who needs 14 clubs anyway??

[senorchipotle]

I have no problem with your experience, but you realize it goes against what everyone says we should be doing?

you need to come play in texas. the wind here really makes you use your imagination. in the spring it's not unlike playing in scotland. hell, one round i had to punch a 3 iron on a 180 yard par 3.

[rbuch]

I just put a 3 wood in the bag to give me 14. but the dumb thing about my bag is I have a 19* 5 wood and a 20* hybrid so I basically do have 13 in the bag just haven't figured out if I like the hybrid better than the 5 wood. I'll figure it out sooner or later. But also contimplating dropping the 3 and 5 and going with a 16* or so 4 wood.

[Fourputt]

you need to come play in texas. the wind here really makes you use your imagination. in the spring it's not unlike playing in scotland. hell, one round i had to punch a 3 iron on a 180 yard par 3.

You call that wind??? I've hit

driver on a 185 yard par 3 and barely made the middle of the green. That is straight into a 50 mph sustained with gusts to 70... Winter Chinook winds off the mountains can easily exceed hurricane force. It isn't that unusual to see up to 100 mph warm downslope winds in the winter here. (I don't play in those kinds of gales, but they do happen)

[Leftygolfer]

I have played with less clubs in the winter and spring for weight issues and just messing around. Honestly I don't think my scores were that much worse. But when I really want to score I always carry 14. I carry a 5 wedges (I will once my 54 comes in the mail) and like having options around the green and from inside 100 yards.

[slide13]

I think there is some advantages to simplicity. I just went from 14 clubs to 13, got rid of a 54/58 wedge combo in favor of just a 56 instead and I like that sort of simplicity. My 50* is great at 110-120 yards and inside 100 yards the 56 will get the job done I think.

I could probably ditch my 3 hybrid (19*) in favor of just easing up on my 3 utility wood (15*)....and maybe I should because I rarely find myself using the hybrid actually as I tend to gravitate towards my utility for the longer shot or my 4 iron for shorter shots for added control. I don't think I've actually used it on course in the last 3 or 4 rounds now that I think about it. Though by that criteria I could loose the driver too...haven't been hitting it well lately so I've been teeing off with the 3 utility wood which is working great.

[Shanks A Million]

You call that wind??? I've hit

Haha, nice. I was practicing in the wind today, and the balls I nailed, absolutely dead center with my driver, were back on the ground 200 yards out. I hit the ball notoriously high, so the local pro here encourages that I work on my knockdowns a lot. I was hitting my lob wedge, normally a 90 yard club, 45 yards! That's a full half of the distance lost to the wind. It was blowing hard though, really hard, and it was really hot.

[JWL1957]

I play with a guy who has 7 clubs in his bag. He carries a 5.2 Hdcp. Last time out he shot -2 at the Virginia Beach National. ( formally TPC course)

3 wood
3 - 5 - 7 -9 Irons
SW
Putter

[mirv]

there's a guy at my local club who comes out in the evenings sometimes, and he only takes four clubs with him. doesn't even carry a bag, just carries a 3w, 7i, PW and putter with him. says it helps him learn to get the most out of his clubs, as in he can comfortably use a 7 iron for anything between 140 and 160, as opposed to different clubs for 140, 150 and 160.

[martytilma]

I play with a guy who has 7 clubs in his bag. He carries a 5.2 Hdcp. Last time out he shot -2 at the Virginia Beach National. ( formally TPC course)

Must be nice!! Ha!

[clam fist]

I agree in theory only. I have purchased so many different kinds of wedges, niblicks, chippers, and putters that it has made it hard for me to carry less than 18 clubs at a time. Too many toys!

[bigoak]

Two drivers and three putters and 4 wedges 2 hybrids and 8 irons. usually pick the driver for the day and the putter for the day after 3-4 holes.

[B-Con]

I currently only carry 9 clubs, which will go up to 11 once I get my 3H and 4H (and even then I will likely use one of those the majority of the time). The only club I would think about adding right now would be my 8i (since I pulled out all the even irons) since I occasionally find myself with an approach that would call for it.

I'm still not consistent enough to need the even irons to fill in the gaps. I would rather hit a slightly softer 5i or 7i than learn to hit two additional clubs.

[Fourputt]

Two drivers and three putters and 4 wedges 2 hybrids and 8 irons. usually pick the driver for the day and the putter for the day after 3-4 holes.

You say you're a 9.4 cap... if you are carrying 17 clubs, you don't have a handicap.

[chef35ca]

This is intriguing. Partly for the ease of club selection, partly because i carry.

3 or 5wd, 5,7,9, pw, lw, putter. That's what i'm taking out next round. See what happens.

I play with a guy who has 7 clubs in his bag. He carries a 5.2 Hdcp. Last time out he shot -2 at the Virginia Beach National. ( formally TPC course)

[Shripe]

I carry, but then again that's because I'm working off my Northwestern clubs from years ago (that honestly didn't get too much use... I wasn't good enough for the golf team in HS, stupid ambition, never having played before, and soon lost the bug thereafter). Not a ton included.. 1W, 3W, 3I, 5I, 7I, 9I, 55* Shotsaver wedge, putter. 8 clubs. Not that I'll be hitting the long courses anytime soon, as I've got enough right now with the Oak courses around here at par 3. I need to learn once again before I attempt anything more.

[The Recreational Golfer]

Mini-Golfer has a point that makes sense with me. If you carry, fewer clubs make a lighter load. If you use a pull-cart, why not have 14? The point of the thread is that you can play pretty well with less than 14, so you shouldn't get too stressed over filling out the set. There are lots of ways to get the ball around the course and in the hole. Make the clubs you put in your bag earn their way in.

When Francis Ouimet won the U.S. Open in 1913, he had seven clubs.

[Fourputt]

The point of the thread is that you can play pretty well with less than 14, so you shouldn't get too stressed over filling out the set. There are lots of ways to get the ball around the course and in the hole.

I'm a firm believer in this idea. Too many casual golfers carry and use clubs which they have little chance of ever using correctly. The 60° and higher lofted lob wedge is a prime example. They put it in the bag because they see the pros use them on TV, but they don't practice with them, they rarely hit a good shot with them, and they don't realize that it is actually costing them strokes. Learn to properly use a club like that before it finds a home in your bag. Make an honest evaluation of any new club... be certain that it's actually going to help your game or leave it home. Don't just use it because Simon Says you can.

[Shanks A Million]

I'm a firm believer in this idea. Too many casual golfers carry and use clubs which they have little chance of ever using correctly. The 60° and higher lofted lob wedge is a prime example. They put it in the bag because they see the pros use them on TV, but they don't practice with them, they rarely hit a good shot with them, and they don't realize that it is actually costing them strokes. Learn to properly use a club like that before it finds a home in your bag. Make an honest evaluation of any new club... be certain that it's actually going to help your game or leave it home. Don't just use it because Simon Says you can.

I find this to be an odd sentiment. The 60° is, by far, the easiest club in my bag to hit. I love it, at 90 yards, it's like throwing darts. It's also a great club around the greens, and in the bunkers. I couldn't even come close to shooting as well as I do without it.