PING GLIDE FORGED PRO

◆ Lofts 50° / 52° / 54° / 56° / 58° / 59° / 60° / 62° ◆ Finish options Hydropearl 2.0 Chrome ◆ Grind options S Grind, T Grind ◆ Stock shaft Ping Z-Z115

Ping reckon the Pro is a shotmaker’s wedge, a model very much for confident and creative short-gamers. A precision milled face maximises friction and control. Different shaped grooves optimise spin between full swing lower lofts and more delicate greenside higher lofts. A Hydropearl 2.0 finish dissipates moisture more efficiently to maximise spin in wet and rough conditions. Choose between a standard or thinner sole grind (which has less bounce), or the nostalgic Eye2 59 option.

VERDICT

If you’re a Ping fan and your eyes have told you that Ping’s Glide 3.0 wedges are a little longer from toe to heel than you typically want, you definitely need to look at the new, more compact and desirable Forged

Pro. The height of simplicity, there’s nothing to not like about this super honest and classy wedge, hence its popularity among Ping’s tour staff. We like the split-weight back design which allows additional mass to be located higher to improve shot-to-shot spin consistency, an increasingly important topic of debate for decent short-gamers.

They’re more expensive than most other tour-level wedges – a three-piece set costs more than the equivalent Vokey SM8S, so you’ll need to truly love them before taking the plunge. Our data suggests that if you do, you’ll get similar backspin levels to Vokey’s classic wedge, but with a decent sprinkling of extra shot predictability. If you can justify the extra cost over the competition, you’ll absolutely love these timeless classics.