Equipment

Mizuno Pro 241, 243, 245 irons review – Club Junkie Review

Published

2 years ago

Feb 2, 2024

Mizuno irons have always been highly regarded and coveted by golfers who place feel high on their wants list. The new Mizuno Pro series irons blend soft and responsive Mizuno feel with some of the latest tech for all-around performance.

With the release of the Mizuno Pro 241, 243, and 245, there is an iron for just about any golfer. I was hitting these irons on a very cold (about 18 degrees) range, so the carry and ball speed numbers are probably not the most optimal, but the signature Mizuno feel was impressive! For the full review please check out the Club Junkie Podcast below and on any podcast platform.

RELATED: New Mizuno Pro 241, 243, 245, Pro Fli-Hi irons take forging further

Mizuno Pro 241, 243, 245 irons review

Mizuno Pro 241 irons

If you are a highly skilled player or just love blades, the 241’s compact size and single-piece forged construction should lure you in. I think the shape of the 241 is great with a little more of a boxy and sharper toe. Mizuno has really improved the look of the short irons over the past few iron generations, and the PW flows well with the set, not looking too large. The added bounce is welcome for steeper swings or players who play in softer conditions.

Mizuno also created more of a progressive set with flighted long irons for softer landings and more penetrating short irons for added control. The 241 are compact irons, but less intimidating than I expected when I took them out of the box. Feel is absolutely textbook Mizuno with a soft, yet solid feel even with less-than-ideal range balls.

Launch was higher than I initially expected but then I remembered the more traditional, weaker lofts. Distance wasn’t long by today’s standards but it was very consistent. Solid strikes launched through the same window and traveled the same distance every time; mishits were predictable in their distance loss. I was hitting the 241’s pretty well, and my misses weren’t too extreme but you do notice a little larger variation in distance between well-struck and toe misses.

While the launch is high, this is a blade, and it allows skilled players to flight the ball down, hit it high, or right and left very easily. I also noticed that the 241 is a little more forgiving than you might expect. Now, you aren’t going to get away with hitting it anywhere on the face, but slight misses will still probably get to the front of the green. We are stuck on mats here so no way for me to test turf interaction yet, but the added bounce should give steeper-swing players or those playing in soft conditions some added playability.

Mizuno Pro 243 irons

Right out of the box, these seemed a little chunkier than the previous 223 from all angles but address. I loved the look from address as they are a little more rounded and softer than the 241. These might have the widest sole out of the three models, but there is some trailing edge relief that should allow the iron to get through the turf quickly and without added digging.

I liked that the 243 was the highest-launching iron for me and was a little surprised with that since they are a couple of degrees stronger than the 241. I don’t hit a high ball, and the 243 was giving me the best visual window of the group to hit high shots that land softly on the green. The slightly large blade size gives you a little more confidence that you don’t have to be as surgically precise as with the 241, and if you do miss a little, you won’t be penalized for it. Shots off the toe, my usual miss, still carried good ball speed and stayed online better than I expected.

RELATED: New Mizuno Pro 241, 243, 245, Pro Fli-Hi irons take forging further

For more of a players cavity design, the 243 was a very straight iron on most misses. Now, if you got far from the center, you would be able to see some distance drop off and more movement to the shot. Strikes made lower on the face still elevated and you didn’t see a huge difference in the launch window on those. The 243 also gave you a little sense of speed with the 4- and 7-irons, not 245 speed, but I felt like the iron was helping add a little to the shot with the longer irons.

Sound and feel were very good as you would expect with a Mizuno Pro iron. Center and close-to-center contact gives you this soft and solid thud as the ball leaves the face and the 243 retains a good amount of that even slightly outside of center. More extreme misses are met with a decent click, but the longer irons are slightly more dampened than the short irons due to the insert behind the face.

Mizuno Pro 245 irons

This is the iron where I think Mizuno made the biggest improvement from the 225. Sound and feel are very subjective, but I felt like the 245 offered a more muted sound and softer feel than its previous version. While the hollow body design doesn’t offer the solid feel and responsiveness of the 241 and 243, it does give the player plenty of both. The face definitely gives the sensation of the ball jumping off it for added speed, but it doesn’t feel uncontrolled.

From my range session with them, the performance delta between good and poor struck shots was small and tight. Center shots left the face quickly and for me flew a little more penetrating and boring into the sky. These have the strongest lofts of the trio, but you still won’t have any issues getting the ball in the air, even with the long irons. The look of the 245 is also really good, giving you that more players compact look and little offset that promotes confidence and comfort.

I loved how straight and far mishits flew with this iron as the hot face was able to make up for my lack of perfection. My shots that were further off the toe than I care to admit still stayed in play as gentle draws instead of big hooks that smaller irons would produce. Striking the 245 a groove or two low also didn’t penalize you with a screaming ball six feet off the ground that runs forever, the iron was still able to elevate that shot and provide enough lift to hit the green and hold it. This iron is going to fit a wide range of players and combo up nicely with the 243 for some added help in the long irons.

In conclusion, Mizuno really upgraded the Pro iron line without disrupting the DNA of the design. Added playability and forgiveness in the 241 will open that iron up to golfers looking to work the ball around the course. At the same time, the 243 will fit a wider range of golfers who love compact irons but need a little added distance and forgiveness. Players who fit into the 245 will love the performance they expect from a hollow body iron and experience soft feel and sound that you don’t always get with those types of irons.

RELATED: New Mizuno Pro 241, 243, 245, Pro Fli-Hi irons take forging further

Whats in the Bag

Christiaan Maas WITB 2026 (June)

Published

3 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D LS (8 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 6 X

3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9 TX

Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3), TaylorMade P7CB (4), TaylorMade P7TW (5-PW)
Shafts: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 10 X, True Temper Dynamic Gold X100

Wedges: TaylorMade Prototype (50-SB09), TaylorMade MG5 (56-HB12, 60-LV07)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

Putter: TaylorMade TP Juno

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord

Check out more in-hand photos of Christiaan Maas’ clubs here.

Equipment

TaylorMade MySpider Tour and Tour X: More customizable build options now available

Published

3 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

TaylorMade Golf’s MySpider program underwent a substantial overhaul over the last month. Firstly, the company launched the option to customize the Spider ZT model, and now the program has returned with the MySpider Tour and MySpider Tour X.

The revamped page now gives golfers complete control over every visual and functional detail of their putter on the popular Tour and Tour X head, with every cosmetic idea thought of. In MySpider Tour, golfers can choose from four head finishes, 16 paint fill colors, nine Surlyn face insert colors, three aluminum insert options, six sightline configurations, and four hosel options — L-neck, small slant, double bend, center shaft. Six sightline options are available in MySpider Tour, including the optically engineered True Path alignment system. MySpider Tour X gives builders the option of four head finishes, four hosel configurations, and five sightline options, also including True Path alignment.

One of the more interesting features of the new MySpider program is the availability of three distinct face insert options. Along with the usual Surlyn Pure Roll insert trusted by Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, which can be customized from nine colors, golfers can now also select firmer options. Two are offered with the black aluminum Pure Roll insert, slightly firmer than the traditional insert, or for the firmest feel, golfers can choose from two colors of milled aluminum inserts.

Another fun addition to the MySpider Tour is the ability to use the “Tommy Sightline.” The custom alignment aid design, which was first drawn onto Tommy Fleetwood’s putter by PGA Tour Rep James Holley, is based on the milled sightline on his Spider ZT head. There are five shorter lines on the left and right of a longer central line serving as the traditional short line alignment aid.

See below for the full specifications sheet for MySpider Tour and Tour X:

MySpider Tour

MySpider Tour X

Equipment

Then and now: Comparing Rory McIlroy’s current setup to his record-breaking 2019 Canadian Open victory

Published

6 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

In Rory McIlroy’s first appearance at the 2019 RBC Canadian Open, he crushed the record books to earn his 16th PGA Tour title in dominating fashion, winning by seven shots over Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson.

McIlroy’s score of 22-under-par 258 is the lowest 72-hole score to date at the Canadian Open, and his closing 61 is also the best final-round score in the history of one of golf’s oldest tournaments. Finally, with his win in 2019, McIlroy became only the sixth player to win the career Triple Crown, adding to his victories at the U.S. Open in 2011 and The Open Championship in 2014, joining Tommy Armour, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tiger Woods in a coveted list.

So, with that, why not compare his current setup to the clubs he used to break all the records?

Driver

2019: TaylorMade M5 (9 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D (9 degrees @8), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7X (45 5/8 inches)

McIroy led the Tour in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee in 2019; he’s doing the same in 2026. Between now and then, McIlroy has switched from the Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX (a shaft with slightly more feeling in the tip) to the original Fujikura Ventus Black 7X, having just made the change to the heavier version from playing the 60X.

What’s interesting about McIlroy’s 2019 setup is that the weighting on his driver is actually set in the high-draw setting, using the T-Track weighting system, whereas in the Qi4D, he’s currently using a heavily rear-weighted setup. (Two 13-gram weights in the rear and only two 4-gram front weights.)

The TaylorMade M5 driver he played in during his Canadian Open win was the company’s first head that they claimed to design to initially exceed the USGA’s COR limit, and then injected with tuning resin to bring it back in bounds.

Fairway woods

2019: TaylorMade M6 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX; TaylorMade M5 5-wood (19 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 90 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8X; TaylorMade Qi4D 5-wood (18 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9X

The TaylorMade M6 fairway wood that McIlroy was using during the 2019 season is still in the bag of some of the best golfers on Tour in 2026. Just check out Justin Rose’s winning setup from the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. This year, though, McIlroy has still been searching for his top-end-of-the-bag setup, having played both the new Qi4D and the Qi10, which he won the Masters with.

The same shaft swap can be seen in the fairway woods as the driver, along with slightly less loft on the 5-wood.

Irons

2019: TaylorMade P750 (4) Buy here, TaylorMade P730 (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0
2026: TaylorMade P760 (4), TaylorMade Rors Proto (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0

The biggest difference between McIlroy’s custom set and the stock P730s is the groove design. While the P730s were constructed with 14 MX-9 grooves on their milled faces, McIlroy’s proto heads instead use the higher-spinning, 16-groove layout of the TW2 grooves. Other big differences between the sets are that McIlroy’s 7- and 8-irons have thinner toplines, are 1 degree stronger in loft, and are 1/4 inch longer than the original P730 builds.

With McIlroy’s 4-iron, the switch from P750 to P760 sees a transition to a two-piece construction with Speed Foam in it, which allows McIlroy to launch the ball slightly higher, with more workability.

Wedges

2019: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48-09SB), TaylorMade MG Hi-Toe (52-09SB, 56-09SB, 60-LB09), Shafts: Project X Rifle 6.5
2026: TaylorMade MG5 (46-09SB, 50-09SB, 54-11SB, 60-08LB @61), Shafts: Project X 6.5 (46-54), Project X 6.5 Wedge (60)

Between 2019 and 2026, McIlroy’s focus on his short game has been much more apparent. It was the reason why he switched back to the TP5 golf ball, to help with launch, spin and control with his wedges leading up to his career Grand Slam victory in 2025. The most apparent changes to McIlroy’s wedge setup are his lofts and bounce. He’s slowly delofted his pitching to a sand wedge, but has increased the loft on the lob wedge, bending his current 60-degree to 61. With that, adding more loft to his lob wedge also slightly increases the bounce and leading-edge sit point, so, as a result, he plays a lower-bounce lob wedge compared to 2019. The MG5 wedges are also softer than the first Milled Grind option from 2019. McIlroy also no longer plays the full-face grooves found on the Hi-Toe.

Putter

2019: TaylorMade Spider X
2026: TaylorMade Spider Tour X

Notice anything similar. Yes, the copper finish on Rory McIlroy’s Spider X putter in 2019 is a slightly more reflective finish than the recently released torched PVD finish. McIlroy was using the True Path alignment system, but now uses only a single white sightline.

Ball

2019: 2019 TaylorMade TP5 (#22)
2026: 2025 TaylorMade TP5 (RORS)

As mentioned above, McIlroy had transitioned from the TP5 to TP5x golf ball since his victory in Canada in 2019, but now is black with the same style of golf ball as his victory at Hamilton Golf & Country Club.

Grips

2019: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
2026: Golf Pride MCC

Interesting, McIlroy actually used Golf Pride’s Tour Velvet Cord grips during his victory in 2019 (it was during a 2+ year switch to the corded TV) as opposed to his usual MCC grips, which he has played for most of his career.