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Following our popular “How To Find The Driver Of Your Life In 5 Minutes Or Less” and “How To Find Your Dream Putter” just as fast, we are proud to address the next frontier: How To Find A Miracle In Your Short Game: The Five Minute Wonder Wedge!
This article pledges to help particular players that:
For the past 7 years, RC has kept meticulous records on lessons, fittings, phone calls, emails conversations…basically anything track-able stemming from an incident involving a player affectionately named “Dick” . Little did RC know at the time, this incident created a basis for everything we do at The Studio. After many weeks of deliberation, we now present the next phase in the Five Minute Series.
Why has it taken so long to post a wedge fitting article that follows Pareto’s Law: 80% of your outcomes is derived by 20% of your inputs? Our wedge fitting theory has a 100% data correlation. But players “switch styles” when it comes to chipping and pitching. The “switch” or “mis-match” is THE problem creating fear, anxiety and lost strokes around the green.
When it comes to scoring around the greens, Bob Vokey is the man. He is credited with coining the terms “slider” and “digger” and builds wonderful wedges for Titleist. Throughout his career, Mr. Vokey has identified two styles of short game play regardless of instruction:
The Slider. Image powered by the V1 iPhone App.
Sliders
The slider style of wedge play fundamentals:
The Digger. Image powered by the V1 iPhone App.
Diggers
The digger style of wedge play fundamentals:
Whether you take lessons from your local instructor, Dave Pelz, Stan Utley or Butch Harmon, your chipping style will fall into either category. You can, however, switch styles depending upon the shot required which is where the trouble begins for most amateur players and most likely the number one cause of bad chips and pitches. Struggling short game players blend both styles. Sliders hit shots thin, diggers hit shots fat. You can’t have it both ways.
The leading edge (left side of picture) is lower than the trailing edge. We call this important feature bounce.
Vokey essentially designed a line of wedges for the two styles of wedge play: low to medium bounce for sliders and medium to high bounce for diggers. Bounce is defined as the angle created between the leading and trailing edge of wedges. Sliders need less bounce because they do not forward press. The leading edge stays relatively neutral to the ground and slides across the turf. Diggers need more bounce that neutralizes forward press. If you press the shaft forward 9 degrees, 10 degrees of bounce angle will keep the leading edge from digging too much.
The Basic Rule Of Wedge Fitting: sliders need less bounce and diggers need more bounce.
But it’s not that simple. Even though you behave like a slider, it doesn’t mean you’re a slider. Same goes for diggers. And when you end up having a mis-match of fundamentals: your short game fails.
The most common mistake we see is a slider setting up like a digger: open stance, ball in the back of the stance, shaft forward press at address. Then shaft fully released at impact…shots chunked or skulled across the green.
Throughout our relatively short time in the business, we’ve come across two miserable golfers codenamed “JD” and “CM” that you may find familiar. No matter who helps, JD and CM end up “chucking” the ball onto the green because they literally cannot chip or pitch.
These two players represent many golfers across the world: those that fear missing a green.
The JD Case Study
“JD” was our initial case study from 2004-2006. From the tee to just short of the green, JD is a scratch player. Around the greens: 36 handicap. He literally cannot get up and down and is forced to putt from variety of positions. RC banged his head against wedges for several months until JD revealed his left wrist (he’s right handed) is fused. Without a TPI Certification at the time, RC didn’t quite understand how to screen the wrist and research medical history as he does now. We essentially wasted valuable time without this vital information. JD is physically incapable of traditional chipping because his left wrist cannot rotate and release. JD was going insane around the green until we came across an interesting phenomenon: JD is a scratch chipper and pitcher with his right hand.
JD was a “two-handed” slider before fusion surgery. The new left wrist literally eliminated his dominant and talented right hand during the chipping motion. He physically became a digger overnight but it wasn’t natural. JD was a slider trapped in a digger’s body. He had to free the right hand in order to play and the only way was to remove the left hand.
We eliminated the left hand obstacle by keeping it at his side or tucked behind him. It was a miracle. JD could pitch the ball high, low, long and short. He was a kid in a candy store. He could chip with any club. He was back at the game he loved. One handed chipping: JD’s new tradition.
JD Lesson Learned: Prior injuries in the hands/wrists/arms may determine shortgame style as they do in the full swing.
The CM Case Study
CM recently visited The Studio suffering the same problem as JD: inability to chip or pitch a golf ball. But an experienced RC knew exactly how to handle the problem. With the forthcoming “Five Minute” article in the back of his mind, RC screened CM and found no limitations in the shoulders, chest, wrists and hands. Without a physical cause, we took to the short game green and began our wedge fitting and short game assessment process.
The Studio’s process is simple. We have a short game challenge zone that features a 15 yard downhill chip off a tight lie: the hardest chip/pitch a player will face. The only rule: you must use a wedge. It’s typical that a player will bail out on this shot with a hybrid, putter or iron and run the ball to the hole. The wedge requirement creates the anxiety and pressure we need to reveal the player’s weakest link.
CM is a powerful player with PGA Tour ball speeds. He tends to power through scenarios on the course typically choosing the more lofted club and power rather than a knock down shot with finesse. CM couldn’t power through the challenge. We saw the familiar shots: skulls across the green, chili-dips, shanks, etc. The worst of the worst.
RC saw enough and had CM repeat the challenge with only his left hand. Results…about the same…terrible.
CM repeated the challenge for the third time only with his right hand. Results… A MIRACLE! CM began to hit chips with a slight check that stopped within inches of the hole. He asked RC, “So this is what it’s supposed to feel like?” Indeed, CM is a righty playing slider. He naturally releases the shaft towards the target with ease. His left hand prevented his right hand, his superior hand, from executing shots.
CM Lesson Learned: When fitting wedges, you must identify your players’ superior hand. Then suggest a wedge style followed by wedge design.
Based on our stories and methods above, here’s how you can fit yourself for the wonder wedge, the rest of the wedges in your bag and cure the yips in five minutes or less. We even feature your budget for budget-minded players.
Use Slider style fundamentals: square stance ball near the middle, weak grip, light grip pressure, etc.
Two Wedge Budget for a Pitching Wedge at 48 degrees of loft:
Three Wedge Budget for a Pitching Wedge at 48 degrees of loft:
Two Wedge Budget for a Pitching Wedge at 46 degrees of loft:
Three Wedge Budget for a pitching wedge at 46 degrees of loft:
Use Digger style fundamentals: open stance, ball near the back, forward press, strong grip, etc
Two Wedge Budget for a Pitching Wedge at 48 degrees of loft:
Three Wedge Budget for a Pitching Wedge at 48 degrees of loft:
Two Wedge Budget for a Pitching Wedge at 46 degrees of loft:
Three Wedge Budget for a pitching wedge at 46 degrees of loft:
Wedgemakers tend to vary the design of the sole from the leading edge to the trailing edge. Some wedges are wide, while some are narrow. Some wedges are rounded while some are flat. In the lower lofted range of wedges, 48-56, we tend to see narrow soles much like your irons. As we get to wonder wedge lofts from 58-64 we tend to see exotic shaping of the soles. Here’s the good rule to understanding what you may need:
Wide sole.
Narrow sole.
Narrow sole versus wide sole: if you fear bunker shots, wider soles will help sand escapes regardless of style. The wide sole can limit your creativity around the greens, but it can change your life on the beach. You can delegate the wonder wedge to bunker shots and work your way around the green with your gap wedge, or add an auxiliary wonder wedge.
Flat sole.
Round sole.
Round versus flat: if you like to show-off that flop shot, rounded wedges help balance the wedge nicely at address and impact as you open and square the position of the club face. If you want to execute a simple pitch and move on, flat wedges reinforce a squarely aligned clubface like railroad tracks.
The most important factor to scoring from pitching wedge to wonder wedge is not power, it’s control. Knowing your precise wedge yardages is critical to scoring. There are two sets of fundamentals to chipping and pitching around the green as we have discussed, but as we move further back, we subscribe to a Dave Pelz/Stack-and-Tilt style until you reach nine iron yardage. For an easy explanation, here is a video from April 2009:
Identify your best style. Find wedges that suit your style and play. Lock in your yardages. It will take 5 minutes to identify the strongest parts of your short game. Maybe a few minutes longer to believe that you can become a scoring machine with the right tools and yardage knowledge.
In 15 minutes we’ve found your driver, putter, and wedge system. Could it take another 5 minutes to find your irons? Stay tuned…
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