Callaway Opus Wedges - 2024 Forum Review

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

Was able to capture some sound, didn’t get as many shots on video as I wanted, course was absolutely packed.

this shows some good zip though and this is what I feel like is probably my max distance with a full swing.  Ended up going about 5 yards past the flag stick, hit and stopped, slight check to the right. Absolutely beautiful 
 

[Chas c]

Woke up feeling good this morning, so I went out and did some more testing. First up, the range. Unfortunately I ran into a snag with Trackman and the data for my 50 degree Opus wedge wasn't saved under a club so I can't see some of the more detailed stats for it, but overall, I was fairly surprised with my findings.

First, a picture, since it's worth a thousand words.

Gray is the Callaway Opus 50° Wedge, purple is my Taylormade MG4 50°, Red is my (really) old Cleveland 588 Tour Action 56°, Teal is the Opus 56°, and yellow is my TM MG4 56°. I was not surprised to see the Opus 50° outdistancing my TM, but I was surprised at how much more consistent my shot pattern was. Unfortunately since I forgot to pick a club, it didn't draw the expected dispersion around it, but its tight. I was also pleasantly surprised by my grouping on the 56° Opus. It was hot and I forgot to delete that shank down in the lower right corner, but the grouping on this was pretty much as spot on as the 50°, considering I was already 50 balls in at this point and could tell my swing was starting to deteriorate. It was also a good bit longer than my TM 56° which I hadn't noticed when I was actually playing since I rarely take a full swing with the sand wedge. 

The other important point of data to note, that I will get back to, is the carry vs. total distance. The 50° Opus averaged over 10 yards of rollout vs just under 8 for the 50° MG4. This has been my biggest issue with these clubs. I just can't generate a decent amount of backspin with them when I'm using a ball with a Surlyn cover. That being said, on to the chipping area!

Since I have been noticing a huuuuge amount of rollout the last few rounds I've played, I needed to see what the rollout was like now that it's dried up, and I was not impressed. I tested 5 different sets of balls: Taylormade TP5, Srixon Z-Star, Callaway Supersoft, Maxfli StraightFli, and a mixed bunch of cheaper, non-matte/non-colored balls, and the results, while disappointing, were what I expected. Slightly choked down on the grip, I took a waist high swing with the 56° Opus, club face opened as far as I dared, accelerating aggressively through the ball.

The balls circled in orange have surlyn covers, the balls in black have urethane covers. Now, this is not the best angle, but with the exception of a pair of mishits (the black circled ball in the back, and the closest orange circled ball in the front), the surlyn covered balls all rolled out an insane amount. The white mark on the left was my target, distance was approximately 20 yards, and I was getting pretty tired at this point since I'd been out in the sun hitting golf balls for an hour and a half at this point, so my aim was not great. But after every group, I measured rollout from the estimated point of impact, and it was not pretty. The surlyn covered balls averaged approximately 5 yards of rollout, vs 1.75 for the urethane covered balls. The white surlyn balls were slightly better overall, with 3 yards of rollout. This bears out what I've noticed previously, that these clubs just don't generate the same amount of spin as my MG4 wedges when using cheaper balls.

I'll be playing tomorrow morning, and it will be dry, so I'm excited to see how this goes when I'm really playing.

 

 

 

Edited Saturday at 11:49 PM by Chas c

[Chux13]

@Chas c great test with the surlyn vs urethane. Wild to think the opus did not provide the same spin help through both covers. I too am noticing the consistency in groupings with the Opus line over the other clubs I tried. Seems these clubs are delivering in more ways than one!

[injectedcutty]

Did a test similar to @Chas c yesterday evening now that the rain has left KY. I didnt have much daylight, but tried to make the most of it. I only took out the Opus 54° and started with full shots which average around 80yds unless I swing real hard. I only took 3 balls with me, a Maxfli Tour X, Bridgestone e6, and a Vice drive. 

Obviously the maxfli is the urethane option of the three, and the results were similar to Chas. I do generate alot of spin, but surprisingly the e6 performed the best on total vs carry yardage. The only conclusion I can see is its softer and has a lower compression point vs the Maxfli or Vice. Average runout from landing spot on the e6 was maybe 3yds, the vice was 5ish, and the maxfli ranged from 1.5 to 4yds. DISCLAIMER.....the green i was hitting into has a huge dead spot, i noticed the balls that landed on the dead spot rolled out way further vs the balls that landed on actual green.

I hit maybe 20 shots from 80yds, then moved into 40yds which is a perfect half shot for the 54°. Below is a pic of 3 almost identical divots. Safe to say the results of the tour X didn't impress me, should've bought the regular Tour last week. I don't swing hard enough to compress that ball it seems, because the two surlyn covered balls at 40yds stopped quicker. I'll upload the video in a few, but here are pics. Testing to continue this evening I hope.

[Chux13]

52 minutes ago, injectedcutty said:

Did a test similar to @Chas c yesterday evening now that the rain has left KY. I didnt have much daylight, but tried to make the most of it. I only took out the Opus 54° and started with full shots which average around 80yds unless I swing real hard. I only took 3 balls with me, a Maxfli Tour X, Bridgestone e6, and a Vice drive. 

Obviously the maxfli is the urethane option of the three, and the results were similar to Chas. I do generate alot of spin, but surprisingly the e6 performed the best on total vs carry yardage. The only conclusion I can see is its softer and has a lower compression point vs the Maxfli or Vice. Average runout from landing spot on the e6 was maybe 3yds, the vice was 5ish, and the maxfli ranged from 1.5 to 4yds. DISCLAIMER.....the green i was hitting into has a huge dead spot, i noticed the balls that landed on the dead spot rolled out way further vs the balls that landed on actual green.

I hit maybe 20 shots from 80yds, then moved into 40yds which is a perfect half shot for the 54°. Below is a pic of 3 almost identical divots. Safe to say the results of the tour X didn't impress me, should've bought the regular Tour last week. I don't swing hard enough to compress that ball it seems, because the two surlyn covered balls at 40yds stopped quicker. I'll upload the video in a few, but here are pics. Testing to continue this evening I hope.

I find the X offering not providing the spin an odd find! I wonder if this is a Maxfli problem? I myself do not swing fast enough to get a full compression from the X line of balls, but with my testing on the R10, I found I could easily hit over 10K spin with my 54º on a 3/4 swing using a ProV1x and hit just over 9K with the ProV1. Great insight though looking into other balls and how they perform with the Opus line. Good to know the club can't do it all by itself!!! Ball absolutely plays a part. I need to see how the new PXG Xtreme Tour holds up when compared to the OG Xtreme ball and what I see vs my ProV1 

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

Very interesting stuff. Wild that the cover would create that much difference. 
 

odd question but we’re all the balls brand new? @Chas c? I did notice that hitting my RCT balls for the flightscope vs my gamers PROV1 that the wedges really tore up the cover on the RCT balls.

[injectedcutty]

37 minutes ago, GolfSpy_SHARK said:

Very interesting stuff. Wild that the cover would create that much difference. 
 

odd question but we’re all the balls brand new? @Chas c? I did notice that hitting my RCT balls for the flightscope vs my gamers PROV1 that the wedges really tore up the cover on the RCT balls.

I can say on my end only the Maxfli was new. Both the e6 and Vice were gently used with zero signs of scuffs or anything. By the time I was done, however, all 3 were showing signs of wear from them sharp grooves! I was even letting the face get dirty to see how it would affect the shots. Short pitches showed no difference, only 3/4 or longer from what I saw.

Also, I got out for a round earlier, on full shots the maxfli tourX reacted how it should for a 4 piece ball with a new wedge. It spins and sits. I'm going to try and find access to trackman or flightscope to get spin numbers.

[injectedcutty]

 

[RyanGi]

Great stuff!

[Berg Ryman]

On 9/18/2024 at 6:46 PM, Chux13 said:

 

The Data and Opinions

Chux, the interesting thing I see here is the standard deviation difference from Opus Platinum against all other wedges. Is that consistency something you're seeing out on course, even in a non-measurable way?

[Chux13]

4 minutes ago, Berg Ryman said:

Chux, the interesting thing I see here is the standard deviation difference from Opus Platinum against all other wedges. Is that consistency something you're seeing out on course, even in a non-measurable way?

Hey, @Berg Ryman! I sure did and still do to this day when I get the club out. Not just in play, but even the contact I make. I got to hit a SuperStore again yesterday (more to come) and I got to see a heatmap of my face contact. Surprise, surprise, the Opus Platinum was most consistent on the strike too. I don't know what voodoo they sprinkled into these wedges, but consistency has been a very pleasant surprise testing these out. 

My favorite part on course is when I want the ball to check, it checks. I can consistently and confidently attack the pin without worry of rolling out or missing the green. Almost automatic at times. 

Edited Tuesday at 05:07 PM by Chux13

[Chux13]

I will also add, I got a chance to swing an Opus 54° along side my platinum. I have not looked at the stats, but the reg Opus does feel heavier in my hand when compared to my Opus Platinum. Like the Platinum, the Opus did spin a ton according to the Trackman, and my strike heatmap was good, just a bit right of center. Ill get into the trackman data i sent myself and share when I get back home from my quarterly meetings later this week

[injectedcutty]

I just got in from some wedge testing. For today in particular I picked up some Bridgestone E12 balls to dig into the surlyn side of things, especially since these are a 3 piece offering. To differentiate between the two clubs I marked a sleeve with 54° on them, and another sleeve with 58°.

The results on full shots were as BG describes them as having alot of spin on irons. Five of the 6 spun backwards, one of the 54° shots stuck in the divot! 

In regards to half shots, both wedges provided enough spin to stop the ball within a few feet of the divot, but none spun back from the landing spot. The e12 performed well and similar to higher end tour ball offerings.

Lastly, I spent a few minutes doing greenside pitches with lower trajectory shots as those typically have more spin. I'd say personally that's where a tour ball shows it's difference. Yeah, the e12 spun some as any ball should, but compared to a proV1 which really does have drop and stop tech, it's apparent.

In conclusion for this mini test, the wedges aren't showing any signs of wear yet, but continue to give me confidence in my short game knowing the shot will be what I intend it based on the swing. Great stuff Callaway, the saga continues.

 

[Chux13]

9 hours ago, injectedcutty said:

I just got in from some wedge testing. For today in particular I picked up some Bridgestone E12 balls to dig into the surlyn side of things, especially since these are a 3 piece offering. To differentiate between the two clubs I marked a sleeve with 54° on them, and another sleeve with 58°.

The results on full shots were as BG describes them as having alot of spin on irons. Five of the 6 spun backwards, one of the 54° shots stuck in the divot! 

In regards to half shots, both wedges provided enough spin to stop the ball within a few feet of the divot, but none spun back from the landing spot. The e12 performed well and similar to higher end tour ball offerings.

Lastly, I spent a few minutes doing greenside pitches with lower trajectory shots as those typically have more spin. I'd say personally that's where a tour ball shows it's difference. Yeah, the e12 spun some as any ball should, but compared to a proV1 which really does have drop and stop tech, it's apparent.

In conclusion for this mini test, the wedges aren't showing any signs of wear yet, but continue to give me confidence in my short game knowing the shot will be what I intend it based on the swing. Great stuff Callaway, the saga continues.

 

Great stuff! Good to know those e12's do well on approach. Have not used those balls in quite some time. One of my fav non tour balls has always been the Laddie . I should get a pack and see how those work with these wedges.