Gapping the Wedges Woes

[GOATee]

43 48 54 58 sounds like a bit better gapping to me.  That is 5, 6, 4 degrees of gapping, quite playable.

From experience, you need the 54 for most standard wedge play and the 58 for lob or deep bunker shots, so those need to stay.

[Dege]

That's close to what I was talking about earlier, though I was looking to bend the 54 to 53 or bend my 52 to 53.  The gapping would be all 5's.  ie 43 48 53 58. 

[Patch]

In here late on this thread. Glad the OP figured out his issue. 

Just thinking  if while trying to force a 5i, and/or taking something off the hybrid, if gripping down on the 5i, or gripping up on the hybrid would have been a viable option? This while keeping the same swing speed. 

[GOATee]

On 9/24/2019 at 10:05 AM, Dege said:

That's close to what I was talking about earlier, though I was looking to bend the 54 to 53 or bend my 52 to 53.  The gapping would be all 5's.  ie 43 48 53 58. 

Cool.  I would not bend the 54 to 53 because the extra degree of loft helps keep the roll short on those important short chips around the green.

Perfect 5 degree gapping in this case is not as critical as having that classic 54 58 combination for a short and a super-short chip for an easy putt. 

Edited September 25, 2019 by GOATee

[Vinsk]

10 hours ago, GOATee said:

because the extra degree of loft helps keep the roll short

I’m guessing science could prove that to be true...but I’m not sure I’m buying that. 1 degree can’t really make a noticeable difference..yes? No?

[Wm94109]

On 9/24/2019 at 9:05 AM, Dege said:

That's close to what I was talking about earlier, though I was looking to bend the 54 to 53 or bend my 52 to 53.  The gapping would be all 5's.  ie 43 48 53 58. 

The potential issue with bending wedges is it changes the “bounce” on the bottom of the club.  I buy specific Titleist wedges as they code both the loft and the bounce, I.e. 5610, 5608, etc...

So, bending the 54 to 53, you’ll reduce the bounce and 52 to 53, increase the bounce which may be ok, depending on their current bounces and how you intend to swing.

Oh, and don’t forget to check the “lie” while they have the clubs in the bending machine.

Enjoy.

Edited September 25, 2019 by Wm94109

[djake]

@Dege as others have stated as well, I am not a fan of bending wedges.  

I would keep all of your wedges the same.  Bag a 15th club which seams like your 4 iron.  Play 15 clubs in as many practice type rounds as you can.  Then depending on the conditions of the day or the course layout or even your mood drop 1 club from the bag when you need to be in compliance.

One day it may be your 59* another day it maybe your 4 iron or some other club.  Let the conditions dictate your set up and not the fact that you only can have 14 clubs in the bag. 

Flexibility is your best option. 

Plus owning more gear is more fun 🙂 

[GOATee]

The last 2 wedges in Winner's Bags are almost always 4 degrees apart for good gapping of short chips.

54 and 58 or 56 and 60.   Decades of wedge design have proven this.

I don't mind bending clubs meant mostly for full swings, but clubs used for short chips with bounce and all, like others said, I would not bend. 

[Dege]

I understand the concern about bending  a short wedge mainly because you are messing with the bounce, however where I play 99% of my golf (northwest Georgia) the most bounce I have found useful in hazards, traps or rough has not been over 10°.  Taking a 54° wedge and bending it one degree from it's 10° bounce would leave me 9°.  Plenty for the conditions I normally face.  The real issue for me is I LIKE the 46,50,54,58 setup for the simple reason that it makes the variations of the short game so much easier to manage.  Conversely having a 18-20 yard gap between the 5I to hybrid to 4 wood has created it's fair share of problems.  I have thought about getting a shorter range hybrid but that creates an even larger hole between the hybrid and 4 wood.  that's no good.  I have thrown a 15th club (4I or 52°) wedge in on a few practice rounds and the results have been mixed.  Loved the 4I but seldom needed to pull it.  Loved the 52° but put a lot of pressure on it as it would be replacing the 50° and 54°.

So add the 4 Iron and shakeup the wedges or quit whining I guess. Argh!

Of course I realize that this is not an exclusive dilemma limited only to me 🙂.  Every golfer faces the same questions and handles it in their own way but it has been extremely helpful to air it out with my fellow golfers.  Great ideas flowing here.

[tinker]

I have worked on equipment and played golf with most every club pro in my town. I can’t think of one that can tell. 1 degree difference in loft. Unless you have an absolutely perfect consistent address every swing your club can be 1 degree different in address alone. I would practice somewhere hitting a pitching wedge different distances. It’s impossible to have enough clubs for every 5 yards. 

[Double Mocha Man]

1 hour ago, tinker said:

It’s impossible to have enough clubs for every 5 yards. 

Though I try, with five wedges.

[Release]

We used to learn using one wedge to hit different shots and distance.  Only two wedges in the bag.  PW & SW

Edited September 27, 2019 by Release

[dagolfer18]

I would do whatever you feel is best for you. For about 6 months, I had to hit shots with my GW from about 100 in, no matter if it was fairway, rough or bunker, because I lost my PW, and I didn’t have a SW. The GW is probably now my favorite club in the bag, along with the 8I. I have learned how to hit so many shots with it, it has become a very reliable club. My PW is 45 degrees, then my wedges go 50/55/60.