In hand photos of the Ping i500 irons (MERGED)

[tbowles411]

Our pro just hit the i500s and the i210s. He said, "Holy S***!" These are going to be absolute winners for PING. He not only gained a little distance, but the feel was spot on and he could control the spin.

[sekim]

To the gapping / distance questions..

 

I got 6-U wedge and then 54 and 58 in forged glide. All with DG105 R300s. Distances as follows. Note I have a 95mph driver swing

 

6 - 160

7 - 150

8 - 140

9 - 130

PW - 115

U - 100

54 - 85

58 - 75

 

No idea why the strange gap in 9-U. Plan to get them in a Mitchell and take a look at lofts. But ping is usually pretty good about being spot on.

[WarEagleGolf]

5* loft in the lower irons then it shortens to 3* as you go up. I have a 15yd gap from PW to 9 as well.

[BlkNGld]

To the gapping / distance questions..

 

I got 6-U wedge and then 54 and 58 in forged glide. All with DG105 R300s. Distances as follows. Note I have a 95mph driver swing

 

6 - 160

7 - 150

8 - 140

9 - 130

PW - 115

U - 100

54 - 85

58 - 75

 

No idea why the strange gap in 9-U. Plan to get them in a Mitchell and take a look at lofts. But ping is usually pretty good about being spot on.

 

I suspect that what could going on here is that as you go from the long irons to the short ones Ping is reducing the amount of spring in the face. Now they may be doing it gradually from head to head or they may be doing it in steps (like every 2nd or 3rd club) and at some point someone may encounter a gap (or gaps). Where it happens probably depends on a whole bunch of factors depending on an individual swing and probably even what kind of balls are being used.

[Andrewkpk]

Just got fit for a set of the i500’s 5-U in KBS Tour 120’s stiff soft stepped and a couple of Glide 2.0’s at 54 and 58. Standard loft and lie. It was these or Mizuno Forged and it was close, but my spin numbers where a bit better in the 6600 range for the Ping’s. Good spin #’s and stopping power on the greens. No sound issues inside or outside. Was hitting the 7i 175-178 which is perfect for me. I was seriously amazed at how easy/forgiving these were to hit with my stock baby fade. Ordered them on the spot. Worth checking out if your in the market for new irons. Grabbed a g400 LST hazardous yellow 76 6.0 black shaft and a 5w to boot too.

[bogey777]

My i500s with 6.0 LZ came in yesterday. Played 18 after work, and I am in love with them. I think the concerns over the sound are a bit overblown or I am less sensitive to it - they are a bit loud indoors, but the sound may be swing speed dependent - I am currently playing Chrome Soft X, which may help mute the sound some. Feel is fantastic and the sweet-spot is alot bigger than my 718 AP2s. Had no issues holding greens, even had the 6 iron spin back a little on a 212 yard downhill par 3. Can't wait to get them out on the course again this weekend. Also, I am really glad I got the U wedge and have no issues dialing it back. I hope everyone else is as happy with these sticks as I am!

OH man i have the same set up coming in i500 with 6.0 LZ Can you tell me anything else these guys have me concerned over the sound ....i mean if they are as good as you have stated i don't care if it sounds like an atom bomb going off alot of people said the same thing about the drivers an i have both a max an 400 LST an im fine with either...

[bogey777]

Just got fit for a set of the i500's 5-U in KBS Tour 120's stiff soft stepped and a couple of Glide 2.0's at 54 and 58. Standard loft and lie. It was these or Mizuno Forged and it was close, but my spin numbers where a bit better in the 6600 range for the Ping's. Good spin #'s and stopping power on the greens. No sound issues inside or outside. Was hitting the 7i 175-178 which is perfect for me. I was seriously amazed at how easy/forgiving these were to hit with my stock baby fade. Ordered them on the spot. Worth checking out if your in the market for new irons. Grabbed a g400 LST hazardous yellow 76 6.0 black shaft and a 5w to boot too.

Yea i have 400 LST with a GD BB7 an that thing is money an i ordered the i500 6.0 LZ now it is just the waiting game

[awtryau89]

My i500s with 6.0 LZ came in yesterday. Played 18 after work, and I am in love with them. I think the concerns over the sound are a bit overblown or I am less sensitive to it - they are a bit loud indoors, but the sound may be swing speed dependent - I am currently playing Chrome Soft X, which may help mute the sound some. Feel is fantastic and the sweet-spot is alot bigger than my 718 AP2s. Had no issues holding greens, even had the 6 iron spin back a little on a 212 yard downhill par 3. Can't wait to get them out on the course again this weekend. Also, I am really glad I got the U wedge and have no issues dialing it back. I hope everyone else is as happy with these sticks as I am!

 

I also got mine in today. Sounds like the exact same set up, I know what wedges you are using. As far as the sound, I am on the opposite end of the spectrum. I hit the demo at our club against my JPX 900 Forged and could hear it was a little bit louder but nothing that really bothered me. Today when I got them on the range for a bit, they were loud. The sound is a high pitched crack. I immediately had a bit of regret. I am not a purist and mentioned earlier I thought the sound thing was overblown. I can definitely see how it would irritate many. On the performance side, its all there. Height, distance and forgiveness. I have to get these on the course on Sunday and will know quickly.

 

One other thing is I took the screw out of one of my clubs. There definitely is goo inside. The screw is very light as well. I am thinking Ping is swing weighting with the goo for sure and the screw is not the piece they are using for weight. With that being known, it should be easy for some adventurous WRXer to fill at least one of their heads to see if it makes a difference. I'm not going to do it. Hey Mikey...

[PT1911]

Just got mine today also with Recoils. :drinks: Didn't know they were the ion plated version......kind of cool.

[thigos]

My i500s with 6.0 LZ came in yesterday. Played 18 after work, and I am in love with them. I think the concerns over the sound are a bit overblown or I am less sensitive to it - they are a bit loud indoors, but the sound may be swing speed dependent - I am currently playing Chrome Soft X, which may help mute the sound some. Feel is fantastic and the sweet-spot is alot bigger than my 718 AP2s. Had no issues holding greens, even had the 6 iron spin back a little on a 212 yard downhill par 3. Can't wait to get them out on the course again this weekend. Also, I am really glad I got the U wedge and have no issues dialing it back. I hope everyone else is as happy with these sticks as I am!

OH man i have the same set up coming in i500 with 6.0 LZ Can you tell me anything else these guys have me concerned over the sound ....i mean if they are as good as you have stated i don't care if it sounds like an atom bomb going off alot of people said the same thing about the drivers an i have both a max an 400 LST an im fine with either...

My i500s with 6.0 LZ came in yesterday. Played 18 after work, and I am in love with them. I think the concerns over the sound are a bit overblown or I am less sensitive to it - they are a bit loud indoors, but the sound may be swing speed dependent - I am currently playing Chrome Soft X, which may help mute the sound some. Feel is fantastic and the sweet-spot is alot bigger than my 718 AP2s. Had no issues holding greens, even had the 6 iron spin back a little on a 212 yard downhill par 3. Can't wait to get them out on the course again this weekend. Also, I am really glad I got the U wedge and have no issues dialing it back. I hope everyone else is as happy with these sticks as I am!

 

I also got mine in today. Sounds like the exact same set up, I know what wedges you are using. As far as the sound, I am on the opposite end of the spectrum. I hit the demo at our club against my JPX 900 Forged and could hear it was a little bit louder but nothing that really bothered me. Today when I got them on the range for a bit, they were loud. The sound is a high pitched crack. I immediately had a bit of regret. I am not a purist and mentioned earlier I thought the sound thing was overblown. I can definitely see how it would irritate many. On the performance side, its all there. Height, distance and forgiveness. I have to get these on the course on Sunday and will know quickly.

 

One other thing is I took the screw out of one of my clubs. There definitely is goo inside. The screw is very light as well. I am thinking Ping is swing weighting with the goo for sure and the screw is not the piece they are using for weight. With that being known, it should be easy for some adventurous WRXer to fill at least one of their heads to see if it makes a difference. I'm not going to do it. Hey Mikey...

 

Bogey 777 - I guess it is all subjective, but the improvement over my previous irons seems night and day. I was playing LZ 6.5 before, so some of this may just be the smoother feeling shaft at my swing speed and the towering flight.

 

awtyau - Hopefully the loud sound you experienced was just due to hitting rock balls on the range. I'll be interested to hear your feedback after getting them on the course this weekend. Play well

[slalomdude]

To the gapping / distance questions..

 

I got 6-U wedge and then 54 and 58 in forged glide. All with DG105 R300s. Distances as follows. Note I have a 95mph driver swing

 

6 - 160

7 - 150

8 - 140

9 - 130

PW - 115

U - 100

54 - 85

58 - 75

 

No idea why the strange gap in 9-U. Plan to get them in a Mitchell and take a look at lofts. But ping is usually pretty good about being spot on.

 

Out of curiosity , what driver shaft are you using. We have similar SS. Thanks

[halfsumo]

Got mine today, 4 iron with steelfiber i95. Standard loft. I got it to replace the P790 UDI which was super fun, and if I could afford it would have kept and rotated in and out of the bag. The 4 iron loft is just a more useful and versatile spot in my bag for something like this. Comparing the two, they are both really good looking. The UDI is a bit longer blade length and shallower face height. The i500 is a bit shorter blade length and taller face height. I prefer the i500 looks, but the P790 is great. They feel about the same to me. The performance is very similar if you take out differences in loft and length. I was thinking about a true UDI replacement and ordering the i500 3 iron in power spec. I think that would be a seriously awesome driving iron. The one thing PING has in their favor is that if you order custom, you know you are going to get the specs you ask for. Taylormade custom? yeah, not so much....

[lc1342]

Got my set yesterday, KBS Tour V shafts. Loved playing with them today. Feel was nice, sound didn’t bother me.

 

Still possibly thinking about getting a G700 4 and 5 iron for the extra help though. Has anyone tried this yet?

 

[RodrigoNicely]

Got my set yesterday, KBS Tour V shafts. Loved playing with them today. Feel was nice, sound didn’t bother me.

 

Still possibly thinking about getting a G700 4 and 5 iron for the extra help though. Has anyone tried this yet?

 

I went combo set g700 long irons and i500 short irons

[lc1342]

Got my set yesterday, KBS Tour V shafts. Loved playing with them today. Feel was nice, sound didn’t bother me.

 

Still possibly thinking about getting a G700 4 and 5 iron for the extra help though. Has anyone tried this yet?

 

I went combo set g700 long irons and i500 short irons

 

Standard lofts?

[HuskerDevil_1]

Why doesn’t Ping offer nippon 120 option?

[doublehans]

Why doesn’t Ping offer nippon 120 option?

 

They do, it just cost$

[nilopol]

iblades are pretty set for me 5-Pw, but have been flirting with i500 4 iron over my iE 4 iron. Or may just try lead taping iE. Anyone compare to i series long irons

[Orlandogolfguru]

iblades are pretty set for me 5-Pw, but have been flirting with i500 4 iron over my iE 4 iron. Or may just try lead taping iE. Anyone compare to i series long irons

i have ie in power spec and the distances are very similar to 500. My son has i200 in power spec and finds 500 just a small amount farther, less than 5 yards. 500 just looks so damn nice.

[RodrigoNicely]

Got my set yesterday, KBS Tour V shafts. Loved playing with them today. Feel was nice, sound didn’t bother me.

 

Still possibly thinking about getting a G700 4 and 5 iron for the extra help though. Has anyone tried this yet?

 

 

 

I went combo set g700 long irons and i500 short irons

 

 

Standard lofts?

 

Went standard loft in the g700 and i500 power spec to keep lofts in order

[igman]

iblades are pretty set for me 5-Pw, but have been flirting with i500 4 iron over my iE 4 iron. Or may just try lead taping iE. Anyone compare to i series long irons

 

I just ordered 4 and 5 iron with Nippon Modus 120 to match my set of iBlades. Couldn't get used to the G400 4 Crossover and need more height and consistency with iBlade 4 iron.

[nilopol]

iblades are pretty set for me 5-Pw, but have been flirting with i500 4 iron over my iE 4 iron. Or may just try lead taping iE. Anyone compare to i series long irons

 

I just ordered 4 and 5 iron with Nippon Modus 120 to match my set of iBlades. Couldn't get used to the G400 4 Crossover and need more height and consistency with iBlade 4 iron.

 

How did you gap your lofts?

[Rippin6Gears]

Hit my 500s today, just speechless think I played one of my best rounds with my irons ever. Dropped everything on the greens. I just couldn’t putt for the life of me.

[StarFleetGolfer]

I just picked up a set, anxious to get on the course.

[PT1911]

I played yesterday for the first time with my set. No range time or range balls , just played on course with a Pro V and B330S. I have my set with the Recoils and I will say, they sounded and felt AMAZING!!!! Not good, not great, but AMAZING!!!!

 

I get sound and feel is very subjective, and I was VERY concerned with all the posts. After playing with them I don’t think I could have wanted anything more out of these as far as sound and feel.

[phil75070]

I played three rounds with these during the week last week, going directly from my Apex CF16's with no range time or other experience hitting them. The results were quite mixed to say the least. I finally got a chance to hit the range yesterday morning and work on what I need to do differently considering softer flex shafts (Recoil F2 vs F3), less offset, lighter swing weight, etc. I finally zeroed in on them and all I can say is WOW! Very high ball flight with every club but despite being high I get the sense of "penetrating" given the way the ball jumps off the clubface. I did not hit them side-by-side with the CF16's, but even directly into a South breeze about 10+ MPH the ball had to be going at least 1/2 club longer absed on having used that range before.

 

The feel is solid, powerful, not as "soft" as the CF16's. The look at address is as stunning as they look nestled in the bag! :)

[igman]

iblades are pretty set for me 5-Pw, but have been flirting with i500 4 iron over my iE 4 iron. Or may just try lead taping iE. Anyone compare to i series long irons

 

I just ordered 4 and 5 iron with Nippon Modus 120 to match my set of iBlades. Couldn't get used to the G400 4 Crossover and need more height and consistency with iBlade 4 iron.

 

How did you gap your lofts?

 

Went with 22.5 on the 4 and 26.5 on the 5 iron. I admit, a little bit of guess work here as I am pretty average length wise (7iron 158-160) I don't mind having the extra length on the 4 iron, the 5 iron will be the one that I am anxious to see. I currently hit my 6 iron 170

-173ish) and then yardages get tighter with 5 and 4 irons. Primarily, I am hoping the 5 iron helps my "hole" in the 185 area.

[chris975d]

Just received my i500s this morning (5-PW, UW, Proj X LZ 6.0), and got out to the course to hit them and play 9 holes this afternoon. Now, I wasn't swinging the best as it was heavy chest workout night last night, and I did some garage cleaning earlier in the day, but....holy s*** do these things hit the ball HIGH!! I mean...HIGH!!! Higher than any iron I've ever hit, by at least 20-25 feet at apex, maybe more. I previously thought my Bridgestone Tour B CBs were easily the highest launching iron I've ever hit, but the i500s tower above them. I could easily go with decreased lofts of an additional 2-3 per iron and still have PLENTY of height to every iron in the bag. Hit the 5 iron off some tee boxes on par 4s today just to get full swings with it, and it was ending up stopping dead at, or even a few times bouncing backward from it's landing spot in the fairway. The descent angle was seemingly straight down.

 

That being said, they were marginally longer than my Rogue Pros club for club. I didn't hit them side by side today, but just recalling from the same spots/same par 3 tees to compare club(s) typically hit.

 

As far as feel (I ordered these unhit, with my last meeting with my PING rep), center hits feel and sound extremely powerful. With me being a player that puts "feel" and "sound" above almost everything, I had zero issues with either on center strikes. Felt similar to my i200s, or even the Tour B CBs (one of the softest feeling clubs ever) on those center strikes.

 

Now...where they were getting to sound and feel a good bit different were on off-center hits. Toe and heel misses instantly had a good bit of hollow feel and sound to them, but more surprisingly, also had (for me) a pretty big drop off in distance, even just a bit off center on the strike...one good thing about this finish is that, just like the i200s, you can see every strike on the face, at least while still new. Dispersion was still ok, as the shots were still more or less on the intended line, but coming up way short of what I expected. So, early on, I'm saying that the i500s ARE NOT as forgiving as I thought they might be, and definitely less forgiving than my i200s and especially my Rogue Pros. Rogue Pros are stupidly forgiving for the profile, especially on toe side mishits....even dramatic toe misses.

 

Again, not my best swing today, as I was a bit weak and stiff from last night's workout, but initially I do like these in terms of looks, feel, and sound...when struck well. The extreme height is something I might have to get used to, as it was honestly so high it was almost uncomfortable. I've never hit shot after shot that high. I may send them in to have the lofts strengthened to bring that down more. It's so high that I couldn't flight it down for anything, but...I can hit ANY of the irons over ANYTHING I want...no tree will be in the way as long I'm not right up against the trunk. But if I am under those trees...there's zero way I can knock them down to get out from underneath them (I tried a few punch shots just for giggles)...unless I just punch them 40-60 yards back to the fairway, there's no chance I can hit a curvy "stinger" out from under some branches and get to/close to the green from 140+ yards.

[johzel]

To the gapping / distance questions..

 

I got 6-U wedge and then 54 and 58 in forged glide. All with DG105 R300s. Distances as follows. Note I have a 95mph driver swing

 

6 - 160

7 - 150

8 - 140

9 - 130

PW - 115

U - 100

54 - 85

58 - 75

 

No idea why the strange gap in 9-U. Plan to get them in a Mitchell and take a look at lofts. But ping is usually pretty good about being spot on.

 

It's interesting to read that a number of others are finding this gap "issue" with their wedges to 9 iron. We have similar distances . . . I hit my irons 5 yards further than your distances. Except the wedge which I'm also hitting 115 (have always hit a wedge pretty much 120 yards). If I swing faster than my normal (and faster than I care to) I can squeeze 120-125 out of it. So, I'm hitting the U wedge 105, the wedge 115 and the 9 iron 135. I'm taking the wedge into the shop today to check its loft . . . I'm planning to have them strengthen it a degree or two to close that gap.

[awtryau89]

Just received my i500s this morning (5-PW, UW, Proj X LZ 6.0), and got out to the course to hit them and play 9 holes this afternoon. Now, I wasn't swinging the best as it was heavy chest workout night last night, and I did some garage cleaning earlier in the day, but....holy s*** do these things hit the ball HIGH!! I mean...HIGH!!! Higher than any iron I've ever hit, by at least 20-25 feet at apex, maybe more. I previously thought my Bridgestone Tour B CBs were easily the highest launching iron I've ever hit, but the i500s tower above them. I could easily go with decreased lofts of an additional 2-3 per iron and still have PLENTY of height to every iron in the bag. Hit the 5 iron off some tee boxes on par 4s today just to get full swings with it, and it was ending up stopping dead at, or even a few times bouncing backward from it's landing spot in the fairway. The descent angle was seemingly straight down.

 

That being said, they were marginally longer than my Rogue Pros club for club. I didn't hit them side by side today, but just recalling from the same spots/same par 3 tees to compare club(s) typically hit.

 

As far as feel (I ordered these unhit, with my last meeting with my PING rep), center hits feel and sound extremely powerful. With me being a player that puts "feel" and "sound" above almost everything, I had zero issues with either on center strikes. Felt similar to my i200s, or even the Tour B CBs (one of the softest feeling clubs ever) on those center strikes.

 

Now...where they were getting to sound and feel a good bit different were on off-center hits. Toe and heel misses instantly had a good bit of hollow feel and sound to them, but more surprisingly, also had (for me) a pretty big drop off in distance, even just a bit off center on the strike...one good thing about this finish is that, just like the i200s, you can see every strike on the face, at least while still new. Dispersion was still ok, as the shots were still more or less on the intended line, but coming up way short of what I expected. So, early on, I'm saying that the i500s ARE NOT as forgiving as I thought they might be, and definitely less forgiving than my i200s and especially my Rogue Pros. Rogue Pros are stupidly forgiving for the profile, especially on toe side mishits....even dramatic toe misses.

 

Again, not my best swing today, as I was a bit weak and stiff from last night's workout, but initially I do like these in terms of looks, feel, and sound...when struck well. The extreme height is something I might have to get used to, as it was honestly so high it was almost uncomfortable. I've never hit shot after shot that high. I may send them in to have the lofts strengthened to bring that down more. It's so high that I couldn't flight it down for anything, but...I can hit ANY of the irons over ANYTHING I want...no tree will be in the way as long I'm not right up against the trunk. But if I am under those trees...there's zero way I can knock them down to get out from underneath them (I tried a few punch shots just for giggles)...unless I just punch them 40-60 yards back to the fairway, there's no chance I can hit a curvy "stinger" out from under some branches and get to/close to the green from 140+ yards.

 

Found a very different experience on the forgiveness end. I've only got 2 rounds on mine but I find them considerably more forgiving than my JPX 900 Forged and i200s. While the feel isn't the best, thin shots easily reached my intended target. Toe shots are a bit punished but still very good. The sound does change when missed as you said. I would put these in between the i200 and G400 in terms of forgiveness. I definitely agree on the height of the shots. I hit a high ball anyway and spin has never been a problem but to be able to hit a 4-5 iron this high and see the distances I am seeing is nothing short of nirvana. It definitely gives me confidence. From a spin perspective, I am seeing no issues at all. I can see how a low spin player may have issues but I have actually backed up an 8 iron with these clubs and the added height is giving even my missed shots drop and stop performance. When I first took these clubs to the range, I wondered if I could game them. Didn't like the sound and feel was different than I had experienced in my demos. (I sorta chalk that up to the fitting adapters I hate those things as they definitely change things in every club I have tried no matter the brand). After playing with them though, they aren't going anywhere. I have tried G400s and Hot Metals. Those clubs make the game easier and I would game them if it weren't for the looks. I just couldn't live with that. The i500s solve the looks problem and give me that level of game improvement.