Cleveland Golf RTX-3 Wedge Review - PGAPappas 12 Days of Christmas DAY 6 Giveaway

Here’s the scenario.  You’re in a fairway bunker, maybe 100 yards out from a back pin location.  Your ball is partially buried - the dreaded fried egg.  If you blast out too far your ball’s screaming over the green and into a pond.  Don’t clear the tall bunker lip and tentacles of shame will emerge from the trap and cripple you where you stand.  What are you going to do? 

 

If you grab a Cleveland Golf RTX-3 wedge, you’ll probably hit one of the prettiest, highest bunker shots you’ve ever seen.  Even before your club twirl is finished you’ll know that danger was averted, and while the iconic 588 name might be gone from your wedge, the legendary 588 performance has never been better. 

One of the most significant changes in the RTX-3 from the RTX-2 is the new groove technology.  And the spin is absolutely ridiculous.  I'm talking Rob Gronkowski doing keg stands all day at a frat party, and then having sex with the hottest sorority girls on the front lawn all night kind of ridiculous. 

 

 

The third generation Rotex face features narrower, deeper, and sharper grooves that push right up against the USGA legal limits, and of all the wedges I played and tested this season, the RTX-3 clearly spun the most.  Even two-piece balls spin like they're on the high-speed cycle. 

Cleveland also milled the grooves on higher lofted wedges at an angle so they have more bite when you lay the face open.  You could probably use them to shave the stubble from your face in the morning if you're so inclined, but from tight lies around the green they're utterly masterful.  I played the 2-Dot, Mid-Bounce models. 

 

 

Another change Cleveland made in the RTX-3 is a shortened hosel and micro-cavity in the bottom of the hosel.  The weight saved allowed Cleveland to move the Center of Gravity away from the heel and closer to the middle of the face. 

Let me brass tacks what that means for you: this is one of the easiest to hit wedges you'll ever come across.  Your 20-plus handicap father-in-law can play the RTX-3 and not worry about bad lies becoming disastrous. 

 

 

It's longer and more accurate than the RTX-2, and mishits closer to the heel are almost as good as center strikes.  Mistakes made out towards the toe (check your face wear, that's where most of us miss) might lost only 10-percent of your distance.  I'm basically saying you could hit this with your eyes closed and still hit a decent shot. 

The overall teardrop shape of the RTX-3 gives it a lethal appearance, and the face is a tad deeper than the RTX-2.  However it's the new sole design that will lead you out of  the darkest corners on your course. 

 

 

From tight lies, thick rough, and soft or hard sand, the RTX-3 delivers extraordinary precision and touch, thanks to a narrower "v-shaped" grind.  This kind of versatility makes the RTX-3 hard to match, and a wedge that will benefit golfers of any handicap.  Cleveland also says the new do-it-all sole design can add 20-percent more clubhead speed through the turf compared to the previous generation.  I'm not going to argue with a company that's sold more than 10 million wedges since the 588 was released for the first time in 1988. 

The Cleveland RTX-3 will handle just about any shot you order up with predictable and ego-stroking triumph, and was one of my undisputed champions in best clubs of the year. 

PROS: 

Makes you an escape artist from the bunkers 
Command control and stopping power from both tight lies and thick rough 
Silky smooth feel is uniquely "Cleveland," and that's a great thing 

CONS: 
Tour level weight might be too much for some players 

 

 

Remember you have three ways win the daily gifts in my giveaway this year.  Retweet my giveaway announcement and follow all on twitter, like and follow all on Instagram, and comment in the section below here on my blog in the daily review/giveaway articles. 

We're halfway home already, hope everyone is having fun!