Taylormade M4 Vs. Ping G700 Irons Comparison Overview
Looking for a good set of game improvement irons? If so then you’re in luck because today we will be taking a look at a couple of game improvement iron sets that have been around for a while at this point; but may have gone unnoticed by most golfers.
The problem is that golf club companies churn out new models every year – sometimes even more than once a year. So quality models like the Ping G700 and Taylormade M4 irons may have been buried in the marketing for newer models. Let’s take a look at both of these sets.
Taylormade M4 Irons Overview
The Taylormade M4 irons have a very good look at point of address if you have been struggling with accuracy and launch.
You can actually see the wide sole sort of jutting out the back of these clubs at point of address which is an inspiring sight for high handicappers. The M4 irons feature a deep cavity back and the Speed Pocket which is a face undercut that allows it to flex.
On low-face shots, you will love the way these irons hit. Low and inward towards the heel, we were seeing much straighter ball flight than usual which is a great attribute in a game improvement iron. The main caveat with these irons is the weight. They are a bit heavy and clunky which doesn’t make for good turf interaction.
Ping G700 Irons Overview
Strong lofts and insane forgiveness are the hallmarks of these irons.
Thanks to the strong lofts and the beefy soles, the Ping G700 irons launch nearly effortlessly. They have a relatively large footprint and moderate offset so they were built to be forgiving and infinitely useful for players with moderate swing speeds.
The angle of descent you get from these irons is also ideal for sticking fast greens. We were very impressed with the steep descent, limited bounce and soft landing these irons were producing.
The only caveat with these irons is that the nice, hydropearl finish seems to scratch and scrape off rather easily just from being in the bag.
While both of these sets offer great forgiveness and good distance, making them both viable game-improvement options, the Ping G700’s were favorable in our opinion for their higher launch and ability to stay on the green. While durability may be an issue, they give the better game-improvement performance.
Taylormade M4 Irons
Category: Game Improvement Irons
Ping G700 Irons
Category: Game-Improvement
Taylormade M4 Irons First Impressions
The Taylormade M4 irons have a clean, cavity back design with an extended sole in the rear which looks very comforting for beginners.
This feature also made them play very well in the rough. It is very easy to launch the ball high (and far) even from the rough. We were very pleased with the feel when we struck the ball right in the sweet spot.
However, the feel gets a little thin and the sound gets a little hollow unless you are dead-center on the sweet spot.
Ping G700 First Impressions
The Ping G700 first struck us with their good looks.
The hydropearl plating of these irons looks really nice both in the bag and at address. They also look really good and confidence-inspiring behind the ball. We also noticed pretty quickly that these irons gave great apex height and optimal descent angles for most lies.
In our time testing these irons, we really couldn’t determine a chink in their armor. The only thing we can say is that the gapping may be a problem for some players if you use this entire set to replace your current irons. Turf interaction is a bit chunky too.
Also, workability isn’t the best but that’s only to be expected of irons built for high handicap players.
Taylormade M4 Selling Points
- Ribcor design
- Speed Pocket
- Thick sole
- Plenty of offset
- Premium shaft options
- Strong loft
Ping G700 Selling Points
- Hydropearl finish
- Maraging steel face
- Hollow body design
- 17-4 stainless steel body
- Strong lofts
- Beefy soles
Who are the Taylormade M4 Irons for?
There’s no question that the Taylormade M4 irons would be great for anything struggling with distance on the fairway.
At the end of the day though, these irons do much more for beginners than play long. Beginners, who will often find themselves in the rough, will benefit from the beefy sole and strong lofts of these irons.
Even intermediate players who don’t quite have their swing speeds where they would like it to be would benefit from these irons. Even if you are mixing and matching and only using the longer Taylormade M4 irons, they could be great assets as purely distance irons.
The Taylormade M Family of Irons
The Taylormade M family of irons also includes the M2 irons. The first thing we noticed about the M2 irons compared to the Taylormade M4’s is that the M2’s don’t do as good a job at dampening harsh impact vibrations.
On full swings, the M2’s feedback gets muddied by unwanted vibration. The M2’s do have the same lofts as the M4 irons though so the flight trajectory is very similar with these two iron sets.
It should also be noted that the M2 irons don’t feature the same Ribcor design as the Taylormade M4 irons. The main difference this makes is lesser distance – or at least, harder distance.
In other words, you will have to have good accuracy and a fast swing speed to get the same kind of distance with the M2’s as you would with the Taylormade M4 irons. As such, the M2 irons are better in the bags of low handicappers.