Equipment Review:
Honma Golf Beres MG813 Driver, MG803 Irons
by Jeffrey Reed, Editor, London Ontario Golf

Honma Golf of Japan has been called producer of “the Cadillac of golf clubs.” Perhaps the analogy should include Rolls Royce. Quite simply, Honma Golf, with its SAKATA factory in Yamagata, Japan produces perhaps the best quality golf gear on the planet.

Now, we all know that what looks great may not produce on the course. As well, what’s good for one golfer may not be good for another. You can tee up those ideas and drive them off into the sunset. Honma Golf gear looks like royalty, performs like a champion and offers a myriad of choices for every level of golfer.

This month, London Ontario Golf gets its first look at Honma Golf gear in the new Beres MG813 460cc driver, and the new Beres MG803 irons. Both are beauties and, quite frankly, rank amongst the very best clubs we have ever reviewed. Here’s why.

Beres MG813 Driver

The Beres series from Honma Golf is manufactured with the athletic (read: better amateur) golfer in mind who wouldn’t mind maximizing the benefits of today’s high-tech clubs. Enter the Beres MG813 driver, a 460cc oversized triangular-shaped club that, despite its size, is not overbearing at address. In fact, quite the contrary: it exudes confidence.

The Beres MG813 driver features an acute angle at the sole, along with a triangular shape crown, which offers rigidity and therefore fights off clubhead twist and off-centre hits. MOI is off the charts with this driver, too, and CG position sees the clubface hug the pill before launching distances which you may have never reached before on the links. The face has a sweet spot18-per-cent larger than the previous model.

I tested the 9° 460cc model with a 2-Star grade, which carries a suggested retail price of $910 US. The top-level 5-Star grade carries a price of $4,395 US and includes a metallic gold head with a 24K metallic gold ring on the hosel. I’m wondering if Donald Trump has this club in his bag. Personally, I would take the club cover off the head and sit it beside my reading chair in the living room and admire it like I would a fine piece of art. That’s the beauty of Honma Golf clubs: they truly are manufactured under the most discerning standards, and the end result is the prettiest sticks anywhere.

Want more proof that the Beres MG813 driver boasts both beauty and brawn? Then check out the new Honma ARMRQ UD54 graphite shaft fitted with this club. With low to medium kick point and 55.5 g weight yet amazing stability, this shaft is a winner. I tested the stiff ARMRQ UD54 and loved it. Twinned with the Beres MG813 clubhead, this club produces a high-trajectory ball flight but with very little spin for incredible distance and accuracy. Combined with the proper ball for your game (I use the Bridgestone Tour B330-S which also has a high flight, low spin character) and you’ll be hitting fairway spots which previously you’ve only been able to spot in your rangefinder.

If it took this long for a low-handicap golfer like myself to embrace an oversized, triangular clubhead in a driver, then it was worth the wait because Honma is, in my books, the leader in this category. Outstanding driver within its class, and I highly recommend it for any level of golfer.

Honma Beres MG803 Irons

Of any club tested and reviewed, the iron comes under the most scrutiny, simply because any low-handicap golfer like myself is quite attached to his time tested and true sticks. However, testing the Honma Beres MG803 Irons was an absolute pleasure.

Like the MG813 driver, the MG803 irons offer different grades. Again, I tested the 2-Star level club which sells for $345 US satin finish each, and $375 ion-plated black finish. Top-grade 5-star clubs each sell for $4,395.

The MG803 iron sets runs from a 19° 3-iron to 49° 11-iron (a strong gap wedge), and includes a 56° sand wedge. These clubs are just as gorgeous as the big brother MG813 driver, and boast their own technology with combination muscle back-cavity back design.

The set actually follows a carefully-structured design flow. Irons 3 through 7 consist of a two-piece structure of SUS630 body, ES230 forged-variable-thickness face, and contain two 5 g weights which double the gravity of the distributed weight to the toe and heel, resulting in better MOI from the previous model.

The mid- to short-iron clubs 8-SW have a one-piece structure with integrated cavity. The entire cast club is comprised of soft MS225 stainless steel. The 11-iron and SW are superior performance wedges, boasting a larger face and sweet spot for accuracy.

Again, the Honma ARMRQ UD54 graphite shaft accompanies this club, but there are custom options. I tested the 7-iron with above shaft, and although I typically play steel shafts in my irons, I had no issue with control. The shaft gave me an estimated 10 yards extra distance on my shots, too. And like the driver, this iron allowed shotmaking on automatic pilot – a real pleasure to test.

Hats off to Honma Golf for again producing golf gear royalty which not only looks great, but performs like a champion.

Read more about Honma Golf at www.honmagolf.com or www.honmagolf.co.jp .