I am a buyer of Ping clubs and have been for many years.  This guide is for sellers of Ping clubs from a buyer's point of view.  This is a list of what I'd like to see if I am to consider buying your clubs. Ping iron sets sell anywhere from $150 to $1,500 dollars depending on composition and condition. Individual clubs range from $25.00 to $350.00.   If you want someone to spend that much money, tell them why they should; why your set of Pings is better than the other ones listed.  Always consider who is your target buyer.  This guide starts with a checklist with explanations below.

Selling Checklist

• A good listing;
• Pictures of the clubs for sale - face, sole, back and shaftband;
• exact type and make up of set for sale
• serial number or numbers and which clubs have what numbers
• "dot" color
• head material and condition
• shaft material and condition 
• shaft type and flex (on the shaft band)
• grip condition
• unusual features, if any
• history, if you know it

A Good Listing

In spite of what you may have heard, many people still access eBay via dial-up modems.  A search done using List View only will not show pictures and therefore all you have to reel-in a customer is your listing. A search of most of the set names will turn up at least a 100 or so sets.  Consider the following two examples of listings:

Awesome . . . Custom Square Groove Ping I5 irons Black Dot

or

Ping WRX I5 2-L Blk Dot CS-Lite Stiff  9+

The bottom listing tells me almost everything I need to know about the clubs in about 2/3rds the number of characters that the top listing used.  I know the brand, the model, that the clubs were customized at the WRX custom shop at Ping, the set makeup, the dot color, the shaft type and general condition.  The only other things I need to know are the serial numbers and the type of work done at WRX plus some pictures.  Someone who's going to pony-up several hundred dollars for golf clubs is probably sophisticated enough to not appreciate the hype of the first listing and might ignore it completely.  I probably would unless I'm desperate for a certain club and have a deadline or the price is really, really low . . . .

Pictures of the Clubs You Are Selling

This is the most important part of your ad.  Don't put a picture you've copyed from a buying guide.  Good quality pictures of the faces, backs, soles and shaft stickers of the clubs you're listing are all that's necessary to allow a relatively thorough inspection of the clubs.  If there is above-average damage to a particular club, have a close-up showing the damage.

List the Specifications

List the serial number - if there's more than one, say which clubs have which serial number.  With that number either you or the buyer can check and see what the specifications were when the clubs left the factory.

List the "dot" color - the woods and irons all have a dot color denoting the lie of the club; what color is it and if you know, what should it be.

List the head material  - Stainless Steel, Beryllium Copper, Beryllium Nickel,  Manganese Bronze, Titanium or Laminated Wood. 

Describe the relative wear -  Unless you have a set with the stickers still on the grips and faces, it's used. Buyers know that.  If it's been retumbled or reshafted, say how and when, if you know.  On Ping putters specifically, if you don't know what the head composition is, say so; better to be ignorant than a liar. 

List the shaft material - steel or graphite

List the shaft type and condition - if you know what type of shaft is in the clubs, list it.  Pings were manufactured with a number of proprietary shafts in both steel and graphite.  If you don't know because the shaft band is gone then say unknown.  Don't guess.  Note if the shafts appear different between clubs by lining up the clubs and seeing if the steps in the shaft make a uniform pattern.  If there is rust on the shafts, even tiny specks of it, at least mention it.

Note the condition of the grips - this is not critical as a knowledgable buyer will probably regrip anyway so if they're bad, say so.

If someone's name is engraved on a club or set, disclose it.  If the name (or the word DEMO) is a black graphic on an iron hosel, it comes off , eventually, with acetone, a Q-tip and a lot of patience.  Don't scrape or grind it off.

History

If you know the history of the clubs, give a brief description.  If you don't know it, say so.

NO BS

Don't write a bunch of BS about how the square grooves will lower a buyer's score, help his love life or whatever.  Any modern club has better, sharper square grooves than an old, used set of clubs, which is what these Pings are.  They are old, with original Eye2s now over 20 years of age.  Yes, they are still good clubs but only a truly uninformed buyer doesn't realize the fact that they are used. 

All Ping clubs are conforming to the USGA Rules of Golf as of Jan. 1, 2007 unless they have been regrooved or otherwise altered by someone after leaving the Ping factory.  Eye2s without an extruded + are not legal for Royal and Ancient events.

All Ping irons manufactured after 1984 have square grooves.  If it has a patent number, it has square grooves.

There is no difference between Eye2 grooves and Eye2+ grooves.  The difference in the clubs is that the amount of space between the grooves is about a ten-thousandth of an inch wider on an Eye2+.

99.98% of Ping clubs are NOT collectable.

Research

If you want to do a little research into what you're selling, look on the Pinggolf website. 

PT Barnum Factor

Let's be brutally honest: there are any number of idiots on eBay. Or perhaps, more eloquently, as P.T. Barnum said, there's a sucker born every minute. Some ill-informed Bidders continue to purchase Eye2+ L wedges at well over 150 bucks for no reason at all.

In general, the value of most, if not all, Ping clubs is maxed right now.  Eye2+ have held fairly steady over the last few years but the other models devalue with every new model Ping brings to market.  Presently a new model is introduced approximately every 18 months.  I can't conceive of a scenario where the value of the older sets ever increases over what it is right now. I think the value is maxed and informed, knowledgable buyers know that. If you're hoping for a premium on the set you're selling, you're counting on the P.T. Barnum factor.

Answer questions

If someone takes the time to send a question (other than the ubiquitous "how much is shipping to ______ ?") take the time to answer, even if it's to say "I don't know."

In my opinion, the seller should feedback first; the only ones who don't are ones who are afraid of what the buyer's gonna say when the clubs arrive.

Finally, if you have all of this information, a buyer would be much more likely to bid as most if not all of the information necessary to evaluate the condition of the club or clubs is present.  

If you didn't find this guide to be helpful, please contact me via the messaging system with what you think needs changing or to be added or deleted.  I do update these guides every few weeks.

Good Luck.