Vokey Wedges Seminar at PGA Show. Last Wednesday, January 22, 2014, Bob Vokey spoke and did a seminar at the PGA Show for the Titleist Staff professionals. He went over the new Spin Mill 5’s or SM5’s coming out in March and described the different grinds available. He talked about the difference between the effective bounce (what you have at impact) vs bounce angle (which is built into the club.)
Low Bounce: L Grind 14 degrees of bounce, but effective bounce 4 degrees. Firm conditions.
Mid-Bounce: T Grind only on the 62 degree wedge which has a forward and trailing bounce. S Grind Full Sole
Mid/High Bounce: M Grind The grind that I use and it’s for players who like to play different shots. F Grind Full Soles Most forgiving wedge.
High Bounce: K Grind High lofted only.
I personally like the M grind because it is a mid to high bounce and the sole allows the player to open and square the club face to hit different trajectory shots. I asked Voke why he made mid-lofted wedges 54-56 with only 8 degrees of bounce and he said they are not going that low with the bounce anymore on those wedges. Lowest will be 10 degrees. Voke also talked about swing types for bounce and someone with a more up and down swing, which I prefer and teach with a sand wedge, can use more bounce. A flatter swing could use less bounce.
I’m looking forward to getting my SM5’s in March. For the record I play a 55/12 and a 60/10 with the M grind. For my students I recommend SM5’s with a 54/10 and a 58/8 all in the M Grind. These can be bent to a 55/11 and a 59/9 if you add one degree of loft to those wedges. Add a degree of loft = adding a degree of bounce. I’ve been playing Vokey Wedges since they came out on Tour in the late 1990’s.