The 2018 version of the Mizuno JPX ball has undergone quite a change and not just because they made the box blue.
The previous 2016 JPX ball was a three piece ball, but the 2018 version has shed a layer to become a 2-piece. The idea is to make it feel softer under the polymer cover which is otherwise the same as before.
It still features the 512 Dual Energy dimple design that uses smaller Micro Dimples to deliver the same mid-high trajectory as before.
The larger core allows the compression to be reduced and this has an effect on spin. With a 7-iron on GC2 at 86mph, the 2018 JPX was launching a degree higher with around 900rpm less spin to give an extra 4 yards for me.
I also tested the balls with a driver and at around 108 mph the spin was again down, but not by quite as much as the iron so the gain was just a couple of yards.
Within those numbers I was getting a wider variation of spin from the JPX 2018 depending on the contact and there were some sub-2000 numbers in there so this is quite a low spinning ball with the driver.
I was testing this in the dry, which Mizuno say it has been optimised for, but that it also performs well in the wet and cold, which I would have thought would be a given, especially in the UK.
Around the greens the 2018 JPX sounded and felt better than the previous model. Yes it is softer, but the sound is closer to a premium ball than the fairly clicky sound of the previous JPX that sounded like a two piece ball when it wasn't.
It is maybe not Pro V1x sounding off the putter but it is on the way so if you like a medium sounding ball with a softer centre then that is where the JPX 2018 comes in.
Control with pitches and chips was about average because of that lower spin, so if you want to create more check then one of Mizuno's MP balls with a urethane cover might be a better option.
As with all Mizuno balls the JPX comes in numbers 1, 3, 5 and 7 so bad news if your lucky number is even, or if your favourite colour is black as they have changed the numbering to blue.
Overall the JPX 2018 is a reasonably priced, soft feeling ball that is mid-spin off the irons and mid to low spin on the driver with a nice sound around the greens. So if that is what you are after then it is worth trying.