The 52 degree wedge might be the perfect club for you!
Do you find yourself with a gap between your 48 degree pitching wedge and your 56 degree sand wedge?
This is where the 52 degree wedge becomes a great option.
Golfers need to ensure they have all of the proper distances covered from around 200 yards and in, but even more importantly is inside of 130 yards. This is where the scoring happens and birdies are made.
Oftentimes, too many golfers carry an extra hybrid or long iron, when in reality their game would be better served by carrying an extra wedge to provide for greater precision, accuracy and shorter putts left for birdie.
The 52 degree wedge is also known as a gap wedge and for good reason. Most of your irons in your bag have a 4 degree loft difference between each club. The 52 provides the ability to cut the 8 degree difference between the 48 and the 56 in your bag!
Let’s dive into when to use a 52 degree wedge!
When To Use A 52 Degree Wedge: Top 4 Situations
- When you are at the distance between your pitching wedge and sand wedge
- When you want the comfort of a wedge for chipping, but less loft than a sand wedge or lob wedge.
- On longer bunker shots around the green.
- Into the wind from around 120 yards and in.
Situation 1: Closing the Gap Between Pitching Wedge and Sand Wedge
Let’s face it, most amateurs do not practice the game enough. When they do get some extra time away from the everyday commitments, they often find themselves on the golf course, not at the range practicing. This is perfectly fine, but having the extra gap wedge in the bag at around 52 degrees, can help eliminate those 3 quarter or half shots with the pitching wedge or the over swinging of the 56. Both often lead to disaster.
This is the single greatest reason to buy the 52 wedge and where it can help your game the most. This yardage gap, wherever it may be, can present problems 1-5 times per round for many golfers. With 60% of the shots taking place inside 100 yards in golf, we must be prepared for every distance and not have an unnecessary gap.
For the average golfer, they might hit their pitching wedge 120 yards with their sand wedge only carrying around 95 yards. This leaves a 25 yards gap, where the 52 can fit right in. When faced with the 105-115 yards shot, the 52 degree wedge can be a great option.
Unless you are someone that is really good with playing the ball back in your stance and controlling the flight of your golf ball, then add the gap wedge and start saving some extra shots every round you play!
Resource: When to use a 60 degree wedge!
Situation 2: Around the Greens, Chipping
Having the extra option with wedges around the green is another time when you can use the 52 degree wedge. For example, if you are left with a 20 yard chip shot where you are just short of the green and the pin is in the back of the green, the less loft on the 52 degree wedge compared to the 56 and 60 degree might provide the perfect chip and run that will get you closest to the hole most frequently.
Many golfers might struggle to hit their 56 and 60 degree wedges low enough to get the ball on the ground and let it roll out on this shot. The 52 degree wedge allows you to make a simple, uncomplicated chipping motion to get the ball up in the air, but rolling soon enough. This less lofted club helps you stay simple and get the results you seek.
Resource: When to use a 56 degree wedge!
Situation 3: Longer Bunker Shots When Green side
If you play a course frequently that has some decent number of bunkers that can leave you long bunker shots, the 52 degree wedge will help. When faced with the 20-30 yards bunker shot, the 56 or 60 degree just might be too much loft. Instead, take the 52 degree wedge and hit the same shot and watch it fly a bit lower and a bit further with some roll out.
The 52 degree wedge can provide some quality versatility around the greens and gives you three wedge options in the 52, 56 and 60 degree wedges.
Learn to hit the different shots at different heights with different lofts and you can become a short game expert. The quickest way to lower scores in golf is through the short game and this wedge could be a game changer for you!
Resource: What wedges should a beginner carry?
Situation 4: Into the Wind
When you are faced with the 90 yard shot where you would normally hit the sand wedge, turning to the 52 is a quality option. With the wind into your face and the high spin rate of a shot hit with a wedge, you want to be careful that the golf ball doesn’t balloon and fall well short of your target landing area.
By utilizing the 56 degree wedge, you will have less loft on the club and the ability to hit it through the wind. The ball will still stop and sit down on the green with the spin rate on a 52 as well as the wind helping the ball sit down.
Resource: Play golf in the wind (Tips and Overview)
How To Assess If the 52 Degree Wedge is Right For Your Game?
Over your next 5 rounds of golf, chart the following key information:
- Number of shots per round in the yardage gap between your 56 and 60 degree wedge.
- What your proximity to the pin was in those yardage (walk it off when you get to the green and write it down).
- How many times per round you might have wanted to chip with the 52 degree wedge.
- How many times per round you were forced to hit a 56 or 60 further out of the bunker than was comfortable.
- How your shots into the wind fly with the 56 and 60. Did you have a good enough proximity to the pin when hitting those shots?
Once you look at the big picture, you will know whether the 52 degree wedge can help your game. If you find yourself in many of the top 4 situations above, it might be time right now to add the club.
How To Measure With Precision
I find it really helpful to know the exact distance you can expect to hit each of the clubs in your bag. Most golfers, should strive to build a chart that looks something like this:
| Club | Carry Distance (100%) | 90% | 80% |
| 4 iron | 190 | ||
| 5 iron | 181 | ||
| 6 iron | 171 | ||
| 7 iron | 163 | ||
| 8 iron | 153 | ||
| 9 iron | 143 | ||
| P Club | 130 | ||
| PW Club | 118 | 110 | 102 |
| SW Club | 105 | 97 | 91 |
| LW Club | 90 | 82 | 74 |
If after you have charted your distances and you see a gap anywhere it is time to dive in and see what you can do to fix it.
Recommended Tools
I would highly recommend every serious amateur golfer to consider adding a launch monitor to their tools to help in their game improvement journey. If you visit any PGA Tour event, you will see the majority of the golfers using these devices at least one day out of the tournament.
The good news is that there are some affordable options on the market between 500-2000 dollars to help you get started.
Here are some viable options in the price range discussed:
While you may not be able to afford the Trackman to use like a PGA Tour pro, the option to see data on each shot hit at the range, course or in your home setup is valuable. Most of the portable launch monitors will provide the following data:
- Ball Speed
- Carry Distance
- Total Distance
- Spin Rate
- Spin Axis
- Launch Angle
This information after every shot can be helpful in determining distances, checking your spin rate (especially on the driver) and monitoring your overall improvement with your ball speed. Ready to take your game to the next level? I would highly recommend the SkyTrak above!
I have been able to build my own golf simulator with the SkyTrak in my garage and play 365 days a year! I can also take it with me to the driving range and golf course as needed. Overall, I find it a great tool in many different areas!
Resource: SkyTrak Launch Monitor: The Ultimate Game Improvement Tool!
Alternative Options to the 52 Degree Wedge
One other option is to reduce your 56 degree wedge to a 54 degree wedge and split the difference between your 48 degree pitching wedge and your 60 degree lob wedge. This would give you the following wedges in your bag:
- 48 degree pitching wedge
- 54 degree sand wedge
- 60 degree lob wedge
The other option with the 52 degree gap wedge looks like this:
- 48 degree pitching wedge
- 52 degree gap wedge
- 56 degree sand wedge
- 60 degree lob wedge
Some golfers are comfortable with the 6 degree difference in loft between their wedges. These are golfers that don’t mind the occasionally 3 quarter or less than full swing, while those that prefer only a 4 degree gap, prefer to hit the full shot more often.
The best way to assess is on the golf course or with a golf launch monitor to measure your ability to hit precise distance that travel less than your full swing average distance!
Resource: What golf clubs do I need?
Final Thoughts: Should I Carry a 52 Degree Wedge
The golfer has a variety of options when it comes to setting up the bag. My main recommendation is to measure your success and ability to hit specific distances utilizing the technology that we now have available. You no longer have to guess about certain distances and can dial in what you need to be successful! Explore, assess, practice and then go shoot your best scores yet!
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:
- Is a Golf Simulator Worth It?
- How to Build a Golf Simulator?
- What is the Best Golf Simulator?
- Golf Simulator Accessories?
- How to Build a Golf Simulator for under $7000
- Top 11 Reasons to Buy a SkyTrak
- How to Build a Golf Simulator for Under $1000
- Why Build A Golf Simulator?
- What Space is Needed?
- Can A Golf Simulator Improve My Game?
- How Much Does A Golf Simulator Cost?
- Don’t Forget to Check out our 15 best golf swings of all time.