Women golfers may be limited at times when it comes to distance off the tee, but around the greens, women can hit shots as close to the pin as any male golfer.
In fact, many women have better short games than men because they have realized it is a great way to score. The key to a great short game is the proper equipment in the bag. We have tested, reviewed, and analyzed the top wedges on the market this year to narrow down the best wedges for women.
Here are our top five picks.
Best Wedges For Women: Our Top Picks
Cleveland CBX ZipCore (Best Overall)
Callaway MD5 Jaws Wedge (Best For Feel)
Titleist Vokey SM9 (Best Premium Pick)
Tour Edge Hot Launch E522 (Budget Pick)
Callaway Mack Daddy CB (Best For Forgiveness)
Cleveland CBX ZipCore (Best Overall)
The Cleveland CBX ZipCore has a low-density core, UltiZipGrooves, and a soft vibration-damping feel in the club head.
- Weight in the toe with a hollow chamber for better forgiveness
- Low density core for minimal vibration
- UltiZip Grooves
- Better greenside feel than other wedges
- Spin rates out of wet grass decrease significantly
The Cleveland CBX ZipCore Satin wedge is our favorite golf wedge for the woman golfer. This wedge does such a great job of combining tour-level spin and control with amateur-level forgiveness and distance. The ZipCore features a low center of gravity, minimal vibration, and a hollow cavity for the extra jump off the face on approach shots.
We recently played a few rounds of golf with this wedge in the bag and noticed a very balanced feel in the club head. It’s extremely forgiving, especially when hitting out of the rough.
Many women golfers struggle with the ability to get a golf wedge to spin. However, the UltiZip grooves make it much easier to accomplish. In addition, players should consider a golf ball with a higher greenside spin to pair this up with.
The CBX 2 was a great wedge from Cleveland, but the ZipCore puts more technology into the club head and improves upon MOI.
Callaway MD5 Jaws Wedge (Best For Feel)
The Callaway MD5 is a blade-style wedge featuring impressive JAWS grooves and a sleek top-down look, a great choice for a woman golfer ready to take the short game seriously.
- Very versatile around the greens
- Clean top down look at the ball
- Allows golfers to get creative
- Groove in groove technology for increased spin
- Not as forgiving as other wedges in the game
When choosing the best wedges in the game, golfers have to think about feel and precision a bit more than forgiveness. Forgiveness makes shots easier on you, but it won’t always get your golf ball quite as close to the hole. The Callaway Mack Daddy 5 Jaws style wedges are for those ready to become more accurate around the greens.
The women’s MD5 comes in increments of two from 46 to 60-degree lofts. This club is best suited to fill in as the sand wedge, and lob wedges are in the bag. Callaway uses the Groove in Groove Technology on these MD5 wedges to allow for an increased spin and variety in the types of shots players are hitting.
One of the things that Callaway prides itself on is the fact that these spin rates are not just high; they are consistent. Consistent spin rates mean that regardless of the lie you are up against, you should be able to control the ball with ease.
With a blade-style wedge constructed from 8620 mild carbon steel and impressive bounce and grind choices, this wedge could work for any golfer in the game.
Titleist Vokey SM9 (Best Premium Pick)
- Improved control on the previous model
- Phenomenal feel
- Fantastic spin
- Versatile - a range of options to choose from
- Classy design
- Three stylish finishes – tour chrome, brushed steel, jet black
- Minimal gains on the SM8
The Titleist Vokey SM9 golf wedges are the best wedges in the game for feel accuracy and spin. Of course, this is not the combination of performance that all women golfers need, but if it is, you are in luck. Many women golfers believe that the SM9 is not for them because of the need to order custom, but this is entirely untrue.
In fact, when it comes to groove and wedge technology, the difference between what men need and what women need is very much just the shaft and the grip. The clubhead technology should be the same.
With the SM9, you can get impressive control around the green, as no other wedge can provide. It may take a bit to get accustomed to the SM9 and how it plays. Once you do, you can get much more aggressive in your short game.
Even when hitting out of the rough, the Spin Milled grooves ensure your ball can stop on the greens. One of the significant changes from the SM8 to the SM9 is the trajectory was lowered just a bit. Golfers are finding that keeping the ball lower allows for better ball flight while still stopping the ball on the green.
Tour Edge Hot Launch E522 (Budget Pick)
The Tour Edge Hot Launch E522 is a very forgiving golf wedge with a huge sweet spot, lower center of gravity, and maximum spin.
- Extreme forgiveness
- Fair pricing
- Consistent golf wedge
- Lower center of gravity
- Top-down look is not nearly as clean as other options on the market
The Tour Edge Hot Launch E522 is our favorite affordable golf wedge for women golfers. According to Tour Edge, the Hot Launch E522 is the easiest in the lineup to hit. The club has a very low center of gravity, allows for high flop shots or bunker shots, and happens to be very consistent.
For women players, consistency in contact is critical. Even if your swing is not exactly the same from week to week, you will want a wedge that can adjust and help you recover.
In addition, this new Houdini Sole has been making quite a splash in the market for Tour Edge. The idea is that you can manipulate the face of the club to have better playability and less interaction with the turf. We noticed this to mean lots of increased spin.
Women golfers need plenty of spin to control shots, and the Tour Edge Hot Launch E522 can get it done!
Callaway Mack Daddy CB (Best For Forgiveness)
The Callaway Mack Daddy CB has a soft carbon steel material and an impressive range of loft and bounce combinations to accommodate any player.
- Will work for a wide range of women golfers
- Plenty of forgiveness
- Loft and bounce combinations that will work for any golfer
- Won't spin nearly as much as the MD5 Jaws
The Callaway Mack Daddy CB is a cavity-back style wedge that can replace everything from a pitching wedge to a lob wedge. Golfers looking for extra forgiveness in their game can undoubtedly get it from the Mack Daddy CB.
When we tried this range, one of the first things that surprised us was how clean it looked from the top down. With this being a cavity back style wedge, we expected it to be a bit more bulky and unattractive; however, this is not the case.
The Mack Daddy CB comes in lofts starting at 46 degrees. This means that women golfers looking to replace all four wedges in the bag from one specific brand will have no trouble using the Mack Daddy CB.
Callaway also offers the options of a few different sole grinds in the Mack Daddy CB. These will help to provide some versatility in the shots that you are able to hit around the greens. The wedge is designed more for the mid to high handicap, but it can work for any player.
How To Choose The Best Wedges For Women Golfers?
Finding the right wedge as a woman golfer can be a bit of a challenge. Most golf companies are not putting wedges out on the market that are designed specifically for women.
When you look to purchase these wedges, you can buy them in the correct shaft, but most women don’t know that. Here are the things that you should consider before you purchase.
Loft
Wedge lofts typically range from around 46 degrees to about 62 degrees. Women golfers should take a look at the wedges they have in their bag already and then combine that with what they need.
Make sure that the loft in your wedges is at least 4 degrees apart; anything closer than this, and you will notice that the performance is too similar.
Bounce
Bounce on a wedge is a good thing. It allows us to open the clubface and still get some forgiveness. Bounce sort of slides the club through the turf and pops the ball up into the air. Keep in mind that bounce can be different in the wedges you purchase.
Some companies offer low, mid, and high bounce others name each of their bounce or grind options to ensure you can find a specific fit for your game.
To choose the right bounce, understand the types of turf you play from . In addition, make sure that you are varying some of the bounce you use so that you can hit different types of shots.
Shaft
The golf shaft in a women’s golf wedge must match the player’s swing speed. If you have a slower swing speed and sometimes even struggle with distance because of it, you must use the lighter and graphite golf shafts.
For those with faster swing speeds, a steel shaft can work, but it’s best to ensure this is not a heavy or stiff steel flex.
Clubhead Style
As you noticed from our roundup of the best golf wedges for women, there are two different styles for women golfers to choose from in wedges. These include the blade style and the cavity back.
With a cavity-back style wedge, you will get much more forgiveness, increased playability, and the ability to hit out of almost any lie.
Blade-style wedges, on the other hand, are more precise and allow for extra spin and ultimate control. Typically speaking, the blade-style clubs are best for mid to low handicappers. However, for higher handicap women golfers that want to focus on control and spin, the blade wedges are a great choice.
Brand
All of the big brands in the game of golf put out a wedge that can be ordered in a women’s golf shaft. The most well-known brands in the industry are Cleveland, Titleist, Callaway, and TaylorMade.
Pricing
Golf wedges range in price from around $100-$200 each. The more you pay, the better the materials and sole grind options will be. If you are looking to replace all four of your wedges, be prepared for this to get a bit more expensive.
How Many Wedges Does A Woman Golfer Need?
Now that you are aware of the best wedges on the market, it’s time to consider how many women golfers need in their bags.
The dilemma that many women golfers run into is that they have only two or three spaces in the bag to add wedges. This is because many women golfers continue to buy hybrids and fairway woods to get the distance.
This takes up room in the golf bag and makes it harder to carry the recommend four wedges. Ideally, women golfers should have a pitching wedge, gap wedge, sand wedge, and lob wedge.
The more wedge you can carry, the more tools you will have around the greens when you need them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions about the best wedges for women.
Women golfers should carry a pitching, gap, and sand wedge. Adding in a lob wedge is a great idea to get more accurate from certain yardages and increase overall ball flight control. Make sure to use each wedge all over the course. (i.e. don’t use the sand wedge only from the bunker)
The women’s golf wedge has a women’s shaft and a women’s grip. However, outside of this change in specifications, the clubhead is often exactly the same.
The Callaway Mack Daddy CB is among some of the more forgiving golf wedges on the market.
The most useful golf wedge is the sand wedge. This club is hit from various locations and has excellent ball flight and impressive spin control.
Women golfers do not need custom golf wedges if they are the same height and have the same clubhead speed as a male golfer. However, a custom length, shaft, and grip are probably necessary for the most part.
Conclusion
At this point, you should be feeling more inspired by the different golf wedge options for women. The Cleveland CBX ZipCore earns the top spot with some of the best spin technology, feel, and overall ease of use that you will find around the greens.
Cleveland has a tremendous history in the wedge game and plenty of LPGA tour presence. Start with this wedge if you need something new in your game to help inspire you to work a bit harder around the greens.
