Ping G425 closer than we think? (In hand Pics Pg. 16)

[rjp217]

2 hours ago, JourdanM said:

Got the G425max in the sim yesterday and, to me, the sound is a non issue. I actually quite like it. The feel off of the face is intoxicating. The lateral forgiveness is truly awesome. Had some really nice numbers aside from dynamic loft - was between 18-20°. Pro thought may be due to the Alta 55 stiff shaft being a little tip soft for me. 
 

ordered up a nemesys 65 after some intense research. What shafts are you guys having success with in this head? 
 

I feel like once I have shaft and weight position dialed in, this thing is going to be an absolute animal and will really help my game. 

I’m going to experiment more with my Ventus Black and Tensei Pro White, not sure yet what I’ll ultimately go with.

[JacobTheGolfer]

Just had a custom fitting done and ordered the LST version, 10,5 degrees, stiff with tour 173-65 shaft. Estimated delivery: 16th of April. Let's hope it comes quicker than that... It totally beat every other club in dispersion.

[Kid B]

1 hour ago, JourdanM said:

Well crap, I never would have thought to try the LST as I don’t generate a ton a spin. Hopefully shaft change does the trick with the max for me. 

 

You can get it where you want it with the right shaft.  I had the Max launching and spinning right with a Ventus Black, but I just didn't like the feel as much.

 

The LST opened up a lot more shaft options for me, so that's what I went with.  But there's no reason you can't make the Max work, it's got a lot of hype for how forgiving and long it is, but it's a versatile head to fit for too.  That's according to my fitter, who says that since he's had the demo heads he's putting people into Ping at a rate of like 2:1 versus all the other brands combined.

 

That's one guy's experience, but I thought it was pretty telling.

[Eagleman]

Hey guys I was hoping you could help me with my situation. I have been demoing the g425 Max 3 wood at my clubs golf dome and I absolutely love how forgiving it is. Unfortunately, I’m hitting the 14.5° about 135 feet in the air with between 5000 and 6000 spin( the fitter let me hit it on the trackman for about a half hour, I can’t remember exact numbers) That was with the rogue white 80x, angle of attack was around 0. All the x shafts that have is the Rogue and raw orange. They also didn’t have the LST head and they don’t know when they will get it. I know the LST is probably the better choice, but I love how forgiving the Max is. I’d give up some distance for the forgiveness so I’d want to put a lower spinning shaft in the Max head. Just wondering what shafts you all have had success with, and if anyone was in the same situation as I am. Thanks!

[Brooks_Cupcake]

32 minutes ago, Eagleman said:

Hey guys I was hoping you could help me with my situation. I have been demoing the g425 Max 3 wood at my clubs golf dome and I absolutely love how forgiving it is. Unfortunately, I’m hitting the 14.5° about 135 feet in the air with between 5000 and 6000 spin( the fitter let me hit it on the trackman for about a half hour, I can’t remember exact numbers) That was with the rogue white 80x, angle of attack was around 0. All the x shafts that have is the Rogue and raw orange. They also didn’t have the LST head and they don’t know when they will get it. I know the LST is probably the better choice, but I love how forgiving the Max is. I’d give up some distance for the forgiveness so I’d want to put a lower spinning shaft in the Max head. Just wondering what shafts you all have had success with, and if anyone was in the same situation as I am. Thanks!

No shaft is going to cut 2000 spin my man. There’s something going on in your swing that’s causing the jump. Here’s the 425Max initial numbers with a draw and fade from my testing with a Ventus Blue 7x tipped 1”

Edited February 13, 2021 by Brooks Cupcake

[Eagleman]

7 minutes ago, Brooks Cupcake said:

No shaft is going to cut 2000 spin my man. There’s something going on in your swing that’s causing the jump. Here’s the initial numbers with a draw and fade from my testing with a Ventus Blue 7x tipped 1”

I appreciate the numbers! I’m not looking to cut 2000 all together, just lower it a bit. I do play a fade so I’m sure that doesn’t help with the spin. I’m sure the LST would most likely be a better option for me, but I’ve never hit a 3 wood as consistent as the 425 Max. I’m definitely going to wait to try out the 425 LST to see if it’s close in forgiveness. 
 

edit: I put 5000-6000 because I couldn’t remember the average spin number for the shots hit. I want to say it was closer to 5k. Sorry about the misinterpretation. I’m horrible at explaining, just ask my fiancé haha

Edited February 13, 2021 by Eagleman

[Shakespeare]

I just got the max 3 wood..came with stock alta shaft. Figured I'd swap it out because reviews were for high flight. Surprised me when i hit pretty low bullets on the range with it. Ill take it out on the course to see if it stays that way. 

[RIDEamountain]

Played my first round with my G425 Max this morning! As mentioned previously, mine is a 9* head built with Tensei PRO Orange 60S set to D2 at 45.5" by master club fitter Joe Kwok @joey3108. Nobody better in the business and he knows my swing well. 

 

Cutting to the chase....I freaking LOVE this thing. I litterally only missed one fairway today (can't remember the last time I did that), and that miss yielded a birdie anyway because my ball was still in a great spot just off the fairway. 

 

Comparison:  I'm coming off an Epic Flash SZTD 9* with Graphite Design DI-6s that I've played for just about 2 1/2 years. I'm a high ball hitter and hit it well, especially once I learned to throttle back and not overswing. Center strikes were bombs...but miss hits were penalizing...but I own that🤣 

 

I played my usual local course that I know well. It was raining overnight (stopped after the second hole) and conditions were a bit soggy, so distance couldn't be fully compared. Even with that, there were a couple of holes that I put drives out further than I had ever been before. 

 

Sound: I'm a huge fan of the sound. Just love it. Not as harsh as others have said, but there's definitely that love-hate aluminum bat-type sound. But to my ear...it sounds great. No hot melt for me either...mostly because Joe didn't want to add anymore weight to the head...but I wouldn't have wanted to mute the sound at all. I also love how the ball trampolines off the face...it jumps off the head and feels Hot. Simply put...the head inspires absolute confidence.

 

Face:  I can also address the way the head sits at address. My EF SZTD sat slightly open for comparison and I could hardly tell the difference between it and my G425 MAX. If anything...the Ping sits dead square and not a hint of being closed at all. It's perfect.

 

Tungsten weight:  I started this front 9 with the sliding weight in the neutral position. My typical fade was there (maybe a touch more) and ball flight was right in my usual zone. I did have a few that went high...but I may have had it teed up high as well. I moved the weight to the draw position on the back 9 and immediately got the trajectory where I wanted it. The fade was still there too, but it was now more subdued and the ball flight was more piercing.

 

The difference between the Ping and Callaway for me is that with the Epic, when a drive started turning slightly harder right... they just wouldn't stop moving right. With the Ping, that never happened. I had a couple of 'Oh s***' moments today with drives that started going a bit harder right, but just settled in and hit the fairway. 

 

For me, the G425 Max is the best driver I've ever played. I know that in some comparative tests, the G425 does best with regards to shot dispersion, but falls a little bit short of the competition with regards to distance at similar club head speeds. What I find is that due to the increased confidence that the club inspires in me, I can now go after it a lot harder without fear of being punished. That will no doubt yield more distance and improved dispersion... and today's round (small sample size I know) proved exactly that. 

 

Did I mention that I love this thing?

 

RIDE 

[Titleist84]

If all of the reviews are true then the other OEM's better start paying attention. It's not going to take very long for people to notice their buddies hitting more fairways with the 425 Max.  

 

I hope we see a most forgiving driver war over the next few years.

 

 

[Brooks_Cupcake]

22 minutes ago, Titleist84 said:

If all of the reviews are true then the other OEM's better start paying attention. It's not going to take very long for people to notice their buddies hitting more fairways with the 425 Max.  

 

I hope we see a most forgiving driver war over the next few years.

 

 

Ping 425Max driver engineers can only hope for people taking forgiveness over the crap feel and sound. I just wonder why they can’t take the feel and sound of their hybrids and have it go through the entire bag.

at least the Max Fairway is great with hot melt.

[awtryau89]

5 hours ago, Eagleman said:

Hey guys I was hoping you could help me with my situation. I have been demoing the g425 Max 3 wood at my clubs golf dome and I absolutely love how forgiving it is. Unfortunately, I’m hitting the 14.5° about 135 feet in the air with between 5000 and 6000 spin( the fitter let me hit it on the trackman for about a half hour, I can’t remember exact numbers) That was with the rogue white 80x, angle of attack was around 0. All the x shafts that have is the Rogue and raw orange. They also didn’t have the LST head and they don’t know when they will get it. I know the LST is probably the better choice, but I love how forgiving the Max is. I’d give up some distance for the forgiveness so I’d want to put a lower spinning shaft in the Max head. Just wondering what shafts you all have had success with, and if anyone was in the same situation as I am. Thanks!

 

Check out my posts. I got fitted for the 3 woods outdoors, no monitor just my pro's eyes and had an issue with the Max launching like my lob wedge. Still carried long but it was not in my preferred window. The LST in the -1 Flat setting was perfect. Lower launch but still high but spin is very very good for a 3 wood. The ball would get down range and just continue to carry. I was worried about the forgiveness on the LST because the 410 was punishing when I tried it. They fixed that in spades with the 425. Not quite as forgiving as the Max but moreso that my Ti Sim I was testing against. Hit some bombs with it in the 1st round in play too. 

Edited February 14, 2021 by awtryau89

[Fantom]

Anyone who tried Tensei 55 & 65? Curios to hear about the differences in feel, performance and numbers (spin, launch, carry).

[bjno1300]

Would love to hear from anyone who has paired the max driver with a ventus red. I imagine dialing it down to about 8 degrees combined with the red would be special 

[xandersingh]

41 minutes ago, bjno1300 said:

Would love to hear from anyone who has paired the max driver with a ventus red. I imagine dialing it down to about 8 degrees combined with the red would be special 

im about to do that! just placed an order for a ventus red. been playing a ventus black at 8 degrees. will report back!

[jadedennill]

1 hour ago, xandersingh said:

im about to do that! just placed an order for a ventus red. been playing a ventus black at 8 degrees. will report back!

Have you found any noticeable distance loss with the Max vs whatever you were coming from? I just keep hearing people say they’re sacrificing distance for forgiveness, but I refuse to believe that the Max with the same launch conditions as anything else is going to be slower off the face. So, I’m curious to hear your thoughts on the 8* Max Ventus combo. 

[bjno1300]

2 hours ago, xandersingh said:

im about to do that! just placed an order for a ventus red. been playing a ventus black at 8 degrees. will report back!

How did the max perform with the ventus black in 8 degree?

[Elee913]

1 hour ago, jadedennill said:

Have you found any noticeable distance loss with the Max vs whatever you were coming from? I just keep hearing people say they’re sacrificing distance for forgiveness, but I refuse to believe that the Max with the same launch conditions as anything else is going to be slower off the face. So, I’m curious to hear your thoughts on the 8* Max Ventus combo. 

Unfortunately with snow on the ground, I haven't been able to take the G425 Max onto the course.  I'm coming from a Sim Max.  But I have hit a lot inside with a simulator, and played a few sim rounds with it.  At least on the sim, I am hitting the G425 Max further and getting much better dispersion.  The holy grail.  

 

 

[xandersingh]

2 hours ago, bjno1300 said:

How did the max perform with the ventus black in 8 degree?

Im really liking the max with ventus black. launching at around 13 degrees. noticeable loss in carry distance but the roll out is insane. especially on miss hits im not losing any distance. thats the biggest thing for me, my misses are in play and further up than my previous driver. interested to see what happens with the ventus red!

[jadedennill]

22 minutes ago, xandersingh said:

Im really liking the max with ventus black. launching at around 13 degrees. noticeable loss in carry distance but the roll out is insane. especially on miss hits im not losing any distance. thats the biggest thing for me, my misses are in play and further up than my previous driver. interested to see what happens with the ventus red!

Loss of carry distance because it wasn’t spinning enough with the black? 

[xandersingh]

16 minutes ago, jadedennill said:

Loss of carry distance because it wasn’t spinning enough with the black? 

No, I think because it's launching drastically lower that i've seen in any other driver setup i've had previously. Spin is around 2100 for me

[JourdanM]

1 hour ago, xandersingh said:

No, I think because it's launching drastically lower that i've seen in any other driver setup i've had previously. Spin is around 2100 for me

Is the ventus high enough balance point or did you play with weight on the head ?

[xandersingh]

36 minutes ago, JourdanM said:

Is the ventus high enough balance point or did you play with weight on the head ?

im playing it at 44.75 and the g425 max head is heavy as is so i just plugged to shaft straight in

[Socrates]

I was really thinking about Jordan Spieth, after he lost another tee ball to the right, that he sure could use a G425 SFT.

[Bunkersarebigcups]

6 hours ago, Socrates said:

I was really thinking about Jordan Spieth, after he lost another tee ball to the right, that he sure could use a G425 SFT.

Remarkable recoveries from him though

[Tzoid]

I received my Ping G425 Max yesterday FedEx....  I can't believe they delivered on a Sunday but I'm happy .  I got the Aldila Rogue White 130 MSI 70 and I had

my fitter call and switch to a Tour Velvet 360 after reading the Arccos grip is 1/2" long and the shaft would be cut to accommodate the extra length.  I play Tour Velvet 

ribbed grips on all my clubs so I intended to re-grip and don't want a playing length of 44.75" 🙄. 

 

I read in this thread that a few felt the G425 Max looked a bit closed at address but I see that in standard setting it's square but noticeably more upright than my G400 Max. I 

switched to the Flat setting and it looks perfect to my eye now.  I can't wait to hit it and get it on the course but snow and ice and 25 degrees is in my way .   

[Warrick]

On 2/13/2021 at 6:24 PM, awtryau89 said:

 

Check out my posts. I got fitted for the 3 woods outdoors, no monitor just my pro's eyes and had an issue with the Max launching like my lob wedge. Still carried long but it was not in my preferred window. The LST in the -1 Flat setting was perfect. Lower launch but still high but spin is very very good for a 3 wood. The ball would get down range and just continue to carry. I was worried about the forgiveness on the LST because the 410 was punishing when I tried it. They fixed that in spades with the 425. Not quite as forgiving as the Max but moreso that my Ti Sim I was testing against. Hit some bombs with it in the 1st round in play too. 

I am very interested in the LST 3w. I have been playing the F9 Tour since it came out, love it, but sure seems small some days, especially off the tee. Everyone seems to be making large fairway heads now, don’t care much for 170+ cc

[Banker]

My dicks only has 10.5 max with alta 55. It’s a bummer. 

Wonder though, would there be much difference in launch and spin between a Max in 9* and a Max in 10.5 lowered down to 9.5? Anybody hit both?

[muniman]

Instead of starting a new thread, I would be interested in knowing if the G425 Max is worth upgrading over the G400 Max from people who played the G400 Max for a period of time.

[JourdanM]

6 minutes ago, muniman said:

Instead of starting a new thread, I would be interested in knowing if the G425 Max is worth upgrading over the G400 Max from people who played the G400 Max for a period of time.

From my limited Sim session, I would say 100% yes. The feel is superior , dispersion feels like it might be even better, and it was longer for me without my ideal shaft and setting being dialed in. 

[awtryau89]

3 hours ago, Warrick said:

I am very interested in the LST 3w. I have been playing the F9 Tour since it came out, love it, but sure seems small some days, especially off the tee. Everyone seems to be making large fairway heads now, don’t care much for 170+ cc

 

The LST is 165cc but plays more forgiving than my Sim Ti at +180cc.