GreiginFife
Money List Winner
Got some of these today and decided to take them out for a try.
So for those that don't know, the D201 is Mizuno's "mid-range" ball to the MP-S being the premium offering.
Priced around the £20 a dozen mark these are to compete with the Bridgestone E series and the Srixon mid range balls.
I think the biggest departure from the MP-S is the branding, it's bright and bold. Red and silver sweep across the box with D210 in bold white, very attractive in comparison the the MP-S's bland, non-shouty white. There is also a clever cut away circle that lets you see and feel the ball without having to remove it from the box. The sleeves also have this branding and the same cut away. Interestingly they are arranged in the box with two sleeves "front" facing and two "side" facing making it a bit different. Here they are.
The balls themselves are surprising. Very white and for the purists that complained that the "model" of the ball was to the fore and the manufacturer to the "side" then the good news is that the D201 follows a more conventional route and has Mizuno branding with the number and the model around the "side".
They are also very sticky and soft to the touch, much like the MP-S, maybe not quite as soft but definitely tacky to the touch which surprised me considering the range and market.
The cover is a soft Ionomer, the core is polybutadiene and it has 366 seamless dimples - all in all it looks like a good ball should, bright white with clear branding.
The important part, how do they play?
Well, I have to say that I am very, very impressed. I have to admit that having been using the MP-S ball for a while now that I had low expectation of their attempt at a mid range. But I was wrong, so, so wrong.
Firstly the ball feels soft of the face of every club that I used. I also found that it came with a mid trajectory so didn't balloon while not being a daisy cutter.
Distance wise, I found that it was going as far as the MP-S with only a shade worse dispersion.
Off the driver, if I closed my eyes I would not know which was which (this is to say that it feels every bit as soft rather than I'm a Handicap golfer so don't know the difference)
Off long and mid irons they felt very soft and responsive, I found that long approaches in to greens, that were a bit baked, were stopping up very well - again, not as quickly as the MP-S but faster than I would expect a mid range ball to.
Off the wedges though, these balls excelled in my opinion. I found that the soft cover gave every bit as much feel and response as any premium ball I have used. The greens were very difficult but I still found that I was getting them close and confidence grew as the round progressed. Absolutely blown away by how good a ball in this price bracket could be from 60yds and in.
Putting was a pleasure with the D201, no click or hard noises. Soft but easy to control length. I found that there was no difference between this and it's £40 superior.
There is something that stands this ball ahead of the MP-S and it's one that I think people were very against the MP-S on, it is durable and it doesn't discolour.
I used the same ball for 18 holes and at the end, once the grass marks were cleaned off, it was hard to tell it apart from new.
Overall, this is a fantastic offering from Mizuno, the price point is great for most people's pocket and the performance should worry the balls that sit in "premium" but not quite at the Prp-V level.
I would certainly recommend this ball to anyone that want's soft, responsive performance but at a price that doesn't hurt the pocket.
So for those that don't know, the D201 is Mizuno's "mid-range" ball to the MP-S being the premium offering.
Priced around the £20 a dozen mark these are to compete with the Bridgestone E series and the Srixon mid range balls.
I think the biggest departure from the MP-S is the branding, it's bright and bold. Red and silver sweep across the box with D210 in bold white, very attractive in comparison the the MP-S's bland, non-shouty white. There is also a clever cut away circle that lets you see and feel the ball without having to remove it from the box. The sleeves also have this branding and the same cut away. Interestingly they are arranged in the box with two sleeves "front" facing and two "side" facing making it a bit different. Here they are.
The balls themselves are surprising. Very white and for the purists that complained that the "model" of the ball was to the fore and the manufacturer to the "side" then the good news is that the D201 follows a more conventional route and has Mizuno branding with the number and the model around the "side".
They are also very sticky and soft to the touch, much like the MP-S, maybe not quite as soft but definitely tacky to the touch which surprised me considering the range and market.
The cover is a soft Ionomer, the core is polybutadiene and it has 366 seamless dimples - all in all it looks like a good ball should, bright white with clear branding.
The important part, how do they play?
Well, I have to say that I am very, very impressed. I have to admit that having been using the MP-S ball for a while now that I had low expectation of their attempt at a mid range. But I was wrong, so, so wrong.
Firstly the ball feels soft of the face of every club that I used. I also found that it came with a mid trajectory so didn't balloon while not being a daisy cutter.
Distance wise, I found that it was going as far as the MP-S with only a shade worse dispersion.
Off the driver, if I closed my eyes I would not know which was which (this is to say that it feels every bit as soft rather than I'm a Handicap golfer so don't know the difference)
Off long and mid irons they felt very soft and responsive, I found that long approaches in to greens, that were a bit baked, were stopping up very well - again, not as quickly as the MP-S but faster than I would expect a mid range ball to.
Off the wedges though, these balls excelled in my opinion. I found that the soft cover gave every bit as much feel and response as any premium ball I have used. The greens were very difficult but I still found that I was getting them close and confidence grew as the round progressed. Absolutely blown away by how good a ball in this price bracket could be from 60yds and in.
Putting was a pleasure with the D201, no click or hard noises. Soft but easy to control length. I found that there was no difference between this and it's £40 superior.
There is something that stands this ball ahead of the MP-S and it's one that I think people were very against the MP-S on, it is durable and it doesn't discolour.
I used the same ball for 18 holes and at the end, once the grass marks were cleaned off, it was hard to tell it apart from new.
Overall, this is a fantastic offering from Mizuno, the price point is great for most people's pocket and the performance should worry the balls that sit in "premium" but not quite at the Prp-V level.
I would certainly recommend this ball to anyone that want's soft, responsive performance but at a price that doesn't hurt the pocket.
If they're even half as good as the MP-S I'll be more than happy.
