Ping G425 Max?

[GolfTurkey]

Today I did a 9 hole on course test of my Srixon ZX5 with Ventus Black 6x vs G425 Max with AV Orange 65s. 

 

The Srixon was fitted for me and I was getting far more centred strikes. In spite of that, the Ping was much straighter. The Srixon is possibly too low spin because it always wants to curve one way or the other even on good strikes. The Ping has that "frozen rope" trajectory and it wasn't crazy far behind the Srixon (maybe 10 yards).

 

Weather permitting (rain forecast) I'm trialling it in an 18 hole comp tomorrow.

[Holy Moses]

On 2/24/2022 at 10:52 PM, mantan said:

 

MQS is getting dragged on Twitter for naming it their most wanted after having it well down their 2021 rankings. Today they tried to claim it was because they had an out of spec test driver in 2021. Now they are getting dragged for that too.  It seems implausible that with all the testing they do they somehow got a driver way out of spec and didn't notice it. And that excuse would have held more water if they addressed the difference in results in the article...not after being called out on it on social media.  Between that and the fitting podcast fiasco, they've seemed to burn up a lot of goodwill the last few months.

 

I love PING drivers since the G15.  I've had some version of one in my bag 80% of time since then.  The G400 Max is my favorite driver of all time. IMO, the G425 didn't live up their recent offerings. It wasn't as forgiving as the G400 Max or as consistent as the G410 Plus. And it sounded horrible. It's a gorgeous driver. I wanted to love it, but after a month sold it and went back to the G410.

 

 

They put 100% of the blame on Ping which I don’t know if it’s justified. They also won’t say when they put the editor’s note in the 2021 test. If they knew the clubs weren’t stock, why didn’t they say so sooner after they knew? Seems like they are trying to save face by not publicly admitting the 2021 Ping test was bad until they had to when Ping did well in 2022. 

Edited April 9, 2022 by Holy Moses

[mosesgolf]

I just put a TM Stealth + through its paces with a low spinning ahaft and the stock Smoke Red shaft.  The Red Smoke hits way too high and the Fuji Tour Spec 6.2 combo hits it really long. However mishits are not very good.  And this is where heads like the G425 MAX shines.  I go back and forth with the MAX Ping heads and the forgiveness factor is incomparable. Bye bye Stealth. It might be 10 yards longer on a center strike but on average the Ping is just as long and way more forgiving.  

[Byrdman2230]

On 2/22/2022 at 2:46 PM, Holy Moses said:

Does anyone know when the reviewer’s test had the 2021 G25 retracted? Was it just in the last few days or had it been a while?

That would be a great question for them. Also, how was the driver not stock and when/how did they figure this out? Do they still have the drivers from 2021? Did they go pull it out and examine it when the results were so different from one year to the next? 
 

I don’t put a lot of stock in that website for a few reasons which we don’t need to go into, but, I have seen this before with putters. One year a blade putter will be ranked #2 and the following year the exact same putter is ranked #18. It just doesn’t make sense. 

[GolfTurkey]

The forgiveness ranking for the G425 Max in last year’s test was ridiculous. Anyone who has hit it says it’s one of the most forgiving and straightest drivers they have ever hit.  It’s also the highest MOI driver which is an objective measure 

[Kevmonton]

21 hours ago, mantan said:

 

MQS is getting dragged on Twitter for naming it their most wanted after having it well down their 2021 rankings. Today they tried to claim it was because they had an out of spec test driver in 2021. Now they are getting dragged for that too.  It seems implausible that with all the testing they do they somehow got a driver way out of spec and didn't notice it. And that excuse would have held more water if they addressed the difference in results in the article...not after being called out on it on social media.  Between that and the fitting podcast fiasco, they've seemed to burn up a lot of goodwill the last few months.

 

I love PING drivers since the G15.  I've had some version of one in my bag 80% of time since then.  The G400 Max is my favorite driver of all time. IMO, the G425 didn't live up their recent offerings. It wasn't as forgiving as the G400 Max or as consistent as the G410 Plus. And it sounded horrible. It's a gorgeous driver. I wanted to love it, but after a month sold it and went back to the G410.

 

 

What is fishy about MGS excuse is they measure all the drivers to confirm the specs and they are all listed. everything from actual loft/length/swingweight etc.  I am not aware of the fitting podcast fiasco, what is that about?

[GolfTurkey]

Certainly lots of anomalies lately to make one question MGS testing, aside from the G425 Max fiasco.

 

I doubt their poor test result last year would have hurt a major player like Ping too much, but they can sure give a small company a major boost. 

 

I wonder what percentage boost in sales Snell received from their 2020 ball test that showed the MTB-X blowing away the competition in ball speed and distance. The 2021 test did not replicate that result. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid ball and great value (I play it) but it's just another reason I take their tests with a bucket of salt.

[Byrdman2230]

26 minutes ago, GolfTurkey said:

 

I wonder what percentage boost in sales Snell received from their 2020 ball test that showed the MTB-X blowing away the competition in ball speed and distance. The 2021 test did not replicate that result. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid ball and great value (I play it) but it's just another reason I take their tests with a bucket of salt.

A large portion of the testing that MGS does simply involves too many variables to control for, but MGS will vehemently disagree with this idea. I used to follow them on social media a while back just to see what they were up to. I noticed that whenever people would raise concerns or have legitimate questions about their testing/results, MGS would respond in a rather immature, condescending and dismissive manner. I stopped following them. 
 

If they are putting the blame onto Ping for this, I would love to hear Ping’s response. 

[msg]

I spent almost all afternoon hitting my loaner G425 Max indoors on my Sky Trak, I can definitely say it is indeed very forgiving. It just wanted to go straight and mishits were also very playable and preserved the ball speeds. After a while, I got used to the sound. Unfortunately, in my own test, it was not better than my Ping G400 MAX. Though I really like the looks over the 400 Max, I cannot see myself spending almost $800 Canadian. 

 

But if someone looking for a driver that would keep your ball in play and wants something new, this is the one. 

[mantan]

2 hours ago, Kevmonton said:

What is fishy about MGS excuse is they measure all the drivers to confirm the specs and they are all listed. everything from actual loft/length/swingweight etc.  I am not aware of the fitting podcast fiasco, what is that about?

 

They owner of MQS invited one of the guys from TXG to discuss fitting. The premise of the pod was should the industry push for free fittings everywhere (the MQS position). TXG took the position that there is skill/overhead to fitting which should be compensated. It would have been fine if it was a civil debate. Instead the MQS guy was pretty rude, condescending, didn't listen and came off as a jerk. The TXG guy (who was their guest) was trying to be professional and civil.

 

The comments pretty much tell the story. A lot of people got a bad taste in their mouth on how MQS came across...

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PGfOJeDMkw&t=3s

[Holy Moses]

6 hours ago, Byrdman2230 said:

That would be a great question for them. Also, how was the driver not stock and when/how did they figure this out? Do they still have the drivers from 2021? Did they go pull it out and examine it when the results were so different from one year to the next? 
 

I don’t put a lot of stock in that website for a few reasons which we don’t need to go into, but, I have seen this before with putters. One year a blade putter will be ranked #2 and the following year the exact same putter is ranked #18. It just doesn’t make sense. 

The stock Ping shaft is 45.25”, while other Ping retail upgrade shafts are 45.75”. Somehow Ping either only sent them shorter shafts when longer ones were available and that hurt the numbers.

[GolfTurkey]

1 hour ago, Byrdman2230 said:

A large portion of the testing that MGS does simply involves too many variables to control for, but MGS will vehemently disagree with this idea. I used to follow them on social media a while back just to see what they were up to. I noticed that whenever people would raise concerns or have legitimate questions about their testing/results, MGS would respond in a rather immature, condescending and dismissive manner. I stopped following them. 
 

If they are putting the blame onto Ping for this, I would love to hear Ping’s response. 

 

Yeah, it's quite funny how defensive they get about the slightest criticism of their test and basically say it couldn't be done any better, then the next year it's all new and improved with very different results.

[akronswitness]

On 12/24/2021 at 2:47 PM, freddi22cl said:

same boat. Not sure what the fuss is about the g425

Same. They nailed it with the G400. So you would think the G425 would be better (if thats even possible). 

 

Im intrigued by the G425, but Im not ready to give up on the G400 until Im forced to.  I heard better things about the G410 than the G425

Edited February 26, 2022 by akronswitness

[mantan]

11 hours ago, Byrdman2230 said:

A large portion of the testing that MGS does simply involves too many variables to control for, but MGS will vehemently disagree with this idea. I used to follow them on social media a while back just to see what they were up to. I noticed that whenever people would raise concerns or have legitimate questions about their testing/results, MGS would respond in a rather immature, condescending and dismissive manner. I stopped following them. 
 

If they are putting the blame onto Ping for this, I would love to hear Ping’s response. 

 

I love the idea of a site that does objective testing on a ton of equipment. But agree that they often come across in a condescending, dismissive way. The attitude is reflected in the hosts of their pod. The 3 guys come off condescending *****s with a whole 'we're smart and everyone else is stupid' vibe. Could not imagine playing a round of golf with them.

 

That same attitude comes across in their social media as well.

[Kevmonton]

18 hours ago, mantan said:

 

They owner of MQS invited one of the guys from TXG to discuss fitting. The premise of the pod was should the industry push for free fittings everywhere (the MQS position). TXG took the position that there is skill/overhead to fitting which should be compensated. It would have been fine if it was a civil debate. Instead the MQS guy was pretty rude, condescending, didn't listen and came off as a jerk. The TXG guy (who was their guest) was trying to be professional and civil.

 

The comments pretty much tell the story. A lot of people got a bad taste in their mouth on how MQS came across...

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PGfOJeDMkw&t=3s

Thanks for taking the time to update me.

[Honeybadger]

Anyone play the Ventus Red in their G425 Max? What’s your experience? 

[tomathist]

I changed my shaft from AD VR 6X to Ventus TR 6S for max 10.5 version, and boy, the club seems so forgiving... It seems draw biased, and my swings which would usually end up in slice, just end up being a little bigger fades. The trajectory is a bit low, but I think that is my swing, and I can make it a bit more prettier. Hopefully I will stick to this config for a long time.

[Tava woods]

On the actual course hitting good golf balls the G425 Max doesn’t sound / feel bad and it performs Excellent. On the range hitting hard cold range balls in a confined area the G425 Max will sound worse  and possibly produce a sonic boom if another Ping driver is hit near by . It’s like dating a super hot chick that’s a women in the streets and a freak in the sheets but has a bad dorky snorting laugh ….. you get use to it as the goods far outweigh the one questionable thing. 

[m3fuz]

1 hour ago, Tava woods said:

On the actual course hitting good golf balls the G425 Max doesn’t sound / feel bad and it performs Excellent. On the range hitting hard cold range balls in a confined area the G425 Max will sound worse  and possibly produce a sonic boom if another Ping driver is hit near by . It’s like dating a super hot chick that’s a women in the streets and a freak in the sheets but has a bad dorky snorting laugh ….. you get use to it as the goods far outweigh the one questionable thing. 

 

Hahaha!  Great analogy.  Agreed on all counts!

[Oknows]

Played my first round in a while last week.  Rest of my game was absolute trash, but the MAX was on fire.  Played 27.  Missed one fairway.  Hit at least 4 320+.  My buddy who I play with often and who plays a lot more than me said he's not sure he's ever seen someone drive the ball that well over the course of 18, much less 27.   Thing is NEVER leaving my bag.

[SaVo_]

20 minutes ago, Oknows said:

Played my first round in a while last week.  Rest of my game was absolute trash, but the MAX was on fire.  Played 27.  Missed one fairway.  Hit at least 4 320+.  My buddy who I play with often and who plays a lot more than me said he's not sure he's ever seen someone drive the ball that well over the course of 18, much less 27.   Thing is NEVER leaving my bag.

I see you play the rogue 70s in your max; may I ask what you swing speed is for reference? looking to test the Max sometime soon at my local retailer and want to know if I should even consider testing the rogue and how it compares to the tour and tensei shaft for you if you've tried them?

[Oknows]

1 hour ago, SaVo_ said:

I see you play the rogue 70s in your max; may I ask what you swing speed is for reference? looking to test the Max sometime soon at my local retailer and want to know if I should even consider testing the rogue and how it compares to the tour and tensei shaft for you if you've tried them?

100-105 last I checked, but I've put on some muscle over the last year, so it might be a hair higher.  I don't swing out of my shoes with the driver.  Never goes well.  

Edited March 30, 2022 by Oknows

[Caddy Carl]

Has anyone tried a little hot melt in the MAX and if so how did it change the sound?  Picked up a 10.5° head and the sound/feel was very different than what I’m used to with TM drivers.  I was hitting outdoor with Titleist Tour Practice range balls. 

[Echo1]

41 minutes ago, Caddy Carl said:

Has anyone tried a little hot melt in the MAX and if so how did it change the sound?  Picked up a 10.5° head and the sound/feel was very different than what I’m used to with TM drivers.  I was hitting outdoor with Titleist Tour Practice range balls. 

 

[hammergolf]

On 2/25/2022 at 11:13 PM, mantan said:

 

They owner of MQS invited one of the guys from TXG to discuss fitting. The premise of the pod was should the industry push for free fittings everywhere (the MQS position). TXG took the position that there is skill/overhead to fitting which should be compensated. It would have been fine if it was a civil debate. Instead the MQS guy was pretty rude, condescending, didn't listen and came off as a jerk. The TXG guy (who was their guest) was trying to be professional and civil.

 

The comments pretty much tell the story. A lot of people got a bad taste in their mouth on how MQS came across...

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PGfOJeDMkw&t=3s

He comes off that way consistently….

[jt2gt]

6 hours ago, Caddy Carl said:

Has anyone tried a little hot melt in the MAX and if so how did it change the sound?  Picked up a 10.5° head and the sound/feel was very different than what I’m used to with TM drivers.  I was hitting outdoor with Titleist Tour Practice range balls. 

Those are two of the most opposite sound/ feel drivers you could have. HM may mute a bit but will never get close to sound/ feel of the TM. 

[Caddy Carl]

12 hours ago, Echo1 said:

 

Cool, thanks for sharing that thread

[Caddy Carl]

7 hours ago, jt2gt said:

Those are two of the most opposite sound/ feel drivers you could have. HM may mute a bit but will never get close to sound/ feel of the TM. 

Thanks for that feedback. Good to know!

[Tdsjfb]

On 3/19/2022 at 9:44 AM, Honeybadger said:

Anyone play the Ventus Red in their G425 Max? What’s your experience? 

 

I've been playing the Blue in my G425 Max with excellent results I was looking for a higher flight so picked up a Ventus Red to try out. Haven't played with it yet, but also interested in others who might be using in their driver.

 

Update - played the Red yesterday and LOVE IT!. Same specs as my Velocore Blue (55/S) and for an aging swing it's incredible. Not as stout, feedback is great AND STRAIGHT/LONG!

Edited April 17, 2022 by Tdsjfb

[sociojeje]

On 2/25/2022 at 2:18 PM, Holy Moses said:

The put 100% of the blame on Ping which I don’t know if it’s justified. They also won’t say when they put the editor’s note in the 2021 test. If they knew the clubs weren’t stock, why didn’t they say so sooner after they knew? Seems like they are trying to save face by not publicly admitting the 2021 Ping test was bad until they had to when Ping did well in 2022. 

After this year's test, I no longer take MGS's tests seriously. The contrasting result is a joke and deleting the 2021 data was not even a joke. In 2021, as long as I remember, 425 was worse than 410 lol. Anyway, I got 410 plus for cheap here. Been a while to hit a ping driver (since g15?) but oh boy how easy 410 plus was. I got me interested in 425 max anyway. Not sure why I have been struggling with low spin heads. After all, I now know 105 mph is my max maximum and can't hit my dream goal 300yds with the speed...