March 26, 200717 yr Author The stage 5 Sandwedge is just for collecting. I do hit it around the house. The stage 4 52* and 58* are built to my specs and are going to play on the softer courses around here.
March 26, 200717 yr Those are beautiful Idrive!! I really like the finish. I'm betting the pics don't really do the finish justice, am I right? Really sweet, thanks for sharing.
March 27, 200717 yr Author Almost all of the information I have about them is from the Tourspecgolf Proshop. I will be using them tomorrow. (4's not 5) I expect they are going to eat some golf balls. The grooves are very sharp. Will have a bit of an update on the playability tomorrow night. If they play like they look and feel, this is going to be a lot of fun.
March 27, 200717 yr Haha I'm the one who did the translations for the Pro Shop Gold's Factory wedges.... I guess I wasn't very clear! The higher the stage the more focused custom work that is done by Sasaya-san... both 4 and 5 are finished with a copper foundation and finished in a special Gold's Factory Black Chrome. Stage 4's raw head is from Himeji then totally handmade right to the finish. According to Gold's the Stage 5 is 100% in house INCLUDING the forging. They do not reveal much about this but I'm guessing stage 5 would have a different feel from all the other stages with Gold's own forging (hence the high cost). I don't know if it's me but from the pics, the texture of the steel on 5 looks different from 4 even though they are the same foundation and finish. idrive if you don't hit the 5, I guess we'll never know for sure!! (^_^)
May 4, 200816 yr Author Haha I'm the one who did the translations for the Pro Shop Gold's Factory wedges.... I guess I wasn't very clear!The higher the stage the more focused custom work that is done by Sasaya-san... both 4 and 5 are finished with a copper foundation and finished in a special Gold's Factory Black Chrome. Stage 4's raw head is from Himeji then totally handmade right to the finish. According to Gold's the Stage 5 is 100% in house INCLUDING the forging. They do not reveal much about this but I'm guessing stage 5 would have a different feel from all the other stages with Gold's own forging (hence the high cost). I don't know if it's me but from the pics, the texture of the steel on 5 looks different from 4 even though they are the same foundation and finish. idrive if you don't hit the 5, I guess we'll never know for sure!! (^_^) Still haven't taken out the Stage 5 and played with it.. not sure I will any time soon. BUT, I have been playing the Stage 4 wedges the last few times out and can tell you that these wedges have BY FAR, the sharpest grooves of any wedge on the planet. If there is such a thing as to sharp, these are it. The spin and damage to the golf ball is incredible. I have decided to buy stock in Titleist (balls).... The only wedge, JDM and USDM I haven't hit recently to compare to are the Yamaha's. I would assume the Yamaha's are similar to the Vokey SM's, Epons etc. So... it's settled. The wedge that has the sharpest grooves, the most spin are the Golds Factory Stage 4 wedges.
May 5, 200816 yr Author Stage 4 come "stock" as A wedge 52/8 S wedge 58/12 Considering they are made/ground by Sasaya, I would think you might be able to have the bounce of your choice?!?! I played with them again today and am starting to dial them in.... they really are amazing. The spin is like no other. I was able to back up a few shots today on greens that don't normally let you back up a ball on. I have to keep a ball in my pocket and play when I am going to hit a wedge shot so I don't ruin a ball every time I hit them. I need a ball sponsor. Edited May 5, 200816 yr by idrive
May 5, 200816 yr Author I've never felt sorry for a ball before until now... it looks worse in person....
May 5, 200816 yr I've never felt sorry for a ball before until now... it looks worse in person.... Wow!....... that looks like it's been chewed by Mike Tyson!
May 5, 200816 yr I've never felt sorry for a ball before until now... it looks worse in person.... My Chikara chews golf balls, but not to the same degree. idrive, these are obviously a lot of fun to play with, however you might have to re-mortgage the house to keep the supply of Titleists up to them
May 5, 200816 yr Amazingly, when I played the Gold's CB's, I was peeling balls with clubs all the way through the 5 iron. Clearly Master Sasaya has a contract with ball manufacturers! Edited May 5, 200816 yr by gth1017
May 5, 200816 yr Amazingly, when I played the Gold's CB's, I was peeling balls with clubs all the way through the 5 iron. Clearly Master Sasaya has a contract with ball manufacturers! Edited May 5, 200816 yr by gth1017
May 5, 200816 yr Is it me or does the printing on the stage 5 wedge appear crooked, especially the name? The others are not so. Maybe this was to add to the uniqueness of the club?
May 6, 200816 yr Author and is it visual trick, or on purpose?the grooves on the stage 5's look wavy Click on the full size image of the picture and you get a clear picture. The grooves are not wavy...
May 6, 200816 yr Is it me or does the printing on the stage 5 wedge appear crooked, especially the name? The others are not so. Maybe this was to add to the uniqueness of the club? Yup that was done purposely.... straight looks to plain so a little off makes it look more unique.
June 5, 200816 yr idrive, very nice wedges u got there! I love to get my hands on for a few shots! thanks for the pics!
June 5, 200816 yr Still haven't taken out the Stage 5 and played with it.. not sure I will any time soon.BUT, I have been playing the Stage 4 wedges the last few times out and can tell you that these wedges have BY FAR, the sharpest grooves of any wedge on the planet. If there is such a thing as to sharp, these are it. The spin and damage to the golf ball is incredible. I have decided to buy stock in Titleist (balls).... The only wedge, JDM and USDM I haven't hit recently to compare to are the Yamaha's. I would assume the Yamaha's are similar to the Vokey SM's, Epons etc. So... it's settled. The wedge that has the sharpest grooves, the most spin are the Golds Factory Stage 4 wedges. idrive, a new model of the GF wedges are available at the golfshop. How will these 2008 model compare to the previous stage 4 and 5?. Thanks dixbenedict
June 5, 200816 yr The new 2008 models are all new original designs by Sasaya-san. He told me that they are a big improvement grind wise and shape wise over the previous stage 4 and 5 wedges while using similar quality forging and steel. You can see there is a more detailed grind in the sole and the cnc milling done by Sasaya san on the face is more complex and supposedly spins even more!
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