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PING LAUNCHES TiSI Tec
DRIVER;
LONGER BY DESIGN
Golf innovator PING has achieved a
major technological breakthrough in drivers that should help all golfers hit the
golf ball longer.
Called the
TiSI Tecä and cast from Ti 6-4 titanium, the new PING driver offers
club head and performance improvements that have been field tested in prototype
models with impressive results on the major Tours world-wide.
"The TiSI Tec is definitely
the longest driver that we’ve ever built," said John A. Solheim, PING Chairman
& CEO. "It’s longer by design."
The PING TiSI Tec driver is
also providing significant results in field testing at the company’s R&D Test
Facility in Phoenix.
The PING Chairman introduced the TiSI
Tec driver at the company’s national sales meeting today in Phoenix.
TiSI Tec Optimises Spin,
Lift
"The club is hot. We’ve optimised
the spin and lift characteristics of this driver," said Solheim. "The TiSI Tec
imparts the correct amount of spin to the golf ball. As a result, players are
experiencing a more optimum, boring ball flight and more forward momentum when
the ball hits the ground."
The weighting is lower and more forward,
nearer the face, on the heel and toe in the PING TiSI Tec driver and this
helps reduce spin to optimise distance, according to Solheim.
Another feature of the new TiSI Tec
driver is the ease with which golfers can establish and control their ball flight
pattern. Golfers will find the club easier to make the ball draw.
PING Introduces Effective Trajectory
A key feature being introduced by
PING in its TiSI Tec driver is a new PING concept called "effective trajectory"
or ET™. ET is the dynamic loft of the TiSI Tec driver, or the "effective
loft" at impact with the ball, and as a result, ET will differ slightly from the
static loft of the club. An 8.5 TiSI Tec driver has the same launch angle
as an 8.5 TiSI driver when tested under controlled, identical conditions, even
though the static loft of the TiSI Tec is slightly higher than the TiSI.
The ET of the TiSI Tec driver
will be displayed on the sole plate. PING officials remind golfers to be professionally
custom-fit for the new TiSI Tec driver for optimum driving results. The
ET’s in right and left-handed models will be 5.5, 7, 8.5, 10 and 11.5 degrees.
TiSI Tec Features Chem Milled
Technology
PING is using an aerospace industry
process to produce the TiSI Tec driver called chem milled technology (CMT™),
a non-traditional and highly sophisticated process.
The PING chairman said his company
has filed a patent application for this technology.
"Chem milled technology, applied during
the manufacturing process, permits us to more than double the durability of our
driver, and allows us to locate the club head weighting for optimum performance,"
said Solheim.
TiSI Tec Offers Multi-Functional
Hosel
Another key feature of the TiSI Tec
driver will be the club head’s multi-functional, thermoplastic hosel, a patented
device introduced by PING with its highly successful TiSI driver more than three
years ago.
Each PING TiSI Tec driver will
be manufactured with a pre-set hosel position inside the club head. This custom-fit
hosel position will determine each driver’s shaft insertion angle. The desired
custom-fit hosel position, of which there are eight, will help golfers with any
type of swing hit longer, straighter, more accurate drives. Because of the difference
in weight distribution in the club heads, the TiSI Tec hosel specifications
will be slightly different from those of the TiSI driver.
Driver Shape Transfers More Energy
Because all PING metal woods are engineered
with nearly parallel tops and soles, minimal club head distortion occurs at impact,
which in turn provides greater transfer of energy.
"We introduced this feature into our
metal woods more than three years ago, resulting in increased driving distances,"
said Solheim.
Patented Variable Face Thickness
Another important feature that helps
the TiSI Tec driver achieve greater distances is variable face thickness.
"This patented technology, which the
company began working on in the early 1990’s, positions more mass in a large,
central impact area and less on the face’s perimeter to optimize performance.
This variation in face thickness creates an efficient energy transfer to the ball
for greater distance," said Solheim.
Variable Weighting Control
A small elliptical-shaped weight,
measuring 1.25 inches by one-half inch, plays a very important role in the performance
of the TiSI Tec driver. The controllable weight is placed directly behind
the centre of gravity at the back of the club head.
"This back weight is positioned as
far from the centre of gravity as possible. This helps stabilise the club head
during impact," said Solheim, "and it provides resistance to twisting on heel
or toe shots for greater accuracy, while also reducing loft changes on shots hit
high or low on the club face."
Graphite Shafts Offered in Five
Flexes
The TiSI Tec driver will be
offered in custom-fit, precision matched graphite shafts, available in five flexes
to give golfers the ability to select the proper shafts for their golf game, no
matter their skill level.
Called the "350 Series," these high
quality graphite shafts are proprietary to PING, and will provide golfers with
the optimum in consistency and performance. The five flexes will include an L
flex, A flex, R flex, S flex and X flex.
"The overall weight of the shafts
is light, which complements the TiSi Tec head design for greater club head
speed," said Solheim, "and that also translates to increased distance."
Custom-fit driver lengths will range
from 44 to 46 inches. Standard length will be 45 inches.
Tour Players Praise TiSI
Tec Driver
PING Tour professionals who have used
prototypes of the TiSI Tec driver in competition have this to say about
the performance of the club:
BOB MAY: "It’s great. It’s
the complete driver. I’m getting much better trajectory into the wind. The ball
reacts better once it gets on the ground. It seems to run out more. And that translates
to better distance."
MIGUEL ANGEL JIMENEZ: "Playing
with the TiSI Tec is like having a golf ball in my hand. I can move it
in any direction…left, right, high, low and any combination thereof. I could not
do these things with other drivers. Now, I can play all the shots with the TiSI
Tec."
MARK CALCAVECCHIA: "It is a
good 25-30 yards longer into the wind. The engineers have done something with
the TiSI Tec to make my ball flight more penetrating and lower. I’ve improved
my driving average on Tour this year from 31st to 19th position
with the TiSI Tec driver."
RORY SABATTINI: "The TiSI Tec
has better feel. It is much improved and stronger. My ball flight is more consistent."
LEE WESTWOOD, no. 9 ranked
professional in the world, used the TiSI Tec driver to win the long drive
segment of a made-for-television skills challenge at Wentworth, England earlier
this year with drives of 318 and 326 yards. His drives were the longest in the
competition.
ANGEL CABRERA used the TiSI
Tec driver to belt his tee shot 345 yards in the first round of the US
Open this year on the PGA Tour hole used to measure drives of all competitors.
Winter Deliveries Planned
Orders for the new TiSI Tec
driver are being taken now with deliveries of right and left-handed models scheduled
for this winter. Suggested retail price is £450.
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