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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