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Cleveland Smart Sole Wedges

SuperStroke
going to get one of the S for my wife, see if it helps.
 
Since my approach shots are pathetic these days, my scoring lives and dies with these clubs. I had 4 tap in one putts from the C, and chipped in one as well. I also had quite a few that I left 10' or more away. Some of that came from me not looking closely at the green before swinging. I need to learn to do that to plan my shot better.
 
Orange Hog said:
Funny you say that. I played with some buddies today and the first time I pulled the C and S wedges out they all looked at me and said "what the heck are those goofy looking clubs". I tried to explain but they couldn't get over how "different" they looked. I then proceeded to knock a beautiful flop shot over and bunker with the S wedge to 2 feet then saved par while they struggled to get on the green and putt for bogeys. Next hole I came up just short of the green with my 2nd shot, pulled the C wedge and knocked it to 2 ft again to save par. My buddies didn't think these clubs looked too goofy after that!

I say if a traditional design means that I have to sacrifice performance then I have no problem leaving tradition in the past and moving on to whatever helps me shoot lower scores.
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You want good looks? What looks good IS LOW SCORES! What looks good is COMING OUT OF A BUNKER AND SAVING PAR! What looks good is knocking the ball 2 feet FROM THE PIN! That's the only "looks" I'm interested in!
 
Got to extensively hit these at a demo day. I'm sold. So is my buddy. Definitely S, probably C as well.

S was easy peasy out of a variety of lies in and out of the sand. I would definitely need some practice to break my current sand practices, open stance, open face etc. Smart Sole just seemed so easy. I also hit a few other Cleveland Sand wedges, I might carry an extra just to have a soft high spinning wedge in the bag. My buddy needed a little practice as her only had one swing: full and fast, but I got him to hit a couple half and quarters. He was within 20 feet of his target on average. With his wedge... Not so much.

The C, my friend really struggled, full settings were fine. The rep had him replicate the half swing from the S and boom, clipped the flag stick. I had a bit of a better time with the C, but I'm not sure I'd replace my gap wedge with it. My next set I'll have to look closely at that.

All in all, I get why y'all are so enamoured with these clubs. These clubs are like the old dudes you play with on the course that aren't remarkable until you see how consistent they are scrambling around the greens. Same shot just different swing lengths. Save their part or bogey every, single, time. I could see me bonding with the S in the exact same way.
 
rbarthle17 said:
Since my approach shots are pathetic these days, my scoring lives and dies with these clubs. I had 4 tap in one putts from the C, and chipped in one as well. I also had quite a few that I left 10' or more away. Some of that came from me not looking closely at the green before swinging. I need to learn to do that to plan my shot better.
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I find it is just like putting only you pick a spot to land it and roll it to the hole. I would rather be off the green and chip it rather than be on the green with a long putt


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My Smart Sole experiment is officially over; results were mixed at best. The SW was far more difficult to hit out of bunkers than my 58 degree CB RTX. I also didn't find it any better on touch shots close to the green. For whatever reason, I had a difficult time making good contact on full shots out of the rough. Probably going up for sale today on Ebay.

The same probably will be true of the C-Wedge, but it's possible I may hang on to it a little longer. It is really a good club for chipping out of the fringe or on the green apron, but like it's cousin I had a hard time using it out of the rough around the greens. Certainly no better than my RTX's, and maybe even a little worse. If I were to ever use it in competition I'd have to take out a mid-iron, which I probably wouldn't be willing to do. Overall it worked better for me than the SW, but in all likelihood it probably will be going up for sale too.

It was fun to experiment, but these are probably not staying in the bag.
 
Maiden voyage on the course this past weekend. It was hit or miss, but mostly miss.

Hit:
- Incredibly easy to elevate, even from the deep stuff
- Like the weighting
- Sets up with a natural forward shaft lean
- Really easy to hit really high with a full swing

Miss:
- Course I played on this weekend had hardpan "sand" traps. The S didn't work at all, at least with me swinging it.
- I played with a "longer" gap wedge than normal. The S really only goes about 55 yards for me, so it left me with a fairly wide gap.
- Thin lie chips. Surprisingly I thinned some and shot them over the green. I think my Niblick 42 and 49 are better.

I need to practice more.
 
MUTiger said:
My Smart Sole experiment is officially over; results were mixed at best. The SW was far more difficult to hit out of bunkers than my 58 degree CB RTX. I also didn't find it any better on touch shots close to the green. For whatever reason, I had a difficult time making good contact on full shots out of the rough. Probably going up for sale today on Ebay.

The same probably will be true of the C-Wedge, but it's possible I may hang on to it a little longer. It is really a good club for chipping out of the fringe or on the green apron, but like it's cousin I had a hard time using it out of the rough around the greens. Certainly no better than my RTX's, and maybe even a little worse. If I were to ever use it in competition I'd have to take out a mid-iron, which I probably wouldn't be willing to do. Overall it worked better for me than the SW, but in all likelihood it probably will be going up for sale too.

It was fun to experiment, but these are probably not staying in the bag.
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Good honest feedback. I get the feeling it's really not for everyone
 
Cleveland Smart Sole Wedges

I was pretty much deadset on the s wedge a month ago - then I've been getting very comfortable with my sand game. Still intrigued but not as much
 
I'm getting more comfortable with mine.

It's a specialty club. I don't like taking full swings with is, but it's a great lob wedge alternative.

I've seen a lot of my friends cutting under the ball with a LW, or blading it over the green. I used to be the same way (very little confidence in my LW).

As I get more practice with the SS 58, I become more fond of it.
 
ryebread said:
Maiden voyage on the course this past weekend. It was hit or miss, but mostly miss.

Hit:
- Incredibly easy to elevate, even from the deep stuff
- Like the weighting
- Sets up with a natural forward shaft lean
- Really easy to hit really high with a full swing

Miss:
- Course I played on this weekend had hardpan "sand" traps. The S didn't work at all, at least with me swinging it.
- I played with a "longer" gap wedge than normal. The S really only goes about 55 yards for me, so it left me with a fairly wide gap.
- Thin lie chips. Surprisingly I thinned some and shot them over the green. I think my Niblick 42 and 49 are better.

I need to practice more.
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I wonder what is making you hit the S wedge so much shorter than other 58* wedges?
 
My S wedge is a weapon!! 2nd hole yesterday I bade a 20 yard bunker shot....flew it to 4 feet and then it rolled right into the cup!!

Played with the Houston gang last weekend and stuffed several in close with it


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JB said:
I wonder what is making you hit the S wedge so much shorter than other 58* wedges?
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JB: I must be honest. I'm not a long hitter, period. The drive SS is only around 88 and I have a very, very short swing.

I hit the SS 58 about 55 on the course this past weekend, though when practicing, I've hit it 65-70. I can hit a Niblick 56 or a CG14 56 about 60-65 on average, so it should be about the same to your point. I suspect I wasn't quite going after it as much as I have been when practicing.

The difference for me was that I swapped the Niblick 49 for the Altitude graphite shafted D wedge. That created a wider gap between the two because the Altitude D is going about 15 yards longer on average. This isn't a "fault" of the Smart Sole, just a new "feature" of my current setup.

If I went Niblick 42, 49, SS 58, the gaps would be like what I've been playing the last couple of years.
 
ryebread said:
JB: I must be honest. I'm not a long hitter, period. The drive SS is only around 88 and I have a very, very short swing.

I hit the SS 58 about 55 on the course this past weekend, though when practicing, I've hit it 65-70. I can hit a Niblick 56 or a CG14 56 about 60-65 on average, so it should be about the same to your point. I suspect I wasn't quite going after it as much as I have been when practicing.

The difference for me was that I swapped the Niblick 49 for the Altitude graphite shafted D wedge. That created a wider gap between the two because the Altitude D is going about 15 yards longer on average. This isn't a "fault" of the Smart Sole, just a new "feature" of my current setup.

If I went Niblick 42, 49, SS 58, the gaps would be like what I've been playing the last couple of years.
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Makes sense. Less about this wedge than the gapping for you. Gotcha. Thanks for explanation.
 
JB said:
Makes sense. Less about this wedge than the gapping for you. Gotcha. Thanks for explanation.
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I found I had to put the Altitude S wedge between the Altitude D and Smart Sole S. I had the Actionlite 55 Wedge Flex shaft put in the D and S and they flow beautifully into the Smart Sole S.


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Aussie Dave said:
I found I had to put the Altitude S wedge between the Altitude D and Smart Sole S. I had the Actionlite 55 Wedge Flex shaft put in the D and S and they flow beautifully into the Smart Sole S.


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I think this is a good suggestion. If I wasn't so married to my Niblick 42 as the 13th club for chipping, recovery and dirty work, I'd do the same thing. I'd rather have that than a tighter gap. I may go back to my Niblick 42 and 49 setup as I'll achieve the same thing.
 
ryebread said:
I think this is a good suggestion. If I wasn't so married to my Niblick 42 as the 13th club for chipping, recovery and dirty work, I'd do the same thing. I'd rather have that than a tighter gap. I may go back to my Niblick 42 and 49 setup as I'll achieve the same thing.
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Do you really need the 7 Wood I go from the 4 Wood straight to the Altitude 4
 
ryebread said:
That's another option. Another would be dropping the Alt. 4. I probably hit the 7W better than the 4H. Probably a topic for another thread though given we're in with the SS. :)
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I have just put the Alt 4 in the bag as I found I was hitting the Alt 5 as far as I was hitting my X Hot 4 Hybrid so out came the X hot and In went the Alt. But as you say thats for another thread lol.
 
ryebread said:
I think this is a good suggestion. If I wasn't so married to my Niblick 42 as the 13th club for chipping, recovery and dirty work, I'd do the same thing. I'd rather have that than a tighter gap. I may go back to my Niblick 42 and 49 setup as I'll achieve the same thing.
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Have you compared the 42 Niblick to the Smart Sole C yet.
 
Aussie Dave said:
Have you compared the 42 Niblick to the Smart Sole C yet.
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I have not and honestly probably will not. I typically buy to compare and don't think that the C is compelling enough to warrant a purchase. This isn't a knock on the C. It's just that I have a Niblick 42 and also a 37 (which is arguably even better for chipping). Between the two, I really have all the "chipper" I will ever need, and also have clubs that can pull other duties like recovery, full shots, etc..
 
Played this morning and used the SS 58 4 times out of some thick, wet rough.

Keep your hands soft, be confident, and the ball jumps up nicely. I was impressed.

I really enjoy it for shots that I know I can't spin, so I have to use elevation to control distance. If I can spin the ball, then I still like a more traditional wedge, but again, the SS is really a nice lob/specialty club for rough or sand.

I think it's a pretty nice option for higher handicappers to get some forgiveness/simplicity with their short same (a C & S), and for better players, I think it's a nice "trouble club" that can complement your traditional wedges (like a 3hybrid complements a 4 iron).
 
I think I blew O'Carrolls mind today with my C wedge usage. Anything inside 100 I went to it today as usual, but I topped it off on the par 3 17th at Purgatory, which was just over 100y. I took my C and put it on the fringe with a moonshot. First time I ever teed it up with the C. Love it.
 
rbarthle17 said:
I think I blew O'Carrolls mind today with my C wedge usage. Anything inside 100 I went to it today as usual, but I topped it off on the par 3 17th at Purgatory, which was just over 100y. I took my C and put it on the fringe with a moonshot. First time I ever teed it up with the C. Love it.
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Confirmed. That C wedge is an absolute weapon for Rob. And that shot on 17 was a beauty.
 
Cleveland Smart Sole Wedges

I found today that the S is so versatile by playing it off my back foot I can chip with it just as well as the C only with a bit more height and a bit less rollout. I think I actually have a bit better feel with it than with the C.


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