July 16, 2018
By Jonathan Wall, PGATOUR.COM

 

The last few months have offered better players a glimpse at PING’s latest iron and wedge creations. Tony Finau was spotted testing an unmarked i500 3-iron at the U.S. Open; Tyrrell Hatton, Brandon Stone and Lee Westwood all transitioned into i210 irons; and Bubba Watson debuted Glide Forged wedges at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide.

Following a brief run on TOUR, i500, i210 and Glide Forged are coming to retail. The i500 and i210 were created as separate iron sets, but it’s possible some players will consider creating a blended set that features both models.

Based off the game-improvement C700, the multi-material i500 features a 17-4 stainless steel body and the same C300 maraging steel face insert found in PING’s G400 fairway woods and hybrids.

The compact head shape, thinner topline and sole should appeal to the better player.

The ultra-thin face and hollow cavity allows the structure to bend at five times the rate of standard cast iron, which leads to faster ball speeds and a comparable launch angle to i210, even though lofts are 2.5 degrees stronger across the boards.

“The i500 delivers unbelievable distance with amazingly high ball flights,” said John K. Solheim, PING’s President. “In our testing, some golfers gained as much as 15 yards with the i500.”

PING i210

The replacement for i200, PING’s i210 is made from 431 stainless steel with a refined shape that’s already been accepted on TOUR by some of the best players in the world, including Scottish Open winner Brandon Stone and Tyrrell Hatton.

The elastomer custom tuning port in the back cavity was increased by 30 percent to improve perimeter weighting. Going larger allowed engineers to create 25 percent more face contact, resulting in activation of the elastomer to produce a softer sound at impact.

“The soft feel of the i210 irons is unlike any we’ve ever offered,” said Solheim. “We know players who rely on precise iron play also require exceptional feel to control their ball flight and trajectories.”

A new hydropearl chrome 2.0 finish repels water to increase consistency from the rough and wet conditions. The grooves, face and cavity were also precision milled to give the club a “high-end appearance.”

In the pitching wedge and U-wedge, groove spacing was tightened to provide greater consistency and eliminate fliers from the rough.

PING Glide Forged

Forged from 8620 carbon steel, Glide Forged was designed with direct input from major winner Louis Oosthuizen, who wanted to see a sole design with a rounded leading edge and more heel-toe camber. The shaping allows for more shot-making and creativity around the green.

A gooseneck-tapered hosel provides a “captured look” at address while ensuring a smooth transition from the turf to the bunker. Similar to Glide 2.0, the groove edge was created using a wheel-cut milling process that produces a sharper edge radius for the lower- and higher-lofted wedges.

Going sharper increases the groove interaction with the golf ball cover at impact, which in turns produces more friction for even more spin and trajectory control.

“Several of our tour professionals have already added Glide Forged wedges to their bags since debuting them last month,” Solheim said. “They really love the feel and are especially excited about the added spin and trajectory control they are experiencing.”

The new blade design is also customizable with various graphics, stamping and paint fill combinations offered through a dedicated Glide Forged custom website. The graphics include a Mr. PING logo, American flag, Arizona desert scene and Boomerang.

Hot Dog, Chips and Can of Pop $3.00

Kielbasa, Chips and Can of Pop $4.00

Even if you don’t golf, stop by and enjoy lunch with us.

16 teams came out to help support the Widows Sons Masonic outing today here at Pine Valley. The money raised goes to help a local group to continue their work. A fantastic day of golf, food and camaraderie were enjoyed. The highlight of the day of course was the famous Pork Chop dinner.

We look forward to having them back next year for an even greater event.

 

HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. (AP) — David Toms is breathing a little easier.

Nothing like winning a major to toss a big weight off a golfer’s shoulders, particularly when he had gone more than seven years without a victory on either the senior or regular tours.

Now, Toms has a shot at another one.

He comes into the Constellation Senior Players Championship looking to build on his win at the U.S. Senior Open at the Broadmoor two weeks ago.

“I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to try to win a tournament,” Toms said. “I felt like I had chances but wasn’t getting it done, and that’s when you think about when you go home at night away from the golf course. To finally get that, have that behind me now, it’s all about going out and trying to play great and giving myself another opportunity.”

Toms is part of a loaded field at Exmoor Country Club featuring 49 of the top 50 senior golfers.

Scott McCarron, with seven top-10 finishes this year and a win at the American Family Insurance Championship at University Ridge last month, comes in looking to defend a bittersweet comeback victory in last year’s Senior Players. He made up a six-shot deficit at Caves Valley near Baltimore to beat Bernhard Langer and Brandt Jobe by a stroke with a local caddie carrying his bag. His usual caddie Rich Mayo rushed to El Paso, Texas during the week to be with his ailing father, who died while Mayo was en route.

“His dad Bud was a great guy and loved watching Rich and I golf and compete, and would scream and yell at the TV all the time, so kind of felt his presence all week long,” McCarron said.

Langer hopes to extend his record with an 11th senior major championship. He won this event from 2014-16 before a late collapse helped give McCarron his victory last year. Langer was leading by one when he dropped his tee shot into the water on No. 17 for a double bogey. He had a 6-foot birdie putt on No. 18 that would have forced a playoff lip out.

“It’s a major. It’s a big tournament for us,” Langer said. “We’re all geared up to do the best we can.”

Toms is looking to build on a drought-busting victory. He spent last week vacationing with his family in Wyoming, getting in some time on the course with his son and avoiding the heat back home in Shreveport, Louisiana.

A 13-time winner on the PGA Tour, he hadn’t finished at the top of a leaderboard since the 2011 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. That changed two weeks ago when he made two long putts down the stretch for his first PGA Tour Champions win.

Toms rolled in a 15-footer for birdie on No. 16 and buried a downhill 20-footer to save par after driving into a fairway bunker on the 530-yard, par-4 17th. He shot an even-par 70 to finish one shot ahead of Miguel Angel Jimenez, Tim Petrovic and Jerry Kelly.

Winning the U.S. Senior Open gave him a spot in the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach next year if he chooses to play. A victory this week would get him to the Players Championship in March, where he lost a heartbreaking playoff to K.J. Choi at TPC Sawgrass in 2011.

“There’s a lot of things that go along with it, as well as the purse was pretty big,” Toms said. “It was almost like winning a regular tournament. All of that makes it pretty special. But at the same time, it was just more about winning a tournament.

“All of the other stuff is just a bonus on top of that,” he continued. “For me, I think it’ll be the shot to the arm that I needed to continue to play great.”