I love "blades"! No wait a minute... I LOVE "BLADES" !!! There, that was better. And with the MP-33 irons, I think that you will, too.

YOU + BLADES = ???


Blade irons give a golfer that certain "feel" that cavity back irons can't. If you hit the ball on the toe with a blade, by golly, you are going to know it. There is absolutely no forgiveness built into a non-cavity back iron. For the high handicappers among us, that is a fate worse than death. But for the single digit handicap golfers, a blade can relate back to you what is wrong in your swing and (if you are perceptive enough) you can make the necessary corrections. Also, blades make it infinitely easier to work the ball. Whether you wish to hit the ball high or low, right or left, blades give you that option.

MiZuNo

So let's have a look at one of the top-of-the-line blades on the market today, the Mizuno MP-33. The MP-33 is an descendant of the earlier MP-29 and MP-14 model irons. All three models are designed as "muscleback" irons. That is, the weighting on the back of the iron is shaped much like a WWF wrestler's bicep. Historically, this design really took hold with the classic 1969/1970 MacGregor Jack Nicklaus VIP irons which Jack (and later, Curtis Strange) used to win a number of major tournaments. As of late, the Mizuno irons are being touted to be the number one club on the tour. Payne Stewart used them. Nick Faldo, Larry Mize, and a whole host of others have played Mizunos. Even Tiger played Mizuno blades (a mixed bag of MP-14s and MP-29s) before he signed up with Titleist and switched to the 681 model - basically a direct copy of the Mizunos.

Mizuno offers up a wide combination of shafts and flexes. I play a Rifle 7.0 (XX-stiff), but it is possible to have your irons fitted with anything from a Rifle 5.0 (R+) on up to the 7.0. Other shafts are also available - Sensicore, Dynamic Gold, etc... The heads are nickel plated chrome over a soft 10-30 steel combination. Don't ask me what components make up the 10-30 steel. I only play the darned things. I don't make them. Also the leading edge of the iron (for the MP-29/14/33 models) is "rolled", which means that there is less turf drag. Not a huge factor, but nice to have.

LET'S GET TO IT...

Okay, enough of the history lesson. My irons, the Mizuno MP-29 model, are getting kind of beat up. Not because I throw them around or hit off of rocks. I am actually very careful with my irons. That 10-30 steel is a super soft mixture designed to make the club "feel" like butter when hit correctly. Unfortunately, it also means that your clubs soon become nicked and gouged to death. I play 3 or 4 rounds a week and while I honestly cannot ask anything more performance-wise from my irons, they do look pretty well dinged up. So just out of curiousity, I went to see a good friend who owns a golf shop. He had a set of demo Hogan Apex irons and a set of the MP-33s. Being the nice guy that he is, he let me use both sets for a couple of weeks.

APPLES AND ORANGES (and a few lemons)

First off, both the Hogans and the Mizunos had the same shafts as my MP-29s. You usually see Hogans using their normal Apex shafts, but these were a special order or something, I guess. I've played Hogan Apex's in the past and after a couple of rounds with the new version, I wasn't very impressed. For many reasons, they were adequate at best.

Next I tried the MP-33s. Overall, they are lighter than my MP-29s and the weighting has been slightly altered. The loft on the MP-33 irons is set to 2 degrees more. That is, they will hit the ball a tad bit higher than the MP-29 model. This showed up with an overall loss of perhaps 5 yards on each iron. Also, because of the loft (and maybe the worn out grooves on my clubs), the ball had less roll compared to what I am normally used to playing.

I played five rounds with the MP-33s - more than enough to get used to the difference in weight and the other little nuances. The MP-33 still allowed me to move the ball at will. I could hit knock down shots and high "floaters". I normally play a lazy draw, but when I needed to fade the ball or land it softly, the iron did as commanded. My favorite club with my MP-29 irons is my 1 iron. I just love that thing to death. So I am used to the demands that a blade style club places on long iron shots. But if you are a mid to high handicapper, the long irons may be difficult for you. The mid to short irons are where blades come through. Much more than cast cavity back clubs, forged irons give you the feeling that you can direct the ball to anywhere on the green. In this, the Mizuno MP-33 came through with shining colors.

IS THIS THE CLUB FOR EVERYONE???

So what is the downside to the Mizunos? Well, to be honest, you have to be a good player to play a blade. But since you are reading this, let's assume that you are "man enough" (or "woman enough") to handle a blade iron. If that's the case, then the MP-33 is the club for you. It is quite literally the finest club on the market today. Yes, it nicks up after just a year or two of use, but that is the price you pay for the quality of performance that you get from a club of this caliber.

But, hold on there big fella... Before you go running out to buy a set of MP-33 irons, realize that they do not hold a candle to the earlier MP-14 model irons, and they definitely aren't in the same league as the MP-29s. The MP-33s feel less "meaty" than the MP-14/29 models. They feel thin and "delicate" in comparison. And as for performance, well, I would say that they are a notch below the previous Mizuno models.

WHAT D'YA THINK???

So what is the bottom line? If you want a blade and have the buckazoids to afford a set, you cannot go wrong with the Mizunos. Their customer service is one of the easiest to work with in the market and their reputation throughout the PGA tour ought to be enough to convince you of their outstanding quality.

But if it were me and I didn't have to have a brand spanking new set of irons, I would look on EBAY.COM or GOLFCLUBEXCHANGE.COM for a used set of MP-29 irons. (I have an Epinion for the MP-29 model if you would like more info on that model). For less than half the price of a set of MP-33s, you can own a rip snortin' set of MP-29s or MP-14s. (NOTE: Do not buy any other models of Mizuno blades other than the MP-14/29/33s. The earlier models are not regarded very highly.)

If you must have a sparkling new shiny set and that wallet of yours is getting uncomfortably thick, go with the MP-33s. You will be the envy of everyone on the course. Small kids will run up to you and ask for your autograph, women will swoon at the very sight of you, and your playing partners will wilt in fear with just one glance at your bag.

And while all of that is going on... you will be that one guy on the course with a big ol' happy smile stuck on your face because you own a set of Mizuno blades - the Cadillac of Clubs!!!



If you have found my Epinion to be helpful or even downright rotten, please feel free to leave a comment or rate my review. Thank you, DALE




Recommended: Yes