Ping i25 Irons Review – What Handicap Are They For? Are They Forgiving?

“When compared to the Ping i20 irons, the newer Ping i25 irons don’t appear to be very different.

However, don’t let the near identical profiles fool you. The Ping i25’s are a slight upgrade from their predecessors.”

Ping i25 Irons Overview

“They say you shouldn’t mess with a good thing.”

And it seems that Ping took that adage to heart when it came time to design the Ping i25 irons. Compared to the Ping i20 irons, you can see that the i25’s look a lot sleeker – almost like a modern Ping iron. However, in terms of features and performance aspects, there isn’t a lot of difference.

And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The Ping i20’s appealed to a wide variety of players partially because of the progressive design. The Ping i25’s bear that same progressive design and have similar performance aspects. For example, the Ping i25’s are maybe a degree or two above a standard loft profile and launch really well just like the Ping i20 irons did.

The Ping i25 irons also feature the same stabilizing bars that the Ping i20 irons had. The stabilizing bars allow the face to flex more at impact without losing any accuracy or control. The Ping i25 iron set has progressive CG as well. The CG starts low and raises a bit as you work down the set.

However, the Ping i25 irons have slightly chunkier soles than their predecessors which higher handicap players will really love. They also have a slightly softer feel that is apparently the result of an upgraded insert.

Are the Ping i25 Irons Forgiving?

“The Ping i25 irons are about as forgiving as their predecessors.”

If you aren’t familiar with the Ping i20 irons, the long and the short of it is that they are moderately forgiving as they were fairly large and had toe weighting to cover up mis-hits. The Ping i25 more or less tick the same boxes when it comes to forgiveness.

Of course, the longer irons are larger, have a lower CG and more offset. The soles are also chunkier compared to the Ping i20s. The sole width is actually the most significant difference in terms of forgiveness because it allows the Ping i25 irons to sit better behind the ball and improves turf interaction.

Again, with the Ping i25 irons you get moderate forgiveness; but not so much that it would be a universal recommendation for high handicappers. They launch high, don’t lose much carry distance to spin and feel pretty nice too.

Are the Ping i25 Irons Good for Beginners & High Handicappers?

“It’s important to note that while the spin numbers were relatively high when we tested the Ping i25 irons, it didn’t seem to affect carry distance.”

With the 7-iron in this set, we were consistently getting RPM readings above 6000 from our launch monitor. You would think that would kill carry distance but that wasn’t the case. Almost every iron in the set had an initially low launch that picked up rather quickly. The result was pretty good overall carry distance.

The average carry distance for our testers after 3 swings with the 7-iron was 162.1 yards – pretty decent overall, considering that the spin rates were still above 6000 RPMs. So in terms of distance, the Ping i25’s are pretty solid for high handicappers – even when you’re talking about the short irons.

However, your striking accuracy has to be at least intermediate level to gain any distance benefits. Topping the ball will kill your ball speed and inward heel strikes will also drop your overall distance. That being said, the soles are moderately chunky and these irons should be able to improve your swing if you’re a high handicapper. In summation, the Ping i25 irons are good for high handicappers and beginners; but like their predecessors, they still aren’t the best for beginners and high handicappers.

Should you Buy the Ping i25’s or the Ping G410’s

“If you aren’t interested in a Ping iron from years past, you may want to check out the G410 irons.”

The G410 irons have compact heads but are packed with forgiveness features like extreme perimeter weighting in the form of a tungsten toe screw and hosel weight. The lateral forgiveness of the G410 irons was actually better than the Ping i25’s.

However, you do have to compete against a more compact head. With the G410 irons, you get a co-molded cavity badge instead of a custom tuning port which is a bit of an upgrade. Overall, the G410 isn’t a huge upgrade over the Ping i25. But if you’re a mid to low handicapper, you may prefer the improved workability. Mid and high handicappers would probably have a better time with the Ping i25 irons.