Add a Lob Wedge?

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By Will M

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  • 11 Replies
  1. Will M

    Will M
    Irving, TX

    I am a mid-high handicap golfer and I currently have a 48 degree and 56 degree wedges and was wondering if I should add a 60 degree lob wedge or maybe a gap or approach wedge. Thanks.

  2. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    Keep in mind that my setup works for me. My Vokey setup is 50-08 (bent to 51), 54-11 (bent to 55) and 62-07. I chose the 62-07 to replace my 60-07 and 64-07 (it is more versatile for me). The reason I bent the 50 and 54 1* weak lofted is because my Titleist DCI 981 "W" is 51-09 and I have established a bit of a comfort zone with a 55-12 sand wedge. The common thing that most of us would agree on is to add a 60* lob wedge. It comes in handy for hard or wet greenside bunkers and hitting off tight lies where you have to drop the ball on a dime.
  3. Quintin H

    Quintin H
    Morehead, KY

    Do you spend a lot of time practicing with your wedges?

  4. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    Quintin H said:

    Do you spend a lot of time practicing with your wedges?

    I'd ask the same thing. I have a rather vicious short game myself and probably at least 75 percent is spent on it. Next in the priority list is approach shots. Seldom practice the driver, fairway woods or hybrids.
  5. Will M

    Will M
    Irving, TX

    Honestly, I don't

  6. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    One thing you should do is explore the capabilities of your wedges (and even some of your other clubs because each club can be used in numerous short game situations). Start with square stance golf shots and practice choking down to shorten distance (10 yards for every 1/2" choking down - about 20 yards when you grip at the bottom of the handle). Do the same thing with full pitch shots. For half swing shots it is 5 yards for every 1/2" of choke down and for 1/4 swing it is 2.5 yards. Do things like opening the face on your wedges on grassy lies or doing long sand shots with the PW. Expand your short game practice to something besides the standard ho-hum flat surface pitch or chip. Try things like sidehill lies or extreme downhill slope (something where you have to assume a rather uncomfortable stance). Golf pros (and low handicappers) spend 75% of their time on short game and putting and maybe 25% at the range hitting full swings. Even their range time is occupied with shot shaping (such as draws and fades and distance control of various clubs). Even the best pros only hit 75% of the greens in regulation.
  7. Quintin H

    Quintin H
    Morehead, KY

    Will, then I would say stick to your PW and SW, get the feel of the SW around the green. It doesn't take a whole lot of practice to get decent using 1 wedge around the green. 10-15 min before you tee off, every time you go out, and you will start seeing the difference.

    A LW can really hurt your score if you don't get in some practice and learn how to use it.

    A SW has enough loft for any shot, for somebody that doesn't practice much.

    Plus a SW is best for sand and rough.

  8. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    Quintin H said:

    Will, then I would say stick to your PW and SW, get the feel of the SW around the green. It doesn't take a whole lot of practice to get decent using 1 wedge around the green. 10-15 min before you tee off, every time you go out, and you will start seeing the difference.

    A LW can really hurt your score if you don't get in some practice and learn how to use it.

    A SW has enough loft for any shot, for somebody that doesn't practice much.

    Plus a SW is best for sand and rough.

    I seldom use my 62 and almost never beyond 35-40 yards. At Riverwalk and Oaks I just about never use it (my 50 gets quite a bit of use there since the greens are pretty soft and a few of them are elevated). I work my sand wedge quite a bit (in grass I prefer a cut shot with it vs a straight pitch with the 62 and I can make the SW drop on a dime). My 50 has been my main wedge as of late (the pins have been toward the back on my main courses). The 62 gets more use at Tecolote since the greens are rather hard there and my misses are pretty close.
  9. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    My second response.... I had a period of time where I was using a 258-12 for just about everything within 50 yards of the pin. I played one course 3 years ago pretty frequently and a CG15 DSG 58 was my go to wedge within 25 yards (when I started rotating courses I found it had limitations so I got a Vokey 60-07). I agree with Quintin. My 50, for all intense purposes, is my PW (even though it is bent to 51, it is "old school" loft). I've gotten pretty proficient with the SW over the past 4 years and I do quite a bit with it and my Spin Milled 54-11 (bent to 55) works in a lot of conditions. With a lob wedge or X wedge, you really have to know when to use it (and generally have to play aggressive with it). For most of us, a full swing with a 60 is about 65 yards and a 64 is about 45 (with a full pitch about 45 and 30, respectively). My 62 is 55 yd with a full swing and 35 with a pitch but I can use it in a lot of conditions. Sometimes it is better to open the face on a SW in thick grass vs using a LW (better chance of carrying). When it is more beneficial to do a choked half swing pitch from 15 yards, a lob wedge does the trick.
  10. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    While I am on a roll..... In regards to a gap wedge.... I didn't find any added value in a Harmonized 52, Vokey 252-08 or RAC GW 4 years ago. I would tend to lean toward taking a 50-08 and bending it to 51 or 52 (gives 9 or 10 deg bounce) since you need a little more bounce for long soft bunker shots and yet be able to use on tight lies.

    Remember that PW were 50 degrees in the good ole days of persimmon and laminated woods. I tried a Vokey 48-06 and didn't like it. Too long of a shaft for a wedge at 35.75". A bit light in the swingweight department vs a 50-08 (one can always flatten it to 49-07). I feel more comfortable with wedges between 35 to 35.5".

    Another thing one might want to think about is bending the 56 wedge to 57 and using at as a sand/lob wedge. Old school sand wedges were 57 deg anyway. If the SW is 56-11 it would be 57-12. Maybe even take the 48 and bend it to 49 - no need for a GW.

    Back to lob wedges... there are even a few low-mid handicap golfers that struggle with a 60 deg wedge. I carried a 60-07 and 64-07 for a year before going to a 62-07. The 60-07 was great in hard bunkers and tight lies but not so good in soft and deep bunkers and grassy lies. The 64-07 was great in deep bunkers and grassy lies but no use off tight lies or wet bunkers since one would have to deloft it anyway (might as well use a 60-07). The 62-07 has a wider flange so it works well in short, deep bunkers with soft sand as well as hard sand and tight lies.

  11. Will M

    Will M
    Irving, TX

    I decided to get a Vokey Design 60 degree lob wedge w/12 degrees of bounce. I'll see how well it works. Thanks for the tips everyone.

  12. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    That'd be good for greenside bunkers and you can play it a little back on tight lies.

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