Hey, everyone.

I'm having lot of fun with my short game this year. Most of the credit for my improvement has to go to Mr. Vokey and team. I've never been able to flight wedges down and control the ball the way I can with my new Vokey SM6's. But I think an equal share of the credit has to also go to expert club fitter, Karen Gray, our Supervisor of Player Testing and Research here a Titleist. Karen fit me for my new SM6 setup at our Manchester Lane Test Facility and the experience was an eye-opener.

I use to carry two Vokey K-grinds - a 54° and a 58°. I knew I had some yardage gap issues, which Karen confirmed after taking a look at a few shots on a launch monitor with my PW and 54°. She had me try out some different gap wedge options and then had me move into full shots with 56° and 60° SM6's. Instantly, I had much better coverage from 120 yards and in.

The real artistry of the fitting, however, was in the way Karen dialed in the bounces and grinds. I had no idea how much the bounce on a wedge could affect distance and trajectory on full shots. I thought bounce and grind were primarliy preferences for shots around the green. I learned quickly that you need the right bounce and grind for all your wedge shots, so as Karen fine-tuned my yardage gaps and flight through a variety of sole options, she also had me mix in some shorter pitches and chips, to make sure that her recommendations would also work for my particular technique on the finesse shots.

Once Karen was about 90% sure of what would work for me, we moved from the range to the short game area, where we took a closer look at the "touchy-feely" shots that Bob Vokey likes to talk about. Karen had me hit long pitches, short lobs and bunkers shots, switching between clubs as we went. I chipped from tight fairway lies and thick rough. And with a few great tips on technique from Karen to boot, I was dialed in. I now game three Vokey SM6's - a 52.08, F-Grind, a 56.08 M-grind and a 60.12 K-grind. And I'm enjoying a whole new level of confidence in my wedge game. I can't recommend strongly enough going through a Vokey Wedge Fitting for yourself.

How about you? Have you had a similar experience to mine? Please share your stories and feedback on the process.

Thanks!

Rick