We all know how important it is to have a short game you can rely on. Not only do you need a reliable routine and swing, but equipment plays a huge factor, with some of the best golf wedges designed to help improve your score. Put simply, if you can make a few extra up-and-downs a round, the impact on your entire game will be profound.
For this guide we’ve decided to focus on wedges that generate a lot of spin and control for those often uncomfortable chip shots as you scramble for an important up-and-down.
The Quick List
Subtle yet effective changes have been made to the Vokey SM10 wedge over the previous model and earn it the crown as our top pick. The more centrally placed CG, higher spin and lower launch, all enhance the predictability and control with this wedge.
The ultra-forgiving CBZ wedges from Cleveland are great for those who are seeking a high bounce wedge for play on softer golf courses, for those who have steep attack angles or both.
The Ping S159 wedges look as good as any other on the market and have the performance to match. The spin produced when chipping and pitching was exceptional and they also produced a strong consistent ball flight when firing from a little further out.
With multiple grind and bounce options, the TaylorMade Hi-Toe 4 wedge caters to golfers of all skill levels and playing styles. The Spin Tread technology boosts control, even from the rough, while its sleek design and finish offer broad appeal.
Combining a traditional, tour-inspired aesthetic with new technology, the Opus offers extreme spin and control from the rough and is available in two sleek finishes.
A top quality wedge that combines pretty looks with effective performance. Six different grind options options allow for every player to find an option perfect for them, allowing for excellent spin control.
Load the next 2 models
Looks matter when it comes to golf clubs - if you don't like the look of the club in your hand, you'll never get the most out of it. That scenario is not something to worry about if you opt for the beautiful Pro T-1 wedge from Mizuno.
One major to key to a good wedge for chipping is a soft feel, allowing the ball to remain on the face as long as possible for maximum spin control. The Sugar Daddy III delivers that in a new, slicker aesthetic.
Best Wedges For Chipping
Top pick
Our top pick goes to the new Titleist Vokey SM10s, a wedge that is incredibly popular with players on the professional tours. They now feature progressive shaping which helps them look really attractive at address on all lofts available. In comparison to the Vokey SM9 wedges, we noticed a slightly smaller head shape and straighter leaning edge in the lower lofts (46° to 52°) than the higher lofted options.
Performance-wise, the spin is fractionally higher in the SM10, which we think is likely down to individually cut TX9 grooves that differ based on the loft or finish of the wedge. Also, Titleist have provided the SM10 with micro-texture between the grooves, this helps create more friction on the face which, in-turn, helps create further spin and more control around the greens.
The SM10s felt terrific around the green and impressively, we felt in complete control from 50-75 yards with spin levels and a slightly lower ball flight than the SM9s. As always, the Vokey wedges come with a wide range of lie, loft and bounce options to help find the right fit for your game if you are looking to get a custom fitting.
- Read our full Titleist Vokey SM10 Wedge Review
Best high bounce
The CBZ wedges are all about forgiveness. The larger, rounded profile of the Cleveland CBZ will allow even those lacking confidence to feel good when laying the head behind the ball around the greens.
There's a common misconception that if you opt for a forgiving wedge, you're then sacrificing performance - although I found it a little harder to slide this wedge under the ball on firmer turf, the rounded edge still allowed me to play creative shots around the green. If you tend to get steep on the ball during your chip and pitch shots, or play a lot of golf in which the ground tends to be soft, the CBZ could prove a great fit for your game. Throughout my testing, the CBZ wedge proved to offer the exceptional feel you would expect from a premium bladed wedge, but with the ease and forgiveness of some of the best wedges for mid handicappers.
Cleveland deserve a lot of credit for the quality of their short game releases in recent years and the CBZ family are another example of that and after testing, we can safely conclude they're one of the best Cleveland wedges on the market.
- Read our full Cleveland CBZ Wedge Review
Most underrated
Although the topline of the S159 is slim and rather compact-looking, it still provides plenty of confidence when down behind the ball. It's worth noting that, with the recent release of the Blueprint T and Blueprint S irons, which are considered some of the best irons for low handicappers, Ping are providing a more blade-style look on the S159 wedges.
We were impressed with the feel from the face of these wedges, particularly on longer shots. It was a soft but positive feedback, one that will appeal to many players.
The Ping S159 wedges produce a ridiculous amount of spin with chip shots – more than any other wedge we’ve tested all year. This allowed us to get really aggressive while chipping, taking on flags with the knowledge our spin levels will help with overall control of the golf ball. The look of the clubs is a simple, plain one, maybe too plain for some – but our testing team liked the looks (and the feel!).
- Read our full Ping S159 Wedge Review
Best full face
The TaylorMade Hi-Toe 4 wedge marks the latest evolution in the Hi-Toe series, building on the success of the Hi-Toe 3, Big Foot, and Hi-Toe Raw models.
Visually, the Hi-Toe 4 retains the signature copper finish that has become a staple of the Hi-Toe lineup. This, combined with the raw face, reduces glare and is favored by many tour players. The addition of a colored bottom groove aids in alignment, making it easier to square the clubface to the target—particularly useful for precision in chipping around the greens. The face and groove pattern mirrors that of the MG4 wedges, known for their exceptional spin control. While the overall shape of the Hi-Toe 4 might not appeal to everyone, particularly those who prefer a straighter leading edge, it’s a matter of personal preference.
Performance-wise, the Hi-Toe 4 excels in versatility. The Spin Tread technology offers excellent spin and control, not just from the fairway and rough, but also on delicate chips where spin is crucial for stopping the ball quickly on the green.
- Read our full TaylorMade Hi-Toe 4 Wedge Review
Best for low flight
If you're a player who plays a lot of links golf or tends to battle windy conditions a lot, it can be very valuable to be able to flight a wedge to keep it out of the wind - the Opus wedge from Callaway is great for that.
In terms of aesthetics, we were pleased to see Callaway return to more classic looking bladed wedge with the Opus—we weren't big on the design of the Jaws Raw wedges. At first glance, we immediately noticed how premium the Opus looked.
The design has been based on tour-player feedback. With that in mind, we think the shape of the Opus is best suited for more confident golfers. There's also the Spin Gen Face Technology— a combination of three factors to enhance spin and control. Despite that, we didn't noticed a massive difference between the Opus and PXG Sugar Daddy II, when playing from the fairway and green.
But the Opus really delivers in the rough. It produced outstanding levels of spin and the ball checked up a lot more than we'd anticipated hitting shots from the thick, buried lies. We think the combination of performance and aesthetics is a winner!
- Read our full Callaway Opus Wedge Review
Used by McIlroy
Given Rory McIlroy hits it a mile off the tee and has had a hot putter in 2025, it's easy to forget about how good he is chipping around the green. His choice of wedge is the MG5, a wedge that allows him to dial in his spin control for optimal performance.
While I loved the TaylorMade MG4 wedges, I was hoping the shape of the MG5 wedges would be different, specifically the leading edge being more rounded. I'm happy to report that this is indeed the case, with the leading edge now sitting beautifully on the ground behind the ball. It helps sell the look as though I can slide the club under the ball, whether I’m opening or closing the face. This curvature is also replicated on the top line, which now flows much better into the hosel.
TaylorMade have softened the face which helps the ball stay on the face longer, which helped improve my distance control when chipping and pitching. The soft face is complimented by new Saw-Milled grooves, which push the groove design as close as possible to their legal limit. These grooves have steeper walls and sharper radii to help grip the ball and produce high levels of spin. While I couldn’t recommend any more for any golfer to try and test these wedges in the higher lofts, I do feel as though mid-high handicapper golfers would benefit from a more forgiving wedge in a 52° or 50° due to the bladed nature of these wedges.
- Read our full TaylorMade MG5 Wedge Review
Best looking
Your relationship with a club begins with how much you like the aesthetic it prevents. If you have a wedge that looks like a clump of wood, it's not going to look overly appealing as you stand over a tricky, tight lie chip on the final hole of your weekend club competition. With the Mizuno Pro T-1, we can't imagine there are too many people reading this guide who won't love the look of what the Japanese brand have offered us here.
What makes this a great option for chipping is the range of different groves and soles available. No matter your choice for grooves or sole, every club face features Quad Cut+ grooves and Hydroflow microgrooves which felt pleasingly responsive around the greens - we felt like we had real control regardless of distance or lie.
There are also six different sole profiles and five different grind options on the face available at purchase. Therefore, with this particular wedge and any others on this list, we'd encourage a custom fitting to make sure you're choosing a loadout best suiting to the playing characteristics of your game.
- Read our full Mizuno Pro T-1 Wedge Review
Best for soft feel
Sugar Daddy wedges haven't always met my eye in previous years. PXG have gone for pretty brash and bold aesthetics which haven't resonated with me - when I'm standing over a chip shot I wanted a clean, refined look behind the ball. Pleasingly, the Sugar Daddy III wedges deliver this. The smaller profile may not suit all players but everyone will appreciated the sleek chrome finish.
Loads of spin is available via the extensively forged face and CNC milling of the clearly visible grooves. The feel is also an appealing one, giving a soft but responsive feel on both chip shots and fuller shots from the fairway or rough. We particularly enjoyed chipping with the BP grind during testing thanks to the higher bounce and wide sole. As with most PXG clubs, we'd recommend a custom fitting to get the maximum performance out of your purchase.
- Read our full PXG Sugar Daddy III Wedge Review
How we test
Sam has worked in the golf industry for 14 years in addition to experience playing on both the EuroPro Tour and Clutch Pro Tour, offering advice on equipment to all levels of golfers. Sam heads up our review content relating to fairway woods, hybrids, wedges and golf balls.
When it comes to the best wedges for chipping, we take the testing process very seriously. Whether we are sent a product or buy it ourselves, we put everything through its paces to ensure we can provide thorough and reliable advice. Every member of the Golf Monthly team is an avid golfer and as such, knows what does and doesn't make for a good wedge.
Our reviews are made by golfers, for golfers. This means two main things - most notably is that we know what you, the reader, want from a golf club. That's because we're looking for the same thing, too. With wedges that's spin control, launch and trajectory control and forgiveness. If a wedge is good at these things, we'll tell you! Secondly, we're honest with our reviews. There's no bias towards any particular manufacturer, nor the opportunity to 'buy' a good review. We test it and then tell you exactly how it is - good, bad or indifferent.
Sam testing the Cleveland CBZ wedge
As far as our testing methodology goes, we review all wedges properly, which means we have used each one across multiple rounds and in practice to assess every aspect of performance in all conditions. For example, if a wedge claims to be the ultimate chipping club, we will test that theory from any and all lies possible. Specific to the best wedges for chipping, we have tested every club thoroughly to assess the level of spin, feel and turf interaction. We were also keen to find out how forgiving each model was and if there were any differences in flight or ball spin off the face of each club.
This comprehensive testing style is not just exclusive to wedges as we test with the same level of thoroughness across all gear categories. For more information on how Golf Monthly tests products, take a look at our methodology here.
What you need to consider when buying new wedges
1. Gapping
It's important to fill the yardage gaps in your bag. It's important to know your distances before buying wedges so you don't have 20 yard gaps between your more lofted irons and lower lofted wedges.
2. Bounce
Low-bounce wedges are more suited to hard fairways and tight lies, while high-bounce wedges are better for softer ground conditions and bunkers. The most bounce you will ever see on a wedge is about 18°, but it can be as low as 2°. What bounce you should get is determined by a number of things - the steepness of your attack angle, the firmness of the fairways you play on and what type of shots you want to play with your wedges.
3. Forgiveness
Chipping can be hard. So hard that the 'yips' word can be thrown about for players that struggle with it. Therefore, having a wedge forgiving enough on chip shots can be a game-changer for your short game. Confidence is everything in golf, and if your wedge is forgiving enough it can inspire that mental fortitude to help you get up-and-down from the trickiest of spots. For more information on clubs that can help you hit consistently sweeter golf shots, visit our guide to the most forgiving wedges.
4. Grooves
While grooves are now tightly regulated, it is still well worth keeping up to date with the latest designs, which use new milling processes and groove shapes to help move water and dirt away from the ball at impact to create extra spin and improve control. The tackiness of the club face can really play a difference when you're looking to drop the ball as close as you can to the hole, so for that reason, try to find a club that has a milled, or even micro-milled clubface that will latch on to the ball on impact and add more revolutions onto your golf shot.
5. Testing
There are so many different custom fitting options for wedges given the different bounce, grind and loft options. It's worth your time to go to your PGA professional or local golf store to hit a few wedges to find what best suits you own game before making your purchasing decision.
While this guide sets out some of the best golf wedges for chipping, you may also want to think about getting a couple of wedges that will assist you over longer approach shots too. For that reason, be sure to take a look at our guides on the best golf lob wedges and best golf pitching wedges, which both set out some of the best golf clubs for those longer approach shots into the hole.
FAQ
What degree wedge is best for chipping?
For most golfers, a gap wedge or a sand wedge with loft of between 52° and 56° will produce the most consistent outcome when chipping. This is because you'll be able to play most short-game shots you're likely to come across out on the course. However, it's worth investing some time to find out which option suits you best.
Is a 52 degree wedge good for chipping?
We think any of the best gap wedges are great clubs for chipping. They offer great versatility in terms of shot selection and normally don't require too big a swing to hit the ball the right distance.
What is the easiest wedge to chip with?
Generally speaking, for a basic chip shot, it's slightly easier to use a gap wedge or a sand wedge instead of a lob wedge. That's because you don't have to swing as hard or as long, therefore increasing your margin for error. It also depends on the situation and your own technique. If you tend to get a bit steep, a wedge with a high degree of bounce will help and vice versa.
Should you chip with a 60 degree wedge?
In certain situations, a 60-degree wedge is the ideal club to chip with. For example, say you have a bunker between yourself and the flag and need to get the ball up in the air quickly and land it softly, you want to use your most lofted club. For that, we have also put together a guide on the best lob wedges currently on the market.