Mizuno has long been celebrated for its irons, but their wedge line deserves more attention. The new Mizuno Pro T-3 wedges aim to change that. In this review, I’ll be exploring what sets the T-3 apart and how they compare to the recently tested T-1 wedges.
Who Are They Aimed At?
Whilst the T-1 wedges are aimed at better golfers, the T-3 offers a similar feel but with extra stability behind the face to help with off-centre strikes. Mizuno’s main aim with the T-3 wedges is to create a mid-launching ball flight and consistent spin rates. The main difference between in the two is that the T-1 is more of a blade shape. It has up to six bounce options, whereas the T-3 only has three.
If you’re looking for a wedge that gives you a little bit of forgiveness but a similar feel to a bladed wedge, then these could be a perfect option for you.
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The Tech
The T-3 wedge is said to add more stability and forgiveness, without sacrificing on precision or feel.
They are forged using the same Grain Flow Forged HD process and use the same Carbon Steel and copper underlay in their construction.
Compared to the T-1 wedge, the main difference is the inclusion of a shallow cavity back. This is added to improve stability and forgiveness, particularly on off-centre hits.
As a result, these wedges are best suited to golfers who want a bit more consistency in their short game.
There are three different sole profiles in the Mizuno Pro T-3: S, M and C.
Mizuno Pro T-3 Wedge Review
Looks And Feel
Having tested the Mizuno Pro T-1 wedges recently I was really intrigued to see how the slightly chunkier T-3 performs in comparison.
There are two different finishes in the T-3 – Soft White Satin and Black Ion (no T-1 blue unfortunately). The main wedge I tested around the greens was the 60/10C, which featured a nice solid satin chrome finish and some sleek contouring.
As you can see straight away this looks like more of a CB version of the T-1 model. There’s a slightly chunkier sole and embossed shaping around the back.
Personally I don’t think the embossed design looks quite as good as the solid T-1, however there has to be a slight design change for people to differentiate the two.
The face features a clear dark grey groove area that contrasts really well with the soft white satin. This gives it a premium feel made for a highly respected wedge. In comparison to the T-1 I noticed that this groove area was slightly darker grey.
The actual shape design at address is almost identical to the T-1. There’s very minimal offset, creating an inviting hitting area. If anything I thought the face might be slightly longer from leading edge to top edge, but there were very minimal differences to the T-1.
The first few shots felt almost identical to the T-1 – very soft feeling with minimal vibration. If anything the T-3 was slightly less responsive around the greens but nothing off-putting.
Just like the T-1, I tried these wedges off different lies, both into the grain and down grain. All felt very easy to glide over the turf, with not too much digging into the grain as you’d normally expect.
Overall the T-3 sounds and feels great around the greens, making me excited to a hit a few longer shots too.
Performance
To test these wedges out properly I collected some launch numbers using Foresight’s GC Quad, then followed it up on the golf course to see how accurate they were.
I chose a selection of 48, 52, 56, and 60 degree wedges to see how well they blend together for gapping purposes. It also allowed us the opportunity to compare numbers with the T-1 wedges side by side.
One thing that struck me from hitting these wedges was the fact that they look and feel similar to the T-1. There was a really nice strong flight with good launch numbers. Ideally I like to achieve a launch angle of half the loft and within +2 degrees. For example a 60 degree wedge should launch between 30-32 degrees.
After hitting some shots with the T-3, I was expecting them to provide a couple of mph extra ball speed, with a few extra yards of carry on each. However this was not the case – I found them to be going even shorter than the T-1s even though the lofts were exactly the same.
The 56 degree wedge in the T-1 had a ball speed of 87.4mph and the T-3 was at 86.8mph. Launch was half a degree down and the spin rates were slightly higher.
I wasn’t able to gain any distance out of the wedges, making me feel quite bemused as I expected a touch more.
Mizuno Pro T-3 Wedge Verdict
After testing the Mizuno Pro T-1 wedges at the same time I couldn’t help but feel slightly disappointed and confused at where the extra performance is meant to be coming from in the T-3.
Yes they are a classy wedge that matches everything that the brand is notorious for. However when put up against the big brother T-1, there was only one winner for me.
Then comes in the price, they come in at the exact same price of £169 which is quite expensive for something that doesn’t gain you any performance compared to the T-1.
Overall, even though it was a great feeling wedge, I finished testing feeling a little disappointed. There are only three bounce options where the T-1 has six, meaning that there’s just a lot more flexibility to offer golfers. Again I don’t think this is a bad or an unforgiving wedge, but if it was £20-£30 cheaper I’d probably say save the money and go for the T-3 instead.
Would I Use It?
For me I was so impressed with the T-1 wedges that I would struggle to choose the T-3 over them.
