{"id":408811,"date":"2026-01-12T18:57:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T18:57:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/408811\/"},"modified":"2026-01-12T18:57:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T18:57:10","slug":"new-prototype-ping-mini-driver-spotted-on-usga-conforming-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/408811\/","title":{"rendered":"New ‘Prototype’ Ping Mini Driver Spotted On USGA Conforming List"},"content":{"rendered":"

So far, at the end of 2025 and the early stages of 2026, we’ve seen multiple intriguing clubs hit the USGA Conforming List<\/a>, with the newest addition coming from Ping.<\/p>\n

Mini drivers have become more prominent over the last few years<\/a> and, while we’ve seen models from the likes of TaylorMade, Callaway, Titleist, PXG and recently Cobra with its new King Tec-MD mini driver<\/a>, we’ve never seen one from Ping… until now.<\/p>\n

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\"Justin\n<\/p>\n

Mini drivers have grown in popularity on the PGA Tour, being used by the likes of Ryder Cup stars Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Appearing the Monday of the Sony Open in Hawaii<\/a> and the Dubai Invitational, Ping’s mini driver was spotted on the USGA’s Conforming List, specifically a “Prototype” model.<\/p>\n

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Like any club that hits the Conforming List, information is limited, but the word ‘prototype’ is clearly displayed on the sole of the head, as is the loft number, which is 13\u00b0.<\/p>\n

Other notable factors are the adjustable weight port at the back, which is clearly identified by ‘fade’ and ‘draw’ settings. There’s also an adjustable hosel, as well as ‘Spinsistency’ on the face, which can be found in Ping’s fairway woods<\/a> and hybrids.<\/p>\n

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\"A\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: USGA)<\/p>\n

Left and right-hand versions of the mini driver are on the USGA Conforming List, which means there is a chance we could see the Ping Prototype mini driver in play in Dubai or Hawaii.<\/p>\n

One possible player could be Ping staffer and recent Korn Ferry Tour graduate Christo Lamprecht. One of the biggest hitters in the world, the South African is known for his unique set-up, which features two drivers and five wedges. <\/a><\/p>\n

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Speaking back in May of last year, Lamprecht stated: “I’ve now got a semi-mini-driver. It’s 14-degrees of loft, shorter shaft and it goes a really good number out here.”<\/p>\n

Reportedly, the model will be limited to Tour players only. Like we saw with other mini drivers, though, it doesn’t necessarily mean it won’t eventually hit retail, but time will tell on that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"So far, at the end of 2025 and the early stages of 2026, we’ve seen multiple intriguing clubs…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":408812,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[64,63,755,85],"class_list":["post-408811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/408811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=408811"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/408811\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/408812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=408811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=408811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=408811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}