Equipment
Ping rejuvenates its famed Eye2 wedge with the Glide ES
Ping has rejuvenated a more than three-decade old design with its new Glide ES wedges. ES stands for “Eye Sole,” referencing the best-selling wedge in Ping history, the Eye2.
Ping’s Eye2 XG wedge, which conforms to the USGA’s 2010 groove rule.
Different golfers use wedges in different ways, but Eye2 wedge users tend to agree on one thing — the club is fantastic from bunkers. In just the past year, conforming-groove versions of the original Eye2 have been spotted in the bags of several PGA Tour players, the most notable of which are Phil Mickelson, Padraig Harrington and Hunter Mahan.
Not bad for a golf club that was popular in a decade where boom boxes, Care Bears, Miami Vice, Rubik’s Cubes and Michael Jackson’s album “Thriller” were all the rage.
What makes the Eye2, and now the Glide ES, an exceptional bunker club, according to Ping Senior Design Engineer Marty Jertson, is a part of the club that (hopefully) never contacts the ball: its hosel. More than any other Ping wedge, the hosel of the Glide ES is tapered, or reduced in size as it transitions from the ferrule to the leading edge of the club. That creates less drag as the club moves through impediments such as sand or grass and leads to more consistent strikes.
According to Ping studies, the design of the Glide ES, which uses the same 431 Stainless Steel design, 24-degree groove sidewalls and moisture-repelling satin-chrome finish as the company’s other Glide wedges, creates 7 percent less hosel drag on bunker shots when compared to the company’s other designs. Because of its overall reduction in surface area, the entire club head also creates a 2 percent reduction in overall drag.
Related: Our review of Ping’s Glide WS, SS and TS wedges.
So how do you know if its for you? If you struggle with bunker shots this is the one, Jertson says. If your short game is more refined, read on.
The Gilde ES has a “scooped sole,” which creates two distinct surfaces on the bottom of the club. The front portion of the sole is engaged on shots that have the club shaft leaning toward the target. It will tend to dig into the ground slightly more than the company’s Glide SS wedges, but not as much as the company’s Glide TS wedges.
When the shaft is leaned backward or the club is used in the opened position, the rear part of the sole will dig into the ground slightly more than the company’s Glide WS wedges, but not as much as the company’s Glide SS wedges.
If you’re a current Eye2 wedge user, know that the club will tend to dig less than the original version — particularly on full shots.
The Glide ES wedges are available in lofts of 56, 58 and 60 degrees ($140 with steel, $160 with graphite) and will be in stories on July 30. They come stock with Ping’s CFS wedge shaft or the company’s TFC 419i (Soft R, R, S flexes) if graphite is your thing. The stock grip is Ping’s Dyla-wedge, which is 0.75 inches longer than standard grips to encourage golfers to choke down on shots around the green for better control.
Click here to see what GolfWRX Members are saying about the Glide ES wedges in our forum.
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Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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Ray Neese
Jun 25, 2019 at 3:14 pm
Saw on Instagram Golf WRX a Ping Eye 2, Glide 3. Looked to me more like PM and Hi Toe.
other paul
Jul 19, 2015 at 11:19 am
So am I supposed to buy this or the PM grind mackdaddy2?
Ballstrikka
Jul 18, 2015 at 10:01 pm
+1
Christosterone
Jul 18, 2015 at 12:05 pm
Dear Ping: PLEASE make a glide set of irons!!!
-Christosterone