Pros & their 150 yard wedges

Rabidlamb

What witchcraft is this ?, what degree loft are these wedges.
I play off 10 & 150 yards for me is a 7 iron, every day of the week.
What am I missing here ?.

jtown

Rabidlamb wrote: »

What witchcraft is this ?, what degree loft are these wedges.
I play off 10 & 150 yards for me is a 7 iron, every day of the week.
What am I missing here ?.

Think its to do with where they play.. How many times have you played in 25 degrees this year. They never ever play in full wetsuit! :mad:

dines08

Rabidlamb wrote: »

What witchcraft is this ?, what degree loft are these wedges.
I play off 10 & 150 yards for me is a 7 iron, every day of the week.
What am I missing here ?.

Swing speed

MP62

Rabidlamb wrote: »

What witchcraft is this ?, what degree loft are these wedges.
I play off 10 & 150 yards for me is a 7 iron, every day of the week.
What am I missing here ?.

We have this thread every week, show us where you read that a certain pro hits his PW 150 yards all of the time.

ssbob

Number of reasons:

1. Altitude
2. Humidity
3. Wind
4. Swing Speed
5. They are fitted a couple of times a year for the clubs they use
6. It's their full time job

L.O.F.T

Rabidlamb wrote: »

What witchcraft is this ?, what degree loft are these wedges.
I play off 10 & 150 yards for me is a 7 iron, every day of the week.
What am I missing here ?.

dines08 wrote: »

Swing speed

Include to your list Rabidlamb fitness, de lofting, downhill or downhill lie, air temperature. The list is long; your pastime is their job and they practise everyday for hours and hours and hours and play and practice................

jtown

L.O.F.T wrote: »

Include to your list Rabidlamb fitness, de lofting, downhill or downhill lie, air temperature. The list is long; your pastime is their job and they practise everyday for hours and hours and hours and play and practice................

Yip.. its there job.. I would like to try and see if they can build a wall. Monitor computer system or teach 5 year old maths :D:D

Tox56

MP62 wrote: »

We have this thread every week, show us where you read that a certain pro hits his PW 150 yards all of the time.

http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-equipment/whats-in-my-bag/2011-08/photos-alvaro-quiros#slide=1

Apparently Alvaro Quiros, although it's hard to know how reliable that is.

MP62

Tox56 wrote: »

MP62 wrote: »

We have this thread every week, show us where you read that a certain pro hits his PW 150 yards all of the time.

http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-equipment/whats-in-my-bag/2011-08/photos-alvaro-quiros#slide=1

Apparently Alvaro Quiros, although it's hard to know how reliable that is.

There are exceptions to every rule and no doubt Quiros is that exception, but as a rule they don't ordinarily hit a PW 150 yards, yet the OP sees one doing it once and thinks they all do it all of the time.
OP the main reason they hit the ball further is that they sweep and compress the ball and you and the rest of us scoop and pick the ball.

Milkers

I went to the Irish Open recently and spent a good bit of time watching the pros on the range. It was eye-opening. The thing that occurred to me after a while was that those guys were not just doing something better than me, they were somehow doing something different to me (and pretty much every other amateur I've ever seen). I know that sounds silly as it's still a golf club and a golf ball but it's hard to explain. It's like they swing different, the strike is different and most noticeably the flight of the ball is different. Having seen that I realised comparing distances of irons etc. to what the pros hit is a pretty futile exercise.

ManwitaPlan

Delofting....they turn a PW into an 8/9 iron...couple that with impeccable ball striking and an extremely fast fluid swing and you have a 150 yard wedge.

kiers47

ssbob wrote: »

Number of reasons:

1. Altitude
2. Humidity
3. Wind
4. Swing Speed
5. They are fitted a couple of times a year for the clubs they use
6. It's their full time job

You might even be able to hit a PW 200yds on a wet windy day in dundrum if some of these conditions fell in your favour??!?!!

DiegoWorst

Rabidlamb wrote: »

What witchcraft is this ?, what degree loft are these wedges.
I play off 10 & 150 yards for me is a 7 iron, every day of the week.
What am I missing here ?.

While fitness, strength. fitted equipment attribute somewhat to distances, I believe it's more to do with technique, in being able to generate lag and compress the ball with a de-lofted club.
If a Pro hits a wedge 150 yards in a tournament, he probably has scope to get some extra yards if accuracy wasn't such a concern.
The real freak-show is seeing them guys hit 4-irons to pin high from 250 yards out.

Like I always say, the Pros play a different game.

fullstop

Tox56 wrote: »

http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-equipment/whats-in-my-bag/2011-08/photos-alvaro-quiros#slide=1

Apparently Alvaro Quiros, although it's hard to know how reliable that is.

That's a strong wedge loft, normally around 47degrees in clubs you buy off the shelf. And he still doesn't hit it 150...and he's in the top few longest hitters on tour.

soundsham

Rabidlamb wrote: »

What witchcraft is this ?, what degree loft are these wedges.
I play off 10 & 150 yards for me is a 7 iron, every day of the week.
What am I missing here ?.

Often boned one 200 yds myself.....

FANTAPANTS

ManwitaPlan wrote: »

Delofting....they turn a PW into an 8/9 iron...couple that with impeccable ball striking and an extremely fast fluid swing and you have a 150 yard wedge.

golfing 2 years and thats what my mates says i do is deloft who cares gap wedge 150 yards all day just to annoy others who ask what you played ;);)

Gmpd

ManwitaPlan wrote: »

Delofting....they turn a PW into an 8/9 iron...couple that with impeccable ball striking and an extremely fast fluid swing and you have a 150 yard wedge.

What would the advantage of delofting a pw be? Would it not be easier to just hit a natural 8/9 iron or whatever the club my be

FANTAPANTS

Gmpd wrote: »

What would the advantage of delofting a pw be? Would it not be easier to just hit a natural 8/9 iron or whatever the club my be

depends on what feels right for you,

Gmpd

FANTAPANTS wrote: »

Gmpd wrote: »

What would the advantage of delofting a pw be? Would it not be easier to just hit a natural 8/9 iron or whatever the club my be

depends on what feels right for you,

Yeah I suppose so.. Really a beginner myself so I'm just happy to make solid contact with a conventional swing.. Wouldn't even try delofting the club as the game is hard enough

Gmpd

FANTAPANTS wrote: »

Gmpd wrote: »

What would the advantage of delofting a pw be? Would it not be easier to just hit a natural 8/9 iron or whatever the club my be

depends on what feels right for you,

Yeah I suppose so.. Really a beginner myself so I'm just happy to make solid contact with a conventional swing.. Wouldn't even try delofting the club as the game is hard enough

Quandary

150 yards for a pro with a wedge isn't that incredible when you consider how perfectly they strike the ball, club head speed, etc....

I'm off 20 and when I hit it clean, I hit my PW about 120. I have to imagine a pro being able to hit it 20% further!

I know it's not a wedge but remember Adam Scott hitting his 4 iron 280 yards :eek:

Su Campu

Here's a post I made a while back on the physics of how weather conditions affect golf shots. 10-15 yards extra would be possible with a wedge in hot humid weather versus cold and dry, all other things being equal.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=77152295

FixdePitchmark

I hit a PW about 140 , it is a PW and the loft from a SW to PW is 10 degs. My irons are GI irons and the ball goes far, they are delofted too by 2deg (i hear) , so you would need to know loft of the club they are talking about. PW means very little these days.

I find a PW bit useless, it is very rare you are at 140 yrds, it is more 110 , 100 , 80. I can't see a pro hitting too many PWs anyway.

The main thing is the ambient conditions, in winter on the same hole / distance - i could drop to a 9 or 8 for 140 yrds.

Swing speed and strike for them is key.

I'm still crap at golf but.

DiegoWorst

Gmpd wrote: »

What would the advantage of delofting a pw be? Would it not be easier to just hit a natural 8/9 iron or whatever the club my be

I'm no expert in this area, but from what limited understanding I have, there has to be some element of delofting to ensure solid contact with the ball, the handle of the club should be ahead of the clubhead as it meets the ball. If the clubhead reaches the ball with it's full loft, there is an increased chance of fatting or thining the shot.
I would image a pitching wedge should be delofted to say a 9-iron loft in order to achieve good contact. Of course some golfers may deloft by a more extreme degree.

FixdePitchmark

DiegoWorst wrote: »

I'm no expert in this area, but from what limited understanding I have, there has to be some element of delofting to ensure solid contact with the ball, the handle of the club should be ahead of the clubhead as it meets the ball. If the clubhead reaches the ball with it's full loft, there is an increased chance of fatting or thining the shot.
I would image a pitching wedge should be delofted to say a 9-iron loft in order to achieve good contact. Of course some golfers may deloft by a more extreme degree.

I'd rather shank it then wear them yolks - that is what you call deloft me bollix -

Na you can see great strike.

TheDoc

ssbob wrote: »

Number of reasons:

1. Altitude
2. Humidity
3. Wind
4. Swing Speed
5. They are fitted a couple of times a year for the clubs they use
6. It's their full time job

That is it in a nutshell.

I'd say I hit a 7 iron from 150yards for years.

This year made swing overhaul to promote better ball striking, and I'm now hitting an 8iron about 160 yards.

From 100 yards that used to be a full wedge, now a half wedge is too much, and a gap wedge is too much.

If you were able to fine tune your swing every day as your fulltime job, with the assistance of coaches and having your clubs finely tuned, believe me, we would all be doing it.

What I found incredible last weekend, is that Tiger took a 7 iron on a Par 3 that was 226 to the pin and was pin high.

That **** is scary.

ssbob

TheDoc wrote: »

What I found incredible last weekend, is that Tiger took a 7 iron on a Par 3 that was 226 to the pin and was pin high.

Wind was a huge factor last weekend, he also hit a drive with a 2-iron to 285 yards and went past Vijay's 3-wood!

antoobrien

Gmpd wrote: »

What would the advantage of delofting a pw be? Would it not be easier to just hit a natural 8/9 iron or whatever the club my be

In a word spin, some pros will use a shorter club to make the ball stop a bit quicker.

sky6

Tiger hits a 9 Iron 210 yds, now that's even more crazy.

Benny Cake

"Club Distance Threads" make baby Jesus cry.....

Tox56

TheDoc wrote: »

That is it in a nutshell.

I'd say I hit a 7 iron from 150yards for years.

This year made swing overhaul to promote better ball striking, and I'm now hitting an 8iron about 160 yards.

From 100 yards that used to be a full wedge, now a half wedge is too much, and a gap wedge is too much.

If you were able to fine tune your swing every day as your fulltime job, with the assistance of coaches and having your clubs finely tuned, believe me, we would all be doing it.

What I found incredible last weekend, is that Tiger took a 7 iron on a Par 3 that was 226 to the pin and was pin high.

That **** is scary.

Most people really wouldn't, you need to be very, very good to start with.

taylorconor95

Apart from the fact that they absolutely bust it, they also trap the ball as well, turning the PW from 48 to 45. Big difference in 3 degrees

elberry

I play a 46 degree PW, I hit it 150 without having to force it, I reckon McIlroy and the like would hit it much farther than I can. My Gap Wedge is 50 degree, I hit it about 130. I would add I don't hood or close the face of the PW, just a normal full swing.

GreeBo

taylorconor95 wrote: »

Apart from the fact that they absolutely bust it, they also trap the ball as well, turning the PW from 48 to 45. Big difference in 3 degrees

I would disagree strongly that Pros "bust" their PW's.
A PW is an accuracy club, not a distance club. It would be pretty rare that a pro would be swinging 100% with any club bar the driver, let alone a PW.