What wedge setup are ye all using ?

Russman

Just thought it might be interesting to hear various thoughts on this. With the modern PW being so strong these days, its really throwing my gapping out and I'm re evaluating things ! Was always PW plus 52 & 56, never used or needed a lob wedge. Threw a 60 in for the laugh a season or two ago and almost only use it out of bunkers, and absolute emergencies. Finding I've a big gap after the PW so just mulling over the combinations.

slave1

From my reading it sounds like you need a Gap Wedge, don't know the degree but typically placed between the wedge and sand wedge (56degree)

RoadRunner

my set wedge is 46deg, I go 50, 54, 58.

46 125m

50 113m

54 104m

58 90m

Russman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119458839#Comment_119458839

Yep, my gap wedge was always the 52, but with the PW now at 44, I might have to go down to 48 or 50 for the gap wedge.

ABitofsense

I carry PW (45), 48, 54 and 58 now but will change again!

The gap was a issue for me too between PW (45) and a 50 i was carrying up to this year. PW is 135yrds but 50 was 110yrds (i track all my distances). Anything around 120yrds killed me. So I bought a 48 which is 120yrds. Plan now is to get a 52 and 56 for next yr to run with the 48 to tighten the gaps.

johnny1x

mine at the moment is:-

44

50

54

60

kieran.

Currently I have PW45 UW50, SW54, LW58.

45° 139 yards

50° 127 yards

54° 118 yards

58° 109 yards

coillcam

My irons set has a 46 degree PW. So I finish out the bag as 46/50/54/58. The general recommendation from most coaches/fitters is to have a 4 ( or max 5) degree difference between wedges. This gives a nice spread of distance from PW downwards to your partial shots/short game.

PW - 95%+ full shots at 125yds.

50/GW - 80% full shots at 110yds and 20% a 3/4 swing.

54/SW - 15% full shots 100yds. Otherwise, it's my primary chipping club, some bunkers, 80-60yd partials and some pitches.

58/LW - 10% full shots 85 yds. Mostly it's my primary bunker club and then some pitches, the odd flop or chip.

Most players don't even need or use an LW. I could do without mine if I had a 56/SW but I'd find it a little too big of a gap back to my PW/46. The only other point I'd make is that my 14th club is always wedge. I find that I have comfortable gapping and more options for short game. The alternative would be to add another wood or maybe a 2i/3i. I don't think another long club adds any significant gain/options given my distance/HC. Or even off the tee. I'm also rarely going for the green over 200yds.

The final thing I'll say is that the bounce for me is crucial. Last week I tried the new Callaway JAWS RAW wedges to see if they were any improvement. The mid-bounce ones performed reasonably close to my current 54/58 Full Toe Callaway JAWS. In contrast, the low-bounce ones were not suitable whatsoever. I could hit pitches and full shots mostly ok but bunkers were an absolute disaster, I might as well have been using the rake. No help or forgiveness just digging no matter what. So I kept my 54/58 full toes and smiled at the local pro. Whether I adapted to them over time or they suit me perfectly, I wouldn't consider changing them.

A mid or high bounce is probably the best all-around option given our climate with soft turf and forgiveness. I can't imagine low bounce being any good unless you're playing on extremely hard-packed turf or an elite player.

Russman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119458980#Comment_119458980

That's my most likely route I think. I need to close that PW (135yds) to GW (100yds) gap. Granted the GW yardage is a mix of rounds with a 50 or 52 so its likely understated. Was going to go the 54/58 route, but I'm very reluctant to drop my 56 as I've always used one since I was a kid and can't imagine not having one. I'll probably just drop the lob wedge as it gets very little use tbh.

Russman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119459129#Comment_119459129

Yep, agree with that. My new set PW is 44 and its a huge jump to a 52. I've found that a 50 closes it up a bit but while its good for full and 3/4 shots, its just a little too strong for chipping with (for me).

I loved the JAWS RAW when I saw them a couple of weeks ago, picked up a 56 with the S grind and its really nice (albeit after 2 rounds !).

GandhiwasfromBallyfermot

Currently I'm running a PW45, GW52, SW55, LW58.

The PW I'm using came with a new set of irons I bought this year and the loft is stronger than my previous PW so the gap to my GW is too big now. Will be changing to GW50, SW54, LW58 for next year.

GandhiwasfromBallyfermot

Also can anyone recommend a good bounce for a GW & SW for your typical Irish parkland course? Only really understanding wedge bounce now so want to get it right for my next purchase.

Russman

Personally I'd always subscribe to the "bounce is your friend" mantra, and lean towards a mid or mid/high option. If you like to open the face, stay with mid rather than high. Grind is equally important though. I think its Vokeys that only offer the gap wedges in their full "F" grind - presumably because it'll mostly be used for full shots.

blue note

PW 46 - 125m

GW 50 - 110m

SW 55 - 85m

LW 60 - I haven't got it often enough to know how far it goes.

The lob wedge just gets used for times when I need to get it up and down quickly. It happens most rounds to be honest and is easier to hit than the sand wedge with an open face.

My most common club around the green is my 8 iron anyway. I'll use a wedge if I've rough between me and the hole and I'll go past the hole by landing past the rough. Or if I've to go over a bunker or something. But generally speaking, if I can land my 8 iron on the green, fringe or maybe even fairway I'll hit that and let it run up to the hole.

coillcam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119459238#Comment_119459238

Think 10 is as low as I'd go. I play 95% at home in Mullingar and it can get as soft as any parkland in the country but quite firm after a dry spell. My wedges are 50/10 54/12 ad 58/10 which are fixed specs for the Full Toe. They are absolutely A1 for me year round. Again your own circumstances may be different but that's how'd approach it.

GW tend to be more like a set iron or PW, with fewer options for bounce/grind anyway. More bounce also means more forgiveness in bunkers (provided they have sand). If you could try a few demo clubs on the practice area or course it would give you the best idea. Our pro lets us sign them out for a couple of days to try. It's pointless choosing wedges based on what it does on a mat.

Infoseeker1975

PW 135 yards

50 degree 120-25

54 degree 110-120

58 degree 70-110

64 degree around the greens and depending on the shot from 60 yards in

GandhiwasfromBallyfermot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119459585#Comment_119459585

Thanks, that sounds about what I was thinking. Looking at a set of taylormade milled grind wedges in 50/09 & 54/11. The sand in our bunkers can be like concrete even in summer so 11 is the highest I'd go with the 54.

coillcam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119462005#Comment_119462005

I'd agree with you on this, the only caveat on the wedge bounce is for concrete-like bunkers. If they have sand, the bounce is your friend. However, if you have little to no sand (like a couple in my home course), then I'm barely opening the face and sometimes I have to hit the ball squarely. A normal splash shot doesn't work for me in that case: the club thumps the ground and blades the ball into the lip 😑.

I just saw the new TaylorMade hi-toe wedges last night. They look awesome but I'm happy enough with my Callaways for now.

sean.ocall

I play a 50, 54 and 58, but tend to use the 54 a lot for anything 40 to 100yd, the the 50 from 100 to 115ish, don't like to hit any of them full. Use PW (45) around the green more often than not, and the 58 used to stay in the bag most of the time but I've started using it out of the bunkers with good results. All three have a lot of bounce 10/11 ish. Mine are Cleveland cbx2 which are cavity back and quite friendly to use.

I'm actually waiting on delivery of an approach wedge to match my irons to replace the 50. I'd like to be able to hit full shots with the 50 but the shaft/head weight etc feels so different to my irons I tend not to. Full AW should go around 125 I think, it's also 50 degree. That's a distance I seem to encounter a lot, and a 3/4 PW does the job but I'd like to have another option.

GandhiwasfromBallyfermot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119462070#Comment_119462070

They're slowly renovating the bunkers in my home course. Front nine are all lovely and fluffy and well drained but the back nine bunkers may as well have builders sand in them mixed with concrete. Makes for a very confusing round when you hit into a bunker and forget if its a new or old one. 😆 Many good scores have been ruined with a knifed shot out of a concrete bunker.

Russman

So I took the wedges, a laser and 20 balls out last night to go a bit old school on it. Granted, the ground is hard but I was landing the balls in the rough, so its a good starting point. Turns out the gap between my new 44PW and my 50 degree is around 15-18 yards ish. I would have expected more tbh, but I'll do it a few more times over the coming weeks. I could probably live with a 15 yards gap as that would allow me to keep my 60 in the bag. Its very rarely used but its a K grind and is like legal cheating out of bunkers !

coillcam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119462278#Comment_119462278

Your local pro/fitter could bend either/both of the wedges a degree if you really wanted to tighten the gap. Once you're comfy it doesn't matter and you may never need to think about it as is.

A go-to club for green side bunkers is really under-appreciated. Easy to land in 3-4 bunkers a round in my local track. Talking about saving or wrecking a round tbf.

DonkeyPokerTour

Previously I had 46 (set PW) 52/56/60 Vokeys but recently I changed to 46/50/56/62. But to be honest I wouldn’t be too worried about the number on the bottom. It’s much more important that the gaps are filled. If you find yourself with a PW at 105 and your gap wedge at 95 but you always end up with shots of 100yards it’s better to change the loft of them so you have a 100yard club otherwise you’ll be second guessing yourself every time!

Ideally for me I’d have 46/50/54 and then 58 or 60. But I found it much easier to get out of bunkers with a 56 than a 54. I ended up with 62 for a different reason, I was buying second hand and then 62s were in much better condition than the 60s so I decided to go with a 62 and if needed bend it to 60.

In terms of bounce I play 50-08, 56-12 and 62-08. The 50 is an F grind. The 56 is a D grind and the 62 is an M grind. Probably I’ll change the 62 to 60 and it will become 60-06. If I was in Ireland playing I’d probably have the 50-12 but in Brasil generally it’s a little firmer. I really like having a high bounce wedge for the 56 and a “low to mid” bounce wedge in the 60/62. It allows you to make decisions based on the lie like if it’s hard sand or soft sand you can change the club you use in the bunker. If you have both clubs with 12degrees of bounce then in hard sand it’s much more difficult.

Final tip avoid the 60-04L wedge from Vokey if possible, unless your playing on links or you have a very shallow swing, your going to take divots the size of Louth! A fantastic club when it’s really hard and bare lie but anything more and it’ll dig in!

OEP

PW 46 (I think) - 140 to 145 yards

GW 52 - 125 - 130 yeards

LW 58 - never hit full unless I need to go over a big tree, probably 105 yards.

I only have 13 clubs, mainly because I've humming and hawing (and being cheap) about buying new wedges. I built up my set over time so that's why I have a big gap, where as I should have a 50 and 54 and not a 52 but that involves having to buy two new wedges. I also got a lesson recently and have started hitting my irons further so my distances are a little out of whack at the moment too. I don't need another club at the other end - I have a 3w and a 3h, and the gap between them is approx 20 yards, which is fine as I rarely have to deal with shots to greens at those distances.

kev_s88

My setup is nicely gapped out

PW is 42.5 degree

GW is 48 degree

Then have a 54 and 60. 60 is used for my short chips around the green and bunker shots. Can vary between the GW and the 54 depending on the shot I'm tryna hit.

The gapping suits me well and haven't had any major problems with distances (or gaps in distances more to the point)

callaway92

That PW is essentially a 9 iron and your gap wedge is a PW loft

I’d love to see the lofts of your irons

kev_s88

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119466283#Comment_119466283

I've a set of the Cobra King Speedzone Irons, and yes the lofts are incredibly low on them. Set was 5i to GW with the below lofts:

5i - 21 degree

6i - 24 degree

7i - 27.5 degree

8i - 32 degree

9i - 37 degree

PW - 42.5 degree

GW - 48 degree

The 5i is somewhere in between a 3i and 4i in most set ups. my previous set of irons the 4i was 23 degree i think

Have a Vokey SM8 54 degree and a Cobra MIM 60 degree to round it out.

Rikand

PW(47) - 115 yards

GW(50) 100 yards

GW(54) 85 yards

GW(58) 70 yards

Short hitter by comparison with the people on this forum :)

SEORG

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119472050#Comment_119472050

I was just thinking something similar 😳

RoadRunner

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119472050#Comment_119472050

My 58 wedge flies 135metres but only out of greenside bunkers 😣

newport2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119475901#Comment_119475901

I'm always a short hitter on the internet 🙂

PARlance

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119472050#Comment_119472050

But.... I did hit my PW 165 that one time!

Out of interest, you being a decent golfer and all, I'm assuming those distances are very controlled swings?

If you had to, would there be an extra 10-20% there if an internet bully made you 'step on it' 😂

coillcam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119476733#Comment_119476733

Not at all, sure everyone online drives it 350 yards with their gamer swing!

The hot weather gave me a serious ego boost in the last couple of rounds, was easily 1 club long on the first two holes for both days. If only I could find something to blame the putting on.

Ivefoundgod

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119475901#Comment_119475901

Based on some yardages i have to think people are incorrectly calculating their yardages or using crazy lofts on their irons. Average club speed on pga tour is 114mph, PW carrying 135-145 yards is equivalent to 110-120mph clubhead speed and driver carry of 284-310 yards which i would have a hard time believing for your average club player. Total distance might be a bit more accurate, for reference my club head speed is 105/106mph with the driver and these are my total yards (average) according to arccos, its fairly close to my real world experience plus trackman sessions. There are some weirdness as you'll see some clubs averaging les than stronger lofted club (e.g. 6 and 7 iron) but thats just down to me not tidying up some punch outs properly.

Thats my wedge setup, GW is part of my iron set and is 50d. I've 2 SM8 vokeys then with 54d 12 D grind and 58d 12 D grind. Use both for full swing shots and my 58 is my club for anything around the green. Rarely use the 54 around the greens unless its a long bunker shot.

coillcam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119476976#Comment_119476976

I'd be sceptical of your arccos numbers even. Just as I'd be sceptical of the Garmin app for my watch. 105mph is my exact swing speed from multiple trackman sessions and there's no way you're averaging those driver/3w/3h numbers real world without some regular links golf or downhill drives that skew the numbers. You'd have to be pushing 110mph+ to average 292 total without some caveat. Maybe it's some mad outliers in a small data set or arccos calculates it differently. The 6i and 9i-PW gap stands out too.

For reference, my absolute best drives on flat parkland yesterday in 26C were running out a mile and still not able to break 290yds. The handful of times I break 290yds it's wind-assisted and downhill.

Rikand

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119476779#Comment_119476779

They would be controlled full swings yes.

But no, I wouldnt have much extra if I tried to step on one. Trying to hit harder just throws my swing off and I end up mishitting it in some way, so there's just no point. My swing is my swing :D

Obviously there's some degree of variance in those numbers, but I'm just hoping to end up within a 10 yard radius of the flag at worst in either direction :D

SEORG

My PW is 46 ( bent a degree weaker from the standard). I then have 50, 54, 58.

I'll sometimes take out the 54 & 58 and replace them with a 56 and add a 3i.

My stock PW is about 110 metres.

Ivefoundgod

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119477070#Comment_119477070

Its based on my last 10 rounds which have been on firm conditions. There’s 2 or 3 holes on my home course where a good drive will go 300 plus very easily if you’re on the fairway as they’re downhill quite severely so they’re skewing it for sure. 3h has gone that far but it’s all down to rollout of 30-40 yards and isn’t carry distance. My home course plays very firm during the summer so you get a lot of extra distance from roll out. For reference my trackman average carry is around 250 yards with driver. 3w is 230, 3h is 210 or so and about 10-15 yards incrementally from there. The 6i is wrong as I said because there’s punch outs calculated in it, 9i is about 135ish carry for me, PW 120 typically.

as you say though you need to be weary of any of those figures and compare with real life experience. Total distance is not overly useful when it includes shots off the tee. Like my 5i is not a club I’d hit into a green from 200 yards but it goes about that far off the tee with rollout so you need to keep that stuff in mind. I find arccos pretty good though in my experience so far.

bakerbhoy

I am pw gw mizuno pro 21 hot metal and 56 ping glide 2.0 s.

Play all three to knock down yardages.

Only go full yardage where height and carry are in play.

80 yards max with 56.

OEP

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119476976#Comment_119476976

27 yards between your 9 and PW is odd - your PW seems short.

Age and handicap needs to go with distances as well - younger lower handicap players are generally going to hit it further. And I think now younger people swing harder than younger people did 20 years ago, just because that's what's happening on tour. Swing speeds are up in general, but isn't that the case with all sports. And far doesn't mean accurate. All I know is that if my watch says I'm 140 - 145 yards from the middle of the green and I hit a reasonable shot with my PW, I'll land in or around that distance. I gained 5 - 10 yards (depending on the club) with a swing change this summer.

coillcam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119478217#Comment_119478217

Actually, that's interesting about the punch shots being skewed on the 6i. For some reason, Garmin disregards most of the shorter recovery shots and pitches but not the wedges that were boned 20 yards long.

OEP

https://golfingfocus.com/how-far-do-pro-golfers-hit-each-club/

This is interesting, scroll down to Brooks' yardage book. He has 'Full' and 'Max'. My full and my max are the same thing really. Which probably isn't a good thing but that's why I'm at the handicap I'm at. I'd imagine most people that seem to hit their irons far are the same. When we see pro's distances, we see their full and not max. Also, I have a big drop off towards the top of the bag - so where I might be close to some pros with a PW, when it comes to a 4i I'm 15+ yards behind them. PW is a lot easier to hit than a 4i.

Ivefoundgod

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119478501#Comment_119478501

Yeah i know myself those yardages are wrong. 9i would be my club if i want to be sure of carrying 130 minimum if that makes sense, actual carry is in or around 135-140 i would estimate. PW is closer to 130 than 122 carry wise but if was in doubt about a hazard and had 130 to cover it i'd have a 9 iron in my hand! Yeah age and handicap is a factor for sure, a guy i play with is similar age but absolutely bombs the ball and would be at least a full club longer than me if not more but off the tee he's in the wilderness so can't keep the ball in play to take advantage of his distance. If he figures that out he'll be low single digits for sure.

If thats what you're getting from the watch then its as good a barometer as anything i would say. Thats a nice speed increase, was that with superspeed sticks?

Ivefoundgod

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119478578#Comment_119478578

Arccos normally does that for me as but i had to play some low hook recovery shots with my 6i in the last few rounds which went around 120ish yards but have been included in the calculation for my average distance. I assume its something to do with it being closer to a 'good' shot than a normal punch out that might go 60-70 yards. 6i is my go to recovery club so i often see strange things with it in the app.

big_drive

I've a pw at 46 degree in my iron set.

Also have 52 and 58. Those two are due an upgrade, are 5-6 years old.

I'm going to change to a 50 and 56 to tighten up gap between pw and next wedge.

Also feel 56 will be fine as highest wedge

OEP

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119478625#Comment_119478625

No, I was getting lessons and the change he made had me create much more width in my backswing which in turn allowed me to rotate much better. I'm really coiled now and the top of the backswing. I've always tried to swing hard, whether that's good or bad I don't know but it's what I've always done. When my game is off I can be all over the place though. I think it could be who you play with as well - so the people I play with, we're all in our early 30s and single figures and hit the ball pretty far. There's definitely an element of ego and trying to keep up with your mates!

callaway92

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119478639#Comment_119478639

You can remove shots from calculations in Arccos though if you don’t want them to ‘count’ so it’s grand in that sense

The Big Easy

I bought a set of Pron wedges from Amazon last year, so have 52, 56 and 60. Also a 48° vokey as the PW in my AP3s is 43° or 44°.

So does that count as 4 wedges or 5?

I can hit the PW a fair way, but always point out that it's a 9 iron essentially.

The pron wedges arrived last year on the morning of the Captain's Prize qualifier and in the most monumentally stupid decision of all-time I put the 60° in the bag for it's debut having never hit it. Cost me about 6 shots in the first 4 holes, recovered to only miss the cut by 2.

Have developed the chipping yips lately, have been reading the thread and almost bought a Ping Chipr, although I don't think my ego would ever let me.

The cunning plan for this year's qualifier on Saturday is to take the 60° out of the bag completely and not be tempted to loft everything skywards.

This whole idea of full, max, and 3/4, I really need to master. My best shot with the 60° is 90 yards flat out, everything else is too feely.

I am seriously tempted by the Ping Chipr though, no pictures on the scorecard!

big_drive

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119479085#Comment_119479085

Guaranteed the chipr would be more useful than a 60 degree. It's after getting brilliant reviews online. I think Cleveland might have one as well, which is probably better price wise if you're looking

Russman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119479085#Comment_119479085

Its fascinating, I've almost come to the conclusion that a lob wedge costs more shots than it saves, unless in very skilled hands. I'm old enough that I grew up with nothing higher than a 56 degree and learned how to open the face, its only in the last year or so I've stuck a 60 in the bag, and while its great from bunkers, it gets little or no use outside of that unless its a real emergency.

I put a new set of irons in the bag at the weekend and currently I've got PW 44, GW 50, SW 56 & LW 60. I can probably live with that and its the most likely outcome I'd say. If I'm honest I'm not mad about the 50, its kinda a no man's land club, for me its a little too strong to chip around the greens with, but its potentially not long enough to gap properly back to the PW. I'll do more testing over the autumn, but I'm half tempted to go 48, 52, 56 and drop the 60 altogether. Probably not though, two gap wedges is bit overkill 😀! or maybe pick up a cheap 58 as an experiment and see if its more versatile than a 60.

OEP

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119479811#Comment_119479811

I've always liked my 58. It's lofted enough to be great out of bunkers and for going over things but also not so lofted that you can't play longer shots too. I use it for most shots inside of about 80 yards, I still like to play a bump and run when I'm within about 5 yards of the green though.