For PGA Tour pros, a greenside bunker shot is often preferable to hitting from the rough. For the rest of us mere mortals? That thump of a ball landing in sand might as well be the sound of strokes being added to the scorecard.
To the skilled player, a bunker represents a reasonable chance at an up-and-down. To the average golfer, it’s golf’s version of quicksand—the more you struggle, the deeper you sink, watching your scorecard inflate with each desperate swing.
While PING can’t eliminate the gulf between Tour pros splashing out to tap-in range and a weekend warrior’s excavation project, they’re launching the BunkR; a new club designed to make the average golfer’s escape from a sandy hell significantly more likely.
ChipR’s sanding sibling
If you’ve been paying attention to PING’s past specialty club offerings, the BunkR will make perfect sense.
“Coming off the wild success of the ChipR, we really have looked at are there certain club types that can do one job really well,” explained Ryan Stokke, PING’s Director of Product Design.
With that, PING is applying the same specialized design philosophy to bunker play.
Of course, anytime you add a single-function club (like the BunkR or ChipR) to the bag, you have to take something out (assuming you play by USGA rules – and I don’t care if you don’t), but if you struggle bigly with one part of the game or another, sacrificing a club to solve a persistent problem can make a lot of sense.
Square face, fewer problems
As you’ve probably surmised, the BunkR is designed exclusively for sand shots although it could be argued that PING has actually rethought how amateur golfers should approach bunker play.
Rather than teaching the traditional open-face technique that requires near perfect execution and often leads to bladed shots that rocket across the green, the BunkR is designed to be used with a square face. This means the golfer can approach the shot with a more familiar setup and swing, focusing on speed and contact rather than manipulating the clubface and taking just the right amount of sand.
You may have dabbled in trying to hit bunker shots with the proper technique (or whatever technique was advised in the last YouTube video you watched) but after a few thin or heavy shots most will revert back to trying to get the ball out by any means necessary and with varying degrees of success.
The BunkR caters directly to this instinct.
PING BunkR design
Unlike other wedges, the PING BunkR is available in a single loft. For the record, it’s 64 degrees and while PING doesn’t print the bounce number on the club, the company lists the effective bounce at 14.5 degrees.
The 64-degree loft ensures enough height to clear most bunker lips while the substantial 14.5-degree bounce prevents the club from digging too deeply into the sand.
It borrows its general shape from PING’s iconic Eye 2 (E Grind) which, in addition to a bunker-friendly sole, gives you a thinner hosel for more speed through the sand.
Some quick data
As with any specialty club, the million-dollar question is: “Does it actually work better than what I already have?”
PING’s testing suggests it does. In a controlled study with players carrying 10-plus handicaps, participants hit shots from a 20-yard bunker to a green with a 20-foot target circle around the hole. When comparing the BunkR to PING’s S159 60-degree E-grind wedge:
- Significantly fewer shots remained in the bunker
- A substantially higher percentage of shots landed inside the target circle
A sensible trade?
For many recreational golfers who might hit a few bunker shots per round with abysmal results (PING cites on-course data showing 20-handicappers get the ball inside six feet from a bunker eight percent of the time), the decision could be simple.
Would you swap out your rarely used fairway wood or one of your wedges if it meant transforming near-automatic bogeys or doubles into potential pars? The success of the ChipR suggests plenty of golfers are willing to make that trade. I suspect it won’t be any different with the BunkR.
The big picture
For purists, the BunkR might represent another step away from the skill development that some believe is central to golf’s challenge. For the average weekend player who just wants to escape the beach without the accompanying embarrassment and frustration, it could be the difference between dreading bunker shots and actually embracing them.
As Stokke puts it, “If we can help them get on the putting surface consistently, it changes their life and it helps them play the game in a different way. I think we’ve all played with that person where they get in a bunker, they have this lie. And they’re already mentally imploding that this is what they think their shot is really gonna look like.”
The BunkR aims to transform that mental implosion into a realistic expectation of success.
Stokke says that when using the PING BunkR, it’s “literally being able to pick the ball up and throw it on the green.” And there’s nothing in the rulebook against that, as long as you’re using a conforming club to do the “throwing.”
Pricing and availability
Retail price for the PING BunkR wedge is $179. Stock shafts include the PING Z-115 (steel) and PING Alta CB (graphite)
The PING BunkR is available for pre-sale now. Full retail availability beings March 27.
For more information, visit PING.com.
Brad
1 year ago
Ima fortunate enough to play on two private courses at my club here in Melbourne, with well-tended-to light fluffy sand.
Anything to help.
This will come in very handy.