A wedge in a golf setting is an iron designed for use under special situations. They provide the highest loft, shortest shaft, and the heaviest clubhead of all irons. This is why many players use wedges for short distance lob shots as to get the ball on to the green from a hazard such as a sand bunker. Wedges can cut through sand, mud, and thick grass and get the ball out on to the green. There are four general groups of wedges; pitching wedges, sand wedges, gap/approach wedges, and lob wedges.
Pitching wedges: They are used for variety of short-range shots. Today’s pitching wedges has no bounce and some even may still call it 10-iron. Today it is used for 100 to 125 yards distance.
Sand wedges: As name implies it is used to extract a ball from sand bunkers. However, some experienced golfers use it for shots that are 80 to 100 yards.
Gap/approach wedges: This newest wedge has a moderate bounce and full swing can carry a ball 90 to 110 yards. It is used for same purposes as the pitching wedge.
Lob wedges: Used for special shots, this is the highest in a golf bag. A full swing carries the ball from a rough to fairway for about 40 to 60 yards.