News

SGGT recently added Ping irons to the Hogan studio which means that we can offer the full range of G430 and i-Series irons to golfers with a choice of over 85 shafts. As with every other iron in the Hogan Studio, our iron custom fitting has 4, 6, 8 and W in right and left hand versions so that you can test through the bag to get the right combination.

To help you get a feel for the Ping i-Series range we invited our resident reviewer Martin Hopley in to compare the Ping i230 irons with the i525 to see which suited his game better, so over to him now.

Ping i230 Irons Review

For a long time now Ping has quietly been making some very good and clean looking better player irons that combine forgiving technology in a compact head and the i230 irons continue this tradition.

Like most Ping irons, the heads are cast from 431 stainless steel and feature a cavity back design that has an elastomer insert on the inside to support the face and improve the sound at impact.

Forgiveness comes from the peripheral weighting on the back of the head and a weight screw in the toe. Visually these heads are quite compact with a small degree of offset and compared to the previous i210, the long irons in the i230 have shrunk a little to continue the blade style through the set.

This visual change probably marks these out as elite level players irons for scratch golfers or better as right through the bag the i210 irons are sleek and compact. They are more forgiving than the Ping i59 blades but not by much, although better players will appreciate the extra forgiveness in the longer irons.

Ping i525 Irons Review

The Ping i525 irons are larger and more forgiving by comparison and feature a different head design to the i230. The i525 is also a cast cavity back head, but made from 17-4 that then has a forged maraging steel face insert placed on the body frame. The hollow cavity is then injected with a polymer to support the face and improve the sound.

Not only does this allow the face to be bigger and more forgiving, but also increases the ball speed. The forgiveness comes from the larger head size and the tungsten toe weight screw and shaft tip weights to create a higher MOI to resist twisting at impact.

As you go up through the set the offset increases and the longer irons look much less scary than the i230s, which I am sure single figure players will appreciate.

Ping i230 v Ping i525 SGGT Fitting Review

In the Hogan Studio at SGGT I was able to compare both models with my current set right through the bag. I am a 3 handicap golfer with a driver swing speed of 100mph so both these better player irons are options for me.

With the wedge of both Ping irons I was more consistent with distance than my current set wedge, which is as compact as the i230s. With the i525 I was a little more accurate due to the larger head. It is not actually that much larger and pretty mid-sized as irons go and I think it will appeal to single figure golfers who like a blade style but also appreciate some forgiveness.

On to the 8-iron and the clear winner here was the i525 as it was more accurate and the carry was 12 yards longer. However the loft is also 3° stronger so this is where blending the two sets is going to become difficult. As long as the gaps between each iron in a set are consistent then the actual distance should be irrelevant.

On the plus side for the i230, it went the same distance as my current irons, but the accuracy was much better, so for its size, the i230 is a forgiving head.

With the 6-iron both the Ping irons we again more accurate than my current iron and a little longer. The i525 was 2.5° stronger than the i230 so the comparison is not exact. For single figure players then the slight larger 6-iron head with a little more offset is going to give you that little bit more performance in the middle of the set.

Comparing the 4-irons out was more interesting as the compact head of the i230 was just too unforgiving and the 21° 4-iron of the i525 was landing at 38° which is below where it needs to be stop on the green.

Therefore the option was to stop the i525 set at the 5-iron and then transition to a hybrid or fit in a Ping iCrossover 4 iron to fill the gap to my 19° hybrid in the bag. Having the option to test the 4-iron in each model and then compare to hybrids really makes the Hogan studio at SGGT stand out to ensure that all the gaps in your bag are covered at the longer end.

At the lower end we used the SGGT wedge fitting service to go for the 50° U wedge to cover the gap to my first specialist wedge to keep the head style consistent.

Ping i230 v i525 Irons Verdict

As you will have already figured, the Ping i525 irons were the easy winners for me. Having tested Ping irons over the last 20 years I would say that the looks and performance for low handicapper irons has improved immeasurably.

This section of the market is not particularly served well at present, as many manufacturers are over-engineering their irons, which impacts the looks and feel for better players. Ping have subtly kept the faith and whilst there is technology in these irons, they just about stay in the right side of still giving your that better player iron feeling.

The i230 irons are lovely and you might be tempted with them, but these are really designed for elite players and their tour staff. The feel is very good if you hit the middle, but the fact that they have slimmed down the longer irons means that most low handicap and single figure amateurs should head for the i525.

The Ping i525 bring everything to the party in terms of classy simple looks, good distance and most importantly, more consistency and accuracy. There is a wide range of lofts that can easily be adjusted and for lie and combined with the right shaft from SGGT can create a solid set of irons that you will get a long life from.

I will be tracking the performance of the Ping irons over the season on course using the SGGT Arccos partnership and will report back in due course.

If you would like to your own Ping iron comparison then book a fitting today.