Equipment

Interview with Bob Vokey- designer of Titleist Vokey wedges

Q: “Voke, who was the first your player to win using one of your wedges?"

Bob Vokey: I’ll go all the way back. The first wedge in play was Andy Bean in 1997. That was a 456-14. He took it right out of my bag, put it in play, and I guess it would have been in Memphis. I’ll never forget that. That was a prototype wedge. “Voke, I gotta have it.” So I said, wait a second. I made a phone call, let him use it.

The first tour win, I’ll go all the way back to Bradley Hughes, playing in the Australian Masters. He won in early 1998. Then, my very next one was with Steve Flesch. He won the Nationwide Tour Championship.

Q: " How did you end up getting Bradley Hughes’s wedges in his bag?

Bob Vokey: It’s funny. I’d known Bradley for a while. He just came up on and asked me for a wedge when I was out there on tour. He used to play the PGA tour as well as the Australian tour.  He just came up and started talking to me saying he didn't like his contact with his wedges around the greens. I said, “What do you need?” He said, “I’d like to try this and that and I went and set him up a couple of wedges.” So, boom. He tried it out. We sat in the bunker with him and he made shots. And about 4 months later he became my very first winner"