Anyone Game an Old Ping?

[DoubleDrops]

It's been many moons since I used an older Ping putter.  But I randomly have an urge to venture back to one of the old Anser or Zing 2 putters.  Just curious to see if anyone still games one.

[Sean289]

It’s looking like my PING Anser Milled could find its way into my bag for this season. I’m rolling it as good as anything right now and I have dabbled in more or less all of the putter tech of the last decade or so. 
This putter was released 13 years ago in 2011 so I’m not sure if it qualifies as an “old” PING or not but for me, it’s certainly standing the test of time.

[ColinKelvin]

14 hours ago, DoubleDrops said:

It's been many moons since I used an older Ping putter.  But I randomly have an urge to venture back to one of the old Anser or Zing 2 putters.  Just curious to see if anyone still games one.

I do. They still work.  I have a Cushin with a Scottsdale zip (so made in circa 1966) which I used a lot the past two seasons.  Holed a lot of birdie putts with it, and a couple of eagles too.  The only issue is that I find the lighter heads a little trickier on lag putts.  From 15ft and in though, they are great. Your A2 and Z2 will be a bit heavier than my MgBrz Cushin, ofc.

[North Butte]

Sure, I have several of the early-mid 70's bronze Anser putters. That's the only kind of putter I've used for the past few years. There was a time when you could get nearly pristine looking examples on eBay for 30 or 40 bucks but I haven't seen any in recent years that weren't either beat up or really expensive. 

 

The only other putter I own is an even more ancient Bullseye that I can't putt a lick with, it's basically just a collector item sort of thing.

 

[Esage]

I'll still game my bronze ping zing a couple of times a year.

[ChiGolf224]

I tend to stick to the same Odyssey White Hot Tour I've used since ~2010 but when that cools off I have an Anser 4 from some time in the mid-90s and an original White Hot #2 I like to roll with. The Anser 4 is a nice contrast to the softer white hot face I'm used to

[Ephemerlol]

I'm still playing my stainless Anser 5ks and have no plans to change anything.

[Maine Golfer]

My Pal treats me well, lead tape and it goes. Im also looking forward to trying my N-Echo this season 

 

Join us on the dark side here

 

 

[5hort5tuff]

Lots of similar putters with more tech and help than these. 

 

You get get an anser putter in any configuration you can think of...I just don't see a need to play something like this. 

 

Regardless...if it rolls the ball how you like it, why not? 

[jda]

Old means different things to different folks.

 

I have early 90s Zing 2 and a 80s Anser and Pal 2.  They are hard to play, IMO.  They don't get the ball rolling all that well and both of mine have worn sweet spots where you can get feeler wire under a straightedge.  At a minimum, mine would need refaced and then probably some more weight added.  They just sit here, which is fine.

 

Everybody wants to make fun of folks who copied the Anser, but these old Ansers and other Ping putters are not great putters, IMO.  They were good for the time.  As soon as something like the Santa Fe, Mizuno M100/200/etc. came along, you could tell in a heartbeat that it rolled the ball better.

 

All of this said, there is more to putting than just getting the ball rolling well, so if you putt well with one, then go for it.

[ColinKelvin]

21 hours ago, jda said:

Old means different things to different folks.

 

I have early 90s Zing 2 and a 80s Anser and Pal 2.  They are hard to play, IMO.  They don't get the ball rolling all that well and both of mine have worn sweet spots where you can get feeler wire under a straightedge.  At a minimum, mine would need refaced and then probably some more weight added.  They just sit here, which is fine.

 

Everybody wants to make fun of folks who copied the Anser, but these old Ansers and other Ping putters are not great putters, IMO.  They were good for the time.  As soon as something like the Santa Fe, Mizuno M100/200/etc. came along, you could tell in a heartbeat that it rolled the ball better.

 

All of this said, there is more to putting than just getting the ball rolling well, so if you putt well with one, then go for it.

 

They are what they are - cast heads in pioneering designs without face milling.  So if you are accustomed to softer faces or heavier heads or sky high MOI or whatever, you won't like them. Personally I have no problem at all rolling the ball well with my 58 year old Cushin (but I also love my Ketsch). In fact, I tried Evnrolls at a fitting last year and IMO an old Ping rolls the ball a lot better than them - or any number of putters with soft rubbery dead-feeling inserts.  What you could tell in a heartbeat was that you preferred the feel of the putters you mentioned.  It's all just opinions.

 

Choose the right line and pace and put a good stroke on a putt with an old Ping and you will hole it. 

 

[North Butte]

On 3/30/2024 at 1:44 PM, jda said:

Old means different things to different folks.

 

I have early 90s Zing 2 and a 80s Anser and Pal 2.  They are hard to play, IMO.  They don't get the ball rolling all that well and both of mine have worn sweet spots where you can get feeler wire under a straightedge.  At a minimum, mine would need refaced and then probably some more weight added.  They just sit here, which is fine.

 

Everybody wants to make fun of folks who copied the Anser, but these old Ansers and other Ping putters are not great putters, IMO.  They were good for the time.  As soon as something like the Santa Fe, Mizuno M100/200/etc. came along, you could tell in a heartbeat that it rolled the ball better.

 

All of this said, there is more to putting than just getting the ball rolling well, so if you putt well with one, then go for it.

I have to say, if you can't put a good roll on the ball with a basic Ping Anser then you need to work on your stroke.

But hey, somebody's got to keep the big OEM's in business buying a new $350 putter every year!

[tripanfal]

I have a sound slotted Anser 2 with a jumbo pistol grip that is my gamer, and I have a few others that I work in for fun. I kind of ended up buying a lot of them - not to collect (although now I have them...) but it seems like a ton of putters are based on these designs and I kinda wanted to see what worked the best. Plus, they run pretty cheap so I spent less than a good carbon shaft to try them out in the real world.

[tripanfal]

On 3/30/2024 at 1:44 PM, jda said:

Old means different things to different folks.

 

I have early 90s Zing 2 and a 80s Anser and Pal 2.  They are hard to play, IMO.  They don't get the ball rolling all that well and both of mine have worn sweet spots where you can get feeler wire under a straightedge.  At a minimum, mine would need refaced and then probably some more weight added.  They just sit here, which is fine.

 

Everybody wants to make fun of folks who copied the Anser, but these old Ansers and other Ping putters are not great putters, IMO.  They were good for the time.  As soon as something like the Santa Fe, Mizuno M100/200/etc. came along, you could tell in a heartbeat that it rolled the ball better.

 

All of this said, there is more to putting than just getting the ball rolling well, so if you putt well with one, then go for it.

That's pretty cool that you wore that far into those putters, you must have spent a lot of quality time with them. I have seen a lot of comments along the lines of the head weight being too light by modern build standards, I was just curious ballpark how much weight short are they?

Mine feel fine to me - but I am just coming back to golf after a long break and I am not familiar with newer versions. I love the looks of the Mizuno putters - someday out of the bucket bag into the real.

[North Butte]

6 hours ago, tripanfal said:

I have seen a lot of comments along the lines of the head weight being too light by modern build standards, I was just curious ballpark how much weight short are they?

The lighter weight of old putters is why, once I'd used them for a while, I just can't stand to putt with most of the modern ones. The heavier weight feels great to just pick up and roll a few short-ish putts but I have no distance control at all with heavy putters. 

 

I wouldn't be surprised if people who struggle to roll the ball properly with a classic Anser are dependent on the extra weight of a modern putter to tame some excess hand action. It's not that a lighter putter can't put a good roll on the ball, it's that some people's stroke doesn't work with the lighter weight.

[ColinKelvin]

7 hours ago, tripanfal said:

That's pretty cool that you wore that far into those putters, you must have spent a lot of quality time with them. I have seen a lot of comments along the lines of the head weight being too light by modern build standards, I was just curious ballpark how much weight short are they?

Mine feel fine to me - but I am just coming back to golf after a long break and I am not familiar with newer versions. I love the looks of the Mizuno putters - someday out of the bucket bag into the real.

I looked this up for another recent discussion and it seems the OG MgBrz Ping Ansers as per a question to Ping are approx 325g (and different heads over the years are probably different weights; I am fairly sure some earlier ones were lighter than that).  I believe the short hosel SS Anser 4 is 310 at most. Hosel-less early models (Kushin, Cushin, blade series, Zing) maybe around that too. But if you're used to them, it doesn't matter at all.  Not everyone prefers 350g even though it's now the standard.

Edited April 1 by ColinKelvin

[North Butte]

14 minutes ago, ColinKelvin said:

I looked this up for another recent discussion and it seems the OG MgBrz Ping Ansers as per a question to Ping are approx 325g (and different heads over the years are probably different weights; I am fairly sure some earlier ones were lighter than that).  I believe the short hosel SS Anser 4 is 310 at most. Hosel-less early models (Kushin, Cushin, blade series, Zing) maybe around that too. But if you're used to them, it doesn't matter at all.  Not everyone prefers 350g even though it's now the standard.

350g-and-up putters are kind of like "soft" golf balls. Not everyone needs or wants them but 9 out of 10 golfers just instinctively prefers a heavier putter to a lighter one. So of course the marketing goes after the mainstream preference, not the minority one. 

 

I'm a doubly odd man out. I prefer golf balls that make a little click at impact and I prefer putters with less weight. There are still plenty of firm golf balls out there but it limits my putter shopping to mostly "classic" models. 

[BIG STU]

MY .02 FWIW

I have read all of the responses on here and failed to see this mentioned

If you go back to what I call really old Ping putters remember those were designed and played in the Balata ball days. Also agronomy was different in those days. Now if someone has great feel and is able to gradually adapt then they can still putt well even on modern greens with one. I for one putted with the same SS Zing2 for close to 20 years. I moved away from it when it 'went cold". I still mess with some of my numerous types when playing vintage golf. If they feel light that is what lead tape is for. I know some find lead tape ugly and I can respect that. Me if I seriously want to play one I have no Quams at all about slapping the tape on. Again IMHO I will say in the right hands they roll the ball still as well as any new $500 or more offerings out there today. With the exception of having some collectable models old Ping putters especially Ansers are plentiful and cheap. In my area I see quite a few guys older than me who can "roll the rock" with an older Ping that they have had in their bag 30 years or more

[jda]

Most of these ping putters were made well before Balata balls became popular in the early 1990s.  Again, old is subjective, but I am not thinking of 90s Ping putters as old.

 

They just scoot the ball too much before it gets rolling compared to most newer putters, including many Pings.  I put with an upstroke and it does not help at all with these.  I don't care about the weight since I can just take an extra half inch of shaft until it feels right enough.  Some folks might not even notice the weight or the scooting of the ball, but the faster the greens roll and the more demanding the surface, it matters a lot.

 

it is not like if these things were equal to modern stuff that they would not be all over the place for cheap and nobody playing them in big-time events and things.  They are fine putters, but no more - I made a lot of putts with mine and I acutely understand what they can do.  They have drawbacks for those who can tell the difference.  They are Model T of putters - dude designed Anser which had 4 wheels, gas, brake pedal and steering wheel, and I guess that people can argue that a Model T can get you to the same place that your Tesla or Lifted Mini Monster truck with the Calvin Pissing on Something sticker.

[North Butte]

It's not a truck or a car. It's a putter. The task of starting the ball rolling on a putting green is not a high tech task, no matter what the marketers might have convinced you. 

 

P.S. Choking down half an inch does not make your heavy putter any lighter, by the way. But do whatever feels best to you. 

 

P.P.S. Some of the best players in the clutch the putter to their chest or clench it up against their forearm. Whatever gets it in the hole is the way to go. 

Edited April 1 by North Butte

[grm24]

On 3/26/2024 at 4:47 PM, DoubleDrops said:

It's been many moons since I used an older Ping putter.  But I randomly have an urge to venture back to one of the old Anser or Zing 2 putters.  Just curious to see if anyone still games one.

On occasion. Ping Specify Anser SN. 

[thefullmontry]

I still use a Ping G2i Craz-E, and a Ping G2i Anser. 

[IcemanYVR]

I have a Ping Anser 2 BeCu which I bought new in 1996 that comes out to play whenever my Scotty is in a time out.

 

I don't use it that often, but if I could keep have one putter, this would be the one.

Edited April 1 by IcemanYVR

[tripanfal]

So, I agree that they are like the model T in that they are the basis for the modern versions - but I don’t think that is a great comparison. A putter is, mechanically, a much simpler thing. The evolution that is possible in a car is far greater than in a putter because it is so much more complex. If you broke down the performance increases quantitatively a putters increase in efficiency since 1980 is not going to be revolutionary.  The difference between an Ansers performance and a Newports is a fundamentally different thing than the difference between a Ford Mustang Mach 2 and Ford Mustang Mach-E. 
 

As far as being cheap - yes some of them are. Those ones being the most popular models, produced in enormous numbers, selling well for decades. Yet in comparison to any other putters from back then are they not expensive? How much do 1980s putters from other brands fetch on the secondhand market? How often do you see someone gaming a 40 year old non-ping putter? 

[Maine Golfer]

I respect everyone's takes and feelings, I go back and forth from older stuff to 06 White hot. The really slow greens, I almost always prefer the Ping's. It could be all in my head (most of golf is) but they get me hitting it and sending it to the hole. If I place "nicer" greens, I mostly prefer my White hot. 

[grm24]

1 hour ago, thefullmontry said:

I still use a Ping G2i Craz-E, and a Ping G2i Anser. 

I had a G2i Anser at one time. Was an excellent putter. Moved it on for some Odyssey.

[pQQa]

The putter I most frequently use is a PING 1-A (reissue... so more old style than old age).

[BIG STU]

8 hours ago, tripanfal said:

So, I agree that they are like the model T in that they are the basis for the modern versions - but I don’t think that is a great comparison. A putter is, mechanically, a much simpler thing. The evolution that is possible in a car is far greater than in a putter because it is so much more complex. If you broke down the performance increases quantitatively a putters increase in efficiency since 1980 is not going to be revolutionary.  The difference between an Ansers performance and a Newports is a fundamentally different thing than the difference between a Ford Mustang Mach 2 and Ford Mustang Mach-E. 
 

As far as being cheap - yes some of them are. Those ones being the most popular models, produced in enormous numbers, selling well for decades. Yet in comparison to any other putters from back then are they not expensive? How much do 1980s putters from other brands fetch on the secondhand market? How often do you see someone gaming a 40 year old non-ping putter? 

If you go over to the Classic Golf and Golfers forum here on WRX you will see a few. Now in reality in my neck of the woods not too many to be honest that are old and non Ping

[BIG STU]

14 hours ago, North Butte said:

350g-and-up putters are kind of like "soft" golf balls. Not everyone needs or wants them but 9 out of 10 golfers just instinctively prefers a heavier putter to a lighter one. So of course the marketing goes after the mainstream preference, not the minority one. 

 

I'm a doubly odd man out. I prefer golf balls that make a little click at impact and I prefer putters with less weight. There are still plenty of firm golf balls out there but it limits my putter shopping to mostly "classic" models. 

Not really "odd" IMHO if that is what you like. I will say this that many people on here and playing today have never putted with an older putter with a Balata ball. Most of the inserts today are to "soften" the feel with modern harder balls. Even the "softer" balls made today are no where as soft as a Balata ball. Which it all boils down to is someone's preference and feel

[North Butte]

9 hours ago, BIG STU said:

Not really "odd" IMHO if that is what you like. I will say this that many people on here and playing today have never putted with an older putter with a Balata ball. Most of the inserts today are to "soften" the feel with modern harder balls. Even the "softer" balls made today are no where as soft as a Balata ball. Which it all boils down to is someone's preference and feel

I seem to need to hear the putter hit the ball in order to have any distance control. For years I kind of dismissed the idea of choosing a golf ball in whole or in part by how it works for putting. But I think that's because I'd always used fairly firm balls (2pc distance rocks back in the day, balls like Pro V1x or B330/Tour BX more recently). 

 

Couple years ago I spent a while playing Callaway Supersoft balls. From tee to green they worked OK and they were pretty cheap. But my putter was awful. I really couldn't believe it was the ball but then I remembered having distance control issues with really soft insert putters because I couldn't hear the contact. The Supersoft is such a marshmellow it was causing the same problem with a plain bronze putter face.