Mizuno S5 Wedge Review
Most of us will agree that the (now previous) MP-T5 wedges were a huge hit and easily Mizuno Golfs best wedges to date. Well, we now have the even newer and improved Mizuno S5 Forged Wedges. Mizuno have been forging heads in Hiroshima, Japan for well over three decades to cement their position in the market as one of the best forged iron manufacturers.
The first glimpse of the new S5 wedges were at the European Tour BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. They caused quite a stir as Former World Number 1 and short game genius Luke Donald introduced them to his bag for the first time. A big talking point was the new colour. A very noticeable new Blue IP colour (pictured below) that nicely matched his Mizuno Staff Bag and New Mizuno EZ driver.
Understandably the Blue IP isn't going to be for everyone. This is why Mizuno have carried over the more traditional white satin finish, which will probably appeal to a much broader market.
Visually the clubs have changed dramatically, but even more so has the technology. Starting with the leading edge of the wedges. A change that now allows for you to open or close the clubface whilst still having the clubface aligned to the intended target. A very impressive idea, as usually when we open the clubface the alignment moves to the right. When we close the face it moves to the left of the intended target.
The S5 continues with the Grain Flow Forging of the 1025E mild carbon steel for a very soft feel and consistent performance. It has been compressed differently to the T5 to maintain a consistent grain from the toe to the heel of the head. This new compression allows for a more consistent flight which consequently gives us better distance control.
The new grooves are right on the boundary of the USGA limit, that offers us maximum spin and control around the greens. CNC milled quad cut grooves have been carefully engineered to produce a wider thinner groove on higher degrees (54-62 degrees) and thicker narrower grooves on lower degrees. These changes give us more spin on half and full swing wedge shots.
Mizuno S5 wedges comes with a full arsenal of custom options available. This includes multiple grip, shaft and custom adjustments (e.g. Lie and Length). The standard shafts are the Dynamic Gold Wedge Flex and XP115 with the Standards lofts of 50.07, 52.09, 54.12, 56.14, 58.12 and 60.10.