Ping G Irons vs Ping I Irons

Title pretty much says it all.

Has anyone had a chance to compare both in actual playing conditions and not just on a launch monitor?

I went G25s to the new I series and with the modus 105 stiff shaft get the same height I did with the G25s and I do not notice much difference in forgiveness and distance besides a little in the 4 iron.

Looking forward to hearing the comparisons.

Was just going to post the same? Just went to Golf show and still can't decide. Right now I can get a deal on Titleist, Ping, or Mizuno. I want to hit that Player wanna be crossover market, but when I am honest, my iron game is the weak link. That would probably mean AP1, not 2, 850 forged, not 15's and in Ping, I want the IE but the G's look pretty damn good. I just decide between G and the part of me that WANTS the I's? Tough call. I have read almost every thread in the last month about any and all of these. Any fresh opinions appreciated.

I've hit both indoors on Trackman, but will be going to an outdoor Ping demo on Friday. Hopefully, I will get a better idea after hitting on grass. Leaning toward the I's.

I've owned and played both I's and G's, various models, sometimes switching between them from round to round, and for me the G's are quite a bit more forgiving. It's not even a fair comparison really. Mind you I'm not talking about 20 balls into a net somewhere, I'm talking about 20+ rounds with all these various irons.

I've played both. The G's are considerably longer and are more forgiving. However, Ping definitely sacrificed feel for distance with the new G irons. The i's feel much better, even on heel and toe shots! I hit a shot on the toe with the G iron yesterday that was extremely harsh! The G30 irons felt softer across the entire hitting area than the new g's. I guess there is a price to pay for the trampoline effect of the new irons. Hope this helps. Cheers!

I've played both. The G's are considerably longer and are more forgiving. However, Ping definitely sacrificed feel for distance with the new G irons. The i's feel much better, even on heel and toe shots! I hit a shot on the toe with the G iron yesterday that was extremely harsh! The G30 irons felt softer across the entire hitting area than the new g's. I guess there is a price to pay for the trampoline effect of the new irons. Hope this helps. Cheers!

I would agree, I feel that it's hard to improve from either the G20's or the G25's. I've played multiple rounds with a borrowed set of G25's and it convinced me to find a set for myself. They got delivered today and I cannot wait to get on the course this weekend!

This may sound like semantics, but there are (at least) two questions to consider. 1) what is more forgiving and 2) what do you hit better. Some may disagree, but in my opinion the answer to #1 is not always the same as #2. The Gs will always be measurably more forgiving than the Is due to the larger sweet spot, deeper cavity, placement of mass in the club head to promote launch, etc. However, it is very individual to the player on what works best for your swing, game, mind, etc. It is easy to come to consensus on #1, but harder to get agreement on #2 because it is golfer dependent. At the end of the day question 2 is more important.

I agree with what everyone is saying. I am coming from the G20'S and those very chunky fat soles (But never bothered me, I always felt I could just fire right at the flag) I had a fitting with a Ping rep and it was great. I hit both the ie's and the new g line. I was really wanting to see if the ie's would be a good fit for me. My iron game is not the best part of my game but I can hit the ball far enough and high enough. Accuracy is my issue! But I still felt I could hit the I's reasonably well, they are very forgiving even though they seem to be labeled as mid to low handicap clubs. . But it was apparent for me and the fitter in watching the flight that my miss was a bit more pronounced with the ie's. A miss hit would cost me 5-8 yards in distance. We talked about the trade off from looks to feel to how much I play. Like others have said, do what is best for your game! is I have 2 young children, if I get out to play once a weekend with a bit of practice, then its a good week . In my situation I believe my game will be better off and more fun with the G line of clubs. And they look a heck of a lot better then my 20'S! Good luck in your search!

Appreciate the responses!

I am debating the same thing. I think I'm leaning towards the G. My thinking is if I want forgiveness, why not more forgiveness.

Not to mention,after reading so many posts over the years about low handicappers playing gi irons, everytime I think "damn that makes sense." Seems like there are a lot of club champs playing the gi's. It seems so obvious when I read it and then I get in the store and see the shiny, fancy better players irons and gets me off track.

When I graduated college, for my gift my dad had me go to Nevada Bob's and get my first set was my own. I had used hand me downs prior. I knew nothing and ended up with a full set of Prima's. Driver through wedges. I didn't know they were a Ping knock off but it didn't matter cause I didn't know one brand from another. I absolutely loved those clubs.

I've hit the g's and the i's and neither will be dethroning my g25 irons , for the look and feel the g25 is the same club at a Cheaper price.

The only thing that looks remotely appealing would be a set of i25 irons in my spec on the cheap!!

I am debating the same thing. I think I'm leaning towards the G. My thinking is if I want forgiveness, why not more forgiveness.

If you like the look of G series irons then I'd 100% recommend them.

I've check out each G release since the G10's and they just don't suit my eye. Even when the WRX initial response always seems to be "they look better this time!"...

I sold my G25s for i20s. The G25s were easier to hit, but I prefer the smaller profile and softer feel of the i20. Anecdotal: I think I hit more greens with the G25, but I hit closer to the hole with i20.

I sold my G25s for i20s. The G25s were easier to hit, but I prefer the smaller profile and softer feel of the i20. Anecdotal: I think I hit more greens with the G25, but I hit closer to the hole with i20.

The real question is how did that impact your hdcp?

I would think hitting more greens would give you a better shot at going low. Then again if you can get up and down with 2 foot to go consistently I guess it's the same thing.

I sold my G25s for i20s. The G25s were easier to hit, but I prefer the smaller profile and softer feel of the i20. Anecdotal: I think I hit more greens with the G25, but I hit closer to the hole with i20.

 

The real question is how did that impact your hdcp?

 

I would think hitting more greens would give you a better shot at going low. Then again if you can get up and down with 2 foot to go consistently I guess it's the same thing.

Good point. My handicap went one stroke higher (worse) last summer. I only play about 12 times a year, so it could be the arrows or the indian.

Golf is a game of misses. The Gs will help more with your misses. The Gs maybe the better/best choice!? ;)

Really like both the I and G irons and am trying to figure out which ones I will buy myself. The forgiveness of the G iron is hard to pass up though especially with the redesign that gets rid of most of the clunkiness of the former G irons. And as others have stated the G iron really does look alot like the I iron and it costs less too. Still need to hit them both a few more times to make a decision but am leaning towards the G at this point. Ping seems to really have hit a home run with their latest releases.

I am debating the same thing. I think I'm leaning towards the G. My thinking is if I want forgiveness, why not more forgiveness.

 

If you like the look of G series irons then I'd 100% recommend them.

 

I've check out each G release since the G10's and they just don't suit my eye. Even when the WRX initial response always seems to be "they look better this time!"...

Launch on almost every single G iron compared with i iron was 2-3 degrees more and peak height was 10-15 feet higher on the monitor. I obviously have to give anecdotal observations from my outside experience since I'm not a Doppler radar, and those observations say it was a noticeable difference outdoors in peak height. I got the Modus 105 shafts. You didn't ask, but I will also tell you there was a SIGNIFICANT difference in "feel" to me. The i's feel almost like a forging, the G's feel like a typical somewhat harsh/firm game improvement head. I went with the G's because I was seeking the additional height. We'll see if I miss the feel because I have historically played forgings.

Edited to add: the weird thing about the G's is that the sole is incredibly clunky, but Ping did a fantastic job of cosmetically making the topline look less bulky and the overall club hugs the ground as well as players irons I've played in the past.

Launch on almost every single G iron compared with i iron was 2-3 degrees more and peak height was 10-15 feet higher on the monitor. I obviously have to give anecdotal observations from my outside experience since I'm not a Doppler radar, and those observations say it was a noticeable difference outdoors in peak height. I got the Modus 105 shafts. You didn't ask, but I will also tell you there was a SIGNIFICANT difference in "feel" to me. The i's feel almost like a forging, the G's feel like a typical somewhat harsh/firm game improvement head. I went with the G's because I was seeking the additional height. We'll see if I miss the feel because I have historically played forgings.

 

Edited to add: the weird thing about the G's is that the sole is incredibly clunky, but Ping did a fantastic job of cosmetically making the topline look less bulky and the overall club hugs the ground as well as players irons I've played in the past.

I sold my G25s for i20s. The G25s were easier to hit, but I prefer the smaller profile and softer feel of the i20. Anecdotal: I think I hit more greens with the G25, but I hit closer to the hole with i20.

Yep - my experience. Except I then swapped my i20s for S58s and liked them even more! Don't rule out the S series - they're easier to hit than you might think, even for a high handicap player like me. Pick the ball up beautifully from all kinds of lies.

I've played both. The G's are considerably longer and are more forgiving. However, Ping definitely sacrificed feel for distance with the new G irons. The i's feel much better, even on heel and toe shots! I hit a shot on the toe with the G iron yesterday that was extremely harsh! The G30 irons felt softer across the entire hitting area than the new g's. I guess there is a price to pay for the trampoline effect of the new irons. Hope this helps. Cheers!

 

I would agree, I feel that it's hard to improve from either the G20's or the G25's. I've played multiple rounds with a borrowed set of G25's and it convinced me to find a set for myself. They got delivered today and I cannot wait to get on the course this weekend!

I think Ping knocked it out of the park with the G25s. Just a perfect blend of looks, feel, and playability as far as a Ping iron is concerned. Might be the best feeling iron I have owned, and I am a decade-long forged blade user. I think you will absolutely love them.

Own the new Is and have played the Gs in past. Is are very forgiving IMO. Feel s excellent and can be worked. Distance is long and improved over I25. Great irons

I haven't hit either outside but hit both the ie1 and the G several times indoor.

For me both were very good but the G was a bit more consistent and flew a little higher.

Both flew about the same distance.

I hit both with the awt shafts. also tried the cfs shafts, project x shafts, and the xp95 shafts. The awt shaft worked best for me.

Also both were more consistent than my i25's but I didn't get along with the cfs shafts.

I decided to get the G's with the awt shafts with the cushin inserts

I've owned and played both I's and G's, various models, sometimes switching between them from round to round, and for me the G's are quite a bit more forgiving. It's not even a fair comparison really. Mind you I'm not talking about 20 balls into a net somewhere, I'm talking about 20+ rounds with all these various irons.

Can you quantify the forgiveness? I.e., 5yds further on thin hits? 7yds further on toe hits? Something like that?

If you're not sure, you should really consider a mixed set. From the 8-iron down, it isn't going to matter that much if you make solid contact.

If that doesn't move the needle, get the Gs. What I've noticed is that if you're not sure, you should get the more forgiving irons. Unfortunately, it comes with the itch of "i could play those". Well, maybe you can. Just consider your mid-irons as a different part of your bag as your short irons. Test 9/P with both if possible.

For me, I didn't want the s55 5-iron. That's the point where I thought "nope, not there yet". I have i25s in the 4 & 5 iron. I also have a complete i25 set. If I were you, and I'm not, I'd pick up something like 4-7 in G, and 8-U in i. And when my ball striking got better, pick up the 7-iron in the i series. If there's doubt, just get Gs and put it out of your head. They aren't *that* different.

Assuming you aren't biased towards 'players' clubs, I think you should always look at how you hit the longest iron you use. If you can't hit the 3-4 iron really well, you shouldn't get that set. Yes, mishits on short irons aren't as punishing, but you will still lose out compared to a more forgiving design. The usually cited logic behind a combo set is the more players-like short ions give you more accuracy or consistency. But that's a fallacy. The real reason is the same reason many people use players-irons, they want to.

If your swing is not consistent enough to hit a 4 iron repeatedly well, you will not hit your short irons repeatedly well. The magnitude of the penalty will be smaller, but it will be there. In my experience (which is a database of thousands of fittings) the quality of strike varies very little as you move to the shorter irons, the penalty just goes down due to the higher loft. If your enjoyment of the game comes from maximizing your potential, base your decision off how well you hit the longer irons. That being said, there are a lot of people that hitting blade 7-iron absolutely pure (at one end of the spectrum, players-CB being the same idea, but less extreme), even if it's only once a round, is what really makes the game enjoyable for them. If you fall in that category, you will save yourself a lot of angst if you just accept that and get the clubs you want and stop trying to justify it in other ways.

I get a few mixed opinions from below, but what are longer the i's or the new G ?

I get a few mixed opinions from below, but what are longer the i's or the new G ?

Neither, really.