As MyGolfSpy’s resident historical past buff, I’m fascinated by how numerous OEMs bought to the place they’re right this moment. The arc of their existence and the merchandise that made them (or, for that matter, broke them) is an limitless supply of fascination. Typically, that story may help clarify why one firm thrived whereas one other one veered off into obscurity.
Right this moment, I wish to dive into the merchandise that made PING PING and their up to date counterparts that also make PING PING.
In case you suppose again to when PING was in its infancy, golf golf equipment weren’t being designed by engineers. They have been being crafted, often by technically minded former Tour execs employed by OEMs. Toney Penna of MacGregor is a main instance.
Karsten Solheim, the engineer who by no means did get his engineering diploma, modified all that.
By making use of goal evaluation, physics and downside fixing, Solheim set a endless objective: to make the sport simpler and extra fulfilling for everybody.
PING can rightfully take credit score for both inventing or popularizing most of the core applied sciences membership designers use right this moment. These embrace perimeter weighting, cavity-back design, superior warmth therapy, robotic testing, high-speed pictures, customized becoming and funding casting.
Do you know?
Nearly everybody agrees that PING popularized funding casting. It wasn’t, nonetheless, the primary to realize huge industrial success with it. That might be Lynx, whose Grasp Mannequin iron was the primary investment-cast iron to promote in mass portions. Karsten Solheim’s Okay-series and PING Eye irons, nonetheless, would quickly take over.
Then got here the PING Eye 2. It turned the best-selling iron ever and made funding casting the trade customary. Whereas PING right this moment affords loads of solid choices, funding casting stays a significant a part of what it does.
The PING i530 participant’s distance iron, for instance, encompasses a solid maraging metal face with an funding solid 17-4 chrome steel physique. The i530 (the i540 is coming subsequent month) and its extra compact sibling, the i240, share loads of DNA with the PING Eye 2. Each characteristic perimeter weighting, are extra forgiving than you’d count on and have sneaky-low facilities of gravity for greater launch.
Karsten discovered early on that low-CG/high-launching irons wanted stronger lofts to maintain the ball from ballooning. As a byproduct, stronger lofts make the ball go farther.
Who doesn’t love that?
However right here’s the kicker: stronger-lofted irons spin much less. Karsten’s second model of the PING Eye 2 included a novel neck adjustment that elevated spin and helped maintain greens higher. That DNA stays with PING right this moment within the type of Spinsistency. The i530 (and, we presume, the brand new i540) options MicroMax grooves. The concept is that extra grooves nearer collectively will impart extra spin. On a participant’s distance iron, that’s an incredible assist.
The unique PING Hoofer
In case you’ve been taking note of MyGolfSpy’s bag testing during the last decade, all concerning the PING Hoofer. It’s taken high honors in our stand bag testing seven out of the final 9 years. Within the years the Hoofer didn’t win (2018 and 2022), it got here an in depth second.
However do you know the Hoofer goes again to the late Eighties?
PING launched numerous baggage earlier than then however the Hoofer was the primary PING unique, with patent drawings dated 1989. It was one of many first stand baggage to make use of aluminum legs, with a less complicated, cleaner and extra practical design than the clunkier mechanisms used on the time.
It’s no exaggeration to say the unique Hoofer was an ideal leap ahead for stand baggage. It was the primary actually practical, light-weight and dependable mannequin in golf. Consequently, PING’s bag division finally grew to be as massive as its putter enterprise.
Right this moment’s Hoofer is a greater than worthy successor. The stand mechanism is sturdy and its weight distribution makes it appropriate for carrying or on push carts. The Hoofer additionally options high-quality zippers, 16 well-planned pockets and 11 colorways for some greenside pizzazz.
We don’t have a MyGolfSpy Corridor of Fame (perhaps we should always) but when we did, the PING Hoofer could be a first-ballot inductee.
Driver aerodynamics
Say what you need about PING’s Turbulators however don’t doubt for a minute that there’s science behind them. PING’s first drivers date again to 1968 and, even then, Karsten knew aerodynamics mattered. One downside, although. He didn’t have a wind tunnel.
So, he did what any self-respecting engineer would do: he discovered one other means.
Karsten had son Allan drive their outdated Saab down a abandoned stretch of freeway within the Arizona desert. He then caught a driver, with a particular gauge hooked up, out the window. As soon as Allan hit 100 mph, Karsten took some readings to measure that driver’s aerodynamics.
Once more, say what you need about Turbulators however you may’t argue with efficiency. PING’s G430 Max 10K ran away and hid from the competitors in MyGolfSpy’s 2024 testing. To show that efficiency was no fluke, it completed a robust second to the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond in 2025. It’s, fairly merely, probably the greatest drivers we’ve ever examined.
This yr’s mannequin, the PING G440K, has a troublesome act to observe. PING says the brand new model balances 10K mixed MOI with elevated ball velocity. That’s not as simple as you would possibly suppose and this yr’s testing will decide whether or not PING can really pull it off.
Of crossovers and driving irons
PING has a comparatively quick historical past on the subject of utility irons but it surely’s nonetheless dotted with high performers. The PING iCrossover, launched in October 2022, was the corporate’s first severe foray into the utility iron market. On the time, PING insisted it was not a driving iron.
Regardless of PING’s insistence, MyGolfSpy topped it the Greatest Driving Iron of 2023, and it wasn’t significantly shut. It repeated in 2024, ending first in distance and accuracy and third in forgiveness.
For some motive, PING determined to overtake your entire lineup final summer season. As an alternative of insisting it was not a driving iron, the corporate determined its new PING iDi is, actually, a driving iron. There’s no pretense, both. The Di portion of the iDi identify does, actually, stand for “driving iron.”
Its maiden voyage in MyGolfSpy testing was not as spectacular because the iCrossover’s. The iDi completed an in depth second in MyGolfSpy’s 2025 testing, simply behind the Titleist U505. It provided respectable sufficient distance and forgiveness however stumbled a bit on accuracy. A superb becoming, due to this fact, is a should.
The Anser is within the query
Blade putters might or will not be passe however there’s no debating the generational affect of the PING Anser. The story of how Karsten went from a tough sketch on the internal sleeve of a document album to a working prototype in three days is the stuff of legend.
Severely, click on on that hyperlink. It’s an unimaginable story.
The Anser’s design patent expired in 1980. For some unknown and borderline unimaginable motive, PING determined to not renew it. It didn’t take lengthy, then, for each firm on the planet to return out with their very own model. “Zero-torque” at me all you need however the Anser stays essentially the most copied putter in golf historical past.
The Anser is the OG perimeter-weighted putter and it’s one in every of Karsten’s many, many lasting contributions to the sport. As such, the timeless design stays a staple in PING’s lineup. The most recent PING Anser options tungsten toe and heel weighting, a contrasting platinum face and a black cavity part.
The Anser 2 would be the closest factor to the unique Anser with a barely longer and narrower profile than the present Anser. PING has added thicker variations of the Anser to enchantment to the “virtually mallet” crowd. The Anser D and Anser 2D have deeper profiles (therefore the “D”) to offer extra stroke stability. The Anser 2D is Tony Finau’s favourite.
What does any of this imply to you?
I’ve had a number of fascinating conversations with PING firm historian Rob Griffin over time (sure, PING has an official firm historian) and every time I stroll away with a brand new appreciation for Karsten’s contributions.
“He at all times mentioned his No. 1 objective was to make the sport simpler for folks to play,” says Griffin. “I by no means heard him discuss what number of golf equipment we bought or something like that. His objective was to make one of the best golf golf equipment he might and make the sport simpler and extra fulfilling for folks.”
We’ve additionally mentioned earlier than on this house that even in the event you’re not enjoying PING golf equipment, the golf equipment you’re enjoying have some PING in them. It’s no stretch to say that Karsten taught the trade easy methods to construct a contemporary golf membership. Whether or not it’s the idea of customized becoming, perimeter weighting or driver aerodynamics, even PING opponents hint it again to what Karsten was doing.
“Karsten got here alongside, utilizing science and mechanical engineering,” explains Griffin. “He simply turned the golf trade the other way up.”
Anyway, we hope you loved this little connect-the-dots expertise with PING. It’s a straightforward raise, on condition that we’re now into the third technology of Solheim management on the firm. We are able to solely think about that different OEM lineages could be equally as fascinating.
Tell us what you suppose.
The publish Simply What Is It That Makes PING PING? appeared first on MyGolfSpy.
