To use a 60* wedge or not?

[montru]

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........Whats the bounce on your LW?? Florida has some really soft turf, you may just have too little bounce for the type of conditions out here...

I'm not sure what degree the bounce is on the club but here's a pic if that helps:

Yes you are right the ground here is very soft, when the club goes right under the ball I think it's because I didn't get my weight forward enough though impact, the when I catch it thin ususally my next shot I over compensate I'm guessing. Take a look at this scorecard from yesterday I'm the top player: I was going along very nicely heading for another low 80 round until I reach the faily easy par 3 14th I drop my tee shot short the go under the ball with my shot trying to chip it up over a mogul to a tight pin, I then thin it across the green, chip it back on and then three putt, 7 on a par three The next hole i come up short with my second in front of the greenside bunker to a raised green, I flop it short into the bunker trying to get to another tight pin, I've now got a fried egg lye in the bunker, I get it out the bunkerthen three putt again. My three putting is from pure frustration and loss of conentration, apart from those two holes I had a half decent round for a 16 handicapper.

[Zeph]

I had a 60º before, but when I went from 4 to 3 wedges I changed it to a 58º. It's not a club I use a lot, but for the flop shots it's absolutely lovely. Also if I need a high trajectory shot close to the green. I use it for chipping, in the bunker etc. I have a 54º and a 58º wedge, both used all over the place really, depending on what I want to do.

[walk18]

They do?

until you miss a green and have to chip over a bunker to a tight pin..

[nike_golf]

until you miss a green and have to chip over a bunker to a tight pin..

That's not a chip shot.

That's either a pitch shot or flop shot.

[David in FL]

I personally think that most people who carry a 60* would be better off without it. As you've found, it can be a difficult club to hit consistently , and consistency is the name of this game.

[Fourputt]

until you miss a green and have to chip over a bunker to a tight pin..

When you do face a

pitch in that situation, then you either learn to flop with a 56° or you take your medicine for missing in the wrong place. You still have the chance of getting up and down by hitting a normal pitch and holing a longish putt, but there is less chance of 2 or 3 jacking just to get the ball on the green. A single digit capper has to be careful when giving advice to a 15 or higher.... you have shots available to you that he may not even be able to conceive of. A responsible instructor is going to advise him to get very comfortable with a more standard short game and wedge setup before going to the more extreme LW's.

[sean_miller]

A variation on a common phrase:

Wether you think you need a 60 degree wedge or think you don't need a 60 degree wedge, you're right.

Some matched wedge sets (my ca. 1994s Mizuno Pros for example) set up with such subtle differences between the 52', 56', and 60', that any of them can substitute for the adjacent wedge. You can open up the gap wedge and use it out of the sand (this works really well with my 52' SM Vokey too) or you can use the 60' out of the sand. You can open up the 56' and hit a flop, you can close down the face on the 60' and hit a knockdown. I usually take a 52 and a 60 (or a 52 and a 56 - don't have any 58s). I never take all 3 because 2 can do the same job.

PS. I never "chip" with a 60. I do sometimes hit 12 yard pitches that release about 5 yards (bump and runish). I've also been known to blade it from the collar on occasion. The real questions should be, "why do people list full swing yardages up to 100 yards with their 60' wedge - who does that?"

[cirem22]

im with most people here that has a love hate relationship with my 60. its high risk high reward. but i still don't stop using it around the green and in bunkers, i think its a must have for me. Once i master it I will be glad i put up with the skull shots i produce with it time to time.

[mrt10x]

I, like a poster above, use my 60 for almost every shot within 80 yards, except bump and run around the green. For those who say you can use a sand wedge for any shot you can hit with a 60, I whole heartedly disagree. My sand wedge is 56 degrees with 14 degrees of bounce. My lob, 60 degrees with 4 degrees of bounce. IOT hit most shots with my 56 like I hit my 60 I would have to lay the face open 4 degrees, which increases the bounce and makes it impossible to hit from a tight lie. If you are using a 60 with lots of bounce, I can see why you dont need it, but you would have to pry my Cleveland CG 12 60 degree wedge from my cold dead hands. Your thins, tops, hosel rockets, fatties, chilly dips, etc. aren’t caused by the club.. They are caused by your lack of commitment, your deceleration, your head pick ups. Use proper technique and the 60 is easy to hit.

[duckhook]

I love my 60, I don't use it all that much, but I don't really use it for full shots, it's mainly for around the greens and bunker. It's a matter of confidence, if you have confidence in it you'll probably be able to use it effectively. Carrying a 60 is not for everyone, it can get you into trouble if you aren't consistent with it.

[RC]

I surely would not want anything I say to suggest someone should not carry a 60 degree wedge. I use mine for flops and short pitches, and routinely on shorter bunker shots. For longer bunker shots I use with my sand wedge, but when you are bunkered and short sided, and the green is eye level height or above your head, a 60 degree wedge is a great club to have.

The one piece of advice I would give is to never hit your 60 degree wedge as hard as you can. If you are going to have to blast it to get there, drop down a club -- the control willl be better. That is true for all wedges in my case.

[Fourputt]

Or maybe just by the lack of a repetitive swing. You re awfully quick to point out specific faults without knowing anything about us. It is most definitely NOT an easy club to hit, compared to a 52°, 54° or 56° wedge.

Note the handicaps of most of those who love their 60° wedges and the handicaps of those who question it's use. All you low single digit guys have game that most golfers do not have. You say it's easy... and it may be for you, but you seem to have forgotten that there was a time when you could no more have hit a LW consistently than you could hit 350 yard drive. I'm not saying that the LW is something that a player should never consider. All I'm saying is that a bogey golfer needs to refine his technique with more user friendly clubs and then make the decision of what sort of additional wedges his game needs, if any. I see far too many casual players who take such weak advice and then ruin round after round trying to use a club which requires skills that they don't yet possess.

[nike_golf]

Or maybe just by the lack of a repetitive swing. You re awfully quick to point out specific faults without knowing anything about us. It is most definitely NOT an easy club to hit, compared to a 52°, 54° or 56° wedge.

Very well put. I will just add that some lower HCP'ers don't want or need them as well.

Like you were saying, I learned early on that the 60 was not a club I needed to be using. It was costing me strokes, and I was NEVER doing anything w/ it that a SW couldn't do just as well and easier. So, I went on w/ my progression into a being a decent golfer today, without it. The average golfer doesn't and/or can't put in the time w/ a club like the 60 to hit it well enough to play it. But, for whatever reason, a lot of guys think they need one.

[mapa94]

I'm an 11 handicap weekend golfer whose highest lofted club is a 56 degree sand wedge. I've experimented with a 60 degree, but like many others, it cost me more strokes than it saved. If I played and practiced more often a 60 might be useful, but I'm too inconsistent with it. I can use my 56 out of greenside bunkers, on approach shots inside 85 yards (tight lies or rough), and I can open it up and hit a flop when I have to. IMHO a 56 is MUCH easier to hit consistently than a 60. Dropping the 60 has made me better with the 56 and allowed me to add a second hybrid which is useful for my game. I'm not missing that DAMN lob wedge.

[14ledo81]

Nike, What club do you use for your bump and run shots? I just picked up a 52 and 56 wedges this winter. Last year my most lofted club was a PW, so I am pretty excited to use these in the spring.

[Fourputt]

Nike, What club do you use for your bump and run shots? I just picked up a 52 and 56 wedges this winter. Last year my most lofted club was a PW, so I am pretty excited to use these in the spring.

You can use just about any club for a bump and run that allows the ball to roll after it lands. That is in part HOW you hit as well as what club you use. If I want a chip to run out, I use my PW or 9I with a stroke that is more like my putting stroke. If I want it to check then it's the GW or SW. I play the ball back a bit and hit down more sharply when I want more backspin to help the ball check up quicker.

[James_Black]

You can use just about any club for a bump and run that allows the ball to roll after it lands. That is in part HOW you hit as well as what club you use. If I want a chip to run out, I use my PW or 9I with a stroke that is more like my putting stroke. If I want it to check then it's the GW or SW.

Which will prob end up with the person hitting the ground first and duffing the chip.

It's easier to do a out-to-in stroke that puts cut spin on the ball

[sean_miller]

Which will prob end up with the person hitting the ground first and duffing the chip.

You're describing a different shot - one that coincidentally is easier to do with 60.