Cleveland unveil new RTX-3 wedges

Cleveland unveil new RTX-3 wedges

Cleveland are short game specialists, they even say themselves “nobody focuses on the short game like we do. Since the introduction of the iconic 588 wedge in 1988 the brands captured 350 PGA Tour titles, won 26 major championships and has been played by 11 world no 1’s….and if you still need convincing they’ve also sold more than 10 million wedges across the globe.

So when their designers say they’ve created a new wedge, the golfing world sits up and listens. Now the traditional blade design of the new RTX 3 might not look hugely different but trust us Cleveland engineers have pulled out all the stops to make it better than ever before.

Face Balancing Technology

Cleveland’s engineers have studied thousands of wedge shots, and they’ve revealed that when most golfers miss hit a wedge shot it comes out of the toe, but thanks to wedges having longer hosels the centre of gravity typically is towards the heel. Which is a complete mismatch when it comes to stability, shot dispersion and consistent spin and distance control. So they’ve shortened the RTX-3’s hosel, and created a micro cavity inside it to remove 9g of weight. This mass is relocated to shift the centre of gravity towards the centre of the face. Which means extra head stability, less vibration which improves feel and shot dispersion to give you maximum control.

New V Sole Grinds   

Three new tour proven sole grinds also have more leading edge bounce than in the past. Cleveland say this reduces turf interaction time which helps get the club through the turf faster and promotes a crisper feel and more consistent head speed for maximum spin and control. The design also means the head speed lost by hitting the turf is reduced by 23% which is seriously significant. The new grinds are V-LG which is the narrowest low bounce sole for maximum versatility, the V-MG which has mid bounce and is well suited to a wide range of players and turf conditions, and a V-FG which has a forgiving full sole with extra trailing edge relief.

New Rotex Face

Not only have Cleveland’s lab boffins narrowed and deepened each groove on the new wedges but they’ve also sharpened up the radius at the edges to enhance contact and spin from all lies. And because they’re wedge nuts they’ve also milled the face at different angles depending on the loft. Which means when you open the face and cut across shots with the 54° – 64° lofts you still get maximum benefit from the milling pattern gripping the ball at impact.

Laser Milling

To make sure you’ve got every chance of stopping shots on a sixpence each wedge face also has micro laser milled grooves to take the surface roughness right to the edge of the allowable limit by the R&A. Cleveland reckon comparing the new RTX 3 against the older RTX 2 players are seeing a gain of 500rpm which is not to be sniffed at.

Details:    

RRP: £99

www.clevelandgolf.co.uk

Finish options: Black Satin, Tour Satin

Loft and bounce options: 18 different loft and bounce combinations from 46° to 64° in 2° increments.