How Many Golf Clubs Are You Allowed to Carry?
According to USGA Rules, you are allowed a maximum of fourteen clubs in your golf bag. Now, does that mean fourteen different clubs, or can you use two drivers like Phil Mickelson does? Of course you can! As long as you don’t exceed the fourteen mark, you are good to go. There is also no minimum, so golfers who only want to carry three clubs during a round are perfectly fine to do so. The “standard” has changed in the last few years, with players adding driving irons, hybrids and wedges to their bags. A standard set consists of a putter, two or three wedges, irons (5-PW), fairway woods and a driver. You will get penalized two strokes for each hole you are carrying extra clubs, with a maximum of four strokes. So it is advisable that you count your clubs before you tee off. You also cannot use another player’s clubs during a round. If you are a beginner, most likely start with a seven iron, putter and PW since the driver is hard to hit. It is a fun club, but be patient and learn to swing first. As you start improving, you can add more clubs to your arsenal. Juniors also typically start with a few clubs and add as they grow. There’s not much sense in buying a full set of clubs that you’re just going to outgrow in a year, right? Experiment with different clubs as well and try to find the ones you like to use best.
Types of Golf Clubs
All players need to carry a putter to use on the putting surface or green. A putter the flattest of all the clubs, and you will find that there are several different designs of putter heads that you can choose from. There are blade putters, peripheral weighted putters and mallet putters, all of which are good options -- it’s worth it to test out each kind to determine which you prefer. Next up, you’ve got your wedges. Wedges are best for around the outskirts of the green and have the most loft in the bag so players can hit short distances and create lots of spin. Common types of wedges include lob wedges, sand wedges, gap wedges and pitching wedges. Irons are created and designed to hit on the descending blow (or “hit down on the ball” as it’s also referred to). They are meant to hit down into the grass to launch the ball in the air. Hybrids are more commonplace now than they ever before Hybrid golf clubs are a mix between irons and woods. These are meant to replace long irons, such as a 4 or 5. Next up, fairway woods are built to hit longer shots from the fairway, and can be swung off the tee as well to build confidence. Last but not least: the driver. As most know, drivers are the longest and lightest clubs in a golf bag. Drivers have the least amount of loft compared to any other club. Make sure you build your confidence first with a driver before you go all in on using it from the tee at every hole. Drivers are by far the hardest clubs to hit -- and perhaps the greatest source of frustration for any golfer, whether you’re a beginner or a pro.
Best Golf Club Brands
- TaylorMade has always had a solid reputation. They have the most modern technological advancements when it comes to designing new clubs for players looking for distance and forgiveness.
- Titleist is known for making “player’s clubs.” Their clubs are solid all around. Extremely classy in appearance, these clubs simply won’t disappoint. Just ask Justin Thomas.
- Callaway is known for its creativity when it comes to manufacturing clubs. With their new Rogue and Epic lines, they’ve gained quite a following in the golf industry.
- Ping’s easy color-coordinated fitting system gets you ready for the course without having to get professionally fitted. Many beginner golfers will tell you that Ping makes some of the best clubs for game improvement.
- Cobra is recognized buy many seasoned golfers for the clubs’ outstanding performance. All in all, Cobra clubs are typically very stylish and fun club to play with.
