Survey Results – WHAT’S IN YOUR BAG (Wedges and Putters)

Today we wrap up our look at the clubs in YOUR bag. We’ve covered drivers and fairways, hybrids and irons, and today we’ll take a closer look at your wedges and putters. As we’ve done to this point, we’ll look at what you carry, how long you’ve had it, and what your replacement plans were for the season.

Unlike we saw in our hybrid and iron study, your choice of wedges and putters is very much inline with the mainstream. The most shocking thing about the results is that they show that, even within categories that are generally more receptive to niche brands, it’s very difficult for the little guy to make a meaningful impact.

Here’s What You Told Us

The numbers are slightly skewed by the fact that some of you carry wedges from more than one brand, but in a broad sense, the upper portion of this chart mirrors the larger marketplace. It’s Vokey, it’s Cleveland, and it’s Callaway (who’s gaining ground).

As we’ve come to expect from you, Mizuno’s cut is larger here than in the rest of the world. Other surprises (compared to the real world) include the relative strong showing from Scor/Ben Hogan, and that you guys carry more Adams wedges than you do wedges from Bridgestone, Renegar, and Wishon.

I’ve heard arguments for replacing wedges annually (groove wear and whatnot). Certainly, it’s not unusual for Tour Pros to put fresh grooves in the bag several times a year, but all but the most prolific among us don’t hit nearly the volume of shots that they do.

I would expect that most of you replace your wedges every couple of years, but I wouldn’t be shocked to discover that the typical consumer is more in line with the 15.83% of you who have a 4+ year old wedge in your bag. When you find one that works, it’s easy to ignore a bit of spin lost to wear and tear.

We’d certainly be curious to know what the actual replacement rate is. 2015 has been a particularly interesting year for wedges. Scor has transitioned to Ben Hogan, Callaway released the PM Grind, PING just released a new version of the Eye Sole wedge, TaylorMade’s EF is its best in years and Mizuno will be shipping the blue S wedge to store soon enough.

If you weren’t thinking about replacing a wedge or two, maybe you are now.

How’s this for harsh reality: The top 2 putter manufacturers in our study account for just under 50% of the putters in your bags right now. Add major manufacturers PING, TaylorMade, and Nike to the mix, and the top 5 accounts for an astounding 81.45% of putter spots filled. This is the spot in the bag where we believe that the little guy has a chance, but our numbers suggest it’s not a particularly good chance.

Of the putter companies not affiliated with a major golf company, only Bettinardi (2.82%) accounts for more than a 2.5% share.

Of the Top 5, Scotty Cameron is the cost exception…a true outlier. We know that many of you view the putter as an opportunity to save money by buying cast product from big OEMs. In this case cheap might not be bad, as some of the best performing putters we test are exactly that.

Almost certainly this is the most age-balanced graph anywhere in this study. That makes perfect sense considering that technology gains are minimal, and other than dings, scratches, and miscellaneous bag chatter, the putter doesn’t really wear out over time. A 10 year old putter should work as well as it did when it was new.

The point is there’s no practical reason to replace your putter, so while it’s not surprising that nearly 26% of you have new putters (we all like new things), it’s also not the least bit surprising that nearly as many of you are putting with flatsticks that are 4 years old or older.

I’m a bit surprised that Maybe (20%) wasn’t the most popular answer. Speaking as a guy who has played this game for a little while, I can tell you that while I seldom plan to replace my putter, I’m keenly aware that at any moment replacing it might become a necessity. It’s the nature of the beast…sometimes they just stop working.

Here we are a couple months later and I’d be interested to find out how many of the 73+% of you who said you weren’t planning to purchase a new putter ended up buying one.

More to Come

Check back soon as we’ll be publishing the results of our 2015 golf ball survey.