Building a Wedge Distance Chart
Having a memorized or physical wedge distance chart can drastically improve your short game around the green.
In this guide, we’ll cover how to get stock wedge yardages to consistently get on the green and near the pin from anywhere inside 100 yards.
Example Wedge Distance Chart
In this chart, the distances of a pitching wedge, gap wedge, sand wedge, and lob wedge have been measured from 25% swing up to a full swing.
| 25% | 50% | 75% | Full Swing | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PW | 60 | 85 | 100 | 115 |
| GW | 50 | 75 | 85 | 100 |
| SW | 40 | 60 | 75 | 90 |
| LW | 30 | 45 | 60 | 75 |
Measuring Your Distances
Getting your wedge distances is as easy as getting a bucket at the range and bringing along a rangefinder or setting up a golf simulator session and running through some shots.
I’d recommend at least doing this with your favorite club to use around the green and committing the yardages to memory. I like hitting a 60° lob wedge most often, and while I rarely hit that club with a full swing, I know that at 50%, I’ll go about 50 yards, and 25% will go around 30 yards. This makes it easy to ensure I can hit close to any yardage in this range.
To get started:
- Hit about 4-5 shots using a full swing with one of your wedges.
- Measure the most common distance of where the ball lands, ignoring any mishits. (Hit more if there is too much variability)
- Repeat these steps with 75%, 50%, and 25% swings. Keep your follow-through distance similar to your backswing distance, and keep your swing speed consistent.
- You can also build a chip shot distance chart with a 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50% swing of your favorite wedge.
Check out this article for more information on making golf club distance cards.
Typical Wedge Lofts
| Club | Loft Degrees |
|---|---|
| Pitching Wedge (PW) | 45 – 48 |
| Gap Wedge (GW) | 49 – 53 |
| Sand Wedge (SW) | 54 – 58 |
| Lob Wedge (LW) | 58 – 64 |
On Course Strategy
I’ll use my memorized distances for anything above 30 yards and go by feel below that. If I know I can get it close, I’ll take a quick measurement with my rangefinder. With this 1/4 system, I can be pretty accurate at any distance.
Look at the green and your lie to make minor adjustments to your distance. For example, for an uphill shot, you can hit pretty close to the total distance, while for a downhill shot, you’ll want to take off 10 yards or so (depending on which wedge you’re using and how fast the greens are).
Keep more weight on your front foot to avoid hitting a thin shot over the green. You can also try putting the ball back further in your stance.
If you’ve built this chart out for all your wedges, you’ll find several options for each distance. You can select based on what you’re most comfortable with or based on the pin placement and lie. I find it’s easier to be precise with shorter swings (25% – 50%).
Typically, when you have less room on the green to work with, you’ll want a higher lofted wedge (like a lob), but if you need to climb up a hill, it might be easier to run a lower lofted wedge to the hole. Just be aware that the lower the loft, the more the ball will roll out.
When hitting a tricky wedge shot, it is most important to get it on the green before worrying about getting it close. Targeting the middle of the green is never a bad option to ensure you’ll be putting.
FAQ
Most golf club sets will come with pitching and sand wedges. If you have a distance gap of over twenty yards between these clubs, you’ll find a gap wedge helpful, so you need to hit fewer partial shots. A lob wedge is useful for shots close to the green that need more loft. The lob is probably best added once you’ve mastered the short game with the other clubs and are looking for additional options.
