Coming into the season, the last area of my golf game I was seeking to improve was wedge play. While my game is littered with weaknesses, I’ve generally been able to hold things together with my wedge play, a trusty skill I’ve been able to rely on to keep bogeys from turning into doubles and to convert the occasional par save.

After trying out Edison‘s new 2.0 wedges this spring, though, I now understand how much room I had to improve in this area. It turns out my wedge play with my existing TaylorMade set was merely adequate, but with the help of Edison it’s become a true strength, an area where I can attack a golf course to gain strokes.

So how did I get here? Why didn’t I instead opt for a shiny new fitted driver to shore up my woefully mediocre play off the tee (something I still need to do, by the way)? Or invest in a new putter to add consistency to my stroke?

Well, at the PGA Show this winter, I had the opportunity to meet with Terry Koehler of Edison Wedges. It was immediately clear to me that he was one of the foremost minds on wedges in the industry, exactly the kind of expert that could help my golf game even in an area that I already felt good about.

Contributing Writer Troy Giljohann‘s review of the first-generation Edisons dove deep into the characteristics of these clubs and why they are so forgiving for the average player. In short, Edison Wedges feature more mass in the top half of the clubface, behind and above the point of contact where most golfers need it to produce consistent contact. Combined with Edison’s patented Koehler Sole which promotes a forgiving and versatile bounce, even the high handicapper can improve their wedge play with these clubs.

Terry walked me through a lot of these points again before explaining the new features of the Edison 2.0 wedges.

The 2.0’s have taken the signature design of the first-generation Edisons and added another unique feature to aid the lay golfer – more mass distributed around the perimeter of the sweet spot, designed to aid slight mishits. Do small misses on the toe or near the hosel plague your wedge play?

With Edison 2.0’s, slight misses will now turn into flush contact and yield a makeable putt instead of a tough chip or bunker shot.

After agreeing to test out the 2.0’s this spring, I completed the quick and easy WedgeFit process, which honed in on specs just right for my individual tendencies. A few weeks later, after unpacking my new beauties, I was ready to get to testing.

My maiden range session with the Edisons left a lot to be desired, though, on a brutal early spring day of mid-40s with heavy wind. Suffice to say, it didn’t go well, featuring a painful bout of stingers (with all of my irons, not just the Edisons). That said, I’m not a range rat, so I didn’t take much stock in this and was ready to take them to the course to see how they’d perform in real-life conditions.

Bounce

Simply put, my existing TaylorMade wedges offered little to no versatility in bounce, unbeknownst to me at the time. I am more of a sweeper of the ball, so to hit the sweet spot of a traditional “tour-style” wedge and take a divot, I typically have to move the ball back in my stance and take a downward stabbing motion at the ball. This has ultimately led to my swing being too far over the top, resulting in pulls and a heavy fade (yes, even with a wedge).

Around the greens, I compensated by playing every shot as a bump-and-run or low-flighted pitch, unless the situation absolutely required a flighted shot. While I’ve gotten quite good at the bump-and-runs, that approach clearly has a low ceiling and leaves me with 8-to-12 foot putts even after good shots.

With the Edison 2.0’s, the Koehler Sole provides so much bounce versatility I don’t need to adjust my regular setup or swing to unlock their magic. I simply make a normal swing and the result is a square swing path, a neatly-shaped divot, and consistently flush contact. Without having to worry as much about duffs and skulls, my attention has shifted to attacking the pin.

Around the greens, I now feel much more comfortable playing high lobs from a variety of lies with great confidence that I’ll make crisp contact. Since switching to the Edisons, my scrambling stats have steadily trended upwards, and I’m exicted to see how high they can go.

“Bunker Brian” is back, baby! (nickname given to me after a particularly good day of bunker play at Milwaukee Country Club)

Gapping

The first thing that stood out to me about the Edisons was unusual lofts of 49/53/57 vs. the more traditional 52/56/60, and I was nervous about how that would impact my yardages and gapping. As it turns out, they replace my current set one-for-one almost to the yard, with my stock distances clocking in at around 105, 95 and 80 for the gap, sand and lob wedges, respectively. I’ve been hitting the Edisons at a higher trajectory than my TaylorMades, so it makes sense that they don’t fly quite as far given the loft.

Also, given the superior bounce of the club, I’m far more comfortable opening up the face to add trajectory, spin and control to my approach shots. I was a little skeptical about replacing my treasured 60-degree wedge with a lower-lofted option, but my new 57-degree lob wedge is more than adequate to play the range of shots needed since I can reliably open up the face if the situation dictates it.

Distance Control and Spin

The design of Edison Wedges has given my wedge play far more distance control than I’ve ever enjoyed, with more spin to boot. Sure, some of the added spin could be attributed to simply having fresh new grooves expected from new wedges, but all of the changes I’ve been able to make in setup and swing due to the forgiving Edison design have helped considerably. Add it all up and I now feel like a shark around the greens, expecting to hit my wedge shots close to the pin instead of merely on the correct section of the green.

Closing Thoughts

Want a quick way to shave strokes off your game? There’s a good chance that Edison is the easiest way to do that. Coming in with a skeptical mindset, I’m now a firm believer in Edison as one of the industry’s best wedge options for non-elite players. My wedge play has gone from good to great, without extra practice, swing changes or lessons. You might be surprised at what Edison can do for your golf game, as well.

Revolutionize your wedge play with Edison today!

Original photography by Rich Bauer and Brian Murphy of WiscoGolfAddict