Equipment
In-depth: 2012 TaylorMade ATV Wedges
Recently TaylorMade Golf invited GolfWRX to Bandon Dunes for the launch of the TaylorMade ATV Wedge. Dubbed ‘The TaylorMade Short Game Experience,” it truly was that. Featuring a Short Game Clinic with the legendary Jim Flick, a round at the brand new (and not yet open to the public) 13-hole Par 3 course called ‘The Preserve’ and topped off with a round at Bandon Trails, it didn’t disappoint. Getting to Bandon Dunes is not easy, but the decision to go certainly was.
We had the opportunity to try 360 Tour ATV shoes, PENTA TP5 balls, Ghost Manta putter and a set of ATV Wedges at one of the premier golf resorts in the US. The ATV in ATV Wedge stands for All-Terrain Versatility, and if you want to put it to the test, Bandon Dunes is the place. Down time on arrival day allowed some playing time at Shorty’s, a small Par 3 course adjacent to the practice range. You may think the a wide-soled wedge and a tight lie don’t mix, but the ATV performed beautifully. Shorty’s has the tightest lies this side of your kitchen floor. Surprising and impressive.
The next day was a short game clinic with the Mr. Jim Flick. Jim taught us how to hit all the shots and the crew TaylorMade showed us why we could. Don’t be fooled. Thanks to the concave sole (lack of camber) and ‘ski-like’ leading edge, the ATV can handle it. Dubbed the ‘Wonder Wedge’ in early prototyping due to performance, this ATV is not a one trick (or even two trick) pony. From sand, the wider sole seems to provide added forgiveness and ‘float’ through. I found you don’t need to open it up quite as much as you think. The club head will glide a bit, providing extra forgiveness.
There’s plenty of versatility in the ATV wedge, but what you won’t find is a bounce number. “We don’t put bounce on this wedge for a reason,” said TaylorMade’s Brian Bazzel, Manager, Iron, Wedge & Putter, Product Creation. “There’s different bounces on different parts of the sole, and those different bounces are used to hit all these different shots.”
The video illustrates some of the uses of the ATV Wedge and includes plenty of tech talk. It’s a short portion of the clip, but be sure to check out the proper use of a C-Grind for a shot off a fairly tight lie. You would not think a wide sole wedge could do this, but the ATV can. Of course, all this is great, but the true test is on course. Bandon Trails, especially first time seeing it, is a pretty tough track. I went with KBS Stiff in 50*, 54* and 58* lofts and the TaylorMade ATV Wedges performed well from all lies, all day.
As a rule, I dislike putters with insert, but I can’t discount the performance of the Manta putter and PENTA TP5 Ball. Three birdies on a tough, unfamiliar layout is not typical for me.
My last full shot of the day was a 90-yard ATV sand wedge uphill approach to about 15 feet setting up my last birdie of the day. A great ending to a great experience.
CLICK HERE TO DISCUSS THE TAYLORMADE ATV WEDGES IN THE FORUMS
[youtube id=”NHwgm_CgBZs” width=”600″ height=”350″]
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Whats in the Bag
Team McIlowry (Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry) winning WITBs: 2024 Zurich Classic
Rory McIlroy WITB
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (9 degrees @8.25) Buy here.
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X (45 inches)
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees) Buy here.
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8 X
5-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (18 degrees) Buy here.
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9 X
Irons: TaylorMade Proto (4), TaylorMade Rors Proto (5-9) Buy here.
Shaft: Project X 7.0 (4-9)
Wedges: TaylorMade MG4 (46-09SB, 50-09SB, 54-11SB) Buy here, Titleist Vokey Design WedgeWorks (58-K @59) Buy here.
Shafts: Project X 6.5 (46-54), Project X 6.5 Wedge (60)
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour X3 Buy here.
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Pistol Tour
Ball: 2024 TaylorMade TP5x Buy here.
Grips: Golf Pride MCC
Check out more in-hand photos of Rory McIlroy’s WITB in the forums.
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Shane Lowry WITB
- Shane Lowry what’s in the bag accurate as of the Cognizant Classic.
Driver: Srixon ZX5 Mk II (8.5 degrees) Buy here.
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ White 70 TX
5-wood: TaylorMade Stealth Plus Buy here.
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 8 X
Irons: Srixon ZX Utility (3, 20 degrees) Buy here, Srixon ZX5 Mk II (4, 5) Buy here, Srixon ZX7 Mk II (6-PW) Buy here.
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Tour 120 X (3), KBS Tour 130 X (4-PW)
Wedges: Cleveland RTX 6 ZipCore Tour Rack (50-10 MID, 54-10 MID) Buy here, Cleveland RTX Full Face (58-8) Buy here.
Shafts: KBS Tour Wedge X Black
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour Z Buy here.
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Pistol 1.0
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Srixon Z-Star XV Buy here.
The winning WITB is presented by 2nd Swing Golf. 2nd Swing has more than 100,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
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Whats in the Bag
Steve Stricker WITB 2024 (April)
- Steve Stricker WITB accurate as of the Zurich Classic. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist TSR3 (9 degrees, C4 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Motore Speeder VC 7.2 X
3-wood: Titleist 915F (13.5 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist 816 H1 (17 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Motore Speeder VC 9.2 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (3, 4), Titleist T100 (5-9)
Shafts: Project X 6.5
Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM8 (46-10F @55), Titleist Vokey SM10 (54-10S @53), Titleist Vokey SM4 (60 @59)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 w/Sensicore
Putter: Odyssey White Hot No. 2
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Grip Rite
Check out more in-hand photos of Steve Stricker’s clubs here.
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Whats in the Bag
Alex Fitzpatrick WITB 2024 (April)
- Alex Fitzpatrick what’s in the bag accurate as of the Zurich Classic.
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 7 X
Hybrid: Ping G430 (19 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 10 TX
Irons: Ping iCrossover (2), Titleist T100 (4-PW)
Shafts: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 9 TX (2), Nippon N.S. Pro Modus 3 Tour 120 X (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (50-12F, 56-12D, 60-08M)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus 3 Tour 120 X
Putter: Bettinardi SS16 Dass
Grips: Golf Pride MCC
Check out more in-hand photos of Alex Fitzpatrick’s clubs here.
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Faustina Borgert
May 31, 2013 at 1:41 am
The term “ATV” was originally coined to refer to non-straddle ridden six-wheeled amphibious ATVs such as the Jiger produced by the Jiger Corporation, the Amphicat produced by Mobility Unlimited Inc, and the Terra Tiger produced by the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company in the mid 1960s and early 1970s. ;:'”
Most current write-up straight from our personal internet site
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dc
Mar 20, 2013 at 11:17 am
I just got a set of these puppies and am starting to try them out. The first sand shot I hit with the 56 was sculled over the green. It seemed that the effective bounce with the face open was much more than I am used to.I guess I will have a bit of a learning curve with these, maybe don’t open up the face as much (which is a mixed bag–probably more forgiving, but less loft). Also I am a bit worried about hitting shots from tight lies with these wedges. They set up nicely and I like the shafts a lot, so hopefully I can figure these out.
triedntrue
Oct 31, 2015 at 7:22 pm
I had the same effect when I played with these clubs too. Could you tell me if you ever figured out how to compensate on bunker shots and tight lies?
blando12
Jun 1, 2012 at 1:06 pm
ive hit the wedges and they perform better than any other wedge ive used. so ive ordered mine a week ago and just playing the waiting game now. ready to get the vokeys out of my bag
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Jason
May 3, 2012 at 8:32 pm
Nice article and vid. Thanks for posting!
gticlay
Apr 30, 2012 at 5:47 pm
Hey Hipcheck – very jealous of both the wedges you got, AND that trip!! Wish I went too.