PING s159 Wedges: 2024 Forum Member Review

[William P]

Congrats testers! Really looking forward to your comments and reviews. This is my year for new wedges and thinking Ping will provide a challenge to my usual Vokey stable.

[Byrnzee]

A big congrats to the testers selected! Excited to follow along and see what y'all think!

[fredsharky]

Congrats and am def buying new wedges this year - so cannot wait to see this one completed 

[bens197]

33 minutes ago, Cfhandyman said:

@bens197 superb introduction, pictures, video and how you plan on testing. Your background and insights will be valuable to us all. I look forward to see how the Ping S159 wedges compare to your current Vokey’s, particularly the turf interaction and how well the grind and bounce comb works for you.  And most importantly, will they make it into the bag. Very well done. 

Thank you

Edited March 19 by bens197

[gavinski91]

These wedges are the one club I'm thinking about buying this year, so I'm looking forward to seeing how they work for you all!

[Hook DeLoft]

Congrats to the testers!  Pops is looking for new wedges so I'll be following this with great interest.

[Omar G]

Looking forward to hearing the results!

[hartrick11]

Congrats guys! Look forward to hearing more about the various grinds vs other OEMs’ equivalents, especially the new ones for S159. 

[unccross]

Congratulations to those chosen, look forward to seeing the posts and results. 

[Swood1994]

Congrats testers! Looking forward to see you all throwing darts with the new Ping wedges!

[Glenmore5]

haha....that didnt take long...well done to all of you...

[sellemental]

Congratulations testers on being selected !

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and experiences with these wedges.

[William P]

Great intros everyone! Let the testing begin...

[johngschulz]

Thanks all for the kind words! All of the testers have been great to interact with, and I promise to do this testing group justice to the best of my abilities!

I’ll definitely be spending some extra time in the garage on lunch breaks with my current wedges so I’m ready to hit the ground running after the unboxing!

[bens197]

9 hours ago, William P said:

Great intros everyone! Let the testing begin...

Definitely! 
 

And as Tom Petty famously wrote…”the waiiiiiiting is the harrrrrdessst part.”

[MuniGolfer]

On 3/18/2024 at 5:45 PM, bens197 said:

I am thrilled to share my next six weeks and beyond as I work with an awesome group of guys to test the PING S159 wedges.

 

A little about me.  Steve, I’m 42, a husband to an amazing wife, father to an incredible daughter and dog dad to a 12 year old American pit bull terrier.  My daughter fell in love with golf last year and both my wife and I couldn’t be happier watching her hit balls with utter joy.

 

 

Golf has played a significant role in my life since I was 7.  A native Rochester, NY resident who spent 9 years living and working in golf in Southeast Florida after graduating college.  I’ve worked pretty much every job you can name in the golf services.  It all began as a 14 year old caddy at Oak Hill CC in Rochester, home of the recent 2023 PGA.  I also worked the bag room there for 3 years which included the 1998 Amateur won by Hank Kuehne…who famously hit massive bombs using none other than the PING TiSi.

Many of you are familiar with my background but it’s worth sharing now that we have so many new members involved in the forum!

I left the golf business after working as a 1st Assistant Professional in 2006.  I loved the job but it was not for me.  Since then I have been in public safety as a Firefighter / EMT.  I currently work as a Captain and as our fire district covers a portion of Oak Hill, was able to spend time working emergency services during the event.

I get to play often and while my competitive days are behind me, you will find me playing around 2-3 times a week. Last year was my best ball striking and scoring year since my club pro days and I was able to lower my index to a 3.5.

 

PING has always been a favorite of mine and was cemented for me in 2005. I traveled to Phoenix to visit the PING plant and was certified as a PING fitter.  This experience was truly phenomenal, the entire tour of the facility left no stone unturned.  From the gold putter vault to the foundry, a complete fitting process, a round at the now defunct ASU Karsten and at the end, a sit down with the Solheim family for some Q&A.  I was so impressed with the company that when I returned home I ordered a set of PING i5’s, G5 driver and PING Tour wedges.

 

So let’s talk about WHY I chose to apply for this test…

 

When I thought about this year and eligibility for testing I was dead set on one item…wedges.  Earlier in the year in the “what equipment are you thinking about” I shared my thoughts on why these were what had my eye.  I certainly consider myself fortunate to be able to test these and put them through an entire season of play.  I also am someone who loves to hit wedge shots.  It’s a strong part of my game and I love being able to be creative around the greens.

 

 

Why these wedges?  I like my Vokey’s, I want to see if there is something better.  PING is THE engineering company.  They are the early adapters and the innovators…I’ve seen it first hand in Phoenix and I am looking forward to comparing them to my current setup.

 

I loved the early release photos of the S159, notably the higher lofted wedges.  What I loved more was the emphasis on better grind options.  I stopped by the local shop last week to finally put my eyes on them and ming…they look even better in person.  The shape of the top line off the hosel is exactly what I would dream and I am really believing that PING took a lot of TOUR feedback to design a winner…I mean, look at that 50…

My Webfit results were about what I had expected.  I’m using it as a baseline and made one change.  I really wanted to push my comfort level and dig into something that would prevent digging…I’ll get into that when the wedges arrive and I do the unboxing.

Among all three clubs, the 50* will continue to be the workhorse.  This club for me will be my go-to as it’s been for years.  It’s the inside 100 yards club almost exclusively.  I’m playing a similar grind to my recommendation so I expect it to perform similarly.  I’m going to be hardest on this club because I hit it for almost every full and half shot inside 100 yards.

 

Around the greens I am excited to get into the turf interaction and really put to test how these grinds work for a variety of shots and conditions.  My current setup doesn’t give me the most confidence with the 54 and 60 so I have high hopes that opting for a more versatile bounce will give me a better sense of confidence for creativity. We get the weather and the conditions in Rochester.

I have high expectations and a very open mind.  At work, I like to say often to my crew that the best ideas have to win.  Similarly, the best clubs have to win and if these perform anywhere close to as good as they look, it’ll be a pleasant experience.

 

That’s it for now…Stay tuned

 

Oh man, the ASU Karsten. Was one of my favorite courses in the Arizona valley, especially for the price. Such a fun, tricky layout.

[bens197]

16 minutes ago, MuniGolfer said:

Oh man, the ASU Karsten. Was one of my favorite courses in the Arizona valley, especially for the price. Such a fun, tricky layout.

It was a really fun layout. @chisag knows a lot about it as well. It was almost 20 years ago but I remember 1,2 and 3 were a friendly start and 9 & 18 were some stout finishing holes along the lake. 
 

 

[aguybadatgolf]

The orders for the wedges have been placed! I’m sure I can speak for the rest of the testers when I say they cant arrive soon enough. 

For those club builders and gear nerds, here are the exact specs of what I ordered. 

Chrome Finish

Wedge loft, grind, and bounce: 50 S-12, 54 S-12, 58 T-6

Shaft: DG X100

Length and Lie: +1 inch, White dot (3 up)

Grip: Ping Wedge Grip +1/32 (Midsize)

[Triple_Putt]

Awesome intros!  Moving along quickly and cant wait to see you guys unbox these beauties 

[bens197]

My Webfit results were pretty spot on and validated the gapping that I was hoping to see. 
 

Current PW is a 46* T100 that’s +1/2 and 1* up 

S159 build:

50* S grind 

54* H grind bent to 55*

58* T grind bent to 59*
 

All wedges will be +1/2” blue dot 1* up and Dynamic Gold X100

I went with the PING dylagrip (for the non taper) +1/32 with two wraps

 

[johngschulz]

I concur with @bens197 on the WebFit. The grinds and gapping looks like they match up well for me on from the WebFit results. Here’s the specs on my order:

50* S-12 - Midnight

54* S-12 - Hydropearl 2.0

58* T-6 - Hydropearl 2.0

Ping Z-Z115 Wedge shaft -1/4”*

D4 swing weight for all if they can match

PING 360 Dyla-wedge Lite - Standard

Black Dot

I stuck with the Dyla-wedge Lite grips for the less taper and to try out the longer length grips, my hands can get really low around the greens sometimes!

Edited March 20 by johngschulz

[MuniGolfer]

5 hours ago, bens197 said:

It was a really fun layout. @chisag knows a lot about it as well. It was almost 20 years ago but I remember 1,2 and 3 were a friendly start and 9 & 18 were some stout finishing holes along the lake. 
 

 

I have similar memories. I remember liking a particular par 4, right before the 3 that was surrounded all around the right with water. The par 4 was tight, and rose from the tee box and then rolled down towards the green. A good drive over the hill could go a ways.
18 was definitely stout. I remember 17 and 18 feeling like classic Pete Dye holes. 

Edited March 20 by MuniGolfer

[bens197]

6 hours ago, MuniGolfer said:

I have similar memories. I remember liking a particular par 4, right before the 3 that was surrounded all around the right with water. The par 4 was tight, and rose from the tee box and then rolled down towards the green. A good drive over the hill could go a ways.
18 was definitely stout. I remember 17 and 18 feeling like classic Pete Dye holes. 

I wish I could recall.  I remember we teed off in the afternoon and the back 9 was TOUGH.  Holes along the power lines and returning back up 17 and 18…you nailed it…true Pete Dye in every sense.  

That was also my first experience with these…I played a 52 and 60 in a demo set they assembled for me at the time and thought they felt like butter.  It was also one of the first (if not the first) PING heads that used a ferrule.  

Edited March 21 by bens197

[bens197]

I don’t follow PGA Tour use and was pleasantly surprised to see PING held the #2 spot tied with Callaway…Not TaylorMade or Cleveland…Link is the current tour wedge count…

https://www.pgaclubtracker.com/clubhead_types/most-popular-golf-wedges-on-tour

And breakdown of PING wedge use on tour 

https://www.pgaclubtracker.com/brands/ping-tour-players/Wedge

[aguybadatgolf]

46 minutes ago, bens197 said:

I don’t follow PGA Tour use and was pleasantly surprised to see PING held the #2 spot tied with Callaway…Not TaylorMade or Cleveland…Link is the current tour wedge count…

https://www.pgaclubtracker.com/clubhead_types/most-popular-golf-wedges-on-tour

And breakdown of PING wedge use on tour 

https://www.pgaclubtracker.com/brands/ping-tour-players/Wedge

That’s actually pretty interesting and I think speaks to the fact they are often over looked by the masses. Vokey definitely has a stranglehold on the market but I would have guessed Callaway was second by a fair bit. I play them and so do a lot of my playing partners so maybe my view is slightly biased. 

Edited March 22 by aguybadatgolf

[bens197]

20 minutes ago, aguybadatgolf said:

That’s actually pretty interesting and I think speaks to the fact they are often over looked by the masses. Vokey definitely has a stranglehold on the market but I would have guessed Callaway was second by a fair bit. I play them and so do a lot of my playing partners so maybe my view is slightly biased. 

Without having the data I would have immediately guessed Milled Grind 2, 3 and 4…I was definitely surprised.

Edited March 22 by bens197

[johngschulz]

Played a little practice round this weekend and found myself hitting more bunker shots than expected, pretty happy with my results. I am feeling good about how I’m navigating my way around the green with my wedges in general in this early season. I am just getting more and more excited for the Pings to get in!

[bens197]

5 minutes ago, johngschulz said:

Played a little practice round this weekend and found myself hitting more bunker shots than expected, pretty happy with my results. I am feeling good about how I’m navigating my way around the green with my wedges in general in this early season. I am just getting more and more excited for the Pings to get in!

Good to hear this…I wish I could get outdoors, Mother Nature had other plans. 
 

It is looking more and more like our weather will begin to soften up around next week. Which is good timing

[aguybadatgolf]

Played 9 yesterday morning and according to shot scope my short game is +1.01 strokes gained when compared to others around my handicap. This only after 27 holes but is interesting to see. My approach game needs a lot of work apparently . 


Also interesting to note, I play a lot better out of the rough than in the fairway on a tight lie. Curious to see if the new Ping S159 wedges and grinds help me with better turf interaction.

[bens197]

We’re getting closer. Meanwhile dreaming of hitting some fun shots like this…