PING Reveals Prodi G Series of Junior Golf Clubs

PING has unveiled its new custom-fit, custom-built Prodi G Series, which is the brand's best performing junior golf club offering to date, taking full advantage of the technologies that exist within the adult line.

“The Prodi G junior clubs are engineered by the same teams that design our adult clubs. They feature a lot of the same technologies and undergo the same rigorous testing as all of our products,” said John K. Solheim, PING President. “From a performance standpoint, our research reveals the clubs far out-perform the competitive junior sets on the market, including the Prodi G driver being 15 yards longer with a moment of inertia that’s 50% higher than the top-selling junior driver.”

The custom-engineered set is comprised of 11 clubs: a 15? titanium driver, 22? fairway wood, 27? hybrid, perimeter-weighted irons (6-9, PW), two specialty wedges (52? & 56?) and a blade-style putter. The lightweight clubs can be ordered in any combination and all are custom built at PING’s European headquarters. Two sizes (34", 3.5 lbs. and 30", 3 lbs.) of the Hoofer Prodi G carry bags can be purchased separately.

The proven technologies applied to the new line include turbulators on the driver for increased clubhead speed and irons with a custom tuning port to allow for precise swing weighting during the custom-building process. Two lightweight graphite shaft flexes are optimised for weight and balance to match junior swing speeds.

“For the first time, junior golfers can play the same technology as mum or dad that is custom fit and custom built just for them,” Solheim said. “We believe that has an appeal all on its own and will help get kids interested in playing more.”

In developing the new products, PING’s Fitting Science team created a junior fitting chart (a variation of the company’s iconic colour code chart developed nearly 50 years ago) that takes into account a junior’s height and wrist-to-floor measurement to determine the appropriate lie angle and club length. The Prodi G clubs are recommended for juniors 4'5" to 5'2" and can be ordered in custom lengths based on the results of a fitting session.

As part of the launch of the new clubs, the company also announced the Prodi G “‘Get Golf Growing’” program, an industry-first junior golf equipment initiative that offers custom-fit and custom-built junior clubs that include a one-time, no-cost adjustment to sets of five clubs or more. The program helps address an all-too-common occurrence that results in a lot of junior golfers playing clubs not suited to their games.

“One of the biggest barriers parents of junior golfers face is investing in a set of clubs that their kids will outgrow in a short time,” Solheim said. “As a result, they often buy clubs that don’t fit their kids in hopes they’ll grow into them or they cut down old clubs. Neither option is ideal and impedes the junior’s golf development. Our ‘Get Golf Growing’ program is designed to be an affordable way to get juniors into high-performance custom-fit clubs while bringing more boys and girls to the sport. The Prodi G clubs grow with the kids. We believe if juniors are exposed to better equipment, they’ll enjoy golf more, which will ultimately help grow the game as the kids fall in love with golf and play it for a lifetime.”

To be eligible for the ‘Get Golf Growing’ program, five or more clubs must be purchased in one transaction. Allowable adjustments are re-shafting, lengthening, re-weighting and re-gripping.

Prodi G Driver

Head size/material: 460cc, Ti811 head. Machined Ti 6-4 face

Key technologies: Turbulators for increased clubhead speed, Dragonfly Technology optimises CG position for maximum forgiveness

Loft: 15?

Standard length: 39.5"

Graphite shaft: PING Prodi G (R, S)

Standard grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Junior

RRP: £215

Prodi G Fairway Wood

Material: Machined 17-4 SS face, 17-4 SS body

Key technologies: Thin face for increased speed and distance, Easy-to-square

Loft: 22?

Standard length: 37.75"

Graphite shaft: PING Prodi G (R, S)

Standard grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Junior

RRP: £110

Prodi G Hybrid

Material: Machined 17-4 SS face, 17-4 SS body

Key technologies: Optimised loft and CG placement, easy-to-square

Loft: 27?

Standard length: 36.25"

Graphite shaft: PING Prodi G (R, S)

Standard grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Junior

RRP: £90

Prodi G Irons

Head material: 17-4 stainless steel, elastomer insert

Key technologies: Perimeter-weighted head, optimised loft configurations

Available: 6-iron (32? loft, 34.125" standard length), 7 (35?, 33.50"), 8 (39?, 33.00"), 9 (43?, 32.75"), PW (47?, 32.50")

Graphite shaft: PING Prodi G (R, S)

Standard grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Junior

RRP:  £ 60 per iron (graphite only)

Prodi G Wedges

Head material: 17-4 stainless steel, elastomer insert

Key technologies: Glide 2.0 wedge styling

Available: 52? (32.50") and 56? (32.25")

Graphite shaft: PING Prodi G (R, S)

Standard grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Junior

RRP:  £ 60 per wedge (graphite only)

Prodi G Putter

Head material/weight: 17-4 stainless steel, 320g

Key technologies: Voss inspired design, ball-width cavity for focus and additional alignment aids

Standard length: 29.50"

Grip: Original PP58

RRP: £60

Hoofer Prodi G Golf Bags

Available in two colourways:

• Charcoal/Black/Electric Green (34" tall, 3.5 lbs.)
• Black/Electric Green (30" tall, 3 lbs.)

Key features: 4-way top, adjustable dual straps, aluminium bag stand

Pockets: 4

RRP: £120

Full details of all PING products can be found at www.ping.com.