Callaway Golf Announces New Opus SP Wedges

When Callaway launched their Opus wedges las year they had two big goals in mind.  First, create a shape that Tour players would love and that would be validated with considerable player use.  Mission accomplished.  The second goal was to design a model that would generate lower launch and higher spin.  And that was accomplished with the Opus Platinum.

As incredibly successful and popular as Opus wedges were, the new Opus SP wedges have taken performance and precision to the next level.  Opus SP has achieved the best immediate conversion for wedge use on Tour in Callaway history.  At The Memorial Tournament (where players were seeing Opus SP for the first time) 18 of these new wedges were put in play.  At the Genesis Scottish Open 32 Opus SP wedges were being used.

Shape 6 was a big reason for the Opus wedge success last year (I'll touch on that more below).  And as mentioned above the Platinum Opus concept delivered exceptional control with a low launch, high spin, higher CG (center of gravity) design.  So the challenge for Callaway R&D engineers would be how to improve performance in a wedge that was already the best in Callaway history both from a Tour and consumer standpoint.

First, Callaway looked at spin.  They looked at everything they knew about generating spin.  And because not all spin is created equally, Callaway began looking harder at Spin Per Degree.

Spin Per Degree (SPD) is spin divided by the degree of launch.  And the larger you can get this number means a very large spin number and very low launch angle.  And that translates to going right at pins and stopping your ball very quickly, ultimately about creating more efficient spin.

Opus SP Construction

Callaway built the new Opus SP wedges from the inside out.  And to maximize spin and spin efficiency Callaway created an entirely new wedge construction.

New Spin Pocket

SP in the new Opus SP stands for spin pocket.  And this represents a cutting-edge way to look at and create the most efficient spin.  Typically when we think of spin we think of face technology and groove design but Callaway changed the playing field with this new design.

Spin pocket is a way to remove weight in the low portion of the wedge sole (where you generally don't want it) and redistribute weight up into the topline to pull CG up.  And when you have CG higher than your ball impact you're going to get lower launch that puts more spin on the ball.

How much weight exactly was Callaway able to remove?  In the Opus SP 54S wedge 16.8 grams were removed.  And in the Opus SP 58S wedge they removed even more, 25.78 grams.  And the physics of spin pocket is generating more control, period.

Opus SP feature progressive CG where more weight is taken from the lob wedges where you need the greatest spin and want launch to come down most with all that loft.

Two-Piece Multi-Material Construction

Callaway is using a1025 Form Forged Face with Opus SP.  This is the same material Callaway uses in their forged irons.  The cast body is 8620 material.  And machining the profile of Opus SP with these two materials creates and ensures an incredibly consistent wedge.

Spin Gen 2.0 Face

Opus SP has new 17-degree groove angles with tighter pitch spacing.  Callaway tested these grooves to perform noticeably better (particularly more consistent spin from the long rough).  More groove edge contact creates more consistent spin across a variety of lies.  

New Face Laser Pattern

Callaway has designed a different and ore effective way to manufacture roughness of the face.  Face lasers burn deep channels into the grooves to produce enhanced friction for more bite and stopping power on all types of approach shots.  This is more than a surface treatment.  This is actually in the metal and should last for a long time similar to the groove itself.  It's incredibly durable.

Tour Validated Shape 6

Shape 6 carries over from Opus to Opus SP.  Trusted by Tour players for its clean confident look at address, Shape 6 offers precise leading edge shaping and refined sole geometry.  Shape 6 is the 6th and final iteration in the Opus prototype shaping phase, validated by Tour players and major champions like Jon Rahm. Xander Schauffele, Min Woo Lee, Si Woo Kim, the Hojgaard twins, and more.  Some progressive shaping changes were made to the gap wedges to help seamlessly integrate its place between your irons and wedges.

New X Grind

Callaway is bringing the X Grind back into the Opus SP wedge lineup.  You'll still have the T Grind (lower bounce for firm conditions and players who like to open face a lot).  The C Grind returns for maximum green-side versatility and is great for players who take shallow divots.  The S Grind is your grind for just about every situation and ideal for players who like square-faced shots.  The W Grind also returns (a full sole grind for players who need maximum forgiveness or take deeper divots).  The X Grind is similar to the C grind in that it's designed for maximum green-side versatility, but it's also great for steeper swings or players who hit down on the ball and want a little more bounce.

Satin Chrome and Black Shadow Finishes

These Opus SP finishes are very similar to the original Opus wedges finishes are these were extremely popular.

A Few Minor Spec Changes

Opus SP will have a few minor spec changes.  So we'll see increased swing weight across different loft options.  We'll have D5 in the lob and sand wedges and D3 in the pitching and gap wedges.  This was done to increase and heighten feel and club awareness.

Other Info

Dynamic Gold S200 will be the stock steel shafts and Recoil Dart will be the stock graphite shafts.  Golf Pride Tour Velvet will be the stock grips with new Block Callaway logos.  This logo was originally used by Callaway Apparel in Asia and part of the global Callaway heritage.  Prices will be $199.99 for steel and $209.99 for graphite.  Opus SP will be available for pre-sale August 22nd and hit retail on September 12th.