Wedge recommendations please - Page 2

 

I feel you on the weather I live here in west Michigan and its rainy then snowing then freezing lol. But as for the Cast vs Forged I know that is very personal based on feel but being if have played both alot the last 3 years the only time I really notice the difference in feel between the two is on short chips and pitches, which i actually prefer forged on feeling. I have played these, in this order: SV Tours, Cleveland CG14s, Vokey SM3, Ping Ansers, Scratch 1018s D/S, Scratch Forged S/S, Bridgestone J40s, and Cleveland 588 RTX CBs. The J40s come with stock DG spinner shafts which is a plus over the standard DG wedge shaft.I would give scratch wedges a look, the 1018s (forged) are great and they also have a nice cast in the 8620 wedge.

The J40s are a D4 swing weight and the Cleveland's are D6 so the J40s are lighter which is what you are looking for. You will find the sole to be about the same as your 588s. I don't think Bridgestone did anything different with the sole as any other company. They say they have a variable bounce so it lowers the bounce on the heel and toe of the club. The only downfall I see in the J40s is the one bounce option, all their wedges float around 10-11* bounce, which is a nice mid bounce but not for everyone. As for the Scratch you have 3 different grinds to chose from depending on your swing style, S/S (low bounce) for the sweeper/slider (picker), D/S (mid bounce) for driver/slider, or D/D (high bounce) for the Driver/Digger. Hope it all helps.

I'm glad I could help. Yes scratch is an American Company. Chattanogga,TN is where they are based out of and all their custom work is done in house. I also like to support an american company. Seemore Putters is also another great company to support. I have never worked with a customer service department better than theirs.

Ya that's what z.johnson puts with. They have alot of mallet putters and their putters are hot, I doubt you leave many putts short. But it's no big deal. As for the bounce in sand, traditionally they say go with a high bounce but IMO I don't see needing more than 10* on any of your wedges especially if your fairways get really firm in the summer the bounce can be a hinder, once again that's my opinion.

I have a Scratch 8620 58* D/D and absolutely love it.  I just ordered the matching 53* bent 1* weak and the 50*, they should be here soon.  I have to custom order mine because of my specs, but if you're a standard wedge player, you can get the 2010 8620 for $70 from rockbottomgolf.  

 

And I play the SeeMore FGP Mallet, and can't imagine why I'd ever buy a different putter unless this one comes up missing somehow.

I play Ping Tour SS 50, 54, 58, I have really good luck with them. i like the look and feel but my son plays Vokey 52 and 56 and he loves them.

Go try a few they do have differant feeling to them and weight.

I have a set of Forged Mizuno T-10's that I used to game with less bounce, same lofts.  The feel is completely different between the two, to be honest.  With the additional bounce, at first I would think I hit a poor shot and looked up expecting to see a , mess, and the ball was flying nice and high and straight to the pin.  The real difference is in the sound, with the forged wedges on soft shots you hear nothing, with the 8620's you get an audible click.  After a couple rounds, I didn't even notice anymore, because there was no comparison in performance.  While they advertise the ABC Grooves (all bite/no chew), they will eat the cover on a ball when they're new.  They've also go the milled face like the Vokeys.   The face is also smaller than comparable cast wedges like the Vokeys and Clevelands.

 

Why a 54/58 setup instead of a 56?  I have a set of Cleveland CG14's in 50/56/60 and to be honest, the 58 is much more versatile than the 60.  I can use it from a lot more places on the course and play more shots with it.  It had more benefits than the 60 for me, without the drawbacks people usually have with a 60.  That left a gap from my PW, which is 47*.  I divided the gap up and ended up with 54/50 to compliment it and leave me fewer gaps.  Typically, I play the 50 as an 11 iron, and only use it for full shots from about 115 yards.  Full shot for the 54 is usually 105 yards and I end up with 90 yards and in with the 58, unless the shot calls for me to get creative.

I have new Cleveland wedge with rotex grooves coming for testing, it is the 588 rtx. Will let you know when testing is done.

I ordered mine straight from scratch, because mine have to be 1" short and 2* upright as well.  I was worried that buying them from rockbottom and then having them done at a local place could cause some problems.  They're cast, so a lot of places don't want to bend a cast club that much.  Also being 1" shorter, I worry about swingweight in my wedges, so having them done at the factory allowed me to ensure that they were 1" short, perfect 2* upright with no problems and they put the grip that I wanted on them along with my initials stamped in them and custom color paint fill.  So while I'm nowhere close to a Pro, I can feel like a pro whenever I have a wedge in my hand. (at least up until the swing)  I think my total was around $125 a wedge in the 8620's fully customized to my specs.  That's not far off what an off the rack Vokey costs, and I happen to like my Scratch wedge more than a Vokey, so it's a win/win for me to custom order them.