64* Wedge

[Pa Jayhawk]

Just curious if anyone who has owned and liked a 60* wedge, possibly also owned a 64*. What was your experience?

Not really wanting to debate the difficulty in using anything over say a 58* wedge, already know both sides of the coin on a 60* and know the value of it in my bag. It is to the point now where it is less likely to cost me strokes than any other wedge. Although if it is alot more difficult than a 60*, I would be interested to know.

I own an old 64* cheap $20 that has no feel, and am considering buying one and practicing with it an possibly get it in the bag after I get used to the feel. I use Pelz short game, and have for a full year. Prior to doing so I always thought he was off his rocker on a recommendation for a 64*, but am now starting to consider trying one out.

Also if you do own one, what type. The selection is not as big, and Ping does not make them, so I will likely look at the Cleveland, Callaway, and possibly even give the Vokey another try as the reasons for my not liking the Vokey may likely not apply for the 64*.

 

[wirehair]

My Brother-in-Law carries a 64* wedge. I love it when he hits it, since I know that I'm about to pick up a few bucks.

 

[mddubya]

TGW has the Feel wedges on sale. The make a 64º but its a funky green color. But they also carry several other brands as well.


BTW, if you get one let us know how it works out. I've considered picking one up myself.

 

[xamilo]

Have never tried one, but I would certainly like to. I guess Im one of the other people waiting for someone to post their thoughts instead of buying one for a test

 

[keithpbz]

I had one before and hated it because it had 14* of bounce and i had trouble hitting shots from the fairway. A friend has the pelz with 5* of bounce and i hit it a few times and really liked it, once i got used to the fact of taking a full swing and only getting 60 yards out of it. I am gonna pick one up over the winter but not sure yet what club is gonna have to come out of the bag

 

[DouginGA]

i play a titlest 56-11 and a callaway 60-10. I guess my question "whats the difficulty with hitting a high wedge?" wirehair, what does your brother do to go wrong, skull it? (kinda afraid to ask ) .

at 70 - 75 yards i would rather hit a full swing 60 degree wedge than try to take some off a pitching wedge. the 56 gives me plenty of confidence at 95=100 yards (might try up to 110 if the wind was right, downhill to the green, and i really suck em up with my strongest swing). my problem is i play older pinseeker irons with a PW of i think 45 degrees (and i like em too being left handed makes looking for clubs a pain, and its the archer not the arrow).

the pw for me is good for about 125. my "need a club" distance is about 115.

sorry for the thread jack

But jayhawk, a 64? for how far ? 50 yards? i usually go with the sixty and limit my backswing accordingly and swing slightly aggresive, so the sixtyfour seems kinda overkill.

 

[Dorkman53]

I made a change early this year by removing my 5 wood, then substituted 19 and 22 degree hybrids and started my irons at 26 degrees for the 5. This freed up one club, and I added a 63 degree wedge on top of my 58 degree. The motivation was coming up repeatedly with 40-70 yard shots that required a high trajectory and a quick stop. A good example would be a 55 yard shot over a greenside bunker to a short pin. The 63 is also a great club for short pitch shots that need to stop very quickly. I was already very happy with my EGG grind Scratch wedge for my 58, so I got another EGG grind on my 63, on the advice of Ari Techner, the wedge guru at Scratch. I had suggested an alternative sole grind option to him, but I quickly took his advice. (I have the TNC grind for my 53 degree gap/sand wedge, which serves well with deeper grass and softer bunkers)
Bottom line; a 63 or 64 degree wedge isn't necessarily a disaster waiting to happen if one commits to practicing, and gets a sole grind that fits your game. Not connected in any way financially with Scratch wedges, but I am a true believer in them, since they can give so many custom options for sole grinds, and THAT is the key to a wedge's performance.
Since I made that club switch, I've dropped a couple of strokes off my index, and I'm getting a lot more up and downs and bunker saves when my irons aren't spot on.

 

[wirehair]

i play a titlest 56-11 and a callaway 60-10. I guess my question "whats the difficulty with hitting a high wedge?" wirehair, what does your brother do to go wrong, skull it? (kinda afraid to ask ) .

I don't know the model, (I think it's a Cleveland 588) but his misses are usually a chunk or a submarine depending on the turf and lie. I've hit it some on the range and my misses tend to be skulls. You need to be a very precise ball striker. He's an average golfer, right around Bogey +/- as am I.

 

[limpalong]

PAJH, the Ping ISI lob wedges were 61 degrees. I loved them! You could open them up and make it look like your nose was in danger of catching the ball. But, that's the most loft I ever played and had any success with.

If you want a 64 degree wedge, I can tell you where to find one... cheap. My brother-in-law had one for a short time. When he first got it, he bragged and bragged about what he could do with it. It's the only club he's ever hurled in anger and it was hurled halfway across the pond at their home course. Some scuba gear could retrieve it for you.

Pelz is a real fan of the 64 degree. I think it's a matter of the courses you play. Stagg has postage stamp greens. I have no trouble stopping balls on those greens with my 58. I can open it up if I have to lob over a trap. For my own bag, I have difficulty enough finding room for another club I can't believe a high loft wedge would take that many strokes off my game. I would think if you find yourself lobbing over bunkers and other trouble on a regular basis, give one a try.

 

[Pa Jayhawk]

I had one before and hated it because it had 14* of bounce and i had trouble hitting shots from the fairway. A friend has the pelz with 5* of bounce and i hit it a few times and really liked it,

I can see where that would be an issue, and the reason I never liked my initial LW that I picked up. It will definatly have no more than the 8* on my current 60*. The ones I have looked at on line have 5* an 7* and plan to demo those.

at 70 - 75 yards i would rather hit a full swing 60 degree wedge than try to take some off a pitching wedge.

....

But jayhawk, a 64? for how far ? 50 yards? i usually go with the sixty and limit my backswing accordingly and swing slightly aggresive, so the sixtyfour seems kinda overkill.

Probably my favorite and most accurate shot in golf is a 70 yard shot with my LW and a big reason I am looking to at least try and practice with a 64*. On fuller shots, my LW is really good from 60-75.

My current short game seems to have an uncomfortable gap between 48 and 60 yards, and if I could have the same comfort hitting a 45-50 yard shot that is the same as my 70 yard LW, and get somewhere between 40-60 yards with the fuller shots I use to get 60-75 yards it would instantly find a place in my bag. This would also give me a range of around 15 yards (currently 19) and 105 yards where I can hit just about any variety of shot that I wish and have the utmost confidence.

It probably sounds strange hearing someone wanting to fill a gap between 40 and 60 yards. But it is a shot I face a bit not only because of poor ball striking at times, but there are also 2-3 par 4's that I play where the absolute safest and widest landing area is in that range. They are holes where it is a risk to try and drive the green on 2, and laying up is even a risk with forced carries. So while most people would never have a 40-60 yard shot in their bag, and would only likely find themselves in that position on poor course management, that would be a good range to fill for my normal rounds.

 

[Pa Jayhawk]

The motivation was coming up repeatedly with 40-70 yard shots that required a high trajectory and a quick stop. A good example would be a 55 yard shot over a greenside bunker to a short pin. The 63 is also a great club for short pitch shots that need to stop very quickly. I was already very happy with my EGG grind Scratch wedge for my 58, so I got another EGG grind on my 63, on the advice of Ari Techner, the wedge guru at Scratch. I had suggested an alternative sole grind option to him, but I quickly took his advice. (I have the TNC grind for my 53 degree gap/sand wedge, which serves well with deeper grass and softer bunkers)
...
Bottom line; a 63 or 64 degree wedge isn't necessarily a disaster waiting to happen if one commits to practicing, and gets a sole grind that fits your game. Not connected in any way financially with Scratch wedges, but I am a true believer in them, since they can give so many custom options for sole grinds, and THAT is the key to a wedge's performance.
Since I made that club switch, I've dropped a couple of strokes off my index, and I'm getting a lot more up and downs and bunker saves when my irons aren't spot on.

Thanks!!
This is kinda what I was hoping to hear, and religiously practicing with the club is what I plan to do and I currently do with all my wedges. Even likely before it finds a place in my bag.

Thanks as well for the info on Scratch wedges, I may look around a bit for them. Although with my experience with Wedges, I will never buy another prior to being able to at least swing them first. I have a certain feel I like between overall weight and SW that if it is not on, it is just out of control. Part of the reason my old LW and the other $20 XW are just flops and nothing more than practice clubs. Sad part is I spent a bit of money on the LW prior to knowing much about the weights and bounces. It flopped in large part because of what you mentioned. Too much bounce, then by grinding it down it was just too light and lost all confidence in the club.

I think based on the layout of my course and even my ball striking ability, I am likely faced with the exact shots you mention more than most people.

On the your last comment, one of the old adages you hear about high lofted wedges is that only lower handicaps should use them. Which has alot of merit in most cases, however I think with my wedges, they are now fully responsible for my lowering my index considerably over the last couple years (about 8-10 strokes). Although it only happened with 1 or 2 x 4-5 hour practice sessions a week, and giving up playing a couple rounds. Finally decided I am likely never going to have pinpoint accuracy, so better to spend the time on something that is actually pretty easy to perfect if I dedicate the time. Probably another reason I am doing something that even a year ago I would have thought ridiculous, in carrying 5 wedges, one of which being a 64*. Although I am not positive yet the PW will stay in my bag, as that is still up in the air and the gap between it and my GW is fairly small.

Plus I certainly know from past experience that you are not recommending a product that you do not 100% believe in because it matches your game. Good to see you around here more.

 

[Pa Jayhawk]

PAJH, the Ping ISI lob wedges were 61 degrees. I loved them! You could open them up and make it look like your nose was in danger of catching the ball. But, that's the most loft I ever played and had any success with.

If you want a 64 degree wedge, I can tell you where to find one... cheap. My brother-in-law had one for a short time. When he first got it, he bragged and bragged about what he could do with it. It's the only club he's ever hurled in anger and it was hurled halfway across the pond at their home course. Some scuba gear could retrieve it for you.

Pelz is a real fan of the 64 degree. I think it's a matter of the courses you play. Stagg has postage stamp greens. I have no trouble stopping balls on those greens with my 58. I can open it up if I have to lob over a trap. For my own bag, I have difficulty enough finding room for another club I can't believe a high loft wedge would take that many strokes off my game. I would think if you find yourself lobbing over bunkers and other trouble on a regular basis, give one a try.

The one product I do still love by Ping are my wedges, kinda sad none of their models went to 64*. I think that is another thing about trying to find a 64*, I am guessing there may be a ton for cheap ones down in the Used Club bargain bins at most golf stores. Plan on maybe going out this weekend, as it is looking like rain for tomorrow. It is funny that probably my biggest criticism in Pelz was his recommendation that most go with a 64*, as it just seemed ridiculous. It was not until I committed to his theory's on short game that I saw the need. Anyone know a good therapist to get "Unbrainwashed" :laugh:

 

[PureStroke]

IMO its a great club to own if your course 1. has thick greenside ruff 2. during your round you face alot of 60-75 yd shots and deal with alot of tight pin placements. Ive always play a 61* wedge ,I think it easier to hit than a 60 and takes a little sting out of it around the greens. If your not used to a 60* then you may wanna practice with the 64 a bit before committing. You cant be afraid to go at the pin hard with a 64 because they have really no release to them , they just stop. Callaway makes a 64 degree wedge inspired by Phil Mik and Roger Cleveland

 

[Pa Jayhawk]

Callaway makes a 64 degree wedge inspired by Phil Mik and Roger Cleveland

The two I am definitely going to try out out are the Cleveland and Callaway. Possibly the Titleist as well if they have one handy.

... or for that matter, likely any they have.

 

[LyleG]

I am currently running a special. Buy a 64* wedge get a free mouth guard