“It’s all in the wrists,” the old saying goes.
Hmmm… If that describes how you hit your wedges, we’ve already found the problem.
Fact: Excess wrist action causes you to chunk some shots and blade others. To clank one off the toe and the next one off the hosel. To pop up pitches that fly as uncontrollably as a runaway balloon.
Yep, that wristy action is the root of all your maddening struggles inside 80 yards. Then again, maybe it’s not.
It’s possible that your wrists (and the hands attached to them) move the right amount – but with lousy timing.
And it’s a near certainty that...
No matter what your core issue happens to be, we can tell you this for a fact: The conventional wedge you’re using offers zero help for a less-than-perfect swing.
Nada. Nil. Zip. Zilch. Bupkis. No ifs, ands, buts or maybes about it.
In a moment, we’ll explain the club-to-swing mismatches that cause you so many headaches.
First, we want to let in a little light from the end of the tunnel – a cure is close at hand. Believe it or not…
And that’s not even the best part. This is:
You can hit these stroke-saving beauties with a simple, arms-and-shoulders swing… and say goodbye to ugly miss-hits, hello to a consistently sharp short game.
Yep, there’s actually – finally – a wedge that encourages you to use the “big muscles” instead of those twitchy, unreliable hands and wrists.
It’s no coincidence they’re three of golf’s best around the greens.
And now you can easily emulate their style – and quickly improve your short game by leaps and bounds. How’s that sound? Too good to be true?
We hear ya. Man, do we hear ya.
Like you, we’ve been around this game a long time. We’ve seen countless “revolutionary” products that promised to “slash your scores” and pick up your dry cleaning in their spare time.
Most of these gizmos came and went quicker than a teenage crush. But this one… this one is different.
This one is simple. It’s logical. Its unique design makes perfect sense. Especially compared to a brand-name wedge.
Ah yes, the conventional wedge – bane of your short game. Let’s resume discussing why…
If you’re tallying style points instead of strokes, it’s tough to beat the classic contours of a high-end wedge. No club looks better in the bag.
No club offers less forgiveness, either. Indeed, the “teardrop” shape of a standard gap or sand wedge is all too appropriate: It’ll only leave you crying.
Whether you’re playing a 20-yard pitch-and-run, a high lob from the rough or a three-quarter punch from the fairway, the wedges sold by golf’s major OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) leave a minuscule margin for error.
That’s fine if you’re a pro. They’ve got the fine motor skills to nip a ball off the cart path, for cryin’ out loud.
Were you taught to set up to a pitch shot with your hands slightly ahead of the ball and the shaft leaning toward the target? Good. This encourages a downward strike and solid, ball-then-turf contact.
Here’s the problem: Setting up this way with a standard wedge moves the leading edge closer to the ground, effectively decreasing the amount of “bounce” on the club’s sole.
(Quick refresher: Bounce is the angle formed by the leading edge, the sole and the ground. The more bounce a club has, the farther off the ground the leading edge sits.)
Since bounce prevents the club from digging into the turf behind the ball, less bounce makes it more likely you’ll hit a fat shot.
Now, consider that a typical gap or sand wedge has 8° to 14° bounce. Tilt the shaft forward by, say, 6° and you’re left with just a sliver of sole between you and a big, ugly chunk.
There’s another drawback to pressing your hands forward: This opens the clubface, adding unwanted loft and effectively shrinking the sweet spot.
Long story short:
Remember what we said about excess wrist action? This is what we meant.
“Flipping,” aka “scooping,” is incredibly common among amateur golfers. It happens when your left (lead) wrist collapses and the clubhead passes the hands at or before impact, usually because you’re trying to lift the ball into the air rather than striking down and letting the club’s loft work for you.
Sometimes, the club bottoms out behind the ball and causes a fat shot. Other times, you catch the ball thin and send it whistling over the green. Even if you get lucky and hit it solid – a rarity because you’ve got to time the flip exactly right – your pitch usually flies too high with barely any backspin.
Yeah, it flippin’ stinks.
And your conventional wedge does nothing to compensate.
Unlike game-improvement irons and hybrids, most wedges feature little if any offset – where the leading edge is set slightly back from the front of the hosel to help keep your hands ahead of the club at impact. Some wedges actually have reverse offset, with the leading edge protruding in front of the hosel.
What does that mean to you? It means if you scoop, you’re screwed.
Now for our final factor:
While today’s drivers, fairway woods and irons have larger clubheads and more hitting surface than their predecessors, most wedges still feature old-school construction. Fact: All 13 wedges on Golf Digest’s most recent Hot List were basically “teardrop” shaped – high toe, narrow heel, lacking in ball-framing visuals.
What gives?
Honestly, we’re not sure. But we’re certain golfers like you would be better served by a clubface design that inspires confidence, not fear.
Hopefully, you now understand why your current wedges – despite their amateur-friendly length and loft – cause so much frustration. You’re probably ready for some relief, too.
That’s good. Because you’re about to get it… in the form of a groundbreaking new wedge.
The first wedge of its kind that boasts…
… an innovative design created specifically for amateurs…
… unprecedented game-improvement features, and…
… forgiveness no conventional model can match.
And on top of all that…
We told you it was different. You can see the added bounce along the FP4’s sole. And the wide offset between hosel and leading edge. The extra-large hitting area, too.
OK, maybe those things escaped your notice. No worries. They’re not that obvious on first glance. In a moment, we’ll provide in-depth details on all these unique features.
But first, here’s a big-picture view of how the FP4 Forward Press Wedge (55° loft) will transform your short game. After a (very) brief adjustment period, you will:
And the truly unbelievable part? You’ll do all this using a simple “press, lock and turn” swing that minimizes the hands – and puts your reliable “big muscles” in charge.
We’ll explain this “Press, Lock and Turn” swing shortly. It’s as easy to pick up as the FP4’s results are hard to imagine.
The golfers who tested the FP4 Forward Press Wedge can confirm. They were admittedly wary of this odd-looking club before they tried it. Afterward, their tunes changed from dirges to disco.
“To start off with, I'll be honest with you, I was a little bit skeptical,” said David Kuykendall, a 15 handicapper. “But once I got the club in my hand, it felt natural. I was so much more accurate than with my regular wedge.”
We’ll share more from David and his eight amazed cohorts – including their stunning results and rave reviews – coming right up.
Before that, we'll dive into the engineering that makes the FP4 the recreational golfer’s best friend.
Design team leader Josh Boggs, an award-winning designer with Hot List clubs to his credit, approached the FP4 project with an overriding goal:
To help everyday golfers control their wedge shots like tour pros.
How do the pros hit those amazing, pin-rattling pitches?
1. By striking down with their hands leading the clubhead, which de-lofts the face, keeps the club dead square and traps the ball against the turf.
2. They also maintain a fairly shallow attack angle and catch the ball near the bottom of the clubface – producing huge spin and immaculate accuracy.
Hands ahead. Club de-lofted. Shallow swing path. You’ve probably tried hitting your wedges the same way.
Unfortunately, it didn’t work. That’s why you’re here. Don’t feel bad. The pros are blessed with elite talent and besides, golf is their full-time job.
Also: Honing a motion with all the proper angles takes a lot of time. If you’re using a conventional wedge, that is.
Once again, we’ll refer you to our earlier lesson on OEM wedges and their lack of offset. Without it, everyday golfers have a devil of a time maintaining the proper hands-ahead position through impact.
Now, a textbook setup doesn’t guarantee great shots. It’s all for naught if you don’t get your hands back in front of the ball at impact. And flipping the club, that fatal early release we discussed before, is the No. 1 amateur bugaboo.
Our designers accounted for flipping when building the Forward Press Wedge. That meant dialing in just the right amount of offset to compensate for a flip without sacrificing accuracy on a well-timed swing.
As clubmakers are wont to do, they tinkered. And tested. And tweaked and tweaked and tweaked some more.
Finally, they found the sweet spot (so to speak), settling on ¼” of offset to align the club’s leading edge perfectly with the shaft’s axis and your hands.
The upshot: If you release the club a touch early, you’ll still make solid contact instead of catching it thin or fat.
Before we go any farther, let’s take a heel-to-toe overview of the FP4 Wedge:
The Forward Press Wedge boasts a quarter-inch of offset between hosel and leading edge – a small gap that increases your margin of error by miles.
To put that in perspective, a quarter-inch (just over 6 millimeters) is about the same amount of offset as a typical game-improvement 5-iron – and unheard-of in a wedge.
Still, a measly 0.25” doesn’t sound like it could make much difference, does it?
Au contraire.
Golf isn’t a game of inches, after all. It’s a game of fractions of inches.
We’re not just talking about the swing, either. Precision starts at address.
Even if you don’t lean the shaft toward the target – as we’re all taught to do – The FP4's Pro-Strike Offset ensures your hands are ever so slightly ahead of the ball.
As we mentioned before…
To make absolutely certain you get the right amount of forward lean, we placed a Forward Press indicator on the shaft label. As you look down at address, simply move your hands left until you can no longer see the red bar, only the blue one. Your left arm and the shaft should now form a straight line all the way down.
Just like that, you’ve initiated the “press, lock and turn” swing sequence that maximizes the FP4’s effectiveness. (Patience, friend. Details are coming shortly. And don’t worry – anyone can do it, and do it instantly.)
That’s significantly more bounce than you’ll find on any big-name gap or sand wedge, which typically max out at 14°. As you may recall from our earlier tutorial, there’s a reason we built the FP4 that way.
More bounce at address means more bounce when you lean the shaft toward the target. And more bounce means more forgiveness when you hit behind the ball.
As Rich Whitney can tell you, it makes a big difference. The 22 handicapper caught one a bit heavy and still, he noted happily, “ended up probably 10 feet from the pin.”
In contrast to the round shape of a traditional wedge, the FP4 features a raised heel for a solid, square look at address. You’ll see more of the clubface behind the ball – always a plus – and line up directly at the target every time.
Instead of leaving the face smooth, our engineers applied a heavy sandblast to roughen up the texture. Not for looks, mind you (although it looks pretty cool). This finish creates friction between ball and clubface – and friction equals spin.
Did you know that striking the ball on the bottom two or three grooves produces more spin than hitting it higher on the clubface? Josh Boggs did.
That’s why he left the FP4’s bottom four grooves unpainted, which creates contrast with the upper grooves and draws the eyes to the “Spin Zone.” It’s the ideal spot for contact – and the Forward Press Wedge helps you nail it consistently.
Wedge shaft flexes can vary, but we equipped the FP4 with a version that’s soft enough to provide exceptional feel without sacrificing accuracy or raising trajectory. If you currently play stiffer wedge shafts, you’ll appreciate the FP4’s softer, more supple sensation on impact with the ground.
Man oh man, that’s a lot of technology packed into one wedge. Now here’s the ironic part:
We promised complete details on the “press, lock and turn swing,” and it’s time to deliver. Step by step, it’s as simple as:
Once you’re set up over the ball and ready to swing, just shift your hands toward the target until you can’t see the red bar on the Forward Press indicator. Next…
Check to make sure your left arm and the shaft form a straight line to the ground. You’re now in the perfect address position – hands ahead of the ball with the clubface square to the target. All that’s left to do is:
Instead of abruptly hinging the wrists as you take the club back, maintain the “triangle” formed by your arms and shoulders. Keep rotating the shoulders and torso to complete the backswing, allowing the wrists to hinge naturally on longer shots.
Finally, turn down through the ball and into the follow-through the same way.
By using your “big muscles” rather than the twitchy, unreliable joints of the hands and wrists, you create a wider swing arc. That lengthens the bottom of the swing and gives you a much better chance of catching it flush.
Master this basic move and you’ll enjoy the kind of consistency few amateurs ever attain.
We’re not talking consistently average shots, either. We’re talking about pitch shots that pierce the air, land with a short skip and bite like a cornered rattler.
You know what? Maybe we should add one more step to the sequence:
As in, admire your shot as it smart-bombs the flag.
We saw plenty of posing on Forward Press Wedge test day. Plenty of smiles, too.
Our group gathered on a dewy spring morning at DeCordova Bend Golf & Country Club near Ft. Worth, Texas. Their handicaps ranged from 8 to 22, their ages from 42 to 85.
As for their wedge games, the golfers’ struggles were equally varied. Fat shots… thin shots… lack of accuracy… poor distance control… insufficient backspin… and above all, vexing inconsistency.
Stephen Russell, a 12 handicapper, summarized the crew’s core issues: “With my traditional wedge, I'm setting up, I'm taking it back, I'm trying to flip it with my hands,” he said, “which creates too many variables that I can't control.”
It showed. Using his own wedge for a mid-length pitch, Stephen stuck his first two shots to 12 feet – but flew his next three over the green.
Then we handed him the FP4 Forward Press Wedge and gave him a brief demo of the “press, lock and turn” swing.
Stephen took to it like a dog to a bone. All 10 of his shots found the green, with three stopping inside 8 feet of the stick and two more at 15 feet.
Duly impressed, Stephen said, “The Forward Press Wedge allowed me to make a simpler swing, control the distance and get much better results.”
He wasn’t alone.
Here are some quick numbers from the test session, in which each golfer played a 30- to 50-yard shot with his or her own wedge, then the FP4:
Mind you, they did all this with a wedge they’d never hit, using an unfamiliar (if easy-to-learn) swing method. Imagine what they’ll do – and what you can do – with a bit of practice.
Even more telling than the raw data, however, were the group’s post-testing comments.
“I can control the trajectory better (with the FP4), and I got a lot more spin. My traditional wedge, I have to think about it and close it down and work with it to make it do what I want it to do. This one, it just seemed natural. When you approach the ball, you're not thinking about how you're gonna close the face or open the face. All you're doing is looking at your target, and that's what I think is the most important part.”Dave Hanson | 15 handicap
“With my regular wedge I was side to side, one out of 10 might go toward the hole. With the Forward Press Wedge from 60 yards, I was so much more accurate. I mean, to get it within four, five, six feet on a regular basis is just unheard of for me. I may wanna lay up to 60 yards every time.”David Kuykendall | 15 handicap
“It took the handsy out of it, the wrist pop. With my mine, if I hit on the green it's going to go off, because there's too much forward spin on it. The Forward Press Wedge compared to my traditional wedge is 100% better. It's high, it lands soft, gonna stay on the green. You use less wrist and more big muscles to get there. It's easy. Easy, easy, easy, easy to hit.”Judy Cordell | 14 handicap
“My biggest struggle in hitting my wedge is I hit the ball too long and too high with it, and I'm not getting many close to the hole. With the Forward Press Wedge, I'm hitting the ball solid, don't take as much backswing, and it's more on-line every time. Everything went towards the pin and it just made quite a difference.”Ken Stubbs | 18 handicap
“The biggest struggle in my wedge game right now, is hitting them fat and either barely getting on the green or not at all. Or possibly a blade occasionally and going over the green. With the Forward Press Wedge I didn't hit any fat shots. You don't have to worry about the fine motor muscles, it's all large muscles.”Kyle Ditto | 16 handicap
“With the Forward Press Wedge, when I hit it correctly, you're looking at maybe 3 or 4 feet after that second bounce, so it's setting down very quickly, not rolling out 8 to 10, 12 feet after that second bounce. That will give us closer shots to the pin and shorter putts and hopefully will calculate into lower scores.”Mike Permenter | 8 handicap
“I keep telling myself when I play the game, it's all about contact. And with this club I felt like I could make a consistently positive contact and hit it, like I say, when and where I needed it to go. You know what a mental game this is, and when I felt good about the club I was hitting the ball a whole lot better. I was very impressed with how easy it was to pick up on.”Rich Whitney | 22 handicap
“With a tight pin with my current wedge, if I'm hitting the front of the green, I'm usually going six, eight, 10 feet past and having to putt back to the hole. With this Forward Press Wedge, I've noticed that with a tight pin, I can hit closer to the pin and have it check up. I'm a short knocker, and I don't always get it on the green. So I'm thinking it will cut quite a few strokes out of my game.”Rick Gilliland | 21 handicap
“The Forward Press Wedge really allowed me to lock in with a more consistent, easier-to-control swing. The results were unbelievable. My traditional wedge I'm guessing. Five shots, ten minutes with this club, I was within ten feet of the flag every time.”Stephen Russell | 12 handicap
More spin. Amazing control. Uncanny consistency. Can you think of a golfer who might like these things from their wedge game?
Know anyone who could save two, three or even more strokes per round just by sharpening up inside 80 yards?
Perhaps someone who struggles with a handsy swing and a traditional wedge, but could thrive with the FP4 and its easy “press, lock and turn” method?
We believe tons of golfers could make huge strides in no time flat, simply by switching to the Forward Press Wedge.
And we’ve got a hunch you’re one of them. If you agree based on what you’ve already seen and heard, there’s no need to wait another minute. Just…
So it looks like you’re on the fence. Which means we haven’t addressed some question or concern you have about the FP4 Wedge.
No problem. We’ve got just the thing to clear up any confusion and, hopefully, banish any lingering doubt. Check out these…
A: Darn right it is. Here’s a quick list of handy (but not handsy) shots you can play with the Forward Press Wedge:
Bottom line: The FP4 offers loads of stroke-saving versatility.
A: Absolutely. It’s lethal on shorter bunker shots – for example, from 5 yards off the green. And the added bounce makes it perfect in soft sand.
A: Take this short test to find out:
If you answered yes to any of these questions, the FP4 and its Pro-Strike Offset could very well solve your problems. If you answered yes to all of them, then you need help in a hurry. You’d better…
A: Based on our tests, not at all.
Out of 133 shots played by our nine golfers, only 20 missed left of target. That’s a mere 15%. (By the way, all but a handful of those finished pin-high.)
A: Yes, it’s been approved by the USGA. You can use it for any round, including tournaments.
A: As much as we’d love to offer this option, our direct-to-consumer model doesn’t allow it. (On the plus side, it does save us lots of money on overhead – savings that we pass on to you, as you’ll see shortly.)
To make up for it, we give you something no OEM can match:
Think you can give the Forward Press Wedge a full workout in two months? If so, you’ve got no worries – and nothing to lose.
From the time you receive your wedge, you’ve got 60 days to try it out. Hit it anywhere you want, from course to range to the backyard… as much as necessary to decide if it’s right for you.
On the off chance the FP4 Wedge doesn’t live up to its billing, ship it back and we’ll refund the full purchase price (minus shipping & handling).
Which brings us to our last-but-not-least piece of info: the price.
… Less than a new wedge from a major clubmaker. (In some cases, a lot less.)…
… Less than the series of lessons you’d need to iron out your inconsistent, overly handsy wedge swing…
… Less than all the range balls it would take to groove whatever move you learned in those lessons…
Come to think of it, there aren’t many golf items more affordable than the FP4 Forward Wedge.
And maybe none that can match its return on investment – as in, strokes-saved-per-dollar spent.
It gets even better for you, too, because you got here early. Which makes you one of the lucky golfers privy to our…
Meaning you’ll pay just $99 for the brand-new, one-of-a-kind Forward Press Wedge.
That’s $30 off.
Put the Forward Press Wedge in your bag, and you can suddenly start:
All thanks to the FP4 Forward Press Wedge. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Darn right it does.
Now put those hands of yours to good use – scroll down and click your way to better wedge play… and lower scores.
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If you have a question about the Forward Press Wedge or if you’d like to order by phone, call our friendly customer service team at 888.241.2460 (Monday – Friday, 9:00 am-5:00pm CT). You can also send an email to [email protected].