For me the most important thing is control and trajectory with as little dispersion as possible. The distance is a plus. But provided you can control it, if the balls go all over the place then it is of no interest. Besides, going 150 yards with a 9 iron or a 7 or a 5 is of no importance. What matters is to know which iron you must use to be able to cover this distance and have balls that are always more or less in the middle of the fairway and/or green. This is why I chose the retro loft i530.
I was fitted last weekend and the i530 and the ZX4 I hit great .. both were absolutely the same for me .. went with the pings but it was a personal preference
Great review, but i seem to be coming to a different conclusion from these results--- it looks to me like the Ping club was the clear winner of the two in consistent distance control. The offline business could come down to shaft, or the fact that the Ping is stronger lofted (basically hitting one club stronger, in comparison). Either way, distance control with an iron is a game-changer for most people, although it's not talked about nearly as much as spin is. Having a rocket launcher that gets consistent results all across the face is some seriouis tech. Just my humble opinion.
Would love to see the spin rates with an 8 iron (i530), guessing same spin as the P790 7 iron…same same, would rather hit an eight into the green as opposed to a seven iron
I had the p790.. I liked it, but the gap was quite difficult to adjust… if the Ping are longer… it will be worst!!! I still like my I230… one + club shorter, but more « predictable » trajectory… consistent.
These comparisons should be done with the same loft. I’d like to see the difference in spin and distance if they both played at 30.5. I think they would play a lot closer. I’m personally not a fan of all these sets with such strong lofts. At 29 degrees that’s a 6 iron not a 7. So that alone changes the numbers. You should see more distance, lower spin numbers, less height. I’m going on Sunday for an iron fitting and I’m looking into the players distance category. But I’ve played a 33 degree 7 iron for so long now, I’m just used to it. I don’t mind a slightly stronger lofted 7, but the 790s 30.5 is sbout as strong as I’d want. Really I’m hoping to go 1 or 2 degrees weak, but I guess we will see how it all plays out on Sunday.
Interesting outcome, wasn't expecting the one club difference in distance with the ping. I would still prefer to be hitting the ping 8 iron instead of the P790 7 iron.
Depends on your game. With P790's I get a lot of ball height and spin which often means less overall distance, but more 'control' as the ball stops dead on shorter irons. However, the height exaggerates any spin and gets more effect from the weather so I missed a lot of GIR. The i530's suited me better because of the lower launch angle and the 'punch' seemed to help me stay straight. The i530's are defo going to help me drop another couple of digits and become single-figures for next season (coming from G425s).
I went with PXG 0311 P because looks , sound , feel , sensible distance , gerat spin numbers & the front to back dispersion is the best I've ever had, oh & the TT elevate shafts.
it is fascinating on how to interpret the dispersion --- the Ping seems to have a wider horizontal dispersion, while the P790 seems to have a larger vertical dispersion. If you've got trouble in front of or behind the hole, then the Ping is the proper club. But if the trouble is to the sides, then the P790 is the club. In my experience, usually the danger is either right in front of you or if you go too long. Of course there's always going to be exceptions, but usually it's problematic if you're long or short more so than left or right (on approach shots, which is where the irons will shine or not). It'll be Ping for me. I currently play Ping's iBlades, but the next set i get will definitely be looking at these i530's very closely. And i need some help with distance now that i'm in my 50's 😀
The launch angle on the 530 looks VERY low, did you get the power specs instead of the standard? In that case you can pull an 8 iron to compare it with the 790 7 iron otherwise it doesn't make much sense
Results from my professional fitting with common light steel shaft on both echo'd this review. Compared to my decrepit G10 Ping 6 iron baseline, TrackMan results were amazingly better w/P790 & i530 (30 & 38 yards avg better w/better launch & descent angles!). But differences on dispersion and spin vs this video though just emphasize... get a fitting for YOUR game.
Where you are hitting a 7 iron with the P790 you would drop down a club (8 iron?) with the i530, which might bring the spin rate more in line with what you want. Distance withe the i530 8 iron might even be slightly longer if those numbers hold up. Was this the power spec or traditional?
These were standard lofts, yes launch and spin would increase with 8 iron and distance would drop, but most likely still a little longer that P790 8 iron
I do play the P 790. And if I hit them well the ball really flies well. Not sure if we average golfer really feel a difference between the two brands , unless the lift is different. There are plenty of really good golf clubs on the market available. 😊😊😊
your Ping I530 data from the club own reviewed and this comparison is way different. In your Ping I 530 review 7 iron spin rate was average 5600 here is 4400. Wonder why such a big gap in the same iron.
I would take the i530 with retro lofts. The number on the club is irrelevant. Ping has always produced clubs with consistent yardage gaps between clubs. As a lower handicap player I want to know I have a bag of clubs that cover all the yardages not the irons I can brag about hitting my 7 iron 190 yards.
After a minute in, my guess you like the Ping better because the TM is a demo head and the Ping is not…going with Ping….I’ll watch the rest and see if I am surprised or not
You sound a little biased towards Taylormade if you like Taylormade better as a product that’s OK but for me, there’s not a clear winner because of different lofts ….ping had the obvious distance advantage and forgiveness…
For me the most important thing is control and trajectory with as little dispersion as possible. The distance is a plus. But provided you can control it, if the balls go all over the place then it is of no interest. Besides, going 150 yards with a 9 iron or a 7 or a 5 is of no importance. What matters is to know which iron you must use to be able to cover this distance and have balls that are always more or less in the middle of the fairway and/or green. This is why I chose the retro loft i530.
I was fitted last weekend and the i530 and the ZX4 I hit great .. both were absolutely the same for me .. went with the pings but it was a personal preference
Thanks for sharing
Great review, but i seem to be coming to a different conclusion from these results--- it looks to me like the Ping club was the clear winner of the two in consistent distance control. The offline business could come down to shaft, or the fact that the Ping is stronger lofted (basically hitting one club stronger, in comparison). Either way, distance control with an iron is a game-changer for most people, although it's not talked about nearly as much as spin is. Having a rocket launcher that gets consistent results all across the face is some seriouis tech. Just my humble opinion.
Would love to see the spin rates with an 8 iron (i530), guessing same spin as the P790 7 iron…same same, would rather hit an eight into the green as opposed to a seven iron
I had the p790.. I liked it, but the gap was quite difficult to adjust… if the Ping are longer… it will be worst!!! I still like my I230… one + club shorter, but more « predictable » trajectory… consistent.
These comparisons should be done with the same loft. I’d like to see the difference in spin and distance if they both played at 30.5. I think they would play a lot closer. I’m personally not a fan of all these sets with such strong lofts. At 29 degrees that’s a 6 iron not a 7. So that alone changes the numbers. You should see more distance, lower spin numbers, less height.
I’m going on Sunday for an iron fitting and I’m looking into the players distance category. But I’ve played a 33 degree 7 iron for so long now, I’m just used to it. I don’t mind a slightly stronger lofted 7, but the 790s 30.5 is sbout as strong as I’d want. Really I’m hoping to go 1 or 2 degrees weak, but I guess we will see how it all plays out on Sunday.
How was your fitting?
Cant this all be attributed to the stronger loft in the Ping?
The lofts play a huge factor for sure
Interesting outcome, wasn't expecting the one club difference in distance with the ping.
I would still prefer to be hitting the ping 8 iron instead of the P790 7 iron.
Yes I think this one will split opinions
I believe you can get the Pings in retro-spec (more loft).
Genuinely surprised such difference with the distance. I played the i525 and it’s never the longest.
Depends on your game. With P790's I get a lot of ball height and spin which often means less overall distance, but more 'control' as the ball stops dead on shorter irons. However, the height exaggerates any spin and gets more effect from the weather so I missed a lot of GIR. The i530's suited me better because of the lower launch angle and the 'punch' seemed to help me stay straight. The i530's are defo going to help me drop another couple of digits and become single-figures for next season (coming from G425s).
I went with PXG 0311 P because looks , sound , feel , sensible distance , gerat spin numbers & the front to back dispersion is the best I've ever had, oh & the TT elevate shafts.
How much impact to spin and land angle do you get with retro loft?
it is fascinating on how to interpret the dispersion --- the Ping seems to have a wider horizontal dispersion, while the P790 seems to have a larger vertical dispersion. If you've got trouble in front of or behind the hole, then the Ping is the proper club. But if the trouble is to the sides, then the P790 is the club. In my experience, usually the danger is either right in front of you or if you go too long. Of course there's always going to be exceptions, but usually it's problematic if you're long or short more so than left or right (on approach shots, which is where the irons will shine or not).
It'll be Ping for me. I currently play Ping's iBlades, but the next set i get will definitely be looking at these i530's very closely. And i need some help with distance now that i'm in my 50's 😀
The launch angle on the 530 looks VERY low, did you get the power specs instead of the standard? In that case you can pull an 8 iron to compare it with the 790 7 iron otherwise it doesn't make much sense
Distance only with the driver, te rest must to be focused on controll.
The number is only to now what club to choice each time.
No descent angles mentioned??
All that extra distance is right in the launch angle data, ping launch is lower, which gives them more distance probably less degree.
Results from my professional fitting with common light steel shaft on both echo'd this review. Compared to my decrepit G10 Ping 6 iron baseline, TrackMan results were amazingly better w/P790 & i530 (30 & 38 yards avg better w/better launch & descent angles!). But differences on dispersion and spin vs this video though just emphasize... get a fitting for YOUR game.
Where you are hitting a 7 iron with the P790 you would drop down a club (8 iron?) with the i530, which might bring the spin rate more in line with what you want. Distance withe the i530 8 iron might even be slightly longer if those numbers hold up. Was this the power spec or traditional?
These were standard lofts, yes launch and spin would increase with 8 iron and distance would drop, but most likely still a little longer that P790 8 iron
I do play the P 790. And if I hit them well the ball really flies well. Not sure if we average golfer really feel a difference between the two brands , unless the lift is different. There are plenty of really good golf clubs on the market available. 😊😊😊
P790 are a great iron and as good as anything in this category 👍🏻
hi im a 18 handicapper, could i play with those pings ? or are they to 'difficult' for me? cheers
More than likely they’ll be forgiving enough but you need to try them. G430 will offer you more forgiveness in Ping range
The retro spec loft for the Ping would have been more of an apples to apples comparison.
Indeed!
Standard loft of i530 is same as Power Spec of i525…jacked!
Both could be said to have won. It all depends on what the expectations are
your Ping I530 data from the club own reviewed and this comparison is way different. In your Ping I 530 review 7 iron spin rate was average 5600 here is 4400. Wonder why such a big gap in the same iron.
A combination of ‘human’ element and nature of the club
No casual player should waste money for either, glad you can hit that dime sized sweet spot!
I would take the i530 with retro lofts. The number on the club is irrelevant. Ping has always produced clubs with consistent yardage gaps between clubs. As a lower handicap player I want to know I have a bag of clubs that cover all the yardages not the irons I can brag about hitting my 7 iron 190 yards.
They are so good and retro lofts would help gap the wedges
Great review!
Glad you found it useful 👍🏻
The choice is , distance the Ping, controll the Taylor.
Easy !! 😂
Correct!
You’re analysis of the data was pretty biased. Your accuracy was actually better with the Ping
“Clear winner” … proceeds to say he likes TM more but it depends lol
Better for my game but if you want more distance then Ping is the answer 🔥
After a minute in, my guess you like the Ping better because the TM is a demo head and the Ping is not…going with Ping….I’ll watch the rest and see if I am surprised or not
You sound a little biased towards Taylormade if you like Taylormade better as a product that’s OK but for me, there’s not a clear winner because of different lofts ….ping had the obvious distance advantage and forgiveness…
In the search for distance, companies and new golfers have actually backed themselves into a corner...