Meant to Use 6 Iron, Used a 9. Idiot!

[nevets88]

First time this happened to me. I dunno how the loft of the clubface at address didn’t alert me let alone the shaft length obviously wasn’t thinking. So it’s 145 yards a par 3 strong wind against so I figure a stock 6 iron because I’m not hitting it well. 
 

I took the nine and had no idea until I hit it fortunately was only short by 10 yards. If I did hit the 6 I’d be well over the green.  
 

Anyways, I’ve always thought what idiot would mistake a 9 for a 6? Me. That’s who. 
 

On a sort of related note in the tv show The Resort, Cristin Miloti threatens someone with with a club and the dude goes don’t hit me with the 9. That cracked me up. 

[iacas]

Yeah, I've never done this… and honestly don't understand it when people do.

[billchao]

10 minutes ago, nevets88 said:

If I did hit the 6 I’d be well over the green.  

Yea I’d say you got away with it.

[imsys0042]

Few weeks ago I mistook my 64 degree wedge for my 56 and couldn’t believe I hit it so short after hitting it good.   They are same brand, similar markings etc.   but maybe the first time that bad.   I’ve been distracted and hit one club either way because they are in the same section of the bag, but that one was weird. 

[Carl3]

I have used my UW instead of W twice in the last decade. I am thinking 120 yards and struck it well for it to come up short. Once in the water.😬

[sjduffers]

I have done this exactly (6 instead of 9), in a tournament no less! Both clubs were next to each other in the bag and needless to say I reorganized the bag after that fiasco. I guess I was not focussing and even though it didn't feel quite right at address, I didn't investigate why and just went ahead. My bad.  Shit happens.

[Shindig]

5 hours ago, nevets88 said:

Anyways, I’ve always thought what idiot would mistake a 9 for a 6? Me. That’s who. 

I've never done this when hitting.  Sometimes I've miscalculated which club I should hit, but never decided on the 6 or the 9 and drawn the other.

However, on what I would describe as my first ever golf trip (maybe an hour or so away from me, to celebrate my first time breaking 100, over 15 years ago), a friend asked me to get his 6-iron from his bag on the cart.  His plan was to hit 6-iron off the tee and then PW onto the green (I am not advocating this strategy, just saying that's what he was going to do).  I accidentally got him his 9-iron.  He ended up hitting 9-iron 8-iron and hitting GIR, but he also told me I was never going to caddie for him again.  This was a lot friendlier than I made it sound in typing it.

[Missouri Swede]

Done this once.  Heat stress.

Was thinking of a couple of shot options, decided which one.  Hit the shot. Whaaaa? Looked at the club, and it was the one I had decided against.

Almost happened again this summer, but caught myself as I was pulling the (wrong) club out of the bag. 

[boogielicious]

12 hours ago, iacas said:

Yeah, I've never done this… and honestly don't understand it when people do.

Do you need reading glasses yet? There comes a point where without them, it is difficult to see at an arms length. I don’t wear my bifocals when I play and I can see grabbing the 9 by mistake when you’re focused on the shot.

[iacas]

8 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

Do you need reading glasses yet? There comes a point where without them, it is difficult to see at an arms length. I don’t wear my bifocals when I play and I can see grabbing the 9 by mistake when you’re focused on the shot.

No. But it’s still an inch and a half shorter and like 12 degrees different loft.

[boogielicious]

Just now, iacas said:

No. But it’s still an inch and a half shorter and like 12 degrees different loft.

True.

[ChetlovesMer]

12 hours ago, iacas said:

Yeah, I've never done this… and honestly don't understand it when people do.

I've never done this either. 

 

11 hours ago, imsys0042 said:

Few weeks ago I mistook my 64 degree wedge for my 56 and couldn’t believe I hit it so short after hitting it good.   They are same brand, similar markings etc.   but maybe the first time that bad.   I’ve been distracted and hit one club either way because they are in the same section of the bag, but that one was weird. 

Years and years ago, I'd confuse my 60 and my 54. But for the last 10 or maybe 15 years I've gone with a copper colored lob wedge and a black satin sand wedge. Problem solved. 

 

15 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

Do you need reading glasses yet? There comes a point where without them, it is difficult to see at an arms length. I don’t wear my bifocals when I play and I can see grabbing the 9 by mistake when you’re focused on the shot.

This can be easily fixed. Again, I've never had this problem. But if you just put a red grip on your wedge through 9-iron and a blue grip on your 8-iron and up, this problem goes away. ... Obviously you could do other colors too. This is just an example. 

[boogielicious]

3 minutes ago, ChetlovesMer said:

This can be easily fixed. Again, I've never had this problem. But if you just put a red grip on your wedge through 9-iron and a blue grip on your 8-iron and up, this problem goes away. ... Obviously you could do other colors too. This is just an example. 

My bag has specific slots for each club, so it’s easy for me get the right club. My wife also has a bag like this, but never puts the clubs back in the same slots. Sometimes she puts two in the same slot. It’s a mess by the end of the round. I have to fix it afterwards because it makes me crazy. I can see her doing this.

[nevets88]

11 hours ago, Missouri Swede said:

Done this once.  Heat stress.

Was thinking of a couple of shot options, decided which one.  Hit the shot. Whaaaa? Looked at the club, and it was the one I had decided against.

Almost happened again this summer, but caught myself as I was pulling the (wrong) club out of the bag. 

Yes! I think the heat had something to do with it. It wasn’t that hot but just so many hot days have worn on me. Also distracted by setting up camera to film swing. 
 

But the feel of a 6 vs a 9 in my hands. The look of the face and the length should have sent alarm bells ringing. I guess I just wasn’t thinking or thinking of lunch or something. 

[TourSpoon]

The other day my wedges got mixed up after coming back from the green (I had 54 and 50). I put them in the wrong order and on the very next hole I pounded a drive and decided "easy" 50 into a green. Well I hit the shot and didn't see the ball because of the elevated green structure. I wiped off the club, groaned because I hit 54 by mistake, but was very surprised to see the ball 15 feet under the hole. I guess the "easy" swing was just a center strike with less tension and the ball flew. I totally got away with one because the 50 probably would have been over the green. 

 

[StuM]

I've mixed up clubs, but never the 6 vs 9.  My 6 is a hybrid and my 9 is an iron so very obvious and hard to mix up.  I have mixed up irons occasionally.  One in particular I hit my PW when should have hit an 8.  I think that was pure carelessness.  Other times may be I take two clubs to the tee box not sure which I will hit then just carelessly grab the wrong one once I make up my mind, this would usually be a 1 club difference such as 8 v 9 not 6 v 9.  I am getting better at it, just need to pay attention.

4 hours ago, ChetlovesMer said:

But if you just put a red grip on your wedge through 9-iron and a blue grip on your 8-iron and up, this problem goes away. ... Obviously you could do other colors too. This is just an example. 

This would only partially help.  You still could mix up the 8 v 7 v 6 since they would have same colors.

Most clubs have the "Club Indicator" large enough that I can read them even without my reading glasses.  Maybe that will change as I get even older but I not see that being much of an issue.  I think it all comes down to "Paying Attention" and specifically checking the club when pulling from the bag.

4 hours ago, boogielicious said:

My bag has specific slots for each club, so it’s easy for me get the right club.

I have a similar bag but can occasionally mix-up the slots if I pull multiple clubs to walk to a shot far from my bag and accidentally return them to the wrong slot.  It helps but does not replace actually looking at the club marking.

[Double Mocha Man]

32 minutes ago, StuM said:

I've mixed up clubs, but never the 6 vs 9.

I have an attorney friend who mixes up his 6 with his 9.  There's a particular par 4 we play and the ideal shot from the tee is a 5 or 6 iron.  He thinks he's hitting his 6 and when his 9 iron doesn't get very far down the fairway he is incredulous.  Then he realizes what he did.  He's done it now three times on the same hole.

If I'm standing over a 9 iron I recognize it's a lofted club.  There's a 13 degree difference in loft over the 6 iron.  And a 1.5" difference in club length.  Don't know how he does it... he's a fairly smart guy... got through law school.  (Insert lawyer joke here)

[darthweasel]

14 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

(Insert lawyer joke here)

99% of lawyers give the rest of them a bad name.

(I'll grab my coat on my way out)