Set Vs Specialty wedges... my opinion changed

[mvhoffman]

I started a post like this a while ago.  I questioned the benefits of specialty wedges over set wedges.  I have never had success with specialty wedges.  I tried Callaway, Taylormade, Ping, etc and could never use them to their full potential.  I was far better with set wedges.  Not even a question.  I had/have a terrific short game with wedges.  Spin, ball flight control, never had an issue.  Up until recently I used the Ping i25 from 4-LW and shot my lowest score ever (-2).  Fast forward to a few weeks ago I decided that I wanted something "new" and shiny.  I found a mint set of the 2006 Tommy Armour Silver Scot Forged Blades, these were my dream eye candy set from the store when I started playing golf in 2003/2004.  The only issue was that the set was only 3-9.  I bought them with the intention of ebaying hard to find the P,G,S,L that went with the set but then came across a set of Vokey wedges 46,52,56,60 for <$200 so I decided I'd bite the bullet and go for it.  I have to admit, they are possibly the easiest specialty wedges i've ever tried and have been getting along great with them.  Continually hitting good shots with really no differences than the set wedges from my i25.  I thought this way until yesterday.  Yesterday on hole 16 which is a 200 yard par 3 on the side of a hill sloping hard from left to right I hit a nice 5 iron fade to the side of the hill about 20 feet from the hole but finished on the fringe.  Now in order to putt the ball I would have had to putt through the fringe for about 10 feet so it could break to the right and trickle to the hole.  I set up over the ball and looked at the line and thought if this was ever the time to try a shot with a specialty wedge, this was it.  I grabbed my 60, opened the face wide up, picked my landing area, and took a shallow quick wipe having the wedge clip the ball and finish as the ball left the gound on the line with a low liner flight hitting my landing spot about 5 feet left of the hole, grabbing the green hard, checking up quick and trickling right down to the hole finishing 2 inches on the high side leaving me a tap in par.  Now I know in WRX world this is no big deal, however it is a shot that with my set wedges, no matter how good I was that day, I would not have been able to do.  Given me 10 balls I do not feel confident I would have been able to pull it off even once.  

 

I'm not going to say i'm a Vokey player for good as i'd really like to try some different wedges, but for now I can say that I am a specialty wedge user for good.

[MelloYello]

Yeah, I think a lot of it comes down to sole grind/shape/bounce. Many folks have negative experiences with aftermarket wedges that are too demanding for what they're looking for. 

 

I love my current LW but the first 60 I ever tried was an old Nike Forged model from Play-It-Again-Sports and it was a nightmare: low bounce, narrow sole, sharp leading edge, etc. 

 

You just have to find something that fits your game. There's no reason a Vokey should be any harder to use than anything else. 

Edited June 7, 2021 by MelloYello

[mvhoffman]

25 minutes ago, MelloYello said:

Yeah, I think a lot of it comes down to sole grind/shape/bounce. Many folks have negative experiences with aftermarket wedges that are too demanding for what they're looking for. 

 

I love my current LW but the first 60 I ever tried was an old Nike Forged model from Play-It-Again-Sports and it was a nightmare: low bounce, narrow sole, sharp leading edge, etc. 

 

You just have to find something that fits your game. There's no reason a Vokey should be any harder to use than anything else. 

Good point on the grinds.  I didn't really pay attention to specific grinds before.  Now that I understand them a bit more it is a better result.  I don't have the exact specific recommendation for me (D grind in the 56 & 60) I have the less forgiving options as they allow me to play a little more "special" (stupid) shots lol...