As a newer player myself, I'm just realizing how "leveling up" drags out once you get past the mid-70's or so. Holy smokes.
Saw a post here the other day where someone noted that the XP needed to get from L1 to L82 was the same as what is needed to get from L82 to L89. Put another way: on the journey from L1 to L89, the "halfway point" is L82.
I still play cheapo wedges, and I think they're pretty darned decent - though maybe that's just because I don't know what I'm missing. :-)
Given how long it takes to level up, I imagine I'll be playing the cheapo wedges for a good while longer, and I'm OK with that. In my experience, when I swing the club exactly how I want to, these wedges put the ball exactly where I expect them to, with remarkable consistency. When they do go awry, it's pretty much always my fault.