By: GolfWRX Review Panel: Kevin “tpariff”
Thanks to WRX and Nike Golf for providing the opportunity to test these new wedges. Before we get into the review here’s a little background. I’m a 6 handicap and have a decent short game. My current wedge setup is Nike VR Pro 54* and 58* with KBS Tour S shafts, both wedges 2* flat of standard. So I requested the same specs, except I opted for the 56* and 60* wedges in the new Nike VR Pro Dual Sole.
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I received the wedges in early December and have 5 rounds and two range sessions with them, enough to provide a review. So here we go…..
LOOKS
Like many here, if the club doesn’t look right at address it’s most likely not going to make my bag even if performs well. That’s not an issue with these Nike wedges. Having obviously played the VR Pro wedges I figured these new Dual Sole wedges would look great…and they do! They have a classic teardrop shape which is my preferred look in wedges.
My only concern out of the gate with these wedges was the potential for glare from the chrome / platinum finish. I prefer a dull look (current wedges are black oxide), but these wedges don’t have much glare. The groove area has a duller finish than the other part of the face and back, so I didn’t notice any significant glare playing in the Florida sun. After some time the face finish becomes more dull looking, which is even better.
FEEL
These wedges felt great right out of the box. Nike lists the SW at D4 – D6 and both were right at D5 on my Golfsmith scale (not digital, so there could a slight variance). I chipped around the house a bit and really liked the feel and sound. There’s a muted click at impact and nice feedback, not mushy or soft, but not hard….just solid. This feel carried out onto the course for chips / pitches, short shots and full shots.
Feedback across all shots is great. I could tell when I hit it a bit high or low on the face from the rough. It wasn’t a punishing feel, but it wasn’t the same great feeling I got when hitting one on the sweet spot.
PEFORMANCE
I don’t want to do a full blown comparison of these wedges with my other Nike wedges, but will say that the Dual Sole design in a significant improvement over the current VR Pro line. These Dual Sole wedges really shine around the greens when I need to open or close the face for a specific shot. The sole design also helps a bunch from the rough and sand, and from soft lies, because the design of the sole allows the wedge to slide through the sand / turf with ease.
The sole grind also allowed me to open the face on firmer lies without bouncing the club into the ball. The DS grind puts the leading edge of the wedge lower at address when opened, so it’s easier to play these shots when needed.
All shots – full, half, pitches / chips, etc – were a breeze with these wedges.
Since wedges are scoring clubs, I typically don’t focus on distance. But I was surprised to see that I hit these wedges the same distance as my 54* and 58* setup. I didn’t measure the lofts, but assuming they are accurate, it looks like I am able to pick up 2* of loft without sacrificing distance (roughly 5 or 6 yards otherwise). And I picked up some spin, which is always a great thing around the greens.
My only issue with these wedges (if I can even call it one) is that they spun a TON on short shots. This isn’t a bad thing, but was somewhat unexpected because I have been playing Nike wedges with X3X grooves. Only thing I can conclude is that the sole design creates cleaner contact on those shots. It took me a couple of rounds to make the adjustment to carrying those shots a bit further to the target and expecting less roll.
While the grooves provide plenty of spin they do not chew up the cover of a golf ball. In fact I didn’t see any ‘groove rash’ from the full shots I hit with either the 56* or 60*.
CONCLUSION
These are in the bag and aren’t coming out any time soon. I stopped playing a 60* wedge a few years ago because it got me in more trouble than it helped, but I’m glad to say that I can play this one as well or better than I can play a 58*. It’s not a huge difference, but it gives me a bit more spin and versatility around the green.
Again, a big THANKS to WRX and Nike Golf!!!! Feel free to ask questions.
Kevin
PICTURES
New (the VR Pro and VR Pro DS are basically the same size, but the perspective of some of the pics makes it look otherwise)
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Here is the Nike Press release for more information-
Nike Golf announces crafted Nike VR Pro Forged Dual-Sole wedge
Nike Golf is capitalizing on the success of its VR Pro forged wedges with the introduction of the highly crafted Nike VR Pro Forged Dual-Sole (DS) wedge.
The Nike VR Pro Forged DS wedge is developed with a precise forging process, resulting in a wedge that offers accurate shot-shaping performance and a greater propensity for low scoring. Built for Nike Golf Tour athletes, the VR Pro Forged DS wedge features a Dual-Sole grind, ensuring ideal set-up from sand, fringe, fairway or deep rough. The Dual-Sole provides two distinct benefits:
· For normal square addressed shots, the sole has added leading edge bounce, but the trailing edge is relieved. This allows for utilization of the bounce, which helps to eliminate digging but reduces the contact area so the club glides through the turf. The Dual-Sole also prevents bladed shots.
· For open faced shots, a unique relieved heel design comes into play when the face is in an open position. This allows the leading edge to sit low to the ball, especially on short flop shots.
The VR Pro Forged DS wedge features Nike’s high-frequency X3X grooves with a precision laser crosshatch pattern that is applied to the land area between the grooves. This pattern adds three times the surface texture versus conventionally finished faces, creating more spin in all conditions. With Nike’s X3X grooves, there are more grooves (20) that are closer together and deeper on the clubface, which provides more control and consistency in all conditions off of the clubface, while conforming to the USGA and R&A rules.
Finish Options: Satin Chrome; Oxide (NEW); Platinum (NEW)
Loft/Bounce Options: 56/16 dual; 54/24 dual; 60/13 dual (Available in RH)
MAP: $119.99