Equipment
WGC-Mexico Championship: This PGA Tour stat could predict success this week at Chapultepec
In the two years the WGC-Mexico Championship has been contested over the Club de Golf Chapultepec layout, the ability to get up and down after missing the green has been one of the key PGA Tour stats portending success at the course. In the inaugural playing of the event in 2017, Dustin Johnson converted 70 percent of his scrambling opportunities (ranked 14th in the field), and last year, Phil Mickelson converted at an 81.82-percent clip to rank second for the week. As the game’s best head to Mexico this week, we take a look at the top five players in scrambling so far this season, and the wedges they use.
Andrew Redington
Louis Oosthuizen
Scrambling: 71.39 percent
Wedges: Ping Glide Forged (52, 56, 60 degrees)
Though Louis Oosthuizen put a 60-degree Ping Glide Forged wedge in the bag last year, he has now added the lower lofts as well. That makes sense as Oosthuizen consulted with Ping’s engineers on the design of the club. The Glide Forged is made from soft 8620 carbon steel, and its compact size compared to the cast Glide wedges is aimed at players who prefer to manipulate the club more for shotmaking purposes.
Andrew Redington
Bryson DeChambeau
Scrambling: 71.43 percent
Wedges: Cobra King (50, 55, 50 degrees)
Most golf fans are well aware by now that Bryson DeChambeau uses irons that are all the same length (37.5 inches, or about that of a 7-iron). Some might not know that the one-length philosophy extends to his wedges, too. DeChambeau, who had multiple hole-outs at the Genesis Open with his wedges, uses the same 37.5-inch length on his Cobra King wedges with True Temper’s Dynamic Gold X7 shaft—a shaft with increased stiffness from the grip area down to the mid-tip section. DeChambeau uses Cobra’s V grind on his 50-degree and the WideLow grind on his 55- and 60-degree wedges.
Stan Badz
Justin Rose
Scrambling: 71.43 percent
Wedges: Honma Tour World Rose proto (52, 56 degrees); Titleist Vokey SM7 (60 degrees)
Justin Rose didn’t take long to get comfortable with his new Honma clubs, winning in his second event with them at the Farmers Insurance Open. Among those clubs were a pair of Honma Tour World Rose proto wedges with a raw finish and custom grind. For his highest-lofted wedge, Rose uses a Titleist Vokey SM7 K-Grind with 10 degrees of bounce.
Sam Greenwood
Marc Leishman
Scrambling: 70 percent
Wedges: Callaway Mack Daddy 4 (52, 56 degrees); Titleist Vokey SM7 (60 degrees)
Marc Leishman has been on the PGA Tour since 2009 and has never finished a season better than 39th in the scrambling stats (and often has been outside the top 100). In 2018-19, however, the Aussie seems to have found the touch around the greens using a pair of Callaway Mack Daddy 4 wedges in his lower lofts and a Titleist Vokey SM7 in his lob wedge. On Leishman's MD4 wedges, Leishman uses the company’s S grind on his 52-degree (which has slight heel relief to keep the leading edge low through impact) and the C grind on his 56-degree (which is designed to perform well on firm course conditions).
Donald Miralle
Xander Schauffele
Scrambling: 69.92 percent
Wedges: Callaway Mack Daddy 4 (52 degrees); Titleist Vokey SM6 (56, 60 degrees)
With two wins this season and four in his young career, Xander Schauffele’s game has gotten the attention of his peers. Part of that is a nifty short game that he relies on to good effect. Schauffele’s wedges are a 52-degree Callaway’s Mack Daddy 4 with 10 degrees of bounce and a pair of Titleist Vokey SM6 wedges. His 56-degree is bent to 57 degrees with 10 degrees bounce, and his 60-degree bent to 61 degrees with 8 degrees of bounce. All have True Temper’s Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts.