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Cleveland Smart Sole Wedges

SuperStroke
Need some tips with the S wedge. I need to open up the club face on short(er) grass to execute a shot that would fly about 10-15y and land soft. Best I can do right now is about 20y with a quarter shot and the club in a standard position. I can open the club face if there's enough grass under the ball that I can sweep the club under it, but I am unsure how to do this on a tighter lie. Any tips?
 
Why not alter the ball flight through ball placement rather than club head manipulation?
 
JB said:
Why not alter the ball flight through ball placement rather than club head manipulation?
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I have it basically level with my back foot. My feet are in a somewhat open stance (I use a closed stance for my normal shot). SO I am not sure what to alter. Open the stance more? Ball up in the stance? I'm open to options here. I just don't know what to try.
 
rbarthle17 said:
I have it basically level with my back foot. My feet are in a somewhat open stance (I use a closed stance for my normal shot). SO I am not sure what to alter. Open the stance more? Ball up in the stance? I'm open to options here. I just don't know what to try.
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Some people like open stance looking at the hole, I dont. I also DEFINITELY dont like ball on the back foot if someone is trying to hit it high. Start with ball in the middle. Nick Faldo always said (Tiger Woods mimics this), to move the ball one ball up and one ball back from center to change ball flight.
 
JB said:
Some people like open stance looking at the hole, I dont. I also DEFINITELY dont like ball on the back foot if someone is trying to hit it high. Start with ball in the middle. Nick Faldo always said (Tiger Woods mimics this), to move the ball one ball up and one ball back from center to change ball flight.
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I'll give that a try this weekend, first in my hitting net to make sure I get the feel of it, then in my front yard where I have about 30y to work with and still keep a safe distance from the road. Thanks!
 
Starting to ponder an S wedge to help my sand game which is incredibly inconsistent. Hearing how well these work in the sand makes me think I should find a way to at least try one to see if it helps.
 
I did not read through all 64 pages, however, I just posted in a different thread that talked about these wedges and then saw this thread (I'm new to the site so I'm not familiar with everything that is going on, please forgive me). I want to share my experience with these wedges because I have them and have been using them since the beginning of 2014. Also, I have friend that have all of them as well and they have had a much different experience than I have had so I hope this helps some that have these already and are looking for help or for those that may be thinking about purchasing them.

Some background that is important: I've only been playing golf for two years and one month. I'm 34 years old and have played approximately 250 rounds in that time. No lessons but I hit balls at least once a week, usually more. I'm currently a 6.6 handicap. Since I focused on exclusively ball striking last year, I decided that in 2014 it would be all about short game since that area of my game had been neglected so far. That is why I purchased the 42 degree, 49 degree Niblick, and 58 degree "sand" wedge.

When I first got them and when my short game was nothing close to what it was now, I found that the 42 was my favorite. Over time as I've practised with these clubs and have gotten better, the reverse has happened and the 58 is actually my favorite by a lot and I barely use the 42 and I never use it to chip with either. Obviously the big selling point and reason many like them is because of the forgiveness they offer with the "smart sole". Something I noticed and now see that others have as well is that as time goes on and you get better that the price you pay in forgiveness is with precision.

For me the 42 degree was great at first but over time I've found that the ball just runs out too much and thus why I do not use it to chip with anymore. I still keep it in the bag but only use it for odd shots such as hitting a low punch under trees or any number of weird situations that I get myself into from time to time.

The 49 degree is what I use for my gap wedge. I am getting to a point where I'm good enough to hit bump and runs with it but this has taken a while. I find that I can be very accurate from 100 yards and in but the fuller of a swing I make, the less accurate it gets. The best result I've found is to swing no more than 3/4 and make sure that you do not bring the club too much to the inside. Because of the smart sole this will frequently send shots off line when you thought you were lined up properly. By taking it straight back and straight through with only a 3/4 swing max, the club is lethal for me from 70-100 yards. I do not use the club at all if I have to open the club face with this club. Again because of the smart sole it is just not worth it in my opinion.

It took a while but the 58 has become my favorite club in my bag. I struggled for a while hitting it close when I short sided myself because it seemed that I could not stop the ball quick enough on short shots. With flop shots and with chips from the rough near the green, it is hard to open the face at all without the angle of the shot changing. The key on those shots around where you want to stop it quick for me anyway is to open the club face. What this does is increases loft but also decreases distance obviously. This is key because if the sole goes into the ground like the club was designed then it's too hard to get the ball to stop. So I open the face and make sure that I'm aligned with the new angle due to this and not allow the sole to interact with the ground the way it usually does for other shots. I hope this makes sense, it's hard for me to explain but I've had this problem and posted on the other thread about it. It is possible to do though, it just takes practice and getting used to.

I have two friends that I regularly play with that have the same wedges that I do. One is a 20+ handicapper and the other is closer to a 30. For both of them they have a hard time playing the 58 at all and find the 42 their favorite club. I believe this is because it has the most forgiveness. I've tried to help them by showing them what I've learned but they do not practice hardly at all. While these wedges are very forgiving and helpful to players that need help, like any other club you have to practice with it to get better at it and you definitely pay a price for that forgiveness. I've found a way to make the 58 degree anyway do what I want and still have the forgiveness that I like on fuller shots, but it took a long time. These seem to be popular and I wish that Cleveland would come out with different lofts so that it fills the gap. Hope this helps.
 
That is one thing I forgot to mention in my previous post.....The 58 is amazing out of the sand. As someone who's short game was terrible overall, I was not good out of the sand. The other day I was 4 for 4 on sand saves with that club. Try it, you will most likely love it from the sand!
 
Aussie Dave said:
Where in your stance do people feel that the S wedge is most consistent out of sand


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Towards my front foot. Make sure that your shaft has backwards lean instead of like an iron with forward lean. If it's a downhill lie in the bunker then towards my backfoot but in that case you have to keep your weight on your back foot. For a standard bunker shot I use a 50/50 weight distribution but the ball has to be forward in your stance and there has to be a backwards lean to the shaft.
 
I continue to love the S wedge....so easy to use for pitch shots and bunkers and it makes a flop shot so much easier.

Since I have switched I have probably pitched in at least 5 times which is more than in the last several years.
 
I put my a12 OS GW back in the bag to use for longer distance chips. Chunked all 3 I tried so it's gone back to the basement. That's what I get for trying to be cute instead of sticking with what works (my Smart Soles). Cost me 6 strokes today at least.
 
The S wedge is magic
 
WardF said:
Let us know how it goes! Anxious to see how you like that C!
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Just wanted to let you know that I broke 100 for the first time last week. Using only the C and the S has really simplified my short game. I don't really have either club dialed in yet because of a lack of practice but it's been tremendous so far. I think any high handicapper should seriously consider both.

c has really helped me get up and down more than usually. Took my chipper and gap wedge out of the bag. EVen chipped one in on a miss hit. Thanks again ward
 
coach said:
Just wanted to let you know that I broke 100 for the first time last week. Using only the C and the S has really simplified my short game. I don't really have either club dialed in yet because of a lack of practice but it's been tremendous so far. I think any high handicapper should seriously consider both.

c has really helped me get up and down more than usually. Took my chipper and gap wedge out of the bag. EVen chipped one in on a miss hit. Thanks again ward
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Congrats. Keep at it and sooner than later you will be breaking 90.
 
My time with the S is over. The pros I would say is that it generates a lot of spin (at least for me compared with other wedges on the monitors) and that it is good out of fluffy sand.

The cons for me were out of hard pan and really deep rough. I play on some munis that aren't well kept and both are common. A regular wedge is better in those scenarios for me.
 
New member here... found these forums when I was doing research on the Smart Sole Wedges. Saw the C at Golfsmith over the weekend and was curious. I ended up finding 2 used ones online for about $60 each and will have them by the end of the week hopefully.

I'm a high handicapper (25) and relatively new to the game (about a year / 18 months or so) and love it. I have been reading the Dave Pelz's short game book but have yet to been apply his teachings yet. I'm hoping these 2 clubs can help my short game.. as I really have a hard time chipping or getting on the green anything within 50 yards.

I'll keep updated on how it goes once I get them!
 
Hoss I think you are in for a pleasant surprise. It's a fun club and IMO would work well for any handicap level.
 
hoss_vw said:
New member here... found these forums when I was doing research on the Smart Sole Wedges. Saw the C at Golfsmith over the weekend and was curious. I ended up finding 2 used ones online for about $60 each and will have them by the end of the week hopefully.

I'm a high handicapper (25) and relatively new to the game (about a year / 18 months or so) and love it. I have been reading the Dave Pelz's short game book but have yet to been apply his teachings yet. I'm hoping these 2 clubs can help my short game.. as I really have a hard time chipping or getting on the green anything within 50 yards.

I'll keep updated on how it goes once I get them!
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Welcome! I bet that you will like the "C" much more than the "S". There is also a 49 degree "Niblick" that is dark gray in color that is also helpful. You may want to look into obtaining one of those although I am not sure that they make them anymore?
 
Completely different clubs. In fact if they weren't both made by Cleveland nobody would think twice.
 
JB said:
Completely different clubs. In fact if they weren't both made by Cleveland nobody would think twice.
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Could you point me to some specs on the weight and shaft length of the Niblick? I have had zero luck so far on that.
 
About 10 rounds ago, I took my Smart Sole (S) out of the bag, I've been pretty successful at escaping bunkers, but that Wedge sure can work magic!
 
It's no secret I have loved my C wedge. But I am starting to use it less and less as I got better with my S wedge. The C has pretty much been for distances between 80-110 yards and the green side chip. Then the 49 arrived and in my limited testing (hitting in the net and chips from about 15' out onto my putting stripe), the 49 outshines the C each time. But I know that in full swings the 49 won't go as far (just don't know how much yet) so there is a place for a 42 and 49 degree in my bag. I'm starting to think that the Niblick/Smart Sole head design with a "normal" wedge length shaft might be better, but I am not anyone that can or should tinker with club making. That is what I thought the Niblick 42 was (before JB's reply).
 
My S wedge just arrived. Going to bring it out this weekend and compare it to my old Callaway X-Tour 60 MD. My C wedge should be in soon. Going to see how well the C wedge works for some bump and runs.
 
Well, just practiced and played a full round with my new S wedge. Preformed just as good as my Callaway X-Tour 60 MD except in the bunker. The S wedge is incredible out of the bunker and outperforms my lob wedge. It's so weird taking a square stance and setting up the club head square in a bunker, but it works like a charm. Haven't hit it off the fairway or a tight lie yet, but so far I'm very happy with it. Can't wait to get the C wedge to try some green side bump and runs.
 
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