FIRST HIT: Ping Tour Gorge Wedges

Ping’s new Tour Wedges, featuring Gorge Groove Technology, are the result of a concerted effort by the company’s engineers to improve spin rate and consistency.

Although they believed their tolerances were the tightest in the industry, they still felt the shape of the grooves was not close enough to the legal limits set by the game’s governing bodies, the R&A and USGA.

And on the basis that if you want something doing best you should do it yourself, Ping have brought the production of wedges back in house to their global headquarters in Arizona.

Using a new process they believe they have improved the performance levels significantly.

These wedges launch lower and therefore spin more as the grooves make a better job of grabbing the ball at impact rather than letting it slip up the face.

Ping have brought the production of wedges back in house to their global headquarters in Arizona. The head shape is unchanged from the current Tour S model.

Other new features include a stylish finish and some simplified bounce options in the higher lofts. The TS (thin sole) version has the lowest bounce and is ideal for playing from tight lies and for those with a shallow angle of attack, small divots and a sliding type of impact.

The SS (standard sole) sits in the middle while the WS (wide sole) version offers more bounce.

This is ideal for use from bunkers and will also help those who have a steep angle of attack and tend to ‘dig’ with their wedges, taking large divots.
A welcome feature of the WS version is increased heel-toe relief. The wider a sole is, the more heel relief it needs so that when you open the face the heel doesn’t dig in before contact.