Ping G LE Range Review

Perfect for Slow Swingers

Granted, it’s nothing revolutionary – the G LE clubs use pretty much the same technologies as their vanilla counterparts, the Ping G range, and with pretty much the same results. However, the LE line does have some tweaks that make playing them feel entirely different.

For a start, they’re shorter, aiming to help folks with slower swings (irrespective of gender or age) get that much needed boost in the way of distance, as well as forgiveness. Also, they’re available in a cute, mint finish, but it’s debatable how that’ll help with the performance. At least it’s not pink, eh?

Ping G LE: What You Get

What you get with the Ping G LE women’s clubs is a thinner face right across the board, which should help you get a bit higher launch angles. The technology Ping used in the clubfaces does a great job of generating more spin, enabling you, in turn, to get more distance.

Center of Gravity

The heads here are designed with perimeter weighting, shifting the center of gravity a bit more down and to the back. This deeper CG position goes a long way to ensuring that you get more launch on all kinds of shots, from full swing, through ¾-swing, to half-swing, as well as plenty of check on that second bounce.

On a similar note, the combination of a head-heavy design and graphite shafts will make for a better balance, which should appeal to slower swingers who are looking to get that boost in terms of distance and forgiveness. The swingweight is also up to par for slower swingers (and now that the obligatory golf pun is out of the way, we can move on with the review).

The Shorter Shafts

Another great thing that’s constant throughout the Ping G LE range are the lightweight and shorter shafts that favour shorter players with less in the way of upper-body strength, aiming to help you get the most out of your swing.

That said, all of the clubs here are noticeably shorter than most others on the market, including the vanilla Ping G line, and in some instances you might need to go up two clubs (to stronger lofts) to achieve the desired distance. For example, their 3-wood plays the same as 5-wood from most other manufacturers.

Ping G LE Driver

The Ping G LE women’s driver comes with a slightly oversized titanium head (460cc), with an adjustable hosel that allows you to go up or down the lofts up to one degree. The head makes use of two Ping proprietary technologies – Vortec and Dragonfly.

The first acts in a way like the spoiler on the back of a truck, reducing the drag and allowing the air to flow smoothly. The second piece of tech is the Dragonfly design in the structure of the crown, which features five beams supporting much thinner pieces of material in between. This allows the head to have a bit of a bigger footprint without adding too much weight. And yes, it is indeed inspired by a dragonfly’s wings.

On a similar note, this allows the CG to shift slightly to the back and bottom, allowing for more consistency and forgiveness. The driver comes in two distinct flavours in terms of flex, the Lite or Ultra Lite, both featured on the 44.75-inch long Ping ULT 230D shaft.

Ping G LE Fairways

The first thing you’ll notice on the Ping G LE women’s fairways is a leading edge slightly lower than on most other woods, which makes it easier for you to play off tight lies. Thanks to its thinner crown design, a wood from this set will give you more lift on the ball, as it allows the head to shift the CG, yes, you guessed it, low and to the back. Not only is this conducive to getting higher launch angles, but it also gives you more forgiveness on off-centre hits.

Moreover, with the CarTech 455 face, the Ping G LE woods should generate plenty of spin, allowing you to get the ball farther than before. They come in the stock Ping ULT 230F shaft (graphite), in either Lite or Ultra Lite Flex. The lofts are a bit weird, as they’re not consistent with other manufacturers, but if you’re a Ping player, this shouldn’t be a problem for you. Here’s what’s on the table: 3W (19.00°), 5W (22.00°), 7W (26.00°), and 9W (30.00°).

Ping G LE Hybrids

For the sake of consistency, we’ll start with the hybrids, and then flow into the irons as we go along. So, first thing’s first, what you’ll notice about the Ping G LE women’s hybrids is the CarTech 455 face, which is a bit thinner than you might be used to. This is plainly evident by the crisp click you’ll hear at impact. What this face allows you, as you might’ve already guessed, is rev up the spins to get more distance.

Ping G LE Irons

On a similar note, the Ping G LE women’s irons do pretty much the same thing. Thanks to the soft 17-4 stainless steel that goes into making these puppies, you’ll get a nice, solid feel and plenty of good feedback both on good shots and mishits. The COR-Eye technology goes a long way to optimizing your swing, giving you more launch, more distance and better control with less effort than on comparable clubs (the vanilla G irons included).

As for the shafts, the deal is pretty much the same as for the rest of the range – two flexes, Lite and Ultra Lite, on a Ping ULT 230 shaft (Ping ULT 230i, to be exact). Here’s what’s in the set: 5-iron (24.00° with a 6.0° bounce), 6-iron (27.00° with a 7.0°), 8-iron (30.50° with a 8.0° bounce), and 9-iron (40.00° with a 10.5° bounce), as well as three wedges which we’ll discuss shortly.

Ping G LE Wedges

Although technically considered irons, for our intents and purposes we’re giving the Ping G LE women’s wedges a subsection of their own. As you might’ve already guessed, this is not a standalone wedge line, as these puppies come along with the irons and hybrids as a set. That said, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the choice in the way of lofts is a bit poor, so you’ve got only the pitching wedge, the utility wedge, and the sand wedge.

All of the materials and technologies we’ve seen in the irons and hybrids are present in the wedges, with pretty much the same results – the 17-4 stainless steel gives you good feel and feedback, the COR-Eye technology increases flexing across the face, sole, and top-line to generate an enhanced amount of spin for more distance and check, and the perimeter weighting helps with the forgiveness on off center shots.

So, even if you hit a G LE wedge more to the heel or to the toe, you’ll still be able to get away with it. Of course, all three options play with the stock Ping ULT 230i graphite shaft, with either Lite or Ultra Lite flex. Here’s what’s on the table:

Pitching Wedge

The pitching wedge comes with a 45.00° loft, though it really hits more like if it were a 46, maybe even a 47. It’s slightly offset (0.14"), which helps you in two ways. One, it makes it easier for you to square the face up, so you have an easier time hitting it straight (or at least not slice it), and, two, it’ll help the COR-Eye flex get you more lift.

It’s got a medium-to-high bounce (12.0°), which favours diggers and, again, helps get more launch on the ball. With a swingweight of C6, it’s pretty light, helping you get the most out of a slow swing.

Utility Wedge

Ping has this weird custom of standing apart from the rest of manufacturers, so their approach or gap wedges are actually called utility wedge, but don’t let that confuse you. With a loft-to-bounce combo of 52.00-12.0°, this puppy is really your go to gap wedge if you’re looking for higher launch and something to get you through some light sand, deep rough or fluffy fairway. With a slight offset (0.11") and a C7 swingweight, this puppy is designed with distance and forgiveness in mind, especially for high cappers.

Sand Wedge

The Ping G LE women’s sand wedge comes with a loft-to-bounce combo of 58.00° and 13.0°, respectively. Both of these are deliberately taken to give you the most value playing out of bunkers, some deep rough or the like. Like the other two wedges, the SW features a slight offset (0.08"), and an even lighter swingweight (C8), which couples nicely to give you plenty of lift irrespective of the swing.

Now, it would be a nice addition if the set had a lob wedge, but the SW is a more than adequate substitute. All you need to do is open up the face a little bit and choke up on it, though if your game really requires a dedicated lob wedge, you should definitely get one.

Ping G LE Putters

The Ping G LE putters come in three different flavours, depending on what your short game needs – Caru (gold-nickel), Arna (gold-nickel), and Oslo (mint). All three, though, use the same 33-inch shafts and feature the same True Roll Technology that uses the variabLE depth pattern on the face, which should enhance the ball speed on both center and off-center hits, giving you more distance control, as well as consistency.

Also, it makes the putter look better at address as they frame the ball. The Caru and Arna putters are made of the same 17-4 stainless steel as the G LE wedges and irons, and both are designed with accommodating slight arcing strokes. The only difference between them is the head shape – blade or mallet, respectively (there’s really not much difference in performance).

Conversely, the Oslo is made of aerospace-grade aluminum with an added steel soleplate that gives it even more forgiveness. It plays straight shots and slight arcs.

The Final Verdict

To sum up, although it’s been repeated ad nauseam here – if you’d like to get a set of clubs that will make the most out of your slow-ish swing and give you that much needed boost in distance and control you’ve been looking for, then look no further than the Ping G LE.

The LE might stand for Ladies’ Edition, but don’t let that stop the gentlemen among you from getting them if you need a bit of an edge and something to shave a few strokes off your game.