When PING founder (and Ballard native) Karsten Solheim first emerged from his garage with a putter he promised would change the way the game was played, PGA pros were skeptical. Of course, that skepticism lasted only as long as it took for them to drain a few 15-footers, and 50 years later, PING Golf – so named because of the “pinging” sound that first putter made when striking a ball – stands as one of the giants of the industry. With the company celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2009, expectations are high for PING at this year’s PGA Merchandise Show, and the company has invested significant time and money into developing a club that would befit such a milestone. The result is the Rapture V2 series, in which multiple metals have been combined to create a club that is as forgiving as it is long. Most notable about the Rapture V2 driver (the series also includes fairway woods, hybrids and irons) is its use of tungsten. Most commonly used in rocket engines, NASCAR cars and turbine engines, tungsten appealed to PING’s designers for its lightness, density and hardness, a perfect storm of qualities that can turn a regular driver into … well, a rocket. External tungsten weight pads located near the heel of the driver (see image above) help reduce spin, while a larger head size than PING’s previous Rapture driver allows for greater forgiveness – an important quality in any rocket.