Equipment
Spotted: In-hand photos of the new Ping i500 irons
First, we spotted Tony Finau testing out an unidentified Ping utility iron that was rumored to be the new i500 by GolfWRX Forum members. Then, we learned that Ping’s Director of Product Design Marty Jertson used “Ping i500” long irons to qualify for the 2018 PGA Championship.
Now, we have in-hand photos of the Ping i500 irons in our forums. It’s now clear that this will be a full set of clubs, not just utility irons. It also appears, judging by the screw in the toe of all the irons pictured, that the irons will have a hollow-bodied construction throughout the set.
Check out photos of the 7 iron below, and check out photos of all the irons we photographed in the forum thread.
Ping i500 7-iron
Click here for more photos and discussion.
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Equipment
Coolest thing for sale in the GolfWRX Classifieds (4/18/24): Ping PLD Limited Anser – 1988 Open Championship – #2 of only 88 Made
At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals that all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.
It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.
Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, there is a listing for a Ping PLD Limited Anser – 1988 Open Championship – #2 of only 88 Made.
From the seller: (@DLong72): “Ping PLD Limited Anser – 1988 Open Championship – #2 of only 88 Made. ?: $1150. ?? 100% milled collectors item from the limited releases commemorating when Ping putters won every major in 1988 (88 putters made). This was the model Seve Ballesteros used to win the 1988 Open Championship. Condition is brand new, never gamed, everything is in the original packaging as it came. Putter features the iconic sound slot.
Specs/ Additional Details
-100% Milled, Aluminum/Bronze Alloy (310g)
-Original Anser Design
-PING PP58 Grip
-Putter is built to standard specs.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link: Ping PLD Limited Anser – 1988 Open Championship – #2 of only 88 Made
This is the most impressive current listing from the GolfWRX BST, and if you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum you can check them out here: GolfWRX BST Rules
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As you probably know by now, Collin Morikawa switched putters after the first round of The Masters, and he ultimately went on to finish T3.
The putter was far from the only change he made last week, however, and his bag is continuing to change this week at the 2024 RBC Heritage.
On the range of The Masters, Morikawa worked closely with Adrian Reitveld, TaylorMade’s Senior Manager of Tour at TaylorMade, to find the perfect driver and 3-wood setups.
Morikawa started off 2024 by switching into TaylorMade’s Qi10 Max driver, but since went back to his faithful TaylorMade SIM – yes, the original SIM from 2020. Somehow, some way, it seems Morikawa always ends up back in that driver, which he used to win the 2020 PGA Championship, and the 2021 Open Championship.
At The Masters, however, Rietveld said the duo found the driver head that allowed “zero compromise” on Morikawa’s preferred fade flight and spin. To match his preferences, they landed on a TaylorMade Qi10 LS 9-degree head, and the lie angle is a touch flatter than his former SIM.
“It’s faster than his gamer, and I think what we found is it fits his desired shot shape, with zero compromise” Rietveld told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday at the RBC Heritage.
Then, to replace his former SIM rocket 3-wood, Morikawa decided to switch into the TaylorMade Qi10 core model 13.5-degree rocket head, with an adjustable hosel.
“He likes the spin characteristics of that head,” Rietveld said. “Now he’s interesting because with Collin, you can turn up at a tournament, and you look at his 3-wood, and he’s changed the setting. One day there’s more loft on it, one day there’s less loft on it. He’s that type of guy. He’s not scared to use the adjustability of the club.
“And I think he felt our titanium head didn’t spin as low as his original SIM. So we did some work with the other head, just because he liked the feel of it. It was a little high launching, so we fit him into something with less loft. It’s a naughty little piece of equipment.”
In addition to the driver and fairway wood changes, Morikawa also debuted his new “MySymbol” jersey No. 5 TP5x golf ball at The Masters. Morikawa’s choice of symbols is likely tied to his love of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team.
Not enough changes for you? There’s one more.
On Wednesday at the 2024 RBC Heritage, Morikawa was spotted with a new TaylorMade “Proto” 4-iron in the bag. If you recall, it’s the same model that Rory McIlroy debuted at the 2024 Valero Texas Open.
According to Morikawa, the new Proto 4-iron will replace his old P-770 hollow-bodied 4-iron.
“I used to hit my P-770 on a string, but sometimes the distance would be a little unpredictable,” Morikawa told GolfWRX.com. “This one launches a touch higher, and I feel I can predict the distance better. I know Rory replaced his P-760 with it. I’m liking it so far.”
See Morikawa’s full WITB from the 2024 RBC Heritage here.
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Equipment
Why Rory McIlroy will likely use the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper at the RBC Heritage
Although we spotted Rory McIlroy testing the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper last week during practice rounds at the Masters, he ultimately didn’t decide to use the club in competition.
It seems that will change this week at the 2024 RBC Heritage, played at the short-and-tight Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head.
When asked on Wednesday following his morning Pro-Am if he’d be using the new, nostalgic BRNR Copper this week, McIlroy said, “I think so.”
“I like it,” McIlroy told GolfWRX.com on Tuesday regarding the BRNR. “This would be a good week for it.”
View this post on Instagram
According to Adrian Rietveld, the Senior Manager of Tour at TaylorMade, the BRNR Mini Driver can help McIlroy position himself properly off the tee at the tight layout.
Here’s what Rietveld told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday:
“For someone like Rory, who’s that long at the top end of the bag, and then you put him on a course like Harbour Town, it’s tough off the tee. It’s tight into the greens, and you have to put yourself in position off the tee to have a shot into the green. It kind of reminds me of Valderrama in Spain, where you can be in the fairway and have no shot into the green.
“I’m caddying for Tommy [Fleetwood] this week, so I was walking the course last night and looking at a few things. There’s just such a small margin for error. You can be standing in the fairway at 300 yards and have a shot, but at 320 you don’t. So if you don’t hit a perfect shot, you could be stuck behind a tree. And then if you’re back at 280, it might be a really tough shot into the small greens.
“So for Rory [with the BRNR], it’s a nice course-specific golf club for him. He’s got both shots with it; he can move it right-to-left or left-to-right. And the main thing about this club has been the accuracy and the dispersion with it. I mean, it’s been amazing for Tommy.
“This was the first event Tommy used a BRNR last year, and I remember talking to him about it, and he said he couldn’t wait to play it at Augusta next year. And he just never took it out of the bag because he’s so comfortable with it, and hitting it off the deck.
“So you look at Rory, and you want to have the tools working to your advantage out here, and the driver could hand-cuff him a bit with all of the shots you’d have to manufacture.”
So, although McIlroy might not be making a permanent switch into the new TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver Copper, he’s likely to switch into it this week.
His version is lofted at 13.5 degrees, and equipped with a Fujikura Ventus Black 7X shaft.
See more photos of Rory testing the BRNR Mini here
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rex235
Aug 9, 2018 at 4:13 pm
Let us know if and when a LH i500 model shows up…
Mike
Jul 28, 2018 at 9:18 am
Don’t understand the Ping strategy. G400, G700, I500, I210, I700, etc. And the prices are sky-high, ESPECIALLY re the G700. As a mid-handicapper, am I really going to spend $1,200 for a set of irons? What will these do that the previous G-Max irons can’t do (& they can now be had for half the cost).
Mat
Aug 9, 2018 at 5:42 pm
You think $1200 is a lot for irons? And why not wait so you can have these for ‘half the cost’?
If you hit the G700 and the i500, you’ll know immediately that they are very, very different clubs.
mizuno29
Jul 14, 2018 at 11:18 am
Remember the Anser irons? They were 8620, the body of this iron is 17-4, the face is 8620. I’ve hit this club, got a set on order, they are $162.50 per with the graphite Recoil shaft, they have all the same playing characteristics that the G 700’s have without all that offset, but you can control the trajectories with these and the 700’s you couldn’t. Hollow club design is the future of irons, makes the face hotter, launches higher, and produce very little spin. Great job Ping!
Mmmmooooo
Jul 13, 2018 at 1:50 am
Hit it. Feels and sounds terrible. Very hollow and cracked sounding. Need foam in it lmao
David
Aug 7, 2018 at 5:50 pm
Came to the exact opposite conclusion. Love the feel and sound.
jc
Jul 2, 2018 at 4:28 pm
one thing for sure…they will be longer, higher, straighter and more accurate..might as well throw your old stuff out or donate to kids.
Mike
Jul 13, 2018 at 8:17 am
And they’ll probably be on about $160+ a club. (refer to G700)
Austin
Jul 1, 2018 at 12:57 am
It is a hollow body full set. Also coming out with new i210s that look and feel good
george
Jul 1, 2018 at 10:46 pm
…. look and feel good when you grab the club in your hand and rub it down….
Captain Obvious
Jun 30, 2018 at 12:13 pm
Clearly says forged for people who comment without actually looking at the pictures…. ????
Caroline
Jun 29, 2018 at 11:21 pm
Any one else find the lie angle on Pings getting changed after a few rounds on these hard summer fairways? I guess the notch in the hosel makes them easier to bend?…I had my short iron lies corrected a month ago and today I had them checked and two of them were off enough to be reset again???
dilly dilly
Jun 30, 2018 at 1:15 am
Most Pings are cast and don’t bend at all.
Tom
Jul 1, 2018 at 12:27 pm
cast stainless is difficult to adjust. Ping knew this and addressed this with the hosel notch.
Steve Buchanan
Jul 9, 2018 at 11:54 am
Of course they bend. Even the old Ping Eye 2 Irons were bendable. They did it at the factory as one of the last steps. That is how they adjusted to the correct lie. They didn’t have different castings for the different lies. The irons were pounded by a mallet into the correct lie and then the dot was painted to show which lie it was as the last step.
Swing Dr
Jul 1, 2018 at 7:11 am
Impossible. The guy checking them probably doesn’t have his machine calibrated correctly. Send them back to Ping for loft/ lie and put your mind at ease.
calc
Jun 29, 2018 at 7:21 pm
Drink GOLFERAID …. there’s a swing in every can …. 😮
ogo
Jun 30, 2018 at 3:08 pm
LOL 😀
Tom
Jun 29, 2018 at 6:58 pm
That iron has 7 less screws in the head than PXG…..lol!
Tom
Jun 29, 2018 at 5:46 pm
PING clubs are the most copied of all time and have brought the most innovations to the industryratepayers by far. They are engineers, it’s the others who copy.
i500 is a beauty to behold.
Jeffrey Anderson
Jun 29, 2018 at 10:54 pm
Stan Thompson had ‘‘tthis design in the 60’s -70’s
Less the hotel ….
Great looking iron
Milo
Jun 29, 2018 at 3:11 pm
Doesn’t look to bad honestly.
Marklar
Jul 12, 2018 at 2:50 am
*too
HDTVMAN
Jun 29, 2018 at 3:07 pm
These are hollow and not “gel” filled. I have the G700’s and the ball “flies long and high” off the face. The i500 is designed for the low-digit handicap player. The new designs are great looking and perform beautifully, construction is based on Ping driver, fairway, and hybrid construction.
calc
Jun 29, 2018 at 7:12 pm
So the toe port is for variable weighting and the rest of the head is solid? Okay, I suppose that’s better than lead tape but why only the toe?
Swing Dr
Jun 29, 2018 at 7:30 pm
Good question. There is a matching screw hidden in the hosel for heel-toe balance.
Travis
Jun 30, 2018 at 10:18 am
If they can drill out a section and put heavier weight in the toe it will move COG more towards the middle of the face instead of being heel biased.
Noa Idea
Jul 4, 2018 at 9:34 pm
the g700’s have a lot of good points, but they are way too loud at impact. Hope the i500’s have sorted that issue.
MuskieCy
Jun 29, 2018 at 2:15 pm
They are all copying the Adams XTD forged irons from 2014.
Forged face, hollow urethane-filled bodies.
Wiger Toods
Jun 30, 2018 at 3:34 am
Not even close. Cavity is much bigger in the 500.
calc
Jun 29, 2018 at 1:51 pm
Looking at the i500 toe, is that a weight port or is it a jello-elastomer port… like TM and PXG ??!!!
DougWilsonsSlapper
Jun 29, 2018 at 11:45 am
Countdown to “their copying TM who’s copying PXG” and “these aren’t forged” and “Ping are ugly” and “thick topline” in 3…2…1…
JJD
Jun 29, 2018 at 1:13 pm
Yeah but, I don’t think these are forged. And, everyone knows they are just copies of TM and as you know, they copy PXG. But we all know PXG copies Tommy Armour.
Marooned
Jun 29, 2018 at 2:35 pm
No. PXG copied TaylorMade. In the year 1993 TM put foam in the Burner midsize irons. In 1993 PXG did not even exist.
That’s why PXG lawsuit never go anywhere, seemed just like a poor PR stunt from PXG to be honest since it’s pretty easy to look it up beforehand…
Tim Armington
Jun 29, 2018 at 11:30 am
Really like it!!! What is the difference between the i500 and the i210?
calc
Jun 29, 2018 at 1:45 pm
That’s easy….. i500 minus i210 = i290 …. 😮
Chuck Barkley
Jun 29, 2018 at 3:07 pm
One’s a race track in Indy, and the other is a freeway in Los Angeles!!! Hahahaha!!! Yuk yuk!! I should’a been a comedy guy.
Anthony Williams
Jul 3, 2018 at 12:40 am
lol
2putttom
Jun 29, 2018 at 10:57 am
I’ll give em’ try
calc
Jun 29, 2018 at 1:53 pm
… sure you will Karsten Jr. ….!!!!
2putttom
Jun 29, 2018 at 4:19 pm
calc ! ya bald headed wombat where ya been … are we still on for Monday?
The dude
Jun 29, 2018 at 10:50 am
They look great……but printing Forged on the back of the cast club is a bit misleading (I know….marketing has their hook for gullible wannabe players)
Brooky03
Jun 29, 2018 at 11:34 am
How do you know it’s not forged? You can forge multiple pieces of the club and weld them together. That’s still a forged club. It’s possible just the face is forged and the body of the clubs are cast, but you can’t know that from the pics.
calc
Jun 29, 2018 at 1:47 pm
Ping and other golf club companies who claim their clubs are “forged” are scamming gullible golfers… they’re more like “forgeries”… 😉
calc
Jun 29, 2018 at 1:50 pm
… not “forged”…. “forgeries” ….. 😮
Travis
Jun 30, 2018 at 10:20 am
Titleist AP2’s are only a forged face, they call them “forged”, nobody seems to complain about that….