New vs Old Wedges

All golfers, amateurs and pros alike, love hitting pitch shots that come in low, take a couple of hops and then come to a spinning stop on a dime. The distance we are focusing on is 50yards.

These shots look great......but technique aside, what are the crucial elements to hitting these shots?

Today I am mainly going to be looking at the difference in using an old wedge versus a new one. In this particular experiment I will be using my one year old Taylor Made ATV 60' versus my brand new version of the same club which I have just received.



Old ATV 60'





New ATV 60'

As you can see from the photos of the faces the older wedge has become very smooth between the grooves whereas the new wedge has still got all the milled surface between the grooves. It is this part of the face that gives the majority of spin on these shorter shots come from the friction created between the clubface and the ball rather than the grooves imparting the spin.

The results are below. For reference the test was carried out under the following parameters. Ball used for each shot was a new Taylor Made Noodle, from a perfect lie, with a clean and dried clubface. Shots had to land between 40-60yards to be counted. The results are the average of ten shots with each club.

Club	Ave carry	Clubhead Speed	Spin RPM	Launch Verticle	Height max
Old 60	55	43.9mph	5576	33.1	30ft
New 60	50	43.7mph	8729	30.6	25ft

 

As you can see there is a massive difference in spin rate between the old and the new wedges. Not only is the spin rate just over 4500 RPM higher but the overall height of the shot is 5ft lower! These are the ingredients needed for hitting a low, spinning pitch shot. Even though I'm using a 60' wedge the launch angle is only 30'! Almost exactly half the actual loft on the club. This low launch angle is created by a combination of a dynamic loft at impact in the high 40's/low 50's and the friction caused from the clubface at impact. With the old wedge having a much smoother area between grooves there is less friction caused therefore creating a higher launch and lower spin.

Old ATV 60'

New ATV 60'

Moral of the story: If you're serious about your golf then you need new wedges every year! And if you're REALLY serious about your golf then you should have a practice set and a play set of wedges which match.

More to come soon

Happy Golfing

Ed

 

Current book I am reading: Open by Andre Agassi

 

Ed Chapman is a Class AA British PGA Golf Professional @ Al Badia Golf Club by InterContinental, Dubai Festival City
Email: ed.chapman@ichdfc.ae

PGA Certificate in Golf Psychology Coaching - May 2012
UKCC PGA Certificate in Golf Coaching Level 2 - October 2007

Bibliography

www.andrewricegolf.com