Golf Wedges

There are four different types of golf wedges:

• Pitching wedge
• Gap wedge
• Sand wedge
• Lob wedge

The main difference between wedges is the degree of loft each wedge has. The higher the loft angle, the faster the golf ball will travel into the air.

A 52-degree wedge is a gap wedge and, as the name would suggest, is used to fill the gap between a pitching wedge and a sand wedge.

Typically a gap wedge or sand wedge with a loft anywhere between 52 degrees and 56 degress is best for chipping as the higher lofts are best for high but short travelling and stopping balls.

The easiest wedges to hit are cavity-back wedges due to the easy ability for players to loft the ball up in the air without needing a perfect hit.

How Are Golf Clubs Made?

Golf clubs are made in different ways, depending on the type of club being manufactured. Irons, fairway woods, wedges, hybrids, and putters are usually made in what's called a casting process, with drivers and more expensive iron sets utilizing a forging process. For the former, the mold for the golf club is designed on a computer before being produced. Wax is then injected into the mold for each club - so, a nine iron set will have nine wax molds, one for each loft. After being checked for issues, the wax molds are dipped into quicksand, dried and heated. A stainless steel alloy is then heated in each of the molds and left to harden. Finally, there's a finishing process which involves polishing, sandblasting and testing the club, before the final aesthetic touches are made.

Golf Wedge Buying Guide

Golf wedges come in four different lofts, with the choice between them depending on the type of shot you want to play. The most common are pitching wedges and sand wedges. The pitching wedge, which has a loft between 44 and 48 degrees, is designed for short to medium-distance chips on to the green, while the sand wedge, which has a higher loft of between 54 to 58 degrees, is primarily for escaping bunkers. In between the two is the gap wedge, or utility wedge; in recent years, the lob wedge -- with a loft of 60 to 64 degrees -- has been introduced to allow players to hit higher chips than ever before.

Best Golf Wedges

When it comes to the best golf wedges, you can't go wrong with the Titleist Vokey SM7 family of wedges or the Ping Glide 2.0 Stealth family of wedges. These wedge sets offer players the full set of wedges to ensure maximum flexibility out on the course. The Callaway Mack Daddy 4 wedge features patented Groove-In-Groove Technology for one of the best clubs money can buy.