Coming off of last year’s huge success with G430 Max 10K, what would the Ping engineers and R&D department staff come up with for 2025? G430 Max 10K seemed to hit so many of the high marks of technology that OEM’s had strived to achieve for so long – incredible forgiveness, fast ball speeds, and the tightest dispersion of any driver we ever tested. If there was one detractor from last year’s model, it was feel and sound. Like so many Ping drivers of the past, performance was always up towards the industry’s pinnacle, but the sound and feel were usually towards the bottom of this subjective category. We’re not sure why Ping chose not to address this dilemma, but it kept some players from gaming Ping drivers (despite the fantastic performance metrics). There are a few solutions to the sound issue, but few have access to club technicians who can remedy the issue. Sound and feel aside, the G430 Max 10K was a bit of a unicorn in the industry.
In 2025, Ping introduced the G440 series drivers and metalwoods…
Technology:
According to Travis Milleman – Ping Engineer Manager, “The focus with the G440 line was find ways to save mass in areas that could help performance. Where did we have mass that could be moved? High and forward in the hosel area. so we looked at the structure that holds our hosel sleeve, and there is a bunch of metal up in that region. Could we remove it? We created a few prototypes of what we call the “Free Hosel” to see how much of that we could take away. We were able to take away 5 grams of mass from that area, which may not sound like a lot, but in the design world, that’s massive, especially in the driver. We were able to put that weight lower and as far back as we could to maximize MOI. By removing part of that structure we were also able to free up some flexibility in the heel portion of the face, giving the driver a hotter COR across the entire face, even on mishits. Our goal was to make the entire face faster, but remain conforming to standards – one way that we did this was by shortening the face. Shortening the face allowed us to go thinner, so although the CT readings are the same, our research shows that shorter and thinner face equates to faster ball speed. The CarbonFly crown is now a component of all three 2025 driver models (was only present in the G430 LST driver in the last iteration).”
The adjustable rear weight, otherwise known as the CG shifter is a whopping 29 grams (4 grams more than G430). Somehow, with all of this tech and moving weight around, they made the overall head weight 3 grams lighter than the previous model, combined with a lighter and 1/4″ longer shaft (46″).
The G440 Max is longer, lighter and supposedly faster than G430 Max 10K.
Testing:
So with all of this innovation, how does the G440 Max measure up? Indoor testing on a GC Quad did not definitively show much difference in performance metrics between the G430 Max 10K and the G440 Max. Our launch, spin, swing speed, ball speed, carry, and overall distance were all within a few yards of each other.
There were two definite differences between G430 Max 10K and G440 Max while testing indoors. The first is measurable. The G430 Max 10K is the straightest driver we ever tested indoors (certainly not the longest, but it is plenty long enough), it produced seriously small margin of dispersion of 9.1 yards off center on average, and when we took it back out to test again this year, the numbers were almost exactly the same (8.9 yards off center). The new G440 Max was a bit less impressive, averaging 16.4 yards of dispersion from the center line (we tested both models in the neutral setting in loft/lie angle and rear weight setting).
The thing that impressed us the most about G440 Max was a subjective trait – sound and feel. Forever we’ve been waiting for a Ping driver that has that fantastic muted thwack at impact, that sound at impact made by so many drivers of the other top OEMs (Ping drivers have always had that high-pitched tinny sound). Quite the reversal since the G440 Max may be the best feeling/sounding driver that we’ve tested since the Cobra F9.
- I amended this review after my first full round on the course with the G440 Max on 4/25
Very rarely does on-course testing bring a big difference in terms of overall impression of a club after testing it indoors (at least for me personally). My first full round on the course with the G440 Max came after a long 9-round road trip to McLemore, Broomsedge, Tobacco Road and Pinehurst Resort. I didn’t bring the G440 along because I intended to hone in on the swing changes I’d been working on for the past 2 months. Ironically, on that trip the only part of the new swing that let me down was when I hit driver . . . so the first round back was the perfect opportunity to bench my gamer and put the new Ping in play.
We tested at Osprey Point Golf Course in west Boca Raton, Florida on a very mild afternoon (82 degrees, wind at 10-15mph). After a rusty front nine scoring-wise, one in which I drove it pretty well – the G440 Max was a welcome bright spot. I worked an easy cut off the 1st tee, and the rest of the nine decided to aim down the center and see what ball flight resulted. This driver is point and shoot easy to keep in play, and when you choose to work it a bit in both directions, you can – but this baby just wants to fly fairly straight. When I just swung away, it produced a very gentle draw that some may consider a straight ball with a medium trajectory.
On the back nine, everything was clicking in the tune of a 3-under-par inward side. The 46″ shaft feels a bit long, so I just choked up about a half inch and got after it. It wasn’t the longest driver I’ve ever hit, but it was plenty long enough also producing a good bit of roll after carry. The dispersion seemed to get tighter and tighter the more aggressively I swung it ( a bit reminiscent of last year’s G430 Max 10K). On the 12 holes where we hit driver, we only missed one fairway all day (and that one was an alignment error, aiming into the foliage on the left attempting to hit a hard cut). Don’t plan on overworking this club; it allows for gentle curvature, but not much. After the round, there wasn’t anything lacking in my performance off the tee.
Summary:
Some other well respected outlets weren’t favorable on the G440 Max, and that may have seeped into our early thoughts before indoor testing. Everything changed when we took it out on the course, because that wasn’t a data driven experience. Ironically, we may be the only outlet that discusses the subject of how this is by far the best feeling Ping driver ever – and that can lead to confidence on the course. The Ping G440 Max might be just what you’ve been looking for. Our longtime gamer has been dethroned and put away in the closet, the G440 Max is now in the bag.
For more info on Ping G440 Max and other Ping gear: https://ping.com/en-us/
