Gear: Ping i230 irons
Price: $205 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 shafts and Lamkin Crossline Black grips, $230 each with Ping Alta CB Black graphite shafts
Specs: Cast 431 stainless steel body with tungsten tip and toe weights, internal elastomer insert and multimaterial back badge. 3-iron through gap wedge available
Available: November
Who it’s For: Golfers who want a better-player’s iron that has extra stability, a softer feel at impact and more consistent spin performance.
The Skinny: Made for tour pros and good club players, the i230 takes the place of the i210 and features an internal elastomer piece to reduce vibrations created at impact, while tungsten weights increase stability and unique grooves help normalize performance in both wet and dry conditions.
The Deep Dive: Most equipment makers bring out new game-improvement and max-game-improvement irons every season, but clubs made for accomplished golfers often stick around for a while. The Ping i210 is, shall we say, venerable, having been released over four years ago. Regardless, it was still used by Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatten and Stewart Cink through most of the PGA Tour’s 2021-22 wraparound season.
Last summer, Ping quietly brought the i210’s replacement to the PGA Tour, the i230, and now the company is making it available to everyone.
At address, the i230 has a narrow topline and only a small amount of offset. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
The i230 is cast from 431 stainless steel and has a clean, modern look that golfers who often shoot in the 70s (and 60s) enjoy. It’s not flashy, and most of the things that separate it from its predecessor are hidden, so the golfer is not distracted from the shot at address.
The most interesting new feature is an internal elastomer piece that runs from heel to toe along the lower portion of the club. It weighs just 3 grams but helps absorb vibrations at impact to create a softer feel. At the same time, it replaces 24 grams of steel, so more of the club’s overall weight naturally shifts to the perimeter of the head.
An elastomer piece inside each head runs from the heel to the toe. (Ping)
That weight shift is complimented by a tungsten weight added to the heel area and a tungsten weight screw affixed to the toe. Working together, they boost the moment of inertia and make the clubs less susceptible to twisting on off-center hits without making them bigger. Ping designed the long irons to have a shorter blade length than…
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