The difference two clubs can make

azgreg

This is about the full bag. A number of us have played minimalist golf and this isn't about that. For the longest time I played what I consider a pretty standard bag. D, 4w, 7w, 4h, 5-gw, sw, lw, and p. My 4 wood was basically just an alternate tee club. I rarely hit it from the deck. My long approach clubs were the 7w and 4h. As I got older I got shorter off the tee and stopped going for par 5s in two. I swapped out the 4w and 7w for just a 5w. The 5w is now my alternate tee club and sometimes long advance club. It's just simpler and less stressful. At my shorter length I hit driver all the time from the tee unless it's one of those tricked up holes with a ditch or something running through the fairway. At the other end of the bag I was a four wedge guy forever. Now that I play almost exclusively in a cart that's too many clubs to deal with. I now play pw (47°), gw (52°), and sw (58°). Those three clubs handle everything inside 120 yard. when I get to a green I just grab three clubs now. I've worked on doing everything around the green with just the 52° and 58°. Since doing this my scores are going back down and play has been more enjoyable. Sorry for the long post.

VigilanteTrail

azgreg Sorry for the long post.

No apologies are in order…love this post…it actually helps validate that I am likely not missing out on anything at the top end of my bag (ponder it often) with the 13 club setup I am using which is very similar to yours. 👍🏻

I still might switch out the 21* UW with their newest version in 23* when they become affordable a year or so from now 😜

Mattyv

azgreg

I struggle with the top end of my bag. Sometimes I carry a 3 wood for an alternate club off the tee. I can't hit it off the deck to save my life. I have an Adams hybrid with a small head that I use for long approach shots. It is only successful 60% of the time. I will sometimes switch out the 3 wood for a 3 hybrid but never end up hitting it. I just built myself a 5 wood and will try it out tomorrow for the 1st time. I hope I can hit the damn thing!

KCee

azgreg I think this is a great post. I've also changed my bag as I've lost distance. I've also changed because my home course has doglegs and other features that can take driver out of my hands. Many of my golfing buddies are now hitting driver on all 4 doglegs, but I still have enough pop to get into trouble on them depending on the tee box. Hopefully I can stall that a bit longer with exercise (and new drivers!), but getting shorter will probably simplify my bag further. I only turn 60 this year so I'm not as old as all of you geezers 😉

I feel like I can probably play with just 10 clubs and be fine, but until I can find fairway woods or hybrids I'm more comfortable hitting a range of yardages I'll probably just keep loading up the bag with 12-14 clubs and swinging full. It's not like I worry about the weight since the electric trolley takes the load.

Luc_Van_Daele

azgreg This is about the full bag....

Pretty much the same story here:

Over the years I went from Dr, 3w, 5w, 7w, 5i-Pw, Gw, Sw, Lw
to Thriver, 6w, 5h, 6½i-8i- 9½i, Gw, SLw.

I'm also only using Gw (53°) and SLw (57°) for the short game and anything inside 100 yards. A bit more loft then the old 55° Sw for easier bunkershots and a litlle less loft then the old 59° Lw for easier lob shots. Much more up and downs.
Thriver on the tee (200 yards), only 10 yard short of my driver but less fairway misses.
6w alternate tee shots and 6w and 5hy for long faiway shots depending on the lie, 5h-6½i-8i-9½i scoring clubs from 115 to 165 yards. With bigger gaps between clubs, no longer hesitation for club choice for in between club distances.

The 6½i and 9½i are a 7 and Pw bend down 2° and lenghtend 0.25"

I'm down to 9 clubs. Got myself a small cary bag, the electric trolley got retired, and playing better scores then with the old 14 club bag.

Par4QC

Mattyv I can't hit it off the deck to save my life.

Find something older like the Titleist 975. I hate these wide body, flat soled things they have now. I have no problem hitting my 3 or 5 (Diablo Octane Tour) from any lie. And I love hitting my 3 from the rough. (I)Cannot do that with a modern club.

Typhoon

No sense in carrying around clubs you can’t hit… or don’t hit well. It’ll cost you more strokes than you’d gain.

Dewsweeper

Typhoon We still like to walk the golf courses when we could so extra golf clubs are extra weight to lug around for 18 hilly golf courses. I had decided not to get my motorized caddy when my wife retired last year and decided she wanted to join the golf crowd. Great that she did, now she also watch golf tournaments on screen with us ( my kids, their spouses and me ), no complain for being gone for 5-6 hours for a silly game ( traffic has been really bad in recent years, on and off the golf course).
Yeah, I used to carry half a bag of clubs scavenged from my father's bags, the bargain bin in the pro-shop, then to a full bag; then to half a bag because I could do that for fun. Now back to 13-14 clubs on my push cart, My biggest issue of my golf game since I crossed the age of 70 is, no reliable club from 170-130 yards out. Lost 35 pounds of muscle from 30 years ago. Going back and forth from stiffer shafts to softer shafts depending on how I feel that day when rolling off the bed.
Not complaining, it is always good to get on the golf course.
One of the guys in our group passed suddenly on the 14th hole at our weekly venue. No warning sign and no history of health issue. One other guy said a few weeks later, that he will have to make more time for golf now since he is worried that this might happen to him without warning.

Funny, he did not say anything about other things in life but just need to get more golf in before his ship comes in.

Typhoon

I admit to being awful with FW off the deck. So much so that I don’t even bother carrying one. I go Driver, 3 hybrid, 4 iron.

Fairway woods were my best when I was younger and had to hit them a lot. Not now… lack of use. This year though I’ve decided to commit to hitting them again. I have an OG RBZ 3 wood and an adjustable Stealth 2 Plus 5 wood.

Mattyv

Typhoon
Sounds like me. Another reason I haven't addressed the fw situation is because I can hit my 4 iron 215 and fairly consistent.

Birdsboro

Typhoon the way you say OG RBZ like its a classic. Kinda like i think about my wilson 1200 maples makes me feel really old.

braveheart

I have replaced my 3 wood with a 5 wood as it’s easier to hit off the deck and can be serviceable off the tee. I also have a TM DHY 4 iron that is a nice off the tee option as well. I then go with 5-GW, SW and new for this year LW.

VigilanteTrail

Mattyv because I can hit my 4 iron 215 and fairly consistent.

You are hereby banned from GB 😡

Mattyv

VigilanteTrail

If it helps, I only it it in the exact direction I am aiming about 30% of the time, 50% within 20 yards(right or left) of target and 20% of WTF was that. On a shot of that distance, I am usually fine with the way the club performs for me. It's better than the 150 yards I average with a 3 wood.🤣

VigilanteTrail

Mattyv It's better than the 150 yards I average with a 3 wood.🤣

🤣😆💪🏻

sdandrea1

I'm still pretty much an 8 to 10 club guy, but I play a different game at tees at or not under 5k yards. I've even started using my 12 degree driver off the turf for the occasional longer shots that can't reach the green. I've got a fairly reliable baby fade stinger that comes down early and rolls like crazy. That gets rid of the longer FW woods.

Typhoon

I even took the 52 degree wedge out. I think there can be crowding at that end of the bag too. Tiger did it and I like it for me. My PW is 47 degrees, after that I go to my 56 and then 60. I use the PW a lot now and I like the 3/4 shots for control better than a full swing 52 degree. So I play just fine not carrying the 2 FW’s and a gap wedge.

ode

Course management

bad9

I'm setting up a new set this year along almost exactly the same lines. Driver off all tees except par 3's, fw(not sure if its a 3HL or 20° 5w yet), 4h, 6h, 7-P, 52°, 58°. I have always carried a 54° SW but almost never used it.

Spuzz

Same standard set up I've used for many years. I don't mess around with that.
1,3,5,4H,5H,6H,7-PW, 52/56
Never had a LW in my bag for long. Learned golf with a PW as my most versatile club as old school SW's had huge soles and high bounce which was basically good for soft sand only.

Since I don't play the Blues anymore, I may remove my 3w for a 7w, depending on what course I am playing (eg. narrow, doglegs, shortish length)
3W is in for scrambles for sure
🙂

bigshank

Driver, 3 wood, 7 wood, 4 hybrid, 5 hybrid, 6 iron-GW. 52,56, and 60. Putter. Just realized that’s 15. Having to ditch a club would either be the 60 or the gap wedge before the 3 wood for me. It goes 20 yards past my 7 wood and is a much more suitable option to the driver if that’s being a stinker. Also if I have to turn one over right to left it’s almost guaranteed to do that compared to the others

Typhoon

bigshank what is the loft on your GW? A 52 degree is usually a GW so I’m thinking you have 2 clubs within 2 degrees of each other.

Spuzz

Typhoon what is the loft on your GW?

It's probably 48*
:/

bigshank

Typhoon I haven’t checked. Irons are ping g410 so guessing 48. My 52 I use a bunch. You are probably right though. Close enough to be a gonner. The cbx 2 is much more versatile. I like to flight down wedges with it and use it for long bunker shots