Wedge fitting

I am not a fitter by any stretch of ones imagination, however my opinion would be that the answer is " Not necessarily "

When I was fitted, the individual doing the fitting checked my swing on long, mid, and short irons (including wedges) to make sure that my swing and stance was consistent for all of the clubs. I have noticed in watching many golfers that some play their wedges much closer to their feet than their longer irons, which may in fact require a different lie adjustment.

Long and short of it - I would go and have that tested just to be sure. If the wedge has the wrong lie, I believe it would likely affect the bounce.

As I said - I am not a fitter, so I will be interested to see what the experts say.

Darius

Thanks Darius, now you got me thinking. If the toe of my wedges are in fact in the air, then the heel might be digging in. So I'm not using the full effect of the bounce. Where are those experts when your we need them?

Hey Len...

Where are the fitters ? I keep checking back to see what the proper answer should be, but as yet - Nothing but musings from those of us who have opinions but would like to know the facts...

Darius

Gentlemen,

Wedges and hybrids should be bent flatter than your irons by 0.5* for every degree you bend your irons.  So in this case since your irons are 2* flat they should be bent 3 flat.  

This is because with wedges the swing is generally flatter, and with hybrids because the amount of toe down is greater because of the heavier heard.

Hope that makes sense.

Brad 

Thanks Bradley...  I did not have my hybrid checked when I was fitted for my irons. When I go in to get measured for my new 913 Driver, I will have them check my hybrid as well...

Darius

Thanks Brad,

It's good to hear from the Certified Fitters. Thats how we improve our game. 

Addition question for you please. Can you get a get a standard lie hybrid or wedge bent 3 degrees? That a lot.  Or do I have to order them 3 down?

Thanks Len

With the new 913 hybrids they can be adjusted to be flatter.  What I said before isn't a set in stone rule with hybrids.  It is what I've always been told to follow, but the most important thing is how does the ball flies!  If you hybrid is flying straight and solid then don't worry about it.  We can sometime get too wrapped up in what our clubs should be.

Wedges can be bent 3 flat, oil can is easy to do by a professional, tour chrome is a little tougher but doable too.  Black Nickel I find to be the toughest I would advise against trying to bend that finish that flat.

Len/Darius,

In regards to your wedges, lie angles often mimic that of your irons.  However, as Brad has alluded to there are times when your lie angle becomes flatter in wedge length clubs; in my personal experience it usually is the higher lofted wedges.  When we fit for lie angles we typically do so off turf as the divot will tell a lot.  Is the divot toe deep? heel deep? when fitting, we continually ask these questions as this will direct the fitter to recommend either a flatter or more upright lie angle.  The divot in conjunction with your ball flight tendancies (where the ball starts in regards to your intended target line) will really determine what your lie angle is in your wedges.   When we fit for bounce, the lie board is crucial as the impact mark on the tape will really show your swing type and if you are a digger (need high bounce) or a slider (need low bounce).

As for shafts, Bob Vokey has placed the Dynamic Gold S200 shafts as our stock Wedge Flex shaft.  The reason being is through Bob's research with our Tour Players, it has been determined that the majority of them prefer a similiar weight shaft but with a slightly softer flex for feel for those delicate shots around the greens. 

We do offer three different finishes in our wedges; Tour Chrome, Black Nickel and Oil Can.  The Oil Can is the only finish that we can bend in excess of +/-2* due to the raw finish.  The other two finishes are actually plated and by bending further than the recommended tolerance of the +/-2* you can potentially risk putting stress marks on the hosel. 

If you need assistance in the location of a fitting account in your area please visit our site at http://www.titleist.ca/find-a-golf-shop/#fitters. 

Ryan P - Team Titleist

Ryan - Thank you so much for a very detailed answer.

I continue to learn a lot about idiosyncrasies of the game through these posts. The big test is to take these lessons out to the course when the season starts up again.

Darius

Thank Ryan,

Very helpfull

Len

It that with all people?  Are the standard wedges built that way?  I was fit to standard lie for my AP2's and need new wedges and being a lefty there are not much options for bounce.  I just need to figure out what loft and shaft I want. 

Should the shafts on the wedges be the same as irons? or just a little more flexible.  For example I was fit for S300 so should I get S300 on my wedges or go with stardard S200.  

I know we are supposed to see a certified fitter but I am not sure there is one near where I live.  Are there any in Saskatoon?

Thanks

Wedge shafts should match irons, or be as close as possible.  If you were fit for S300's then S200's will work just fine.  The big thing is to find a shaft with a similar weight.  Meaning if you were fit for Nippon NS 950's it wouldn't be a good idea to go with S200's in wedges because they are just so different.  

It also depends on what you want to do with which wedge.  I'd suggest match the same shaft for your gap wedge as the rest of your irons, and go a little softer in your sand and lob wedge. Since a gap wedge would be used more for full shots and the gap and sand would be used for softer shots more often than not.

You should always have a shaft similar to the shafts in your irons.  You will see the best results that way. 

Good news for you, I was talking with my rep the other day and he said that all bounce options will be available for lefties this year!  Check on here I'm sure there is a certified fitter in your area.  If not I'm always happy to help answer questions.

Brad
 

Thanks that sounds great.  Have any idea when all bounce options will be available for us lefties?

Alan,

Good question and something we hear a lot.  We now have different bounce options for those wedges from 54*-60*.  These are also available in Tour Chrome and Oil Can. 

For more information on wedge/bounce options for the lefties, please visit our Vokey site at http://www.vokey.com/wedges/details/vokey-spin-milled.aspx

Ryan P - Team Titleist

That's great.  So you know the link on the Titleist page says different than the Vokey page.  May be the cause of some of the confusion.

http://www.titleist.ca/golf-clubs/wedges/spin-milled-sm4.aspx

This response surprises me, is this based on the majority of people hitting wedges with an open stance?  I have 5 Vokeys of different lofts and bounce that I put into my bag at differnet times of the year due to turf conditions, all are standard lie as per my AP2's, and if anything on the full swing I find the toe will dig a bit deeper.   I logged in to ask a question regarding grinding as my latest addition is a 60-07 which I went to on the advice of one of the guys in the pro shop, and I am wishing I ordered the 60-04 like I had originally intended.  Now I am looking to get the club grinded a bit to see if I can soften it a little.  For the record I have a steep aggressive angle of attack, which I feel may be part of the challenge but it benefits me in a big way on compression and smash factor.

Hi Frank'

You say if any thing you dig the toe in.... How tall are you?

Ths Len

5'11", when I was in my twenties I used to play Wilson Staff Fluid feels bent 2 degrees upright.  As I age I am finding the upright swing is more difficult but I still have a fairly steep angle of attack which is good for the irons and a fitting challenge for the woods.