I’ve been playing the Miura 1957 Series Y and K wedges for the last year and a half. Although I’ve loved the playability and feel of them, I’d pretty much worn out the grooves, so it was time for a change.
I’d was contemplating ordering an identical set, when I saw that Miura was releasing a new series of wedges (called the “New Wedge Series”). Being the typical GolfWRX member that I am, I had to try them. I immediately called my local Miura dealer, Aloha Golf Center, and ordered a 51-degree and 57-degree heads.
Five days later, I got the call that the heads had arrived and were ready to be built with whatever shafts I desired. I chose the same shafts I’ve been playing in my Miura Y & K grind wedges, the True Temper Tour Concept wedge shafts. The guys at Aloha Golf Center said they’d have the shafts installed and ready for me, and to decide on the length and grip I’d want by the time I got off work. You can bet the last four hours of my day seemed like forever!
Miura uses authorized clubmakers to fit and build their equipment in the United States. What this means is you get exactly what you want and what will work for you. This alone I feel sets them apart from the majority of retail wedges on the market. I for one prefer certain wedge shafts, which at the moment is the True Temper Tour Concept. I also play my wedges at the same length and 0.5 inches longer than standard. Being able to order a custom wedge saves me a lot time compared to retail wedges, which I have to tear it apart before I use. With that said, here’s the review of Miura’s new wedge Series.
Pros: It’s got Miura stamped on it, a name that’s synonymous with tradition and craftsmanship. It’s a stamp of promise that everything you ever wanted in feel was going to be there on the first well struck shot.
Cons: Most of the retail wedge market is filled with other manufacturers that are offering custom finishes and/or laser etching. Most also have special milled and/or micro-milled grooves, with numerous other touches to increase spin. Miura offers pretty standard fare — pressed conforming grooves.
Bottom Line: Everything I’ve come to learn about Miura and their tradition behind their name is present in these wedges. The shape is perfect for my eye and the feel is buttery soft — exactly what I expected from them. These are not cookie cutter wedges that will be gone when the next set of wedges made. You can play them until the grooves wear out and you’ll want a second identical set!
The Review: Miura New Wedge Series
- Material: Forged Low Carbon Mild Steel
- Lofts: 51 and 57 degrees (bent to 52 and 58)
- Standard 61 degree lie angles bent 2.5 degrees flat
- Length: 36 inches
- Shaft: True Temper Tour Concept Wedge Flex
- Grip: Lamkin 3Gen REL (Grey)
Looks: Initial overall looks are what I call “normal” for Miura, and what many of the other brands wish they could be. For those not familiar, Miura is a company with a huge history of tradition in its clubs. They have excelled in making not only clubs that play well, but look superb. The gentle curves of the sole, simple Miura stampings and a satin finish that is so pleasing to even the unknowing eye. It screams out to you that this club is different from everything else on the racks. This is class, history and tradition carefully forged into a piece of golf art. This is a wedge that you’ll have a tough time the first outing slamming it into the dirt or digging a ball out of a bunker. You’ll wish all lies were on a nice piece of freshly mown turf!
The New Wedge Series is stamped with a Japanese Kanji character, which translates to “noble” and “striving” in English — two words that fit so well with the wedge in so many areas. Miura has always strived to produce the best for golfers. They don’t resort to silly gimmicks — only tried and true perfection that they’ve worked at for decades. When you initially look at the new wedges, you see the regal nobility of the design and you know they’ve haven’t stopped striving to achieve perfection.
I’ve mentioned before in my reviews of Miura clubs that the satin finish exudes a richness that makes me wonder why everyone else can’t get a satin chrome finish to look so gorgeous. It’s so clean, pristine and so precious looking, producing a beautiful silvery glow in your bag.
Performance/Playability: I’ve found the performance and playability of these wedges to be outstanding. Yes, I know, no surprise considering I am an admitted Miura fanboy! Seriously though, the leading edge grind, bounce angle and sole width work superbly together.
The New Wedge Series 51 is a super gap filler for me. The feel at impact from a tight mown fairway is fantastic. The sole grind interacts with the turf and the ball incredibly well. The crisp sound at impact leaves you with a clean feeling and a strike that works so well that the amount of spin generated is remarkable considering there is no added micro-grooves or specially milled face. I’ve always said that in my opinion a wedge will work only as well as its grind. This is one of those wedges, and its grind will assist in getting great contact and producing the spin you’re looking for.
The New Wedge Series 57 is a bunker killer. The sole width and grind work wonderfully in the fluffy sand traps. The face opens up well and looks good open, leaving you confident in pulling off those types of shots. There are some wedges that look awkward near the hosel when you open it up, but the New Wedge Series 57 is not one of those. The sole works as it should, gliding you across and under the ball and producing a nice “thud” sound as you complete your shot. From a tight mown fairway lie, I thought the 57 would be a little more difficult to use because of its wider sole, but I was wrong. The leading edge grind kept me just the right amount above the turf to still attack the ball, yet kept me from digging a trench. I also found it great from the rough, as the thicker sole helped keep the head from digging and interacted enough with the grass that I didn’t just scoot under the ball.
Distance control was easily gained after a few range sessions and rounds, leaving me with practically no learning curve and a seamless transition from my Y and K Miura wedges.
Feel: Feel has been Miura’s calling card forever. There is nothing in my opinion that feels as great as a Miura, and the New Wedge Series is a great entry for anyone to get a taste of Miura forgings.
The New Wedge Series is forged from mild carbon steel, and it is clean, crisp, and offers tons of feedback to your hands on short and full shots. It doesn’t matter if you open up the wedge or keep it square — the feel is consistent through the face. There are no dead or hot spots on the face of these wedges. There’s just a clean, pure feeling not found in many other wedges.
As I stated earlier, distance control was gained quickly, and the feel of these wedges greatly enhance that ability. The audible click at impact isn’t too loud or too soft, and works well in instilling feel to your shots. I absolutely love using the 52 around the edges of the green and the 57 is superb for me at 55 yards.
The Takeaway: The New Wedges Series from Miura is yet another great series from the Miura Foundry in Himeji, Japan. The look, feel and performance is everything you would expect from the years of craftsmanship and tradition behind the name. Just the looks of the New Wedge Series was enough to make me want to try them out.
After I got over the looks and had them built to my specs, the feel I expected and wanted was there to leave a smile on my face. I’ve now been using these wedges for over four months and they’ve continued to impress me and leave many smiles!
The New Wedge Series is available in lofts of 51, 53, 55, 57 and 59 (right handers only) from Miura dealers. MSRP is $235 with a standard True Temper Dynamic Gold Shaft.
If you get a chance, are curious or just want to “dip a toe” into the Miura line up, I highly suggest you try the New Wedge Series. You’ll be hard pressed to find something so pretty, and work as great as it looks!
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