An inside look at Vokey wedge play at the PGA Championship

As amateur players, we often have the same equipment in our bags from round to round. The idea of investing in different clubs to accommodate varying course conditions is a bit far-fetched for us, but what about the best players in the world? In addition to having equipment contracts, PGA Tour players have the luxury of a tour rep and tour truck each week to ensure their sticks are exactly what they need for that particular tournament.

Titleist gave us an inside look at what its Vokey wedge staff players were gaming at the PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club. Aaron Dill, a tour rep for Titleist, takes us through grind and loft expectations from players as well as some of the unique situations that Oak Hill presented.


The Four Elements
Dill notes that there are four key elements that the Vokey team concentrated on which stood out from the rest.

Rough:Thick and plenty of it. What wedges will cut through it the fastest?
Bunkers: What will pop out of incredibly deep bunkers the easiest?
Creating Lift: Not only in terms of loft but also creating loft which pays off with high spin.
Elevated Greens: Finding the right combination of bounce and loft in order to hit shots from harder fairways to elevated greens.

Less is More
Conditions earlier in the week led to the course firming up quite a bit, as you’d expect from a major championship venue. It was also cooler temperature-wise which kept fairways and greenside areas firm. For those reasons, Dill notes that players were preferring to go with some options that have less bounce.

Getting Lofty
To help with getting lift around the greens and adding some stopping power, several players had Dill put together 62-degree wedges and even a few 64 degrees.

Billy Horschel
Titleist staffer, Billy Horschel, gave some insight into his Vokey models for the week.

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“Up until this year I was playing the V grind and now I went to the T grind and I feel like it’s giving me a little more versatility around the green,” said Horschel. “I like having speed, you need it to get height and spin. But I also like knowing there isn’t a lot of bounce and I hit down on it so it (the ball) pops up.”

Dill notes that Horschel had quite the mashup of a wedge in the bag. A 60-degree T grind, which has four degrees of bounce, with the loft adjusted to 62 degrees. This combination allows the club head to slide underneath the ball easier while also getting the height and spin that will keep the ball on the putting surface.

Titleist Vokey SM9
If you haven’t experienced the new Titleist SM9 wedges, head to your local golf retailer to see the craftsmanship and performance for yourself. With three different finishes, seven grind options, and nine lofts, your perfect wedge combination awaits. Titleist also offers a convenient Wedge Selector Tool to help you get your short game in check.