Ping i25 Driver, Fairway Woods and Hybrids: In-hand photos

[getitclose]

Cant wait to try out the fairway wood. I had the G25 3 and 5 wood. Sold the G25 to buy the hyped up Big Bertha. Really regretting it. I absolutely love the G25 5 wood, so really considering buying a i25 14*.

[station2station]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iz84z-MlWCs

[buckeyefl]

Thanks for posting.

Maybe ping will release stripeless model.

[station2station]

[quote name='buckeyefl' timestamp='1393636828' post='8768364']
Thanks for posting.

Maybe ping will release stripeless model.
[/quote]

Stripes look fantastic in person. It just is LOUD as heck. I'm not a fan of the sound. I tried to like it.

(edit: I bought a different i25 driver which tends to have a more muted characteristic. My buddy has an i25 and his is more muted too - I wanted to clarify that I believe my first i25 which I disliked was simply an odd one due to mfg)

[buckeyefl]

[quote name='station2station' timestamp='1393638602' post='8768568']
[quote name='buckeyefl' timestamp='1393636828' post='8768364']
Thanks for posting.

Maybe ping will release stripeless model.
[/quote]

Stripes look fantastic in person. It just is LOUD as heck. I'm not a fan of the sound. I tried to like it.
[/quote]

Opinions vary. The stripes are God awful but the "Ping" on top seals the "no go" deal.

[volrus]

Had the opportunity to hit the i25 today. First off let me say I have NEVER owned a Ping club of ANY type. Just never have liked them. HOWEVER, my mind was made up today that the i25 will be my next driver. I was swinging the 9.5 degree with the stock PWR 55 stiff shaft. I first hit my current R1, then the BB Alpha and regular models, then the x2 hot and x2 hot pro, then the 913...you get the picture, Ping was NOT on my radar. In fact, I almost left Golf Smith but the i25 display caught my eye and I figured I would give it a shot...fully expecting to hate it. I loved the racing stripe, framed the ball perfectly and is very muted in color. I didn't even notice the PING logo within the racing stripe. It was longer than any other driver I hit (on their Flight Scope LM), and what they say about this club reducing spin is absolutely true. It was 400 to 600 rpm lower than any other driver I hit. This is a good thing given I have difficulty with keeping spin low enough. In the end, as soon as I can unload a couple of clubs I'm off to buy it.

I suppose the only downside to the club is the minimal adjustability. it would be nice to be able to open or close the face by a degree or so. Other than that, it's a rocket and I'm now going to be Ping guy.

[nowhereman69]

@4golfonline: Ping i25 driver tested against the Nike 2.0 Covert Tour.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gWyw6_S3OA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[Wooderson]

This video shocks me. Some substantial gains with the I25 fairway.


http://youtu.be/ZyexpZHhBmQ

[station2station]

[quote name='volrus' timestamp='1393640900' post='8768840']
Had the opportunity to hit the i25 today. First off let me say I have NEVER owned a Ping club of ANY type. Just never have liked them. HOWEVER, my mind was made up today that the i25 will be my next driver. I was swinging the 9.5 degree with the stock PWR 55 stiff shaft. I first hit my current R1, then the BB Alpha and regular models, then the x2 hot and x2 hot pro, then the 913...you get the picture, Ping was NOT on my radar. In fact, I almost left Golf Smith but the i25 display caught my eye and I figured I would give it a shot...fully expecting to hate it. I loved the racing stripe, framed the ball perfectly and is very muted in color. [b][color=#006400]I didn't even notice the PING logo within the racing stripe. [/color][/b]It was longer than any other driver I hit (on their Flight Scope LM), and what they say about this club reducing spin is absolutely true. It was 400 to 600 rpm lower than any other driver I hit. This is a good thing given I have difficulty with keeping spin low enough. In the end, as soon as I can unload a couple of clubs I'm off to buy it.

[b][color=#b22222]I suppose the only downside to the club is the minimal adjustability. it would be nice to be able to open or close the face by a degree or so. [/color][/b]Other than that, it's a rocket and I'm now going to be Ping guy.
[/quote]

[b][color=#006400]Outdoors you don't even see the stripes or the PING logo. In todays world of white heads, whatever color the BioCells are, Jingle-Bell Covert Tour, hating the understated stripes and not buying the club as a result is a little OCD. (somebody else in this thread, not you)[/color][/b]

[color=#b22222][b]Regarding adjustability, the +/- actually have an opening and closing effect to the face angle as well. It's something on the order of a quarter of a degree incidental face angle adjustment that comes as a by-product of the half a degree loft adjustment.[/b][/color]

[MNoonan]

Well today was an expensive day. I had a i25 woods fitting. I love the driver but i also love my G20 and im going to stay loyal to it until it fails me. However, my brand new X2Hot 3&5wds werent. Ive hit these things miles and miles but not once have the shots been what ive desired. I fought alot of long pushes to the right, its hard to get a 43.5" fairway shaft around. I made the switch in the 3w to the i25 but i have to wait till he gets another 5 with pwr75 S and ill trade the Cally in.

[OspreyCI]

[quote name='Chef Otto' timestamp='1393095046' post='8722866']
I received my i25 driver in this week. I went with the 9.5 to battle it out against my 8.5 g25. I am booked solid with jobs until the end of March so it might be a while before I can compare them. Looks wise I much prefer the shape of the i25 head and the stripes are actually really nice. The g25 beat out my i20 on performance but I am hoping for the i25 to send the g25 to the classified.
[/quote]
Chef,
Love to hear your results. Going to demo an i25 soon. I also use an 8.5 G25 and wondering how much I should "loft up" going to the i25. Looking for high launch and less spin.
Thanks.

[volrus]

So, with the results I'm hearing about the i25, any idea why all we keep hearing is Big Bertha awesomeness?

[theothertomjones]

Big Bertha real world testing has mostly been a flop from what I hear.

i25 (especially 3W) is already selling out in Florida who is getting back "in season" for golfers. People are going nuts over this club line.

[Hstead]

My i25 came in today and I was able to take it to the range and hit head to head vs my G25 Fuel TS 60 X, but I didn't have a LM. So no data, just the eye test.

My stats, 41 year old, low single digit to scratch, 119 ss full out and mostly swing around 112 on course. Always have played lowest loft, X stiff shafts to keep spin and launch down. Have played G25 for about a year and before that 913 D3 7.5. The G25 was digitally lofted at 9.6 and is a 8.5 head.

I have recently made some swing changes and am playing a fade now with the driver with more shaft lean, and the last time I had the G25 on the Flightscope I was launching it around 10.8 on average, everywhere between 10.4 to 12.2 but most shots were in the high 10's, spin was averaging between 2300 and 2400. iTeach wanted me to get used to launching it a touch higher. My max height was 80 feet or so and he wanted me to go above 90.

With that in mind, I rolled the dice and ordered a 9.5 head in the i25. I wanted to get it lofted at 9.9 or so, but they told my pro that they were not doing that anymore so I had to just take a stab at a 9.5 head see how it worked. Ping had told me in the past that all of the heads are between 1 to 1.5 degrees higher lofted than the stamped head number. So a 9.5 is going to be between 10.4 and 11 - ish. I was hoping I would get something in the mid 10's.

I was thinking about going with an upgraded shaft, but after consulting JW he saved me some money and recommended the PWR 65 Tour X.

Results - of course this is just one range session but I think I could get a pretty good idea vs the G25 and my old 913.

Feel - Loved it. Better feeling than the G25 for sure, and closer to the 913 which is a great feeling head. It is not nearly as loud as the G25 but louder than the 913. The shaft feels way different, not as stiff, higher torque, but was consistent and the dispersion was good. The shaft is not real stiff any where really to me, the butt section is on the stiffer side but not as stiff as the Fuel or TS 7.2, the mid section is mid flex, I could really feel it load quite a bit more than the Fuel making it feel less stiff, and the tip is mid to stiff for me anyway. I feel like the shaft bends and loads a little more than I am used to but the dispersion is not affected at all and if anything it gives me more feel. I went after a few really hard and the shaft stayed right with me.

Looks - I like the stripes myself. The stripes help me see the target line more to the left vs my normal tendency to swing too far right. Stripes are helping me. Shape is better than the G25, looks smaller and is closer to the classic pear shape of the 913.

Performance - I do not have any numbers, but it was clearly not spinning too much. The ball was spinning enough to fade the amount I wanted, but not over fading and not ballooning. The launch looked to be perfect, slightly higher but not a lot higher, almost the same just barely higher than my G25 and 913. I am guessing I am closer to mid 11's launch now. If I had to guess the spin is no more than 2300. I couldn't tell where each were landing on the range but I could tell the i25 was more consistent. For the record, I ordered the i25 at 45" vs the G25 is 44.5". With the head being new, I could see where the ball was contacting the face too. My tendency is to hit a toe shot occasionally and with this head I was much closer to the center on every swing. I did hit two toe shots and they were very straight compared to my toe hook I can get with the G25.

So far I am much more pleased than I thought I would be. My angst about going up in loft and going with the stock shaft appears to be for not as the club was clearly out performing the G25 with the Fuel. It was no comparison in consistency, dispersion, and flight.

I will take it to the course tomorrow and see where it lands vs my "normal" shots. I haven't been this excited about a driver in a long time. It was way better on the range, way better.

[Foreleft]

First I have heard anything about Ping not doing digital lofting anymore. Anyone else?

[StarFleetGolfer]

Well I broke down and got the driver and 3w. The driver sounds much better outside and it's neck and neck distance wise with ct2.0 and alpha only much more accurate than the alpha. The driver and 3w launch low compared to most other woods with low spin. On the monitor I was getting 14 degrees launch at 2200 spin using the 9.5 head with tour shaft. First round is tomorrow.

[OspreyCI]

From someone coming from a G25 8.5 ( touch low for me) should I go 9.5 or 10.5 , but not to add too much spin with the extra loft?

[volrus]

[quote name='OspreyCI' timestamp='1394457501' post='8838753']
From someone coming from a G25 8.5 ( touch low for me) should I go 9.5 or 10.5 , but not to add too much spin with the extra loft?
[/quote]

My experience on a flight scope lm is that the 10.5 resulted in practically no spin increase over the 9.5 using the same shaft (stock PWR 65).

[gambit]

[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394298011' post='8826321']
Well I broke down and got the driver and 3w. The driver sounds much better outside and it's neck and neck distance wise with ct2.0 and alpha only much more accurate than the alpha. [b]The driver and 3w launch low compared to most other woods with low spin[/b]. On the monitor I was getting 14 degrees launch at 2200 spin using the 9.5 head with tour shaft. First round is tomorrow.
[/quote]

Interesting. I actually got higher launch numbers with it. The 9.5* head was launching at 16.1* for me while the CT 2.0 was launching around 14* in the same loft. Of course neither were digitally lofted or had the same shafts, but a shaft shouldn't account for 2* of launch right?

Quick question...so after reading a previous post, is it my understanding that Ping doesn't digitally loft anymore?

[chrisgilly09]

Don't think so, my i25 was made to 9.7*

[OspreyCI]

[quote name='volrus' timestamp='1394463410' post='8839379']
[quote name='OspreyCI' timestamp='1394457501' post='8838753']
From someone coming from a G25 8.5 ( touch low for me) should I go 9.5 or 10.5 , but not to add too much spin with the extra loft?
[/quote]

My experience on a flight scope lm is that the 10.5 resulted in practically no spin increase over the 9.5 using the same shaft (stock PWR 65).
[/quote]
Thanks for the input. Might start with a 10.5 to demo with my Whiteboard.

[OspreyCI]

Watching Rick Shiels on YouTube comparing the i25 drivers to the rest of the pack. He does head to head with BBA, Covert, and SLDR and the i25 beat them all!!!

[gambit]

Who's actually played this during a round yet?

[StarFleetGolfer]

[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394574248' post='8850283']
Who's actually played this during a round yet?
[/quote]



I have played the driver and 3w one round. For me they are both automatic like the g25. Just straight and long, longer than g25.

[hayzooos]

[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394575135' post='8850409']
[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394574248' post='8850283']
Who's actually played this during a round yet?
[/quote]



I have played the driver and 3w one round. For me they are both automatic like the g25. Just straight and long, longer than g25.
[/quote]

That's it, you're going on my 'ignore' list after comments such as these. I don't need ANOTHER driver

[gambit]

[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394575135' post='8850409']
[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394574248' post='8850283']
Who's actually played this during a round yet?
[/quote]



I have played the driver and 3w one round. For me they are both automatic like the g25. Just straight and long, longer than g25.
[/quote]

Did you find the head launched higher than other heads in the same 'listed' loft? I was hitting a 9.5* with stock stiff shaft. SS was 105+, but launch was just over 16*, even with a poor smash factor. Spin was low still, but I'm afraid that once my swing gets on track that the 9.5 will launch even higher. Thinking the 8.5 might be the way to go?

[OspreyCI]

[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394575135' post='8850409']
[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394574248' post='8850283']
Who's actually played this during a round yet?
[/quote]



I have played the driver and 3w one round. For me they are both automatic like the g25. Just straight and long, longer than g25.
[/quote]
How much longer do you think the i25 is over the G25? Maybe a wag?

[StarFleetGolfer]

[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394575734' post='8850481']
[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394575135' post='8850409']
[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394574248' post='8850283']
Who's actually played this during a round yet?
[/quote]



I have played the driver and 3w one round. For me they are both automatic like the g25. Just straight and long, longer than g25.
[/quote]

Did you find the head launched higher than other heads in the same 'listed' loft? I was hitting a 9.5* with stock stiff shaft. SS was 105+, but launch was just over 16*, even with a poor smash factor. Spin was low still, but I'm afraid that once my swing gets on track that the 9.5 will launch even higher. Thinking the 8.5 might be the way to go?
[/quote]


Which shaft were you hitting? I have the tour stiff and I don't find it high launch unless comparing it to sldr or ct 2.0. I have the 9.5 i25 and launch it similar to 11 degree sldr or 11 degree ct 2.0. The i25 is listed as low launch low spin by Cool Clubs in Golf Magazine.

[StarFleetGolfer]

[quote name='OspreyCI' timestamp='1394575988' post='8850499']
[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394575135' post='8850409']
[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394574248' post='8850283']
Who's actually played this during a round yet?
[/quote]



I have played the driver and 3w one round. For me they are both automatic like the g25. Just straight and long, longer than g25.
[/quote]
How much longer do you think the i25 is over the G25? Maybe a wag?
[/quote]


At least 5 wags

[gambit]

[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394576409' post='8850549']
[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394575734' post='8850481']
[quote name='Golfjunki71' timestamp='1394575135' post='8850409']
[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1394574248' post='8850283']
Who's actually played this during a round yet?
[/quote]



I have played the driver and 3w one round. For me they are both automatic like the g25. Just straight and long, longer than g25.
[/quote]

Did you find the head launched higher than other heads in the same 'listed' loft? I was hitting a 9.5* with stock stiff shaft. SS was 105+, but launch was just over 16*, even with a poor smash factor. Spin was low still, but I'm afraid that once my swing gets on track that the 9.5 will launch even higher. Thinking the 8.5 might be the way to go?
[/quote]


Which shaft were you hitting? I have the tour stiff and I don't find it high launch unless comparing it to sldr or ct 2.0. I have the 9.5 i25 and launch it similar to 11 degree sldr or 11 degree ct 2.0. The i25 is listed as low launch low spin by Cool Clubs in Golf Magazine.
[/quote]

I was hitting it with the stock 65 stiff. They didn't have the tour stiff. I was going to put a Fubuki K into the CT 2.0 and a 6.3 TS into the i25. The 6.3 is currently in my Covert Performance 1.0 set at 10.5* and I get a nice ball flight out of that. I figure the Fubuki K would give a little more spin and launch to the CT 2.0 since it's so low/low. Also have an extra DI 6 that I can play with in the i25 too.