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Adjusting to new wedges

• DarthMo0 43 Posts

  Fri, Mar 8 2019 11:05 AM

  I've been using the Level 7+ Cleveland irons for quite some time and figured I'm overdue for an upgrade as I'm well past the level for the 74-80+ Clevelands everyone raves about.

  But first, given that the discount you get for renting one of the wedges actually makes buying all three cheaper, I thought why not try one first.  I went with the 54 degree (100 yards) to compare to my current 52.

  So I went to Pebble #1 and set up a 100 yard shot and...holy spin.  I hit a typical shot with the L7 with full backspin and it checked back 3 or 4 feet which is what I'm used to.  I then hit the exact same shot with the L76 and the ball spun back all the way off the green!  I then re-hit it with no spin and the L76 checked about the same as the L7 with full spin.

  I fear this is going to be quite an adjustment as I basically currently hit my wedge shots with little thought because there isn't much flexibility.  Anything faster than a 7.9 green needs backspin to stop the ball generally and the ball isn't going to roll more than a few feet either way.  With the L76 I have no idea where it's going.

  Any tips how to get started?  The L7s are almost always 75%-100% backspin to control the ball, usually just hoping it hops once and sits.  Now I see the L76+ gives a lot more precision to adjust to conditions.

• YankeeJim 25,827 Posts

  Fri, Mar 8 2019 12:27 PM

  DarthMo0:

  Any tips how to get started?

  Play them without changing the spin first. See how they naturally act. The 64W will back up, the 60W not as much and the 54W tends to roll a little, depending on wind. Partial spin is what will get you in trouble because all 3 of those wedges spin just like you saw with partial back spin. 

• sodakknight 703 Posts

  Fri, Mar 8 2019 3:41 PM

  YankeeJim:

  DarthMo0:

  Any tips how to get started?

  Play them without changing the spin first. See how they naturally act. The 64W will back up, the 60W not as much and the 54W tends to roll a little, depending on wind. Partial spin is what will get you in trouble because all 3 of those wedges spin just like you saw with partial back spin. 

  +1   

  Play them with no BS until you work out the yardages with your ball.   You'll surely find they stop dead or have slight roll back.

  Then try top spin...they'll still stop quicker than what you are used to but you can gain several yards with full top.  

  Then start tweaking the back spin.........

   

• DoctorLarry 4,311 Posts

  Fri, Mar 8 2019 3:54 PM

  Good advice above^^^

  In general, it is just practice, practice, practice - and after that practice some more.

• borntobesting 9,701 Posts

  Sat, Mar 9 2019 1:55 AM

  With the 64 degree Cleveland don’t add any extra backspin on any shot except chips’ pitches’ and flops. 

  The only other time to use B/S is with  the punch which is full B/S which in most cases gives you a shot that hops and stops. This shot with the 64 degree works from 18 yards all the way up to 52 yards with a little tweaking.

• HackWilson1930 1,437 Posts

  Sat, Mar 9 2019 4:48 AM

  As you play with these wedges, make some notes about holes. There are places where you will want to use BS in controlled amounts. Generally these are holes where you can carry over the pin and then bring the ball back. Also some BS when hitting to a down slope in front of a pin can cause the ball to check up rather than rolling away from the pin. I know it is a pain, but like pros in real life, notes can help you score lower.

• YankeeJim 25,827 Posts

  Sat, Mar 9 2019 6:27 AM

  borntobesting:

  With the 64 degree Cleveland don’t add any extra backspin on any shot except chips’ pitches’ and flops

  A full back spin 64W from fairway will stop and hop.