Ping G425 irons

[platgof]

Ordered mine today and delivery is end of May. 

[TiScape]

Played Monday and a guy I was paired with had these. He said he liked them a lot. Everything about them looked good to me until I set the club down in the address position and looked down. A lot off offset! I’m not saying offset is good or bad. It’s a personal preference. It’s just never looked good to my eye. 

[myspinonit]

I happened to get into a Ping fitting day in two weeks.  My Miura PP9003's are still in very good shape, now are going into their tenth season.  I  just started my 7th decade so maybe it's time for  new irons present for myself.  Especially when there isn't a lot of other good cheer or travel expected this year.

 

Hopefully the fitter will have other Ping options than the 425's to try, but I'm encouraged that a couple in this thread moved from i210's to these with good results. I'm a bogey-ish handicapper, (mostly from the odd bad hole and brain f**ts than overall strikes),  more of a  sweeper.  I moved  happily away from "thicker" irons when I was fit to the Muiras in 2012.  I also prefer lower bounces on my wedges. The 50.08  and 54.08 are bent a degree strong and my Miuras have bee n one strong for several years, recently trying  two degrees strong.  The fitting is just a half hour spot  demand, and I got the last spot with current demand. 

 

With my preferences, am I wasting time even seriously considering the 425's in the just 1/2 hour allotted with current demand ? (I got the last spot of two fitting sites).

Edited April 24, 2021 by myspinonit

[JAM01]

Have played my G425s outside once, though that will change this week. Several indoor sessions though.

 

pros: Best looking in the G series, slightly more compact, a little less offset, standard lofts are not crazy and there are other loft options available. 
 

cons: a little harsher feel and sound (though I notice that a lower compression ball helped in my case). Wait time for orders. 
 

@myspinonitI think these and the i210s are worth it. Probably pick up some distance either way if that matters. 

[AzSuperHack76]

On 4/20/2021 at 7:22 AM, tagermo said:

Recently tried a set of G425's and super forgiving just not that more forgiving for me than my I500's so will not be making the switch. 

They are way more forgiving than the 500’s, like light years more forgiving. 

[tets]

Well they got here early!  Hit the range wbiththem and then played 18 .. nice sticks but not for me.. on BST now.

[ShowMe]

I've had my i210s since they first came out, close to 3 years now.  Over 300 rounds on them.  They have been a great set of irons but are getting long in the tooth.

 

Getting impatient waiting for their replacements to come out and wanting a new set of irons just because I haven't had a new set in 3 years (while going through at least 6 different drivers in that same time period), I bought a set of G425 irons a couple of weeks ago that had just come into my local golf shop.

 

I have a 1.6 index and have never played GI irons before (outside of occasionally hitting some demo 7 irons in a simulator), so I really didn't know what to expect out on the course. 

 

All I can say is...Where have you been all of my life?  I mean this is like cheating.

 

If you make relatively clean contact with the ball, it is very difficult to hit a bad shot with these clubs regardless of where on the clubface you hit it.  I mean I thought the i210s were forgiving, and they are for their type of club, but the G425s are an order of magnitude more forgiving.  Maybe two orders of magnitude.

 

The first round I played with them, I just couldn't stop smiling.  I was not swinging very well that day and was not hitting the ball anywhere near the center of the clubface, but you could not tell by looking at the result.  Most every shot was long, high, and straight.  I've played 5 rounds with them so far, and maybe it's just the honeymoon phase and this will wear off, but I have been blown away by how good these clubs are.

[barnum1]

I said the same thing to myself: "this is cheating".

I went from i20 to G425 and it's another world.

Of course, I do miss the feel of the i20s. G425 is a bit clicky. But I'm getting used to it fast.

[ShowMe]

7 hours ago, barnum1 said:

I said the same thing to myself: "this is cheating".

I went from i20 to G425 and it's another world.

Of course, I do miss the feel of the i20s. G425 is a bit clicky. But I'm getting used to it fast.

Yeah, they don't feel as good as my i210s.  Those are hard to beat for feel in a non-forged iron.  But they're not bad either.

 

Weirdly, I don't hear the clicky noise.  At least not when I hit them.  Maybe my ears/brain have learned to tune it out.  However, when I let my buddy hit a few balls with them, I could definitely hear it.  It sounded like a gunshot.  I kept thinking he was mishitting the ball, but he wasn't.  Every shot was long, high, and straight.  Same thing I had experienced.

 

It reminds of the evolution of the tennis racket.  I played tennis in high school on the same team as Tim Mayotte (he was a few years older than me), who ended up being a relatively well-known tennis pro for a while back in the day.  We used these small-headed wooden rackets.  Then we used that small-headed metal racket that Jimmy Connors used to use.  They felt great and performed great when you hit the ball in the center of the racket.  If you didn't, then they vibrated and didn't perform that well.

 

Then midsized and oversized rackets came out, and all the pros started using them over time.  Why?  It wasn't because of their looks.  They looked like shovels compared to traditional tennis rackets (sound familiar?).  It was because they performed better on non-centered hits, ie, they were more forgiving.  Tennis pros, like golf pros, are not perfect.  I've seen many a golf pro slightly mishit a blade or "players" iron in a key moment and the ball ends up 15 yards short or in a bunker or in the water, and it costs them the tournament.  The tennis pros put their egos aside and realized decades ago the value of using the "shovel" racket vs. sticking with the "blade" racket.  Some of today's PGA pros are starting to come to this realization, too.  At least in the long irons.

 

[blarkin97]

I have been intrigued by the G425 but feel/sound is one thing I have a hard time getting used to.  I don't understand why they wouldn't made the G425 with the same metal/elastomer as the I210.  You can't beat the i210 sound / feel but for someone who wants more forgiveness than the i210 it seems like a no brainer

[JourdanM]

Is this the main g425 irons thread? 
 

I just picked up a set. I hurt my back a few weeks ago and my swing is off - figured I needed to make it easy on myself.

 

they are gorgeous in hand - really looking forward to getting them on course. 

[platgof]

I expected more posts about these. I would think they are being played by quite a few folks. Just seems odd how slow this is. 

[pgatw]

Just don't get the sound, feel issue. When you button these with a tour ball the feel is solid and they sound fine. When you miss they let you know.

Seems that's the way it should work.

[Joe40]

Can anyone who has these comment on the size of the hosel notch?  From pictures, to me, it looks bigger than on other irons I’ve played eg G400, i e1.  Is it, or is it just my imagination?

[Nessism]

On 4/28/2021 at 12:06 PM, blarkin97 said:

I have been intrigued by the G425 but feel/sound is one thing I have a hard time getting used to.  I don't understand why they wouldn't made the G425 with the same metal/elastomer as the I210.  You can't beat the i210 sound / feel but for someone who wants more forgiveness than the i210 it seems like a no brainer

 

The 425's are designed with flex-face technology (to increase COR and distance) the i210's aren't, or not to the same extent.  The metal is thin in the flex zones on the 425 and in order to avoid cracking Ping choose a hard and strong material, 17-4.  If 431 stainless, like the i210's was used the flexing would have to be reduced in order to avoid breakage.

[lil'mike]

I had a chance to play a round today with my g425's and I am very impressed!  It does take a little to get used to these but wow what a solid iron set!  I didn't get to the range before the round so first time hitting was right on the golf course!  I wish I would have played better but the 18 mph with gusts to 35 made it tougher to tell distances but the feel was solid for sure!

 

I aloplayed the g425 lst driver and fairways  for the first time too and again, very solid clubs!  I will need more time of course to get things dialed in but glad I was able to get my hands on them!

[JAM01]

Joe40- at one point about a month ago I had a set of G400, G410 and my G425 at my house. Regripping the 400 and 410 for a few golf buddies. I did some eyeball comparisons. The G425 are ever so slightly shorter then the others. The notch seemed nearly the same. But felt a little deeper if that makes sense. No calipers so I couldn’t really measure just my impression. 

[Joe40]

6 hours ago, JAM01 said:

Joe40- at one point about a month ago I had a set of G400, G410 and my G425 at my house. Regripping the 400 and 410 for a few golf buddies. I did some eyeball comparisons. The G425 are ever so slightly shorter then the others. The notch seemed nearly the same. But felt a little deeper if that makes sense. No calipers so I couldn’t really measure just my impression. 

Thank you 👍🏼

[ShowMe]

These irons keep getting better and better for me.  Hit 16 greens today.

 

I bought them off the rack with the stock Alta CB Black graphite shaft, thinking I would buy some Steelfibers (my normal graphite shaft of choice) to replace them.  Hard to argue with 16 greens, though.  I might hold off on the SFs for a while.

 

If you put any kind of halfway decent swing on these, it is very difficult to hit a bad shot.  They seem to be very self-correcting.

[jeffrey r]

17 hours ago, ShowMe said:

These irons keep getting better and better for me.  Hit 16 greens today.

 

I bought them off the rack with the stock Alta CB Black graphite shaft, thinking I would buy some Steelfibers (my normal graphite shaft of choice) to replace them.  Hard to argue with 16 greens, though.  I might hold off on the SFs for a while.

 

If you put any kind of halfway decent swing on these, it is very difficult to hit a bad shot.  They seem to be very self-correcting.

 

What did you go with, the Alta CB stiff, which is in the low 80's weight-wise?  That is great if the stock graphite is rivaling SF's.

[platgof]

22 hours ago, ShowMe said:

These irons keep getting better and better for me.  Hit 16 greens today.

 

I bought them off the rack with the stock Alta CB Black graphite shaft, thinking I would buy some Steelfibers (my normal graphite shaft of choice) to replace them.  Hard to argue with 16 greens, though.  I might hold off on the SFs for a while.

 

If you put any kind of halfway decent swing on these, it is very difficult to hit a bad shot.  They seem to be very self-correcting.

Are they decent on chips, as in greenside control? I use my 9 iron for this, but have heard some good stuff about the gap wedge? I ordered the Soft R shafts in Slate, and have 23 more days, yes, I am counting!!

[ShowMe]

22 hours ago, jeffrey r said:

 

What did you go with, the Alta CB stiff, which is in the low 80's weight-wise?  That is great if the stock graphite is rivaling SF's.

Yes, Alta CB Slate stiff.  They are ascending weight, I believe...lows 80s for the longer irons and high 80s for the short irons.  Lightweight, but not all whippy.  Feel very similar to SF i80s (which are 85 grams) to me.  For some weird reason I prefer lighter weight iron shafts and heavier weight wood shafts.

[ShowMe]

18 hours ago, platgof said:

Are they decent on chips, as in greenside control? I use my 9 iron for this, but have heard some good stuff about the gap wedge? I ordered the Soft R shafts in Slate, and have 23 more days, yes, I am counting!!

I use my Ping Glide SW for most of my chips and pitches, so I don't have much experience in that regard.

 

That said, the G425 Gap Wedge (UW) is great on full shots and three-quarter shots.  Very consistent distance-wise with good spin.

 

These clubs have been great for me so far.  Hopefully it's a long term thing and not just the honeymoon phase.  Time will tell.

[jeffrey r]

35 minutes ago, ShowMe said:

Yes, Alta CB Slate stiff.  They are ascending weight, I believe...lows 80s for the longer irons and high 80s for the short irons.  Lightweight, but not all whippy.  Feel very similar to SF i80s (which are 85 grams) to me.  For some weird reason I prefer lighter weight iron shafts and heavier weight wood shafts.

 

Thanks, good info.  Probably a pretty safe move for you being a SF i80 user.  I am a SF i95/110 user (Recoil 95, Kuro Kage 105, etc.), so anything under 90g tends to scare me.  If I decide to order G425s, would be nice to avoid the big up-charges for Steelfibers, Recoils, etc., but it would be a gamble for me to go with the Alta CB.

[SUITS]

Any other low to mid reviews, I’m looking for my next long term set. I am a 7 cap. I’ve been as low as 5 , and been playing i25 for years now. I am loving the newer compact size and shaping with the bevels. Am I going to see some crazy difference in forgiveness from the “i” series? I would love some extra help on the misses, but am concerned the extra offset could exaggerate the pull miss I have. 

I play blue dot currently, would I be better suited going black std with the added offset?

[platgof]

I have three more weeks, not that I am counting or anything.

[AzSuperHack76]

8 hours ago, SUITS said:

Any other low to mid reviews, I’m looking for my next long term set. I am a 7 cap. I’ve been as low as 5 , and been playing i25 for years now. I am loving the newer compact size and shaping with the bevels. Am I going to see some crazy difference in forgiveness from the “i” series? I would love some extra help on the misses, but am concerned the extra offset could exaggerate the pull miss I have. 

I play blue dot currently, would I be better suited going black std with the added offset?

You will see a huge difference in terms of forgiveness compared to the i25. 

 

The offset took me a bit to get used to. But, I've adjusted and have had zero issues, straight as any iron out there, only time I miss left is due to a bad swing. 

 

I still have no issues with sound and feel, that's saying a lot because I came from the 210's. They are loud with cheap range balls. I play prov1x or tp5x's and they feel great. You will get feedback when you hit them off center, but that's to be expected, center of the face, they sound and feel great. 

[Flat4Boxer]

 

On 5/4/2021 at 3:55 PM, jeffrey r said:

 

Thanks, good info.  Probably a pretty safe move for you being a SF i80 user.  I am a SF i95/110 user (Recoil 95, Kuro Kage 105, etc.), so anything under 90g tends to scare me.  If I decide to order G425s, would be nice to avoid the big up-charges for Steelfibers, Recoils, etc., but it would be a gamble for me to go with the Alta CB.

 

On 5/4/2021 at 3:17 PM, ShowMe said:

Yes, Alta CB Slate stiff.  They are ascending weight, I believe...lows 80s for the longer irons and high 80s for the short irons.  Lightweight, but not all whippy.  Feel very similar to SF i80s (which are 85 grams) to me.  For some weird reason I prefer lighter weight iron shafts and heavier weight wood shafts.

 

Same boat here so in true WRX fashion, I ordered two sets, one with SF i80's and one with True Temper Elevate 95's to see which one I liked better. (The TT set was mis-built shipped with TT Elevate Tour shafts)  I shrugged it off and took them both to the range. Long story short, the Elevates won the day and I've been gaming them ever since. 

 

[minhjn]

11 hours ago, SUITS said:

Any other low to mid reviews, I’m looking for my next long term set. I am a 7 cap. I’ve been as low as 5 , and been playing i25 for years now. I am loving the newer compact size and shaping with the bevels. Am I going to see some crazy difference in forgiveness from the “i” series? I would love some extra help on the misses, but am concerned the extra offset could exaggerate the pull miss I have. 

I play blue dot currently, would I be better suited going black std with the added offset?

 

Scratch here. They are significantly more forgiving than any i series iron. They are really forgiving on toe strikes with the weight screw in the toe now

[SUITS]

1 hour ago, Flat4Boxer said:

 

42 minutes ago, minhjn said:

 

Scratch here. They are significantly more forgiving than any i series iron. They are really forgiving on toe strikes with the weight screw in the toe now

You all have me very excited. I’m really hoping they pair up well with my trusty x100s. I’m thinking I may end up switching my wedge setup from 56-60 to 54-58, but won’t know until I hit the 425 W and U. I hit the i25 W around 135, and U around 125, then I step to 115 and 95 with the 56 and 60.

Edited May 6, 2021 by SUITS
Wrong quote