Mizuno M.Craft OMOI 05 Putter Review

While Mizuno has always been known to produce some of the best irons on the market, its putter range has never had quite the same appeal. But that could be about to change thanks to the expansion of the M.Craft OMOI putter line. With an emphasis on a heavier and more stable head, Mizuno has re-released the same three models in the original M.Craft range, as well as three new head shapes to offer a generous selection of models all forged and milled from 1025 mild carbon steel.

The M.Craft OMOI 05 putter is a full mallet, center-shafted, face-balanced putter and like the other models in the new Mizuno putter range, it is available in three finishes - a double nickel, blue ion or black ion. I personally prefer the understated nickel finish but some may love the eccentricity of the blue head. The black KBS shaft and over-sized grip really play on the makeup of this putter and enhance its already classy looks, to rival those of the best putters. While the putter itself does look superb, I can't help but feel a little disappointed with the headcover, as while it looks great from far, it feels very lightweight and flimsy and has as very small Velcro tab that I can see wearing out fairly quickly. 

I was particularly curious to test this model, as unlike the other two new models, I have never used a center-shafted putter before. Immediately I felt as though lining up my putter, to where my line on my ball was aiming, was no issue, largely thanks to the large sight line on the back of the head. It's worth noting, as someone who hasn’t used a center-shafted putter before, It did feel as though I was almost addressing the ball out of the heel due to the unusual shaft entry position, but this is just down to lack of experience with that style of neck and head.

As someone who generally plays with a blade style putter, I noticed a large amount of my putts from the 5ft-20ft range were missing to the right. This is probably due to the face-balance design not allowing me to fully rotate the face through impact like I normally would when using my personal putter, which has plenty of toe-hang. However, thanks to the CNC milling on this putter, it felt superb through impact, providing a soft yet responsive feel. I found it particularly easy to generate the right speed on my putts because of this and so putting from distance really felt, dare I say it, easy. The M.Craft OMOI 04 putter may be worth checking out if you want the same feel off the face as this putter, but prefer a more square-back look behind the ball with more toe hang.

While the whole basis behind the M.Craft OMOI range is a heavier head to maximize MOI and stability, I love the fact these putters come equipped with a weight kit, consisting of two 3g and two 13g weights, that allow the player to adjust the head weight to their preference. Personally I felt as though the 8g weights that come already in the head offered the correct balance and felt just as good as some of the best mallet putters out there, but I think the heavier 13g weights would work particularly well in the winter on slower greens or for those with a slower, smoother tempo.