Although I love your wedges, I must admit that when the time comes to get a new set, I'm a little confused with all the choices. Tour players get to try them all, but players like me have to make an educated (or in my case maybe uneducated) guess. How do I really know what's best for me.

It's so very important to be fit for wedges. Spending time with your local Certified Titleist Fitter is truly the best way to find the right wedges for your game. Another good starting point is to use our online wedge selector tool to help narrow down the choices.

After how many rounds should a typical wedge be replaced? Thank you for the opportunity to answer my question.

We have found through testing that after 75 rounds of play, including an average amount of practice, you will start to see a noticeable loss in spin performance. This will depend on the player, but if you feel like you are losing spin the it’s time to have your local Certified Titleist Fitter take a look.

I'd like him to settle the age old question: are there any measurable performance benefits to raw wedges (i.e. more spin).

Also, if there is any correlation between bounce and ball flight from the typical fairway lie (i.e. do wedges with more bounce tend to flight higher or lower?). I've personally felt like different grinds flight differently for me on full swings, but not sure if it's just me.

Thanks!

We do not see any noticeable difference in spin between Raw and other finished wedges. We cut our grooves based on the finish and this allows us to get consistent spin rates throughout the finish lineup.

For the second part of your question, yes, bounce can have an impact on trajectory and ball flight. In general, a higher bounce will promote a lower trajectory, while a lower bounce will promote a higher trajectory. A higher bounce wedge will typically promote lower contact on the wedge face, resulting in a lower trajectory. The opposite can be said for lower bounce, which tends to result in a higher contact point on the face, and a higher launch.

How can the different bounce/grind combinations benefit a higher handicap player looking to get better performance from their greenside game?

Great question! Check out my video response.

Bob
I play on some tight lies to elevated greens with generally hard surrounding surfaces. Can you recommend a Grind that I might want to consider? Thanks for doing this.

This will really depend on your swing type but look at the L, M, and even S. These are all designed for a variety of shots around the green and tight lies. Thanks to the sole grinds, the M and L would provide the most versatility of the three.

Bob, my question is; “Is the toe/heal interaction (lie) just as important as bounce on wedges or is it okay just to go with standard lie and focus more on bounce?” Appreciate the opportunity to ask and thanks for making such great products.

Lie angle is important in wedge fitting. Having the proper lie angle promotes even turf interaction which allows the bounce and grind to work best. A proper lie angle will also promote a straighter ball flight. Players tend to grip down on wedges (especially sand and lob) which can impact the lie angle if not addressed during a proper wedge fitting.

I really like my Vokey wedges. I'd like to know why I can't seem to find a (lh) 56 degree with a k grind. Thanks

Hi Bob, how much do you communicate with the Titleist Tour players when designing new wedges?

I always say I have the best R&D department in the world…. The PGA Tour. The Tour players play a critical role in our development process and we involve them at every step along the way. I talk more about them in the video response above.

Hey Bob, after all these years making wedges, what is something that you know now but didn't know or use back when you started?

Computer-aided design. I believe this was a big step forward in club design and enabled us to be even more precise.

What direction are you taking the next generation wedge. I know that is a pretty broad question. Looking to upgrade my SM7's. Not sure if I should wait.

On the VOKEY Spin milled Wedges, does the face pattern on the grooves increase spin rates on shots?

Bob, thanks for taking your time to answer our questions. So, I am coming from the sm6 54S and 58L grinds. I have a shallow swing, 4-5 handicap and play in the Midwest. Instructor told me to go with a 56M, so I can open it around the green which is pretty good, but I stick it in the ground on pitch shots and full shots from the fairway. I like to open my 56 from like 50 yards out to a tight pin, but really can’t do that with the S grind and the D grind is too much bounce.

Thoughts on bending a 58D 12* to 56 10*? I would appreciate your thoughts, wanted to like the M grind, but just didn’t work for me. The L grind works really well for me for some reason, even though it’s said it’s not very forgiving. Thanks Bob!!

The 56 is a great option for that shot. There are a couple options I would recommend – Yes, one option as you mention is to take the 58.12D and adjust it 2 degrees strong (this will lower the bounce but it will add some offset). Another option would be through our HandGround program and take the 56.12D and smooth the grind line on the sole. This will help maintain some of the bounce, but will also help it feel a little faster through the turf.

Oh wow this is so cool. I live in the Midwest and plat a lot o courses where the ground is firm. When we travel to some of the premier course to play would there be a better wedge for softer ground so that the club doesn't dig as much? I know a lot of this depends on your swing but both my 48 and 52 are F grinds and my 58 is a S grind. Thanks for the time #TheVoke #TT

The course conditions may change but your swing does not. If you have found something that works for you and your game I would continue to play that. If you are starting to have issues with digging in softer conditions you could try opening the face to add a bit more bounce or you could use a different grind option if that works best for you. Take a look at the 58D to add a bit more bounce if you choose to try something new.

What kind of testing can a player do to determine what wedge bounce is best for them?

First you need to determine what kind of shots you’ll be playing with each wedge. The best way really is to get fit. You can work with a Certified Titleist Fitter to hit the different grind/bounce options in a variety of situations to get dialed in.

Bob, where do you seek or get inspiration from for new ideas?

Thanks, Anthony

Thanks for the question, Anthony. Check out my video response above!

Thank you for taking the time to allow us to reach out with questions. My question is about the pitching wedge. Instead of the AP3 set wedge I purchased a 46* Vokey wedge. What are the benefits and differences when comparing a Vokey wedge to a Titleist set wedge. Appreciate the insight, a huge fan!

One of the differences for some players will be the feel of the wedge. The Vokey PW is designed to be a scoring club. It will be more versatile around the greens and will also help limit fliers from the rough. I would ask yourself what you want your pitching wedge to be. If it’s a continuation of your iron lineup and acts like a 10 iron then the AP3 PW might be better for you. If you want more versatility and feel for a scoring club then the Vokey PW may be better. The other thing to note is the loft of the AP3 PW. The AP3 PW loft is 43 degrees making it much stronger, so adding a 48 degree with your AP3 PW may also be a solution.

I've heard that a wider bounce on a wedge (separate from depth) can add distance on distance wedge shots. Why is this?

I have not found this to be true. In most cases the wider the wedge sole gets, the more dynamic loft it will produce. This can cause the ball to fly higher and ultimately shorter.

We have seen players gain some distance by choosing a wedge sole that has more forward bounce, like our D grind. This added bounce allows the ball to strike lower on the face more often and help the ball flight stay lower with more spin. This lower flight can gain some yardage and increase your stopping power.

Currently have 52 and 58 degree SM7 wedges in my bag. Both have 12 degrees of bounce as recommended by my fitting pro. The 58 degree works great from the bunker or deep rough. But have issues with thinning my full shots with both. Should I reduce the bounce on my 52 to say 9-10 degrees? Thanks. Love your product.

Thanks for continuing to make the best wedges out there, the numbers PROVE it!

"Have you ever considered a coffee-table sized book chronicling your journey and rise as a club making/fitting guru?"

I have not thought about doing this but it isn’t a bad idea. I know my team put together a nice page on Vokey.com with some old photos and a little bit of my story. Maybe we will have to do something in print someday.

Hi Bob. I am like most amateurs, I don’t know what grind and bounce to for my wedges. I am 71 years old play all of my golf in Florida, and I have the yips. What clubs do I use. Thanks

I really would recommend seeing your local Certified Titleist Fitter and get fit for wedges. This will really help get you and your game where you want it to be.