Gap Wedge Choices

[bbedell]

Hi all. I'm currently on the market looking for a gap wedge to fit in between my pitching wedge (48 degree I believe) and my 56 degree wedge. My 56 and 60 degree wedges are both Clevelands, so this is obviously what I am used to. I have heard great things about the CG15, and actually hit one a few times and liked the way they feel. A buddy of mine informed me that if I get a cleveland I should aim more for a 50 degree rather than a 52 degree because "clevelands tend to spin more and dont go as far as the same loft from other clubs".

Does anyone have any thoughts on: #1 aforementioned the loft issue, and #2 what wedges you would recommend I try out and consider buying? I am aware of the obvious popular choices out there nowadays such as cleveland, vokey, etc, but are there any other under the radar type companies that make great wedges that you would recommend? Thanks so much in advance for any help

[chilly]

Definitely something to consider, I just switched to a good used TM RAC 52*, from my worn out Vokey 52*, and I've definitely lost 10yds on full shots. Not sure if it's the spin or what, but it took some adjustment.

Wedges are pretty "personal" as to feel. Scratch, Cleveland, TM, Nike, Callaway...they all make good wedges that can spin the ball if needed. Try them out and see what feels best.

[WUTiger]

bbedel,

To find a gap wedge, you need to take into account the gap between your PW and SW.

I looked up your iron set in the Cobra 2010 booklet, and the S2 Forged PW is 43º. (Cobra has very strong iron lofts.) So, this means the gap between your PW and Cleveland 56º SW is 13º.

Standard procedure is to find out the yardage distance between the PW and SW. Take five shots with each, throw out any bad misses, and take the average of each. Then, find a wedge which will split the difference in distance. (Test out the wedge in action, don't just go with loft engraved in club).

Other things to consider:
* What is your plan for wedge use? Mainly full shot? A plan to coordinate your wedges (not by color! by how they work together)? This would involve practicing quarter, half, and three-quarter shots with your wedges, and actually developing a distance matrix. And, taking time to practice it.
* If you coordinate your wedges, what degree gap do you want between wedges? 4º, 6º? (This works best if you have wedges all from the same model, and even degree breaks between them)
* What bounce is best for you? Players with an extremely steep downswing angle need higher bounce to keep the club from digging in. Players with a shallower downswing angle need lesser bounce to prevent club from skipping, and causing skulls. Cleveland had a dot system on their wedges, starting with about CG 12. Three dots = high bounce, two dots = medium bounce, one dot = low bounce.

If you want some details on bounce, sole grind, etc., check out this Vokey site:
http://www.titleist.com/golfclubs/we...spinmilled.asp

This summer I will go with a semi-coordination among my PW, GW, and SW: Just see what distance they go with different swing lengths, and take it as is.

[andef]

If your PW is 43º, I would try to replace your sand wedge and have gaps like 48, 54 and 60. This would give you more even gaps with your wedges.
The CG15 is available in those lofts and you can get 3 bounce options for the 54 so you'll have a lot of options.

[WUTiger]

andef has a really good idea with the 6º gaps.

[bbedell]

thanks guys this is really helpful info...I do realize that I need to get a loft that is a good gap in between my PW and SW, and I do like the idea of replacing my 56 degree with a 54 as the 56 is about 6 years old at this point and probably has crappy grooves. My main point was how much should I compensate with a lower loft if I buy a Cleveland wedge due to the idea that they dont go as far as lofts from other companies? I guess the best way to figure that out is to go to the range and hit it until I get a good idea of the distance.

Any other recommendations as far as companies that make quality wedges?

[WUTiger]

Honestly hadn't heard the Clevelands didn't go as far. One reason I got my CG 14 was it consistently outhit - and gave a much tighter range dispersion - than the X20 AW I suffered with last summer. (Both were 50*).

If you chose 48*, 54* and 60* in CG 14, they should be fairly consistent in distance gap among the three. If your Cobra PW goes 15-20 yds longer, you could compensate by choking down a little on it to bridge the 43* Cobra to 48* Cleveland gap. That's why you should test-hit them.

CG 14s are under $90 now. Earlier model Mizuno T-series and Callaway X-Forged wedges go for about $70.

[BonoVox]

thanks guys this is really helpful info...I do realize that I need to get a loft that is a good gap in between my PW and SW, and I do like the idea of replacing my 56 degree with a 54 as the 56 is about 6 years old at this point and probably has crappy grooves. My main point was how much should I compensate with a lower loft if I buy a Cleveland wedge due to the idea that they dont go as far as lofts from other companies? I guess the best way to figure that out is to go to the range and hit it until I get a good idea of the distance.

I went from Cleveland 588s to brand new Vokeys. I think most people would say the CG15 and Vokey spin is about the same. I really did not notice any distance loss at all from my 588s.

Do you have a store in your area that will give you a 90 day trial period? Roger Dunn here in SoCal does. You can trade clubs twice. Nice way to play them and maybe adjust if you have to.

[popeyegolfer]

I play Taylormade Chrome RAC wedges in a 52* and 56* which I really like.

[bbedell]

Thanks for all the help in this thread guys. I ended up finding a great ebay deal on a brand new 2008 Mizuno T-series 53 degree wedge to replace my old 56 degree. I absolutely love this wedge; at first I was a little hesitant that it would not be as versatile as my old 56 degree but I hit it further and am playing it better around the greens and from the bunkers so it was a great decisions. I also just bought a 48 degree CG15 from ebay to serve as my gap wedge between my 43 degree PW and 53 degree Mizzy. Still waiting for that in the mail but cannot wait to give the full set an 18 hole run.

[jpalermo]

see my sig.... have mizzy mp t 50/54/58.... love them to death... especially the 50 which was a 51, they are forged so easily bendable to customize the gaps...... that thig is deadly from 125ish