- Sep 23, 2004
- 2,822
- 3
My bag has seen all three of these in the last six months and so I thought I would do a little comparison review.
MX20, 5-9
Dynalite Gold, stiff - D2
PCT, 5-p
Dynamic Gold, stiff - D4
i5, 5-9
CS Lite, stiff - D0
Appearance:
All of these clubs have much smaller heads than the vast majority of the game improvement clubs that are out there (Note- the PCT IS NOT a GI club). The PCT are far away the smallest heads with very thin toplines and shorter blade lengths and sole widths. The MX20 is the longest club, heel-to-toe, but it has a slighter thinner topline than the i5. It is a good combo for each of them though as the thinner topline of the MX20 kind of hides its length and the more compact head of the i5 makes its topline appear proportionate. One thing to note though, none of the toplines are at all thick. Although the i5 is the thickest it is about equal to the TM r7 TP and the Cleveland CG2.
The Nikes have very little offset, as you'd expect. The Mizuno and PING offerings both have some offset with the PINGs being more progressive by offering more in the long irons and less in short irons.
One thing worth noting is that the MX20 is not the same as the MX25. The MX20s are smaller, have thinner toplines, and a good amount less offset; just something to keep in mind.
Performance:
All three of these are simply great clubs! The MX20s will always be the standard that I compare any and all irons too. They were my first top-tier OEM club purchase and I loved the feel of Mizuno's grain-flow forging. They are designed for the mid-capper and their performance is consistant with that idea. They are forgiving but they don't cover-up problems; you still have to put a decent swing on them. They have an extremely soft feel and a nice, higher, trajectory (but not ballooning). The lofts are a tad on the strong side which yielded good distances when coupled with their ball flight.
The PCTs are definitely a player combo set. They don't offer much in terms of forgiveness and their lofts are more in line with traditional player iron lofts (2* weaker than the MX20s across the board). These have a lower ball flight and I found I lost quite a bit of yardage because of it. You have to be on your game to play these well as they will allow the ball to go move left or right, regardless of whether or not you intended it to. They feel great when you get the sweet spot but stray even a little bit you're going to know it, not only by feel but by significant loss in yardage and direction. I recently passed these on to a 4-handicap buddy and he LOVES them for all the same reasons why I had to let them go.
The newest of these three to my bag are the PINGs (they arrived on Monday). I played my first round with these yesterdays and their performance really reminds of the MX20s. They are forgiving enough for your okay swings but they keep you honest. Like the Mizunos, they have a thicker sole and a little more bounce. These things might turn-off some folks but for someone who misses fat (like me) they are a great attributes! (the Nikes were at their worst on fat shots) The i5 also has a very similar ball flight to the MX20; nice high boring trajectory. The lofts split the difference between the Nike and Mizunos and I'm finding the distances do as well, although I'm still not swinging with 100% confidence so I expect to get more out them when I do.
Summary:
The Nikes are not for me, they are for single digit guys that can consistently find the center of the club face. The Mizunos and PINGs are both meant for someone like me, the mid-capper. I've been struggling with my game as well as finding a suitable iron set since I regretably ho'd the MX20s about two months ago. I truly believe the i5 has now filled that void. It captures all that I loved about the Mizunos and then puts it in a package that will last for many years to come.
Lastly, the whole cast vs. forged debate is no longer an issue with me anymore. I find that center hits MAY feel MARGINALLY sweeter with the MX20s but off-center hits on the i5s feel a ton better than off-center MX20s strikes; although both clubs don't penalize you all that much for the miss.
MX20, 5-9
Dynalite Gold, stiff - D2
PCT, 5-p
Dynamic Gold, stiff - D4
i5, 5-9
CS Lite, stiff - D0
Appearance:
All of these clubs have much smaller heads than the vast majority of the game improvement clubs that are out there (Note- the PCT IS NOT a GI club). The PCT are far away the smallest heads with very thin toplines and shorter blade lengths and sole widths. The MX20 is the longest club, heel-to-toe, but it has a slighter thinner topline than the i5. It is a good combo for each of them though as the thinner topline of the MX20 kind of hides its length and the more compact head of the i5 makes its topline appear proportionate. One thing to note though, none of the toplines are at all thick. Although the i5 is the thickest it is about equal to the TM r7 TP and the Cleveland CG2.
The Nikes have very little offset, as you'd expect. The Mizuno and PING offerings both have some offset with the PINGs being more progressive by offering more in the long irons and less in short irons.
One thing worth noting is that the MX20 is not the same as the MX25. The MX20s are smaller, have thinner toplines, and a good amount less offset; just something to keep in mind.
Performance:
All three of these are simply great clubs! The MX20s will always be the standard that I compare any and all irons too. They were my first top-tier OEM club purchase and I loved the feel of Mizuno's grain-flow forging. They are designed for the mid-capper and their performance is consistant with that idea. They are forgiving but they don't cover-up problems; you still have to put a decent swing on them. They have an extremely soft feel and a nice, higher, trajectory (but not ballooning). The lofts are a tad on the strong side which yielded good distances when coupled with their ball flight.
The PCTs are definitely a player combo set. They don't offer much in terms of forgiveness and their lofts are more in line with traditional player iron lofts (2* weaker than the MX20s across the board). These have a lower ball flight and I found I lost quite a bit of yardage because of it. You have to be on your game to play these well as they will allow the ball to go move left or right, regardless of whether or not you intended it to. They feel great when you get the sweet spot but stray even a little bit you're going to know it, not only by feel but by significant loss in yardage and direction. I recently passed these on to a 4-handicap buddy and he LOVES them for all the same reasons why I had to let them go.
The newest of these three to my bag are the PINGs (they arrived on Monday). I played my first round with these yesterdays and their performance really reminds of the MX20s. They are forgiving enough for your okay swings but they keep you honest. Like the Mizunos, they have a thicker sole and a little more bounce. These things might turn-off some folks but for someone who misses fat (like me) they are a great attributes! (the Nikes were at their worst on fat shots) The i5 also has a very similar ball flight to the MX20; nice high boring trajectory. The lofts split the difference between the Nike and Mizunos and I'm finding the distances do as well, although I'm still not swinging with 100% confidence so I expect to get more out them when I do.
Summary:
The Nikes are not for me, they are for single digit guys that can consistently find the center of the club face. The Mizunos and PINGs are both meant for someone like me, the mid-capper. I've been struggling with my game as well as finding a suitable iron set since I regretably ho'd the MX20s about two months ago. I truly believe the i5 has now filled that void. It captures all that I loved about the Mizunos and then puts it in a package that will last for many years to come.
Lastly, the whole cast vs. forged debate is no longer an issue with me anymore. I find that center hits MAY feel MARGINALLY sweeter with the MX20s but off-center hits on the i5s feel a ton better than off-center MX20s strikes; although both clubs don't penalize you all that much for the miss.
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