How to choose a wedge ? - advise needed :)

Hi all,

i just commit to a new set of callaway irons X20 tour #3 - PW . am i right to say that i will need to purchase wedges to complete the sets ?

As there are so many diff wedges in the market, appreciate if frens from GR can offer advise some of my newbie qns as below ;

1. What degrees of wedges that consider "must have" for a beginner like me ?

2. What is most common degree / types that in most leisure golfers's bag ?

3. Usually how many wedges in one golfer bag ?

4. Avg how much is a wedge ? as my swing is still not very good / consistent , will it be wasted if i commit to those sweet titleist or clevage .. ??

many many thanks ar .....

Standard is 56 degree sand wedge with >10degree bounce, first...

1. What degrees of wedges that consider "must have" for a beginner like me ?
i would say 52 and 56 or just 56 will be good

2. What is most common degree / types that in most leisure golfers's bag ?
most common 52, 56, 54

3. Usually how many wedges in one golfer bag ?
I carry 2 wedges

4. Avg how much is a wedge ? as my swing is still not very good / consistent , will it be wasted if i commit to those sweet titleist or clevage .. ??
ave is abt $180, i use titleist vokey feel very good and consistent

I'm a newbie still learning and hope my 1cent words can help you

Pan West are selling some callaway wedges for $69/$105 they are good value for money

1. What degrees of wedges that consider "must have" for a beginner like me ?
This depends on what you have in your bag at the moment. Typically, you would have at least 2 wedges. A PW should be about 46˚ while a SW should be about 56˚. So, if you haven't these two wedges, you should get them.

2. What is most common degree / types that in most leisure golfers's bag ?
There really is no such thing as a most common degree of wedge available. This depends on the golfer. I carry a 46˚, 52˚ and 58˚.

3. Usually how many wedges in one golfer bag ?
Usually 2 or 3 wedges.

4. Avg how much is a wedge ? as my swing is still not very good / consistent , will it be wasted if i commit to those sweet titleist or clevage .. ??
Wedges vary in price depending on brand etc. The good ones typically retail for about S$250 but are often on sale. As for what you call a "sweet" wedge, this is quite individual. Some people find sweetness differently.

If you are not confident with your swing, you can consider 2nd hand wedges but make sure you get those which grooves are still in good condition. The grooves are intended to allow you to control your ball. With the wedge, the ability to control the ball is key so if the wedge's grooves are worn out then it would be less effective.

TS do u know ur PW loft? how come u need 46 degree...all mizzy PW is around 47-49...

Good question, bro.

I don't use the wedges which come with my iron set. Somehow, I feel more confident with a big head wedge so I picked the CG12 46˚ wedge which I love. I'm more comfortable with it.

TS is of a different level hence he need the additional 46.

First check the loft of your pitching wedge normaly 45-48 deg.
From there you decide its better to have gap wedge, sand wedge and lob wedge?
After that than you decide the loft of each wedges, so that the distant gap will not be too great.

Wedges are a very personal thing. You need time and investment to find out what u actually need. a good place to start will be your distance gaps. and as for your case, since you only got up to PW for your X20 tours, you are better off getting at least another wedge for your miscellaneous needs. a 56º is a good place to start. It will be enough to get you out of most bunkers. Go for something with low or medium bounce for singapore course conditions.

Above is good advise for you to start if you are on a budget or want to explore on your own. If you want to get technical and cover your bases mathematically and theoretically, read on. Otherwise, just stop.












ok. you asked for it.









If the specs of your PW is standard, X20 Tour PW has a loft of 46º. Then again, you have to look at the distance of your PW. If you are hitting 100m with your PW, then the above advise still sticks. Get one more wedge for your greenside trimming and bunker shots. But if your PW is like 110 metres or more, I would recommend you get at least 2 more wedges to cover the distance gaps. Get something that you can use with confidence from 100m. Mathematically, that will be a 50º if your PW is 110m, and then get a 56º for your bunkers or maybe 60º to be able to climb out of those pot bunkers at MBGC or a 54º to again cover the distance gaps.

I will give you my story... my PW has 48º loft. So i did the mathematical thing, I got a 52º and 56º to cover my distance gaps. Coincidentally, I did my homework and found out that I liked the 52º look and set up and was using it for my greenside chips and pitches. the 56º was more for my bunkers and stuff. This was all very comfortable for a while. Then I started to get more proficient and need more game out of my wedges. My PW is 120 metres, my 52º is 110 and my 56 is 100. This was not enough for me, as I tend to overshoot and then had to play from 90metres too... so that is when i got my 60º. But that was when I had my 'A' game. sadly now, I lost touch with my 60º but it is still very useful to me. for my chips and pitches, this is how i game my wedges, if i needed more roll, i would use my PW or 52º. If I wanted more control on the landing spot, 56º would serve me well. But if i wanted to land soft, the 60º would be perfect but I find it relatively hard to contact well.

Moral of the story, you got to go out there and try it for yourself, what worked for me, might not work for u, but if you really had no prior advice, I'd say this is a good place to start.

hoelwill wrote:

TS do u know ur PW loft? how come u need 46 degree...all mizzy PW is around 47-49...

MX300 PW is 45 deg.

how to choose one?

for my personal preference, it is something that is pleasant to the eye and you feel comfortable with.

although you cannot hit it, just hold it and address it. search your inner feelings. if you feel good, it is good. if u feel uncomfortable, put it back in the rack and take out another one to try.

The wedges that I have tried myself and like it are the Cleveland CG14s, TaylorMade TP Wedges and Titleist Spin-Mills.

shotah wrote:

TS is of a different level hence he need the additional 46.

Yup, just when you think you've hit the bottom of the barrel... I'm about 2 inches below. A whole different level.

i think differently, you will definitely need a 56 for your bunkers. As for those chips and pitch, if you manage to use more of your PW and vary your shots accordingly, you will be a stronger player in the long run. and with limited clubs, you will tend to be more discipline on the course and also you will learn to play different distances with the same club.

shotah wrote:

i think differently, you will definitely need a 56 for your bunkers. As for those chips and pitch, if you manage to use more of your PW and vary your shots accordingly, you will be a stronger player in the long run. and with limited clubs, you will tend to be more discipline on the course and also you will learn to play different distances with the same club.

There's a lot of truth in Shotah's advice. Club control is actually a very difficult but rewarding skill. The ability to use a standard PW to play varying distances/rolls is tough but if you can practice and master it, I agree that it makes you a more versatile golfer.

seebayho wrote:

MX300 PW is 45 deg.

walao.....mizzy go cheater nowadays...
45 degree can fly 130m liaoz

hoelwill wrote:

seebayho wrote:

MX300 PW is 45 deg.

walao.....mizzy go cheater nowadays...
45 degree can fly 130m liaoz

You think everyone powerhits like you, is it?

i used to have 4 wedges....

a PW (45) a 52W(bend to 51) a 58W(bend to 57) and a 64W.....

i found tht, unless i am really on song tht day... more often than not, i confuse myself during the game..... seems like i have many option but most of the time it makes me not committed to the shot on hand...

3 wedges probably best. Was told that newbies like us will use wedges a lot :-) Luckily my TM irons come with PW, AW and SW. Technospaz makes a good point about bigger head wedges though. I might need to get a bigger head SW since it's quite difficult to use current one in the sand.

wow...lots to learn ... thank you all for the precious advise....!!

I use 51, 54 and 58, but it all boils down to your current set.

I think you'll need 56 to start with for sand trouble or lob shots....

I started off with 52, 56 and 60. Now, I am only using a 53 and 58. How I get where I am, by using it long enough to determine the distance and gaps. i.e. If I am looking at 70 - 80, I will go for 53 and if I need anything between 50-60, I will use a 58. Typically, it is between 4-5 degree gaps.

As for brand, I know a lot of folks prefer Vokeys, personally, I never got use to them, they felt heavy to me.

Khorkar wrote:

I started off with 52, 56 and 60. Now, I am only using a 53 and 58. How I get where I am, by using it long enough to determine the distance and gaps. i.e. If I am looking at 70 - 80, I will go for 53 and if I need anything between 50-60, I will use a 58. Typically, it is between 4-5 degree gaps.

As for brand, I know a lot of folks prefer Vokeys, personally, I never got use to them, they felt heavy to me.

I felt exactly the same... Vokey a little bit heavy for me too.
That's why I settle for TM wedges... a little bit lighter...

You can try this link which is very informative:
http://www.titleist.com/vokey_wedge_guide/#

I have fiddled with my wedges for a while, starting with 48 PW, 56 SW & 60 LW. I have also experimented with 54 SW & 58 LW. Now I've settled on these 3 wedges: 48 PW, 52 GW & 58 LW. They cover my distance gaps the best.

Actually, a lot of the game improvement irons have PW with 45 deg loft.

hoelwill wrote:

seebayho wrote:

MX300 PW is 45 deg.

walao.....mizzy go cheater nowadays...
45 degree can fly 130m liaoz