Vokey Wedge Fit App - 2024 Forum Review

[GolfSpy_APH]

Can 15 minutes and 15 swings make for better wedge play? This is what the Vokey Wedge Fitting app aims to do. Traditionally, wedge fittings are best made outside on grass, in the rough, and especially out of bunkers to see what wedges best fit your game. Between loft and grind options, wedges are one of the more complicated areas of golf, and getting it wrong can make the game a whole lot harder than it already is.

How Does This Work? 

The Vokey Wedge Fitting app, unlike other online apps, is an in-person fitting where a fitter can match you into the ideal loft, bounce, and grind combinations in a matter of 15 minutes. This starts with a player interview to go over your game and tendencies, followed by the hitting portion of the fitting session. Here, you will take a series of shots where the app will calculate the best options for you based on the launch monitor data provided.

Key areas that are focused on are a player’s angle of attack and shaft lean at impact. Combining these data points with the various shots they hit (roughly 15 in total) is enough for the Vokey Wedge Fitting app to provide a full assessment of what wedges the golfer should be using.

The Testing Opportunity 

Don’t worry; there is more to this test than just the app and fitting experience. We want four testers to go through the Vokey Wedge Fitting app with a certified Titleist fitter and share their experience, including what it was like and how accurate they feel the results were. The testers will then receive the wedges chosen by the app to put them through on-course testing to see how the results match up.

We want to know if this could really replace a full wedge fitting. Can an indoor wedge fitting on a mat with only 15 swings really be just as good as an outdoor fitting? Let’s find out.

Please welcome and congratulate our testers

@yungkory 

@Siamese Moose 

@Bad Golfer 

@ClevelandGirl

 

[yungkory]

Vokey Wedge Fit App – Official MGS Forum Review by Yungkory

Introduction

Shoutout to the mod squad for selecting me to review!

For those who don't already know me, my name is Kory and I'm blessed to call Hawaii my home. I am 38 and work in the tech industry. I have recently become a father for the first time when my wife and I welcomed our first child into the family in 2021. I have been playing golf to some extent since I was nearly his age (almost 3) and I'm slowly trying to introduce the game to him, in hopes that he enjoys it and wants to hang out with dad at the course. Surely, SWMBO (a term I learned on MGS) can't get upset about more golf then, right?

I took an extended leave from golf after high school, for reasons unknown. I guess I just got to that age where I wanted to do my own stuff, and that stuff was mostly surfing, working, and wasting money taking courses at college without any direction in life. My friends finally nagged me enough to get me back onto the course, and the bug got me. Shortly after that round I found myself online looking at new clubs, and stumbled upon the forums -- the rest is history!

My game is a mix of flashes of brilliance, mixed with some real WTF moments -- I guess that's likely true for most of us who play this incredibly difficult/frustrating game that we all somehow love. I will typically threaten shooting in the 70s and then make double bogey on one of the last few holes to shoot an 80-81. My PB is 75 which I have shot what seems to be an infinite number of times without ever going a single stroke lower. My strengths are that I'm decently above average off of the tee, and my weakness is everything near/around the green. A lot of my issues around the green are compounded by not playing as often as I was pre-fatherhood, so the "touch" shots aren't there anymore. Hoping I can get back into the groove over the coming weeks while I test the app/wedges!

I have been fit for my entire bag to some extent, sans wedges. My current wedges were actually from the RTX4 test we did on the forums years back! Online tools excite me as a computer/data nerd. I thought about if an app could replace an in-person fitting like at a Truespec or Club Champion, and for me, since wedge shots aren't always full swing, it could be pretty accurate if you're honest with your answers? Excited to get on these practice greens and find out. If you've ever heard of a wedge, you've likely heard of Vokey, and combined with the results from the SM10 forum test, I couldn't be more stoked to get these in my hands.

Unboxing / First Impressions

FITTING DAY! Scheduling with my local rep was a breeze. Upon arrival I warmed up a bit with my wedges until I felt like I was ready to rock. My fitter, Jarryd, was super pleasant and definitely one of the best local brand reps I've dealt with so shoutout to you if you're reading this!

Prior to the fitting, we all had a little fun and used the online tool, results below if you didn't see them in the thread:

This is pretty standard across the board I think, especially since there are pretty generic questions with 1-4 answers to choose from. The actual fitting starts very similarly with a couple of additions, the biggest being launch monitor data from Trackman.

This is a picture of the process you'll go through with the Vokey Wedge Fit App and your fitter. We rank the shots you hit most often with each club. The 46 and 50 have no options because, well, I don't hit anything other than full shots with them. Note: these aren't my exact rankings this was before I weighted the list.

After you rank the shots, the app asks you to hit 3 of each -- you can see the breakdown of the shots I hit below. On the left, it has which type of shot, and on the right, the result. Finally, it also tells you what it recommends for grinds/bounce based off of your delivery. Bonus, it also does gapping for you for full swing clubs. It was interesting that it said I had a small gap from PW to GW, but it was fine with a 10y gap from GW to SW (yes, I know 119-111 is 8). I know my distances, and I have a 10y gap on the course, but if you're unsure then this might be useful to help finetune your wedge gaps! You can clearly see that the online tool and the Vokey Wedge Fit App are pretty close, but not exact, which instantly adds value to the app in my opinion. O, F, P in the middle graph stands for open-face, full swing, and pitch.

The app moves on and shows you the recommended grinds, a match percentage, and why it chose those grinds for you.

Okay, I apologize in advance for the quality of this next picture. It was hot, humid, and taking pictures of a tablet/computer screen with a phone is never great. After the app did its thing, we moved on to building the wedge up to spec and dialing in a shaft. 

I was fit for Steelfiber shafts in my irons and unfortunately, we didn't have it available, but I generally have a feel at this point for what can work for me so I asked for something in the 105g range and we settled on DG 105 Wedge shafts. My clubs are also .5" longer from standard so I asked if we could try that out as well, and I liked it. (don't look at the numbers on the last shot I hit, I hit it way skinny ). Working with the built-up wedges we tried the same shots again to test whether or not the recommendations fit my club delivery conditions. The 50 and 54 were pretty spot on and I was happy with them. The 58 was the only club where we deviated from what the app recommended. I felt that the M grind felt a bit better on short chip shots. To be fair, it recommended the M grind as well, but the D grind was higher confidence match. We placed the order on the spot and then came the waiting game which we all love, don't we?

 

 

I don't think I even need to say anything and we'll just let the pictures speak for themselves. LOOK AT THEM THANGS! Raw > any other finish. FIGHT ME!

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

With a few practice sessions, two full rounds, and a scramble tournament's worth of playing with these wedges, I give the app a solid 9/10. Nothing is perfect, but I think Vokey's wedge fitting app is pretty close. At the very least, it's a really solid place for your Titleist fitter to start. With the exception of the 58* we stuck to what the app recommended, and even then, I likely could've stayed with the D grind that was a "higher" match and been perfectly fine. I have no doubt in my mind that the app hasn't picked the best bounces/grinds for my game and that any performance issues will be because I'm in the driver seat.

Edited September 26 by yungkory

[Siamese Moose]

I feel extremely fortunate to be selected for this test. A big "Thank You" to both MGS and Titleist for this opportunity!

My name is Rob Westendorf, I'm 64, retired, and I live in Cincinnati (on the Pebble Creek GC, if you know the area). I played a little in my 20s, but started playing regularly in my 30s (1990s). This past April I started a full bag fitting (3 sessions, at least that was the plan). I ended up with Ping i530 irons, and only hosel adjustments to my woods. We put off the wedge fitting until the irons came in, so we could do a better job on the gapping. However, before that fitting took place I broke my shoulder (and missed the Kings Mill outing!), and only a few weeks ago returned to playing. This opportunity could not be better timed for me! I currently have a 9.4 index, but with my layoff the rust is showing, and I fear I will soon be a double digit handicapper again . My current wedges are Taylor Made Milled Grind (original), 50° (bent to 48°), 54° (bent to 52°), and 58°. The two wedges were bent strong after a year or so to get better gapping. I'm hoping to get the gaps right the first time with this fitting. All are 2° flat. Short game is one of my strengths, but I was already looking for a LW with more heel relief, so I'm really curious to see what grind(s) get picked. My testing plans include Trackman data on both the old and new wedges, lots of time around a few different practice greens, and, of course, on the course. I have been extremely happy with the MG wedges, so there's a high bar of performance for these Vokeys to stay in the bag. The real test will be with the lob wedge around the green, especially opening up the face. I've only casually followed the existing Vokey test thread, so I will go back and read it from the beginning to see if I can glean any insights, or find specific things I need to test for myself. In my regular foursome I'm the only one not already playing Vokey wedges, and the guys regularly give me grief. I'm expecting some serious smack talk when I show up with these! I expect to get my fitting booked as quickly as possible, as soon as we get the details from Titleist. 

Thanks again to MGS and Titleist! I could not be happier to be picked for this test.

Here we go... (Not yet complete, the clubs have not yet arrived)

This review is not at all going to be what I thought it would when I applied for it. That’s not a good or bad thing, but the results were highly interesting to me anyway. First things first, my thanks go to MyGolfSpy and Titleist for giving me this opportunity. It’s been quite fun!

The Vokey Wedge Fitting App is an in-person fitting system for Titleist' Vokey wedges. It takes their online wedge selection tool and expands it with Trackman data. The pitch is 15 swings, 15 minutes, indoors, and it can tell you your optimum wedge selections. Right off, we didn’t test this indoors, we took way more than 15 swings, and we used up nearly an hour. Frankly, that’s a very good thing, as I learned far more about the app, and wedges in general, than I think I could have learned in 15 minutes inside. 

First thing, my most important finding: This app is NOT intended to be used by or replace professional fitters! Professionals could use it, but I suspect most will not. The target user is Johnny Highschooler working at a big box (sporting goods) retailer. He may not have any fitting training, but with this app, if he does what it tells him to, there’s a very good chance it’s going to get the customer into the right wedges. Maybe not absolutely perfect, but pretty damn close, and I’m impressed. 

Now, about my fitting…

My fitter was Joshua Bergbacher. Josh is a Titleist Fitting Specialist, and I was really impressed by his knowledge and his ability to see things in my swing that I didn’t think anyone could see with the naked eye. The fitting was held outdoors at the City of Mason Golf Center (Cincinnati area), and I was back-to-back with Golfspy_Ben. Each of us was present while the other was fitted, so we got to see the process twice. Spoiler: it didn’t have us do the same things. 

 

We started by answering the same questions as are found in the online fitting questionnaire. If you’re going to have this fitting done, I suggest going through the online tool beforehand. I did just that, and it recommended three wedges for me. (Note: the online selector appears to have changed. When I first did it it gave me first and second choices, and the reasons why. Now that information no longer appears. It does show when you get the fitting through the app.)

Going through these questions with Josh, he asked things that made me change my answers. He asked what courses I play, mostly public vs. private, how much I travel, etc. I would have answered medium soft fairways and slightly firm bunkers. He changed that to medium fairways and firm bunkers because of my course answers. My perception of the firmness scale is apparently not accurately calibrated. I have a 43° pitching wedge, and want to use a 58° wedge as my highest loft, so it suggested we start with a 48° gap wedge in the F grind (I’m assuming F is for fairway. Titleist has a great explainer of their grinds on line.).

 

On the first swing the app looks at the clubhead angle of approach to suggest grind and bounce, and it stuck with the F grind recommendation with 10° of bounce. (This is the same recommendation the online tool made.) Subsequent swings confirm the loft. What the app does not do, is consider landing angle, clubhead lie, or make any shaft recommendations. Josh does consider all of those things, and we made extra swings to consider that detail. My swing is very much a sweeper, so my dynamic loft is high and I don’t spin it so much. Josh said my ball flight was higher than optimum (never thought I’d hear that!), and my landing angle steeper than optimum, 42° vs an optimum of about 37°, but that steepness makes up for my lower spin, so it’s probably the best choice for me. Once the app has picked a spec, it does list at least one alternative. It gives a percentage fit score, and marks the priorities that it fits the best. It shows the same for the second choice. In this case it showed a 100% fit for the F grind. The K grind was the second pick, but at only a 2% match. Yeah, I think I know what I want here! Josh said he often does try other specs with people. At the very least it can confirm the choice, but also sometimes players find that they prefer something other than the initial recommendation. There was no need for that with this club.

Wedge Swing

The second club up was the sand wedge. The online tool, with my apparently wrong turf and bunker settings, had suggested 54° S grind with 10° of bounce. Having changed those answers, it now suggested 54° M grind with 8° of bounce. (The M grind is slightly wider than the S, with more relief in the heel and toe, and is claimed to be better suited to shallower swings like mine.) The M grind felt great immediately, and the app would stop there. However, the app also had the M grind as only a 55% match, and the S as 45%. The app would not have had me try the S grind, but Josh did have me try it. It was not bad, but I did prefer the M.

Last up was the lob wedge. In the past when I had a 60° wedge it cost me more strokes than it saved, and I’ve been pretty proficient with the 58° I have. Both the app and the online tool ask you what the highest loft you feel comfortable with, so I was never going to consider anything but 58°. The suggested club, both online and in the app, was 58° M grind with 8° of bounce. Since in the questionnaire I answered that I don’t use this club for full shots, it didn’t ask me to hit any. It just wanted some 20-30 yard pitch shots. The app doesn’t say, but Josh said I should open the face slightly for this shot. Here’s where having Josh there was a huge plus: I had a bad case of the shanks that day. Josh is also a teacher, and he had me adjust my ball position a bit more forward, and boom!, perfect results. Interestingly, it did not ask me to hit anything but these short pitches, but Josh had me open it up and see how I liked that to confirm the grind pick. In Ben’s fitting, he does hit full shots with his lob wedge, so it had him hit that first, and also asked him to hit a full blown flop shot. It didn’t ask me for that. Maybe it has some clairvoyance to know that I suck at that shot! The app showed a 65% match for the M grind, while the second choice was the K grind, but again at only a 2% match. I’m beginning to get the idea that my sweeper swing doesn’t match up well to wedge play in general.

This is where the app fitting ends. In a retail store you’d walk over to the rack, pick up your clubs and be done. The app does not suggest anything related to lie angle or shaft. However, for what I think the typical Golf Galaxy or Dick’s customer is like, they want to pick up the club right away and be out the door. Standard lie is probably the best for most people, and the “Vokey shaft” (DG 120 S200) is a great overall choice. It’s what I have in my current (soon to be past) Taylor Made MG wedges. For that situation I think the app shines! It clearly improves upon relying on the customer understanding all of the wedge and bounce nuances, and it lets the fitting be done by someone other than an expert. For that situation I give the app 5 stars. What I would like to see added is that it would print out or, preferably, email you a full summary of your fitting, and include an explanation of the specs chosen. I did get a copy of the final specs, but only on the confirmation of the final order. If you’re taking them off the rack I don’t think you get this (maybe you can request it, I don’t know).

My fitting didn’t end there. Josh gave us the full fitting experience, and my wedges will come 1° flat, and with a different shaft (UST Recoil 95 R flex graphite). Amazingly, he was able to stand behind us and see in real time what our lie angle should be. We also talked for quite a while about what changes would be appropriate when traveling to other regions. For instance, if I went to either Florida or the coast he suggested I change to the T grind, which is Vokey’s narrowest sole with only 4° of bounce. In his words, if I use a high bounce wedge in those places “You’ll scull it all over the course.”

Temporary Conclusion (until the clubs arrive and get used)

The app is a pretty cool piece of programming that should be able to turn a minimally trained store worker into a decent fitter for a Vokey wedge. I say “should” as opposed to “can”, because I haven’t seen it used in that situation. However, I’m confident that I could use it, and I don’t really consider myself qualified to work in a golf store. Now, one question in my mind: Is that store going to charge you for the fitting? If so, how much? If you go into the store and know you want Vokey wedges, fine, it’s great. However, in my area the going rate for a wedge fitting indoors is $40 to $50 (always free with purchase), and that’s a brand agnostic fitting that also includes lie, length, and shaft fitting. The premium green grass fitters charge $100 (again, free with purchase) that is, again, brand agnostic, and includes all the specs listed above, plus walking over to the short game area to hit chips, pitches, flops, bunker shots, or anything important to you. I haven’t bought a club from anybody but a green grass fitter (in my case, Miles of Golf, Cincinnati) in over a decade, and before that, while they were indoor fittings, I went to a nationally renowned fitter (Dana Upshaw, Warner Robins, GA, sadly deceased). I don’t see myself going into a big box store and buying any club unless it’s an emergency replacement. If you’re going into a Golf Galaxy-level store, why wouldn’t you get their regular (brand agnostic) fitting? The only scenario I see for this app is, 1. You’re going to a sporting goods store, and 2. You’re wedded to Vokey. (There is nothing wrong with being wedded to Vokey! I know some very good players who will never consider anything else.) In that scenario, it’s five stars, 100/100, A+. But I still wouldn’t use it.

Update: The Clubs Have Arrived

I hope that all of you have experienced (and will again soon!) that sweet feeling of a box on the doorstep. I tried to get a nice unboxing picture, but I have cats, and they quickly claim any opened box. Unfortunately, this whole process has taken far longer than I expected, and I’ve had very little time with the clubs before I have to finish this. (Titleist’ new driver release got in the way of their time.) My testing time has been cursed: I took the clubs to the range right away, but the grass areas (including the bunkers) were closed for aerating. Yesterday I picked a course to play specifically because it has a practice bunker - it rained hard overnight (first rain in five weeks) and the bunker was full of water. My use has been two rounds, and about 20 minutes total around the practice green, and one range session off of mats. On to (limited) results:

I think the gapping was easy to get right. I have found that using Toptracer with range balls produces distance anywhere from 5 to 15 yards short of what I get on the course, though with wedges it’s closer than the irons. Using Toptracer my PW (Ping i530, 42.5°) was 125 yards (much closer to 130 with good balls), the Vokey gap wedge (48°) was 105 yards, the sand wedge (54°) was 93 yards, and though I don’t use the lob (58°) for full shots, I did test it that way for this review, 77 yards. The gaps are therefore 20, 12, and 16 yards. Not perfectly spaced, but not bad. (Forgive the lousy picture quality, but the lighting on the Toptracer monitor was awful for a phone camera.) That 20 yard gap from PW to GW is due to my PW being so strongly lofted, but the set matching GW (UW, as Ping calls it, 47.5°) was longer at 109 yards. I will need more time to decide which gap wedge stays in the bag, but I’ll admit that I really like the feel of the Ping, so it’s the leader in the clubhouse.

My three clubs have two different grinds. The 48° is the F grind, 10° bounce, “The F grind is an all-purpose grind particularly suited for full shots and shots hit with a square face.” That perfectly describes how I use it. I am really pleased with how it works on full shots. I do not pitch with this club, but I do use it for longer chips. It clearly outperforms the Ping GW for those shots, meaning I have to decide if around the green of full shots is more important to me for this wedge. I can’t answer that yet.

Both the sand and lob wedges are M grind, 8° bounce, “The M grind is designed for players that like to rotate the club face open and closed to manufacture shots around the green. Ideal for players with a shallower, more sweeping swing type who play shots from a variety of clubface positions.” That shallower, sweeping swing describes me well, and this is pretty much the only grind for sweepers. For full shots it’s right on point, at least in southwest Ohio turf conditions. (New grooves did shred a couple of balls that required instant retirement.) Around the green it’s a little less bounce than I’m used to, so I need some practice time for opening up the lob wedge. In tighter lies it’s already good, but I’m not getting through thick lies very well yet. I think it’s going to be fine, but it’s too early to pass judgment. I have a grand total of two bunker shots in my testing, one each with the sand and lob wedges, and both were from much fluffier sand than I typically encounter. At least for this sand, the results were awesome. I’d love to get more testing to report here, but the deadline is at hand, and I won’t play again for at least three weeks.

Final Final Conclusion and Rating

I stand by what I wrote in my original conclusion: the app is awesome for use when you know that you want Vokey wedges, and your fitter isn’t an experienced pro. If you get your answers right, the online questionnaire is also really good. But there’s the rub, “if you get your answers right.” I think I’m pretty experienced (playing 40+ years), but my fitter changed my answers. The online question has a click button that produces a pop up for more info on “Understanding fairway conditions” and one for “Understanding bunker conditions”, and the explanations are good, but I didn’t notice it at all the first time. I think Titleist should force you to read it before answering. Beyond that, any mistakes are purely on me, but if I’m making a mistake, the questionnaire isn’t being fully successful.

I really like the clubs, but there’s a lingering doubt in my mind. I was fitted for wedges twice before, ending up first with Cleveland and then with Taylor Made. In each case, because we tested different manufacturers I was confident that I had the best choice for my game. Now, I didn’t try anything else, so I can’t help but wonder if I might have ended up with a different vendor if I’d done a brand agnostic fitting. I can fully understand why Titleist (or any OEM) would want to limit their efforts to their brand, but I’ll be going to an independent fitter next time.

Putting a final rating on this is not as straightforward as I would like. If I understand the intent of the app correctly, to make a proper rating I would prefer to go through a second fitting, but this time doing it the way the app is intended: 15 minutes, 15 swings, indoors, at a retail store. I would compare this to the comprehensive outdoor fitting that I actually received. If I got the same answers, it would clearly be 10 out of 10. But keeping in mind that my fitter changed my answers, which changed my results, there’s still an element of skill required from the fitter. If I had the time, there’s a Dick’s less than 5 minutes from me. I’d go over and see if they could do it. I also know the guy who runs their golf section, and he’s a PGA pro. If he’s the guy who does the fitting, I’m confident we’d get good results, so it would still be 10 out of 10. The doubt about the qualifications of any other fitter lingers. I’ve never had an indoor fitting at a golf store. I’ve only read stories from people who’ve had great results, as well as some people who were quite unhappy. For that reason, I’m giving a final rating of 8 out of 10. If I had the chance to do more research, that number might move up.

If you got to this point in this long winded dissertation, thanks for reading, and thanks again to My Golf Spy and Titleist for this very informative and overall fun opportunity!

Edited September 25 by Siamese Moose
Update

[Bad Golfer]

First I would like to Thank MGS and Titleist for this testing and review opportunity!

My name is John and 46 years old. I live just North of Harrisburg Pa. I am a pipe welder for a steel mill / mechanical maintenance. I'm married with a daughter who is currently living her best life in college.

I have only been playing golf for 5 years with the last 3 being a ridiculous addition. I even joined my local course playing as much as possible. 

I have gone all in trying to master hitting this little ball into the hole and practice or play in pretty much all of my spare time. I have gone all in with making a platform to hit off of to buying a net and a Garmin R 10 launch monitor to try too hone my skills. The thing that I have noticed with golf is that one day you can strike your irons great and then the next day it is like you never even swung a golf club before. It makes the game exciting and frustrating at the same time. Some days I'm on the course thinking about all the stuff I could be getting done at home but what can I say I'm addicted. 

My typical scores are in the upper 80's with a low score of 83. I have shot 84 a bunch of times but have also shot a 84 one day and the next day shot a 95.

I'm definitely looking forward to the fitting process and seeing if the proper wedge grinds and lofts will help with my approach shots and getting the ball tighter to the pin. Right now my wedges are a bit of a mix and match with my approach wedge being a stock Srixon Zx5. I use the approach wedge for full shots from 115 yards out. My sand wedge is a Mizuno Jpx 921. I use that wedge for basically any shot from 105 yards into 40 yards and also out of the sand. The other sand wedge I use is a Cleveland Zipcore 56 degree that I have been using because the grooves are a little better than the Mizuno sand wedge and I can get the ball to stop a little quicker with it. I don't use it out of the sand because the sand that I play in is firm and my goto sand shot is basically picking the ball and when I address the ball with the Zipcore it looks like I will blade it. I also struggle hitting full shots with the Zipcore because the bounce doesn't match up with my swing. 

My fingers are crossed that the Vokey fitting and Vokey wedges are going to make my approach even better! Also I think it will make me much more consistent having matching Vokey wedges.

I have been fitted for irons last year but I have never had a wedge fitting. I'm looking forward to see how accurate the wedge fitting app that everyone can do compares to what the app and in person fitting and the results that the fitter comes up with for me.

Vokey Wedge App And In Person Fitting Summery 

My fitting took place at Lebanon Country Club. The place is absolutely beautiful and is fully setup with a full driving range with mats and grass to hit off of as well as a putting green. It also has another practice green for chipping off of the fairway, out of the rough, and also a greenside bunker to hit out of. This course is definitely above my pay grade. Lol

My fitter is Titleist Premier Fitter Michael Parker. I can't say enough good things about Michael as he definitely knows his stuff. Michael is at the computer while fitting another Gentleman for a driver.

He started off the fitting by looking at my miss match of wedges I was using. I could only imagine what he was thinking. Lol 

He then asked me what I use each wedge for and then we looked up the lofts. He then had me hit full shots with my pitching wedge and my approach wedge. I would say about 3 to 5 shots each. (He explained the reason for this was for gapping purposes).

Hitting The Vokey Wedges For The First Time

Micheal handed me a 50.08 F. I was striping it right away. Dispersion was tighter than my factory approach wedge. He then hesitantly gave me a 50.12 to try we knew right away the first choice was right. He than handed me a 54.10 S. He had me go through all of the shots I would do with the club. Full swing chips and pitches. He also put a towel 15 yards out in front of me to act as a landing spot. The weird thing is that I kept hitting the ball over the towel because my contact was so much better then my factory sand wedge. The last club he picked for me is a 58.08 M. At first he had me hit a few flop shots and chips off of the grass and then popping the ball out of the rough. Then we hoped in a cart and went over to the chipping green with the greenside bunker. He had me hit some shots out of the sand with a open face and then he had packed down the sand to mimic my normal shot  with a square face. I pretty much have to pick the ball out of the sand at my local course as the sand is mostly rock had and pretty darn stoney.

Holy Cow Moment 

I have never hit out of any sand so easily and I was amazed as I watched my ball check on a downhill slope no matter if it was open face or picking the ball out of hard pack. That was also with range balls and not a premium Pro V1X that i was hitting on the range. He did bring another club to try out of the sand but there was definitely no purpose after the results with his first choice. 

Going Through The Vokey App

At this point we headed back to the fitting tent. This is when we started to through the app. He asked me the questions and he also filled out some of them himself after seeing my swing and tendencies. He also explained course conditions and what the app was really looking for.

Example: When I filled out the Vokey Fitting App when I was first selected I had the fairway conditions at firm as well as the bunker conditions. He explained to me that firm conditions in the app would mean a super dry area like Arizona or maybe New Mexico. Although my conditions were definitely dry this summer because of a slight drought it is not always that way. 

Quick tip!

When you fill out the app select the course conditions based on the majority of the time vs. what you are currently seeing at your most played course. Also if you play many different courses you might want to stay on a more medium/neutral level.

With all that said what I had first picked when I went though the Vokey App by myself didn't exactly match what the trained eye of Michael had picked for me. This was my first shot at the app. It picked the first 2 clubs perfectly and the last club was the other club that Michael had ready for me to hit out of the sand but I had hit the 58.08 M so well that there was no reason to try it.

After watching my swing and going through the app with me the skilled eye of Michael proved to be just as good as the app. The clubs that he choose and had me hit were matched up with what the Vokey app said. He said that the only time there would be any question is if the app came up with around a 50% match or so. I did take 2 sand wedges over to the bunker and the first one that Michael picked for me based on my swing was a 52% match and I hit it so well there was no point in hitting the other one. Michael also showed me some of the other wedge grinds and told me some of them were a "niche grind" like the T grind they are offering now. By the way he said a T grind is pretty much for the Pros to use. These are the selected wedges that Michael and the app chose for me.

Overall Experience So Far

I had a exceptional time getting fit. Michael was top notch and really knew what he was doing. For him to be able to select the clubs that that Vokey App actually fit me into was pretty exceptional in my opinion. That did take proper understanding of how to answer the questions on the Vokey app properly. I'm looking forward to the next part of the review once the new wedges are in!

The Vokeys Have Arrived 

Here's a few pictures of how they arrived. They arrived in perfect condition and are packed very well.

Here is a few pictures of the Vokeys after 4 rounds and some practice in the yard

So far the Vokeys have been outstanding. The 50 and 54 are just point and shoot. Im still getting used to the 58 but in all they are fantastic. The only disappointing thing is the black finish is wearing pretty quickly but i can live with that. Im 100 percent confident that these wedges will improve my game and lower my scores!

Final Thoughts On The Vokey Wedge Fitting App and Rating is a 9/10!

I believe you can trust the Vokey Wedge App to properly pick out your next set of wedges! The main things that would hinder the proper club selection by the App would be inputting wrong course conditions or how you would use each wedge. You have to make sure that you choose the most common course conditions that you would tend to play in throughout the year and not based on your courses current condition. Also keep in mind if you play many different courses the conditions may be very different than your most frequently played course so you should select more neutral options when it asks for course conditions. 

Thank you Titleist and MGS for the opportunity for this review!

 

Edited September 26 by Bad Golfer
Final Review

[ClevelandGirl]

Land the Plane, You’re Circling (or TL;DR)

If the app is to be used as a baseline for a fitting, then it’s probably a decent place to start. However I’ve seen this app advertised all over socials and I get the impression from the ads that it will choose your wedge for you without fuss or muss. So I’m not really clear on the purpose. In my case, the app did not accurately predict the wedges, not even close. Results were iffy no matter how you scored them. Either 2 of the 3 clubs were incorrect, or 4 of the 9 criteria were off, meaning only 57% correct. My experience says have human eyes check out your swing. 

Intro to A Perfectly Imperfect Average Golfer

Hey ya’all, thank you for the trust you’ve given me to review the fitting app and its effectiveness. I’m eager to get started! 
 

A bit about me: I learned to play in my 40s in the Tennessee foothills, and have been golfing regularly for about 7-8 years. I moved to NE Ohio to be closer to my favorite golfing buddy, and have been adopted by his entire family, including his in laws and his brother. I play 2-3 times a week, including a practice session on a friend’s sim. I do have to say Cleveland Metroparks will spoil you for municipal courses - they’re excellently maintained.

By nearly all metrics, I am a perfectly average golfer, if shorter than average. My scores range in the 90s, with an occasional slip to triple digits or at a difficult course. My goal this year is to break 90, and ultimately, play about half my rounds scoring in the 80s. I do work at golf, and practice. I treated myself to a full bag fitting over the winter and, after a painful adjustment period that did involve actual tears, I’m reaping those benefits. 90 is within my grasp!

(one of my fave tees on Stonehenge in Fairfield Glade, TN)

I asked my regular playing partner today what he thought my strengths were, expecting to hear off the tee. His response was “no, it’s your sense of humor and your optimism. It’s why everyone adores playing with you because you keep them in the right frame of mind.” I would rather have that label than breaking 90. Thanks Dave.

Strengths and Weaknesses

I am good off the tee - average drive now at 188 with a long of 221, and my last 15 rounds has an FIR of 64%. I don’t carry woods but my hybrids make up the slack. When I don’t think, I play well, so when I get around the green, things tend to fall apart a bit. 70 yards in, things get a bit sketchy and putting is a little tricky. Course management is also a weakness but I’m learning to talk it out on the course. If I’m going to break 90, these areas have to be improved. 

(The view from the red tees)

Expections: Skeptical Mind is Skeptical
And here is where the Vokey wedges are going to have their work cut out! I’ve been through a full bag fitting, so I know the grind it is - pun very much intended. I am skeptical an online app and a few swings will sort my game, but I’ve also heard great things about Vokey. I am a novice to the world of lofts and grinds and bounce - I just turned in my full beginner’s set of S and P clubs for proper 54* and 58* Cleveland RTX Zipcores this spring, and it’s made me have to think, damnit. My plan is to use my trusty Shot Scope to track my short game play on the course, and I will use my average scores to see if these wedges solve my short game issues. I will of course practice, though it’ll be old school non technical data and more dependent on feel and ability to hit the mark I’m aiming for and control roll out to the pin.
 

I have heard marvelous things about Vokey wedges, and I’m beyond eager to get my hands on them. I’ll conclude this intro with a few unpopular opinions, because as my friend Tall Brian says, I talk a lot of smack for someone who could drown in the 5’ end of the pool. Unpopular opinions: Love Actually is a terrible movie, Girl Scout cookies are disgusting (don’t come at me with Thin Mints, they’re mint flavored cardboard dipped in cheap chocolate), and rust does not belong on golf clubs.

*runs away ducking, thinking they’ll never ask me back again 

 

Thusly the Review Begins

Testing the App: Fitting Day

Pre Fitting Thoughts

My scientific mind has been working on this conundrum since I was chosen. We aren’t testing wedges here, we’re testing an app. The advertisement is “15 minutes, 15 swings” and so I tried to go in with zero expectations. I am a huge proponent of club fitting, and was skeptical of the app’s abilities. I am aware of observational bias so I did try to keep an open mind despite my reservations - I have no problems admitting I’m wrong.

I spent 6 years playing with just an S wedge until a year ago when I treated myself to a wedge fitting- I joke I took the training wheels off my bag by getting a big girl set of wedges. I am still settling in with them to be fair, since I was used to using my trusty S for every shot. And after getting a 54 and a 58, despite my P being 43, I don’t have a gap at that end of the bag. I’m finally getting to the point where I’m not thinking and instinct (feel) is taking over club choice.
 

So how is an app going to choose “feel” clubs for someone? And if we’re testing the app, shouldn’t I just get the 3 wedges the app says and see if they work for me? I played for 6 years with just a sand wedge so surely I can get used to anything? I very much appreciate Titleist making sure I have the right clubs but I don’t think that’s necessarily the best test. Regardless, that’s not my job here.

Getting To Work

I met Jason Fernandez while he was still setting up his tent at Sweetbriar Golf Club, where I’m afraid I brought the property value down. I trotted out my push cart since my bag is a bit unsteady and he requested I bring my full set of Frankenclubs. Two degrees of separation: he knows my club fitter, not surprisingly. After a few warm up swings off a mat at the outdoor range, we settled in for some work.

A Full Fitting, Not the App

Jason did all the work on the app - I saw the backside of his industrial strength laptop. Like the vast majority of golfers, I don’t carry a cap and I’m not entirely sure he believed me when I said I shoot mid 90s. You can see the app questions yourself with a quick trip to the Vokey site, but the only questions I answered were about my confidence out of the sand (low) and that I don’t take divots.
The app spat out the same results I received when I tried the app online: 48.10F, 54.10S, and 58.12D. The app said the 48 was a 100% match - foreshadowing! - with 88% and 75% respectively for the last two. Makes sense, with a 43 P, for gapping and when I said I didn’t think I needed a 60. 

With my freakishly long fingers, I actually play with “regular” grips so the fitting was easier for both me and Jason - one criterion removed. I brought my iron shaft specs (Fujikura Vista Pro, “senior” flex, 50g, swing weight C4, 0.5” cut down) and my wedges are Recoil 65s. I was supposed to swap out the wedge shafts to match my iron set as my club fitter recommends but by the time I got my new iron set, I was settled in with the Recoils and saved myself a few bucks. Jason tried to match my iron shafts but alas I have become used to the extra weight and we agreed the Recoils were best.
 

We got Trackman data from my current clubs and I apologize for not having more data but my anxiety started to kick in on the busy Saturday so I was concentrating on swings. A complete newbie was taking a lesson in the bays behind me and let’s just say the word “slice” did not do that curve justice, and in front of me were two unruly young boys waving sticks around, so I was bit afraid of getting hit by either a ball or a wayward club. 
 

Jason at least managed to stay on course, and almost immediately he swapped out the app’s 100% match 48 for a 50, due to distance and my swing shape. Before you shout “but the gapping!” remember I have no gapping between my current 43 P and 54. Apparently I must be different at all times. 
 

I quite liked the feel of the half swings with the Vokeys but I didn’t see a discernible difference in results. Jason with the Trackman data of course was paying attention to spin and launch, but he was also safely tucked under his tent out of the line of fire. I would have liked to have my Shoei handy to be fair. Unlike when I was fitted for my driver, there was no Harry Potter gets his wand moment. They were just nice wedges with a nice feel. Perhaps that was because I have a set fit to my needs already so there was nothing radically different.
 

Settled on Jason’s three choices, we braved the mud and puddles to troop over to the chipping green, and it’s here, gentle reader, where my wheels fell off. Whether it was Jason’s bag of ProV1s (which I’ve never gotten along with) or something else, I could not get it together to see any results. A 10’ chip to the green should have been relatively simple. A modicum of success from even rank beginners would be expected. Jason tried to coach - “you’re really wristy so try to keep the arms straight” - so I had to step back and get my head back in the game. I did tell Jason I was completely off and this was really weird and unusual but I’m not sure he believed me.

The next day, I relayed this tale of woe to my regular cartners and received a terrifically comic set of incredulous expressions. “Wristy? You’re the opposite of wristy. We’ve NEVER seen you wristy!” 

Anyway I had better success as we hunted around the green for Terrible Lies. Jason squashed a ball in the mud, I set the ball just after a large dandelion, he dropped into a divot, etc. I had a little better success and used my on course shot routine rather than a no-practice-swing swing. Maybe I just need to foot wedge my ball to a Terrible Lie as I seem to play those better.

Regardless, after shagging ProV1s, we returned to the tent and got the ordering sorted. Since they couldn’t fit “I swear by my pretty floral bonnet I will end you” on the wedge, mine will arrive un-personalized. I thanked Jason for such a great professional fitting and headed home, confused about the entire process.

My Humble About to be Unpopular Opinion of the App

It took me awhile to digest the experience. And scientific minds are gonna science. And as the resident newb to the site, I am probably shooting myself in the foot for future testing opportunities because I am the statistical outlier to this test, but I also strive to be honest, even about my golf game.

So here it is: I cannot recommend the app without an accompanying fitting based on my experience.

My results show the app doesn’t work. Whether that sentence should have “for everyone” or “for a perfectly average high cap golfer” or “for short opinionated girls” added to it, I’m not sure. Maybe I broke the Vokey app.

Per the app:

• 48.10F  100% match
• 54.10S  88% match
• 58.10D  75% match

Per human eyeballs:

• 50.08F
• 54.10S
• 58.08M

There’s two obvious ways to parse this data. Of the three clubs, the app only nailed one, or a 33% success rate. That feels really wrong, so there are three data points per club (loft, bounce, grind) so nine total choices. The app predicted 5 of 9, or 57% accuracy. Even the one that was supposed to be 100% match was only a 33% match.

Either way, for me it didn’t work.

I took the results to my regular club fitter, who has watched me play for the whole season at this point, and he immediately pointed to the 58. “The app was definitely wrong, I’d never use that grind for you.” He went on to say it was because I rarely take divots and even in the sand will still strike the ball as if it’s on the ground. He stands by his original fitting, which weren’t Vokey, but he and Jason have great respect between the two of them. Two sets of expert eyeballs right there, so it wasn’t just me.

I’m also having trouble with this as a test of the app. If the purpose of the app is a baseline for fitters, then it’s probably solid for the majority of golfers, and I just happen to be in the minority group. I received a full fitting, a full hour long fitting and not the “15 minute, 15 swings” as advertised. If the app is, as it seems to be being advertised elsewhere, a tool to purchase wedges by the end consumer without a fitting, it definitely needs some work for those of us who don’t quite get grind and bounce. It’s probably okay for a single digit cap who knows what they want.
 

My very humble opinion is the app probably is a good starting point or baseline, but an app doesn’t know your swing and certainly doesn’t pick out a proper shaft. A proper fitting with human eyeballs is the way to go. 

Unboxing Video Posted here:

Thoughts On Wedges

There was a back order on the Recoils and an unavoidable delay on me receiving the wedges. Between the (very welcome) rain and it being punched greens season, so far I’ve only been able to use them to “play” a course in Singapore on a sim with my “caddy” as I call my fave club fitter. The wedges are great for spin and getting the ball to stop, but it’s also technique - I can still hit a snot rocket with a Vokey. In fact I performed my patented three chip twice on the sim, which I can explain as I’m the type of golfer that requires time to get used to a new club. By the end of the session I was doing much better. 
 

Regardless, as I go I’ll keep updating on my progress. And whether I keep the rust off my club.

Final Thoughts and Grading

My initial thought was a snarky 57/100, which is the percentage of the bits the app correctly anticipated, however now I don’t think that’s a fair assessment. It all depends on the purpose of the app. If it’s to be used as a baseline for a human fitter, then it works for the majority of golfers, though I clearly am the minority and a statistical outlier. If that’s the case, then 7/10 but it’s really about the experience level of the fitter at that point.
 

If, however, the app is to be used to select wedges without a human fitting - as the ads I’ve seen on social and their own website hint - then I definitely can’t recommend it as it feels like guesswork based on the majority. Guesswork means coin flip, or 50-50, so it’s 5/10 and I suggest a proper fitting as a way to save hundreds you might lose on guesswork.

I also want to emphasize that these ratings are for the app and not the end product. I’m mildly concerned the build of my clubs was inconsistent but the wedges themselves are excellent.

 

It Was Nice Knowing You

This entire process has been a bloody brilliant experience. Jason is a top shelf club fitter, and couldn’t have been more professional and easy-going. It’s been fun to compare my experience with three strangers, and just like golf, we are four folks thrown together randomly for a shared delightful experience. One day I hope to meet @yungkory, @Bad Golfer, and @Siamese Moose and play a round with our Vokeys. 

I cannot properly convey my thanks to MGS for the opportunity, to Jamie for the guidance, to Titleist for the experience, and to Vokey for such excellent wedges, even if your app didn’t like me.

Looking forward to testing these wedges and, assuming I don’t get banned for my opinion, I will continue to update how they’re working for me and if they replace my current set. Apologies for the long winded post but if you’ve gotten this far, cheers mate.

Edited September 26 by ClevelandGirl

[TSauer]

Congratulations, everyone! I'm curious to hear how the fitting process goes!

[Josh Ross]

Congrats you guys! Excited to hear feedback on this!

Edited July 23 by Josh Ross

[rkj427]

Congratulations to this great diverse group of testers.

Looking forward to the comments and reviews of the fitting process and how they benefit your games.

[yungkory]

[Fongle]

Congrats testers! This will be a fun one to follow, really interested to see how the fitting process works out and how they perform for you

 

[MattWillGolf]

Congratulations testers. Looking forward to watching this one.

[bens197]

Congrats!! And a great group of testers

[sirchunksalot]

Congratulations! This is a great group of testers and it'll be interesting to hear how y'all get fit. 

[TJ Hall]

Congratulations testers!  Curious to see how the fittings turn out and if anything unexpected shows up.

[ParFore74x]

Congratulations testers! I’m definitely curious as to how this goes for all of you. 

[buckpillar]

13 hours ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

Can 15 minutes and 15 swings make for better wedge play? This is what the Vokey Wedge Fitting app aims to do. Traditionally, wedge fittings are best made outside on grass, in the rough, and especially out of bunkers to see what wedges best fit your game. Between loft and grind options, wedges are one of the more complicated areas of golf, and getting it wrong can make the game a whole lot harder than it already is.

How Does This Work? 

The Vokey Wedge Fitting app, unlike other online apps, is an in-person fitting where a fitter can match you into the ideal loft, bounce, and grind combinations in a matter of 15 minutes. This starts with a player interview to go over your game and tendencies, followed by the hitting portion of the fitting session. Here, you will take a series of shots where the app will calculate the best options for you based on the launch monitor data provided.

Key areas that are focused on are a player’s angle of attack and shaft lean at impact. Combining these data points with the various shots they hit (roughly 15 in total) is enough for the Vokey Wedge Fitting app to provide a full assessment of what wedges the golfer should be using.

The Testing Opportunity 

Don’t worry; there is more to this test than just the app and fitting experience. We want four testers to go through the Vokey Wedge Fitting app with a certified Titleist fitter and share their experience, including what it was like and how accurate they feel the results were. The testers will then receive the wedges chosen by the app to put them through on-course testing to see how the results match up.

We want to know if this could really replace a full wedge fitting. Can an indoor wedge fitting on a mat with only 15 swings really be just as good as an outdoor fitting? Let’s find out.

Please welcome and congratulate our testers

@yungkory 

@Siamese Moose 

@Bad Golfer 

@ClevelandGirl

 

Congratulations to all the testers

[GolfSpy_BEN]

Congrats to the testers! I’m interested in how the fitting aspect of this test, so I will be following along 

[Willie T]

13 hours ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

Can 15 minutes and 15 swings make for better wedge play? This is what the Vokey Wedge Fitting app aims to do. Traditionally, wedge fittings are best made outside on grass, in the rough, and especially out of bunkers to see what wedges best fit your game. Between loft and grind options, wedges are one of the more complicated areas of golf, and getting it wrong can make the game a whole lot harder than it already is.

How Does This Work? 

The Vokey Wedge Fitting app, unlike other online apps, is an in-person fitting where a fitter can match you into the ideal loft, bounce, and grind combinations in a matter of 15 minutes. This starts with a player interview to go over your game and tendencies, followed by the hitting portion of the fitting session. Here, you will take a series of shots where the app will calculate the best options for you based on the launch monitor data provided.

Key areas that are focused on are a player’s angle of attack and shaft lean at impact. Combining these data points with the various shots they hit (roughly 15 in total) is enough for the Vokey Wedge Fitting app to provide a full assessment of what wedges the golfer should be using.

The Testing Opportunity 

Don’t worry; there is more to this test than just the app and fitting experience. We want four testers to go through the Vokey Wedge Fitting app with a certified Titleist fitter and share their experience, including what it was like and how accurate they feel the results were. The testers will then receive the wedges chosen by the app to put them through on-course testing to see how the results match up.

We want to know if this could really replace a full wedge fitting. Can an indoor wedge fitting on a mat with only 15 swings really be just as good as an outdoor fitting? Let’s find out.

Please welcome and congratulate our testers

@yungkory 

@Siamese Moose 

@Bad Golfer 

@ClevelandGirl

 

Congrats to the testing team…this will be fun to watch and eventually compare thoughts with the in-person fitting testers that just completed their SM10 testing l….

[JohnSmalls]

Congrats testers!  Really curious how the fitting will go and if the grind selections make a difference.  Will be following this one closely!

[Deadwalleye]

Congratulations to those that got picked.  I’m very interested in the reviews about this system, and if it is accurate.  

[Irish-Assassin]

Good luck to all the testers,  Vokey wedges are truly one of the best. 

[Mike10487]

Who isn't in the market for wedges???? Seems like it the most replaced clubs. Following this one. Congratulations to the testers.

[Cfhandyman]

Congratulations to the well chosen group of testers. Delighted to see a female tester.  Like many others, I am very curious to see how well this type of fitting process works, as well as their thoughts, impressions, and overall results. 

[Josh Parker]

Congrats!  Looking forward to seeing how the process works and how well the wedges work. 

[nvizble1]

Awesome experience! Have fun with it. I never knew wedge fitting was a thing until recently, so your opinions will go far in showing us how well this works!

May there be many damaged flagsticks in your futures!

[MIGregB]

I'm really anxious to see how this test goes! If it is as reliable as an outdoor fitting, it can be a significant tool to better wedge performance. Congratulation testers!!

[Preeway]

Congrats testers! Eager to hear your thoughts on the experience. 

[KeithColorado]

I'm very interested in seeing/reading the results!

 

[KurtActual]

I hope you guys get a chance to explain the wedges you already game, and the difference between them and what Vokey recommends. Wedge options are so numerous, I am incredibly interested in this test!

[KC Golf]

Congratulations Testers!  Can’t wait to hear about the progress and the wedges.