Wedges can be the clubs in your bag that turn an average round into a great one with confident chipping and perfect pitching. But with so many options to choose from, how do you know which make and model will work for you? In this video, Sam De’Ath has done all the hard work for you and testing all the latest wedges on the market. He delivers his verdict on the looks, forgiveness and performance before deciding on his overall favorite, so make sure you watch to the end to find out which model we crown as the best wedge of 2023.
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00:00 Having the right wedge setup in your bag is crucial to ensuring that you play better golf.
00:04 Whether that's navigating short tricky sided chip shots or towering full wedge shots into tight pins,
00:11 having the right wedges in your bag will make sure that you play better golf and in turn reduce
00:15 your handicap. Now the manufacturers have released plenty of models this year and so if you're in the
00:19 market for a new wedge it can feel a little daunting but don't worry we're here to help.
00:24 We're at the beautiful North Hans Golf Club where I've split the best wedges from this year into
00:29 three categories that's looks, forgiveness and performance and then finally I'll offer my personal
00:34 favorite on the best wedge for this year. Right let's get into it, starting with the looks.
00:38 Now there hasn't really been anything revolutionary in terms of the looks from the wedges in 2023 but
00:46 there is a lot of variety. Let's start with the PHG Sugar Daddy 2. So this is one of the
00:52 wedges this year that is actually only offered with full face grooves. There are two grind
00:56 options available and it's quite a large head behind the ball considering it's a bladed wedge.
01:01 And then there's the Mizuno T24. I think this wedge looks superb, it's so classic it's a timeless
01:07 look behind the ball as well. It's quite a compact head but these wedges are available in three
01:12 different finishes which I think will please so many people. There's a copper, a raw and the satin
01:17 finish. Now there is a new grind coming at the end of this summer, a V grind based on tour player
01:22 feedback so that'll be really interesting to see how that one looks. Oh god my body hurts.
01:28 Next you have the Beton RD HLX 5.0 wedges. Now these are a beautiful bit of forgemanship,
01:35 crafted from carbon steel. Now these feature CNC milling the whole way across the back of the head
01:40 which look amazing and they are available in two finishes, the satin and the black. They're a wedge
01:47 that looks like a player wedge, a tour player's wedge behind the ball. Quite a small head but one
01:53 that will please the better player. Finally we have the Titleist Vokey SM9. Now this is a classic
02:00 wedge, the Vokey is known as one of the most popular wedges on tour and that's because of its
02:05 look behind the ball. It's quite a compact looking wedge. There's seven grinds available in these
02:10 wedges, the newest one being the T grind that has a lot of heel and toe relief and quite an aggressive
02:16 leading edge that will please some of the better players. And then lastly we've got the Adele SMS
02:21 T grind. Now these wedges are really cool, they look amazing and they come with three interchangeable
02:26 weights in the back, two 2 gram weights and an 8 gram weight which means you can really dial in
02:31 the ball flight. Behind the ball it's got quite a spoon-like finish, it's quite rounded, quite small
02:36 and again probably won't suit the eye of someone looking for a bit more forgiveness but they look
02:40 great for someone who's confident behind the ball. Tell me you got that on camera!
02:49 So if you're someone who struggles with your chipping or you know someone who does struggle
02:58 from their chipping, now's the time to share this video with them. We're going to talk you through
03:02 some of the most forgiving models on offer this year.
03:07 Now some of the ones I've already mentioned do have high bounce options but nothing quite offers
03:12 forgiveness like these cavity back wedges here. Firstly we've got the Callaway CB wedge. Now this
03:19 wedge is new for this summer and features urethane microspheres that have been planted behind the
03:23 face here in this insert to dampen the feel and vibration and produce a really premium wedge-like
03:30 feel. Now it is a large head, there's a thick top line and it really does inspire confidence behind
03:36 the ball whilst playing like a premium wedge. Secondly we have the Cleveland CBX full face 2.
03:43 Now as the name suggests it's got full face grooves on here, they feature zip core grooves
03:48 as well which are found in the likes of the RTS 6 wedge and again it's got an insert behind the
03:54 face here again to dampen vibration, make that wedge feel really premium and sound really good
04:00 as well whilst helping with the longer shots. So lastly you have the Cobra Snakebite X SBX.
04:06 Now this is a teardrop style head that again features full face grooves. Now these grooves
04:13 are said to improve spin rates by up to 50% in damp conditions compared to its predecessor model.
04:19 And while we haven't had the opportunity yet to test it really in wet conditions,
04:23 we're looking forward to seeing how that plays out this winter. Now if I was to pick my absolute
04:28 favourite from the most forgiving wedges it would have to be the Callaway CB. Not only is it brand
04:34 new for this year but the Eurofame Microsphere has just dampened the sound and vibrations
04:38 to make it feel like a player's wedge while the large head and cavity back offer so much
04:43 relief from full shots. Now there is the full face option on the higher lofted wedges for those of
04:49 you that like to open the face up and hit a variety of shots but overall this is definitely the most
04:55 forgiving wedge. Now all of the wedges that came out in 2023 offer superb performance but there are
05:03 a few that stand out in particular. Firstly we're going to talk about the Callaway Jaws Raw wedge.
05:09 Now this is the black plasma finish but these wedges are also offered in a chrome finish as
05:13 well as a full face finish. Now these have tungsten weights situated behind the head
05:18 to improve consistency of ball flight. I did notice that they do fly quite low and penetrative
05:23 which is something as a good player I really enjoy. Now next we've got the Glide 4.0 from Ping.
05:29 This is the brother to the Glide Pro which is a slightly more compact head but I feel like this
05:34 wedge offers the most in overall performance. Now there's a CTP insert situated behind the face here
05:40 which is not very common in players wedges but it does offer improved feel and performance.
05:46 So the face itself has been spin milled and the grooves on the higher lofted wedges actually sit
05:51 a little wider to create more spin than the lower lofted wedges. A really clever formula thought out
05:57 by the Ping technicians. Now the next best performing wedge of 2023 is the Cleveland RTS6
06:03 Zip Core. These wedges look amazing behind the ball. All the grinds available offer toe and heel
06:10 relief for maximum versatility. They're offered in three different bounce options low, mid and high
06:16 and also a number of finishes. This is the chrome finish here and then you've got the likes of the
06:20 TORAC finish here that is a raw face and will rust over time. This is used by the likes of
06:26 Brooks Koepka and has helped him win his recent major championship. Now lastly is the TaylorMade
06:32 MG4. The much anticipated wedge from TaylorMade has just been released this summer and is offered
06:38 in two different finishes. You've got the chrome and you've got the satin black both of which look
06:43 superb. They offer raw faces which again will rust over time and manufacturers claim that this does
06:50 offer more spin although upon our testing we're yet to find that is the case. These wedges feature
06:56 spin tread technology which is a new technology implemented by TaylorMade this year and it's
07:02 basically moisture management and so there are little grooves inset within the other grooves
07:07 to allow water to disperse off the club face increasing contact time of the ball and in
07:12 general creating more spin in wetter conditions. Here's some data that I've captured while inside
07:19 on a GC quad launch monitor. The reason I've done this inside is basically to eliminate all
07:25 variables and make sure we're on a level playing field. Now as you can see the TaylorMade MG4 and
07:31 the Cleveland RTS6 actually did produce a little more spin with a slightly lower launch than the
07:36 other models but there really wasn't much to separate them. Now if I was to pick an overall
07:41 favorite in terms of the performance of the wedges in 2023 I would choose the TaylorMade MG4.
07:48 Not only do I think it looks amazing the CNC milling across the sole here really helps the
07:52 club glide through the turf and I'm really interested to see how the spin tread technology
07:57 works here in England in the wetter conditions this winter. So there you have it I've tested
08:03 all the models from all the brands of 2023 to offer you an insight as to which wedges I think
08:10 are the best in those three categories but it wouldn't be a Golf Monthly Best Of video if I
08:14 didn't pick my overall favorite. Now I'm going to go for the Mizuno T24 wedge. I talked about this
08:21 earlier on in the video but the quad cut grooves really did maximize spin from a variety of lies
08:27 in different conditions and I really liked how compact the head looked behind the ball. I really
08:33 liked how aggressive the leading edge was with this wedge. There's so much heel and toe relief
08:38 as well so you can be really versatile around the greens creating loads of different shots. Now this
08:43 wedge is offered in three different finishes there's a copper, a raw and a satin so there's
08:48 going to be one that you like as well but for me this ticked all the boxes in terms of performance,
08:53 looks and feel. Hopefully you've really enjoyed this video and it's given you a really good
08:57 insight as to what the best wedges of 2023 are. So before we go hit the like button, subscribe
09:03 to Golf Monthly's YouTube channel so you don't miss any videos but that's all from me here at
09:08 the beautiful Northamptons Golf Club. We'll see you next time.
09:13 (upbeat music)