Introducing Moonlander, designated for the walking purist who favors a simpler, cleaner design with only enough pockets for essentials. It is light, only 4 ½ lbs., and has six pockets.
New colorways and lively patterns are offered in this long-popular carry bag. It boasts a stacked pocket configuration for easier access and a large ball pocket among nine altogether. A four-way top is reconfigured to optimize organization and handling.
The new-and-improved, highly organized Traverse is ready to roll, offering a re-designed 14-way top that safeguards clubs, including the putter, which gets its own well.
Bringing you insights from the PING Proving Grounds, where our talented team of engineers, researchers, fitting experts and data scientists design and develop the newest product and fitting technologies to help you play better. Using the most advanced tools available, we’ll explain and explore the science behind golf-equipment performance. We’ll separate fact from fiction with the goal of helping you make informed decisions when choosing the PING equipment best suited for maximizing your performance.
By Jacob Clarke
While many golfers understandably search for ways to maximize driver distance and hit the majestic 300-yard drive, few golfers prioritize the selection of properly fit scoring clubs. Typically, the excitement of a wedge-fitting experience takes a back seat to a driver fitting. With a large percentage of shots occurring within 120 yards of the target, there has never been a better time to put a premium on your wedge fitting. While color code and shaft fitting are keys to wedge play, in this article we are going to give you a blueprint for finding the most effective sole grind for your game, regardless of your fitting environment.
My Game Insights analytics, powered by Arccos, processed by data scientists at the PING Proving Grounds indicate that the average 10 to 14 handicap golfer hits seven greens in regulation per round, and higher handicappers average even less. This type of analysis highlights the importance of wedge play and helps inform how we curate an effective wedge-fitting process.
When choosing a wedge set-up, you will want to work with your fitter to discuss usage scenarios for each club and the turf and sand conditions you typically play. Prior to your fitting, take an inventory of these key short-game shots, and be prepared to share them with your fitter.
Informed by our on-course data, we have evolved our wedge fitting process to start with shots around the green and work backward to full shots and gapping. At the PING Proving Grounds, we are developing Game-Like Fitting™ protocols around our short-game area to create a matrix of shots that are most like what you’d face on the course, in an effort to tease out the optimal sole grind for your technique that can stand up under pressure.
If you are being fit outdoors, start your fitting around the short game area with your highest-lofted wedges. We recommend navigating to the shortest turf that puts a little bit of pressure on your technique and hit a variety of shots that are indicative of what you need to play on the course.
In this process, a skilled fitter will have you try several grinds based on your technique and turf conditions, and they will be listening for the proper “click” in the acoustics. The audible signature of impact acts as an indicator of ball capture and the sole grind properly gliding through the turf. This is the essence of the Glide series.
In the Glide 4.0 wedges, your certified PING Fitter will have an array of grinds to choose from:
Once you’ve optimized your highest-lofted wedge greenside, you can move to full shots. Research powered by ENSO, PING’s 3D Motion Capture system that operates at 720 frames/second, helps power the insight that players with a steep angle of attack generally fit best with a wider sole, and players with a shallower angle of attack are more optimal with a shallower sole.
If you are being fit indoors, PING’s Fitting Performance scientists have developed specific tools that will benefit you. First, our wedge-specific grind tape provides an immediate indication of the player’s impact delivery for both lie angle (heel-toe marking) and attack angle (front-back marking). This new fitting tool gives an exceptional visual confirmation for players during an indoor or outdoor fitting.
Another popular fitting tool is our Wedge Analysis Chart (below) that identifies specific attributes that can educate you on what to look for, or discuss, with your fitter. One of the key attributes is Angle of Attack (AoA), the measurement in degrees of how the wedge is descending or ascending at impact. Most launch monitors, whether used indoors or outdoors, will provide accurate measurements of AoA, which will allow you to cross reference to the appropriate wedge grind.
Armed with this framework for finding the right wedge and with the new Glide 4.0 sole-grind designs creating a wider range of fitting options, there has never been a better time to visit an authorized PING fitter and find the right grind for you.
Jacob has worked as a Design Engineer for PING since 2014. He joined PING after earning a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Clemson University. During his time at PING, Jacob has led the designs for the Glide 2.0 and 3.0 wedges, as well as the G400, ProdiG and Blueprint irons.