GOLF.com: 5 Wedge Mistakes That Drain Your Scorecard—And How to Fix Them

Why Wedge Mistakes Quietly Drain Your Score

Wedge play is one of the highest-leverage areas of the game—yet most amateur golfers repeat the same contact-killing habits without realizing it. Top 100 Teacher Kellie Stenzel identifies five core mistakes that compound around the greens and offers straightforward fixes.

Mistake 1: Trying to Lift the Ball

Scooping is the single most common wedge flaw. Because golf is counterintuitive, many players instinctively try to help the ball airborne. In reality, the clubface loft does that work automatically—the player's job is to strike down and through, letting compression create trajectory.

Mistake 2: Misunderstanding Impact Sequence

A properly struck wedge contacts ball first, then ground. The grooves compress the ball against the face, and the loft launches it. A small divot taken after impact—not before—is the hallmark of a solid strike.

Mistake 3: Ball Position Too Far Forward

When the ball sits too far toward the lead foot, the club bottoms out before reaching it, producing heavy contact. Moving the ball closer to center in the stance aligns the bottom of the arc with the ball, dramatically improving consistency.

Mistake 4: Falling Back Through Impact

Allowing weight to drift toward the trail side encourages the scooping motion described above. Committing to a balanced finish with weight over the lead foot—and holding that finish until the ball stops rolling—both improves mechanics and provides immediate feedback.

Mistake 5: Ignoring Face Contact Location

Where the ball strikes the face reveals what went wrong. Marks left on the face, impact spray, or a divot board all provide instant diagnostics. Strikes low on the face reduce effective loft and typically signal that the club never properly reached the ground at impact.

Strokeslab Perspective

All five mistakes map directly onto SG: Around the Green (ATG). Closing the gap between amateur and tour-level ATG performance—often 10+ strokes per year—starts with these fundamentals, making wedge contact improvement one of the highest-ROI areas any golfer can target.