[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":20},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article-ping-golf-clubs-ping-for-beginners-and-high-handicappers-what-to-buy-first":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"subtitle":6,"image":7,"imageAlt":8,"category":9,"html":12,"wordCount":13,"prev":14,"next":17},"ping-for-beginners-and-high-handicappers-what-to-buy-first","Ping for Beginners and High Handicappers: What to Buy First","Where a newer golfer should start in the Ping range, and what to skip entirely.","\u002Fimg\u002Fping-golf-clubs\u002Fping-for-beginners-and-high-handicappers-what-to-buy-first_ping-beginners-high.png","Ping for Beginners and High Handicappers: What to Buy First illustration",{"slug":10,"title":11},"ping-golf-clubs","Ping Golf Clubs","\u003Ch3>Buy fewer clubs, better fitted\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>The most common beginner mistake is buying fourteen clubs at once. Half of them go unused for a year, and that money is better spent on fewer, properly fitted clubs plus some lessons. A genuinely effective starter setup runs to around eight or ten clubs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3>A sensible first Ping bag\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Driver.\u003C\u002Fstrong> A \u003Cstrong>G440 Max\u003C\u002Fstrong>, or \u003Cstrong>G440 SFT\u003C\u002Fstrong> if you already know you slice. Take plenty of loft — 10.5° or higher suits most new golfers, whatever anyone tells you about loft being a weakness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Fairway wood or hybrid.\u003C\u002Fstrong> A higher-lofted fairway wood is far more useful early on than a low-lofted 3-wood, and a \u003Cstrong>G440 hybrid\u003C\u002Fstrong> around 22–25° replaces long irons that beginners almost never strike well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Irons from 6-iron down.\u003C\u002Fstrong> \u003Cstrong>G740\u003C\u002Fstrong> is built exactly for this stage — wide soles help enormously with the fat and thin contact that defines the early years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Two wedges.\u003C\u002Fstrong> A pitching wedge from the set, plus an \u003Cstrong>s259\u003C\u002Fstrong> around 54–56°, in the \u003Cstrong>S\u003C\u002Fstrong> or \u003Cstrong>W\u003C\u002Fstrong> grind. Skip a lob wedge for now — it’s the hardest club in the bag to use well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Putter.\u003C\u002Fstrong> A standard \u003Cstrong>Anser 2\u003C\u002Fstrong> or a mid-mallet from the Anser range. Forgiveness on off-centre putts directly reduces three-putts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3>What to skip\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Blueprint irons.\u003C\u002Fstrong> They punish rather than help while your technique develops.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>G440 LST or K drivers.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Both assume a consistency you’re still building.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>A 60° lob wedge.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Great in the right hands, a liability in the wrong ones.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Long irons.\u003C\u002Fstrong> A 4-iron is a wasted slot for most high handicappers.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Four-wedge setups.\u003C\u002Fstrong> You need long-club help far more than a fourth wedge.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Ch3>Forgiveness features that genuinely help\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Col>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Sole width.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Wider soles skid rather than dig, rescuing plenty of poor strikes on their own.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Offset.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Helps square the face and fights a slice.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Total weight.\u003C\u002Fstrong> Lighter builds are easier to control while technique develops.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Fol>\n\u003Ch3>Should beginners bother with the colour code?\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>Yes — but a simplified version. You don’t need a two-hour dynamic session yet. You need someone to confirm \u003Cstrong>length, lie angle and grip size\u003C\u002Fstrong>, which takes about twenty minutes and prevents most equipment-related bad habits from ever forming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3>Buying used is smart here\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>Because your swing will change substantially in the first two seasons, previous-generation Ping equipment makes real sense. A one-generation-old G440 driver performs very close to the current one and costs a fraction. Put the savings into lessons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cblockquote>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Coach’s tip:\u003C\u002Fstrong> The single most valuable early purchase is a putter fitted to your height and stroke. Nothing else you buy affects your score as directly, and Ping’s Anser range makes it an affordable place to start.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003C\u002Fblockquote>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cem>Model names current as of September 2026.\u003C\u002Fem>\u003C\u002Fp>\n",461,{"slug":15,"title":16},"ping-custom-fitting-and-the-colour-code-system-explained","Ping Custom Fitting and the Colour Code System Explained",{"slug":18,"title":19},"ping-for-low-handicappers-and-better-players","Ping for Low Handicappers and Better Players",1788299817721]