First impressions
The last JPX EZ driver carried a black and orange design but now were seeing a move back to what we know and expect from Mizuno which is there very distinctive blue.
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But they’ve not gone all out on the crown like they did with the JPX850 driver which was very blue, they’ve mellowed things out a bit with a nice grey crown with more of the blue featuring on the sole and the headcover.
Maybe being too blue put some people off from the start? It didn’t for me but I don’t support a football team whose rivals play in blue”¦
JPX850
I had the JPX850 in my bag for sometime as it looks amazing and really gets it out there.
The only area it was lacking for me (17 handicap) was in forgiveness.
So it was almost as Mizuno had read my mind before introducing the new JPX EZ.
The Tech
At address you can see that it has a larger headshape with the weight stretched back and out towards the heel and toe. It’s right on the USGA limit.
It looks like it’s going to be very hard to miss.
There’s the fast track adjustability (same as JPX850) on the sole to fine-tune ball flight and in the hosel you can select between 10 flight and eight loft settings with the quick switch system.
We were lucky enough to spend some time on the Mizuno European Tour truck with club designer Chris Voshall who explained to us the finer points of the JPX EZ Driver.
“This club is designed to be a more forgiving option in that world of adjustable drivers.
“With some adjustable driver the MOI (Moment of inertia/ resistance to twisting) is getting really low.
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“Our aim with the JPX EZ was to make a driver with over 5,000 MOI which is extremely forgiving. So we wanted to have all that forgiveness plus that adjustability which is really what’s lacking in the industry.”
NCG Verdict
We tested the JPX EZ driver at Reunion Resort in Orlando, both on the range and out on the course.
We used our Sky Trak launch monitor to capture the data and I hit a few shots with my current driver and a couple of other drivers we were testing on the day to compare.
The JPX EZ was hitting the 250 yard average which is what I’m hoping for.
The performance out on the course always gives us the best feedback though and it was really nice to test a product which does what it says on the tin.
The JPX EZ inspires confidence, it goes just as far as anything else when hit out of the middle and doesn’t hurt you too much on the heel or toe strikes.
After playing a nine holes, I’d built up some confidence and I started to let loose a little bit. I felt the larger head gave me that confidence and I hit a few drives which really split the fairway and only left me a short iron in.
A couple which came out of the heel spun up a little bit but were still carrying over 200 yards and allowed me to attack the green with my second shot on a par-4.
I kept it with the weight in the neutral position (as I miss left and right in equal measure) with the loft set at 10.5Ëš.
If anything, I’d probably nip the loft down to 9.5Ëš which is what happened when I got fitted into the JPX850. The shaft was the stock Fujikura Orochi 60g stiff.
I hadn’t been custom-fit into this particular driver although my specs from the last fitting had been passed on to Mizuno before sending this model out.
After using the JPX EZ it was hard going back to my current driver, once I’d got used to that headshape, and performance, it was difficult to turn my back on it.
When the golf season starts proper the JPX EZ is definitely a contender for a permanent place in my golf bag – that’s if no one else in the office beats me to it”¦Â
Details
SRP: £349
Available: February 2016
Website: golf.mizunoeurope.com
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