Wedge grip...do you taper or no taper?

[clemsondds]

Curious what everyone likes...  I've always gone with stock gp mcc grips.  I have heard in the past that Faldo likes to put extra tape on lower hand to make no taper.  Just wondering what you guys think and use. 

[Streuner]

Definetely less taper, the wedge is the club that I am most often grip down… I Play MCC +4 on all wedges and 9 iron. 

[Stuart_G]

1 hour ago, clemsondds said:

Curious what everyone likes...  I've always gone with stock gp mcc grips.  I have heard in the past that Faldo likes to put extra tape on lower hand to make no taper.  Just wondering what you guys think and use. 

 

I prefer less of a taper on all my clubs.  I use the same Lamkin plus taper on all clubs.  Nothing different for the wedges.

[Streuner]

Lamkin Sonar Plus is at the rest of my Clubs, because the Lamkin is simply 10gr less weight in Midsize. 

[Pepperturbo]

1 hour ago, clemsondds said:

Curious what everyone likes...  I've always gone with stock gp mcc grips.  I have heard in the past that Faldo likes to put extra tape on lower hand to make no taper.  Just wondering what you guys think and use. 

Due to large hands, I have always played grips with extra wraps on the lower hand.  Used to be wraps were +3 top, +4 lower hand, until MCC Plus4 was introduced.  Since, I have MMC Plus4 +3 on 2i, 3i, 4i plus F52' & M58'.  On 5i-PW, standard MCC Align, Red, White, Black +4.  

 

My reason is with those Plus4 irons, I may switch from standard Vardon grip to Reverse Overlap, which gives me a greater sense of shot feel, power and right-hand control. 

[LinkLow]

I play +2 wraps under the right hand and another half wrap on the very bottom of the grip with the MMC+4s. 

[cbrwn425]

No taper, I’m using MCC +4 on all clubs. 

[clemsondds]

Wow I had no idea no taper was this common. Anyone have a good argument for maintaining the traditional taper? 

[mat562]

I've always taken the taper out of every grip through the bag. On a .600 butt, or close to it, I've long played a .580 core grip with two wraps under the upper hand and three or four under the right, depending upon the shaft's taper and how it feels when I set my hands upon it.

 

My reasoning is that my hands are the same size, so why would I want a different grip thickness across the two of them?

 

As for the grips, ribbed GP Tour Velvet Cords. I have a dwindling stash of the original ones with the proper, ropey, harsh cord.

 

 

Edited June 6 by mat562

[Mike_C]

Plus 4 grips on all my "feel" wedges.  I like to choke up on shorter shots.  The Ping Dylawedge Grip also very good for this....

[Birddog2]

No reduce taper here, using Golf Pride midsize tour wraps. Usually use the heavier white grips with the wedges.

Edited June 7 by Birddog2
Spacing

[Yoshifan151]

I like taper in my grips throughout the bag personally. No/reduced taper feels odd.

[phizzy30]

1 hour ago, Yoshifan151 said:

I like taper in my grips throughout the bag personally. No/reduced taper feels odd.

Same.  Maybe we're old school in that way.  I have Iomic stickies in all my clubs minus wedges.  Those have Z-grips.  I need max feel with wedges and feel like they give a little more of that.  On the flip side they tear up my hands, lol.  

[Howard_Jones]

16 hours ago, clemsondds said:

Curious what everyone likes...  I've always gone with stock gp mcc grips.  I have heard in the past that Faldo likes to put extra tape on lower hand to make no taper.  Just wondering what you guys think and use. 

 

I use asymmetrical build up to reduce taper, but its still some left.

 

But....its more to it, depending on what shafts is used for wedges.

 

If its the classic DG S400 and you play the lob wedge at std 35.00" its below 5 inches left of the 0.600 butt section, so no matter what grip we use, the lowest hand ends over the first 3 steps and make a taper shaped grip like MCC even more tapered. Not good.

 

We should then use BU tape on those step just to keep the OG taper shape of the grip, and even more, if the target is less taper than the grip by design have.

 

If the shafts is DG S, the OD goes down about the same per step as we can equalize using 0.015 BU tape like this:

 

1 Step = 1 layer of 0.015 BU

2 Step = 2 layers

3 Step = 3 layers

 

Then the grip area will have a almost strait butt to start from.

 

If we want it to be like MCC +4, We can now add BU in a asymmetrical pattern like this :

 

1. Layer.

Cut 9 inches of BU tape, and start 1 inch below the butt end of the shaft.

(Grip tape area is 10 inches long)

 

2. Layer starts at the front, and is 6.75"

3. Layer starts at the front and is 4.50"

4. Layer start at the front and is 2.25"

 

This is how ive done it since 2010.

[Howard_Jones]

13 hours ago, clemsondds said:

Wow I had no idea no taper was this common. Anyone have a good argument for maintaining the traditional taper? 

 

Thats individual and what the player prefers, but if you read my post above here, you will see that for wedges using S400, (and many other shaft models), the butt section left is so short, the lowest hand ends over the steps and make all grips even more tapered than on irons.

 

My observations say thats no good, since more taper can induce more face closure, and thats part of the reason for why we often go 1 or 2 flat on lie for wedges to reduce pulling and weaken the left side bias it makes.

 

If the player often lower his hands on the grip when playing wedge, it becomed even more important to look at taper shape and size for the lowest hand as i describe above here.

[Stuart_G]

14 hours ago, clemsondds said:

Wow I had no idea no taper was this common. 

 

Actually, no one has said they don't like any taper.  MCC +4 and Lamkin plus are reduced taper grips, there is still some taper,  just not as much as what is/was considered "standard."

 

14 hours ago, clemsondds said:

Anyone have a good argument for maintaining the traditional taper? 

 

If it feels better, than that's the only argument that's needed.   

 

Grip size for both the upper and lower hand is 100% about feel and comfort.   In fact, there are no other good reasons or arguments to change grip size.

[Howard_Jones]

16 minutes ago, Stuart_G said:

 

Actually, no one has said they don't like any taper.  MCC +4 and Lamkin plus are reduced taper grips, there is still some taper,  just not as much as what is/was considered "standard."

 

 

If it feels better, than that's the only argument that's needed.   

 

Grip size for both the upper and lower hand is 100% about feel and comfort.   In fact, there are no other good reasons or arguments to change grip size.

 

I did observe less pulling and face closure rate with the BU i used, and it became more or less a "standard" for wedges from my shop. If that was due to improved comfort alone is hard to say, but it worked.

[Ger21]

All my grips are the same.
With Dynamic Gold, I build up all the steps to give me an even .6" diameter for the entire grip.

Then use Howard's +4 method, but skip one layer for +3.

With graphite shafts, I just do the +3.

[Stuart_G]

6 hours ago, Howard_Jones said:

 

I did observe less pulling and face closure rate with the BU i used, and it became more or less a "standard" for wedges from my shop. If that was due to improved comfort alone is hard to say, but it worked.

 

Admittedly, "feel good" as an "ideal" target is a bit of an oversimplification - but as far as simplification goes when it comes to fitting, it's not a bad one.