Wedges have the highest lofts, the shortest shafts, and the heaviest clubheads and are the descendants of the irons. These features help the player to gain lots of accuracy and control on the shot, as well as this the high loft and sharp grooves allows for lots of backspin to be put on the ball. As a result, a player can get the ball to stop very quickly after it has landed, they are used, to get the ball onto the green from soft lies, such as sand, mud, and thick grass or out of a hazard.
The wedge club grew out of the need for a better club for playing from soft lies and being able short shots with more control. Prior to the 1930s, the best club for short "approach" shots was the "niblick", roughly equivalent to today's 9-iron or pitching wedge in loft. However, the club most often used for bunker shots was called the. The "jigger" had the loft of a modern day 4 iron (20° to 24°). The reason behind this was that the lower loft prevented the club "digging in" to soft lies. However, the low launch angle and loft combined with the high resistance made recovery from a bunker with this club very difficult.
This all changed when Gene Sarazen designed a sand wedge. He came about his idea when on a friend’s plane. He noticed the flaps on the wings that were lowered on take-off to help create lift. Sarazen used this principle and applied it to helping get the clubhead to cut through the sand, causing the ball to pop up and out of the bunker.
The initial design for this club included taking an old niblick and soldering extra lead to its sole. Then by through trial-and-error Gene Sarazen found the optimal angle to prevent the clubhead from digging into the sand too much and avoiding the club from bouncing off the sand causing the bottom of the club to hit the ball (hitting the ball thin). This optimal angle was about a 10-degree bounce angle demonstrated in this photo.
Since the mid-80s the number of wedges available to players has grown from 2 (pitching and sand) to 5 (adding gap, lob and ultra-lob)
A pitching wedge is the lowest-lofted of the named wedges, with around a loft of 48° (exact lofts vary by clubmaker and player preference) and little or no "bounce" (angle of the sole to the ground). This is because the Pitching wedges is used for longer shots where less bounce is needed.
The pitching wedge is descended from the "niblick" but received a change in the mid- to late 1930s when the standardization of loft angles caused two separate clubs to be formed out of the "niblick" with a 9-iron at around 48–50° loft at the time and the pitching wedge with 52–54° at the time
The modern pitching wedge is typically used from the fairway or rough for "approach" or "lay-up" shots requiring a distance of between 100 and 125 yards for the average golfer (exact distances will vary). It can also be used to play a ball from a bunker player needs more distance than a sand wedge can provide from the bunker. A pitching wedge can produce high-accuracy shots in the 30–70-yard range using a shortened swing. The club can be used for shots from the rough or fringe around the that don’t require too much hight by they need to be delicate at the same time for example a bump and run shot.
A gap wedge has about 5 to 8 degrees more loft than a pitching wedge. It is a newer wedge designed to be a compromise between a pitching wedge and a sand wedge. Therefore, it provides a decent distance with a full swing but it doesn’t lose much feel or performance around the greens or out of tricky lies. The lofts for gap wedges are centred on 52° and have a moderate amount of bounce to provide good versatility anywhere on the golf course.
When the pitching wedge was de-lofted from about 50–52° to about 45–48°, sand wedges remained the same, at 54–58° due to the high loft needed to cut through the sand easily. This results in a "gap" of about 8–10° between the pitching wedge and sand wedge. This resulted in a difference in carry distance of up to 40 yards between these two clubs. To fill this "gap" in loft and distance, some golfers began carrying an additional wedge in the 50–54° range.
When this club was introduced many different clubmakers invented different names such as “approach wedge" (Callaway), "attack wedge" (TaylorMade), "dual wedge" (Cleveland) and "utility wedge (PING). However, the term "gap wedge" is typically used to describe a wedge in this general loft range.
Due to the average loft of 52°, a gap wedge can be used for almost any but it does provide lesser distance than a pitching wedge with a full swing with a gap wedge will carry about 90–110 yards. As a result of the higher loft comes with more bounce angle with a gap wedge having between 5° and 8° of bounce angle. This bounce angle provides a better feel and more control on shorter shots around the green than a pitching wedge.
A sand wedge is a type of golf club with a specialized design intended to help the player play the ball from soft lies such as sand bunkers. It has a loft of about 56°, and about 10° of "bounce". This high loft and bounce will make it easier to get the ball up and airborne easily out of a bunker.
The modern sand wedge still uses the ideas of high mass, high loft, and bounce angle, but the modern sand wedge clubhead has much higher mass than earlier designs, up to 40oz (2.5 lb, 1.13 kg), to drive the clubhead through the firmer sand found in many courses. This heavy head is also used to get through tougher lies that the golfer may experience. As a sand wedge can also be used out of the rough as the heavy head can cut through the grass easily. It can also be used around the green as it proves lots of spin and control. However due to the higher bounce angle it is easier to "thin" or "skulled" a shot. A sand wedge is rarely used with a full shot and is usually used for pitch shots from about 20 to 60 yards.
In the 1980s Dave Pelz envisioned the lob wedge as a way to counter the changes to the greens. The newer greens were changing to being surrounded by more hazards and bunkers. Along with this the greens had more undulations and slopes whilst being elevated from the fairway. This change demanded a shot that had a lot of backspin to get the ball to fly almost all the way to the flag and stop quickly with very little rolling distance. The club he proposed had a low to mid bounce and a loft angle of 60°
The lob wedge can be used for any shot requiring a short carry distance (typically 10–50 yards). Due to the high loft, it creates a very high launch angle, which also results in high backspin and thus little rolling distance. This helps to get the ball airborne very quickly and have good control over shorter shots.
The wedge typically has low to moderate bounce (0–4°). because of its high loft the low bounce will counterbalance the downward force of the wedge's striking face, therefore making the club useful out of bunkers. As well as being useful out of the sand the lob wedges is also useful for a full swing from the fairway or rough to carry about 40–60 yards. However, it can also be used for shorter short around the green but it is usually used to carry the ball 10–40 yards and "drop" the ball into an exact spot on the green.
Cleveland began its wedge making career in 1983 when it announced the Classic Tour Forged. The sleek looking wedge was traditionally forged of mild carbon steel. This helped to provide consistent distances, combined with a four-way cambered sole, which offered lots forgiveness.
In 1984 Cleveland unveiled its muscle back Classic PW and SW. This helped to generate power behind the ball making it easier to escape tricky lies out of the rough and bunkers. The wedge also featured a simple, four-way bounce and tapper tipped shafts for greater head feel.
Three years later, Cleveland would change the industry benchmark for classic wedges when they launched the famous 588 Tour Action. This wedge was well ahead of its time as it featured U-shaped grooves that allowed the golfer to produce higher ball flights due to the increased spin. However, these types of groves went on to being banned not long after. The 588 Tour Action also received much success due to the V Sole which narrowed towards the heel. This provided bounce needed on fuller shots but it didn’t lose performance or feel on shorter more delicate shots around the green.
In 1992, the 792 VAS hit the shelves, it caught people’s attention due to the perimeter weighting. This new system allowed for greater forgiveness on off-centre hits. This was also helped by the VAS (vibration absorption system’). This new design feature had a low deep centre of gravity and extreme offset hosel that increased forgiveness and helped to get the ball out of tough lies.
In 1996 Cleveland released a newer version of the 588. This time it was called the Raw Tour Grind wedge. Unlike the original, it had a special grind and an unchromed finish. This led to rust developing over time, which increased friction with the ball, causing a very insignificant loss spin over time.
Introduced in 2000, the 900 Form Forged wedges featured a loft and bounce selection with the options of 54, 56, and 60-degrees. It also provided a low-bounce option suiting players with shallower attack angles or for players who play in firm conditions. A high-bounce option for soft conditions and those with steeper attack angles was introduced in 2004.
In 2006, a new 588 wedge called 588 DSG was created. The DSG stands for Dynamic Sole Grind. This technology meant that the leading edge to remain closer to the ground than the original 588, when trying to add loft to the clubface by opening it up. This significantly reduced the chance of hitting the ball thin.
Later in 2006, the CG10 burst onto the scene and soon established itself as one of the best feeling wedges the company has ever built. This was because of the soft pure feel and sound at impact. This was created by the Carbon Metal Matrix (CMM) which contained 17 times more carbon than traditional steel. As a result, it increased vibration absorption at impact, which helped to provide a softer, more responsive feel.
In the next 3 years Cleveland then launched the CG11 in 2007 the CG12 in 2008 and the CG14 wedge in 2009. The three wedges differed greatly with the CG12 having Zip core grooves. Whereas the CG14 removed unwanted vibration on mis-hits through a vibration-dampening material.
The CG15 wedges came out in 2010 with Laser Milled technology that created four perfectly calibrated texture lines placed between each traditional groove. This allowed for more spin due to the consistent surface roughness creating more friction when the ball hit the clubface.
The last of the CG range was in 2011 with the CG16. This wedge had a hint of offset for added forgiveness as well as a Reverse C Sole with constant width from heel to toe. The added width on the sole prevents digging into the sand, causing more consistent contact on bunker shots.
In 2012 the 588 RTX CB wedges were launched. They combined the performance of 588 with added forgiveness and Rotex Face which was the most advanced spin technology at the time.
Next was the RTX line with the RTX-3 and RTX-4 being the best sellers.
These wedges have led onto the range of wedges that Cleveland offer today:
TaylorMade started there the new millennium with the release of the RAC wedges. These wedges came in two types, one with a chrome finish and another is finished without the chrome finish. This caused the club to rust to avoid losing spin as the club grows older. The club featured a milled face to keep distance and spin consistent. It also featured two feel pockets to dissipate unwanted vibrations, which ultimately lead to a better feel. There were a few more versions of this wedge released in the next few years with the RAC Black in 2003 and the RAC Satin in 2004.
The next big change in wedge design occurred in 2010. With all wedges produced up until then still feature the basic design with the two feel pockets, the only difference between clubs was an insignificant difference in the groove design. The main changes for 2010 TP wedge were a different design the back of the club and a slight change in the groove design.
Two years later there was a new design with the release of Rocketballz wedges that went with the new RocketBallz equipment this year. The wedges featured a big sole to make the club very for forgiveness and making it easier to escape tricky lies. The “Toe-Bar” added was supposed to make to shots go straighter with fuller shots. A sleeker version of this club was released the next year with the same technology.
Another major change occurred in 2019 with the release of the Hi-Toe and MG2 wedges. The Hi-Toe wedges featured groves that covered the whole of the clubface and an extended “toe” to the club. This higher toe moved the centre of gravity further up the club. As a result, it caused more spin and a higher launch angle. The Hi-Toe Big Foot also featured a wide sole and high bounce angle to make it versatile in the rough and sand. Whereas the MG2 is more of a classic wedge with options for a raw face which rusts over time. It also has an odd pattern to the club face. These indentations are etched in with a laser to improve spin.
This leads onto the latest model of wedges, the Milled Grind 3 released in 2021, along with the Hi-Toe Raw which features the raw face technology.
The first Titleist wedge produced was the Out ‘N On in 1982. It was designed specifically for people who struggle to get out of bunkers. It obviously had all the features to help you get out of a bunker, with a heavy head, large sole, big bounce angle and a wide club face.
The next wedge wasn’t produced until 1991 with the High-Performance Wedges, there were a few more models of wedges before the main change in design to the first Vokey wedge being released to the public until 1999 but the first wedge on tour was used in 1997. The wedge had 14 degrees of bounce and TX4 Groove technology.
The next wedges released where the Vokey 200 and 300. The 200 model came in a raw finish and chrome finish as well as a black nickel version released in 2003. The Vokey 200 and 300 had a high toe and shallow heel that allowed the club to be very versatile.
After these wedges had filtered out the spin milled wedges followed in 2008. These wedges had a milled face to increase friction with the ball to depart more spin. These wedges also received a wide range of different lofts and bounce angles as well as a sole which helps gets the best feel for the player.
This then led onto the SM range, starting with the SM4 in 2012. This was the start of a blend between gaining maximum spin and not losing performance on short and long shots. With the SM4 having a neutral entry angle and a progressive leading edge that helped shot in the bunkers and around the greens.
The next Vokey wedge to come around was the SM5. The main differences were the new range of grinds that where available. Titleist made a slight change to the shape of the wedge, with the SM5 being slightly shorter in width but taller in height. There was also a slight change in the groves, with the SM5 grooves being 7% deeper, supposedly increasing spin.
Moving on, to the SM6, the wedges have a new feature of a different head shape depending on the wedge. This allowed the centre of gravity of the club to be changed to be right behind where the ball is making contact with the clubface. This created a consistent ball flight that helped to gain good distance control.
It also featured new TX4 grooves. These grooves had parallel face texture, which added 4 much smaller grooves between each bigger groove. As a result, there was an increase in spin compared to the SM5.
Two years later in 2018, the SM7 came onto the scene. This wedge was very similar to its predecessor the SM6. As it featured pretty much the same technology with the progressive centre of gravity and spin milled grooves. It also featured the range of different grinds like the SM5 and SM6.
The main difference between the SM8 and the SM7 was that Titleist improved the accuracy and forgiveness by moving the centre of gravity forward so that it hovers in front of the clubface. As a result, the MOI (moment of inertia) is boosted by up to 7%. This is combined with a lengthening of the hosel, consequently the weight is balanced out by tungsten being put in the toe of the club. This leads to an increase in forgiveness and an improved ball flight and increased consistency.
Finally, is the SM9, released in early 2022 is much like the wedges before it. As it has the same technology as before. With the spin milled grooves and the forward centre of gravity. The wedges also come with 6 different grinds as well as a range of lofts from 46 to 62 degrees.
WEDGE | BOUNCE OPTION | NO. OF TOP 100 PGA TOUR PLAYERS |
---|---|---|
Pitching wedge | 8 | 2 |
10 | 21 | |
Gap wedge | 8 | 13 |
9 | 2 | |
10 | 17 | |
12 | 16 | |
Sand wedge | 6 | 1 |
8 | 16 | |
10 | 20 | |
12 | 4 | |
14 | 6 | |
Lob wedge | 4 | 11 |
6 | 2 | |
7 | 1 | |
8 | 16 | |
9 | 3 | |
10 | 9 | |
12 | 2 |
Brand | # Of Tour Players |
---|---|
Titleist | 91 |
Callaway | 27 |
PING | 22 |
TaylorMade | 20 |
Cleveland | 12 |
PXG | 4 |
Wilson | 3 |
Artisan | 2 |
Bridgestone | 1 |
Fourteen Golf | 1 |
Grindworks | 1 |
Miura | 1 |
Mizuno | 1 |
SPECIALITY WEDGES | DEGREE LOFT | NO. OF TOP 100 PGA TOUR PLAYERS |
---|---|---|
Pitching wedge | 46 degrees | 23 |
47 degrees | 3 | |
47.5 degrees | 1 | |
48 degrees | 11 | |
49.5 degrees | 1 | |
Gap wedge | 47 degrees | 1 |
50 degrees | 32 | |
51 degrees | 9 | |
52 degrees | 41 | |
52.5 degrees | 1 | |
53 degrees | 2 | |
54 degrees | 9 | |
54.75 degrees | 1 | |
Sand wedge | 52 degrees | 1 |
54 degrees | 12 | |
55 degrees | 12 | |
56 degrees | 51 | |
57 degrees | 3 | |
57.5 degrees | 1 | |
58 degrees | 4 | |
59.75 degrees | 1 | |
60 degrees | 1 | |
Lob wedge | 58 degrees | 4 |
59 degrees | 1 | |
60 degrees | 76 | |
60.5 degrees | 1 | |
61 degrees | 4 | |
62 degrees | 6 | |
63 degrees | 2 | |
64 degrees | 1 |