How Far Should You Hit A Sand Wedge?

Written by Todd in Online Golf Instruction

An average carry distance for a sand wedge 80-120 yards.  The key with a sand wedge is can you hit it the distance you intended.  The best golfers will work on dialing in their distance and be able to hit the sand wedge 80 yards on one shot and then 95 on the next.

While speed and distance in golf is so very important, ultimately it often comes down to how good a golfer is from 125 yards and in.  This is where the sand wedge comes into play

One of the goals for many golfers that are training for additional swing speed is to have more wedges in their hands to capitalize on these opportunities.

The thinking or logic behind gaining more speed is that the shorter a shot a golfer has left into a green, the closer the proximity to the pin becomes on average.   So ideally, the golfer has plenty of opportunities in the 100-125 yard range vs 150-175.  Over time, golfers will hit shots closer to the hole from 100-125 vs 150-175 yards.

Did You Know?
The average proximity to the pin from 100 yards on the PGA Tour is 18’5”
The average proximity to the pin from 150 yards on the PGA Tour is 25’3”
The average proximity to the pin from 200 yards on the PGA Tour is 41’3”

https://twitter.com/LouStagner/status/1312772300907991040/photo/1

How Far Should You Hit A Sand Wedge?

My Journey: This past summer I really dialed in the distances with my sand wedge. I could hit a comfortable sand wedge 105 yards, a full sand wedge 110 and a slight cut sand wedge around 97. These were my main markers for the variety of distance between 90 and 110 yards with my sand wedge. Get comfortable with this club in your hand and make the necessary adjustments to fly it a bit shorter or a bit further. The end result for me was an average of 4.0 per birdies per 18 holes, up from 2.0 birdies per 18 holes the season before. Dial in those wedges!

One of the benefits of speed training is to have a smaller club in your hands on your approach shots.  If a golfer is able to hit a sand wedge from 105 yards vs a 7 iron from 105 yards, the stats would show us that the player with the sand wedge in their hand is going to have a closer proximity to the pin.

Your sand wedge is an important club in your set. Make sure you spend plenty of time practicing!

How Can You Hit A Sand Wedge Further?

There are 4 keys to maximizing your distance with your sand wedge.  These include:

  • Swing Speed
  • Ball Speed
  • Launch Angle
  • Spin Rate

The number one recommendation for a golfer trying to gain additional swing speed is to utilize a system like SuperSpeed Golf and train with overspeed training.

What is the best training option?  SuperSpeed Golf!  

The three speed sticks that come with the purchase of the SuperSpeed System have a club that is 20% lighter, 10% lighter and 5% heavier.  The protocols are simple to follow and take 15-30 minutes per training session and you train every other day.  

Golfers can expect to see a 5-8% increase as early as the first session and the speed will become more permanent after about 30 days of training.  Stick with the training for a continued increase in swing speed, which will come at about a 1-2 miles per hour increase every several months.  The thought process or science behind this approach is known as overspeed training.  

The idea is that you are training both your mind and your body to swing faster than you normally do.  The mind and body start to adapt to this new speed as the mind builds confidence in doing this safely and the body trains to move faster.

The SuperSpeed System will help you experience additional speed through every club in the bag and you will soon find yourself hitting the ball further, hitting the ball closer and making more putts. 

The analytics are pretty clear in golf!  The further you hit your driver, the shorter approach shot you have left.  The shorter approach shot, results in a closer proximity to the pin on average.  With the final outcome being more made putts because you are putting putts closer to the hole.  The make percentage on the PGA tour from 8 feet is significantly better than 15 feet.  The bottom line is that you need shorter putts to make more putts and this starts on the tee by hitting your driver further!

Make sure you pick up a GPS Watch or Laser to know the distance you have left with your approach shots!

Dialing In Your Distance With Your Sand Wedge

I would recommend learning several swings with the sand wedge that control a variety of distances.  These different shots might include:

  • 100% swing
  • 90% Swing
  • 80% Swing
  • 70% Swing

If you build out a distance chart for each of these swing speeds or lengths, the golfer can have a go to chart to determine what swing they need to make to hit the ball the distance they need to.  The sand wedge will differ from the longer clubs as it is a club that demands the golfer to hit it a variety of distances, sometimes as much as a 40 yard range.

Lob wedge vs sand wedge

Here is a chart I made for all of my wedges:

CLUB100%90%80-%
Pitching Wedge118110102
SW Club1059791
LW Club908274

The good news is that you no longer need to complete this chart creation at a driving range by walking off the distance.  Instead, you can utilize a launch monitor like a Skytrak Launch Monitor to establish the average you carry each club with a variety of swings.

How can you create your own chart?

BEST OPTION: I would highly recommend a launch monitor!

These portable devices can be used at the driving range, golf course or set up in your home net or golf simulator.  These devices are game changers not only on being able to map your bag and know your distances, but they also provide quality feedback after on every shot and provide the following information:

  • Carry Distance
  • Spin Rate
  • Launch Angle
  • Spin Axis
  • Total Distance
  • Ball Speed

This information will help you map your bag, decide on which clubs are best for your game, develop a stock shot and much more.  I love using my SkyTrak 365 days a year in my golf simulator setup.

Best swing path for irons?

The process for mapping your bag can looking something like this:

  • Hit 5 shots with each club in your bag.
  • Log the carry distance and total distance for each shot.
  • Eliminate any outlier numbers (poor hits or low spin rates).
  • Take the average and create a map of your bag.

If you visit any PGA Tour event you will see plenty of golfers utilizing their launch monitors.  While most can’t afford a Trackman, there are some very affordable options in the 500-2000 dollar range.  I own the SkyTrak and think the world of it.  

Here are the top 3 options to check out:

If you can create a shot distance chart, it makes shots like the one above more simple!

Final Thoughts: Manage Your Expectations

Unfortunately, many golfers have an inflated view of how close the professional golfers hit a shot from 100, 150 and 200 yards. Make sure you check out the stats provided at the beginning, maybe even write them down. This will save your the frustration when you hit a wedge form 100 yards to 20 feet.

Wish you hit the ball further?  Here are two great resources:

My Secret To Golf Improvement

Let’s face it, in order to get really good at golf, we must practice frequently.  About four years ago, I made the leap and invested in a golf simulator build for my garage.  I went with a SkyTrak Launch Monitor and the TGC software and can now play over 100,000 courses including Augusta, Pebble Beach, Bethpage Black, Whistling Straits. St. Andrews and many other of the top 100 courses in the world.

This golf simulator setup, which is more affordable that you might imagine, has been a game changer.  I can now play golf everyday of the year regardless of rain, snow, cold weather or time of day.  I can practice or play rounds of golf.  I can stand in the 11th fairway at Augusta and with the auto-rewind feature I am able to practice my approach shots from various differences.

It is worth checking out through Rain or Shine Golf as they offer some incredible packages along with financing offers that are difficult to beat.

Some direct links to Rain or Shine Golf for pricing and financing:

Take Action – What You Can Do Today to Get Better

What does this mean for you?  I believe in the following recipe to get better:

1 – Improve your motion in the golf swing by identifying a golf instructor.  Here are some options:

Here is a list of golf instructors that we have reviewed:

2 – Train to swing faster and improve your swing speed.  Here are some options:

Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:

3 – Understand course strategy and work to break through your next barrier.  Here is a series on breaking through:

We have provided guides on how to break 100, 90, 80 and 70. Check out more below, if interested.

4 – Practice Frequently

Did you know that I build a golf simulator in my garage and have played over 500 rounds of golf on my SkyTrak system?  It has been a game changer and one worth checking out. Here are some of my other posts on golf simulators frequently asked questions:

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