How many wedges do you need?

December 1, 1999

Hi, I’m Mel Sole, Director of Instruction at the Mel Sole Golf School, headquartered at Pawleys Plantation Golf and Country Club in Pawleys Island, SC. We conduct 1, 2 and 3-day golf schools, hourly golf lessons, and senior golf schools—any golf instruction program your heart desires. Give us a call at 800-624-4653 or 843-237-4993. We will be happy to book a commuter school or a package that contains accommodations, golf, and golf school.

Monthly Golf Tip with the Mel Sole Golf School.

This month's tip is about Wedge Mania. With the recent (last 10 years) addition of the gap wedge and lob wedge, golfers today have to make some choices. We are limited to 14 clubs in the bag. So what stays in, gets added or gets removed? In my case, I removed my 3 iron (the least used club in my bag) and added the Gap Wedge.

The Wedges.

Pitching: 46 degrees of loft. Use this for full shots into the green, pitching and chipping.
Gap: 50 degrees of loft. Use this for full shots into the green, pitching, and chipping.
Sand: 55 degrees of loft. Use this for sand play, pitching around the green or chipping.
Lob: 60 degrees of loft. The most versatile club in the bag. Use this for pitching, sand play (out of firm sand), and chipping.

If you have read my articles on pitching, you will see that these clubs are used in all situations.

Pitching Distance Chart.

My own clubs: I carry a 48-degree pitching wedge, a 52-degree Gap Wedge, a 56-degree sand wedge, and a 60-degree lob wedge. This provides an equal gap of 4 degrees between the four clubs, giving me equal yardage with my full shots, but it allows me to control the yardage pretty accurately with my pitch shots. All the rest of my clubs also differ by 4 degrees, and this gives me about a 10-yard gap between all my iron shots. But, again, this makes club selection on full shots fairly easy.

30 yards - 7 - o clock pitch shot - lob.
40 yards - 8 - o clock pitch shot - lob.
50 yards - 9 - o clock pitch shot - lob.
60 yards - 10 - o clock pitch shot - lob.
70 yards - 10 - o clock pitch shot - sand.
80 yards - 10 - o clock pitch shot - gap.
90 yards - 10 - o - clock pitch shot - pitching.

Full Swings:

100 yards - full swing - lob.
110 yards - full swing - sand.
120 yards - full swing - gap.
130 yards - full swing - pitching.

Each golfer's yardage will be slightly different. So go out and practice these shots and make a "yardage chart" of your own.

I grip down on the grip by 1 inch if I am between yardages. This reduces the shot by 5 yards. This rule applies to all my full swings and pitching.

Make sure that the gaps between your wedges are equal for increased accuracy and lower scores. Have the gaps between your wedges measured at a reputable golf store with a loft and lie machine. Get them to bend them a few degrees up or down if they are not quite right.

I hope I have helped you in choosing the right wedges for your game. With a little bit of practice with these clubs, you should be able to take several shots off that handicap.

Source: Mel Sole Golf School.

Thanks for reading - How many wedges do you need? I hope you have at least 3!

Monthly Golf Tip with the Mel Sole Golf School.

The Wedges.

Pitching Distance Chart.

Full Swings:

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