When Ping launches a new driver, everyone else in the golf industry sits up and takes notice.
And this is especially true when you have not unveiled anything for three years.
Ping will argue that that gap between product launches makes perfect sense when your 2020 incarnation (the G425) still holds up so well. If it ain’t broke…
That’s especially true at the top of the game where the likes of Matt Fitzpatrick and Viktor Hovland – two stars with a reputation for hitting the ball long and straight – are still delivering the goods for you. All told Ping had almost 30 drivers in play when the PGA Tour restarted last autumn.
Ping says it is seeing “2 to 4 mph gains in ball speed from the G430 driver”. If the likes of Hovland and Fitzpatrick are achieving anywhere near 4mph, that, in elite-level pro terms, is a massive increase. Certainly in Hawaii at the weekend, the US Open champion was crushing it off the tee on a regular basis.
So what does the new G430 driver bring to the party?
Well each of the three models – MAX, LST and SFT – are very different and this level of disparity is something that most discerning potential customers should like.
And it would not be a Ping range if there was not a MAX option, which has been designed to suit players of all standards.
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Ping calls it its ‘workhorse’ but that really does not do it justice. What it is, more than anything, is highly customisable, which is an ongoing theme across the range. Leading the way is a 25-gram, high-density tungsten moveable backweight between the draw, neutral and fade settings. The clubmaker says it will make eight yards of difference either way. The loft is adjustable ±1.5° and lie up to 3° flat from standard using the eight-setting Trajectory Tuning 2.0 hosel.
John K. Solheim, PING CEO & President, said: “It fits every skill level, from tour players to higher handicaps. The increases in ball speed are remarkable and the sound is creating a very favorable conversation.
“When you combine those advancements with its industry-leading forgiveness, the MAX will win a lot of battles in comparison testing in the fitting environment.”
Common to all three drivers is the revamped face technology and this is where Ping claim the added ball speed has come from – a shallower and thinner VFT forged face design combined with Spinsistency, a variable roll radius technology proven on the G425 fairway woods and hybrids. Ping has also “improved” the sound by fine-tuning the frequencies of the head through a new internal rib structure.
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Carbon has been added to the LST driver in the form of a Carbonfly Wrap that covers the crown and wraps into the heel/toe sections of the skirt to save weight and lower the Centre of Gravity (CG). This is what all the manufacturers are doing to help you get more ball speed, less spin and a more distance when you miss the centre of the club.
Like the MAX, The LST also has a moveable tungsten backweight – this one is 22g – and the head is slightly smaller than the MAX at 440cc compared to the more standard 460.
The SFT is Ping’s draw-bias driver for those golfers who hit everything with a fade. This is a two-setting, moveable tungsten backweight (22g) that positions the CG to deliver 13 yards of right-to-left shot bend in the Draw setting and another seven yards in the Draw+ (20 yards total). That is a lot of correction and for many will make a difference to their game.
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G430 Driver Specifications
Head weights: 208 (LST), 206g (MAX), 200g (SFT)
Lofts – Max: 9°, 10.5° and 12°. LST: 9° and 10.5°. SFT: 10.5°
Swingweights: D3 (MAX), D4 (LST), C9 (SFT)
Std length: 45 3/4”; (ALTA CB Black 55); 45 1/4”; (PING Tour 2.0 Chrome/Black and optional
stock)
Stock shafts: PING ALTA CB (counter-balanced) Black 55 (SR, R, S), PING ALTA Quick 35/45 (HL build only)
Optional stock shafts: PING Tour 2.0 Chrome 65 (R, S, X), PING Tour 2.0 Black 65 (S, X),
Mitsubishi Kai’Li White 60 (S, X), PRJX HZRDUS Smoke Red RDX 50 (5.5, 6.0), PRJX
HZRDUS Smoke Red RDX 60 (5.5, 6.0, 6.5)
Stock grip: Golf Pride 360 Tour Velvet in six sizes (Blue -1/16”, Red -1/32”, Aqua -1/64”, White- Std, Gold +1/32”, Orange +1/16”)
UK Prices – G430 MAX/SFT: £525. LST £575
Available in Europe: January 27th
