How good was/is the Original Rapture 3 wood?

I was having some driver issues so I picked up a mini SLDR and loved it. But like anything I wanted more distance but I loved the deep face.

Being a Ping guy I grabbed an original Rapture 3 wood and it goes into the bag tomorrow. I've read everyones thoughts that it's a monster off the tee but not great on the turf. I had a nice little trap fade thing going on with the deep face of the SLDR… hoping I can do the same here.

It feels great and looks awesome… can't wait to whack it.

Who loves this club? Good deal at $45 instead of the new Rapture at $499?

Love mine still in the bag after all others and I have hit a lot ...but still the best and it will not be going any where

It's my driver with a shaft at 43.5. It's titanium and very long. I'm not a fan of 460cc drivers, so this is it for me.
I really don't have an issue off a good lie in the fairway, but I use a 17 degree Cleveland for that most of the time.
I'm not a long ball hitter, but I occasionally hit mine 275. Easy to fade or draw.

I THINK YOU'RE GOING TO LIKE IT, A LOT!

My driver has been hot and then cold and then warm and then very cold…. Enter the Rapture!

I'm really looking forward to playing it tomorrow on everything that doesn't require a carry over something. If it's as long as everyone says then it won't matter and the driver can take a break!

Original Rapture fairway woods had too large of a head to be played off the ground. Consequently, relatively little Tour or amateur player usage.

[quote name='square' timestamp='1413088261' post='10273281']
Original Rapture fairway woods had too large of a head to be played off the ground. Consequently, relatively little Tour or amateur player usage.
[/quote]Actually, cost at time of issuance compared to competitors was more of a prohibitive factor for most amateurs than head size. Granted, the deep face 14* 3 wood was low-spin, not contributing to ease off the deck for many lower swing speeds. The 14* 3 wood has garnered quite a cult following over the years among amateurs as a driver replacement and many amateurs used and still use the 17* fairway in lieu of lower lofted fairways for ease of use off the deck without sacrificing distance. Regarding tour usage, the original rapture and G5 fairways( similar in size and face depth) were very commonly seen in non-staff players bags and this was especially common among European Tour players.

[quote name='Mitchell' timestamp='1413089590' post='10273311']
[quote name='square' timestamp='1413088261' post='10273281']
Original Rapture fairway woods had too large of a head to be played off the ground. Consequently, relatively little Tour or amateur player usage.
[/quote]Actually, cost at time of issuance compared to competitors was more of a prohibitive factor for most amateurs than head size. Granted, the deep face 14* 3 wood was low-spin, not contributing to ease off the deck for many lower swing speeds. The 14* 3 wood has garnered quite a cult following over the years among amateurs as a driver replacement and many amateurs used and still use the 17* fairway in lieu of lower lofted fairways for ease of use off the deck without sacrificing distance. Regarding tour usage, the original rapture and G5 fairways( similar in size and face depth) were very commonly seen in non-staff players bags and this was especially common among European Tour players.
[/quote]

[size=4]It had nothing to do with price. A massive head size off the ground is never a good combination.[/size][size=4]Too big a head for play off the ground. Original Rapture driver was sensational, but the titanium fairway metals, in all lofts, were never well received by Tour players or amateurs. [/size]

[quote name='square' timestamp='1413090261' post='10273329']
[quote name='Mitchell' timestamp='1413089590' post='10273311']
[quote name='square' timestamp='1413088261' post='10273281']
Original Rapture fairway woods had too large of a head to be played off the ground. Consequently, relatively little Tour or amateur player usage.
[/quote]Actually, cost at time of issuance compared to competitors was more of a prohibitive factor for most amateurs than head size. Granted, the deep face 14* 3 wood was low-spin, not contributing to ease off the deck for many lower swing speeds. The 14* 3 wood has garnered quite a cult following over the years among amateurs as a driver replacement and many amateurs used and still use the 17* fairway in lieu of lower lofted fairways for ease of use off the deck without sacrificing distance. Regarding tour usage, the original rapture and G5 fairways( similar in size and face depth) were very commonly seen in non-staff players bags and this was especially common among European Tour players.
[/quote]

[size=4]It had nothing to do with price. A massive head size off the ground is never a good combination.[/size][size=4]Too big a head for play off the ground. Original Rapture driver was sensational, but the titanium fairway metals, in all lofts, were never well received by Tour players or amateurs. [/size]
[/quote]Not what I witnessed at US Amateur and North/South Amateur at the time, as well as Greensboro Open and Masters, nor was told by Ping European Tour rep. at Valderama, however, your experience in your area may have been different, therefore, the difference in opinion. Was simply adding information that could be useful to original poster, no need to keep stating the same opinion.

Also, in original post, was stated that OP was aware that 3 Rapture was well regarded off tee and difficult off the deck and intention was as a driver replacement for some instances.

OP, you should enjoy the club for stated use and it compares favorably to current rapture, 3deep, etc.

A tour rapture was also available to tour players. You sometimes see them on eBay. I think they were a 5 wood head with 3 wood loft. Anyway the rapture 3 wood is great off the tee, very confidence inspiring head. I think you could come to really rely on this club.

[quote name='pingman_24' timestamp='1413100236' post='10273519']
A tour rapture was also available to tour players. You sometimes see them on eBay. I think they were a 5 wood head with 3 wood loft. Anyway the rapture 3 wood is great off the tee, very confidence inspiring head. I think you could come to really rely on this club.
[/quote]Two different Rapture tour heads were available, a smaller, more lofted head around 16* as you described and a Rapture tour that measured around 12.5-13* loft, used by Angel Cabrera for a bit along with his 7.5* original Rapture driver.

I own one with a whiteboard. It's solid off the tee, but not spectacular. Understandably, it's poor off the deck. It cannot hang with my Rocketballz or Xhot Pro 3 woods off the tee, so I just keep it in the vintage Ping bag. Since you can get used max COR TM and Cally 3 woods for about the same price, it doesn't make much sense.

I had a Rapture 5 wood with the Aldila blue shaft. Hit it well but it played pretty much like the 3 wood I was playing at the time I sold it to a friend of mine.

[quote name='cyr67' timestamp='1413109750' post='10273621']
I own one with a whiteboard. It's solid off the tee, but not spectacular. Understandably, it's poor off the deck. It cannot hang with my Rocketballz or Xhot Pro 3 woods off the tee, so I just keep it in the vintage Ping bag. Since you can get used max COR TM and Cally 3 woods for about the same price, it doesn't make much sense.
[/quote]This is what I find. Not selling it, but not in the line-up.

I loved my og rapture and wish I didn't sell it. It was a bomber of a club. I made sure to carry a 5wood or 3h for the longer approaches though.

May i suggest buy the Rapture V1 Driver?
I bought one 6 or 7 weeks ago
Just got to use it a few days ago,
Hit 8 out of 8 fairways with it ! I hit 14 fairways of 18 overall.
I thought there was a bit of a Cult Following on these, now i see why!

I used the original Rapture FWs for a long time, and still had the 5W up to a couple of years ago.

Cost was a problem, the size of the head was a bigger problem, and extremely strong lofts an additional problem that hasn't been mentioned yet. The 3W is 14* with a very deep face, so it was very good off a tee but pretty difficult to elevate off the deck for most players. For me, the 3W was sort of a wasted club; off the tee it went as far as my driver, and off the deck didn't go any farther than the 5W, so I dropped it from my bag. And really, the 5W with a 17* loft was a 4W anyway.

I do still have my original Rapture driver. That and my i5 irons are in the museum.

I used it today and loved it.. a few times on the front nine and then I used it for all the tee shots save one on the back. What a rocket of a 3 wood. It's playing at 14* and 43" vs my driver which is 11* at 44.5" and the yardages weren't that far apart. I had some trouble out of the fairway with it but if it was off in the first cut and just sitting up a tad I could do at it and get great results.

I've pulled the driver for the next 9 just to see how she performs again… fun club.

I picked one up recently for the first time, with the Aldila 85-S shaft and it's great. I'll tee it up 1/4" or so and it was keeping up with the guys hitting driver in my group, so I was happy. From a good lie, it's not that bad off the deck; if it's sitting down, it's not ideal. I'm waiting on a 5 and a 7 which I got in the $25-30 range shipped, so I'll reshaft those. Picked up a 9* version 1 driver, and it's pretty long and rather straight for me. Having never dabbled in Ping before, I'm impressed.

I've continued to use this as a mini-driver as well as some yardage eating shots on par 5s and it continues to be great. The head is big enough it inspires confidence to swing away which for me results in a full swing with a closed face and a nice straight shot. I tend to try and stay too controlled with the driver and chicken out of the swing sometimes… screws up timing, hands stay open, etc.

I still want to try the new Rapture 3 wood and see what all the $$$ is about… but I like this one too. A friend put a Kuro Kage black into it… great combo.

It's a great driver alternative. Don't feel it's a hot as the newer high cor ones though

I have the OG rapture 14 degree 3 wood with a whiteboard shaft in it.

Awesome club. Bigger head than most 3 woods, before that was a 'cool thing to do'.

It sounds like I'm straight out of a late night infomercial, but it is stupid long.

In fact it is so long, I dont even use it. When I'm hitting it well, its only 10 yards or so shorter than my driver. I have no real use for it.

[quote name='Mcgeeno' timestamp='1416531286' post='10480637']
I have the OG rapture 14 degree 3 wood with a whiteboard shaft in it.

Awesome club. Bigger head than most 3 woods, before that was a 'cool thing to do'.

It sounds like I'm straight out of a late night infomercial, but it is stupid long.

In fact it is so long, I dont even use it. When I'm hitting it well, its only 10 yards or so shorter than my driver. I have no real use for it.
[/quote]

I've hit mine longer then my driver on occasion… just much straighter with the 3 wood. This thing is a beast….

Buddy of mine has one. 16*. Don't hit it any farther than others out there. G30 best one out there, IMO.

[quote name='Golf64' timestamp='1416660085' post='10487369']
Buddy of mine has one. 16*. Don't hit it any farther than others out there. G30 best one out there, IMO.
[/quote]

The 16 is V2 and not even close to the same as the original Rapture. Ping quit making them because the engineering was so expensive.

They're cheap now in the used market.

I just picked up the original 5 wood , 17° off the bay as my 2nd club in the bag. Always found I hit my 3 wood too close to my driver. I like the nice big head and extra loft off the tee.