Titleist Vokey SM10 Wedges
The golf industry describes me as someone belonging to the “avid” golfer demographic. My long-suffering spouse would agree.
Though an avid, I never had a wedge fitting despite knowing the advantages of fitting in irons and drivers. I’ve done several of those fittings over the years. But never a wedge fitting. Until a few weeks ago.
After doing so, my first reaction was: why the heck did I wait so long?
I was in good hands with Jake Hamilton, the well-regarded master fitter and manager at Club Champion in Grand Rapids. There are several capable fitters in the area but Jake and I have known each other for years and we’re fellow members at The Meadows GC at GVSU.
“One of the common errors I’ve encountered with players, even frequent golfers, is when they don’t know how far their wedges carry,” said Hamilton whose store ranked in the top 20 for fittings of all 120 stores nationally for Club Champion. “Many will confuse total yardage with carry and that’s a mistake. You’re only as good as your carry.”
Hamilton first checked out my wedges which are Titleist except for a 57-degree Miura wedge that has been off and on in my bag for a few years. My other lofts were 43, 48, and 54. Generally, he was okay with these wedges. “Often, I find players having unnecessary wedges in their bags.”
He then switched the Trackman to a short par-three setting which included an island green. Guess he was serious about how far the ball would carry. I warmed up and hit some solid shots to the green. Fortunately, I’ve been playing at a simulator nearly every week this winter so I’ve kept the rust off my swing.
On that note, Hamilton says the off season is a good time to be fitted for wedges. “With the explosion of simulators, people are staying active with their swings. There are some pluses to hitting shots outdoors, but the Trackman numbers inside a bay never lie.”
Hamilton kept switching out shafts and wanted me to give him feedback on the feel while noting the height and carry of the shots taken. What I wanted was more height and he focused on what wedges were best for me.
Next, he switched the Trackman to a shot requiring a short pitch over a bunker. I was pleasantly surprised by how my feel while making a pitch matched up to the result. Considering how important good chipping and pitching are to scoring, especially mine, I wanted to get these wedges dialed in.
What amazed me in the fitting process were the myriad options available not only in lofts but also in terms of shafts and bounces for wedges. In all, the SM10 lineup consists of six grinds and 25 discrete loft, bounce and grind combinations.
“Titleist is one of the leaders in wedges and it hits the mark for bounce and grind,” said Hamilton. (He was quick to note that all the major brands, like Callaway, Cleveland and TaylorMade, make solid wedges that he has fitted for his customers.) But considering these many options, it was worth it to have an experienced fitter sort through them and make recommendations.
When asked how he has evolved as a club-fitter since he opened the Grand Rapids store over four years ago, Hamilton replied: “You have to grow with the game. Along with more experience, I’ve improved my skill set by staying current with technology and the product lines.”
Hamilton is a good player with a low handicap index so he knows the nuances of the game including what types of courses and turf one usually plays. “I might recommend something different if someone plays a lot of golf in Florida as opposed to Michigan. But I don’t want to get too carried away with it,” said Hamilton.
Taking less than an hour, Hamilton recommended the Titleist SM (Spin Milled) 10’s line of wedges in these degrees, bounces and grinds: 50 (08) F-Grind, 54 (10) S-Grind and 60 (08) M-Grind. He recommended graphite shafts with Regular flex. They’ll match up well with my other irons while leaving me the option to switch up the wedges in my bag.
The specs on the SM wedges feature these assets: its groove cutting process provides a scoreline that delivers a higher (yes!) and a more consistent spin; its TX9 grooves are specifically designed based on loft and finish. The 50 & 54-degree wedges are cut narrower and deeper while the 60-degree is designed with wider and shallower grooves.
When the wedges arrived, I was fortunate to have already scheduled a simulator session with my buddies followed by nine holes at a local public course. As it turned out, it was the warmest February day in Grand Rapids ever.
At the Trackman simulator, I worked with Brandon Roby—a PGA teaching pro and owner of BRG Performance Center—who guided me through the process of gapping the wedges. We determined the carry and the total yardage for my wedges and I recorded them on my phone.
Roby made a good observation that my 43 and 48-degree wedges will come off of the face faster than my new SM wedges so I had to take that into account. The SM10 wedges will offer more spin, especially around the greens.
Roby suggested the type of course I’ll play this season may lead to mixing up my wedges. For example, if I’m playing a course with deeper bunkers and rough, it might be wise to include the 60 degree and drop out the 54 degree.
For shallow bunkers and less gnarly rough around the greens, I could drop out the 60 and keep the 54. Roby said the 54 is fine for bunker play as one can open up the face more if needed. Makes sense.
While playing nine, I liked how the wedges performed around the greens. The SM wedges all had the same soft feel. I particularly liked the spin imparted by the 54 degree on my chip shots.
It’ll take more trial and error to fine-tune my wedges and dial in the precise yardages.
But one thing is certain: a wedge-fitting was long overdue.
Images courtesy of Titleist and Club Champion
