The “bounce” (bounce angle) refers to a the area of the club head that hits the ground. It bounces the golf club through the surface under the ball at impact. The purpose of introducing the bounce into a club head design is to prevent a club from digging into sand or turf.
Nominal Bounce Angle
The nominal bounce angle of the club is the measurement between the clubs’s leading edge and trailing edge in relationship to the ground line when the hosel is perpendicular to the ground. The bounce angle is expressed in degrees.
Generally, there is no standard for bounce angles. Each producer decides what combination of loft and bounce angles to offer. The higher the bounce angle, the more the leading edge of the sole is off the ground at address and the better it will resist digging.
The bounce angle can range from zero degrees to 16 degrees or higher. Bounce angle of 6 degrees or less is low bounce. Angles from 7 to 10 degrees is medium bounce. Anything above 10 degrees is high bounce. There are also some models with the negative bounce angles.
Low-bounce clubs are designed for:
- shots off tight lies (hardpan), thin grass and in bunkers with very little or very firm sand, and
- for players who sweep into the ball (shallow angle of attack).
High-bounce wedges are best for:
- shots from the deep rough, soft lies, bunkers with very soft sand, and
- for players with steep swings (a steep angle of attack), who dig at impact and take deep divots.
Effective Bounce
Player can change the effective bounce of the club. For example, a high-bounce wedge could be efficiently used for shots from a tight lie by moving the ball back in your stance, delofting the club (steepening the angle of attack) and reduce the effective bounce angle (see the picture below).
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update: July 2016