Idle no longer, thanks to Eidolon Wedges

That dreaded and anticipated, first round of the year becomes less violent with each passing celebration. Rather than a sense of fear, washing over me is a sense of uncertainty, salted with amusement. Attempting to recall to my active ability the sensations of last season’s final and successful strikes, it is only when I trust and fall away that I begin to once again execute.

With that disclaimer, it is always the wedges that cause the most concern. They have sharp edges and demand a bowed left wrist and an encouraging follow-through. Without these two principle candidates, the shot is doomed to squirt, to trip, to fail. Imagine the first chips, pitches and bumps being played with an untested pair of wedges, forged for the better player. Thus began 2010, courtesy of Eidolon, the leader in custom built wedges.

Eidolon is a boutique company, focusing its efforts on clubs with 48, 52, 56 and 60 degrees of loft. These also have a V-shaped sole, albeit a V from front to back, not from side to side (like the hull of a boat.) These wedges can be, scratch that, SHOULD BE custom-fitted to each and every golfer, so as to offer the same consistency and personality that one receives from the personally-fitted putter, driver and irons.

I have two of these wedges to toy with, wedges that differ much from my cavity-back set of irons. I intentionally selected the blade that is promoted for the “better player,” in order to cause a contrast in look and (possibly) feel. Alternative shaft flexes, typically unavailable from all other wedge companies, were made available during the fitting process. Shaft composition (steel vs. graphite) also comes up during this tailoring session. Armed with a new pair of short-game cudgels, I was ready to attach the course with earnest.

Byrncliff, that fine course south of Buffalo, can play quite short for a good driver. Moving up a set of decks to the whites, I guaranteed a number of full and partial wedge shots into greens by so doing. What I discovered was the following:
–With full shots in with 48 and 56 degree, I pulled the shot quite often. I attributed these mistakes to faulty plane or alignment on my part;
–I reached the distances that I sought with consistency, finding myself recovering laterally, not vertically;
–on sand shots, I dug and splashed with abandon, knowing that I could trust the Eidolon clubs to bring the ball to the green, on both long and short bunker recoveries;
–Chipping, the most delicate art, was more challenging. I did not have time on the practice green to accustom myself to the feel and weight of the clubs. Therefore, my on-course efforts were, in essence, my practice. I was not dismayed.

Eidolon wedges are priced high enough to indicate and guarantee value. They are not so elusive as to reserve their bag placement to the elite among the wealthy. As with a fine putter or a desired driver, they require fair commitment in cash and rehearsal. As all wondrous teachers remind their students, strokes saved around the green are the most valuable of all. 2010 deserves to be the year that these strokes are saved on your scorecard.