About this Review: This review is my honest opinion of the golf club, which I purchased with my own money in February of 2023.

My take

The Mizuno S23 Copper Cobalt is a beautiful wedge suited to golfers of all skill levels that provide high spin, launch, and control to help lower scores around the greens.

About the club I own

• Model: Mizuno S23 Wedge
• Loft: 58°
• Bounce: 4°
• Grind: Standard
• Finish: Copper Cobalt

About me

• Average Score: 70
• Handicap: +2
• Experience: 5 years of golf
• Right/Left-Handed: Right-handed
• Golf Ball Used: TaylorMade TP5x
• Angle of Attack: Steep

Test conditions

• When I bought the wedge: February 2023
• Days tested: 30+
• Where I’ve used it: TrackMan simulator and various golf courses
• Weather Conditions: Rain, wind, cold, and warm conditions
• Green Conditions: Bent, Poa Annua, Bermuda: 8–14 on the stimpmeter

How it performs

What I was looking for

I was looking to test a new wedge that was not a part of the big three in wedge manufacturers: TaylorMade, Titleist Vokey, and Cleveland. I wanted to test a wedge from a company not included in these top three to see how it compares.

Why I chose this club

I chose the Mizuno S23 over Ping’s Glide 4.0 because the Mizuno looked 10 times better than the Ping. In my opinion, this Mizuno wedge looks and feels even better than the TaylorMade MG3, Vokey SM9, and Cleveland RTX6.

What I love about it

• Feel: The Mizuno S23 wedges feel just like their forged irons. The saying “nothing feels like a Mizuno” stays true with these clubs. Mizuno makes these with the same one-piece “Grain Flow Forging” as their forged irons, and they feel like butter. This is the best-feeling wedge I have ever tested.
• Bounce: I have a steep swing, which is generally not perfect for a low-bounce wedge. However, I love it because the wedge grabs and interacts with the turf so well to allow me to flight my shots to hit low-spinning checks. The low 4° of bounce also helps when manipulating the clubhead to open it up for flop shots and bunkers.
• Full Shots: This wedge is great for full shots due to the heavy shaft I have in it. I am able to hit full shots without feeling like it spins up into the air too quickly and loses distance. I can hit full shots that I feel I can control the spin to either help increase or decrease it.
• Shaft Feel: The Project X 6.5 is my favorite shaft in wedges. This shaft is an X-stiff and 125 grams. This helps naturally flight the shot trajectory to keep the ball out of the wind and have more control over my distances.
• Aesthetic Appeal: This wedge is beautiful; it has a smaller head shape than most wedges, making it look like a true player's wedge. The copper finish is also perfect because it is not too shiny, so the sun does not glare off of the clubhead into my eyes.
• Grip Feel: I have the Golf Pride MCC red grip on these wedges, and I love it. My favorite grip is the Z-Grip Cord or Tour Velvet Cord, but this is the next best. The MCC grip has a cord top portion to allow for maximum grip, and the cord material helps repel moisture to also increase grip and control. The bottom half of the grip is a standard rubber that feels really nice.
• Innovation: This wedge is different from many other top wedges on the market in 2023. The club had a shorter hosel and additional weight in the toe portion of the club. This moves the center of gravity (CG) away from the traditional spot of the heel on a wedge and towards the center. This helps move the sweet spot of the wedge to the center of the club rather than closer to the heel like most other wedges.
• Spin: Due to the shorter hosel design mentioned above, this wedge has a sweet spot directly in the center of the wedge. This center sweet spot creates longer impact times and more spin from both full and partial shots. These wedges spin almost the same as the top models from TaylorMade, Vokey, and Cleveland. This allows for great control on full shots.

Issues I’ve encountered

• Launch: On the Mizuno S23 wedge, the weight closer to the toe creates a very low center of gravity. As a result, the lower center of gravity launches the ball much higher—which some many players may love. However, I prefer to play my wedge shots lower and flight them because it helps stay out of any wind. I also feel more in control of the distance my ball travels.
• Forgiveness: The smaller clubhead makes this wedge less forgiving on off-center strikes. I noticed on shots that were not hit out of the center, or close to it, would come up five yards short of my intended distance. Although, the ball still stayed straight on off-center strikes, just not as far.

Best Shot with this Wedge

The best shot I hit with this wedge was when I holed out on a par 5. The par 5 was a little over 600 yards, and I hit a great tee shot—leaving me with 285 yards to the green. I felt confident, so I tried to hit my 3 wood and skip it up onto the green. Unfortunately, I hit that 3 wood really bad and was left with a 63-yard approach shot. I grabbed this Mizuno and chose to hit a flighted punch shot, trying to increase the spin. I hit the wedge right at the pin, and it landed a few feet short, took one bounce, landed right in front of the hole, spun and slowed down, before rolling right into the cup for a chip-in eagle.

Value for the money vs. other options

The TaylorMade MG3, Titleist Vokey SM9, and Cleveland RTX 6 wedges are a little higher spinning than this Mizuno S23. However, this Mizuno wedge is slightly less expensive than those mentioned above. As a result, players could save a small amount on a brand new set of wedges for a beautiful, high-quality wedge that will provide plenty of spin, control, and launch. Ultimately, any one of these four wedge models is a solid choice and will offer players with added spin and control around the greens.

Final verdict

The Mizuno S23 Copper wedge is a beautiful-looking wedge. It is perfect for golfers of all levels looking to increase their spin and control on the greens.