Equipment

GolfWRX launch report: 2023 Ping G430 drivers

Published

3 years ago

Jan 10, 2023

What you need to know: With a shallower and thinner VFT forged face design, Ping engineers sought to add speed and distance without undermining an element Ping drivers have been known for: forgiveness.

For slower-swing-speed golfers, all the clubs except the LST driver can be custom built with lighter head weights.

Exclusive to the G430 LST, lightweight composite crown-covering Carbonfly Wrap technology is the major innovation in the series.

Like the G425 lineup, the new G430 family consists of three driver models (Max, LST, SFT).

Additional model details

Ping G430 Max

Suitable for the widest segment of the fitting bell curve.
25-gram, high-density tungsten moveable back weight (±8 yards of shot shaping)

Regarding the Ping G430 Max, Ping’s John Solheim says: “The Max is the workhorse. It fits every skill level, from tour players to higher handicaps. The increases in ball speed are remarkable and the sound is creating a very favorable conversation. When you combine those advancements with its industry-leading forgiveness, the Max will win a lot of battles in comparison testing in the fitting environment.”

Ping G430 LST

Features Carbonfly Wrap Technology: Eight-layer, one-piece composite covering the crown to save weight (four grams) and lower CG, creating a lower-spin, higher-MOI driver.
A moveable 22-gram, high-density tungsten backweight (±7 yards of shot shaping)

Regarding the Ping G430 LST, Solheim says: “With recent manufacturing advancements and the smaller head size of the G430 LST, the time is right to bring this technology to golfers,” said Solheim. “It’s quickly becoming the favorite of our tour players, who are enjoying the ball-speed gains while raving about the look, feel and sound.”

Ping G430 SFT

New two-setting, 22-gram moveable tungsten backweight (±13 yards of shot shaping)
Draw+ weight setting allows for 20 yards of total shot shaping.

Regarding the Ping G430 SFT, Solheim says: “Our SFT technology reinforces our commitment to custom fitting,” Solheim said. “It’s a tremendous option for golfers who consistently slice the ball. The reality is more golfers could benefit from this type of technology, so we’ve added the two-setting backweight to allow for further adjustments in shot bend as necessary.”

What Ping says

“The combined distance gains throughout the entire G430 family are like nothing we’ve seen from one generation of clubs to the next,” said John K. Solheim, Ping CEO & President. “Our approach with G430 has been to find more speed and deliver it in a way that contributes to lower scores and more enjoyment on the course. That includes providing a level of forgiveness that remains unequalled. The powerful combination of distance and forgiveness wins out when golfers are properly fitted. We see that every day in our research and we’re excited to get the G430 into the hands of golfers so they can see the same benefits.”

“The tour adoption was exceptional last fall, with almost 30 drivers in play on the PGA Tour the first week out, and multiple wins around the world since its introduction. Our staff appreciates the added ball speed of the driver and fairway woods and loves the sound. They are seeing from 2 to 4 mph gains in ball speed from the driver, which even the best players in the world are happy to find from their equipment alone.”

More photos

Ping G430 Max

Ping G430 LST

Ping G430 SFT

G430 Pricing, Specs

Head weights: 208 (LST), 206g (Max), 200g (SFT)
Swingweights: D3 (Max), D4 (LST), C9 (SFT)
Standard length: 45 3/4″ (Alta CB Black 55); 45 1/4″ (PING Tour 2.0 Chrome/Black and optional stock)
Stock shafts: Ping Alta CB (counter-balanced) Black 55 (SR, R, S), Ping Alta Quick 35/45 (HL build only)
Optional stock shafts: Ping Tour 2.0 Chrome 65 (R, S, X), Ping Tour 2.0 Black 65 (S, X), Mitsubishi Kai’Li White 60 (S, X), PRJX HZRDUS Smoke Red RDX 50 (5.5, 6.0), PRJX HZRDUS Smoke Red RDX 60 (5.5, 6.0, 6.5)
Stock grip: Golf Pride 360 Tour Velvet in six sizes (Blue -1/16”, Red -1/32”, Aqua -1/64”, White-Std, Gold +1/32”, Orange +1/16”)

Available lofts

G430 Max: 9, 10.5, 12 degrees
G430 LST: 9, 10.5 degrees
G430 SFT: 10.5 degrees

Price: G430 Max/SFT: $600 each; G430 LST: $630 each

At retail: January 26. Pre-sell, fittings: January 10

Equipment

Then and now: Comparing Rory McIlroy’s current setup to his record-breaking 2019 Canadian Open victory

Published

2 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

In Rory McIlroy’s first appearance at the 2019 RBC Canadian Open, he crushed the record books to earn his 16th PGA Tour title in dominating fashion, winning by seven shots over Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson.

McIlroy’s score of 22-under-par 258 is the lowest 72-hole score to date at the Canadian Open, and his closing 61 is also the best final-round score in the history of one of golf’s oldest tournaments. Finally, with his win in 2019, McIlroy became only the sixth player to win the career Triple Crown, adding to his victories at the U.S. Open in 2011 and The Open Championship in 2014, joining Tommy Armour, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tiger Woods in a coveted list.

So, with that, why not compare his current setup to the clubs he used to break all the records?

Driver

2019: TaylorMade M5 (9 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D (9 degrees @8), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7X (45 5/8 inches)

McIroy led the Tour in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee in 2019; he’s doing the same in 2026. Between now and then, McIlroy has switched from the Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX (a shaft with slightly more feeling in the tip) to the original Fujikura Ventus Black 7X, having just made the change to the heavier version from playing the 60X.

What’s interesting about McIlroy’s 2019 setup is that the weighting on his driver is actually set in the high-draw setting, using the T-Track weighting system, whereas in the Qi4D, he’s currently using a heavily rear-weighted setup. (Two 13-gram weights in the rear and only two 4-gram front weights.)

The TaylorMade M5 driver he played in during his Canadian Open win was the company’s first head that they claimed to design to initially exceed the USGA’s COR limit, and then injected with tuning resin to bring it back in bounds.

Fairway woods

2019: TaylorMade M6 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX; TaylorMade M5 5-wood (19 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 90 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8X; TaylorMade Qi4D 5-wood (18 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9X

The TaylorMade M6 fairway wood that McIlroy was using during the 2019 season is still in the bag of some of the best golfers on Tour in 2026. Just check out Justin Rose’s winning setup from the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. This year, though, McIlroy has still been searching for his top-end-of-the-bag setup, having played both the new Qi4D and the Qi10, which he won the Masters with.

The same shaft swap can be seen in the fairway woods as the driver, along with slightly less loft on the 5-wood.

Irons

2019: TaylorMade P750 (4) Buy here, TaylorMade P730 (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0
2026: TaylorMade P760 (4), TaylorMade Rors Proto (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0

The biggest difference between McIlroy’s custom set and the stock P730s is the groove design. While the P730s were constructed with 14 MX-9 grooves on their milled faces, McIlroy’s proto heads instead use the higher-spinning, 16-groove layout of the TW2 grooves. Other big differences between the sets are that McIlroy’s 7- and 8-irons have thinner toplines, are 1 degree stronger in loft, and are 1/4 inch longer than the original P730 builds.

With McIlroy’s 4-iron, the switch from P750 to P760 sees a transition to a two-piece construction with Speed Foam in it, which allows McIlroy to launch the ball slightly higher, with more workability.

Wedges

2019: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48-09SB), TaylorMade MG Hi-Toe (52-09SB, 56-09SB, 60-LB09), Shafts: Project X Rifle 6.5
2026: TaylorMade MG5 (46-09SB, 50-09SB, 54-11SB, 60-08LB @61), Shafts: Project X 6.5 (46-54), Project X 6.5 Wedge (60)

Between 2019 and 2026, McIlroy’s focus on his short game has been much more apparent. It was the reason why he switched back to the TP5 golf ball, to help with launch, spin and control with his wedges leading up to his career Grand Slam victory in 2025. The most apparent changes to McIlroy’s wedge setup are his lofts and bounce. He’s slowly delofted his pitching to a sand wedge, but has increased the loft on the lob wedge, bending his current 60-degree to 61. With that, adding more loft to his lob wedge also slightly increases the bounce and leading-edge sit point, so, as a result, he plays a lower-bounce lob wedge compared to 2019. The MG5 wedges are also softer than the first Milled Grind option from 2019. McIlroy also no longer plays the full-face grooves found on the Hi-Toe.

Putter

2019: TaylorMade Spider X
2026: TaylorMade Spider Tour X

Notice anything similar. Yes, the copper finish on Rory McIlroy’s Spider X putter in 2019 is a slightly more reflective finish than the recently released torched PVD finish. McIlroy was using the True Path alignment system, but now uses only a single white sightline.

Ball

2019: 2019 TaylorMade TP5 (#22)
2026: 2025 TaylorMade TP5 (RORS)

As mentioned above, McIlroy had transitioned from the TP5 to TP5x golf ball since his victory in Canada in 2019, but now is black with the same style of golf ball as his victory at Hamilton Golf & Country Club.

Grips

2019: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
2026: Golf Pride MCC

Interesting, McIlroy actually used Golf Pride’s Tour Velvet Cord grips during his victory in 2019 (it was during a 2+ year switch to the corded TV) as opposed to his usual MCC grips, which he has played for most of his career.

Equipment

From the GolfWRX Classifieds: Titleist Vokey Proto Wedges 54M, 60T

Published

4 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Will Schube

At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @Putt4Dough is selling some prototype wedges from Vokey Wedgeworks. These include a 54 degree wedge with the M grind and a 60 degree wedge with a T grind.

From the listing:

(1) Titleist Vokey Proto Wedge 54M with a Tour Issue DGS400 shaft and Golf Pride Tour Velvet (logo down). Standard length, lie, and loft. BB&F ferrule. Raw wedge in good condition. No initials. Price is $200 shipped. Buy both wedges for $380 shipped.

(2) Titleist Vokey Proto Wedge 60T with a KBS Tour 130X shaft and Golf Pride Tour Velvet. Standard length, lie, and loft. Raw wedge in good condition. No initials. Price is $200 shipped. Buy both wedges for $380 shipped.

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules.