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The Wedge Guy: 3 surefire ways to never get better at golf

Published

1 year ago

Feb 12, 2025

Hello again, GolfWRXers. I’ve been taking a break from writing my Wedge Guy article for you, but I’m back to sharing insights from 40-plus years in the golf equipment industry with you.

For this first piece marking my return, you might find this to be a rather strange title for an article…but please hear me out. I’ve always felt my main mission here on GolfWRX.com is to help any and all of you on your path to learning how to play this game at a higher level.

I’ve been a bag room snoop and observer of everyday golfers for longer than I can remember, and what amazes me the most is how many golfers I encounter who must really not want to get better at this game. How else can you explain the fact that – despite all the gains in equipment technologies and the unlimited amount of instruction available (much of it free) – so many golfers seem to be stuck at a skill level that just does not improve year after year?

So, a bit tongue in cheek, let me share what I believe are the “3 surefire ways to never get better at golf.”

1. Ignore the importance of a proper grip

The most basic fundamental of golf is learning how to hold the club properly.

This takes no athletic ability, and you can practice it to perfection anywhere.

It doesn’t matter whether you opt for the traditional overlap, interlock or full-finger (not “baseball”) style, only with a proper hold on the club can your swing function at its best through impact. Your grip can be rotated a bit stronger or weaker, but the fundamentals are the same:

The club has to be controlled with the last three fingers of the upper hand, and the grip needs to be positioned under the heel pad, not across it.
The lower hand pressure should be only in the middle two fingers, with the thumb and forefinger more lightly engaged, if at all.
The upper or lead hand has to be in dominant control of the movement of the club.

Very simply, if you are not holding the club in this fundamentally sound manner, the body and club just cannot move properly through the swing motion.

2. Disregard the importance of proper posture and setup

Likewise, it requires little to no athletic ability to assume the proper posture for the golf swing. Like with the grip, close observation of the best players in the world shows very little “personalization” from one to the other – they all start from basically the same posture and setup. Anyone can mimic this proper set-up position, which – along with a proper grip on the club – gets you much of the way “there” to a sound repeating golf swing.

And the last thing I see that causes many golfers to be stuck in a rut is…

3. Take instruction from your buddies

Golf instruction is part art and part science, and your buddies — even those who seem to be pretty good players — are not likely versed in golf instruction (if they are, perhaps this is a different matter). Tips and advice are cheap, and I cannot begin to count the number of times I’ve observed a golfer who can’t break 80 (or even 90) try to “coach” someone who also can’t break 80 or 90. Unless your buddy has spent years studying the golf swing and can play a pretty good game him/herself, close your ears and eyes when they offer advice.

In conclusion

I’ll close this post with this: Compared to all the costs associated with golf, leveraging those investments with professional instruction is pretty darn cheap. My Dad often said, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.” My bet is that you have already committed to the fact that golf is certainly “worth doing.” So, if doing it well is important, begin by improving your grip and posture, and consider finding a professional instructor who “gets” you and go see him or her regularly.

So, there you have it. Frank Sinatra made a fortune singing “My Way,” but that certainly isn’t the pathway to better and more consistent golf!

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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.

5 Comments

Sergio N.

Feb 26, 2025 at 9:15 am

I couldn’t possibly disagree more. The late Moe Norman had, according to the golf illuminati the wrong stance, the wrong grip, the wrong posture and the wrong set up. Yet, he had dozens of professional wins, and course records. Jim Furyk stood much too close to the ball and had this terrible habit of looping his back swing. They call him U S open champion. Hubie Green had a horrible swing to look at but they called him U S Open Champion too. John Daly took the club back way too far and gripped down too much, not to mention the smoking and drinking, They called him two times major winner. Golf is a game, when you stop concentrating on “the golf swing” and start concentrating on getting the ball in the hole, the miracle of breaking 80 quite naturally follows. It did for me. Once I started to listen to teachers like Manuel De La Torre, and Darryl Klassen, who learned as a kid to break 90 with just a putter (what could be more wrong than that?) golf got much easier.

Reply Report comment
RI_Redneck

Feb 20, 2025 at 8:16 am

Terry,

I was wondering if you might expand on the meaning of the third fundamental in the Grip part of this article:

“The upper or lead hand has to be in dominant control of the movement of the club.”

I’m pretty sure I know what you mean, but if you could elaborate a bit more on the specifics I would appreciate it.

Thanks,
BT

Reply Report comment
- Terry Koehler
  
  Mar 1, 2025 at 8:46 am
  
  Thanks, BT.
  What I meant is that to play golf at a consistent level, you have to accept that it is a “lead side” athletic move. For right handers, that means the entire left side has to lead the golf swing so that impact consistency can be improved.
  I will elaborate more in an upcoming post.
  
  Terry
  
  Reply Report comment
  - RI_Redneck
    
    Mar 1, 2025 at 2:31 pm
    
    Got it. I was thinking you might be emphasizing the lead hand’s position on the grip in relation to the clubface. I have always been of the mind that the relationship between the orientation of the lead hand on the grip and the clubface is individualistic as opposed to somewhat static as many seem to promote. I was always taught that the “V” formed by the thumb and forefinger of the lead hand should point to the trail shoulder (Typically called a Neutral position) and any major alteration from that would lead to all kinds of problems. Looking at professional golfers, we see all degrees of positions of the lead hand. I would suspect they concluded that position was right for them through trial and error early in their career and stuck with it. I believe every new golfer should do the same.
    
    Looking forward to your upcoming posts.
    BT
    
    Reply Report comment
Germ

Feb 12, 2025 at 7:22 pm

Great info, especially for the duffers out there.
MrShortGame just did an interestingly eye opening video on grip pressure. I highly recommend it. Unfortunately I live in Buffalo, so by the time I can try to actually try anything on the course I’ll have forgotten everything. A 5-6 month outdoor golf season is a bucket of yuck!

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

Published

9 hours ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ben A

GolfWRX is on site this week at the Memorial Tournament, with both Alistair Cameron and Tour Photographer Greg Moore on the ground in Dublin, Ohio, where a strong field is assembled to pay homage to the Golden Bear.

In addition to WITB galleries, we’ve already been treated to an in-hand look at Tommy Fleetwood’s new TaylorMade Spider putters.

Check out links to all our photos below.

General Albums

2026 The Memorial – Monday #1

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Pullout Albums

News

Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

20 hours ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Around the world, the golf wheel spun this final week in May of 2026. From New Jersey to Austria, with stops in Korea, Texas, and North Carolina (don’t let me route your next trip) the world’s finest put their golf games on display. There were three playoffs, some known commodities and some new talent. It was the sort of week that we hope to have at this point in the seasons. June and July afford double-digit major events, and perhaps, one of this week’s champions will use this success as a springboard to new heights. Time to run it all down, tech style, in this week’s Tour Tech Rundown.

Thanks to WITBHub, Today’s Golfer, GolfWRX, and Inside Tour Golf for initial research into equipment.

PGA Tour @ Charles Schwab Challenge: Heroic Henley denies Cole

Eric Cole did nearly everything that a fellow can do, to secure a first PGA Tour title. He stayed one shot clear of Ryder Cup player Ben Griffin. He kept US Open champion Gary Woodland and wunderkind Michael Brennan two shots distant. He posted 70 on day four to reach twelve under par. And then, Russell Henley revealed his Dr. Strange cloak. Henley made 47 feet of birdie putts on holes 16, 17, and 18, to jump from minus-nine to twelve-deep, and secured a spot in a playoff with Cole. The duo returned to the final tee, and put on a stripe show.

Both golfers found the fairway off the tee, and Henley improved on his regulation play with an approach to four feet. Cole did himself proud, tucking an iron to a dozen feet, but he was unable to convert the putt for three. Henley is one of the best putters on tour, and he proved it once more by draining a putt for a fourth consecutive birdie, and a sixth PGA Tour title. For Eric Cole, that first victory should come, and soon. He has done everything necessary to earn the chalice lift.

Henley’s Suitcase

Driver: Titleist TSi3 at 10 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70g 6.5 TX
Metal: Titleist TS3 at 16.5 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 at 21 degrees. Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT hybrid 100 TX
Iron: Titleist T250 4-iron. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 5-6 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 7-9 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 48 and 50 degrees. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 54 and 60 degrees. Shaft: rue Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue S400
Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron T5 Tour Prototype

LPGA @ Shoprite LPGA: Welcome back, Celine!

Soo Bin Joo had her eyes on a maiden LPGA title. She held the lead after two rounds, then hit a red light at the intersection of can-I and how-To. Joo posted plus-two on day three in New Jersey, and dropped to a T4 finish, which was still a career-best for the young Korean golfer. Instead of a new face, a familiar face returned to the top of the podium.

Celine Boutier was the It Girl in 2023. She collected four victories, including a major title at Evian. Boutier reached world number one status, then simply faded into the background. No wins came her way over the next 30 months. On Sunday, she collected LPGA victory number seven, at the same trace as LPGA victory number two.

Day three saw Boutier manage the windswept Seaview Bay course with six birdies and a bogey. She was challenged in the end by Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who signed for a 66 of her own. Yubol came up one shot shy of the top ladder rung. Finishing in third place at -7, two back of the winner, was Ireland’s Lauren Walsh.

Celine’s Suitcase

Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops Tour-1 at 9 degrees. Shaft: Graphite Design AD IZ-5
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops at 19 and 22 degrees. Shaft: KBS Hybrid Prototype
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Gen5.
Iron: PXG 0311 P Gen 4 5-9 irons
Wedge: PXG 0311 T Gen 4 PW
Wedges: PXG 0311 Sugar Daddy II at 50, 54, 58 degrees
Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 3 DASS

DP World Tour @ Austrian Alpine: KK? KK!

Kota Kaneko has a rhythmic name. It has strong vowels and a run of voiceless stops in its crunchy K sounds. On Sunday in Austria, Kaneko put a stop to a challenge from Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and everyone else, and claimed a first-ever title on the DP World Tour. Gouveia did well to reach 16-under par over four days, but Kaneko held firm, two shots in the clear.

Davis Bryant of the USA also forged a strong challenge for the win. He ended in a tie with Gouveia for second place. Kaneko began and finished his final round in a bit of a malaise, but he caught fire midway through. Birdies at 10, 12, and 13 provided the necessary cushion to cruise to the finish line without breaking a serious sweat.

Kaneko’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping Max G440
Metals: TaylorMade Qi4D at 15, 16.5, 21, and 24 degrees
Irons: TaylorMade P760 5 and 6 irons
Irons: TaylorMade P7TW 7-9 irons
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design at 46, 52, 56, and 60 degrees
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Cruiser Arm Lock #7

Korn Ferry Tour @ UNC Health Championship: Improbably Alvaro

Alvaro Ortiz may have had a bit of scare on the outward nine on Sunday, but he came through in clutch fashion in the end. Ortiz began the day bogey-double, and added another double bogey at the 11th hole. He was mired in a downward trend, spiraling away from the top of the leader’s board. Ortiz found hope at the 14th, where his first birdie of the day tumbled home. Inspired, he closed with birdies and 17 and 18 to catch Ross Steelman at 10-under par, and the duo returned to the 18th deck for overtime.

The extra session concluded in brief time. Ortiz, buoyed by his newly-retrieved confidence, hit the fairway with driver, then approached to six feet and drained the putt. Gobsmacked, Steelman could do little more than smile and applaud, as his run at the top came to a close. The victory was the first for Ortiz on the KFT, and will implant him squarely in the chase for a PGA Tour promotion.

Alvaro’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping G430 MAX driver at 9 degrees loft
Metal: Ping G430 MAX 3W
Iron: Ping iDi Driving Iron
Irons: Ping Blueprint S irons
Wedges
Putter: Scottsdale TR Piper C

A party on the green!

Alvaro’s time comes in Raleigh with his first win @UNCHealthChamp ? pic.twitter.com/2dmtZdbSzk

— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) May 31, 2026

LIV @ Korea: Me llamo Joaquin

Chile’s Joaquin Niemann had been away from the LIV winner’s circle throughout all of 2026. This week in Korea, he reminded us that he is still a force to consider. Niemann chased down Taylor Gooch over the closing holes at Asiad Country Club, then claimed victory with a hole-one birdie in extra time. Bryson DeChambeau claimed solo third, one shot in arrears at minus-eleven. Dustin Johnson finished on fourth, one putt farther back.

Niemann’s Suitcase