Highest lofted club is a 54 degree wedge - anyone else? (*** MERGED ***)

[Vater]

You think I’m missing anything by having my highest wedge at 54?
 

Anyone else not carry a wedge higher than 54 or maybe 56?

 

I used to have a 58 or 60, but didn’t really use them and when I did, had shots that always ended up being little flopper dribblers that dropped way short of what I was trying to shoot. 
 

I can’t imagine what people are doing with 62/64 wedges I’ve seen more of recently. 

Edited November 2, 2023 by GwrxMod

[Milfordlefty]

The scorecard only cares about how many, not how. If your game finds using the 54 gets your ball on the green where you want it, why change. Plus to put a 58 or 60 in means you need to drop another club (assuming you have 14 in bag currently).

[Louis_Posture]

I guess most players would shoot lower scores were 54* their highest lofted club.

[jholz]

My 58* is always a specialty club. Sometimes it gets used a lot. Other times I can go a month without having to pull it out of the bag.

 

I can make a 54* do about 98% of the shots that I really need around the greens.

 

I am finding that - increasingly - I need (or could use) a 58* that I feel a bit more confident with on full swings, if such a thing exists.

 

Perhaps the real answer is focusing a bit more on course strategy.

 

Or just hide under a blanket like my kids do...

Edited July 3, 2023 by jholz

[MtlJeff]

If you have great hands i mean i guess you can use a 54 for a lot of different shots. It does make some shots more challenging i think. But i mean, i'm sure Phil Mickelson could hit shots with a 54 that i couldn't dream of hitting with a 64....so it's possible

 

But generally i think a 58 or 60 is a good tool with practice.

 

I use a 62, but i have terrible hands so rely on the club to do a lot of the work

[ShortGolfer]

28 minutes ago, jholz said:

I can make a 54* do about 98% of the shots that I really need around the greens.

 

I am finding that - increasingly - I need (or could use) a 58* that I feel a bit more confident with on full swings, if such a thing exists.

 

The Callaway Mac Daddy CB and similar clubs with perimeter weighting may be  what you need. 

If you learn to use the bounce you can trade consistency for distance and pinpoint control.

For many golfers anywhere on the green is good.  Consistently on the green is the desired goal.

Edited July 3, 2023 by ShortGolfer

[GolfFinn]

I have two 60 degrees. Another just for bunkers and the other one is for shots under 40meters (44 yards)

 

I ”cannot” chip with any other club than my 60 degree 

[BIG STU]

It does not matter one iota as long as you are satisfied with it and are confident with the shots you can play with it. I am like most old schoolers as in back in the day we had a PW of anywhere from 48* to 52* and a SW of 54* to 56*. That was all we had so we had to make it work. Now days because my hands do not work like they used to plus some loft creep I am carrying 4. Never thought I would see it for me but hey it works.

[phizzy30]

You can play good golf with a 54* wedge as your highest lofted club.  You just need to be more creative, IMO.  I need my 58* when I need more spin around the greens.  I absolutely hate opening up the face and hitting flop shots and will only do so when the shot demands it. 

Edited July 3, 2023 by phizzy30

[jholz]

6 minutes ago, ShortGolfer said:

The Callway Mac Daddy CB and similar clubs with perimeter weight may be  what you need. 

If you learn to use the bounce you can trade consistency for distance and pinpoint control.

For many golfers anywhere on the green is good.

 

Yeah man, wedges are certainly the next part of my bag to get upgraded. Got my eyes on a few possibilities.

My issues are really more related to bounce. My current 58* was purchased more as a toy/experiment - a 0* bounce Callaway (original) Jaws CC slate 58*.

 

It's been fun to play around with - and my flop shots and wet sand game is amazing - but I am finding over the long run that it's more of a liability that an asset.

I need something low bounce - to be sure - but I think a good grind with 6-8* bounce will provide a more versatile weapon for the bag.

Edited July 3, 2023 by jholz

[Jeri6gt]

I do carry a 58 but I prefer to open up my 54.  I "probably" could leave the 58 out of my bag.

[cliffhanger]

my current setup is 

 

PW - 46*

GP - 52*

SW - 58*

 

Allows for an extra club somewhere else like a strong 3 wood or a hybrid if needed. Replacing wedges soon to a 51* and 56*... don't need more loft than that. 

[596]

My wedges are 42,48,54. 

 

I have no problems hitting all the shots I need with them.  I'm a high single digit and shoot mostly in the 70s.  I really see no need for more loft. 

[Mr_Wolfe]

57˚ is my highest and it is probably used once a round on average. From 50 yards and in, my 52˚ is used almost always depending on the shot.

 

Mr. Wolfe

[ducky50]

My instructor just suggested I pick up a 60 degree for my game around the green. 

[North Butte]

The highest loft I routinely use "around the green" is my 43-degree PW, more often it's the 38-degree 9-iron or the 4-degree putter. 

 

But when I'm 60 yards from the hole I pull out my 60-degree wedge and just make a normal, stock, keep it simple full swing. It goes more or less 60 yards. Just like a normal swing with my 54-degree goes 75 yards and a normal swing with a 48-degree gap wedge goes 90 yards.

 

Or if I'm more like 50 yards I'll choke down a couple inches and make a not-quite-full swing.

 

But if I were a really good wedge player I might prefer to be creative and open up the face and/or play some sort of partial swing any time I'm inside 54-degree distance. I'm not really good, though. So I keep it simple.

[Haroputt]

I use a 60  and 64 sometimes   

Especially useful at course with elevated greens and deep bunkers 

 

[Roejye]

I dropped my 60° because I liked it enough I kept taking it out for shots I didn't originally intend it for. I generally try to have it as a "break glass in case of emergency" club but I would just pull it for more regular chips and it often bit me more than helped. Like you op I would often get too under it and end up well short.

 

I'll always have that flop shot out of the rough from like 15 feet behind a 30 foot tree and landing it on the fringe pin high. I have way more of those simple ¾ swing chips I'm expecting to go 40-50 yards that went 20 to 30.

[jacho22]

You should probably be ok with 54* as highest lofted club.  Just need to open face more for more loft.  Would probably help if you have a grind with heel/toe relief.

[Hookasaurus Rex]

If you are a master at short siding yourself around the greens like me, a 60* is a necessity. I use my 60* all the time.

[Net67]

Absolutely could play with just a 54°, just make sure it’s a versatile grind. I carry a lower bounce 56° with lots of heel relief as my highest and never find myself needing more loft. 

 

1 wedge you’re uber confident and can play different shots with is all you need. 

[Louis_Posture]

3 hours ago, Roejye said:

I dropped my 60° because I liked it enough I kept taking it out for shots I didn't originally intend it for.

 

 

 

For years I tried  58*  or 60* wedges and sang the song you're singing.

What has worked well for me is a 64*  Unlike a 58* or 60*,  I am not tempted to swing the 64* except when a high loft drop-and-stop shot is called for. 40 to 70 yard carry shots is usually where I swing the 64*.

Edited July 3, 2023 by Louis_Posture

[JBuer]

I took the 58* out of my bag at the start of the year. Only use a 54 now. Less over thinking on my part and my short game is so much better. I’m hitting out of bunkers better then ever. Will the 58* come back…maybe but not anytime soon. 

[st1800e]

Seve learned how to play with only a 3 iron, which is probably todays 5 or 6 iron.   Could hit all kind of shots, including green side bunker shots.  This game is about improving your skills, and so many of us our skills have a limit.   So if a 60 or 64 wedge matches your skills, go for it , if your 54 wedge gets you the best results, continue.   Trying to mimic tiger flop shots out of 4” rough is fun, but, for most of us, it’s not going to get us the best score.   

[byoshio82]

9 hours ago, Vater said:

You think I’m missing anything by having my highest wedge at 54?
 

Anyone else not carry a wedge higher than 54 or maybe 56?

 

I used to have a 58 or 60, but didn’t really use them and when I did, had shots that always ended up being little flopper dribblers that dropped way short of what I was trying to shoot. 
 

I can’t imagine what people are doing with 62/64 wedges I’ve seen more of recently. 

I know a lot of the older generation played only a 56 for many years. I use my LW a ton around the greens and out of bunkers. From 100 in it’s my go to unless I’m chipping or trying to hit a low hop and stop. 

[Jeff58]

A classic conundrum.
 

Think of it like darts. The higher your landing angle, the more you can throw the dart at the target. However, you then need to accurately judge both your launch angle and force. The lower the loft, the more the shot becomes like a putt, where force is the only consideration. There is considerable reality behind the “get it on the ground” approach.

 

On courses where the greens have little to no defensive features, there’s no significant reason to bring a lob wedge. On the other hand, many courses have grossly defended approaches. On my home course, if you only had a 54, it’s unlikely that you would want to post your results.

[stimpmeterp]

Ok so here’s a question for the < 54° group.

 

How do you hit the short sided flop or deep greenside bunker shot?  I can see 56° opened up like a sauce pan, but a 54° can only open so much and still have serviceable bounce, no?

[14max]

My highest lofted clubs in my 3 bags are 54*, 55*, and 56*.  I don't do well with wedges higher than the 56* and that's fine by me. To each his own.

[OnTheBag]

5 minutes ago, stimpmeterp said:

Ok so here’s a question for the < 54° group.

 

How do you hit the short sided flop or deep greenside bunker shot?  I can see 56° opened up like a sauce pan, but a 54° can only open so much and still have serviceable bounce, no?

The easy answer is to manage the course so you don't have to hit that shot.  In reality, how many times is that shot successful?  Most would be better off to play over the bunker to the fat part of the green and take the two putt.  

 

Like @BIG STU our generation only had 54 or 56 SW available.  We learned to navigate the course and played good golf with it.

 

Personally, my wedges have always been PW (46/47/48), and a 56 with custom grind that I can get creative with. The 52° was added in the 2000's when I had a gap to fill (swing speed started dropping).  I hit long bunker shots with an open PW or 9i and can manipulate the face on the 56 for anything else.  

 

As someone said above, the scorecard records how many, not how.  Have fun.  Don't sweat the small stuff.

 

[Mobert19]

I’d rather take out my 54 then my 58