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Callaway Opus wedges launched on PGA Tour

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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt of an article our Andrew Tursky filed for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Read the full piece here.

While this is the world’s first official look at the final versions of the Opus line of wedges, Callaway staffers have actually been involved In the prototyping and design process for around two years, according to Callaway Tour Manager Joe Toulon.

“The Tour launch is basically when we’re introducing it to the Tour players officially for the first time,” Toulon said on Tuesday at the 2024 Travelers Championship. “We’ve done a lot of work with this wedge in the prototyping stages. It’s a project that we’ve really kicked off 2 years ago, when we really started digging into this category and understanding what the best players in the world look for in a wedge.”

Of course, Callaway’s research and design team has been studying the wedge category for decades, but this time around – during the design of the new Opus wedges – Callaway put more power than ever into the hands of PGA TOUR players. Toulon and team paid close attention to everything Tour players wanted from a wedge, including the look at address, the shape of the leading edge, how the club sits on the ground with the face open, the shaping of the sole, the sound, the feel, and how the wedge interacts with the turf at impact under various conditions.

Although all factors were considered, the most significant barrier to entry for Tour players is their first impression of the shape of the wedge at address.

“The shape is really something we spent a lot of time with, and getting it to look good to the majority of players – it’s something that you may not hit everybody’s eye exactly right, but this is something where we got countless hours of feedback and testing from Tour players, and this is kind of the final product,” Toulon said. “…I think one of the things that players really focus on when they set a wedge down for the first time is what it looks like at address, and what it looks like when you open the face, and we did a lot around that; the shaping and the roundness of this wedge.”

Toulon calls it the “final” product, because there were various iterations of the Opus wedges before this. Actually, these final versions of the Opus wedges are based on the sixth prototype, specifically.

“[The Opus wedge] was code named ‘S6’ during the process,” Toulon said. “We stamped every wedge out here (on the PGA TOUR) in this shape with S6, and that basically just stands for some of the shaping designs we went through. That was the sixth shape design that we settled on based on what the player feedback was. That’s really the whole story behind this wedge; tour-inspired, tour-driven. These guys out here designed this wedge. This is just the final cosmetic and final design that we went with.”

Read the full piece here.

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5 Comments

5 Comments

  1. Pingback: New Callaway Opus, Opus Platinum wedges announced – GolfWRX

  2. Moe Greene

    Jun 23, 2024 at 3:16 am

    That name wasn’t field tested.

  3. Travis

    Jun 20, 2024 at 2:39 pm

    Looks like a rebadged Kirkland.

  4. Trevino

    Jun 20, 2024 at 7:24 am

    Ah yes, six shape iterations to get to a shape that… looks like how 99% of wedges have always been shaped.

  5. Karsten's Ghost

    Jun 19, 2024 at 8:41 pm

    So it’s the Glide Forged Pro…

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Equipment

New Callaway Opus, Opus Platinum wedges announced

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We spotted Callaway’s new Opus wedges on the PGA Tour in May. The design, however, in its “S6” incarnation, has been present in pros bags for much longer, game by the likes of Jon Rahm, Yuka Saso, and Xander Schauffele.

Today, Callaway is officially announcing the retail launch of its Opus and Opus Platinum wedges and pulling back the curtain on the most tour-tested, tour-validated wedge in company history in the process.

2024 Callaway Opus wedges: What’s new, key technology

Spin Gen Face Technology

Callaway engineers combine three elements for what they’re calling “Spin Gen Face Technology.” More grooves are present on the face thanks to decreasing the distance between each groove. As with previous designs, engineers also leverage offset groove-in-groove design for more spin, particularly on open-face shots. Finally, the face has been aggressively blasted with quartz to create additional roughness. The sum total of all these elements? More spin, particularly from the rough and in wet conditions, as well as lower launch.

Tour feedback

As a result of extensive testing and input from tour professionals, Opus wedges feature a higher toe peak, refined leading edge radius, and smooth hosel transition for what the company calls its “best wedge shape ever.” Owing to professional input, Callaway offers Opus wedges with a full range of grinds.

2024 Callaway Opus wedges: Additional model details

Opus Platinum wedges

In addition to the standard Opus wedge, Callaway is also unveiling premium MiM (metal injection molded) Opus Platinum wedges. The wedges feature 17 grams of tungsten bonded high in the topline of the club for lower launch with more spin as well as a proprietary blend of metals in the body of the club for optimum feel and performance.

What Callaway says

On the name…Paul Winterhalter – Product Manager: There is an art to the game, and we really felt this quote summarized what this product really meant: where the art meets science. So, with that, introducing the new name for our franchise of wedges is Opus. In general, the name has an air of elegance to it. There’s a sense of beauty, and especially as you look at the product and we get these in your hands, you’ll see that there really is just a new look, just a beautiful sense to them. They’re quite elegant…for us, there was a ton of time and effort put into this product, and we really felt that the product was befitting of the name Opus.

On the different design mentality…Brian Herr – R&D Manager, Wedges: “We started with a different mentality this time. We didn’t design a wedge and then bring it out and see what they thought. We started from the ground up, we started with shaping. We had multiple different shapes that we brought out and showed, we got their feedback, we iterated, we got their feedback, we iterated again. So, we really let the Tour players design this product to a shape they wanted. And then after we got a shape that we loved, we started on the sole grind. So, there’s notes here all over of what Dean tested and what he built and how he went about making products for players and getting their feedback. But really, it was 18 months in the making of going and testing and then iterating and then going back out, getting as many players as feedback as we could and helping them to have them help us design it.”

On the available grinds…Paul Winterhalter: “Looking at the grind offerings, as wedges go, this is crucial for us. On the right-hand side, we have the S and W grinds where we do the lion’s share of sales. The S is our standard everyday grind with a standard sole, while the W has a wider, more forgiving full sole…We also wanted to create a product that’s a better fit for better players, so we introduced the T grind, which is new, and the C grind.

Brian Herr: The T grind is narrow and sits low to the ground, incredible for open-faced shots, particularly for players who pick the ball cleanly without taking a divot. On the other hand, the C grind is a departure from what we’ve done before, designed to keep the leading edge low when opening the face, suitable for versatile shot-making from various lies. The wider sole in the C grind provides better feedback through the turf compared to the T grind. Both grinds cater to skilled players who want to make any shot around the green.

On the Opus Platinum wedge design…Paul Winterhalter: The Opus Platinum looks super premium with MIM (Metal Injection Molding) lines in the back and elevated curb appeal. As a quick elevator pitch, we have the Spin Gen face technology as with Opus and Tour-validated shaping so those are kind of baked into the product. But what we’re doing to take it up another level is that trajectory control using tungsten. And then that unique MIM construction. We’ve talked about this already but through a large amount of tungsten being bonded into that topline to help the CG placement…and the next piece of that is the Metal Injection Molding – it’s not caste, it’s not forged, it’s kind of something new for us.

Brian Herr: MiM is a different way to manufacture, it’s more precise, and it also provides better feel. We’ve done extensive testing on MIM versus other manufacturing methods. MIM dampens better than other materials even the same material in different methods. MIM is a better dampener, so you’re going to notice a premium good, soft feel.

Pricing, specs, and availability

  • Price: Opus ($179.99), Opus Plantium ($229.99)
  • Pre-sale: 7/19
  • At retail: 7/26
  • Opus finishes: Brushed chrome, black shadow
  • Opus Platinum finishes: Blue, chrome
  • Stock shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold MID 115 grams (steel), UST Recoil DART HDC 65 grams (graphite)
  • Stock grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet +2 Gray

Full Callaway Opus specs

Callaway Opus

Callaway Opus Platinum 

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Equipment

Coolest thing for sale in the GolfWRX Classifieds (7/15/24): TaylorMade MySpider X L-Neck putter

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At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals that all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, there is a listing for a TaylorMade MySpider X L-Neck putter.

From the seller: (@Need4spd): “TaylorMade MySpider X L-Neck. Asking $315 • Plays 33.5” • Dead mint condition • SuperStroke Pistol Tour (used for four rounds) – It’s the black and white one, pic won’t upload for some reason. • New and unused MySpider headcover included.”

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link: TaylorMade MySpider X L-Neck putter

This is the most impressive current listing from the GolfWRX BST, and if you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum you can check them out here: GolfWRX BST Rules

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Robert MacIntyre’s winning WITB: 2024 Genesis Scottish Open

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Driver: Titleist TSR2 (9 degrees, D4 SureFit setting) Buy here.
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 7 X

3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees) Buy here.
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 8 X

Hybrid: TaylorMade Stealth 2 Rescue (19 degrees) Buy here.
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 105 X

Irons: Titleist 620 CB (4-9) Buy here.
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (46-10F) Buy here, SM9 (50-08F, 56-10S) Buy here, WedgeWorks (60-08K) Buy here.
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 Onyx (46, 50), Dynamic Gold S400 Onyx (56, 60)

Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour Buy here.
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Pistol

Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Buy here.

Grips: Golf Pride Z-Grip Cord (woods, wedges), Grip Master (irons)

Check out more in-hand photos of Robert MacIntyre’s clubs here.

The winning WITB is presented by 2nd Swing Golf. 2nd Swing has more than 100,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.

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