# Mizuno virgin with their new JPX850 driver



## Liverbirdie (Feb 13, 2015)

Mizuno clubs seem to have a "following" in the general golfing community that is sometimes devotional, and sometimes bordering on obsessive/delusional, or thats how it seems, to us mere mortals who dont "get it".

In 25 years of playing golf, I've never owned anything "Mizuno". Well apart from a cracking tracksuit in the early 90's, and they should never be allowed in clubhouses - should they! I've not even swung a mates club, or heard the sound of a crisply struck shot with  an MP-something-or-other, so it was all new ground to me.

The looks - quite good actually, which, as much as the purists say a club shouldn't be judged on, lets face it we all do. Ok not the tall blonde swede in the short skirt rhythmically swaying to je t'aime, but maybe the dusky brummie lass pogo-ing to "pretty vacant", but with a cheeky glint in her eye. Nice mixture of azure and black slate colours, with go faster stripes adding to the "look". Headcover - anyone really bothered? A nice white fujikura stiff shaft, however,completes the ensemble.

MIZ-information - There is a central mizuno sign on the crown which is good for alignment, as well as fade/draw markings above the weight ports to help when it comes to experimenting with flight "biasses". The shaft hosel also has markings  to help to pick which loft you would prefer. They also have "upright" lofts as well as the standard ones, in case people think that the face is turned in too much - a novel idea.

Adjustability - So quick and easy to change the loft, unscrew,move and tighten the weight ports, although you will need the booklet to help with regards to checking out all the different options that they can be set to. I've got a Callaway adjustable driver, but what takes this one stage further is the ability to move the weight forward/back in the head.

What matters - Sadly, for the first 6 weeks of our budding relationship I was injured, so we looked longingly at each other across the bedroom, but mother was in the room. As soon as I was partially recovered, I couldn't wait to rip of that headcover, and get at the little minx. Early fumblings proved unsuccessful - was it me, was it her, maybe the comparisons to former beaus were hampering us. 

I tried everything set to neutral to start with, but even with this I was still scoring well, and the drives were mainly hitting fairways, but there was definitely no "wow" factor. The drives were ok, the sound off the face was dull, the flight was low and not exactly soaring off the face, but the roll out was veeeeeeery long, so still hope for the future.

I then managed to get to a driving range and was able to work on a few different settings, with the weight moved back and set to a draw bias, which seemed to improve it. Still not "made up" with everything (but not at the put it on Ebay point yet - shame that man).

Fit as a fiddle - Just 2 nights before the fitting I was starting to stripe it at the driving range, but I still couldn't compare it to my old driver for distance. On the day of the fitting me and a fellow winner (he's from Derry.....) were warming up for 20 minutes and hitting all manner of poor shots, and we couldn't work out why, until I checked the loft setting and noticed that we'd inadvertently picked up the other person's little minx (happens a lot in Cheshire, apparently). His preference was 8.5 degrees at neutral, mine was 10.5 at draw, so it just goes to show how a fitting is important with these type of drivers to get the maximum out of them.

Tale of the tape - So during a 45 minute fitting, we tried my old driver, the Mizuno at neutral then to what the fitter felt was better for me (and it worked). He also come up with a second option, which I think is important, as we all want to change things if we go through a bad run of form, so good to also see what a second (close) setting could be. I was back to my slight fade (stop laughing in the NW) albeit highly repeatable:thup:. 

I've only had one round since and as the round went on I was holding back less and was really getting it out there, and hitting fairways or the first cut in the main. I picked up a tip from the fitter about hitting it on the up, so will also put that into action.

The verdict - Due to my thumb injury I still cant hit it fully, but can I see the club staying in the bag for the coming months - a resounding yes. Hitting it injury-free, on summer fairways with that long roll out is something I'm looking forward to seeing. I'll only be able to check the length when I play my own course again, but sadly that wont be until March, so that will be the ultimate litmus test of length. However, for now, the bad shots are better and its hard to hit a woeful one with this club. 

Sorry I couldn't compare to my old driver as much on length, due to limited playing, but I'll update in due course.

Also a big thank you to Dave at True fit golf in Widnes for the fitting, I've had two fittings there and they've both been spot on.

Here's Gary "3 angle" Derry's video of my fitting if you are insanely bored.........or if your a dusky brummie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAGhIMTYc1c&feature=youtu.be

Massive thanks to Mizuno and GM finally, for this fantastic opportunity.:thup:


----------

