my bag and like it but I'm not really a 4-iron player.  Long irons are by far the weakest part of my game (2 handicap) and I had been playing a 4-hybrid with my last set but I didn't have a club I could hit solid and low into the wind on a particular par 3 at my home course so wanted to try a 4-iron again.  Very happy with it.  Have the 223s in the 5-9 and I've thought about trying the 225 in the 5iron but will probably stick with the 223 there.

 

I'm the opposite: I have tried at least five 4-hybrids and haven't found a single one that works for me. I even bought a Srixon 4-H metal type utility. I can't hit the damn thing. Everyone tells me "hey, you are always hitting into these long greens, why not get a hybrid" and I can't find one that I like. 

 

The 4-iron, on the other hand, is pretty darn accurate in terms of L-R dispersion and feels so easy to load. Much more so than my 3-Hybrid. It's my go-to on a really tight fairway: I just wish I had more than 220 from it. That accuracy and 250 off the tee would be amazing. 

 

It's crazy that players of similar skill (you are better than me though) can find so much variance in the clubs that work/don't work for them.