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How Do You Test Wedges?

SuperStroke
I was very disappointed that I had to pull out of the Ultimate Wedge Testing event earlier this year. I was looking forward to doing an actual wedge testing and learning a little bit about wedges, grinds, bounce, etc. An untimely surgery prevented that.
 
I switch wedges out of my bag all the time. Like to have different lofts available to tinker with. I don't pay top dollar for wedges- buy them new, but a couple years old on eBay typically...
 
Buy every wedge and grind option I can get my hands on then get rid of or put ones that don't work in the closet. I have so many wedges. I know people say a wedge is a wedge but some are drastically different to me.
 
For me, I like to just chip with them and see how much I can alter the face without bringing the leading edge way off the ground. When I am taking full shots I can usually make anything do what I need, but the chip shots are where I really want to see how versatile it will be. And usually once I find a brand that works for me (leading edge, grind, weight, ect) I will stick with them for a while. I have been playing scratch wedges for years now just for that reason.
 
I cant say that I have ever tested a wedge. A couple years back I lost my SW from my old set and went to a golf store and picked up a used Vokey wedge for 20 bucks and loved it. So this year I grabbed a SM4 from the marketplace and havent looked back.

I would love to learn more about wedges and really get fit for some that would help my game.
 
I've never tested a wedge. Heck I haven't bought a wedge in 10 years. Im still playing my old snake eyes forged wedges and 1 MD2 I won here.
 
Only test I have for wedges is the waggle test in the store to see if I like the look and weight of them. I don't belong to a club and demo days aren't exactly every weekend, so I generally have to make an educated guess. It's hit and miss sometimes. I know that I like medium bounce generally, but will carry a lower bounce lob wedge in the colder months. Since moving to the i20 wedges, I'm realizing that special grinds would only help me in very specific situations that I don't see super often. May go back to one eventually, but right now I'm trying to simplify my short game and it's starting to show some promise.
 
ranked according to importance:

1. stability - the ability to find the same sweet spot again and again
2. feel - solid and buttery
3. look - preferably traditional design
4. brand - as long as it is a widely known brand which has quality
 
Read as much as possible about wedges and consider what I am looking for.

If possible, I will try to check them out in person. Usually I will make some small chip and pitch shots off the mat to see if I like how they feel.

Other times, I've just ordered and hoped for the best.
 
The first thing I do is go for the least "chunky" wedges because they give me the least feel for clubs that require the most feel. I then test the sand wedge out of a bunker. If the ball doesn't react the way I want it to then I won't bother trying any other wedges in the set. This makes it very easy to quickly zero in on the best wedges for my game. If the 56* passes the bunker test then I find the other wedges always fall in line. I test short flops with the 60* and full shots with the 52*, all from the grass and never off of mats. I got the xFTs which have great feel, aren't chunky, the ball pops out of the sand and lands softly with the 56*, and I can replace the groves when they wear out. I've been gaming them for 3 straight seasons with no intention of changing anytime soon. I usually change wedges every 2 seasons.
 
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Wedges are so personal it's hard to test them. I think you first have to look at what type of wedge player are you. Do you take a divot or are more of a picker of the ball. I think bounce and leading edge are two huge parts in a wedge for me. Knowing my conditions I play a lower bounce with a thinner leading edge. IMO it comes down to what you like seeing at address & then finding the right bounce/grind combo.
 
Took me a long time to know what works and doesn't work for me, but at this point I can pretty much make a call blind with reasonable success. I look at grind/bounce/leading edge first.
 
I just bought some new wedges so this is fresh w/ me.

I was unable to test them on real grass so any numbers I would see from a monitor would hold little to no value for me. Also, I use a jumbo grip so any club I hit feels a bit foreign.

When I hit the 588 CBs they just felt hot off the face, like the ball sprung from the head and just wanted to get in the air. Other wedges felt fine but the Clevelands just "felt" better. no.... great!

For what its worth, it has translated on the course too. I am far more comfortable/confident than I ever have been w/ my sand and lob.
 
In the past I have gone by feel and hitting them a few times in the store. But I got caught this year on the feel and not understanding the grind as I should have when I changed my wedges over at the beginning of the year. Since then I have tried to educate myself on the different grinds and figure out what works best for me. That being said - feel is still very important to me.
 
Get loaners. I did with my current set and will never buy a set of wedges any other way again. Hitting them off real grass, out of real bunkers and hitting all he usual chips, bumps, flops and all showed what I liked and could afford. (The Miruas were fricking unbelievable but also out of my current price range.)
 
I spend a fair amount of time doing some research on the bounce and leading edge of them and then go and find a demo day and hit them on grass. Then i ponder them for a good long while, and then research the next seasons wedges, demo day those...then I make a choice based on that.
 
For me it is impossible to test a wedge that I cannot hit on actual grass. Bounce is key and if there is no grass than it's useless. This is why I ended up buying the Scor wedges due to the dual bounce and pretty much hoping they work. This is my weakest part of my game, full wedge shots...
 
At the store I like to hit full and half shots to get a feel for how it comes off the face and how the club feels in my hands. I then like to open the face up a bit and see how the wedge slides under the ball on the tight mat lie's. I then hit some off the toe (my normal wedge miss) and see how it reacts.

After that, I usually hit balls on a launch monitor to see how the peak height and spin compares to what I have in the bag. If all looks/feels and flies well I buy one and take it to the course and use it in play. If turf interaction is good I usually finish out the wedge set.
 
First I read web reviews and then come to THP for the truth. I then try to hit them and make my final decision.
 
I have only bought two wedges that were not part of a set, my Smart Soles. I was looking only at those because I liked the idea of them. I know just the basics when it comes to bounce, and nothing about grind. I have never purposefully spun a ball before so that has never come into the equation for me. I just need them to go straight and I need to be able to have distance control. My wedge shots tend to be moon balls so they stop quickly simply because of angle.
 
don't test wedges buy and try which sucks the main thing i need to see is how the bounce is with the turf up here so without buying and bringing them out and trying them its a waste of time since i know the lofts i want or can be adjusted enough to fill the distance gaps i want. going through it right now actually trying to decide what wedges to buy.
 
Hopkins has a full 30 day money back guarantee. Surprised more people don't try them out.
 
Being relatively new to the game, I never tested wedges. I made my purchases based on what THP members said about them, which is why I gamed the SCOR, Hopkins, and ATV wedges this past year. Next year I will look into the MD2 (or MD3 maybe?), and the SM5 (or 6?).
 
Appearance plays a big role in wedge selection for me ... I've noticed looking at them closely - there's a big variation on the leading edge - most are tear drop shaped, some are much straighter - I have a preference looking down at a wedge. Forged vs. cast isn't that big of a deal to me - I find cast holds up better & forged shows wear much faster (exception are cast Vokey's seem to show wear very fast - they are a softer steel by design than most cheaper cast wedges). I like some relief grind, so that narrows it down. All the modern face treatments are undesirable to me, as most of the lazer etched or mill / tool marks get worn down quickly & look crappy when they do get worn down. Wedges are the one club I will buy based on preferences, not demo-ing
 
When I've tested wedges I've hit them indoors on a launch monitor (being a lefty a bit limited where I can try stuff up here). Really the launch monitor just gave me a rough idea of distance in relation to what I already had and dispersion. I concentrated most on feel of the ball off the face and the weight of the club in my hands and through my swing. Nothing really scientific, mostly just want wedges that feel good to me.
 
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