The Right 14 Clubs

The USGA says that you can carry 14 clubs in you bag. The clubs you choose to make up your set should be based on your confidence and ability level. Many golfers are replacing difficult to hit long irons with fairway woods or utility clubs. GigaGolf allows you to purchase all of your clubs individually. Therefore, you are free to put a set together that matches your game. Here are some examples of player profiles and the club configurations that match their game.

Golfer X (Age = 35, handicap = 12, driver distance 250, 7 iron distance = 155)

Golfer X is a pretty long hitter that is comfortable with long irons and prefers a scoring wedge for tricky shots around the greens. Although this golfer does not hit a 3 iron poorly, he finds that a graphite shafted hybrid is easier to play and is more consistent. Around the green he prefers the scoring touch found with the more versatile scoring wedges over the wedges that come with the sets.

Golfer Y (Age 60, handicap = 30, driver distance 200, 7 iron distance = 130)

Golfer Y is is straight but could use a little extra distance. His driver is lofted at 12.5 to be more forgiving and longer given his slower swing speed. All of his shafts are graphite because graphite is longer and easier to hit for golfers with slower swing speeds. Likewise, Golfer Y has more woods and hybrids in his bag because golfers with slower swing speeds usually struggle with long irons. He carries the gap and sand wedge that match the iron set because he frequently finds himself inside 100 yards and needing a full shot.

Note: There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to set configurations. Most players will move clubs in and out of the bag in a never ending pursuit of the perfect set-up. Often, favorite clubs will not make sense on the chart but they work on the course. Take the above as a recommendation. The principles discussed do address the club fitting logic being used today but they are flexible and should be used as a guide or starting point.