GOLF.com: Hovland Finally Commits to G440 LST — New Shaft Seals the Deal

Viktor Hovland arrived at the RBC Canadian Open with just one driver — and it wasn't the Ping G425 LST he had relied on for six years and six of his seven PGA Tour victories.

Two Seasons in the Making

Hovland has been periodically testing both the Ping G440 LST and G440 K for roughly two seasons, even gaming the LST at the 2025 Masters and the K at the WM Phoenix Open. Yet he kept reverting to his G425 safety net. Ping's tour team confirmed the G440 outperforms the G425 across every measurable metric, but two issues blocked the switch: slightly higher peak trajectory and a tendency to drift right — amplifying Hovland's existing high-right miss when his swing got stuck.

The Shaft That Made It Work

During three weeks off between the PGA Championship and Canada, Hovland tightened his swing and made a critical shaft change: the Fujikura Ventus TR Black+ 6-X, which features a stiffer mid-section similar to the Speeder 757 in his G425 build. The new shaft was designed to drop spin and improve feel, finally allowing Hovland to access the 3–4 mph of additional ball speed the G440 head offers.

Build specs: G440 LST 9.0° (actual loft 7.4°), Flat Dot setting, Ventus TR Black w/ Velocore+ 6-X (1" tip), 45.75" EOG, D5+ swingweight.

Broader Tour Notes

Nick Taylor and Taylor Moore also moved into the G440 LST this week. Wyndham Clark returned to a Ping G440 Max 3-wood and dropped his Qi4D driver loft from 10.5° to 9.0°.

Strokeslab Take

Hovland's two-year journey underscores how shaft-swing alignment — not just head technology — determines when a gear change becomes viable. The breakthrough came not from a new head but from finding a shaft profile that controlled start line, a reminder that equipment optimization is rarely linear.