By JAMES ACHENBACH
Senior WriterThe Aug. 25 announcement of Ping’s new premium-priced Rapture V2 family – driver, fairway woods, hybrids and irons – was expected. With many golf product cycles running their course in two years or less, the original Rapture series from 2006 was due for an update.
Despite what cynics might say, these product cycles among major manufacturers are driven mostly by technology, not cosmetics. Although handcuffed to some degree by USGA equipment regulations that place a ceiling on performance, clubmakers have been able to parlay new designs and science into compelling improvements.
Much of this advancement has occurred with multi-material science, upon which Ping has capitalized for its line of Rapture V2 products and other offerings.
• • •
RAPTURE V2 IRONS and s57 Irons: (V2 MSRP $165 each with steel shaft, $195 with graphite shaft; S57 MSRP $130 steel, $158 graphite).
The use of multiple materials is at the heart of the Rapture V2 irons, which combine stainless steel (body), titanium (face), tungsten (sole weighting, pictured at right) and elastomer (cavity insert).
The calling card for these irons is a higher launch angle, which has allowed Ping engineers to use stronger lofts. The result? You guessed it – more distance.
Ping designer Brad Schweigert said the Rapture V2 long irons and mid-irons will go “7 to 10 yards longer than the G10 irons.”
Because Rapture V2 and G10 will coexist in the Ping lineup, it might seem every golfer would desire the longer irons. This is not the case. With increased distance comes the age-old likelihood of increased distance-control issues. Even if the V2 irons transform a golf ball into a rocket ship, the lightweight titanium face would not be the first choice of professionals or low-handicap amateurs. Thin, lightweight titanium faces in irons are livelier than thicker, heavier steel faces, but carry distances are more consistent with steel faces.
Thus the S57 iron, which replaces the S58, is aimed at skilled players looking for precise carry distances. The lead designer was former PGA Tour winner Mike Nicolette, who produced a classic-looking stainless steel blade, albeit with an injection of tungsten in the toe.
The effect of this weighting scheme? Ping says the S57’s MOI, or resistance to twisting, is 5 percent higher than that of the S58. Theoretically this means more stability, consistency and repeatability, the hallmarks of good iron play.
Hunter Mahan, who has become Ping’s poster boy for new products, praised the irons after shooting 62 in the opening round of The Barclays. “I feel very comfortable with them,” he said. “I can work the ball really easily.”
In addition to the Rapture V2, G10 and S57 irons, the i10 and Rhapsody irons will remain in Ping’s line.
RAPTURE V2 DRIVER: (MSRP $500, graphite only)
The Rapture V2 titanium driver has the thinnest crown Ping has ever produced – just 20-thousandths of an inch at its thinnest point. Compare that to 30-thousandths of an inch in the G10.
This allowed Ping engineers to alter the center of gravity by redistributing the weight saved from the Rapture V2’s crown. Tungsten weights were bonded into the heel and toe, helping produce what company officials say is a higher trajectory (1 degree higher in launch angle than the original Rapture driver) with a reduced spin rate (400 to 600 lower RPM).
For excellent players, high launch and low spin can mean extra yardage. Ping’s club-testing robot, the Ping Man, has set personal records with this driver, but the real test will come when driving averages are computed over several months on the professional tours.
Gone is the composite crown of the original Rapture driver, which was used by Angel Cabrera in winning the 2007 U.S. Open. As a result, the Rapture V2 produces a louder (some would say more-powerful) sound.
Cabrera already has put the V2 driver into play, but LPGA leading money winner Lorena Ochoa, not known as a club switcher, has merely hit the club on the practice tee.
RAPTURE V2 FAIRWAY WOODS AND RAPTURE V2 HYBRIDS: (fairway woods MSRP $280, graphite only; hybrids MSRP $190 steel, $225 graphite)
The Rapture V2 fairway woods and hybrids feature a stainless steel body with a tungsten sole plate.
According to Ping designer Marty Jertson, the new V2 fairway wood heads are 25 percent smaller than those of the earlier Rapture, but they are 17 percent larger than G10 heads.
V2 hybrids retain the volume of the original Rapture model, although from address they look slightly narrower (from face to back) and longer (from heel to toe).
Both the fairway woods and hybrids were designed for higher trajectories, fitting seamlessly with V2 irons as consumers configure their 14-club sets.
TFC939 GRAPHITE SHAFTS: Ping has introduced the TFC939 family of graphite shafts for the V2. These shafts are lighter, softer and feel somewhat livelier than the TFC129 shafts used in the G10 family.
Posted: 9/4/2008
print
email
discuss
