Convince me......

AuburnWarrior

AuburnWarrior

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People, follow me into the murky, dank world of the AuburnWarrior......

I possess Cleveland CG red irons which I like very much. I also own a Titleist Vokey 60 degree lob wedge.

I was practising some chipping today - some close and some from inside 50 yards. My PW was all over the place!!! Some hit the green - most went miles past and I don't know why. My lob wedge was nice from close distance but was short from inside 50 yards (which is how is should be).

My question is: in the past I've always been a 'take it off the shelf, if it feels nice then make it work' type of buyer. Having read some of the posts on here it seems custom fitting is the way to go. Can someone explain to me why custom fitting is so good and what I can expect from a custom fit club that an off the shelf club won't have?

I can understand c/f for drivers, etc but wedges - is it worth it???

Your thoughts/opinions/experiences would be greatly received.

Thanks :D
 
I have to be honest and say I'm not overly sure there is as much benefit in a C/F wedge. Its not that you are going to be hitting full out shots or any great distance and so the shaft isn't as much of an engine room.

To me its all about the spin off the face. OK if the club feels too heavy then I'm not goign to feel confident on the delicate shots but that isn't a shaft issue per se. I need to be confident that I am going to be able to stop the ball without excessive and uncontrolled backspin or the ball getting away on the chip shots around the green.

I don't think you can go wrong with most on the market. I chose my TM partly out of vanity to match my TM set but mainly because they sat beautifully behind the ball and gave me the control I wanted (and am capable of at my level). Vokey are an obvious choice and you won't go wrong. I found the Call X series a little too heavy for me to fully control and I don't really like the Ping ones for the way they look. Nike have some decent ones out now. I think the Cleveland CG series are pretty good (I had a 52 degree CG12) and trhink they have a new version out or coming out

I personally wouldn't be looking for C/F wedge but I'm interested to hear the views as to why its better
 
Wedge play is all about feal.

I never ever hit a full sand iron and its a rare occasion when I hit a full out 9 iron or wedge. Just sounds as though you are needing a bit more practice with your wedges to figure out your distance control.

Try hitting about 20-30 half shots on the range to get an average distance for a half swing with your wedge, then the same with a three quarter swing to work out an average, then a few full out shots. If you know how far each swing goes it makes the short game easier.

Also have you considered a gap wedge?
 
I was not C/F for my wedges as I bought them of the shelf, however my pro said they needed altering slightly in the Grip needing extra layers of tape and the shaft requiring lengthning with me being nearly 6ft 3". I was a bit sceptical at the time but he said it would not cost much so I went along with it, the difference it made was incredible. It might be worth checking out. Are you short or tall? If so they might be making the job harder than it already is I know mine were.
 
Loft and lie is the obvious thing, but if you have an overly steep or flat swing it might also affect what degrees of bounce would suit you best.

I normally find that hitting through the green is caused by a slightly thin contact because I'm looking up to admire my shot before I've hit it. :o
 
I was not C/F for my wedges as I bought them of the shelf, however my pro said they needed altering slightly in the Grip needing extra layers of tape and the shaft requiring lengthning with me being nearly 6ft 3". I was a bit sceptical at the time but he said it would not cost much so I went along with it, the difference it made was incredible. It might be worth checking out. Are you short or tall? If so they might be making the job harder than it already is I know mine were.
Click to expand...

I'd agree with this. I'm 6' 4" and was using my mates off the shelf Vokeys whilst I waited for mine to arrive. I have a much more upright lie angle, a thicker grip and an extra inch on the shaft, didn't cost me anymore and I hit the ball miles better with this club than my mates.
 
Whilst i haven't had CF for my wedges, they have been set up to compliment my irons, i have 2 layers of tape under the grips the same as my irons, also 1/2" longer than standard and 1 deg upright....all same as my irons.

You have to be careful altering lie on wedges as you then alter loft and bounce too.

I've also had a 54deg wedge bent to 53 as i couldn't get what i wanted off the shelf and it all seemed to work out fine!
 
Bounce is the main consideration, if you ask me. Depends what your style is. If you are a digger who takes a large divot, you probably need more bounce, and if you are a picker, less.

By the way, do you have nothing between the PW (probably 46-47 degrees) and 60?
 
Wedge play is all about feal.

I never ever hit a full sand iron and its a rare occasion when I hit a full out 9 iron or wedge. Just sounds as though you are needing a bit more practice with your wedges to figure out your distance control.

Try hitting about 20-30 half shots on the range to get an average distance for a half swing with your wedge, then the same with a three quarter swing to work out an average, then a few full out shots. If you know how far each swing goes it makes the short game easier.

Also have you considered a gap wedge?
Click to expand...

Yesterday all I was doing was hitting a quarter to perhaps half swing and I simply couldn't control the ball. The strikes were good but the ball either pitched the green and ran through or missed the green completely and sailed into the rough behind. This is exactly the problem I have out on the course. If it's a full PW then I'm fine but anything less than a full swing and I simply can't control the ball. After yesterday I'm now of the mindset that a gap wedge of 54 degrees is the way forward.......
 
I was not C/F for my wedges as I bought them of the shelf, however my pro said they needed altering slightly in the Grip needing extra layers of tape and the shaft requiring lengthning with me being nearly 6ft 3". I was a bit sceptical at the time but he said it would not cost much so I went along with it, the difference it made was incredible. It might be worth checking out. Are you short or tall? If so they might be making the job harder than it already is I know mine were.
Click to expand...

I'm about 6' so pretty average I think. Maybe I'll ask the pro to take a look and see what he reckons.
 
Bounce is the main consideration, if you ask me. Depends what your style is. If you are a digger who takes a large divot, you probably need more bounce, and if you are a picker, less.

By the way, do you have nothing between the PW (probably 46-47 degrees) and 60?
Click to expand...

The divots yesterday were fairly large but I put that down to the practice area being full of moss!!! :mad: I do try and come down on the ball quite hard with my wedges so that I can try and get as much spin as possible.

No, currently nothing between PW and lob wedge. I think I need a 54 degree in there and possibly lose my two wood...... :) What bounce do you recommend???
 
You definately need a gap wedge. That said I would also struggle for consistency if I was pitching with a 60 degree. I like to pitch with a 50 or 54, but I still hit it off the back foot to keep it low. The high flop shots are stylish but hard to get consistent distance.

Do you hinge your wrists when pitching, as this can add inconsistency too, depending on how fast you pop them back through.

Hard to recommend bounce. You really need to try a few. Can you have a go with some mates clubs?
 
You definately need a gap wedge. That said I would also struggle for consistency if I was pitching with a 60 degree. I like to pitch with a 50 or 54, but I still hit it off the back foot to keep it low. The high flop shots are stylish but hard to get consistent distance.

Do you hinge your wrists when pitching, as this can add inconsistency too, depending on how fast you pop them back through.

Hard to recommend bounce. You really need to try a few. Can you have a go with some mates clubs?
Click to expand...

For pitches near the green I keep my wrists locked - for pitches from further out I do hinge my wrists. Maybe this needs looking at......

I'll try and borrow some - see which one works.

Thanks
 
I used Vokeys for years, in which the bounce was about 6 or 8 degrees in the 52 and 60, but 12-14 in the 56, mainly for sand play. If you play in bunker with hard sand, less bounce would be OK too.
 
AW
If you are hitting most of your wedges too far and your not thinning them, try this.
If you are getting too much distance, you are using too much speed.
To reduce the amount of speed, reduce the length of your swing on your backswing AND follow through
This will reduce your spped and therefor your distance but maintain a crisp contact
HTH :)
 
I had no idea how hard to swing for anything less than a full club, so one night I went to the course about an hour before dark so no-one would be going out.

I went down to the first green and hit some balls from varying distances from the green (measured with SC) and took 1/2 and 3/4 shots with everything from my 9 iron to LW and measured the average distances hit with each.

I certainly don't repeat the exact distances all the time but at least I have a better idea than before.
 
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