Baby, it's cold outside... time for possible changes?

[Oaks]

Irons Showdown... J33 Combo vs Ping i3 Blade

Ok everyone, I have been playing the J33 Combo irons with DG S300's for the past season, and I love everything about these irons. They are soft, they are workable, they are pretty and they are semi-forgiving. Well, as all of us know it is that time of year when a HO becomes :) here in the NorthEast and he starts to look for alternatives and other answers.

So here is my dilemma... I have my J33's that I love and, well, last night on our favorite electronic marketplace, I won a set of Ping i3 Blades with ZZ-65 shafts. I was actually looking for my old faithful ISI S, but I came across this set and figured I would give them a try. I am only trying the i3 Blade because my father loves his set and my other buddy who is scratch started playing the G2 this summer so I figured I would go back to the Ping family... well, maybe :cheesy:

Ok, now I have a feeling that if the i3 Blades do not work, than I will try and get another set of ISI S irons, but that may be down the road... I also have this strange desire to try and collect sets of different Ping Irons... I know I am weird, once again I am rambling and getting off track...

So, fellow GolfWrx'rs I need your help! I want everyone to state your case... for either the J33 or the Ping i3 Blade. I think that we all can agree that I have two excellent sets of irons going head to head and a decision will be tough... do I stick with the soft forgings of the J33's, go to the Ping's because they are Ping's or what... HELP me Fellas! :cheesy:

Matt

[Goose]

Being a Titleist guy i would say get one of the new sets coming out but for the sake of arguement......Go with The Bridgestone. They make some great clubs. I really like the J33's......alot more than the ping I3 blades.

the B'stones give alot more feedback.

 

 

 

DaN "goose"

[Golfdr]

I currently play the Ping I3 blades and love them. I played the Tourstage MR23 cb's until last winter and switched to the Ping's for winter. This winter I played better then ever and the Pings are in the bag. I can still work the ball but my distances are more consistent with the pings.

[progolferch]

J33s good solid set of irons. Soft with a good feel, I would keep with them.

[Viking Golfer]

Keep the J33 combos for sure.

You would have a hard time finding a better set of irons - respect to ping I3, but don't think they are in the same league as the J33 combos - that's my opinion :)

[papichulosteve]

Keep the J33 combos for sure.

You would have a hard time finding a better set of irons - respect to ping I3, but don't think they are in the same league as the J33 combos - that's my opinion :)

my sentiments exactly, the J33's are in a very rare class of irons at this point in time. very few sets some to mind that offer the feel, playability combo that these guys offer. that being said, a set of I3 blade's aren't a bad set to start that 'collection' of yours. those and the s-59's are some of my favorite irons to play, but again not in the same category as the J33's

[Oaks]

Great Ansers so far everyone! I am shocked at how many people are telling me to stick with my J33's!

[kyledeen]

I love Pings, but the I3's were not my fav's. They were about a club shorter than my avg.'s and I felt that my swing got sloppy with them (as with all self-swinger's).

 

That being said, my s59's are my favorite irons i've ever owned or played, and the new ones look even better than mine (more chrome, hosels, etc) - so if you find a set of those ISI-S's, go for it. I used to play the ISI Nickels and used them for my freshman year of college (til i found out that we got free/cheap stuff!!!) Good luck

[Geo]

I may be misunderstanding, but I'm going to go against the prevailing wisdom and say give the I3's a fair shake before dumping them. Keep your J33's for the spring time, but in my experience winter is not the best time to be getting fair feedback from soft forgings. I know that nothing feels as nice as a pured shot off of a forged blade, but you're not going to be feeling much after you catch 2 or 3 shots off center sending winterized stingers up your hand. ouch :cheesy:

If your looking for a set-up for next season, then . . . what's the matter with you man? :cheesy: Even if the I3's work out for you (which they won't as you seem to almost expect them not too) they will never look as good as the J33's nor do they have your confidence like the ISI's, OakieISI. If anything I guess I'll keep myself apprised of your situation as I tend to turn in regularly to your WITB to eye-hump your putter. Good luck in what can only be described as a soul-searching quest to find a temporary fix to an imaginary iron problem. :) :cheesy:

 

beruo

[steve81]

Ok everyone, I have been playing the J33 Combo irons with DG S300's for the past season, and I love everything about these irons. They are soft, they are workable, they are pretty and they are semi-forgiving. Well, as all of us know it is that time of year when a HO becomes :) here in the NorthEast and he starts to look for alternatives and other answers.

 

So here is my dilemma... I have my J33's that I love and, well, last night on our favorite electronic marketplace, I won a set of Ping i3 Blades with ZZ-65 shafts. I was actually looking for my old faithful ISI S, but I came across this set and figured I would give them a try. I am only trying the i3 Blade because my father loves his set and my other buddy who is scratch started playing the G2 this summer so I figured I would go back to the Ping family... well, maybe :cheesy:

 

Ok, now I have a feeling that if the i3 Blades do not work, than I will try and get another set of ISI S irons, but that may be down the road... I also have this strange desire to try and collect sets of different Ping Irons... I know I am weird, once again I am rambling and getting off track...

 

So, fellow GolfWrx'rs I need your help! I want everyone to state your case... for either the J33 or the Ping i3 Blade. I think that we all can agree that I have two excellent sets of irons going head to head and a decision will be tough... do I stick with the soft forgings of the J33's, go to the Ping's because they are Ping's or what... HELP me Fellas! :cheesy:

 

Matt

 

I'll throw in my two.......

 

I have never played Ping products so I may be biased. I just purchased a set of the J33 Combo's and have absolutley fallen in love with them. Very soft, pretty forgiving, and just plain gorgeous in the bag. No fancy technology (I'm coming from Taylormade products) but a wonderful set of irons that does the job easily and allows you the creativity to shape shots, as well as hit em' straight down the middle. I would easily say the J33's are staying in my bag for quite some time.

 

Steve

[ramsey_steve]

Ok everyone, I have been playing the J33 Combo irons with DG S300's for the past season, and I love everything about these irons. They are soft, they are workable, they are pretty and they are semi-forgiving. Well, as all of us know it is that time of year when a HO becomes :) here in the NorthEast and he starts to look for alternatives and other answers.

 

So here is my dilemma... I have my J33's that I love and, well, last night on our favorite electronic marketplace, I won a set of Ping i3 Blades with ZZ-65 shafts. I was actually looking for my old faithful ISI S, but I came across this set and figured I would give them a try. I am only trying the i3 Blade because my father loves his set and my other buddy who is scratch started playing the G2 this summer so I figured I would go back to the Ping family... well, maybe :cheesy:

 

Ok, now I have a feeling that if the i3 Blades do not work, than I will try and get another set of ISI S irons, but that may be down the road... I also have this strange desire to try and collect sets of different Ping Irons... I know I am weird, once again I am rambling and getting off track...

 

So, fellow GolfWrx'rs I need your help! I want everyone to state your case... for either the J33 or the Ping i3 Blade. I think that we all can agree that I have two excellent sets of irons going head to head and a decision will be tough... do I stick with the soft forgings of the J33's, go to the Ping's because they are Ping's or what... HELP me Fellas! :cheesy:

 

Matt

 

 

Hmmm... I recently picked up a set of J33 Combo's, had them reshafted with Nippon Steel GH950's. I've only hit about 4 buckets at the range with them, since the onset of snow here. I have played Pings however for 25 years, currently have i3 blades (original, not "+"), Eye 2 +no+'s and G2's. My i3 blades and eye 2's are also shafted with Nippons, the G2's with TFC graphite. I have also owned Ping S59's (harder to hit than the MP33's), Zings (shovels) and ISI BeNi's (hook machines) in the past.

 

My initial impression of the J33 Combo's is a little different to others here. I find them to be surprisingly forgiving but not super soft feeling.. a little firmer at impact than most other forgings I've played (Mizuno MP33's, T-zoid pro's, Wilson staff and Hogan blades). Impact feedback (what I really care about) is good though - I know exactly where on the face I'm hitting them. I know it's cold, and that can make them harsher, but I hit them back to back with my Eye 2's (set up identically), and they felt very similar to me. The big difference is the Pings just want to go straight.

 

Of all the Ping models, I think the i3 blades are among the less forgiving, S59's aside. Doesn't make them bad clubs, as they appeal to players with an aversion to offset, and have the legendary Ping quality and durability, but toe hits are penalised with 1 - 2 club loss of distance vs 1/2 a club loss that's more typical of Pings. Compared to the J33's, I'd say the i3 blades are maybe even slightly less forgiving, offer a little less impact feedback and have a similar firm feel at impact.

 

 

Steve.

[Sam-Tee-Time]

Keep the J33 combos for sure.

You would have a hard time finding a better set of irons - respect to ping I3, but don't think they are in the same league as the J33 combos - that's my opinion :)

my sentiments exactly, the J33's are in a very rare class of irons at this point in time. very few sets some to mind that offer the feel, playability combo that these guys offer. that being said, a set of I3 blade's aren't a bad set to start that 'collection' of yours. those and the s-59's are some of my favorite irons to play, but again not in the same category as the J33's

 

I agree. Stick with the J33 combos. They're incredible.

 

My thoughts? KEEP the Ping's for rainy/wet/muddy days, as they won't rust and tarnish as a forged club will. I would keep the Ping's for a backup set.

[J_Tizzle]

I have never played/hit the j33 but I've read lots of good things about them, but I do know a little bit about Ping clubs since the i3+blades that I have in my bag right now are in there because I simply can't find anything better. While I can agree that they don't have the best feel when comparing them to mp33's and TM300's which I've both played with I do think they have the best feel for a cast club. Personally my fav part about the Pings is the resistance to damage and alteration of loft/lies. I play on a hard course in the summer and I've had problems with all my clubs getting bent 2-3 degrees each way because I hit down on the ball so damn hard (and throw the occasional club). THe one problem i have had with them is with the wedge seeming like it just had too much offset, so any low punch became a low punch hook, but thats been fixed with replacing it with a MB wedge, you also should take a look at different shafts in the Pings. I had trouble with the stock shafts because they seemed so light but after the switch to rifles I've been very content with them.

 

But my personal fav part of the Pings is before a money game when people are sizing you up by looking in your bag and notice you have all pings in there, they figure you're a hack and don't take you seriously and then you walk away with the money

[Oaks]

If anything I guess I'll keep myself apprised of your situation as I tend to turn in regularly to your WITB to eye-hump your putter.

 

beruo

 

One of the funniest comments I have ever read! Thanks for the confidence! My i3's arrived yesterday and I am off to the indoor range to go give them a whack... well that and it has been 3 weeks since I have hit my driver too. :cheesy:

 

Anyways, thanks for all of the great comments...

 

And Beruo please :cheesy: and step away from the computer for the fear that you may make your monitor and keyboard very sticky.... :)

 

Matt

[Simp]

Well, I had a set of TaylorMade 300's and they were so-so. I've since switched to the Ping i3 Blades and absolutely love them. The 300's seemed to be just a bit too big for me. I like the look of the Ping Blade head. It's nice and compact, just right for me. I have the stock Series 350 stiff shafts in them and I really like the graphite. I have much better control and feel with the Pings. The only thing that I can't do with the Pings that I could do with the 300's is hit knock-down shots. It's tough to keep the ball down as low as I'd like it with the Pings. This could be a shaft problem too. Simp