PING ANSER IRONS – A REVIVAL 
It looks like the revealing of the new Ping Anser Forged irons has cause a bit stir in the golfing world and on lot of golf enthusiast sites around the internet. After posting about the new iron last Friday, we decided to head back to the Japan Golf Fair on Saturday and Sunday and got to take more pictures of the Anser Forged, talk to Ping Japan about it and give it a whirl in the hitting bays.
FORGIVING FORGED CAVITY BACK…
The Ping Anser Forged Iron is in line with a typical mainstream release in the Japanese market with a focus on the average golfer wanting a forged iron. Clubs in Japan are typically more expensive than other parts of the world, and picky Japanese golfers are more than willing to put down their yen for the latest and greatest forged iron. I spoke to a couple of reps at the Ping booth and they explained that they did not want to classify the Anser forged as a players cavity or or game improvement iron. The concept is a premium forged iron that is easy to hit for all levels of players. Not compact like a players/athlete model but not overly large like a GI model, rather something right in between that could provide something for everyone.
PROGRESSIVE OFFSET…
Physically the Anser Forged is smaller than the Rapture and Rapture V2 which had a much wider sole and slightly thicker top line. It is more along the lines of the i15 in both size and shape. Ping has noted that the Anser Forged Iron uses progressive offset going from more to less as the irons get shorter. This creates more ease of use in the long irons, allowing the player to square the club face easier. The offset shrinks as the irons get shorter to focus on control and touch. This ease of use concept mixes automatic/point and shoot long irons made for distance with workable short irons to attack the pin.
HOLLOW TUNGSTEN SOLE…
Ping uses a nickel Tungsten weight in the hollow sole to help place CG low and promote easy launch and a higher trajectory. The sole shape has flow reminiscent of the Ping Eye2 except of course with that tungsten weight sole. The back cavity features the elastomer Ping badge / Custom Tuning Port or CTP as it is known, which is to help on the Anser Forged with vibration and to add to the soft feel of the iron.
FORGED FROM 8620 CARBON STEEL
In Japan most forged irons are typically made of premium S20C steel or S25C steel and I had assumed this as well initially for the Anser Forged but was surprised to find out that Ping decided on 8260 Carbon Steel. Apparently 8620 Carbon steel is very close in physical properties to S25C Steel and share very similar density. Both can be forged to similar temperatures (S25C up to 2300F and 8620 up to 2200F). I can’t recall using other Japan market clubs that were forged from 8620 so I was very curious as to how these would feel.
PRETTY GOOD FEEL…
I will stress again as I always stress on the blog about feel. It is completely subjective and there are many factors that affect the perceived “feel” of an iron. The quality of steel and forging process are only one part of the equation when it comes to feel. The design of the iron itself and the shaft it is paired with can have just as big an impact on how an iron feels. The Ping Anser Forged will be offered with Ping AWT and ZZ65 steel shafts as standard fare. The standard graphite shaft will be a TFC615i in Regular, Stiff/Regular and Stiff Flexes.
Ping had on hand test irons with the Ping AWT shaft which are ascending weight as their name suggests. This is a good match for the Ping Anser Forged concept as the lighter weight and higher launching AWT long iron shafts fit the concept Ping is pushing with distance and forgivness in the long irons. The AWT gets heavier and launches lower as it gets shorter providing more control with the Anser Forged short irons, just as Ping designed the head to do. Hitting the AWT with Anser Forged was a pretty smooth combo. I am usually a graphite player so I love smooth and easy and the lighter weight softer flex AWT do fit the bill as they are under 100g.
Why CTP?
Overall pured shots were very soft feeling and credit Ping for not every using an undercut/pocket cavity in their irons as there is no clickiness to them. A couple of other testers asked the question why CTP if its a forged iron and the whole purpose of forged is soft feel in the first place, most likely with the concern that CTP may take feel away? The CTP is there to remove vibrations and supposedly enhance soft feel and while its tough to judge its affect in such a short time I would say they did a reasonable job on minimizing vibrations on off center hits. Whether they softened the feel its possible the feel actually becomes slightly muted by the CTP. Bottom line was this iron was pretty easy to hit. A nice smooth swing gave very rewarding sweet spot impact.
APRIL LAUNCH = HIGH DEMAND
So we are looking at an April launch for the Anser Forged and Ping has announced the MSRP both steel and graphite. As with most Japanese market premium forged irons, cost is not cheap especially with the Yen being so strong. Steel sets have a suggested retail of 1320.00 for 5-PW with graphite a 300.00 upgrade. We hope to price the set around the 1200.00 range for 5-PW with steel once we know what availability is like for us. As always with a hot demand product we would suggest pre-order otherwise you’ll have to wait which is no fun considering for many these irons come out right at the start of the season. Look for the pre order in the pro shop soon!
In the mean time we added a few more pics including offset of the short irons which do look considerably better than the long ones.
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That is a down right pretty set of irons coming out of Ping. It is weird seeing a set of forged pings.
Speaking of feel after playing forged clubs in the 90’s with balata balls I actually think the new cast clubs feel better with solid core balls. It is so true that feel is entirely personal.
Just bought my new Ping Anser Irons and I love them!!!! Best feeling clubs I have hit and they are not that hard to play. Cant wait to get out in the spring so I can see the full results.
waited three months for my Pig anser irons. have played three rounds with them. Rather disappointed. Prefer the S56 any day.
Your Message@Moshe:
I know very few guys who actually have m ultiple sets of irons, however whenever I come to these websites discussing new products and reviews I always seem to see guys who “claim” they have one set of clubs, but just bought another set?????? Maybe I’ll meet one of these guys someday? LOL
Got my Ping Ansers day before yesterday and played 31 holes yesterday. Sweet clubs! Love the feel.
I just upgraded from the G15’s. No more distance but seem to be a bit more accurate especially with the longer clubs
Recommend anyone who gets the Ansers to also get a set of head covers for them. You don’t want them looking 10 years old in a few weeks from them dinging up in your bag
Your MessageI have had my Anser irons since July 2010. I had them shipped in from Japan. The irons are great looking and gets many comment from caddies and pros. They play similiar to my i15s but they are notably softer feeling on off center shots. I have picked up extra yardage but much can be attributed to a smoother swing and more confidence in my iron play. Will buy another set for my southern home.
Your Message@Ray:
i’m glad you can buy another set. Maybe you shouldbuy a third. What ever happened to the ability to buy a 3,5,7 and 9. Ping has always prided itself on that but every retailer i talked to said”Ping won’t let us.” i think you’ll pribably need a fifth set, just to look at.
It’s not a problem to buy 3 5 7 9 here in Japan as a custom order from Ping WRX Japan. They can do combos, 7-9 only, 4-6 only etc.
It’s a real priblem her. The Answer was made for Japan not the U.S.A. Each state get an allotment of clubs…If they continue to sellwell in Japan, we will only see full sets unfortunately. If they begin to fizzle, Ping will reconsider. – JohnYour Message@gocchin:
YoMy goodness, this is incredibly booring listening to you guys who feel this is your own little blab page to talk about how you don’t hit the ground with your driver and all the other interesting tid-bits. Dose anyone see that the game in this country is about shot. That we don’t make a single club. That Japan rules and can and will make any club you want into a forged exact club. That Ping has allocated the Anser to the states only a certain number of ets because they desperaely want Japan to have the first option. Where are all you so called golfers?Message