How to find the right Vokey SM11 wedge (with helpful tips!)

Vokey officially introduced its SM11 wedges last month, and the PGA Tour’s adoption is almost instantaneous. Why? That answer is simple.

SM11 is built with a brand new CG story. The IT Grind has proven to be a widespread favorite among players on the PGA Tour, largely because of the flight it has produced. But T Grind was definitely not the best situation for every player. This meant that PGA Tour reps needed to grind custom wedges, or create special offerings, to give players a nice low T-Grind plane with one shape that fit their game. That leads us to SM11.

The entire SM11 family is matched to that of the SM10 T Grind CG. Across one floor every mill has the exact same CG area. It changes further, however, as you replace the low CG loft in the pitching lofts and gap wedge with the higher CG in the sand and lob wedge lofts. This helps promote an easier way to introduce a fuller option on longer, lower deck clubs and more control and lower flight on shorter, higher pitched clubs.

So with all CG surfaces now accurately matched, the only question you need to answer is which grind works best for your game. The first step? Click here and do some research on the new system and who the different grinds are designed for. Vokey does an amazing job explaining their system, and you’ll probably learn something new. Once you feel confident and armed with some information, head to your local PGA Tour Superstore and start browsing.

When testing wedges, it’s important to play with different grinds. (I suggest you hit about a 50-yard pitch shot, or something similar. You’ll quickly realize the ones that are straight up aren’t working for your delivery.) The key here is to work on eliminating the ones that aren’t working. What you want is the ability to hit the spoon continuously with a new sound and feel it from the face. The impact between pits 2 and 5 is a really sweet spot that we’re after. At this point, choose the three that feel best to you, and move on to the next test.

After you’ve chosen your three favorites, now it’s time to start hitting the different ones species of being shot. The most important thing a good lob wedge can do for you is to open up the creativity around the greens. That level of creativity is however set by the player. Some will have different types of shot in their arsenal and it’s important to try whatever you have locked and loaded. For example, an important shot for me is about a 45-degree open face that I cut with. That adds a lot of effective padding to the wedge and can be a tough shot to match up to the right. It’s one of the reasons I was put on M Grind when I was ready for SM11. Take the three options of your choice and hit more shots. Go back and forth between different options and hit the same shots. Hit a couple in a row with one and switch to another, then to one. You will quickly see that one of these three is no longer as useful as the other two. With the final two picks, we can end the purse war.

For the last two in your selection process you need to make sure you can hit 75-80% of the swings you will use on the course. For me, with a lob wedge, that’s about a 90 yard shot. Depending on what options you have currently selected you may notice that there is a big difference in effect with this extra full shot. As you translate that into playing on the field, we’re talking about the difference in clean contact and tight or thin contact due to different designs. A top-level player may be more comfortable riding high with a little more ease in the leading edge, something like the 14º K grind from Vokey. Shallow players, or players who don’t have good control over their low point, may find themselves better off with something like a 6º T grind.

Some golfers will complain about doing this step on the mat, but consider it a blessing in disguise. The mat is there unchangeable. It gives you the same lie on every swing. If you test these last two options against each other, you will be able to feel the difference in communication between them in these full images. It might also be time to ask a staff member to borrow some tape and see where you hit each club. If you see the contact riding the face a little, you may be grinding too sharp, or not letting it go properly. Remember, we want that contact point between grooves 2-5.

This process should not take about 50 cycles from start to finish. My best advice is to be blunt with your response. All you do here is choose the right option for YOU. There are so many options available at Vokey now that spending some time in the PGA Tour Superstore bay and browsing around to find the right one is not only worth the time to shop, but it can be really fun. Go with a friend and decide together, or take the opportunity to bring your own bag and practice check-in.

To learn more about the Vokey SM11 and pre-order, click here.

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