What are the best wedges of 2020? What are players looking for? Aggressive grooves? A wealth of sole grinds? Preferred finishes? Fully forged and traditional looking or cast and featuring technology?

At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. Needless to say, that extends to GolfWRXers views on the best wedges of 2020.

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The bedrock of GolfWRX.com is the community of passionate and knowledgable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members—the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.

You can see the results for the best wedges of 2020 below, as well as quotes we pulled from GolfWRX members about the wedges from our forum.

Best wedges of 2020: The top 5

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1. Titleist Vokey SM8

The SM8 is the biggest overhaul to Vokey wedge design since the introduction of Spin Milled grooves. For the first time ever, the 58 to 62-degree wedges have tungsten in the toe to push the center of gravity more forward and out of the head into a space beyond the face of the club to offer more control than ever before. The design tweak also creates a seven-percent higher MOI than SM7 with even greater vertical stability, too.

The Vokey Spin Milled grooves offer variable depth and width designs, depending on loft, to maximize spin. Groove tolerances continue to get pushed, and after milling and heat-treating, it’s all about being able to replicate wedge after wedge. Titleist’s philosophy to offer maximum spin for the life of the wedge, because golfers need to be able to trust their wedges will perform shot after shot, and that’s what you get with the new Vokey SM8.

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

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2. Cleveland RTX4

The RTX 4 was designed with the sole purpose of being the best possible tour-level wedge available, and it’s packed with shot-stopping technology, and grind options galore. Cleveland offers four sole grind options to help fit your swing and course conditions along with fourth-generation Rotex face technology to give you the spin you want around the green and on approach shots.

The fourth-gen Rotex face includes Cleveland’s proprietory sharper, deeper, ZIP Grooves, and more durable laser milling between the grooves to increase surface texture/roughness right to the conforming limit. Whether it be chipping, pitching, or full shot approaches, the RTX4 wedges offer all the control you could need.

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

• ” I can’t say enough positive about them. I play the 50-54-58 all in mid bounce, as I play a variety of conditions. The mid bounce on the 58 is very easy to open up for the “flop” type shots. I probably only use the 50 for full swing shots. Very easy to flight to do whatever you want, and the spin is great. I play the black wedges with the S400 shaft. I liked RTX3’s, but these are even better for feel and touch.” – Member gripandrip
• “Best wedges I’ve owned. mid bounce is very versatile. love the feel and trajectory.” – Member skuyper
• ” I love everything about them. I definitely haven’t had any digging problems. Actually I think the turf interaction is perfect although I don’t get very steep with wedges so I really haven’t had digging problems with any wedges… I love the shape and I personally think the TI S400 is fantastic for wedges. Wish I’d thought of that years ago. And out of the sand, I’ve found it to be brilliant.” – Member tbonetw
• “Feel is the best I’ve played. Leading-edge on the Mid grind is perfect through the turf. The improvement from the RTX-3 to RTX-4 is mind-boggling” – GolfWRX member survey response

You can read what other golfers are saying about the Cleveland RTX 4 wedges in the GolfWRX forums: Cleveland RTX4 Wedge Discussion and see our launch piece here.

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3. Callaway MD5 Jaws

Jaws is all about the grooves. Callaway’s new proprietary groove design takes the contact radius right to the limit to increase spin on all shots, including the most difficult slower speed partial shots. The key to this design involves the manufacturing process of changing the cutting tool every 15 wedges—this ensures every wedge is conforming right to the limit. The end result is the MD5 Jaws spins over 10 percent more on shots hit around the green compared to the Callaway MD4 and launches lower by one degree.

Beyond the grooves, Callaway re-evaluated the shape and profile of the MD5 Jaws, and designers decided to reshape the lower-lofted wedges from the 46-56 degrees to have a smaller profile to match better with transitioning iron sets. The last part of the shaping puzzle was to tweak sole grinds—one of the best examples of this tweaking is the new lower bounce W (Wide) sole wedge. Mr. Roger Cleveland himself was doing a lot of customizing for tour players to tweak the stock MD4 W grinds to reduce bounce and width of the soles, and after seeing this trend, the most popular tweak has now become a stock option on the MD5 Jaws.

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

• “The MD5 wedge bites and spins like no other – Greens are like Velcro with this wedge.”- GolfWRX member survey response
• ” I upgraded from previous Callaway models and the big thing for me is more spin and the additional X- and W-grind bounces! They’ve been a big help to my short game”- GolfWRX member survey response
• “With the MD5 the weighting and setup are as classic as it gets. Tons of grind & loft options make it a fit for every type of swing, and all the finish options bring everything together”- GolfWRX member survey response
• ” I have the 48* and 54* C grind and absolutely love them. If you used the MD4’s, they feel about the same but perform much better in my opinion. Spin seems to be much better, I had to adjust my shots to hit a little hard to get closer to the hole because they are stopping much better.” – Member jjfcpa

You can read what other golfers are saying about the Callaway MD5 JAWS wedges in the GolfWRX forums: Callaway MD5 Jaws Wedge Discussion and see our launch piece here.

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4. Mizuno T20

Just like the MP20 irons, Mizuno engineers brought an extreme CG (center of gravity) shifting philosophy, to the T20s. By relocating the CG throughout the set and changing the sweet spot height, engineers can further alter the launch and spin precisely for each loft in the series.

For spin, the T20s offer variable-width and depth Quad Cut Grooves, meaning lower-lofted wedges are more narrow and deeper, while higher lofted wedges are wider and more shallow since impact happens at lower speeds this increases spin consistency. The last part of the spin equation is the hydro flow micro grooves, a concept from the high-performance tire world where the tiny channels run perpendicular to the grooves and parallel to the direction the ball moves up the face to channel moisture away. This directional tread has proven to increase spin on shots especially in conditions with moisture up to 1,200 RPM on a 60-yard shot. You don’t have to be afraid of dewy mornings anymore with Mizuno T20’s!

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

• “These are the perfect combo of looks, feel, performance, and forgiveness. Great versatility. Another great feature is the ability to mix in Eye2 grind for a specialty sand club within a wedge set.” – GolfWRX member survey response
• “Forgiveness of a cavity back with the look of a traditional blade wedge, good feel, and great performance in wet conditions” – GolfWRX member survey response
• “Just picked these up with the stock Z-Z115 shafts and I don’t think I’ve ever had a wedge spin as much on full and partial shots like these. More forgiving too and feel great off the face, was surprised after the fit that the stock shaft was best for me after coming from SM7s with the DG S200s. Really solid wedges” – Member agood3putt
• “Stopping power on well-struck shots is amazing…When I miss with my wedges, it’s usually a little thin, but these comes out with more spin and stops quicker.” – Member SecondandGoal
• “Extremely consistent yardages, when the ball is struck anywhere near the middle of the face. Great spin on half shots too” – GolfWRX member survey response

You can read what other golfers are saying about the Mizuno T20 wedges and see our launch piece here. 

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5. Ping Glide 3.0

Ping Glide 3.0 wedges leverage a multi-material construction that combines a 431 stainless steel head with a larger and softer elastomer Custom Tuning Port (CTP) insert. The larger CTP allows for more contact with the back of the face, resulting in activation of the elastomer at impact in a bid to produce a soft yet solid feel. The new cavity design also expands perimeter weighting to increase the MOI and position the center of gravity higher in order to provide lower-launching and higher-spinning trajectories.

The Glide 3.0 wedges also feature wheel-cut grooves for a sharper edge radius, which is designed to increase interaction with the ball at impact—resulting in more friction for maximum spin and trajectory control. And who doesn’t want more control with their wedges?

Here’s what GolfWRX members are saying

• “These are the perfect combo of looks, feel, performance, and forgiveness. Great versatility. Another great feature is the ability to mix in Eye2 grind for a specialty sand club within a wedge set.” – GolfWRX member survey response
• “Forgiveness of a cavity back with the look of a traditional blade wedge, good feel, and great performance in wet conditions” – GolfWRX member survey response
• “Just picked these up with the stock Z-Z115 shafts and I don’t think I’ve ever had a wedge spin as much on full and partial shots like these. More forgiving too and feel great off the face, was surprised after the fit that the stock shaft was best for me after coming from SM7s with the DG S200s. Really solid wedges” – Member agood3putt
• “Stopping power on well-struck shots is amazing…When I miss with my wedges, it’s usually a little thin, but these comes out with more spin and stops quicker.” – Member SecondandGoal
• “Extremely consistent yardages, when the ball is struck anywhere near the middle of the face. Great spin on half shots too” – GolfWRX member survey response

You can also read what other golfers are saying about the Ping Glide 3.0 wedges in the GolfWRX forums: Ping Glide 3.0 Official discussion and check out our launch piece here.

Rounding out the top 15 wedges

• TaylorMade MG2
• Cleveland CBX4
• TaylorMade High Toe
• Miura Tour Wedge
• Ping Glide Forged
• Cobra King MIM Forged
• Bettinardi HLX 3.0
• Hogan Equalizer
• Honma TW W4
• Wilson Staff

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Ongoing Members Choice Polls: Have your say!

We’re still looking for your feedback on the “best” items in several other categories, so head to the GolfWRX forums to have your say!

Check out the polls in the GolfWRX forums!

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