Review: Ping i-irons
The straight ball is often the mantra of a “game-improvement” iron, players irons are often billed as workable. Sure it sounds great, but really I want players-irons looks that go straight like game-improvement irons, to me workable usually means crooked. I’ve got game enough to play blades, but why not play something that is easier to hit and more forgiving when you miss-hit it. The Ping i-irons offer a “players iron” with many game improvement qualities.
The history of the i-irons have always been the middle iron for Ping. G-series was game improvement, S-series was “bladeish” and I-series was something in between. These new irons follow that pattern. These are just the next evolution of the i-series and like each set before, these got better too. The forgiveness went up and the looks remained similar, compact without being too blade like.
I had my Ping i-irons built with DG S300 shafts in the blue dot heads and stock id8 grips. Take note that they changed their dot system, blue is now the stock lie in these irons. They did swingweight right at D2 across the board. I went with a 4-iron — U-wedge and paired those with the 54* and 58* Ping Glide wedges. The combo covered every gap between putter and hybrid perfectly. I really like how the yardage gapping works out with these irons. They aren’t juiced up for extra distance, they hit just the yardage I want and consistently do the same thing. If you compare irons brand to brand or even look at different Ping irons you see different lofts for different numbered irons, these worked out really well.
The off-set progression is what the i-series Ping irons are known for with some off-set in the long irons down to very little in the short irons. This is really good for what I like to see. Like I said above, I could play a whole set of blades with no off-set, but that extra boost it gives to the long irons helps and not having it in the short irons makes them more accurate.
The new Ping i-irons did 2 things that really has me loving these irons. 1st, they just go straight. I have a half dozen rounds in with this irons and no matter my swing or the course, I hit these irons straight. Seriously these might be the straightest irons I hit. My first round blew me away on numerous shots that certainly didn’t feel like a good swing, yet yielded good results as the ball just went straight at the target.
2nd, the improved feel of these cast heads is not to be overlooked. While the firmer feel of cast has always been the knock on the Ping G irons, they really have worked hard on the tuning port over the years to get better feel out of their irons with each new version. The different 431 steel now used along with the tuning bar, have these getting as close as you can get to a forged feel. Add the Tungsten out on the toe and you have a fully balanced great feeling cavity-back. I am impressed.
FlightScope Xi Tour Launch Monitor
Ping i-Irons – 8-iron
- Spin: 7644 rpms
- Launch Angle: 29.9*
- Dispersion: 2.8 yds
- Club Head Speed: 86.5 mph
- Ball Speed: 115.3 mph
- Total Distance: 154.1 yds
- Carry Distance: 150.7 yds
Ping mixed up the numbering and names with the new i-irons, but they got them dialed in when it comes to being one of the straightest irons I’ve ever hit. They offer improved feel, excellent looks and really good forgiveness in a “players” like iron. What impressed me more than anything else, is how easy they are to just hit straight; shot after shot, they went straight at the target.
For more information: www.ping.com
Quick Hits
+Super straight hitting
+Good feel
+Excellent turf interaction
+Compact looks
+Excellent balance