60° Wedge, LOVE IT OR HATE IT?

[withdrew]

Okay, so I have a Titleist Oil-Can Vokey Spin Milled 60° wedge in my bag.
Took out my 3 iron so I could stay @ 14 clubs.

I think I HATE this club. Obviously it's MY skill level that is letting me down but I feel like that this club F**KS me EVERY OTHER SHOT. I think I HATE IT as much as I LOVE IT (at times). And then I'll hit that ONE shot per round that makes me keep it in the bag.

Does anyone else have this problem? Should I drop the lob and put my 3 iron back in the bag?

[schlyer]

I've carried one for years now and hated it until I got a Cleveland 588 to match my SW - now I like using it.

One thing I cannot do though, its hit consistent full shots with it - I'm just much better off choking down on the SW than trying to make a full swing with the 60. This makes it very much just a specialty club for me that I only use within about 30 yds of the pin and only when necessary.

[withdrew]

that's the thing that kills me: INCONSISTENCY!

i might hit the 60° once or twice out of FIVE tries they way i actually want to.

and those mis-fires are usually a complete disaster (dribble 2 feet in front of me, sliced into a greenside bunker or laser-beamed into the woods)

i'm a decent wedge player, from a 100 yards out with a good lie and with a good look at the pin i can get my ball SOMEWHERE on the green about 75% of the time.

what is it about the 60°?

[tigerwoo]

I find that the bounce of a particular wedge plays a HUGE factor in how and where it can be hit.

My experiences/opinions:

Low bounce wedge (8* or less) for tight lies, short rough to allow you to open the face of the club and get under the ball with relative ease.

Mid to High bounce wedge (10* or higher) for med-high rough and sand areas to prevent the club from digging.

If you have more bounce than you need then hitting open face shots on tight lies can be hazardous (literally) as you risk skulling the ball because the bounce of the club will prevent the digging but will skip the club into the ball and thus skull it to the other side of the green. If this happens alot to you, you likely have a lob wedge that isn't configured for the shots you are trying to make.

[bayareamtnbiker]

I think the LW is fun but is less forgiving. I only use it when short-sided, when must have highest trajectory (rare), or going short out of a deep lie. Otherwise, SW is more consistent. Love to practice with the LW though.

[Cleveland Gunmetal]

I love it and hate it so I voted for put up with it

[hurley9192]

I absolutely love mine, but I've used it for years. I can flop anything though and have a pretty solid and imaginative short game. I use it as my primary bunker club and when I need a shot to stop quickly.

I actually haven't used it as a full shot club because I don't know the exact distances where I have my sandwedge dialed into a full shot at 100 yards and I can work it "around the clock" like Pelz teaches.

I would imagine from what you described is you swing it differently that your sand wedge and therefore introduce a different pattern of swing into the shot. If you picked it up accidentally and hit it like your sand wedge, I would imagine you would find that you can hit it well.

My thoughts are that if you have trouble hitting a 60 degree, then you would probably have just as much trouble or more hitting a 3 iron. If you can get away with not having a 60 degree, I would probably go with a hybrid instead of a 3 iron.

Also, I noticed that you have a 52 54 and 60 degree wedges...do you get that much of a difference from the 52 to the 54? What loft is your PW? If it's 48, then you may want to bend the 54 to 56 degrees and use that as your lofted club. I can't imagine you hit a 52 that much farther than a 54 degree.

[tglover44]

I remember reading, I believe in Golf Digest, Bob Vokey was quoted as saying most players would be better off with a 58*. I couldn't agree more. I used to have a 60* Cleveland 588 and switched to a 58* Vokey. I always had trouble with the 60* sliding under the ball, the ball just rolls up the clubface and I'd get no distance, I would have to hit with the shaft angled way forward to avoid this. I've never had that trouble with the 58*, it's just as versatile too, but easier too hit. 2* makes a lot of difference.

[CG031]

I love it. I use it at least 6 times per round - May be my favorite club in my bag.

[williethekid]

I remember reading, I believe in Golf Digest, Bob Vokey was quoted as saying most players would be better off with a 58*. I couldn't agree more. I used to have a 60* Cleveland 588 and switched to a 58* Vokey. I always had trouble with the 60* sliding under the ball, the ball just rolls up the clubface and I'd get no distance, I would have to hit with the shaft angled way forward to avoid this. I've never had that trouble with the 58*, it's just as versatile too, but easier too hit. 2* makes a lot of difference.

Great, another reason to go to golfsmith. My girlfriend is gonna be thrilled

interesting idea. I wonder how my yardage gaps would change with those 2 degrees.

[Shindig]

I remember reading, I believe in Golf Digest, Bob Vokey was quoted as saying most players would be better off with a 58*. I couldn't agree more. I used to have a 60* Cleveland 588 and switched to a 58* Vokey. I always had trouble with the 60* sliding under the ball, the ball just rolls up the clubface and I'd get no distance, I would have to hit with the shaft angled way forward to avoid this. I've never had that trouble with the 58*, it's just as versatile too, but easier too hit. 2* makes a lot of difference.

Yeah. I never hit a 60*, but I got a 58* that feels great. No sense changing, since I mostly use it around the green (to great effect).

[J_Bone]

I love my 60* wedge. But I can see where a 58* could be used to get more distance. My first 2 up and downs today, I left them 15-10 feet short which I usually get it really close.

[oneil003]

I'm thinking about getting a 60* vokey SM.

[quagmire]

I'm thinking about getting a 60* vokey SM.

Wanted to buy a 58° SM. Didn't do it, because it really eats your ball. Hit a ball three times good with a SM and it's ready for the trash (so to speak).

Got a 58 KZG forged now. Really good wedge.

[P3R3]

I used to HATE my lob wedge for full shots. I had a really high bounce like 14* on my lob wedge. I had the same experiance as you and was ready to call it quits on my lober. Then I got a new X-tour wedge with low bounce (9*) and now I am hitting my full shots consistantly 80-90 yards whereas before I was lucky for 60 yrds. Bounce on the wedge is VERY important you need to experiment what is right for your swing. My new wedge is my favorite club in the bag and gets used more than any other club.

[iacas]

I love my 60, but as I've said in other threads, for most golfers (particularly those with double digit handicaps), it's rare that a 60 is beneficial. Usually it creates more trouble than it helps solve...

I have a 60 Vokey SM. I don't use it for full shots (maybe literally ten times per year) - I use it around the greens and inside of 60 yards. I also use it quite a lot from the bunker.

[withdrew]

Everyone is providing valuable insight here, excellent points all around.

I definitely think the bounce might be an issue, and it was also mentioned that if I "picked up the 60° by mistake, thinking it was the SW, I would probably hit it properly..." I think that's an excellent point. I suppose with the 60° you have this vision (from watching the pros!) of what the lob should look like, so I am certain that I take a different swing because of 100 different ideas swirling in my head, the #1 idea being that "I'm gonna skull this shot!"

I also agree that the 60° probably just exaggerates my swing flaws, and that better, lower handicap players most likely benefit more with a 60° than I do. I probably have no business using one... but I will continue to experiment!

[withdrew]

Also, I noticed that you have a 52 54 and 60 degree wedges...do you get that much of a difference from the 52 to the 54? What loft is your PW? If it's 48, then you may want to bend the 54 to 56 degrees and use that as your lofted club. I can't imagine you hit a 52 that much farther than a 54 degree.

I have 3 Titleist Vokeys, 52°, 56° and 60°. I made a mistake in my signature. I'll fix it now! Thanks for noticing!

My PW from my Ping set is 47°.

I'm thinking about getting a 60* vokey SM.

WANT MINE? j/k