Buying Wedges vs Irons

[Dylann_Chapman]

Hi Everyone, 

First post here and I am excited to hear your takes.

I was looking into either buying two new Cleveland RTX Full Face Wedges or a pre-owned set of Titleist 716 AP1 irons a few weeks ago, and decided to buy the irons as I thought they would be more beneficial to my game.

For some background, I had been playing with a mismatched set of Taylormade Burner 2.0s/Burner Irons a Cleveland Launcher pitching Wedge, Taylormade RAC OS Gap Wedge, Taylormade Burner 2.0 Sand Wedge, and Callaway MackDaddy PM Grind Full Face Lob Wedge for a year and half at that point. They had some mismatching shafts and grips, but they allowed me to get into the game of golf.

I wanted to know what your opinion is on the following matter. Which would have been the better choice and why? Am I correct in thought that the irons would be the most beneficial or did I miss an opportunity with the brand new Gap and Sand Wedges?

Edited April 6 by Dylann_Chapman
Error word included

[cnosil]

IMO, golf clubs are tools designed to help you hit the ball a specific distance.  Typically you hit wedges more than irons but if your current clubs  have a good gapping between then then it didn't really matter which you replace first.    There is no requirement to have matching clubs in your bag. 

[RickyBobby_PR]

Hard to say either way because blind buying irons doesn’t mean you got a set that actually work with your swing. If they don’t it could be a bad purchase regardless of what you might have passed up on.

same with new wedges. They may not make your shirt game better. Especially if they end up creating situations where you are expecting the ball to roll out and it checks up.

We don’t know what your game, bal flight are, what your short game is like. Having the right clubs that allow you to execute the shot you want is what matters 

[Preeway]

I think it’s important to asses what you have and how they contribute to your current play. Then make a plan for how you want to play/score and whether what you have will let you do that or if something needs to change. If you are going to piecemeal your changes then make a plan for what you should change first and be very intentional about why you are choosing your new clubs. If you aren’t going to get fit then it’s hard to know whether you are upgrading or making a lateral move. Newer doesn’t always mean better. 

[Dweed]

@Dylann_Chapman, regardless, you definitely made a 100% correct choice by joining the forums. There is so much knowledge located here. As you'll discover not everybody agrees with each other. That is AOK as well. Glad you joined and welcome to the pursuit of better golf.

[GolfSpy_APH]

No right or wrong answer, more preference than anything. 

Hope you like the new irons and before too long hopefully you'll be into all the equipment you want to be playing!

[CFreddie]

Welcome! Honestly, I don't think you can make a "wrong" choice either way, and as you continue playing / getting better, you can start to better assess where your true distance / shot gaps lie and go from there.

Oh, and one other thing, by joining this forum, you'll now be inundated with golf club information, so I'd argue that was the best choice of all.

[Javs]

On 4/6/2024 at 6:38 PM, Dylann_Chapman said:

Hi Everyone, 

First post here and I am excited to hear your takes.

I was looking into either buying two new Cleveland RTX Full Face Wedges or a pre-owned set of Titleist 716 AP1 irons a few weeks ago, and decided to buy the irons as I thought they would be more beneficial to my game.

For some background, I had been playing with a mismatched set of Taylormade Burner 2.0s/Burner Irons a Cleveland Launcher pitching Wedge, Taylormade RAC OS Gap Wedge, Taylormade Burner 2.0 Sand Wedge, and Callaway MackDaddy PM Grind Full Face Lob Wedge for a year and half at that point. They had some mismatching shafts and grips, but they allowed me to get into the game of golf.

I wanted to know what your opinion is on the following matter. Which would have been the better choice and why? Am I correct in thought that the irons would be the most beneficial or did I miss an opportunity with the brand new Gap and Sand Wedges?

My first question would be were you fitted for the irons? Need to make sure you have the correct shafts and lie angles. If not, it is a crap shoot. 

[derekr007]

I would ask the same question that Javs mentioned about getting fitted. Getting a properly fitted club is a huge game changer. Outside of that I would have gone with the irons myself too. New wedges are great but irons are more important especially if you use them over hybrid clubs. Also don't sweet the mixed bag, I have always carried a mixed bag. Started with Callaway Irons and Ping driver/woods, I now use PXG irons/driver and Edel wedges and putter.

 

-Derek 

[Kris JL]

IMO, it's a question of which represents a bigger 'upgrade' relative to your prior clubs--this depends just as much on how well the old clubs suited your game as it does to how well the new ones suit you.  

That said however, all else being equal, I'd argue upgrading an iron set has a bigger potential impact to your overall game for 2 reasons: (1) you will (probably) hit your irons with a full, normal swing more frequently than you hit your wedges at a full 'normal' swing, so having a consistent and predictable outcome (shaft flex, lie angle) to that type of swing is more critical to overall success, and conversely, (2) the wide variability in how wedges are hit mean that there's a lot of 'feel' which goes into most wedge shots, so you will likely have a wider range of swing speeds, ground/lie conditions, turf interactions and desired flight/spin characteristics that you'll be seeking from your wedges.  Thus, when budget is a limiting factor (which it is for nearly all of us) I'd argue you're better off getting irons suited to you and learning to hit the wedges you have available.  

Just my $0.02.

[Randall Robbins]

Agree with the fitting question posed by Java - if not, then you can have a local pro evaluate your game with monitors etc and get info that can help you with decisions as to length, shafts and other tweaks you might want/need to make.

[schmidtty]

For me it would be the wedges, even if the irons are a bit elderly, you would probably still have reasonable gaping. The wedges are scoring clubs and can save shots even if you're not hitting the irons well (I do rely on my wedges a lot) That said, if the irons were a real old mismatch like Dylann's set, I'd probably upgrade them first.

 

[BShizzle]

Both are solid choices.  I think I saw the biggest difference of any clubs purchased recently when I replaced my wedges with some Vokies SM9s that were last years model.  Never had shots that stop on the green like this.  

[RCGolf]

The irons are the heart of your whole set. If you were using an old mixed set, a matching set of irons is a must. And you can hit most of the shots you need green side with your PW and 9-iron. Then I would suggest getting fit for a proper set of wedges. Grind and bounce are as important as it gets in all of golf. If you don’t have access to a fitter, every OEM has a “fitting tool” which can get you in the ballpark, based on just a couple of questions. A) your swing, (steep or shallow), B) Playing conditions (hard pan Arizona, or softer East coast) and C) Types of shots you want to hit. Vokey’s was right on the money for me. Best of luck! New grips are a must!

[Stuka44]

I will say this.  I played with Burner 2.0's for 8 years(4-PW), and loved them.  I found as I improved that I had a gapping issue between 9i-56d, in the lofts of the burners.  When I bought a new set, which was simply because I wanted them, as a gift to myself, I ensured that the new clubs, addressed this issue.  I looked at all brands, and makes, to find the right lofts for me, as I believed they needed to be.

I honestly would not simply unload the Burners, unless you have a gapping problem with them, or they are deficient in some way.  I found them to very good, and very playable clubs.

[Dylann_Chapman]

Hi thank you everyone, I appreciate all the input and advice. I look forward to interacting more with the forum.

[CFreddie]

Just now, Dylann_Chapman said:

Hi thank you everyone, I appreciate all the input and advice. I look forward to interacting more with the forum.

Of course - we have a good group here (well, most of us anyway ).  

Btw - whereabouts are you in South Africa?  My wife and I visited there a couple years ago and it was easily the best trip of our lives!

[Dylann_Chapman]

On 4/9/2024 at 6:02 PM, CFreddie said:

Of course - we have a good group here (well, most of us anyway ).  

Btw - whereabouts are you in South Africa?  My wife and I visited there a couple years ago and it was easily the best trip of our lives!

I’m starting to see that this is a good group

 

I live in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern, a relatively small coastal town

I’m glad you had a great trip, did you manage to sneak in a round while you were here?

[CFreddie]

Unfortunately no golf in SA - we used Cape Town as our home base, but got out to Durban & the Winelands during our 15 day trip.  Such an incredibly beautiful country - def want to get back and explore more there (and hopefully get some golf in while there  )!

[Dylann_Chapman]

4 minutes ago, CFreddie said:

Unfortunately no golf in SA - we used Cape Town as our home base, but got out to Durban & the Winelands during our 15 day trip.  Such an incredibly beautiful country - def want to get back and explore more there (and hopefully get some golf in while there  )!

Ah that’s a shame, those are really beautiful cities. 
 

When you come back, give George and Knysna a visit. They have some of the best courses in the country.

George has the a trio, which are ranked in the top 5 courses in South Africa with The Links at Fancourt even going back and forth with Leopards Creek for number 1 in the Country.

Knysna has Simola and Pezula which are incredible.

 

If you also come through Port Elizabeth, we have the only true links in Africa Humewood Golf Club which is ranked number 9, and the St Francis Links which is very nearby which is ranked number 4 in the country.

 

Just a list for your future adventure down south

 

Whereabouts are you from?

 

Just now, Dylann_Chapman said:

Ah that’s a shame, those are really beautiful cities. 
 

When you come back, give George and Knysna a visit. They have some of the best courses in the country.

George has the a trio, which are ranked in the top 5 courses in South Africa with The Links at Fancourt even going back and forth with Leopards Creek for number 1 in the Country.

Knysna has Simola and Pezula which are incredible.

 

If you also come through Port Elizabeth, we have the only true links in Africa Humewood Golf Club which is ranked number 9, and the St Francis Links which is very nearby which is ranked number 4 in the country.

 

Just a list for your future adventure down south

 

Whereabouts are you from?

 

Those are really beautiful cities *with great courses