Six months is enough time for the honeymoon period with new equipment to wear off, and after that much time with the Titleist Vokey Design SM11 wedges in my bag, my overall impression is pretty simple: utter beauty, feel and performance, but above everything else, consistency.
This was also my first extended experience playing Vokey wedges, so I didn't come into the test with an SM10, SM9 or another previous generation as a baseline for feel or sound. In hindsight, I think that was actually a good thing. The SM11s established their own standard for what I expect from a wedge, particularly when it comes to trajectory, carry distance and how predictably the ball reacts once it reaches the green.
What You Need to Know About SM11
The SM11 lineup is built around three primary areas of wedge performance: contact, flight and spin. There are 27 loft, bounce and grind combinations available, with six primary grinds — F, S, M, D, K and T — allowing golfers to build a setup around their delivery, preferred shots and typical course conditions.
My setup uses KBS Tour Lite 65-gram shafts with a 50.08F, 54.10S and 58.08M. I used Vokey's Wedge Selector Tool to guide my loft, bounce and grind choices based on my swing and the types of conditions I normally play. That fitting element is an important part of the Vokey lineup because bounce and grind can change how the club interacts with the turf just as much as loft changes the shot itself. Vokey's selector is specifically designed to make recommendations based on swing type, playing style and course conditions.
Interestingly, the 50-degree has become the least-used of the three. That isn't because of anything I dislike about the wedge; I have simply found that the gap wedges included in my iron sets provide a more natural transition in shaft feel when I'm making the fuller swings I typically associate with that part of the bag. The 54- and 58-degree wedges are where the SM11s have really established themselves for me.
More Predictable Flight
One of the important changes in SM11 is Vokey's unified center-of-gravity placement. Within a given loft, the CG remains in the same location regardless of which grind you choose, helping produce a more consistent launch window while still allowing golfers to select the sole that best fits their delivery and conditions.
That consistency in trajectory has been one of the biggest differences I've noticed in my own wedge game. The SM11s have given me a repeatability in both carry and flight that I simply hadn't found before. When my strike is where I expect it to be, the resulting shot has become extremely predictable, which makes it much easier to choose a landing area and commit to it.
The 58.08M has become my favorite club of the three and essentially my utility wedge around the greens and from bunkers. The M Grind is designed to provide versatility for players who like to manipulate the face, and that has fit naturally into how I use the club. I lean on it for the vast majority of my greenside shots and generally only move to the 54.10S when the lie or shot calls for the different turf interaction and bounce that the S Grind provides.
The Vokey Spin System
SM11 also introduced the Vokey Spin System, combining an angled face texture, deeper Spin Milled grooves and three different groove profiles tailored to different loft ranges. Instead of simply trying to create maximum spin, the design is intended to produce the appropriate amount of spin for the type of shot each wedge is most likely to play.
This is where I think the SM11s have had the biggest impact on my actual short game. When I make a consistent strike, I have developed an expectation that the ball will take one or two hops and then come to rest. That has held true from a surprising number of distances and lies, and it has changed how aggressively I can pick a landing spot around the green.
If anything, some of my mistakes have actually come from not fully adjusting to that stopping power. I've hit chips and pitches short because I'm still anticipating the amount of rollout I was accustomed to seeing previously. With the SM11s, I feel like I can much more realistically try to park the ball in a specific area rather than account for an unpredictable amount of release after it lands.
Six Months Later
After six months, I'm not standing over a wedge shot thinking about groove geometry or center-of-gravity placement. I'm looking at my target and thinking about where I want the ball to land, which is probably the best compliment I can give these wedges.
The feel is soft and solid, the shape is clean at address and, in my opinion, they are simply beautiful golf clubs. But feel is almost something I don't feel the need to spend much time discussing with a Vokey. What has impressed me more is how the feel, trajectory, carry and spin all combine to produce a shot that I can anticipate before I hit it.
Durability has also been a non-issue. I've played at least once a week for the past six months and put these wedges through several long range sessions along the way. There are cosmetic scratches and dings — especially on the 58-degree after plenty of bunkers and questionable lies — but the spin performance I noticed when the wedges were new is still there.
If you're in the market for a new set of wedges, the SM11s deserve serious consideration. There is enough variety in loft, bounce and grind to build a setup around your own game, while the unified CG positioning and Vokey Spin System are designed around producing the type of predictable flight and spin that I have experienced over the past six months. Add in the build quality I expect from Titleist, and these have become wedges that I don't have to think much about when I'm on the golf course.
I just trust what they're going to do.