What's the distance gained/lost by adding or removing 2 degrees to a wedge?

[Pauly567]

In short, I have my 56* wedge dialed in perfectly at 90 yards with a smooth full swing. My next club down is my 50* Wedge, which I hit about 115/20. I need a go to club for 100 -105 yards. If I were to replace the 56 with a 54 (2 degrees less), do you think that would add 10/15 yards?

[gibbiesmalls]

All other things being equal, no those 2* will not net you 10-15 yards. If it did, it would imply that 4* gaps between wedges/irons would net a 20-30 yard gap. Which they don't.

 

So no.... same swing, same shaft.... same err'thang... isn't happening.

[bullsfan]

You could, but you may be overthinking it? If I were you in this same situation I'd either learn to take some off the 50* to hit it 100 yds or I'd maybe learn to hit the 56* that amount, by forward press. Or you could bend the 56* to 55* and weaken your 50* to 51* and your gaps are closer to being filled? Unfortunately there is not right answer and a ton of different solutions.

[tocino]

grip down an inch to an inch-an-a-half on your 50* or maybe a 3/4-swing with it instead. Like bullsfan said, there's a ton of ways to hit that distance without having to buy a new club or modify an existing one.

[Rosco1216]

I wouldn't say you NEED a 100-105 club, but you do NEED consistent gaps. How far do you hit your PW and/or your 60*? I'm guessing that your 56* is your lowest lofted wedge since a full shot with it is 90 yards.

[puttingmatt]

Choke down on your gap wedge and see if you can replicate the yardage needed . If not then you may have to change a loft or a club .

[Joelsim]

Depends on your swing.

 

My 52* goes 100. My 58* goes 85 on a full swing. As others have said I grip down to take 5 yards off either, if I need 10 yards I can either underswing on my 52* or hit the hell out of my 58*. The former is the more reliable method.

[JonnyKrasnodar]

You could, but you may be overthinking it? If I were you in this same situation I'd either learn to take some off the 50* to hit it 100 yds or I'd maybe learn to hit the 56* that amount, by forward press. Or you could bend the 56* to 55* and weaken your 50* to 51* and your gaps are closer to being filled? Unfortunately there is not right answer and a ton of different solutions.

 

Definitely better to learn the shot in the long run. From looking at my round stats and notes made during each round I realized that I was very poor from 85 yards to 20 yards. I looked at my club selections and noticed I was trying to carry the ball all the way by hitting a really hard 60. Invariably I'd either come up short or thin the odd one. Both poor results and both strokes lost.

 

So over the summer I'd spend a few nights a week at the practice area, using my Bushnell for yardages and I basically marked out every yardage between 20 and 85 yards. Starting with my 54 I then hit balls until I could consistently hit each yardage, discounting any shots that were noticeably short/long/wide in their dispersion.

 

Took it to the course and used one club for anything in range. I've done it right through to 9 iron so I know if it's 20-30mph winds I can chip a 9. The trajectory will lessen the effect of the wind etc.

 

I've had two wins within three weeks of doing the reps and overall consistency is so much better. Previously I'd thought about changing my wedge set up to "help" improve but at the end of the day I'd have had to swing the club anyway. So instead of new wedges that might yield the same poor results as before I worked on 49,54,60 (plus PW + 9) swings for each yardage so if suck with one I know I have a few other options to go to etc. Definitely worthwhile putting the time in. Biggest stroke saver out there.

[RogerinNewZealand]

Best to head to a field and pace out your gaps, with the new wedge.

or go for a late 9 holes and practice at 100% 80% 60% and see if that works.

I try for all the same brand wedges, so there is consistency, shafts too !!

 

100 yard shot is important to mee also!!

[LCP]

Probably 6 yards for 2 degrees all things equal between the clubs. It sounds like you don't hit that 56 far enough based on your 50 distance. A 54 might get you those 6 yards, but maybe a different spec 54 would get you a few more, up to 100ish for a full swing.

 

For me, 80-90% distance on wedges is really ideal. I also have a big gap between my gap wedge and my sand wedge, but there's really only about a 3-4 yard range (right at the maximum sand wedge range plus a few yards), where I'm uncomfortable with that gap. For what it's worth, 49º G30 U wedge goes about 124-126 for me, and 54º Glide sand wedge goes about 102-104 for me, both full swings. The iron set wedge just has more distance than the tour wedges. I can hit the U wedge anywhere from about 108 up to maximum distance with ease; the uncomfortable partial swing range is about 104-107 with it before I can just go back down to the 54º. I really don't want to lose any distance off the U wedge, and I don't really want to lose any loft or height with the 54º, so I deal with the gap. I think it's made me be real good with any wedge swing between 75-100%.

 

Take that 50 of yours and do nothing but hit 100 yard shots with it for a while. A whole bucket of balls for several days. Try to hit the stick. You'll get good at it.

[Howard_Jones]

I wouldn't say you NEED a 100-105 club, but you do NEED consistent gaps. How far do you hit your PW and/or your 60*? I'm guessing that your 56* is your lowest lofted wedge since a full shot with it is 90 yards.

 

This is what its all about, so there is a lack of info here.

Spec lofts and carry for

 

#9

PW

GW

SW

LW

 

Then we get a "map", where we get to see what club we should tweak or change.

 

i have a set up with constant gaps of 10 meters carry including my GW at 53* (full swing), and then i use a 58*SW/LW for anything shorter or a need for a higher softer landing.

[bazinky]

2 degrees less loft in the shorter irons equates to about a half-club (6 yards) for me.

[Cwebb]

2* is about a "half a club". Whatever that is for you