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Anyone Simplified Wedge Setup?

SuperStroke
I still carry, and practice with 4 wedges, but seldom use all of them during a round of golf.

Lately I have had more success using short (8-9) irons, and letting the ball foll more. I'm getting better distance control.

I think the only reason I still carry 4 wedges is because I don't want to see empty slots in my bag.
 
My Lob is my principle sand club...It's one with a very wide sole and my confidence with it is immense. After that I may use any club from SW done to my 4 Hy to chip with. The idea is get the ball on the ground as quickly as possible so it reacts like a putt. I love using my putter often but when early and dewy not good. Fairly big swings with wedges require precise strikes for optimal results...and that is a trait that hasn't been a strong suit...So bumps with P, Hy, 5,6,7,8,9,pw very common. If the shot requires a forced carry with a quick stop my Lob is solid 3 outta 4....but 1 outta 4 may be very long or dumped in the forced carry problem...
 
Gw at 48° with wedges at 52° and 56°. The LW was so infrequently played i did not see any reason for it. Yet the LW is the club that needs the most practice to hit well.
Easy choice to leave it at home. That right there makes my choices fairly simple.

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I'd like to simplify my wedge set up as well and possibly give me more options up top. Currently have my set PW and AW F7 one length. Then I have MD4 52, 56, and original 60 PM Grind. Thinking about ditching the 60 as I rarely use it.

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WLG1952 said:
I still carry, and practice with 4 wedges, but seldom use all of them during a round of golf.

Lately I have had more success using short (8-9) irons, and letting the ball foll more. I'm getting better distance control.

I think the only reason I still carry 4 wedges is because I don't want to see empty slots in my bag.
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Certainly this time of year, I am playing like you and thus my original post. My playing partners fly shots pin high from 50yards whereas I bump and run a 8i. I hit the LW when I'm 40 feet under a highly elevated green that I miss. for such a rare shot, I think I can sacrifice and use the 55 degree SW.
 
This is an interesting discussion because I am trying to figure out if I need all of my wedges. I currently have a 45* pw, 49* gw in my set, then a 52* and 56* that I had before upgrading my irons. I use them all but not sure I need them. The 52 and 56 are getting quite worn, so I am trying to decide if I just replace them as is - I like them and can just get replacements of the same model. Or else I am considering 54 and 58 for a bigger gap after the 49*.

I could see maybe just going 56 or 58 and not replacing the 52. No urgent need, but I am thinking maybe I have one too many wedges right now.
 
I go 5i through AW in my iron set then simplified my wedge setup going from 52/56/60 to 54/58. One less club to figure out I usually use my 54° around the green unless I have no room for run out. Then I go with the 58°. I seldom have need to drop down to the 50° AW as our greens are moderate in size and my short game around the green has become one of my strengths,.
 
50, 54 and 58 (which I rarely use) I tend to lean on my 50 75% of the time. The 58 is for those rare occasions when I need to go over an obstacle or get a really soft landing.
 
I have simplified to a pw-48*, GW-52*, and an LW 60*. I found the yardage gaps between 100 % wedge swings are not relevant as my 100% swing is too erratic. My spin is uncontrolled and my trajectory at 100% is variable. By taking less than a 100% swing my accuracy has increased. I hit more knockdown shots. This also has bled into my traditional iron, hybrid, fairway wood play. Less than 100% swings are the new norm for me.

For example, I hit my 8 iron fo a 145 carry at 100%. That club maybe is in play if the pin is just behind a greenside bunker. With no hazards a 7 or 6 iron throttled down is the club of choice.

My GW and LW are made by Reid Lockhart. They have dual grinds so the amount of bounce is controlled by shaft lean. I use both clubs from the grass greenside. Unless I have a very long greenside bunker shot the LW is my "go-to" solution.

I believe this has made me a better shot-maker. The practice sessions on the range are more interesting too.

Of a side note, embracing the less than full shot attitude has helped me work on swing changes. I now can swing my driver with a full backswing but reduce the acceleration such that 1/2 of distance is achieved. A manageable ready, when called draw, is now in my arsenal. I am going to find that fade too.
 
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I could play with just a 56 if I had to buy why? I don’t have a set club for every chip. I look at the shot I need and decide what I feel most confident with. What I’m learning about chipping is confidence and commitment to the shot usually equals good results.
 
As a minimalist, I only carry a 48º and 58º. The 58º is used from greenside bunkers, rough, and pitches or lobs up to ~60 yards. The 48º sees most of my short-game work from 65-105 yards. I'm comfortable hitting a variety of shots with each.
 
Mine currently is real simple. A PW two 54s with different soles and bounce, then a 58.
 
X.Man said:
My favorite wedge setup of all
Time was when I kept it simple. 46 PW and then a 52 and 58. Took alot of the guesswork out. I do like my current 50/54/60 setup as it gives me options
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My BBertha PW is 46 Deg then 50 & 54 Cleveland wedges and a Callaway 58 deg Sure out SW.
4 deg gap between them. Works well for me
 
my wedges run

46 (set PW)
52
58

I need less ways to make bad swings :)
 
OldandStiff said:
I like the idea of having a club you use most and are then most comfortable with.
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Absolutely! I seem to remember reading Tiger mostly uses one club around the green, and if it’s good enough for the G.O.A.T, it’s good enough for me.
 
Mark_UK said:
3 wedges for me. Set PW and AW at 50 degree, then a 56 sand wedge. Nearly every shot is played with my 56 from 70 yards and in. Bump and runs are played almost exclusively with my 50. If there is little green to work with, I’ll bump it with the 56.
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"ditto on the gapping". 46 deg ICON, 50 deg RTX4, 56 deg Tour Edge.
 
My version of wedge set up is 50 , 54 , 58 and 62.

All wedges I can take full swings and partials. My distance gaps are covered.

The sole grind on the 58, 62 is lower bounce/c-grind which even though those are high loft I can still roll face open and get creative.
The 50, 54 are more standard/medium bounce sole designs and I love chipping with those.

My 58 and 62 are steel shafted. The 50, 54 are graphite/steel fibers.
 
Currently 48-53-58 with 6, 9 and 12 degrees of bounce, respectively.
Thinking of switching to a 48-52-57 setup with 8 bounce in 52 and 13 in 57. Like the thought of more bounce out of high rough, which is where I mostly use the lob.
 
I just complicated my wedge set-up. I added a 64* to my 50*, 55* (54 1* weak) and 59* (58 1* weak). The 64 is incredible around the greens and really makes a lot of those shots so much easier,

Here is the entire story: I play a combo set of Srixon 585/785 (5-6irons in 585 and the rest in 785). The 585 lofts are about 1-2* stronger than the standard lofts of 785 (which amounts to 1* weaker than standard 585). My PW is 46. I dropped my 4 iron to put in the 64*, because my 5 iron is bit strong (carries around 205) and after some experimenting have found that I use the 64 much more than I use a 4 iron in my rounds, and the 64 has saved more strokes than not having a 4 iron might lose. Now if I am playing a course where 4 iron would come into play more often, then I may drop a wedge and add 4 iron back (likely my 55 because I can control my 50 distance to cover those distances of 55 pretty well).
 
Last year I went minimalist and went down to only a PW and a 56. I honestly dont miss my 52 or 60 because I can hit the same shots with my PW or 56.
I can take the PW, grip down on it a bit and take a 3/4 swing and get the same distance that I got from a full shot with the 52. I can take the 56, open the face and hit a flop shot like I used to with my 60.
Granted, it would be simpler to just carry a full compliment of wedges and hit different shots with the same swing but I also really enjoy my simpler, cheaper and lighter minimalist setup; it just takes a bit more creativity.
 
47*p, 52*, and 57*. I hit my 57 dead on 100y and can open it up for other shots and sand. I don't typically gap per se, I like wedges that go a specific yardage I want.
 
I carry a 48 deg set PW, 52 deg set GW, 56 deg max forgiveness wide sole wedge and a chipper (36 deg)

Mostly the 56 deg and chipper get the work green side depending upon whether the shot needs to come in high or whether low is an option.

Dave
 
I have 6 at the moment.

PW - full shots and a lot of greenside bump and runs (8I & putter also b&r)
50* - 105y to 70y all shots and long bunker shots, plus the odd b&r
54* - 70y to 40y pitches and most greenside bunker shots
58* - shorter pitches and greenside rough, odd short bunker shot
60* - shorter pitches and wet/compact sand bunker shots
64* - magic

Extremely rare that I hit anything more than a 50* as a full shot.
 
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