Let me start by saying that at the time of writing, my handicap index is 6.5 and that my game is usually built on being in play nine times out of ten off the tee and a reasonable distance down there for a 60-year-old, though not particularly long, plus pretty decent chipping and putting.
I am not a great iron player and definitely below average on full to fullish wedge shots into greens, where I don’t generate enough makeable birdie chances.
Around the greens and from the sand, though, I would say I was probably better than average, perhaps because I’ve missed so many greens over the years that I’ve had to be to hold on to my handicap.
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The club that has made a big difference to my wedge play from spring 2025 onwards
(Image credit: Oliver Ellwood @ellwood_photography)
I was last fitted for Ping Glide 4.0 wedges about three or four years ago and have had 50˚ and 54˚ models in the bag ever since. They’ve been great around the greens but hadn’t resolved my issues on fuller wedges shots, to such an extent that from 70-100 yards I would resort to either running something in low with an 8- or 9-iron if the approach in hand allowed such a shot, or gripping down on my set wedge (actually, a 10-iron, more of which in a moment) and taking something off that.
It sort of worked but I knew I was ignoring the elephant in the room to avoid hitting the shots I knew I should really be hitting. I hadn’t analysed things fully but the typical results on fullish shots with my 50˚ wedge would invariably involve poor, and often heavy, contact taking me from a good birdie-making position to struggling to save par all too often. In my mind, it had definitely become a combination of technique and lack of confidence.
But I hit my main set wedge (that 10-iron) much better – a Honma TWorld TW747Vx I acquired a few years ago following a trip out to the brand’s headquarters in Japan. I’ve known for a while they also made a matching 11-iron (49˚ gap wedge) so have occasionally looked out for one on ebay thinking that it might be the answer to my 70- to 100-yard nemesis.
Finally, in May this year I found one with the same shaft as my set. Better still, it was discounted down from £89.99 to £71.99. The order button was clicked and a few days later, there it was in my bag, ready to see if my theory held any water.
The new addition is unlikely to be coming out of my bag any time soon
(Image credit: Jeremy Ellwood)
It did from the first round, where the very first shot from that range sounded flush off the blade and landed birdieable distance away. Several more attempts yielded similar results with confidence growing as a result. The fresh grooves also brought a greater degree of spin on greenside shots than I’ve been used to, adding another dimension there.
I wonder whether my technique is just not suited to speciality wedges on full shots, and the straighter leading edge on my Honma 11-iron, plus its more rounded sole and element of perimeter-weighted forgiveness could be what I’ve really needed from this range for a long time. It certainly seems like it!
This address view seems to have inspired more confidence
(Image credit: Oliver Ellwood @ellwood_photography)
Yes, there are still plenty of poor rounds in there on the handicap record, but my most recent outing at Hindhead Golf Club yielded a score differential of 2.4 (despite a bogey, double finish) and nearly a full-shot cut down to 6.5 from a high of 8.8 just a year ago.
Is it all down to my magic new 11-iron? Of course not. Has it played a significant role by increasing my confidence levels in that scoring range? Absolutely. Might more golfers actually be better off with fewer speciality wedges and something a little more forgiving at that end of the bag? That depends on the individual, but I would be very surprised if I was alone in that regard.
