TaylorMade Hi-Toe 3 wedge Review

Name: TaylorMade Hi-Toe 3 wedge Review
Brand: Taylormade
Price: 139 GBP

By Simon Daddow, Today's Golfer Equipment Editor

Last updated: 25 March 2024

A trio of TaylorMade Hi-Toe 3 wedges

A close up of the face of the TaylorMade Hi-Toe 3 Wedge

A graphic showing teh size difference of Hi-Toe wedges

At a glance
TG Rating Not yet rated
Owner Rating Not yet rated

What we say...

TaylorMade Hi-Toe 3 wedges combine raised Micro Rib technology with a rusty raw face to maximise spin and short game versatility.

Since being sold by adidas in 2017 TaylorMade have doubled down on becoming a credible through-the-bag manufacturer, and when it comes to wedges the shift in focus is paying dividends. Where TaylorMade staff players a few years ago regularly used wedges produced by competing brands the current team of elite athletes, Tiger, DJ, Rory, Morikawa and Co now swear TaylorMade wedges are best for their game.

Thanks to listening to feedback from their tour staff over the years, TaylorMade unusually offer two tour-level wedge families. The popular MG3 is seen as a traditional rival to Titleist Vokey Design models where the Hi-Toe which was developed in association with Justin Rose, is the model that offers a lower launch, more spin and additional versatility.

Importantly though TaylorMade say if your game demands the ultimate performance wedge (so maximum spin and around the green versatility), you won’t find better than the Hi-Toe (we explain why below).

With the Hi-Toe Raw now past its 2^nd birthday, the brand have taken inspiration from their MG3 family and come up with the brand new Hi-Toe 3, this is their story.

What’s new about the Hi-Toe 3 wedge?

Raised Micro Ribs

Maximising spin when you don’t take a full swing is a very serious business in the world of wedges. Like TaylorMade’s MG3 wedge, the new Hi-Toe 3 have tiny raised Micro-Ribs (they’re just 0.02mm tall and 0.25mm in width) protruding between each groove on the face.

The raised-ribs create a more textured abrasive surface which interacts more with the ball, producing more spin. They come in especially useful when tackling delicate half swing approaches, with a less than full swing.

Expect a new centre of gravity location and more toe weight

As part of their ongoing R&D processes, TaylorMade have analysed data from 130,000 golfers who’ve passed through TaylorMade fitting facilities, in a bid to better understand how golfers hit their wedges. And surprisingly their impact data shows 66% of wedge shots are hit from the toe side of centre.

With a 15mm toe strike leading to 5 yards of distance loss and 2.5mph of ball speed difference (to an on-centre strike) TaylorMade’s engineers reckoned they could make a wedge perform more efficiently.

So, they’ve removed extra weight from behind the heel of the wedge and added it to the toe weight pad. The result is a higher, centred centre of gravity location which lowers launch, improves distance control performance, and provides additional spin.

High bounce option and more full-face grooves

Previous generations of Hi-Toe wedges have included a Bigfoot model, which thanks to the very wide sole essentially made the model an excellent game improver style wedge. This time around TaylorMade wanted to offer golfers an even more versatile sole with similar amounts of bounce, so they’ve created new high bounce 58° and 60° lofts with 13° of bounce (Hi-Toe Bigfoot had 15°).

Full face grooves have also been applied to the 54° loft this time around, as TaylorMade’s research has shown lots of golfers use this loft for short green side approaches which is where spin is most difficult to generate.

RELATED: 2022 Wedges ranked by spin

Extra sole shaping

TaylorMade say additional 4-way camber sole shaping has helped them ensure the Hi-Toe 3 is easier to slip under the ball, than any other wedge, from tight lies. The company reckon their leading edges are the lowest in the industry, which means they’re able to combine lots of bounce in the play position, with a leading edge that doesn’t sit off the ground when the club face is opened for deft approaches.

Golfers can expect extreme shot-making versatility and potential.

What you need to know about the TaylorMade Hi-Toe 3 wedges

Raw faces are better

Raw faces that oxidise and rust offer golfers several benefits over traditional plated faces. When no plating is applied golfers get sharper groove edges that are consistently right on the tolerance limit of the rules.

Rusty faces are also preferred by a good majority of tour pros as the additional spin performance they offer comes into its own in damp conditions. TaylorMade say golfers playing partial shots in damp conditions lose 50% of the spin they’d normally generate, yet with a rusty face and the brand’s Raised Micro Rib tech that deficit is cut in half to 25%.

Hi-Toe wedges launch lower and spin more

Compared to traditional tour-level wedges there’s a significant difference in the height of the toe of a Hi-Toe wedge. TaylorMade say the Hi-Toe weighs in at 66mm in terms of toe height, which is several millimetres more than the traditional tour-level competition.

RELATED: Best Lob Wedges

This difference contributes to lowering launch and upping spin which is why they’re so popular with tour pros. Thanks to there also being more face to hit, spin preservation is greater too.

As we said if ultimate wedge performance is your goal, Hi-Toe wedges should definitely be part of your buying decision.

Video: How does the TaylorMade Hi-Toe 3 compare to other leading 2024 wedges?

TaylorMade on the Hi-Toe 3 wedge

The all-new Hi-Toe 3 is the company’s latest evolution of the Tour-proven Hi-Toe wedge. With an intense focus on versatility and added performance on shots closest to the green, our engineers have designed a club capable of producing the entire catalogue of short game shots. From low-launching, high-spinning checkers to full-on open- faced flops, Hi-Toe 3 has been meticulously crafted to help golfers unlock creativity and save strokes around the green.

Par-saving up and downs can have a more significant impact than birdies. That is why so many of the world’s best players have the world’s best short games. What are the keys to delivering in those pivotal moments around the green?

It starts with versatility and imagination—the originality to envision a variety of shots along with the tools and confidence to pull them off.

The history of Hi-Toe began on Tour, as our product and engineering teams worked directly with TaylorMade athletes to develop the original design in 2018. The main request was versatility.

“Our athletes all offered great input individually, but collectively everyone wanted something versatile. They wanted a single wedge that could perform around the greens from deep rough, thick fescue, bunkers with different sands, in wet conditions and from tight lies. That is a lot to fit into a single design but with Hi-Toe 3 we have done it.”

Bill Price, TaylorMade Product Creation, Wedges and Putters.

Product Information