How Many Golf Clubs Are in a Set

Golfing is an exciting sport but what makes this sport fun is the rules. You might think that rules are only for playing in the court, but it turns out that golf has rules for the playing equipment and gear as well. So, according to the USGA (which happens to be the regulatory body for the golfing), the players can only carry 14 golf clubs in their golf club.

Well, the maximum number isn’t less, but surely, it confines the players to make their club combination accordingly. Many people think that there is some standard of golf clubs, but no, players have the liberty to choose and create their own mix of golf clubs. The golf clubs mainly depend on the player’s skill level and preferences.

Golf club sets are easy to develop, but the novice often has a hard time making the right choice. In most of the cases, this is because people don’t have the information about different golf clubs. In this article, we will not only share about how many golf clubs are allowed in a set, but we will also work on the learning with the following list of golf clubs. So, let’s start!

Fairway Woods & Driver

So, it is essential to note that the driver is the longest club of the golf set, but down to the loft, it has the lowest possible angle. With low loft, it becomes difficult to harness the skills. There are specialized drivers in the market as well through which people can harness the draw and tee shots. The majority of people like to use the driver.

In contrast, there are people who prefer using 3-woods off the tees. These woods (inclusive of 3-wood and 5-wood) are commonly used for making long fairway shots. 3-wood and 5-wood are commonly used by the professional players, but if we look at the high handicappers, they like using 5-wood, 7-wood, and 9-wood. These woods are easier to hit the shots with because of the higher loft.

Irons

If you look at the traditional set of golf clubs, they ought to have 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 irons. However, the measurements and angles were a bit different because modern manufacturers have changed the loft settings. These changes in the loft are designed to offer a higher distance range. With this notion, we can say that each iron has witnessed a change in the loft.

This loft change might have increased the distance coverage, but have hard to hit complexities. This is why many golfers are ditching the 3-iron and 4-iron simply because they are hard to play with. But the players use hybrids instead of those irons!

Hybrids

These golf clubs have gained immense popularity over the years, and it’s needless to say that they have become go-to clubs for beginners are pros all the same. The prime reason is that these irons are designed to offer precision and accuracy in shots while covering huge distances. The best part is that these irons are easy to use.

The hybrids are designed with a huge clubface. The clubface is usually designed with wood-like features, topped with short shaft just like an iron. The COG is reduced to the back, and at the bottom of the golf club, one can ensure the easy launch of the ball. The loft of the hybrids ranges from 16-degrees to 26-degrees.

If we compare the distances, the smallest hybrid ought to offer 10-yard lesser distance as compared to the biggest fairway woods’ distance coverage. Some players are replacing the 3-iron and 4-iron with hybrids of three to six standards.

Wedges

You might not know this, but wedges are the high-loft golf clubs or irons which are designed to serve a particular deed. The traditional golf club sets are designed with two wedges. The wedges usually include the sand wedge and pitching wedge, both serving different purposes. The pitching wedge is designed to play around the green.

In contrast, the sand wedge is designed to save the golfers from the sand traps around the greens. In addition to sand wedge and pitching wedge, people are using the gap wedge because it takes middle road in loft between the sand wedge and a pitching wedge. However, the lofts can cause negative impacts on the hole, but again, they can use the lob wedges there.

Putters

If there is no putter in your golf club set, hear us out that your golf club isn’t complete. These putters are designed for the golfers who want to play near the hole or if they want to play with fewer yards. These putters help to make shots on the ground, but there are salient features through which people can customize their shots.

For instance, some putters are designed with longer shafts. All in all, you can use whichever putter you are comfortable with. Also, you need to ensure that the putter helps you make successful shots on the ground.

Golf Club Limits

As we have already mentioned that USGA has set the golf club set to 14 clubs in the golf club, the standards for which golf clubs are allowed in the bag aren’t too strict because golfers are allowed to make their own set of clubs according to their skill set. However, some people still want a go-to guide to design their golf bags.

So, the golf bag should include three kinds of wood inclusive of 3-wood, 5-wood, and a driver. In addition, it should have around eight irons ranging from three to nine irons. Also, there must be a putter and a pitching wedge in the set. These are some essential, and the remaining slots can be filled with your desired golf clubs according to the preferences, playing style, and skill set.

Golf Club Borrowing Regulations

There was a time when borrowing the golf club wasn’t allowed on the court, but back in the years 1988, the rules were modified by the USGA. If a player borrows a certain club, they have the liberty to use the club round the clock (as long as the match is on!) However, according to the recent modifications in this niche, the players can borrow the club only from the players that they are teaming up with.

Penalties

Okay, so your math didn’t work out fine, and you got a club or extra in your golf club. Well, sorry to pop your bubble, but there are penalties for that. According to the USGA regulations, if players have an extra club in their golf bag, they need to declare that before the play by the competitor or the opponent. However, if the extra club is declared during the game, the two-stroke penalty applies at the hole.

The hole where the extra club was used will be penalized. However, the maximum number of penalties are four strokes per round in which players need to deduct the holes for the penalties.

Extra Clubs

Well, if you need to keep the extra club, you need to understand that there are 12 slots standardized by the USGA, and you still have the liberty to choose your two clubs. However, if there are practice sessions, you can keep other clubs because there will be no penalties then. But to be honest, that is hardly a problem because even those 12 slots aren’t fixed because golfers have the liberty to mix and match according to their skills and playing experience.

Choosing The Club To Play Certain Shots

The prime reason for adding different types of clubs is the golf clubs is that they are designed to make different types of shots. So, if you are trying to play the downhill or uphill, the club will be different. Also, the club’s choice will change if you are trying to play around the wind and court as well. So, let’s see which golf club can be used when!

Long Irons

These longer irons are designed with difficult control and are often used by advanced players. However, the beginner players start with 4-iron, but also, they tend to use fairway woods or hybrids because 1, 2, 3 iron is difficult to use.

Putters

There are multiple options available in putter as they differ respectively to the shapes and sizes. So, this is completely your choice because putter choice mainly depends on your experience, skillset, and obviously the budget.

The Bottom Line

If you are new to golfing, there are high chances that you are looking for some help because let’s be honest; golfing is difficult, and acing it not only requires practicing but right gear as well. With this article, we have tried to share information about the number of golf clubs and when to use which for harnessing the game. So, best of luck for your next game on the court!