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To lob or not

I mess around with flop shots on the range and chipping green and I hit them really well, however I don't trust that shot on the course. Something in my mind set changes when I get on the course and I'm afraid I'll thin it to win it.
 
To lob or not

Hawk said:
Lob wedge is probably the most used wedge in my bag and really the most versatile as well. I say get one and learn how to use it. If you get some proficiency there you're only going to improve your short game options. Doesn't really need to be a flop club either. I have probably hit less than 10 true flop shots in the last 18 months on the course.
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Funny, I have it in the bag and haven't touched it in at least five rounds. How different players are ;)
Mind you: I train with it about as much as I do with the 52° and 56°, I can play with it. Just don't really need it apart from tight ions out of a bunker or to have a ball hop over something high and stop fast.
 
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I carry a 59 degree LW and I use it as much or more than my 56. I almost always use it from the bunkers and for anything else inside 80 yards, with the rare exception of an approach that just begs for something low, like a severely sloped back to front green where I don't want too much spin. And also if it really windy, like 15+ I will use a different club to keep the trajectory low, but that's not often where I typically play in the middle of north Florida.


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Good.Shepherd said:
It's a lob wedge, not some new and mythical club with resistant magical properties. If you can hit a 56, you can hit a 60. You just need to practice.

I actually disagree that "many amateurs should have more clubs at the top of their bag, not the bottom". That's ridiculous to me. Anyone can learn to play wedges, and doing so will actually make them better scramblers and will increase their scores. Just spend time working with them and they'll be some of the most comfortable clubs in the bag. The big issue is that so few golfers really spend time on their chipping/pitching.

More importantly, you need a wedge with mid to high bounce for soft conditions or rough pitches (like a 56.14), and you need a wedge with lower bounce (60.08 or less) for tight lies or hard lies. Getting good with these two different wedges and their bounce properties will take away a ton of mis-played shots in the short game, and it's so much easier to learn than some here have made it sound like.
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emphatically agree. it irks me every time I see someone post something like "you shouldn't be hitting that shot" when the real answer is "that shot requires a technique that must be learned." Some people may have more or less trouble learning it, but that's not something anyone can decide for someone else based on handicap, screen name, or anything else available on an internet forum. I know I picked it up very quickly once I found a good demonstration video, and I execute that shot more reliably than many of the "much easier" shots that I still struggle with.
 
I've never related to the idea that a high lofted wedge takes some special skill. What may be a little tough to learn in distance control is easily made up for by an almost nonexistent dispersion with a LW. I couldn't shape a LW if I tried, I just aim in the right place and hit it, and if the distance is a little off, so be it. The 56 will almost always have a little bit of draw or fade, by comparison.


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I tell you what ... I love my 60" wedge. It is a club that I know that if I am 60 yards out, I can grab it, put a full swing on it, and it'll fly true and stick the green. Things go awfully wrong with it if I don't put a full swing on it, but otherwise that club is money. I shied away from getting one for the longest time, but I'm glad it's in my bag now.
 
I learnt to play the game with only a 5i/7i/pw and as such learned to hit a ton of different shots with my PW. When I was older I finally got a LW and never looked back. I love hitting chip shots high and stopping them quickly! I can play bump and run type chip shots but will almost always reach for my LW as my first option.
 
SaffaClint said:
I learnt to play the game with only a 5i/7i/pw and as such learned to hit a ton of different shots with my PW. When I was older I finally got a LW and never looked back. I love hitting chip shots high and stopping them quickly! I can play bump and run type chip shots but will almost always reach for my LW as my first option.
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Greenside I would rather have a lofted club (SW/LW) that I can be a little more aggressive with more often that not, assuming I have space to work with. Takes the potential for decelerating out of the picture a bit.
 
Maybe I am in the minority on this one, but I had no learning curve when first using the 60* Mack Daddy I have. I've always been very comfortable with my wedges so maybe that is why. Like everything else, it depends on the golfer and the style/skill set. I'm a 20 handicap currently and that has obviously not stopped me from playing my 60* well.
 
I like the 59° around the greens. Lets me swing more aggressively on my chips, and I tend to get better contact. I can use forward press to deloft the club as I need to to get low runner.
 
A LW is no different from any other club in the bag, in my opinion. I do think, however, that some lob wedges are easier to hit than others. I had to replace my Ping Gorge SW and LW with the stock G25 SW and LW. I just could not get used to them, and absolutely flubbed almost every attempt at hitting them. Replacing them with the stock SW and LW that matched my set made a world of difference in playability for me.
 
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DaBuckBoys said:
I carry a 58 degree but almost never use it. The 54 does everything from full shots just under 100 yards to anything that requires a carry around the green. If I can get the ball rolling to the pin I'm grabbing something with less loft.
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This me. I carry a 58 degree and use it maybe one or two times per round. Like everything in golf, wedges are subjective.
 
I put a 60° in my bag so I wouldn't have to mess around with opening the face on my 54°. I never found it to be difficult to hit. Sometimes the blade slips under the ball, but that happens with an open faced SW as well. And if I blade the ball with the LW, it is much less of a disaster than with an open SW.
 
I use my 58 lob wedge almost exclusively from inside 95 yards, including around the greens. I had a 56 and a 60, I liked the 56 for most shots inside 100, but the 60 for sand shots.
I also practice my wedges for probably 60% of all my practice.
I gave a buddy my old 60 degree, he used it twice, and sticks with his PW for everything around the green. He hasn't practiced with it much.
One of my instructors said that everyone who plays on desert courses needs a lob wedge. Especially if you are in the rough around the greens. Has to do with speed of the greens.
Depends on what you like to do inside 100 yards, I guess.
 
I carried only a 55* as my highest lofted club for a while but put the 60* in the bag this year and I find it to be very useful around the greens and in the bunker. It is in there to stay.
 
I play a 60 LW and love it. This season I've even used it in the sand which I think I perform better with than my 56. My 60 is now my go to club anything around the green and probably up to 30 yards out. I will just echo what has already been said that you need to practice with it for sure. I hit it with enough loft and spin that the ball comes in so softly that I rarely try a flop shot.
 
Love my 60* but it was a struggle to get used to it. Learning to use it right has improved my game quite a bit

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I used to carry a 60.....mostly for flops but I often skulled shots and left mostly everything way short with it. User error most often but I'm way more comfortable with a 56 and mid bounce that is pretty versatile for me. I use that for the sand, flops, standard wedges, and chips.


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To lob or not

I couldn't use my 60 degree wedge at all when I had one in the bag! Thankfully, I can hit every shot I need with my 56.
 
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DawgDaddy said:
I play a Cleveland S wedge which is 58°, I almost always it for green side bunkers. I hit 2 very nice lobs with it yesterday, one was probably the best I have ever hit. 45 yards over a sand trap with only 8 yards of green to work with. 2 feet for the bird. :thumb:
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I use that same 58* S from Cleveland and I love it! I used to have a 60* but I preferred using the 56* unless I was in a flop shot situation and I needed all the loft I could get. Now I have a lot more confidence in those situations with the 58*.

Thats awesome omen your having success with it too and well done on that shot!

troy64 said:
Excellent information! I am glad I asked. I have been on another forum in the past and refrained from such subjective posts because many on that forum replied with snide, condescending remarks. I enjoy the overall constructive core to this forum. That said I guess for me it comes down to one basic element my first instruction session drilled in my head..."let the club do the work". Still learning the game and if I can minimize the various manipulations of club position, ball position and body position then I may actually utilize the club for it's design. By no means am I suggesting those various factors won't be needed. I think I will just grab in inexpensive lob wedge and practice with it. The worst that can happen is what? If it becomes usefull great, if not then I know where I am with the other wedges. Thank you all very much!
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Great thread Troy, and what you've said here about this forum vs others, is exactly why I love this site so much. There are so many differing expert opinions out there and sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming to people that are just getting into this sport. I have not found anywhere else where topics can be discussed like they are here. The information in threads like this one is just awesome!

Good luck with your new stick, I remember when I was getting into golf I bought a used Cleveland 60* on global golf for 20$ and that club has definitely been well worth it. I would still be carrying it if I hadn't found the Cleveland Smart Sole S that is currently the highest lofted club in my bag. Not sure if a 58* counts as a lob wedge or a sand wedge, I know this one has a big S on it so maybe that answers my question right there.. Maybe one of you could enlighten me??

Thanks THP for being so awesome! I love reading threads like this.
 
I love my 60º wedge. I don't use it a lot around the green unless I need to get up and stop quickly, but from 30-60 yards I can take a partial swing and feel like I can go after any pin.
 
Anything around the green, and 70 in, and sand=60 degree for me. Most used wedge in my bag like a lot of others have said. Especially around the green, I can't imagine using anything else
 
I have recently been using all my wedges pretty much equally including the 58. I'm quite happy throwing things up (not necessarily lobs). I used to use 52 90% of the time and 58 for "emergencies", 48 wasn't even in the bag.

This came about after one of the best lessons I've ever had - the pro was very complimentary about my technique and didn't change anything there but in terms of distance control, (and eliminating variables), he encouraged me to have four different lengths of partial swing and use these across the four wedges for 16 close gapped distances without thinking too much about it. It's been very successful for me.
 
I used a 60-degree lob wedge for a short while and didn't like it, mostly because I rarely used it. If I want to hit a lob shot now, which I rarely do, I give it a go with a 56-degree SW.
 
tequila4kapp said:
I think most amateurs get themselves in unnecessary trouble by playing too much loft and getting too fancy around the green. I tend to see the 60* as a nice to have club that we could probably get along just fine without.
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In the interest of full disclosure, within about 5 hours of making this post I proceeded to short side myself with a bunker in the way and had to hit a flop with my 60* wedge on what seemed like every flipping hole. So I guess I take back what I said...the 60* is vital :)
 
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