Curated Golf Expert Ryan Hernandez got his hands on the TaylorMade MG3 Wedge to test this spring. Check out how it performed, but consider the fact that each and every golfer is different; if you have any questions about the MG3 Wedge or need recommendations on which club would be best for you, reach out to a Golf Expert here on Curated.

Before we get started, it's worth noting that Curated Experts are not sponsored by any brands. All of these reviews are completely unbiased.

Brand Claims

What does TaylorMade claim about this club? TaylorMade claims that the MG3 Wedges have a micro ribbing in between the grooves for better spin and better precision on partial shots, pinches, chips, that sort of thing. They have a raw face for more consistent rust over time and consistent spin. TaylorMade highlights the milled craftsmanship, which provides more of a precise grind on the wedges and a more consistent performance.

Overall Impressions

What are the specs of the club you are testing? I own a set of MG3 wedges that I’ve played for a long time. The wedge has a Dynamic Gold Tour S200 shaft, and I've put the CP2 Pro grip on it. I love the standard bounce. I have a 9, a little less bounce, as I play here in Texas, which can be a bit firm sometimes, especially when that heat gets here and there’s not a lot of grass and it all dries out. I play a 9 degree balance on the 50 degree wedge. But there are lots of options available.

What is your overall impression of the club? I was quite impressed by the TaylorMade MG3 wedges. They spin really well, handle tight shots excellently, and I feel the precision on partial shots is correct.

Review

How is it for forgiveness and distance? There's not a ton of forgiveness in them, to be honest. I feel like they're much more designed for partial shots, shots around the green than they are for full shots. I found I was losing some distance on full shots with these wedges.

For most people, I recommend keeping their approach wedge in their irons set because that's more of a distance club, and then getting their 54, 58, 56, 60 in a more specific player wedge, because those are more around the green shots where you still need that approach wedge for full shots. And I think you're going to get more benefit out of keeping with the irons set than you will with these.

How is it for spin? A common misconception is that rusted wedges make more spin. That's not actually true. What happens is raw faced wedges are preferred by Tour players, because there's nothing in between the ball and the grooves. So you’re not getting that plating on there that may dull spin over time. So you’re not necessarily gaining more spin, but you're keeping consistent spin with a raw face. So that's important to note. So when a wedge gets dull with that plating on it, it seems like it loses spin, whereas if you hit a raw wedge, it's going to have more spin than a dull plated wedge.

I think these are spin machines. They spin really well. I can handle tight shots with them. If I don't have a lot of green, I can really spin it and get the ball to stop, which I love about these.

What do you find unique about its appearance? Not a whole lot is unique about the appearance, except for the milling. But I love the look, especially of the black; it’s why I put them in the bag to begin with. I love the sleekness, the very thing top line on it, the raw finish. The black finish because it definitely does rust, but it doesn't look rusty. I'm not necessarily a huge fan of the rusty look, but I want the raw face, so I went with the black wedges. It also helps me pick out what I need from my bag versus the irons I have, which are traditional chrome.

A nice little touch is the customization. TaylorMade is definitely not the only brand that does this, but I really love the way that their customized wedges look: you can do initials, you can do words, you can do all sorts of things. I put my wife’s and two daughters’ initials on my wedges. I’ve since had another daughter, so I have to figure out a different wedge option for her initials.

What may make a player shy away from it? For those who are not used to the milling or that doesn't really catch their fancy, they may shy away from this.

Does this club swing light or heavy to you? It feels very good. It doesn't feel overly heavy. There is some weight to it, which is what wedges need to be able to deliver the head down on the ball. I always like a heavier wedge just because I like the feel of that a little bit better.

Are there any drawbacks to this club? One of the drawbacks is that the wedges will rust. And some people don't want their wedges to rust. It doesn't look the cleanest, doesn't look the best. It looks like you just left them out to get dirty.

Anything related to climate, terrain, grass, location, weather conditions that would have any impact on this club’s performance? If you play in a humid climate or wet conditions like early morning when the grass is usually watered or dewy or wet, or in a place where there's a lot of humidity, where there’s a lot of water in the air, these wedges rust up quickly. However, they perform better in wet conditions. The raw face grabs the ball, there's nothing getting in the way, so it's not going to slip, so I highly recommend the raw face if you are in wetter or humid conditions.

Recommendations

Who would you recommend this club to? I recommend these to mid to low handicappers. They are going to want more spin, they're going to want more variety of shots around the green and partial shots, which these deliver.

Who should avoid this club, and what type of club would be a better option for that player? For those looking for a more forgiving wedge, maybe a Hi-Toe from TaylorMade or a CBX from Cleveland, or the sand wedge and the lob wedge from the Iron Set, maybe a Paradym X are better options. A TaylorMade Stealth is going to come in the sand wedge and lob wedge as well. These would be more forgiving than the MG3 Wedges.

Golf clubs work differently for different types of golfers. If you are wondering whether the TaylorMade MG3 Wedge is the right club for you, chat with Ryan or any other Golf Experts here on Curated, and they’ll put together free, personalized club recommendations on the best wedges for your needs.