Watch: How Gene Sarazen Crafted the Design to Create Golf’s Modern Day Sand Wedge

Golf is one of the most ancient sports in the world. Although the game originated in Europe, it evolved magnificently in the United States. Speaking of the game’s history, long before Gene Sarazen introduced the modern-day sand wedges, players found it extremely difficult to get out of the bunker in a single stroke. Hence, they feared getting into the bunker itself. 

However, Gene Sarazen, a professional American golfer, did something, which absolutely changed the bunker play. He introduced a new kind of sand wedges, seeking a better method of escaping from the sand. Gene designed the forerunner for what we today call the sand wedge.

How did Gene Sarazen get the idea of designing the modern-day sand wedge?

Previously, the golf clubs had narrow blades, which meant that golfers could not play consistent shots from the bunker. However, Gene Sarazen came to the rescue with his new design of the club. “Well, I used to be the worst bunker player,” said Gene. “Next was Hegan. Hegan used to chip. So one day, I was taking flying lessons, and as I sat on the floor of this little plane, I pulled the stick back, and the tail went down, and the plane took off.”

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“So something flashed into my mind. I said, maybe if I put a tail on the niblick, that will take off too out of the sand. So I immediately went to the hardware store and got all of it sorted. I sort the back of the niblick and gave it a good drop. So when the club went into the sand, then it had to come out,” he added.

Gene Sarazen designed this club and practiced with it for a good three months. Hence, in this manner, thanks to the legendary seven-time major championship winner, we got the design for the modern sand wedges, which were then, of course, redesigned slightly. 

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