Honma TW Wedges

The Honma TW747 wedge was one of our absolute bestsellers on ExactGolf and that for many reasons. The successor for the 2021 season is just called "TWorld Wedge" and fits perfectly with the more sporty TR20 and TR21 as well as the new Honma GS series.

The TW-Wedge is available in three different grinds: I, C and S. The finish is satin as usual and the wedge is made of soft steel. Unlike the Miura wedges, however, the TW wedge is cast. The feel is still very soft.

What makes this wedge special is the weight distribution. An additional and even clearly visible tungsten insert shifts the centre of gravity towards the toe. The clubface is also slightly thicker in the upper area, which moves the centre of gravity towards the centre. In short: the TW wedge favours hits in the actual centre of the clubface. Not, as is usually the case with wedges, in the lower area and towards the heel - which is hardly possible for most amateurs.

Honma has not only reached deep into the bag of tricks in terms of weight distribution for this wedge. The clubface is CNC milled for maximum spin. The choice of grinds has also been expanded.

While the I-Sole is primarily designed for gap wedges and thus full shots, the C-Sole and S-Sole allow for particular versatility around the green. With the 58° and 60° lofts, you can choose between C-Sole and S-Sole. The sole of the C-Sole is significantly narrower and therefore more aggressive and tends to have less bounce. This allows you to open up the clubface around the green considerably.

The S-grind, on the other hand, is much more forgiving, the sole is wider and better suited for soft turf and sand.

As usual, Honma offers a wide range of shafts. However, some of them are not in stock in Europe and have to be delivered from Japan first. The very versatile Nippon Modus 115 wedge shaft is used as standard.

Honma TWorld Wedges: Club Data

Honma TW747 Wedges Review

The Honma TW747 Wedge rounds off every TWorld iron set and leaves nothing to be desired. It serves exactly its purpose without any gimmicks or attracting attention as we found out in our extensive test. For this we took a very close look at the 56° with 12° Bounce with C-Grind. The 56° Wedge is still available with 8° Bounce but for most players this Wedge is the so called Sand-Wedge and should also be used for this application. For this the 4° more bounce is also necessary.

The TW747 wedge range is large, with 48-60° loft and 8-12° bounce. It's all about finding out the strengths and weaknesses of the 56-12 wedge. Another wedge in the TW747 range is certainly more suitable for some applications - but the player rarely has the perfect wedge in the bag for every situation.

Limitations of the Bounce

A bounce of 12° is usually very much for a wedge but pretty standard for a sand-wedge. That's why we've also tested the TW747 Wedge for situations where the bounce is anything but ideal, such as tight fairway lies without much grass under the ball. The good thing about the TW747 Wedge is that it is also very easy to handle with 12° bounce. It's by no means that you have the impression you can only top the ball. The sole of the TW747 Wedge is very "grateful" and allows good ball contact even with a lot of bounce from situations where normally every degree of bounce is one too many. So you have to challenge the TW747 Wedge a lot to push the bounce to its limits. The conclusion in this respect is quite clear: The TW747 Wedge is a very good all-rounder in this respect.

Sideview of the TW wedge showing the rather big sole.

Spin of the Honma TW747 Wedge

A good wedge is characterized by generating maximum spin and not losing it over time. Nobody wants to buy a new wedge every two months. But nobody wants to have a wedge that doesn't generate spin - no matter how sustainable it is. As a manufacturer, you have to make a compromise and Honma will opt for sustainability. This means that the groves are designed and the face is machined so that the spin remains constant for a long time. So it's not like the TW747 Wedge is a spin monster. For most players, the spin around the green will be absolutely sufficient, but you can't trust wondrous shots with extreme backspin. Conclusion: sufficient spin that doesn't degrade too much over time. The Honma TW747 Wedge is therefore playable over several years.

Strengths of the TW747 Wedge

The strengths clearly lie in the bunker, in light semi-rough and good fairway locations. For the bunker, the 56-12 wedge is perfect. The sole is wide and moves very clean through the sand. Even long bunker shots are no problem with this wedge. Thanks to the wide sole, you don't necessarily have to have 12° bounce in the bunker - however, the prerequisite is that you have good control of the bunker play and can control the club face through the sand. Those who are not a strong bunker player will be well advised with the 12° bounce. There are few wedges that can make it easier.

One of the toughest shots on the course made simple(r) with this wedge.

Also chips and pitches from light semi-rough or fairway positions are very grateful with this wedge. Who trusts in this wedge in the bag will need few alternatives around the green, also not necessarily with more loft.

Light semi-rough lies unfold the strengths of this wedge.

The feeling is overall very soft which is not surprising with the soft steel used. The only small drawback of the TW747 Wedge is the fact that it is cast and not forged (like its predecessors). So it's not quite as soft as a forged wedge made of soft steel like Miura or Vega. These are the ultimate in this area, while the TW747 Wedge is a good compromise. Someone who hasn't played a forged wedge made of soft steel yet and is holding the TW747 Wedge in his hand for the first time will be amazed how soft it feels and how good the feedback is. This brings us to our next strength. The TW747 Wedge only costs 169€ while similar wedges from other Japanese manufacturers cost 70€+ more.

But the TWorld Wedge can also be easily adjusted, for example for loft and lie. This is not the case with other cast wedges and a big plus if you want to be flexible in this respect and don't want to buy a new wedge if the requirements change slightly.

The weaknesses of the TW747 Wedge

The mentioned weaknesses are relative, because the 56-12 Wedge is of course limited in its range of application. What only works suboptimally with this wedge are high lob shots of flat surfaces. Here you can see the limits of the bounce. Chips made of rather thick or juicy rough like below are also not among the strengths of this wedge. The rather thick sole seems to interact too much with the grass surface. For these two shots this wedge would not be the first choice and if you have to do it more than once it is recommended to have an alternative like a 60 degree wedge in your bag. At least one with more loft and less bounce.

Not an ideal spot for this wedge: semi-rough with clover.

The 56 degree wedge is also available in the 8 degree bounce version. If you want to use this wedge in a bunker as well, you'll be better off with more bounce. This is where the wedge can fully unfold its strengths.

Our test result to the TWorld Wedge IV

The fourth edition of the TWorld Wedges is the most successful so far. The demand is high and "Honma TWorld" is known to everyone thanks to Justin Rose. The Wedge is basically exactly what you can expect: a sovereign all-rounder for very good to average players. For relatively little money you get a very soft wedge that gives you a very good feeling around the green. The spin is sustainable and doesn't wear out too quickly. The thick sole is best suited for certain lies, especially fairway, light semi-rough and sand. The weaknesses of the 56-12 wedge can be compensated with an alternative setup like a second wedge with more loft and less bounce.

About Honma's TWorld series

The Honma TWorld series has been around for quite some time, but only with the TW747 does the entire golf world really care about it. The predecessors of the TW747 were not really worse clubs, but thanks to the sponsoring of Justin Rose, Honma has reached a completely different stage in regards to popularity. The TW747 is the first step into a new market segment. And this step is not to be underestimated for the traditional manufacturer from Japan. So far it has certainly paid off, because the attention that Honma has received is enormous. The TW747 V and Vx irons are hand forged, which is why they are so interesting. The price-performance ratio is unbeatable.

For the TW747 wedges, Honma sought a compromise and opted for cast heads. With the wedges it is above all a question of price. Hand forged wedges are practically not less than 200€ to get. That's why Honma makes the compromise here and offers a wedge that is priced absolutely in order and yet the performance is convincing. It's more a question of style if every club has to be forged or if you accept one or the other of the cast heads. One thing is for sure: Honma knows exactly what they do and as a player you should trust them.