Ping irons 2024: Which are right for your game?

Since its founding in 1959 by Karsten Solheim, Ping Golf has featured two things as its foundation: innovation and custom fitting, and in 2024, the brand's iron offerings continue to reflect those ideals.

Ping has worked to create and manufacture clubs in new ways, like the special forgiving process used to make the Clubprint S and the development of the unique back badge on the G430. At the same time, the five irons that are currently at the heart of the Ping stable -- Blueprint T, Blueprint S, i530, G430 and G730 -- are made with specific player types in mind but their attributes often overlap. For example, a fast-swinging mid-handicap player might like certain things about the Blueprint S and the i530, and a slower-swinging golf could get benefits from both the G430 and the G730. That's by design and it gives golfers and custom fitters options and choices based on a player's preferences and specific needs.

The guide below is intended to give you an idea of what each current Ping iron is designed to do and what type of player Ping had in mind when it created the club. It's a starting point, not a finish line, but this list can help you discover which Ping irons might be best suited for your game.

1. i530

Gear: Ping i530 ironsPrice: $205 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 steel shafts and Golf Pride 360 Tour Velvet grips. $220 each with Ping Alta CB Black graphite shaftsSpecs: Forged C300 maraging steel face with 17-4 stainless steel chassis

Who It’s For: Golfers who want the look of a better-player’s iron combined with the distance of a game-improvement club.

What to Know: These hollow-bodied, better-player distance irons look like blades but were made to generate more ball speed and distance while also offering enhanced forgiveness and feel.

Excerpt: "When golfers see the back of the i530, they might think the milled area is there for show, but each machined line represents an area where steel was removed from a high location in the head. Machining the back and making it thinner created discretionary weight that designers were able to reposition in the form of an internal mass pad that is 10 grams heavier than the pad found in the i525. Consequently, the i530 has a lower the center of gravity (CG) location, which should help golfers create a higher launch angle and more stopping power on the greens. A bonus of positioning extra mass low in the head is it puts more steel directly behind the area where golfers tend to hit the ball, which results in extra ball speed." Read the full review.

2. Blueprint S

Gear: Blueprint S ironsPrice: $230 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold S300 steel shafts and Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips, $245 each with Ping Alta CB Black graphite shaftsSpecs: Forged 8620 carbon steel with a high-density toe screw and Hyrdopearl 2.0 finish. Available 3-iron through pitching wedge.

Who They’re For: Accomplished golfers who want a better-player’s distance iron with extra forgiveness in the long irons.

What to Know: A new forging process gives the Blueprint S enhanced performance and feel in the long irons without making them too big, while the short irons in this better-player’s distance set deliver control and precision.

Excerpt: "Ping believes this seven-step forging process can uniquely deliver the feel low-handicap players demand while removing 10 grams of steel (weight) and replacing it with a piece of vibration-absorbing thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) that is capped with stainless steel. It also helped Ping designers lower the center of gravity and make it easier to hit the Blueprint S long irons on a higher trajectory. The 6-iron through pitching wedge are traditionally forged and do not have the TPU insert in the long irons." Read the full review.

3. Blueprint T

Gear: Ping Blueprint T ironsPrice: $230 with True Temper Dynamic Gold S300 steel shafts and Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips, $245 with Ping Alta CB Black graphite shaftsSpecs: Forged 8620 carbon steel with a high-density toe screw and Hyrdopearl 2.0 finish. Available 3-pitching wedge.

Who They’re For: Low-handicap golfers who want a traditional-looking iron that maximizes feel, control and precision.

What to Know: The Blueprint T has the compact size, clean lines and control-oriented design that elite ballstrikers crave.

Excerpt: "The heads are forged from a single piece of 8620 carbon steel before the hitting area is machined flat, and the grooves are added. Ping designers added tip and toe weights to the Blueprint T to subtly increase its perimeter weighting. This should make the clubs resist twisting on off-center hits. Slightly." Read the full review.

4. G430

Gear: Ping G430 ironsPrice: $170 each with Ping AWT 2.0 steel shafts and Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips. $185 each with Alta CB Black graphite shafts.Specs: Cast 17-4 stainless steel heads with internal tungsten weights

Who It’s For: The G430 irons are game-improvement clubs for mid- and higher-handicap players who want more distance and forgiveness.

What to Know: The successor to the G425, the G430 irons were designed with a faster face, lower center of gravity and a new vibration-absorbing back badge to deliver more distance, a higher launch and a better feel.

Excerpt: "Ping also designed a new back badge called PurFlex and attached it behind the hitting area of the G430. It is comprised of seven different pieces that deliver varying levels of stiffness. Ping’s engineers learned that dividing the badge instead of relying on a single large one encouraged more face flex while absorbing excessive vibrations to improve sound and feel." Read the full review.

5. G730

Price: $185 each with True Temper Dynamic Gold Mid steel shafts and Lamkin Crossline grips. $200 each with Ping Alta CB Black graphite shaftsSpecs: Cast and heat-treated 17-4 stainless steel with high-density toe and heel weights.

Who It’s For: Mid- and higher-handicap golfers who want a big, easy-to-hit iron that delivers more distance and forgiveness.

What to Know: This powerful iron is the most forgiving in the Ping lineup for 2024, and golfers who typically shoot in the 90s and 100s should find it delivers more distance thanks to a thin face with enhanced feel.

Excerpt: "Knowing that the G730 was not going to appeal to fast-swinging, low-handicap players, Ping’s designers were freed to make the face especially thin and not worry about durability and excessive stress. As a result, the face of the G730 is 7 percent thinner than the G430’s face, so it flexes more efficiently. The center of gravity has also been positioned very low in the head, which should promote a higher ball flight." Read the full review.

This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Ping irons 2024: Which are right for your game?