For many golfers, short game is one of the toughest parts of the sport. So when a club, like a Pure Spin wedge, guarantees to improve the control and accuracy of your shot, it is almost a no-brainer purchase. However, with such bold claims, it’s hard to believe that this club is legal to use. So, to help you answer this question, I dug into this topic to find out if Pure Spin wedges are legal to use.
Are Pure Spin Wedges Legal? According to the USGA, Pure Spin wedges are not legal to use for any pro or semi-amateur play. The grooves on Pure Spin’s clubs do not have the proper dimensions/spacing, which means it does not conform to the 2010 Groove Rules. This includes their Gap, Lob, and Sand wedges. However, these clubs are legal for casual or low-level amateur play until 2024.
The screenshot above is one taken from the USGA’s club database. As marked in the photo, the USGA states that Pure Spin Wedges (manufactured by Pure Spin Golf, Inc.) conform to the Pre-2010 Rules of Golf, but DO NOT conform to the 2010 Groove Rules, making them illegal to use in any high-level amateur or professional tournaments.
What Makes Pure Spin Wedges Illegal To Use?
The USGA has an entire database dedicated to documenting whether or not a certain club is legal to use. Each club must meet the “Pre-2010 Rules of Golf” and the “2010 Groove Rules”. Practically all major and minor golf club manufacturers must submit their clubs for approval, which makes it a great resource to see what golf clubs do and do not conform to the rules.
Pre-2010 Rules of Golf: This set of rules ensures that all of the club’s features (including the shaft, grip, clubhead, and the face) all conform to the industry’s requirements. The spec requirements can be found in the USGA’s equipment guidelines.
2010 Groove Rules: This set of rules cracked down on aggressively grooved club faces. It ensures that the grooves on the club face do not give the golfer any type of advantage with illegally designed grooves.
In the case of Pure Spin wedges, they break one of the regulations within the ‘2010 Groove Rules’. Basically what this means is that these wedges violate one or more of the 3 grove rules that the USGA implemented in 2010. These rules are:
- The club exceeds the maximum groove volume
- The groove edges are too sharp
- The club violates the ‘plane groove shape’ requirement
- This means that the groove design strays too far away from the industry standard ‘V-shape’ design
Does This Apply To All Types of Pure Spin Wedges?
Pure Spin offers a wide variety of wedges. So does this mean that this rule applies to every type of Pure Spin wedge? Well from what I found, it seems like this rule bans any type of Pure Spin wedge.
More specifically, this applies to every one of their wedges, which include their 48°, 56°, and 60° wedges (Gap, Sand and Lob wedges respectively). So no matter what type of Pure Spin Wedge you own, it likely does not conform to the Groove Rules.
Can Amateurs Still Use Pure Spin Wedges?
For most professional and semi-professional players, using a Pure Spin wedge is totally illegal. However, amateur players are still allowed to use the club until 2024. When the Groove Rules were implemented back in 2010, they stated that any club, manufactured before 2010, that did not conform to the Groove Rules, would be allowed in amateur play until the year 2024.
Here is the direct quote on this stipulation:
“The Rules apply to all new models of clubs manufactured after 1 January 2010. Models manufactured prior to this date, which meet the pre-2010 regulations, will continue to be regarded as conforming under the Rules of Golf until at least 2024.”
So, as long as you are not playing in any pro or high-level amateur tournaments, you can still legally use this club until at least 2024. It’s probably unlikely that you will be called out for using a wedge like this in any type of casual play either, so there is not much to worry about when you use this club.
@rockbottomgolf Big improvements off the tee since getting my Burner driver! My wife bought me the pure spin wedge set 2wks ago, good times!
— Jon Wilkins (@jon_wilkins) July 25, 2010
Where Can You Buy A Pure Spin Wedge?
If you are interested in purchasing one of these wedges, you may have to search around a bit before you find one. From what I found it doesn’t seem like Pure Spin Inc. manufacturers clubs anymore, which means they can’t be found on their website. After some digging, I did find that there are some 3rd party golf stores that sell them. However, you are much more likely to find them listed on Ebay.
Generally, you can find a single wedge for anywhere between $9 and $35 depending on the condition. Seeing as the average price of a wedge is around $100, buying one of these clubs is a pretty good deal. What makes it an even better deal is that these putters are known to last quite some time (5+ years), so you will definitely get bang for your buck.