TaylorMade ATV Wedges Review - Forum Testing

[Hanks]

cool, thanks for the reply Hart!

That is great that you are able to get solid results, however, it is a very inconsistent technique to have. I feel if you worked on it, based on the results you are already seeing, you could really become a solid player around the greens. Your current form is just very inconsistent and hard to predict...

I'm in the office at the moment and don't have much time to go into detail (I will later if you want me to? maybe via PM?), but once you "set" your wrists on the way back...they should remain set through the swing, sans a small release after impact. You get the club set well and in good position on the way back, then you flip your hands through the ball and end up with your club in terrible position at impact, and a really terrible position past impact. There is no need to flip the club to help the ball up, the club will take care of that itself.

I don't want to derail this thread, but here is a quick clip that will explain what I am trying to say about "maintaining the hinge in your wrists":

Hanks - It just needs the confidence and aggresion of a confident swing. Trying to baby it and/or stab at it, or any wedge for that matter, is not going to give you a very favorable result.

If the mechanics are there, and the swing is made with acceleration through the ball...I can pretty much promise you that the result will be a pleasing one, based on my experience thus far.

 

[InHartWeTrust]

The ATV really served me well today while playing with KellyBo and another couple. I will tell you just the ATV shots I used on certain holes:

#1 85 yd to the pin over Pear tree. Shot went straight at the pin and ended up 10 foot behind it.
#5 Shot out of sand trap & landed on the green 15 ft away
#6 Shot out of sand trap & landed on the green 5 ft away (two putted each one for bogey)

#7 95 yd to the pin. Shot stopped 3ft from the hole. Made birdie:thumb:
#9 green side toe down shot to five foot to save par
#11 green side rough shot to 3ft. (two putted for bogey)
#12 green side toe down chipped in to save par
#13 75 yds out ball landed 10 ft behind the hole & 2 putted for par
#17 30 yds out onhard pan lie to eight ft to save par
#18 chip from behind the green to five foot. (2 putted for bogey)

The ATV wedge did an awesome job of providing me with quality looks all day long! I had a triple bogie on #8 or my round would have been under 80.

OG - That sounds like a heck of a good round with all of those saves, or close to saves. Sounds like you put yourself in the positions you wanted to in most cases when the ATV was pulled. Really good stuff there, sir!

Gotta love that one hole that always sneaks in and ruins a really solid round...sound like you were that hole and a couple of should've made putts from being even closer to a 75!

AH I see what you mean now, I was watching this video and then the ATV videos and I tend to basically release the club instead of hold the wrist angle, what's curious is the fact that the ATV still gets the ball in the air and rolling, I bet I should see an improvement soon! I'll practice this more with my ATV! Thanks IHWT and thanks all for the kind worlds about the video

For sure, dude. Just give it some time and work on it. I will warn you that it will take a little adjustment time before it really "clicks". In the end, you will make much more crisp contact more consistently. It really is worth the time commitment to adjust, IMO.

 

[Mr. Satchmo]

OG - That sounds like a heck of a good round with all of those saves, or close to saves. Sounds like you put yourself in the positions you wanted to in most cases when the ATV was pulled. Really good stuff there, sir!

Gotta love that one hole that always sneaks in and ruins a really solid round...sound like you were that hole and a couple of should've made putts from being even closer to a 75!



For sure, dude. Just give it some time and work on it. I will warn you that it will take a little adjustment time before it really "clicks". In the end, you will make much more crisp contact more consistently. It really is worth the time commitment to adjust, IMO.

Definitely, the crazy thing is that even with an inconsistent swing, the ATV still has helped me get that ball to the green, I am happy that I at least have a great wedge to work with while I learn!

[video=youtube;8o-ric7wZr0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o-ric7wZr0[/video]

 

[Doug the lefty]

While it is still a work in progress w/my 56, I ordered a 52 today (also with hi-rev). I mentioned before that I am going to roll with this before ordering the 60. I'm still having issue with hard/tight lies but I know that is mostly a product of my bad swing. With no rain, we have some approach shots that are nearly as hard as the cart path....

 

[Mr. Satchmo]

While it is still a work in progress w/my 56, I ordered a 52 today (also with hi-rev). I mentioned before that I am going to roll with this before ordering the 60. I'm still having issue with hard/tight lies but I know that is mostly a product of my bad swing. With no rain, we have some approach shots that are nearly as hard as the cart path....

Wow that's crazy about the tight lies, I haven't had too much of a problem with tight lies yet, but ours aren't as tough as yours seem haha. The KBS hi rev has to be one of my favorite shafts, I love the way I can hit my approach shots with my xFT so I bet the ATV with the hi rev is a great combination. I hope that you like your ATV as much as i like mine! Just wondering, is there a significant up charge when you order with the Hi Revs?

 

[Darren K.]

Hart, will you be my golf coach?

 

[JeffReedMO]

Wow that's crazy about the tight lies, I haven't had too much of a problem with tight lies yet, but ours aren't as tough as yours seem haha. The KBS hi rev has to be one of my favorite shafts, I love the way I can hit my approach shots with my xFT so I bet the ATV with the hi rev is a great combination. I hope that you like your ATV as much as i like mine! Just wondering, is there a significant up charge when you order with the Hi Revs?

I think through Global Golf, the Hi-Rev is a no charge upgrade.


Gregory Hines. Tapping.

 

[Doug the lefty]

Wow that's crazy about the tight lies, I haven't had too much of a problem with tight lies yet, but ours aren't as tough as yours seem haha. The KBS hi rev has to be one of my favorite shafts, I love the way I can hit my approach shots with my xFT so I bet the ATV with the hi rev is a great combination. I hope that you like your ATV as much as i like mine! Just wondering, is there a significant up charge when you order with the Hi Revs?

I think through Global Golf, the Hi-Rev is a no charge upgrade.


Gregory Hines. Tapping.

This. no upcharge

 

[Kmac]

Hart, will you be my golf coach?

Group lessons! I need some work on my lag and driver swing.

 

[Darren K.]

Group lessons! I need some work on my lag and driver swing.

Same here. Could use some short game tips, too. He seems to be full of them. I love it!

 

[Mr. Satchmo]

This. no upcharge

That's awesome! I really like the Hi Rev and may be an option if I ever get more ATV wedges, but so far the 56 is killer for me so I may stick to my current set up!

 

[InHartWeTrust]

Hart, will you be my golf coach?

Group lessons! I need some work on my lag and driver swing.

Same here. Could use some short game tips, too. He seems to be full of them. I love it!

haha, I am available to give some tips whenever. Just PM me and I will do my best..as stated in my intro thread (linked in my first intro post in this thread), I was going to be a teaching professional before deciding to go the corporate finance route and get my Bachelors at Ohio State. Still wish I would have went the teaching route, I really enjoy it, so please feel free to PM when if you have specific questions (already PM'in uriel now in regards to my previous call out).

Just went out and played 9 after work, going to work on the write up now! Should be up in a bit.

 

[InHartWeTrust]

MY ATV REVIEW POSTING INDEX:
INTRO POST/ABOUT ME: Click HERE
INITIAL IN HANDS/LOOKS THOUGHTS: Click HERE
INITIAL LONG RANGE THOUGHTS: Click HERE
INITIAL SHORTS GAME THOUGHTS: Click HERE
SECOND RANGE/SHORT GAME SESSION THOUGHTS: Click HERE
THIRD RANGE/SHORT GAME SESSION THOUGHTS: Click HERE
FIRST 9 HOLES: Click HERE

DATE: 7/10/2012
WEATHER: 85°-90°, breezy.
HOLES PLAYED: Front 9 from the tips, very slow following a ladies league, so I hit a lot of extra shots.
ATV RATING ON THIS DAY: 9/10, very solid.

NOTE: I am not a video master like Uriel and some of these other guys in here, so you will need to maximize these videos through YouTube to actually see a better view of the shot and the ball...especially considering these were taken from my iPhone and my girlfriends Galaxy. Sorry for the inconvenience, I wish I knew how to change it for you all!

Okay, well, I went out for a quick nine tonight after work and dinner and took my lovely girlfriend with me to get some video for my THP buds. It was a VERY slow round following the ladies Tuesday night league (F%&K!!!), so after going birdie, birdie on the first two holes...my round turned from a good one, to a "hit a bunch of shots" and play my real ball along the way. I played really well for the round, and made a couple more birdies on the day and only one bogey, and the ATV did it's job (very well, too) along the way. For this review, I will try to group my shots together in categories and give brief thoughts, but the videos will be the focus.

FULL SHOTS:
Had two of these, the one in the video below and another from 100 that I threw down just to hit for S&G's. The one I threw down I hit a 3/4 shot from 100 yards and left it about 10 feet long left. The one in the video below was from 128 into a breeze (haha), but I am trying to learn my max yardage so I figured what the hell. I kind of froze up a little in front of the camera (first time for me) and made a funny looking, short & quick swing. I can tell I was tight because even my set up is weird for me...but I hit a high soaring shot that traveled pretty well. It was good contact, very high, and going right at the hole but came up short of the ridge I needed to carry to get to the pin. Factoring in the breeze, I am guessing I can get 125 out of this 56° pretty comfortably. With my lack of shoulder turn and all around crappy swing, the result was pretty good...considering I knew I wasn't going to carry it the full 128 into a solid breeze, I just wanted to hit the ATV here to see where I could carry it to with a normal swing. I didn't swing any harder than I normally would, I actually took a very smooth and relaxed swing, as I wanted an honest "comfortable" distance to gauge from.

This is the normal sound I get on a a full shot...which I love. It is just a solid "click".

Spoiler

BUNKER SHOT:
I threw one down in the sand to get a sand video up. The sand was very fluffy, so I was playing for a high soft one that would run out a bit. That is exactly what I hit. I hit it perfect, it landed in line with the hole and rolled out. With the break left, I left it about 5 feet past the flag and a touch left. Notice the solid sound from the bunker, the explosion of sand, and the way the ball got up with ease. This club really is effortless out of the sand...I am in love with it from the bunkers. Hasselhoff has nothing on me from the beach with the ATV.

Spoiler

CHIP SHOTS:
I took 2 videos below to show what I mean about not flipping the wrist through...the club should be hinged on the way back with the wrists, and that should be held through the ball/impact where the club will naturally release to about a straight line with your arms, maybe a tad past if you have really "soft" hands. Some say it should never pass a straight line with the arms, but for me, this requires me to be a bit "stiffer" than I would like. Going a bit past is fine IMO, as long as it isn't a flipping motion that causes it.

I am playing the ball back in my stance for these shots because I had a lot of green to work with and wanted a lower flight that would hit, land, check a bit, and release like a putt for 15 feet or so. If I wanted a high shot that would land, hop, and check, I would move the ball up to off the inside of my front foot, and open the face a bit.

Spoiler

Spoiler

Here I am on a par 3 that has 2 greens. There was a 3 group backup on the next tee, so I called the girlfriend over to get some video on the green that was not in use while waiting. I threw a towel down on the green as my "hole" since there was no hole cut and chipped away. These shots are from the rough, and all 4 were either going to be in the hole, lip out, or within tap in range. The 3rd one actually hit another ball that stopped the balls track and made it richocet a bit and go left (not sure how clearly you can see this). In my first take going 4 for 4 either in the hole, or in tap in range ain't too shabby :blob:...I was very pleased, and honestly, this is getting to be the standard for me. I am loving this wedge for these shots now; it has become a matter of "Will I make it?" instead of "Will I get it close enough to have an easy putt left?". It is getting pretty automatic for me out of the rough the last couple times out; the sole makes it basically like a fairway shot, it's very simple to pull off, and I LOVE it.

The third one in the vid I accelerated a bit more to get some more check on the ball, and you can see it grab a bit. The fourth one was a smoother swing that lobbed the ball a little higher with a little more gentle release. All of this is done with club face angle, ball position, and swing tempo.

Spoiler

PITCH SHOT:
Here is a pitch shot I had on a par 5 after I snap hooked my drive that went in the other fairway to the left, haha. I hit a perfect 7 iron up over the trees and left this shot. I needed to land it just on the green and let it release up to the hole with the slope...it was a pretty delicate shot that needed to be precise, and I did just what I needed to. The ball ended up 4-5 or so feet right as it took a sharp slope near the hole to the right at the last second, or else it was dead on line for the hole (I didn't factor in the left slope near the hole, just the initial slope left). I made the putt for birdie.

Spoiler

I hit numerous other chips wasting time on the greens tonight, and all were very impressive. I can seriously see my Save (Up-and-down) % from around the greens and the sand (i.e. Sand Save %) climbing very quickly...it seems that the last two 9 hole rounds I have gotten every single one up and down, including the MANY balls I just tossed down tonight around the greens just to pass the time waiting for the group ahead of me to clear. It seems like every time I miss the green I am getting up and down...how friggin' cool is that?! The club is either a perfect match for me, or has just given me the confidence I needed to become a very solid player around the greens. I was never bad, normally pretty solid around the greens, but it has reached a new level since this testing began. This is going to elevate my game very quickly, I seriously cannot express how excited I am about it...especially once I add the 60° or 62° to my ATV arsenal. I no longer get all beat up about it when I miss a green, as I EXPECT to get up and down regardless of the length of difficulty of the shot...and to date, I am getting everything up and down with the random save from my putter in the rare case I leave more than a tap in. I am putting EVERYTHING within makeable range, and I am digging it.

 

[FrankA]

INHWT, if you are using an iPhone for video if you turn it on it's side it will shot full screen. Nice write up!

 

[InHartWeTrust]

INHWT, if you are using an iPhone for video if you turn it on it's side it will shot full screen. Nice write up!

Sweet, thanks dude! Next time out I will have the gf or playing partner do this for me so the videos aren't so cramped. Wish I had known it this time out as my shots were pretty solid for the videos I had her shoot...thanks again!


Just tap it in, just tap it in. Give it a little tap tap tappy. Tap tap tap-a-roo via Tapatalk.

 

[FrankA]

Sweet, thanks dude! Next time out I will have the gf or playing partner do this for me so the videos aren't so cramped. Wish I had known it this time out as my shots were pretty solid for the videos I had her shoot...thanks again!


Just tap it in, just tap it in. Give it a little tap tap tappy. Tap tap tap-a-roo via Tapatalk.

Yeah, it was looking like you were really hitting some sweet shots out there.

 

[Griff]

Lots to catch up on, but liking what I see so far. Great work fellas!

 

[Mr. Satchmo]

INHWT, if you are using an iPhone for video if you turn it on it's side it will shot full screen. Nice write up!

Believe it or not, I make most of my videos using my iPhone and I turn it to the side.

 

[Mr. Satchmo]

Great write up IHWT, I really enjoy watching a scratch golfer play and how easy they make it seem hah, you make chipping look so easy with the ATV, and I am trying your technique that you shared with me earlier. It's amazing to see what the aTV is doing for your game!

By the way, I usually use my iPhone for all of my videos since I haven't used a GL2 in a long time, it's fast easy and editing it is really fast and easy.

Anyways, keep up the great work and thank you for a great update and great tips for me today!

 

[coolbreeze]

WOW, IHWT that was another great write up! I'm not going to lie, you guys have me really really wanting to get an ATV wedge, even just to play around with.

 

[Haggis]

Great videos. Great written reviews. I can't wait to get my ATV 50 & 56 degree wedges I stole off ebay Sunday for $100 total. They should arrive tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to trying them against my 588s. I am a self proclaimed cruddy wedge player so it will be interesting to see if these help.

 

[Mr. Satchmo]

WOW, IHWT that was another great write up! I'm not going to lie, you guys have me really really wanting to get an ATV wedge, even just to play around with.

Do it man, who knows, you may find something you'll like. I can tell you that my short gam has improved significantly!

Great videos. Great written reviews. I can't wait to get my ATV 50 & 56 degree wedges I stole off ebay Sunday for $100 total. They should arrive tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to trying them against my 588s. I am a self proclaimed cruddy wedge player so it will be interesting to see if these help.

I can tell you that I'm a crappy wedge player but this wedge has really helped me, I can say that even on crappy swings, I can hit the wedge well. Sometimes I am inconsistent since I'm relearning my short game BUT the ATV has really helped me work even on those crappy shots. You may like these a lo!

 

[Mark]

I will say that I am über confident with these wedges. They save my bacon lots. Good shots are really rewarding bad ones are like any other wedge. Playing out of the sand is fun.pretty darn good spin as I was in a couple bunkers today. I just find the sole to really help and pop the ball outas it is minimal effort. I also thinned a shot today that hummed into the water. Keep uP the good work testers. As for durability, my xft looked much better after four rounds. Satin shows everything

 

[BamBooBender]

Wow this thread is awesome!

Great video uriel! Tmag ought to use that in their ads.

Hart, nice updates! I feel like I'm getting schooled in wedge play reading your posts,which is something I could really use since I tend to be inconsistent with anything over 50*. Thanks for the info!

 

[Mr. Satchmo]

I will say that I am über confident with these wedges. They save my bacon lots. Good shots are really rewarding bad ones are like any other wedge. Playing out of the sand is fun.pretty darn good spin as I was in a couple bunkers today. I just find the sole to really help and pop the ball outas it is minimal effort. I also thinned a shot today that hummed into the water. Keep uP the good work testers. As for durability, my xft looked much better after four rounds. Satin shows everything

I noticed that the xFT got more wear from bag chatter, but the ATV got more wear from normal play