Selecting the Right Club

By April 9, 2018Tips & Tutorials
picking the best club

Choosing the right club each time you play a shot on the golf course has a huge impact on the quality of your round.

If you fail to choose the right club for the shot you are attempting to play, chances are the ball will come to rest in a less than favourable position.  Sometimes, you must only be one club out and the shot you play can become a disaster.

A good example of this is when playing a shot over water or sand.  If you select the wrong club and come up short, the ball could easily finish in the hazard.  The same applies if you hit the ball longer than you anticipated.

The best place to start when working on how to select the right club is the driving range.

The driving range is the perfect place for you to work out the distance you can comfortably hit the ball with each club.  This may sound a little boring and it is not the most exciting thing you can do but by spending just 1 hour at the driving range, playing shots with each club, you can get a very good idea of the distance you can hit the ball.

If you have very little time on your hands, take out the 7 iron and play a few shots.  Take a nice, easy swing and record the average distance you hit the ball when making a nice contact.  Using the distance you can hit the ball with the 7 iron, you can plus or minus 10 to 15 yards for each club in your bag, depending if you are moving up or down.

For example, if you hit 165 yards using an easy swing with the 7 iron, you can expect to hit roughly 150 yards with the 8 iron and so on.  While this is a quick way to work out the distance you can hit the ball with each club, you should try each club if you have the time and this will provide a more accurate distance.

Knowing the distance you can hit the ball with each club will allow you to make an informed and confident choice for each shot on the golf course.

The weather conditions can play a big part in a round of golf and you may need to change the club you are using based on the wind.  For example, if you would usually play a 7 iron when faced with a 160-yard shot to the green but the wind is blowing towards you, the wind is likely to take some distance off the shot and you can use a 6 iron to compensate.

In the wind is blowing away from you, think about taking a club less to reach your target.

Having a good understanding of the distance you can hit the ball with each club, will help when selecting the right club for every shot on the golf course.