Wedges, Your Magic Wand!
(Second picture shows the Cleveland (L-R) CG14 Gelback @ 60 degrees, 588 Tour Action Gun Metal @ 56 degrees & CG10 @ 52 degrees).
The Golf game is not as gruesome as say bull fighting where matadors kill bulls and shout "Ole!" or vice versa. Of course the bulls' "Ole!" shout does not sound the same to human ears. Sergio Garcia and Jimenez have picked the right game.
A tourist at a restaurant in Spain saw someone at another table enjoying an exotic dish and so he told the waiter it looked delicious and wanted to order the same. The waiter came to him later "here's your order of bull's testicles Senor". After chomping away, he ordered the same dish in advance for the next day as it tasted so good. Sure enough the next day came along and he delightfully chomped away and mopped off the entire plate but can't help noticing a difference and remarked to the waiter: "how come the balls are much smaller today than yesterday?"
The waiter nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders: "Senor, sometimes the man wins, sometimes the bull wins." Think of the golf game this way and you will always feel happy at the end of each game no matter what the outcome. You may lose some balls but your pride and family heirloom is intact. An old Aussie friend who used to work here and now in Thailand would sometimes golf in Cambodia. He told me that when playing in Cambodia, don't go looking for your lost ball in the jungle or out of the fairways. I asked him why. "Are there lots of poisonous snakes in there?" "Nooooo! You lose a ball, you go in there and even if you find it, you may loose two balls!" You see, in Cambodia, there are lots of land mines. They only cleared them up to the fairways. Thank you mate, that's fair dinkum!
The waiter nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders: "Senor, sometimes the man wins, sometimes the bull wins." Think of the golf game this way and you will always feel happy at the end of each game no matter what the outcome. You may lose some balls but your pride and family heirloom is intact. An old Aussie friend who used to work here and now in Thailand would sometimes golf in Cambodia. He told me that when playing in Cambodia, don't go looking for your lost ball in the jungle or out of the fairways. I asked him why. "Are there lots of poisonous snakes in there?" "Nooooo! You lose a ball, you go in there and even if you find it, you may loose two balls!" You see, in Cambodia, there are lots of land mines. They only cleared them up to the fairways. Thank you mate, that's fair dinkum!
Wedges
Wedges are specialized irons dubbed as scoring clubs. In a typical golf set, you are likely to get a PW (pitching wedge) and a SW (sand wedge) but these are usually designed like the rest of the irons in the set. Some may throw in an AW (approach wedge).
Pros are known to carry at least 2-3 specilized wedges in the bag because anything from 100 yards or metres is the scoring zone. Wedge play can be a life saver be it a Pitching, Sand, Gap or LW (lob wedge). A PW can be 45-48 degrees while a standard SW is 54-56 degrees and finally the lob wedge is 60-62 degrees. In a situation where you have a PW at 45 degrees, SW at 55 degree and a LW at 60 degrees, you may wish to add an AW at 50 degree which some call it a gap wedge as it fills the gap in between distances.
In other words, if you were to hit your PW 110m, then you would probably hit your AW 90m, your SW 70m and your LW 50m since about every two degrees more loft gives you an added 10 yards (9m). There you have it, from 50-110m on a full swing when hit appropriately shall yield the desired result and help you to ace that hole. Specialized wedges are created with the sole focus on accuracy, extra back spin and bite.
Cleveland CG 14
Pros are known to carry at least 2-3 specilized wedges in the bag because anything from 100 yards or metres is the scoring zone. Wedge play can be a life saver be it a Pitching, Sand, Gap or LW (lob wedge). A PW can be 45-48 degrees while a standard SW is 54-56 degrees and finally the lob wedge is 60-62 degrees. In a situation where you have a PW at 45 degrees, SW at 55 degree and a LW at 60 degrees, you may wish to add an AW at 50 degree which some call it a gap wedge as it fills the gap in between distances.
In other words, if you were to hit your PW 110m, then you would probably hit your AW 90m, your SW 70m and your LW 50m since about every two degrees more loft gives you an added 10 yards (9m). There you have it, from 50-110m on a full swing when hit appropriately shall yield the desired result and help you to ace that hole. Specialized wedges are created with the sole focus on accuracy, extra back spin and bite.
Bounced Angles
Bounced angles are important in the selection of these wedges for they would play differently depending on ground conditions. High bounce angles are above 14 degrees meant for playing well off tall grass, deep rough and fluffy soft sand whereas the standard or medium bounce of 10-13 degrees are for normal to soft conditions and for players who leave a shallow divot. Finally, low bounce angles of 0-10 degrees are for tight lies, fairway and compact sand. If unsure, go for the normal and standard bounce for more versatility.
Finish
Bounced angles are important in the selection of these wedges for they would play differently depending on ground conditions. High bounce angles are above 14 degrees meant for playing well off tall grass, deep rough and fluffy soft sand whereas the standard or medium bounce of 10-13 degrees are for normal to soft conditions and for players who leave a shallow divot. Finally, low bounce angles of 0-10 degrees are for tight lies, fairway and compact sand. If unsure, go for the normal and standard bounce for more versatility.
Finish
There are a variety of different finish style to suit your preference. Chrome (shining), Satin (matt), Black or Gun metal (reduced glare) and Oil can (that can wear off over time) are the choices available. Those with raw finish like gun metal can rust over time and is said to add even more spin to your shots due to rusting.
Vokey
The Titleist Vokey Spin-Milled wedges are one golf's most famous wedges. These are specially designed by Bob Vokey. His dad was bron in France but settled in Montreal working on precision tools but was also an avid golfer and he loves tinkering with golf equipment. Bob would help his dad in club creation. When he was around 25, he packed his bags and left for the US where he lived near a golf course and finally got smitten by the game and as a result his hobby and passion gradually became his livelihood.
The Titleist Vokey Spin-Milled wedges are one golf's most famous wedges. These are specially designed by Bob Vokey. His dad was bron in France but settled in Montreal working on precision tools but was also an avid golfer and he loves tinkering with golf equipment. Bob would help his dad in club creation. When he was around 25, he packed his bags and left for the US where he lived near a golf course and finally got smitten by the game and as a result his hobby and passion gradually became his livelihood.
He started with a custom shop around 1976 but later closed it about 10 years later to jon Taylormade where he stayed till 1991 to help out at Founders Club (founded by Gary Adams, the original founder of TaylorMade) but finally joined Titleist in 1996. This was where he commenced specializing in wedges. He worked with and gave great attention to detail to many great players where he turned his Vokey design into an overwhelming favourite among the pros. In any given week, there is 40% of his wdges in play.
Vokey spin milled wedges give incredible spin from its precise machined grooves with steep angles to create more ball to club face friction for better shot stopping. It gives as much as 30% more volume in the grooves. It has a classic chrome satin finish to reduce glare and one with an unique oil can finish using a hot oil oxide process that will wear off over time. But I have read that Vokey wedges are so sharp they could cut the balls after a few shots. This is probably due to the sharp grooves and face pattern of the design.
Cleveland
Roger Cleveland founded Cleveland Golf in 1979 basically producing replicas of classic clubs from the 40s and 50s. He sold the company to ski manufacturer Rossignol in 1990 who were bought over by Quicksilver in 2005. Then in 2007, it was sold to Japan-based group SRI Sports Limited together with its putter maker subsidiary Never Compromise. SRI owned two other brands - Dunlop and Srixon. Roger Cleveland is now the chief golf club designer at Callaway.
Cleveland wedges offers performance, versatility and forgiveness. The Cleveland wedges you can see from the second picture above are (from L-R) a 60 degrees CG14, a 56 degrees 588 Tour Action gun metal and a 52 degrees CG10. The 588 Tour Action was hugely popular and may no longer be in production and it is a champion club out of any bunker with a single shot. You are not just trying to get it out of the bunker but you are going to play it like a heat seeking missle searching for the pin. Some considered Cleveland the ultimate in wedges from the 588 model and the CG10 is more than a worthy successor.
Cleveland CG10
The CG 10 was Cleveland's firrst wedge using their CMM (Carbon Metal Matrix) design. Carbon spheres are injected into the steel club head so that the density is reduced by some 10% resulting in softer feel and better vibration dampening. CMM also helps in ensuring that the muscle portion of the wedge extends higher on the club thus lowering the center of gravity to give it more forgiveness than a traditional blade wedge. Cleveland made bounce angles simpler by taking it to another level in determining what the bounce is by prividing a three dot system that allows buyers to choose low bounce (one dot), standard (two dots), or high bounce (three dots).
Cleveland 588 Tour Action
Cleveland Tour Action 588 wedges have been the industry benchmark for classic wedges.
Made from 8620 soft carbon steel, these Tour-proven wedges have a traditional shape that promotes great feel for incredible touch around the greens. These are absolutely fabulous from bunkers and it eliminates your fear of bunkers but hitting them flush from fairways or tight lies with full swings may be a little harder. Believe you me, nothing comes off better from a bunker no matter how daunting the task is at hand.
Made from 8620 soft carbon steel, these Tour-proven wedges have a traditional shape that promotes great feel for incredible touch around the greens. These are absolutely fabulous from bunkers and it eliminates your fear of bunkers but hitting them flush from fairways or tight lies with full swings may be a little harder. Believe you me, nothing comes off better from a bunker no matter how daunting the task is at hand.
Cleveland CG 14
This is Cleveland's most sophisticated technology to date and comes in Tour shape, sole and offset. This is a conforming wedge with milled grooves milled using a CNC mill to create so that it surely enhance consistency and precision. It also has a Gelback which is a visco-elastic vibration dampening material situated just behind the hitting area of the club face at the rear cavity. This helps in reducing vibration on mishits and at the same time provides feedback and a soft feel. Cleveland has this innovation called "ZIP" grooves whereby each groove is applied with a coating for protection during sand blast and is actually 25% bigger than usual grooves. These "Zip" grooves are also deeper and are "U" shaped compared to standard shallower "V" shaped grooves found in other wedges. These bigger grooves are there to channel more debris at the point of impact especially during sand play. With better contact, consistent spin is generated and is especially useful for players who expect optimal spin and distance control.
Based on a "Standard Bounce" each club specification looks as follows:
52 degrees-Bounce Anlge: 10 degrees, length 35.50 inches, lie: 64 degrees, Swing Weight-D5.
56 degrees-Bounce Angle: 14 degrees, length 35.50 inches, lie: 64 degrees, Swing Weight-D5.
60 degrees-Bounce Angle: 12 degrees, length 35.50 inches, lie: 64 degrees, Swing Weight-D5.
Check out such wedges at your next opportunity at a range. When hit well from the fairway with nice soft hands, it goes on a high trajectory and goes down like a parachute drop onto the green. One bounce, bite, check and stop. Better players could put more spin on it. Playing with it on the rough edges around the greens can be a joy too.
Out of any bunker and with confidence, it is no longer a question of whether you could get it out with one shot. It is going to be like how close are you going to get near to the hole. You could even spin out of bunkers on a good shot for shot stopping on the green. There are better players who do not use these wedges sticking to the standard wedges in the set. Nothing wrong with that if you play them well but having these specialized wedges and mastering them could be a great shot saver over your current wedges. Many do not wish to switch because they are confortable with their current lot but going for the long term, there are vast differences.
Master these wedges and when you could turn them into your magic wand, you will become unstoppable. Your score I mean not your ball on the green. Don't just try out and indulge in the potato wedges during a meal. Go for the real thing! There are other brands to check out like Callaway X, Mizuno, Nike SV, TaylorMade rac, Ping i-wedge, etc. Find one suited to your needs, master it and watch the magic unfolds. Remember that you and your golf skills are special and unique, just like everyone else.
Golf as in life, play as it lies!
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