Mizuno F-50 4-wood

[Eracer]

I recently bought a Mizuno F-50 4-wood from our friends at Global Golf. I bought it to see if I could find a 4-wood that was a little longer than my Callaway X w/uniflex steel shaft, but still as straight. The Mizuno has a stock Exsar stiff shaft. Why did I pick a stiff shaft, when my driver is regular-flex, and my irons are regular-flex? Same reason I have stiff Nippons in my hybrids. The Nippons play soft to stated flex, and I heard the same thing about the Exsar shaft.

I've now played two rounds with the F-50, and I've hit it enough times that I can make some early observations.

The club has a simple, understated look. Black crown, with the composite weave barely showing through. No alignment mark on the head, which I like.

I like this club a lot. Great solid feel from the composite/steel combo head. Nothing mushy about the hit, yet there is no sense of harshness at all. Just solid power through the ball. Of course, mis-hit harshness is covered up by the composite head, but the forgiveness is there, so it doesn't matter all that much. Bottom line - if you can make a decent swing, you will get good results. I will say this - it's a lightweight shaft (71g, I believe), and combined with the lighter composite head, might not work for those who like a heavier FW club.


The stock stiff shaft feels very responsive, and has a nice smooth kick through the ball. I can feel the head throughout the swing, and there's no hint of boardiness. I think the stiff-flex is right for my swing speed. Other reviewers I've read report that they are very happy with this shaft, and I am in the same camp. I don't feel the need to change it.

Ball flight is interesting. I have never hit a club that draws the ball the way this club draws the ball. I don't play a draw. I have a hard time playing a draw when I need to. Yet nearly every shot, from the tee or from the fairway, was a gentle draw. The ball starts out straight, on a medium-high trajectory (what I would call a perfect 4-wood trajectory) then slowly draws 5-10 yards before landing. Very strange. Nothing even remotely resembling a fade ever resulted from any shots. The only miss was a high pull when I overswung the club. I wish I could morph this thing into a driver. I would take a consistent, automatic draw like that every day. Distance is good. Better than the Callaway, but not by much. It does what I want a 4-wood to do with my swing.

This club is staying in my bag for now. It is as reliable from the tee box as my Callaway X was, with maybe a touch more distance. It is better from the fairway. For some reason I had a hard time getting a good trajectory from the fairway with the X. The F-50 hits the same from the tee, or the fairway.

I don't know what this club would do in the hands of someone who naturally draws the ball. I don't know if changing the shaft would change the ballflight. I do know that the F-50 is a fine performer, and I'm very happy that WildcatGolfer17 reviewed it earlier and led me to it. Mizunos newer FW wood is the F-60, which has a titanium crown instead of the composite crown of the F-50. Probably a bit hotter and crisper feeling. I'm happy with the F-50, although I'll probably end up ho'ing an F-60 when they come out with the F-70...

[clemsonhacker]

great revies..i have thought about getting one of these before