What next for Ping in their irons?

[benz5521]

I would enjoy seeing a Ping Hot Metal Pro. Really just make a G series without a lot of offset. Maybe a little smaller head. 

[realmfg]

1 hour ago, benz5521 said:

I would enjoy seeing a Ping Hot Metal Pro. Really just make a G series without a lot of offset. Maybe a little smaller head. 

Same.  I just ordered the Gen 3 0311P to see if they fit this category. 

Edited March 25, 2023 by realmfg

[soupbraaaa]

Team iBlade going strong over here

[NRJyzr]

On 3/24/2023 at 1:14 PM, ColinKelvin said:

I'm probably in the minority but I'd like to see an Eye 2 release with modern lofts and conforming but spinny modern grooves. That would be fun. EYE 23 anyone? 

 

Eye2 irons are conforming under the groove rule.  Well, in the USA, that is.  This is (still) due to the litigation settlement with Ping and the USGA.  They can even be used in the US Amateur, just not Tour competitions.

 

Side note, Eye2+, +no+, and Eye2 Dot do not meet the groove rule.

 

As for the lofts....  do y'all *really* need to have your 40* club say "9" on the sole instead of "8"?  LOL

 

[PowderedToastMan]

On 3/25/2023 at 6:04 AM, Wooderson said:

Maltby has finished measuring the i230. The i525 and i230 are so close in MOI, c dimension, and vcog that without a doubt there is little between them except sound, looks, feel, and maybe more pop off the face. In fact the i525 has a higher cog, shorter c dimension, and less MOI but only by a hair.  

 

I would love to see the heel to toe measurement of each. Without measuring I say the i230 is 79mm and the i525 80mm in the 7 iron. 

 

Ping is missing out without a true iron between the i230/i525 and g430. They need a hot metal pro competitor. 

The i230 and i525 7 irons are both a shorter blade length than the Arias D-23's I have which are 79mm. They are more compact irons than a lot of people realize, not much longer blade length than the Blueprint. They are just deceptive because they are chunkier than a blade like the blueprint. 

Edited March 26, 2023 by PowderedToastMan

[mantan]

On 3/24/2023 at 1:14 PM, ColinKelvin said:

I'm probably in the minority but I'd like to see an Eye 2 release with modern lofts and conforming but spinny modern grooves. That would be fun. EYE 23 anyone? 

 

 

 

I wonder if it would be like the Eye2 XG wedge that were released around 10 years ago. It seemed like a home run idea. It would magic of the old Eye2 wedges lots of golfers had fond memories of, but with updated with modern technology.  They never really seemed to catch on.  I think sometimes our memories build things up to be greater than they were.  The clubs were great, the music was better, life was simpler, etc.  Well, the music was unquestionably better...

 

I think a full set of Eye2 irons sound fun. And they may bring fun for a bit for nostalgic reasons, but then people will quickly go back to modern clubs.

 

 

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by mantan

[Greenie]

On 3/24/2023 at 2:14 PM, ColinKelvin said:

I'm probably in the minority but I'd like to see an Eye 2 release with modern lofts and conforming but spinny modern grooves. That would be fun. EYE 23 anyone? 

 

I've been saying the same thing.

 

I never played the Eye 2 irons. I thought they were ugly. I am playing the G 410 irons now and I picked up the Glide 3.0 Eye 2 wedges. Man I love everything about them and they flat out perform. I see now why the Eye 2 design were so popular. I would buy a new release of the Eye 2 iron set. 

[bogeyk]

I’d be in for an Eye 2 limited run even though I’d prefer Zing2’s. I’d want them in the tumbled finish with original lofts. It would be awesome if they would take prepaid orders and go to production of older models when they hit a predetermined number of commitments. Call it the Karsten Project and make them in their US facility. 

[JAM01]

I wonder if Ping will head towards a Halo/Stealth HD style eventually, or if the G fits that bill already. 

[mat562]

Anything which goes back to the bombproof, utilitarian Eye 2 look, without all the badges and all the other colourful gaudy nonsense that Ping have been fixated with for years would entice me.

 

 

[ColinKelvin]

7 hours ago, NRJyzr said:

 

Eye2 irons are conforming under the groove rule.  Well, in the USA, that is.  This is (still) due to the litigation settlement with Ping and the USGA.  They can even be used in the US Amateur, just not Tour competitions.

 

Side note, Eye2+, +no+, and Eye2 Dot do not meet the groove rule.

 

As for the lofts....  do y'all *really* need to have your 40* club say "9" on the sole instead of "8"?  LOL

 

I'm in Scotland. I believe all Eye 2 iterations apart from the pat pending V grooved ones are non conforming in all R&A competitions and have been since the settlement. I'd also argue that although the U groove Eye 2s from the 80s are technically playable in, say, the US Amateur, this would be frowned upon and seen as unsportsmanlike, as it was when a certain Lefty used an old E2 lob wedge on tour. 

 

I don't really care about jacked modern lofts personally (I play weaker lofts myself) but those would obviously appeal to a lot of buyers. As would a brand new set of E2s with modern groove tech. An updated design classic which literally all levels of golfers can play and enjoy. 

[NRJyzr]

31 minutes ago, ColinKelvin said:

I'm in Scotland. I believe all Eye 2 iterations apart from the pat pending V grooved ones are non conforming in all R&A competitions and have been since the settlement.

 

I remember seeing a *lot* of "refurbished Eye2 sets" in US retailer catalogs in 1999.  The story I'd been told was they were all from the UK (or other areas under the R&A), after their grandfather period expired.

 

That they're conforming here is interesting.

 

[karstens_ghost]

Based on the trademarks, it's a good bet that they're going to merge down the i59/iblade/s55 path with the blueprint path. They're going to follow the Titleist method with the T100, and release something that has the same head but different lofts.

 

They have S159 and S259 trademarked, along with Blueprint S and Blueprint T.

 

The strong following of the S55 has got to bewilder them, given how short they were. If you can take the feel of a blueprint, and merge that into the rough size of the S55, and then provide a strong and standard loft option, you have a winner. Branding aside, I think they only take one model name forward. It's going to have a 44 and a 46º PW option, as an example.

[pbr2121]

Glide 4.0 eye 2 in 54 and 58 (59) feel soft and are incredibly reliable in every aspect of my pedestrian short game. That club in a full set would make me very happy. 

[bevans0222]

Ping seems to have made a miscalculation on the impact that the price of the i59's would have on their popularity.  Based on what I've seen on these forums, most people have never given them a chance due to the price being too high.  It was a very big jump in price from the iBlades they replaced.