Martin Hopley
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Now I hit a lot of clubs and probably one of the best irons, if not products, of the last 12 months, is the Mizuno JPX850 Forged iron. This added boron into the steel head to strengthen it so they could combine feel and forgiveness with a little extra ball speed.

Not only was it a great performer, but also it was a genuine new technology and I like that sort of stuff. So it was no surprise that the next to get the boron treatment would be an MP iron and here we are with the Mizuno MP-25.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

On paper it looks like a sure fire winner, with the Grain Flow Forged 1025 Boron Steel shaped into a cavity back head that is sized to match the current size of the largest MP iron in the range.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

Picking one up for the first time and you have to say it looks great and when you put it down at address it sits beautifully behind the ball with the mid-sized head and top line giving the perfect hybrid of blade and cavity back.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

It is a different style of construction to the JPX850 Forged, which did feel like an MP iron masquerading in JPX clothing. However put the MP-25 beside it and you can see that it is the true MP descendant, with a slightly more compact look and a closed cavity back.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

Compared to previous MP irons, the MP-25 gives a lovely solid feel at impact that is much better than a normal blade and certainly more solid and not as hollow sounding as the JPX850 Forged.

The MP-25 slips through the turf as well as previous MP irons do and the slightly wider sole has a little relief grind across the trailing edge to help it play a little narrower than it actually is.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

Beneath the surface of the muscle back lurks a hidden chamber or 'Micro-Slot' pocket cavity in the 3 to 6 irons that apparently is in there to help generate faster ball speeds. It is not in the shorter irons as apparently the benefit is less great, so there is no need for it.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

This is because the higher loft results in a more glancing blow so the face does not react in the same way. Without the Micro-Slot, the filled cavity in the 7 to PW has a lower sweet spot than previous MP irons and Mizuno say that bridges any performance gaps.

The Micro-Slot does do its job as on Trackman the MP-25 did generate a little extra ball speed over a fully forged MP-64 iron whilst maintaining the level of feel. I compared the 5-irons at around 83mph and even with a factionally lower clubhead speed, the MP-25 generated over 3 mph more ball speed, which combined with a little extra spin gave an extra 4 yards carry.

Mizuno keep all their MP lofts the same so there is no delofting here to get the greater distance. It's just quality engineering and materials and the Boron Steel allows the forged heads to fight back against the increasing distance from the cranked up springy cast faces of the new style of distance players irons.

Maybe because the JPX850 Forged irons were so good I was possibly expecting too much from the MP-25. If they had just added the Boron Steel to pretty much any MP club I probably would have been all over it, but something holds me back from going gooey over the MP-25.

Having certain materials or head designs in one part of the set and not another always raises eyebrows with me, so the flow of the set is a very slight concern. It is possibly a minor thing, but I have experienced this in other irons with slots or cavities that don't go through the whole set and compared to the MP-5 set, you can notice a slight difference. Whether this matters is really up to you as it is not a deal breaker.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

The short irons without the Micro-Slot feel very solid and are a bit firmer at impact with the sort of forged feel you would expect. When the Micro-Slot appears in the 6 iron it does feel different in a good way with a slightly lighter feel and just a touch more zip as the cavity does its job by flexing a little at impact to increase those ball speeds.

Right the way up to the 5-iron is excellent, but I found the 4-iron hard work. The relative level of forgiveness seemed to be marginally less at this stage, so maybe this is the point to blend in the excellent MP-H5 long irons.

Mizuno MP-25 Iron

If you are between an MP and something larger then I still would recommend trying the JPX850 Forged irons. However, if you are a diehard MP player or play off low single figures then the MP-25 is your perfect shape of iron for feel with a little bit of forgiveness.

The addition of the stronger Boron Steel to the MP line really makes the MP-25 stand out from the pack in the forged better player category, so give it a try and see if the MP-25 can strengthen your game.

Golfalot Rating: 5 stars
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Mizuno MP-25 Irons - Product Details

UK Launch01 September 2015
UK Launch RRP£920
USA Launch01 September 2015
Handicap Range
Low
High
GolferMens
Hand AvailabilityLeft, Right
ManufactureForged
MaterialSteel
FinishChrome
Shaft NameDynamic Gold, Project X 5.5
Shaft TypesSteel
Shaft FlexRegular, Stiff, X Stiff
DesignCavity Back
Set Makeup3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, PW
Manufacturer's WebsiteMizuno Website

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User Reviews

Joe Hritz
May 2018

By far the best irons I have ever played. I have played forged clubs my entire life and the feel and feedback you receive from the MP-25's is absolutely pure. I recently added the S18 wedges to keep the consistent boron feel. I was fitted with the KBS C taper lite shafts.

Ray Sheath
January 2018

I'm a die hard Titleist player, every club in my bag is made by them. Well that was until 3 weeks ago, I cannot believe how great I am hitting my MP-25, I have the KBS 120 stiff shafts and now down to a handicap of 1.5 !! Thanks Mizuno I highly recommend them.

April 2017

Blended the MP-25's with my current MP-4's. Settled on the 3 and 4 MP-25's to go with 5-P of the MP4's. Here's what I've found. The MP25's deliver worry free consistency but have a slightly harder feel than the MP4's. There is nothing like the feel of a flush hit with the MP4's. I haven't gotten that super buttery feel from the 25's, but the consistency is hard to argue with. They are very accurate, seem to have a slightly lower ball flight than the 4's. I'm using the 3 and 4 MP-25's and thinking about replacing the 5 MP-4 with the MP-25. It's just hard to put those MP-4's in my golf closet.

December 2016

Best irons I've used to date!

July 2016

Just been fitted by Mizuno Mulgrave (Australia) for a set of MP25's, KBS Tour 90 1" over and 2 deg upright, sts multi compound plus 4 golf pride grips incl MP-H5 4 iron and 3 S5 blue wedges, great fitting experience lasting hour and half, can't wait to get these new babies, the look is sensational and so is the buttery feel.

June 2016

I have the MP-25's with the C-Taper shafts with Winn Dry Tech grips. All I can say is I am playing the best golf of my life and moved down to a 3 handicap in my golf league. They are worth every penny.

June 2016

Hi there! I have been fitted by Mizuno netherlands and am a happy golfer. I am now awaiting my brand new MP-25's with KBS Tour Taperd stiff 1/2'' extra and 2deg up. I can't wait to take them for a spin! They added 3 wedges (S5 personalised) to the set. Mizuno is the best!!

May 2016

Wow!! That's all I can say.

February 2016

I just purchased these with the TTXP105 shafts. Im a 5 hcp and had never been professionally fitted. Some would say that a professional fitting makes any good iron great. I disagree. I tried the Apex Pros, the RSi 2, the Titleist CB, MB, and AP2, and the Ping i-25, and Nike Vapor Pros. For feel, consistency, spin rates, workability, etc. the MP-25 and MP-15 were the absolute best.

I will say that the shaft and getting proper length and lie make a huge difference. With the stock set up I was hitting six iron with an average carry of 162-167. And was landing about 8-14 yards left of target line consistently - a slight pull. After switching to a 1/2 inch long and 2 degrees upright, I was pegging target with no more than 3 yds dispersion with an average carry of 177 and total distance of 192 average. I laid into a couple and got out to the 185 carry range.

I have to say that of all the Mizuno sets I've played, the MP-25 is the best yet. I played MP-33's, T-Zoids, MP-52's, and JPX 800 Pros through the years and recently moved into a set of Adams MB2's. I am now a Mizuno loyalist again. I absolutely love the ball flight of the TTXP105 shafts - they give the ball a penetrating mid trajectory but still sit and stop with the scoring clubs.

January 2016

I'm a 9 handicapper and I've had my set for about 3 months now and I absolutely love them, I have them with the KBS c-taper 120 shafts and grey MCC+4 grips which make the whole club very pleasing to the eye. I've gained about 5 meters per club on true strikes and as a whole they are pretty forgiving for off centre strikes. I was always a taylormade player but don't think I'll be changing from mizuno anytime soon!!!

January 2016

Beautiful irons. Mizuno's best yet.

November 2015

Always used Mizuno irons (MX23 & MP53) & currently play off 5. Just started using fitted set of MP25 irons, which have re-sparked my desire to go lower. 'Wow' is an understatement, they are the real deal. Already looking forward to the Masters 2016 (not playing obviously) in order to see where next season takes my game.

October 2015

Mizuno is the King of forged purity! The MP-25 is a beautiful looking club and performs brilliantly. Play The Game.... Play Mizuno!

October 2015

Just got mine with Nippon 115 stiff shafts and I'll second the "wow!"

Upgraded from Ping i20's and now I understand why people love Mizuno's. I'm a 14 and hit these better than anything I've ever played.

Great at address, great feel, great distance and accuracy. And beautiful.

I am in love!

September 2015

Just played 1st round with new MP-25 with KBS tour shafts and they are excellent. Just one word - wow.

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