Forum Member Review: Indi Golf Wedges

By James Kimble December 13, 2023 7 mins read 157 Views

The Testing Opportunity

As mentioned in previous Forum Member Reviews, MyGolfSpy Forum worked to involve, highlight and include several direct-to-consumer (DTC) and newer brands as part of the Member Testing Platform. INDI Golf was one of these companies.

For those unfamiliar with INDI Golf, they are a relatively new brand that specializes in putters and wedges. INDI Golf offers both conforming and non-conforming wedges. Other technology includes “Tractionface technology” and “scoopback design” which they claim adds forgiveness. There are three different models with various grinds. INDI’s goal is to provide wedges that work for every golfer at a competitive cost.

For this testing opportunity, selected testers were virtually fitted by INDI Golf and given a set of wedges to test and keep. Testers were limited to conforming wedges and were able to select stock shaft and grip options of their choosing.

A INDI Golf Virtual Fitting

Here is what Tester RICHL85 had to say about his fitting:

“We experienced what Indi golf calls a “virtual fitting” which is essentially a questionnaire to answer the basic things like what wedges we currently play, what shaft we play in irons, distance, course conditions and divot type. In my case, I play in pretty intermediate conditions and take a small or no divot…Overall, most of the decisions were pretty straightforward. We stuck with the same lofts I’m currently playing (50, 54, and 58), 1/2″ long, 1 degree upright. To match up with my irons, we also stuck with the KBS wedge shaft option. Since I don’t have a particularly steep attack angle, we are going with the FLX head in the 50 and 54, but the ATK head for the 58 degree.”

Tester Willie T had this to say:

“I get a call from Zane at Indi about doing the virtual fitting. That was quick as I had sent my completed questionnaire along with a supplemental email to them the evening before…We get to talking about my game in a little more detail and I tell him about seeing Shiels’ video. Long story short after a couple of clarifications we come up with the following: 50, 54, 58deg FLX S grind w/10deg bounce w/Recoil F3 Regular 820 graphite shaft and conforming grooves, standard lie.“

Tester Nunfa0, being a lefty, had fewer options but was fitted into a IN DI FLX S 52, 56, 60 combo with their progress grinds. The wedges came with the Dynamic Gold Spinner 115 wedge shafts.

With the fittings done and orders placed, it was time to hear what our testers thought of how the INDI Golf wedges looked and, of course, how they performed throughout testing.

What Testers Said

"For me, lookswise, the clubs exude class from top to bottom!" -Willie T

Aesthetics

Tester RichL85 took note of a few things with the INDI wedges:

“The first thing you notice with the Indi wedges are the grooves. It’s a unique look as most companies have gone to large grooves, whereas the Indi wedges have a lot more grooves, but they are thinner…The next visual aspect that jumps out is just the sheer thickness of the topline at the toe of the clubhead. This part is beveled off well so it’s not noticeable at address, but when you look at the clubs, there is a significant difference in the width of the clubhead at the toe when comparing near the hosel. The claim is that it adds weight to the toe, and moves the CG away from the hosel similar to how many companies use tungsten toe weights.“

Willie T added to the aesthetics commentary:

“For me, lookswise, the clubs exude class from top to bottom! I love it when clubs are understated and look purposeful. These wedges deliver that look and then some. My initial thoughts were that the full face grooves would be somewhat distracting. The opposite was/is true as they are actually very pleasing to my eye. I found that the vertical edge of the grooves (hosel side) made a great reference to help “center” the ball on the face.”

"The consistency in distance on approach shots with the Indi wedges is their greatest strength in my opinion" – Bmart

On Course Performance

When it came to on-course performance, there were similar positive reactions. However, we also wanted testers to see if these wedges lived up to the “Kings of Spin” tag line INDI Golf uses.

Tester Bmart applied Strokes Gained and a variety of data points during his testing period which resulted in these comments:

“The consistency in distance on approach shots with the Indi wedges is their greatest strength in my opinion and was observed through indoor testing and on course. Poor strikes tended to drop spin which aided carry and rollout to arrive close to where a good strike would drop and stop. As someone who gets their money’s worth by using the majority of the club face throughout the bag, these are a big benefit to my game within 100 yards. I am growing to enjoy the 60 FLX with low (8*) bounce and a wide flange as a specialty sand club…The wedges show minimal wear through close to 10 rounds and many practice sessions including bunker work to learn how to use them out of the sand which I consider another plus.”

For RichL85, the answer to the spin question was easy:

“Indi wins outright with lower launch angle as promised, and quite a bit more spin … If a player wants to be able to spin a wedge, then Indi is definitely worth a look”

BMarts’ testing and data didn’t appear as conclusive:

“I have not found anything to support their spin royalty claims as spin is comparable/lower to that of major OEMs but distance control and consistency on mishits appears to exceed.“

The Final Verdict

When testing was finished, we had our testers grade and state whether these wedges would replace their current set. With scores of 83, 85, 89 and 90 out of 100, it is safe to say they performed well overall. Three of the four testers are keeping these as their new everyday wedges. The fourth will have these in rotation with his other wedges.

The wedges lost points as a result of grind options and availability for left-handed players. This is a factor we often see with smaller brands as they build out their lineup of golf clubs.

Wrapping up their reviews, this is what each tester had to say.

Bmart15: “I am 100% putting these wedges into play full time. I don’t think anyone would turn down an improvement of more than 1.5 shots/round due to an equipment change. The staff at Indi were very helpful discussing a gapping setup which also contributed to the improvement”

RichL85: “While the court is still out on whether Indi is the undisputed King of Spin. They are putting out a very good offering that is making a serious attempt at that claim.”