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The Mizuno Pro 243 irons have the looks of a player’s iron without the demands of a true blade. The grain flow forged cavity back irons deliver high ball speeds and mid spin for those single digit handicaps who need just a bit more help.
Introduction
Mizuno Golf has built an impressive reputation over the years by crafting some of the most sought after irons on the market. This is largely because of their unique grain flow forging process which produces that feel that players love. For 2024, Mizuno has updated the Pro Series irons in line with their two year release cycle and we got our hands on a set to test. In this review, we put the Mizuno Pro 243 irons through the paces to see just how these stack up.
Looks
The first time I got my hands on the Mizuno Pro 243 irons, I was pleased with the simple looks. They are compact, small from heel to toe, and resemble something closer to a muscle back than a player’s cavity back iron. At address, the leading edge has a gentle curve to it with a rounded toe and thin top line. According to Mizuno, the top line is thinner than its previous version in the 223 [review HERE].
In the bag, the sole appears slightly wider than in previous versions with Mizuno’s distinct tall white numbers etched into the toe. The back has a uniform brushed chrome finish with only a naked Mizuno logo towards the sole and “Mizuno Pro” etched in white inside the cavity. Less is more in iron design, and Mizuno put that into practice with the Pro 243.
Sound and Feel
Despite the forging material changes for 2024, sound and feel remained mostly unchanged. All I needed was a few swings to remember that “nothing feels like a Mizuno.” Any good to great strike with the Mizuno Pro 243 irons deliver a pleasant “tick” sound at impact. My fitter at Club Champion noted just by the sound that I was striking them right on the screws. This was not a product of suddenly becoming Tiger Woods, but a result of the sound with almost any decent contact.
The feel was just as good as the sound. It felt like I was hitting a super soft golf ball, which I enjoyed. It’s not so squishy like a marshmallow but definitely soft. Once I finally missed one, I knew it as there was more vibration sent through the grip and hands while the ball felt more like a rock. Surprisingly, this feel on mishits was few and far between because of an enlarged sweet spot.
Performance
The Mizuno Pro 243 irons are essentially two sets of irons packaged into one. The gap wedge through the eight iron are relatively unchanged from previous years in terms of forging processes. Each one of these scoring irons is forged with Mizuno’s traditional 1025E carbon steel. The four through seven irons, however, are grain flow forged with 4120 Chromoly and built with a micro slot to create better ball speeds. This is all new for 2024 and is ideal for those players who still prefer precision in the scoring irons but need a little more ease in getting both appropriate distance and launch from those tougher to hit long irons.
Mizuno did an incredible job in designing this set and allowing forgiveness to be added gradually as you go down in loft. For the scoring irons, I had total control. While the stronger lofts brought my ball flight and spin down slightly, they were still workable to almost any type of shot I wanted to hit. This created a more consistent dispersion pattern as I reduced the high spinning outliers. The newly increased bounce angle and trailing edge relief also made turf interactions foolproof.
While I would still suggest these are not quite as a forgiving as a game improvement club like the Pro 245 irons, the changes for 2024 are markedly more forgiving than previous versions of this iron. They are also significantly easier to hit than the Pro 241 irons [review HERE].
The 4-7 irons are where I noticed the most impressive numbers and where the Mizuno Pro 243 irons shine. Like the scoring irons, the long irons saw an increase in bounce angle and sole relief, but the micro slot and 4120 Chromoly is what separates itself from its competition. Ball speeds for these longer irons were higher than I was accustomed to but still remained consistent without the fear of nuking a flyer over a green. The launch was mid to high with relatively low spin. As a higher spin player, this is exactly what I love in these longer irons. The magic here is that all of this is inside a compact head with minimal offset.
You can see from the chart below that the Mizuno Pro 243 irons have stronger lofts than both the 241 and the previous Pro 223 irons. While this can make it more difficult to create a mixed set of Mizuno Pro irons, the Mizuno Pro 243 irons have enough variety and gradual forgiveness that it feels like a blended set on its own.
Conclusion
There is a lot to like in the Mizuno Pro 243 irons. The mix of workable scoring irons with a more forgiving group of mid to long irons is ideal for the better player. This is all inside a small, compact iron that produces a feel synonymous with Mizuno irons. It’s a must try for better players in 2024.