Callaway CB Wedge
Callaway — Callaway CB Wedge · By Lauryl · Jan 19, 2026
A cavity-back wedge that brings genuine forgiveness to the short game without sacrificing spin.
The Big Picture
The Callaway CB Wedge is built for a specific golfer: the mid-to-high handicapper who needs more help around the greens than a traditional blade wedge can provide. The CB, which stands for Cavity Back, replaces the Mack Daddy CB in Callaway's lineup and delivers on a simple premise. Take the aggressive Jaws grooves from Callaway's tour-level wedges, put them in a larger, more forgiving head shape, and add technologies like Urethane Microspheres to smooth out the feel. The result is a wedge designed to build confidence for players whose short game is holding back their scores.
Available from 48 to 60 degrees in two-degree increments, the CB features full-face grooves from 54 degrees and up. The stock steel shaft is a True Temper Elevate 95 in wedge flex, and the Golf Pride Tour Velvet wedge grip comes in at 11.5 inches, intentionally longer than standard to accommodate players who like to grip down for control on finesse shots.
At Address
There is no hiding what this wedge is. The wider sole and thicker topline are immediately visible when you pull it out of the bag, and the cavity back is plainly on display from the rear. Standing over the ball, the head is noticeably larger than a Jaws Raw or any other tour-style wedge, and the sole sits prominently behind the leading edge.
The shiny chrome finish catches the eye. The 56 and 60-degree models feature full-face grooves that extend all the way across, which looks unusual but does provide visual confidence that you have plenty of hitting area to work with. On tighter lies, the wider sole raised some initial concern about bouncing into the ball, but in practice the tri-level sole design handled these situations better than expected.
Sound & Feel
This is where the Urethane Microspheres earn their place. Callaway has used this technology in their irons for years, and bringing it to a wedge is a smart move. The microspheres, essentially a urethane material packed with 500,000 tiny hollow spheres, sit behind the face and absorb unwanted vibrations without sapping ball speed.
Close-up wedge face showing groove pattern and chrome finish
The result is a wedge that sounds and feels more solid than its size would suggest. Impact is quieter and more compact than the previous Mack Daddy CB, with a shortened acoustic signature that avoids the hollow clang you might expect from a cavity-back wedge. On well-struck shots, the feel is clean and satisfying. Mishits firm up noticeably, giving you honest feedback about where you made contact, but the performance penalty is smaller than with a blade wedge.
Performance
Launch & Spin
The Jaws grooves are the real story here. These are the same aggressive grooves found in Callaway's tour-level wedges, and they undergo the same face-blasting treatment that creates a rough surface texture for maximum friction. On full shots from the fairway, spin rates were solid and consistent enough to stop the ball on the green. From the rough, the full-face grooves on the higher-lofted models helped maintain spin even on off-center contacts.
That said, spin consistency was not quite at the level of the best blade wedges in the category. On partial shots and delicate greenside chips, I noticed more variation in spin rates than I would get from a Jaws Raw or a Vokey SM10. The cavity-back design trades a small amount of spin precision for forgiveness, and that is a trade most high handicappers should be happy to make.
The ball comes off the face slightly quicker than you might expect from a wedge. This is a byproduct of the cavity-back construction and the face design, so plan on a brief adjustment period as you recalibrate your distance control. Once you adapt, the speed becomes predictable.
Dispersion & Shot Shape
Forgiveness is the CB's calling card. The wider sole acts as a skid plate that resists digging, which is a genuine lifesaver for players who tend to chunk their wedge shots. The pre-worn leading edge helps the club glide through turf rather than catching, and the higher bounce across the loft range adds another layer of insurance against fat contact.
Full lineup of seven wedges showing sole and loft options
Out of bunkers, the CB is remarkably easy to use. The heavier head and wider sole make it almost effortless to splash the ball out of the sand, and the extra mass helps maintain momentum through the swing for players who tend to quit on bunker shots. This was one of the areas where the design really shone.
Where the CB shows its limitations is in versatility for skilled players. Opening the face for high-lofted flop shots is possible but feels less natural than with a blade wedge, and the wider sole makes it trickier to get creative with different shot shapes around the green. The sole grind is somewhat comparable to a wide S grind, which provides reasonable versatility, but this is fundamentally a wedge that wants to be played with a square face and a confident swing.
Verdict
The Callaway CB Wedge accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do. It takes the sting out of short-game misses for mid-to-high handicap golfers while still delivering respectable spin and feel. The Jaws grooves provide legitimate bite, the Urethane Microspheres create a more refined impact experience than you would expect from a cavity-back wedge, and the forgiving sole design prevents the fat shots that destroy confidence around the greens.
It is not a wedge for low handicappers who want maximum spin control and shot-shaping versatility. The thicker topline and larger profile will not appeal to players who prefer a clean, compact look at address. And the slightly inconsistent spin on partial shots means skilled players will find more precision elsewhere.
But for the golfer who dreads the 80-yard approach or the greenside bunker shot, the CB Wedge is a confidence booster that can genuinely save strokes. It is one of the most accurate wedges in its class, and that matters more than peak spin rates for the player it is designed to serve.
