The key to a great short game is often said to be in the hands.
Soft hands and feel are the key to getting up and down and Ping has embraced this approach in their range of Glide wedges.
The Glide wedge is designed from the hands down to ensure that the grip, shaft and finally the club head work together to give golfers better consistency and the versatility to play whatever shot is required around the green.
So let's start with the grip. Ping are using the Dylawedge on the Glide wedges which is 3/4 of an inch longer than standard grips allowing players to grip down for trajectory control. This is made easier with "grip-down" indicators at 1 3/8 inch intervals so players can establish a position that suits them for 8 varying lengths or types of shots.
Next the shaft. Ping is using a CFS wedge with stands for Control, Feel and Stability. The one flex, 118g shaft, helps to lower launch and bring those attributes to the wedge.
Onto the head. Ping has followed the recent trend by offering a wide variety of sole options in the Glide range with 3 original grinds available across a range of lofts.
With a Wide Sole (WS) grind, a Standard Sole (SS) grind, and a Thin Sole (TS) grind, there are 13 loft and sole configurations available, with the bounce optimised for consistency of spin and versatility across different course conditions and player preference.
In July 2015 Ping released a further grind to the Glide with the launch of the Glide ES, standing for Eye Sole. This sole has a scooped out appearance to offer a versatile wedge for full and partial shots fro all conditions, especially bunkers.
The Glide ES has a hosel transition and sole design inspired by the original Ping Eye2 sand wedge and it is available in lofts of in 56º, 58º and 60º. The smaller hosel leading into the face decreases the cross section for less drag through the sand.
Finally the face. Made from 431 steel to soften the face the clubheads are plated with chrome to dramatically improve consistency in wet conditions.
Ping have also looked at what grooves are best for specific types of shot, so depending on the loft of your wedge the angle of the sidewall of your grooves will differ to maximise control.
Glide wedges with lofts of 47º to 54º have Gorge Grooves with a 16º sidewall and a more gradual radius, optimised for performance on full shots. In the wedges with lofts of 56º to 60º the sidewall of the groove increases to 24º with a tighter radius maximizes spin on shorter shots.
Finally the Ping Glide also features a thinner, more tapered hosel than previous generations of Ping wedges, which is specifically designed to go through sand better.
