In Hand Exclusive: Nike X3X Toe Sweep and Dual Wide Wedges
Nike is delivering two distinct wedge grinds this season. The Toe Sweep wedge is the ultimate wedge from a playability standpoint. This wedge features a unique heel relief grind to conquer all scenarios found with tight lie conditions. The Dual Wide wedge features a unique “c-shaped” grind maximizing launch and spin on all shots. I don’t want to steal all the thunder away from our local Nike sales representative, Joel St.Laurent, who was gracious enough to take time out of his day to explain why these wedges are unique and beneficial to all golfers. Go ahead and take a look at the video above, or read the text below, to learn how Nike is making golf easier through wedge design.
Todd Benware: We’re here on location at Lonnie Poole Golf Course and we’re joined by our friend from Nike, Joel St. Laurent. He is the outside rep here locally in North Carolina for the equipment and footwear for Nike golf. We’re excited he let us come out and view this new product. We’re talking right now about these new Nike wedges with the X3X groove. We’re real excited about it. Tell us what you’ve got.
Joel St. Laurent: Well Todd thanks for having me out today. We’re really excited about the wedge category going into 2014. We’re going to launch the X3X wedge line with two distinct grinds. We are going to have a dual wide grind, a little more traditional grind, versus the toe sweep. Which here, just to show you a little bit about it, there is going to be a lot of relief in the heel part of the golf club. As you know from teaching, the majority of players hit it high and out on the toe. What that comes down to is a loss of distance and loss of accuracy. So we actually took a lot of the weight from the heel and made it much wider in the toe. It makes for a much more consistent strike. Also out of the rough you’re going to find that the face won’t close down as much. The playability is going to be a lot more consistent.
Todd Benware: Just looking at these, they look great. Nike wedges in the last few years have looked very good and the X3X groove has been on the last couple of models. So it’s not necessarily new technology but it is kind of new technology. How this plays and how we felt it out here on the range hitting shots; consistency across the face, good spin, even on the little open face, tall lob shots. You’re seeing versatility there’s no question about it.
Joel St. Laurent: Absolutely. With the rule change by the USGA, manufacturers have had to find different ways to make the ball react the way that it once did three and four years ago. That being said, this groove technology, there’s a little bit more volume in there. So we can really get into that golf ball. You mentioned playing a lot of different shots. The toe sweep wedge, with the design of it, you are able to really open up that face. The sole is going to stay much closer to the ground giving you a variety of playability options.
Todd Benware: We didn’t have the chance to hit this out of the bunker but I can see that it’s still got a good flange to it for shots out of light grass, thicker rough conditions, also out of the bunker too. It is very versatile and you’re able to use a multitude of shots with one club. It makes it a lot easier for folks to get this wedge.
Joel St. Laurent: It’s going to be offered in a 56, 58 and 60 degree. What you’ll find out of the bunker, because of this relief in the heel, you won’t need to open up the face quite as much. It’s going to come up in the air much easier. That was some product testing done with our R&D guys and tour athletes. That was one of the things they were most excited about.
Todd Benware: That’s great. Thanks for letting us see these. We are very excited about the product. It’s the new Nike X3X wedge. You can get it at GlobalGolf.com.
Todd Benware
Todd Benware has been a Class “A” member of the PGA of America since 1996. He is a two-time All-American at Ohio Wesleyan University, and a 1996 Ohio Wesleyan Sports Hall of Fame Inductee. Todd is a talented golf instructor, giving over 10,000 golf lessons since turning professional in 1991. His understanding and knowledge of the golf swing allows him to identify the cause of a student’s problem and create a solution. He has experience using both TrackMan and FlightScope golf ball tracking systems, and is a recognized professional club fitter by Ping, Mizuno, and Titleist.