Opinion & Analysis

The Wedge Guy: Lessons from The Players Championship

Published

5 years ago

Mar 17, 2021

If you read this column regularly, you probably would think I don’t care much for the PGA Tour, but that’s not exactly true. I just don’t think the majority of us recreational golfers can learn all that much from watching these young and supple, big and strong athletes show off their strength and skills.

While there is no question that equipment has changed the game and added yards for all of us, take a look at these guys’ physiques. Even the older guys like Lee Westwood and relatively small players like Justin Thomas are spending countless hours in the gym to optimize their strength. The equipment allows them to go at the ball much more aggressively than was possible back in the days of persimmon woods and tiny forged blade irons and balls that took on an amazing amount of side-spin if not hit just right.

With the majority of U.S. golfers being on the far side of 45-50 years old, and most of us not working out every day specifically to optimize our bodies for our golf swing, we don’t have a chance of matching these guys’ distance. Last fall, I posted a column asking if were playing a harder course than the pros, which received some challenging pushback. But the point of the column was about the relative length and difficulty of the courses you play as compared to those the PGA Tour players play every week. Yes, our skills and strength profiles are vastly different from these guys so let me ask a different way.

Think about the last round you played and ask yourself these questions:

Could you reach the green on all the par-fives with your second shot if you hit a pretty good drive . . . maybe even with a middle iron?
Did you have at least one par four where you had a chance of driving the green, maybe even with a fairway wood?
On the other 13 holes, did you have a wedge or short iron second shot at least 9 or 10 times?

If the answer isn’t “YES” to all those questions, you played a longer (for you) golf course than what the best players in the world played (for them) at the TPC this past weekend. And this wasn’t a “pushover” golf course by any means.

I’ve long opined that tee markers on most golf courses are not anywhere near where they should be for the vast majority of players, so the game is playing much, much longer (and therefore, harder) for most of us than the PGA Tour courses play for them. I also take issue with the inadequate guidance as to the tees you should play–this is not about gender or age, but rather your ability. Why should a 69-year-old single-digit handicap who still hits a tee ball 240-260 be given a shorter course than the 45-year-old 18 handicap who drives it 210?

Regardless of your age and handicap, and assuming reasonably solid tee shots, I believe the game is supposed to be played…

At a length where you can reach every par four with your approach shot, and
At a length where at least half of your par-four and par-three approach shots can be played with a short iron or wedge, and
At a length where no more than 3-4 of your par-four and par-three approach shots require more than a 5-iron, and
At a length where you cannot at least have a chance of reaching one or two of the par fives with a long iron or fairway wood shot.
With only a few exceptions these four conditions define every course the PGA Tour players face each week.

If you want to see how well you should be scoring, the next time you tee it up, choose a tee on each hole that will let you play the game at the same relative shotmaking challenge the pros face every week. If there isn’t one, just pick a spot up the fairway that will. My bet is that you will find the game to be a lot more fun and that your scoring will go down measurably.

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Terry Koehler

Terry Koehler is a fourth generation Texan and a graduate of Texas A&M University. Over his 40-year career in the golf industry, he has created over 100 putter designs and dozens of wedges. In 2014, he put together the team that reintroduced the Ben Hogan brand to the golf equipment industry with his TK 15 wedges and Ft. Worth 15 iron designs. Since receiving a U.S. Patent for his “Koehler Sole” in the early 1990s, he has been challenging “conventional wisdom” in the wedge category. In addition to inspiring multiple companies to emulate this sole technology, the performance of his wedge designs have stimulated all other companies to reposition some mass toward the top of the blade in their wedges. Terry is retired from his role as Chairman and Director of Innovation for Edison Golf, and remains active in the industry as an independent designer and consultant. But his most compelling work is in the wedge category. Since he first patented his “Koehler Sole” in the early 1990s, he has been challenging “conventional wisdom” reflected in ‘tour design’ wedges. The performance of his wedge designs have stimulated other companies to move slightly more mass toward the top of the blade in their wedges, but none approach the dramatic design of his Edison Forged wedges, which have been robotically proven to significantly raise the bar for wedge performance. Terry serves as Chairman and Director of Innovation for Edison Golf – check it out at www.EdisonWedges.com.

10 Comments

Frank

Mar 18, 2021 at 9:32 pm

The shortest shot if you drove it 305 yards on all the par 4’s and 5’s at Augusta, which is the average distance of PGA Tour winners’ drives on par 5’s that led to birdies/eagles for the past 30 events, is 45 yards on #3. Then the next longest shot is actually #12 at Augusta at over 155 yards if you hit every par 5 green in 2. Only one shot under 155 yards at Augusta. Yeah, I’ll stick to practicing the long game over short game.

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Ms. Maddie

Mar 18, 2021 at 6:35 pm

As a lady golfer in her 70’s, you’d think I’d always play from the 5000 yd tees. And sometimes you’d be right. But I also enjoy playing from the 6000 yd tees and the 6500’s, too, often all in the same round. Because despite my age and gender, I’m still a fit athlete and a single digit handicapper with an intimate understanding of the architecture and physical layout of the courses I frequently play. I’ve been doing exactly as Mr. Koehler suggest for years, taking each hole individually and playing it from the tees that offer me the most intriguing strategic challenge and the most fun. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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snowman9000

Mar 18, 2021 at 9:37 am

My whole life, I have never found par 5’s to be reachable with two good shots.
And, par 3’s are tending to be too long for the particular tee boxes too. I suspect the par 3’s and 5’s are where the course find extra yardage to get to the final number they want to see. If they made all the par 4’s longer, people would notice. Maybe ask a couple of architects and see what they say.

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Danie Mare

Mar 18, 2021 at 2:43 am

It is even worse for women. The tee options for my wife is that, apart from 1 or 2 par 3s, she uses fairway wood ON EVERY approach on our home course. Ans she does not have the option of moving forward. She plays of a 15, so she is a reasonable golfer. But I consistently wonder if I will enjoy the game if I had to use 3 wood so much.

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Radim

Mar 18, 2021 at 2:11 am

The article is missing any explanation how it works today. Here in Europe you get the teebox based on your handicap index. Is it the same in America?

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- iutodd
  
  Mar 18, 2021 at 11:19 am
  
  How it works today is that golfers can tee up wherever they want.
  
  Reply Report comment
- Ex-American
  
  Mar 24, 2021 at 4:31 am
  
  Radim, that’s how it *SHOULD* work.
  
  Americans all think they’re on tour. They play stroke, not stableford, from as far back as they can, and everyone complains about 5 hour rounds.
  
  The mentality is questionable at best.
  
  Reply Report comment
Mike

Mar 17, 2021 at 2:21 pm

Thank you, This is so true.

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DFM

Mar 17, 2021 at 12:50 pm

I completely get the intent of the article, and agree that people should play the game from a tee that suits their game, and allows them to feel comfortable. However, the game is the game. Since I am older and slower than I once was, should I play basketball on a 7 ft. goal where I can dunk like the pros? No, of course not. It might make me feel more like one of the pros to do so, but that isn’t the way the game is played. Rather than concentrating on how we do or don’t compare with pro athletes, people should simply play the course in front of them from whatever tee they feel is most appropriate. If it is harder for you than a pro athlete, so be it. Teeing it up from the middle of the fairway so that you can say you shot even par is silly.

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iutodd

Mar 17, 2021 at 11:20 am

I completely agree with your breakdown on this. Long par fours/par 3s are certainly part of the game – and the challenge of hitting hybrid/4/5/6 iron into the green is a challenge that should be a part of every round. But only a PART. I’ve played with guys that were hitting those clubs into EVERY par four and most par threes and I have no idea why they do that to themselves. Assuming a combined 14 par 3/par 4…I think 3-4 of those requiring a 5 iron or higher to get to the green is about right. That’s 21-28% of your iron shots on those holes. Which seems like plenty.

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Opinion & Analysis

AVL: My U.S. Amateur local qualifying experience

Published

6 days ago

Jun 5, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This past Monday, I played in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier at Rock Creek Country Club in Portland, Oregon. A full tee sheet from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m., the top 11 scores would make it to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying.

I teed off at 10:48 a.m.. With the 7:30 am tee time, you can get a feel for the leaders’ pace, and they were off and running on the challenging setup at Rock Creek.

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Getting to the highlight of the round on the par five 17th, a drive up the left side and 212 yards left to the front hole location. I took out a 5-iron with plans of middle of the green. The ball ended up 8 feet left of the hole, pin high. A slight downhill putt dropped in for an eagle 3 on the 17th. With the cut line looking to be anywhere from -2 to even par. This was the boost I had been waiting for all day.

With making par from the trees on 18, it was time to wait for a potential playoff with a posted score of one under par 71.

Three hours later, it was playoff time. 8 players for 6 spots. I made par on the playoff hole, which was good enough to advance to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying in July. USGA qualifiers sure deliver on all of the emotions in golf!

Club Junkie

Building my 2026 gamer WITB: Ranking the contenders and new putter projects – Club Junkie Podcast

Published

7 days ago

Jun 4, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

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Brian also heads into the workshop to discuss several putter projects currently on the bench. From head options and shaft choices to build ideas and testing plans, he shares what he’s working on and which putters could become serious contenders for the bag this season.

If you’re a gear junkie who loves equipment testing, club building, and the never-ending pursuit of the perfect setup, this episode is for you.

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Club Junkie

Tour Edge Exotics mini driver review + TaylorMade Spider ZT Max first look – Club Junkie

Published

2 weeks ago

May 28, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of Club Junkie, I put the new Tour Edge Exotics Mini Driver to the test and break down the performance, forgiveness, distance, and where it fits compared to a traditional driver or strong fairway wood. If you have been curious about adding a mini driver to the bag, this one is worth a look.

I also dive into the new TaylorMade Spider ZT Max putter that was recently spotted and discuss the growing zero torque putter trend. Plus, there is a closer look at the new Project X Titan Yellow shaft showing up on the PGA Tour and what makes it different from other profiles currently out there.