Great wedge players just don’t know how far their wedges go. They know how to control the way the ball hits. They do this by changing trajectories, which gives them another way to manage distance, spin and how the ball reacts when it lands.
A big part of that control comes from understanding how much loft you are delivering to the ball at impact. If you add loft, the ball tends to launch higher. If you can provide less loft while maintaining a quality shot, you can produce a lower and more penetrating flight.
Here’s how you can reduce the loft on your wedge shots to hit a “flying” wedge.
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How to control your wedge trajectory
One of my favorite ways to teach this is with a simple ramp placed behind the ball. The angle of the ramp provides a visual representation of what we are trying to create for impact: a downward stroke with the shaft forward.
The goal is not to consciously cut the golf ball or make the swing excessively steep. Instead, the ramp helps the player see and feel how the club should approach impact. As the hands drive and the shaft leans forward, the player can provide a less dynamic loft while still producing the first ball contact.
A lot of golfers try to hit a lower wedge just by moving the ball further back in their stance or forcing their hands forward at address. That can sometimes slow down the flight, but it can also create an overly strong shot and inconsistent contact. The best approach is to learn to control loft through impact.
The ramp gives the player a clear visual for that relationship. The club is always moving downward when it reaches the ball, while the shaft is tilted forward. This combination helps reduce the amount of loft presented at impact and produces the lower, more controlled trajectory we are looking for.
The ramp drill
Place the ramp behind the golf ball so that its angle represents the downward stroke you want to create. From there, hit short wedge shots while focusing on allowing the hands to guide the club head through impact. You should start to feel the shaft tilt forward as the club continues through the swing.
Start with small swings focusing on learning what the actual impact condition feels like. Once you can reproduce this shot consistently, gradually lengthen the swing and start experimenting with different trajectories. The more you understand how to control the loft you deliver, the less dependent you become on just changing clubs or changing ball position. This is when the wedge game becomes much more versatile.
