Every golfer has a goal when setting up a bag of clubs. Sometimes it’s a professional getting ready for a tournament and sometimes it’s a 25 handicap looking to break 90.
I’m setting up my bag this year to break 80. As a 15 handicap I need to find 6 to 10 strokes. To make this a reality I will focus on one goal, no doubles or worse
Let’s start with what every golf bag needs, a driver or default tee club, a putter, and a sand wedge.
- Driver; Cobra. OPTIM X
- Kal’i blue 60 stiff
- Standard length
- Holsel set to A1
- Putter Cobra
- The 3DP™ TOUR AGERA RS
- Ping 159 54 Degree
- E grind
Next a well gapped bag needs to cover an average range of approach shots with between 10 – 13 yard gaps. My average drive is 237 yards so my approach shots should fall between 105 and 175 yards. So we add pitching wedge through 6i and 5 hybrid.
- 5 Irons; Ping
- Ping i240 PW – 6i
- Standard loft
- Nippon Modous3 115 stiff
- Standard length
- Standard lie
- hybrid; Ping
- Ping 430
- Ping chrome tour stiff
- Loft 24.5
- Hosel set to big minus
Now add a 200+ yard club for long par 3’s and we are done with basic bag setup.
- 5 wood; Cobra OPTIM X 5 wood
- 18 degree
- Kal’i blue 60 stiff
- Hosel set to A1
So now that we have the 10 clubs all bags need we can focus on the strategy picks.
Tiger Tee Strategy – The layup
Most doubles or worse can be traced back to the tee shot. Every good golf course design puts hazards or big trouble in your way at least once per round. These holes force you to hit the layup drive because the hazards and or penalty zones will kill your round. Enter the mini driver. It’s a little shorter than the big dog but has a tighter dispersion.
- Mini Driver; Cobra OPTIM Mini
- Kal’i blue 60 stiff
- Standard length
- Hosel set to A1
No 3 putts
Almost all 3 putts can be traced back to speed control. For golfers of all skill levels the percentage of made putts falls off a cliff after 10 feet. So consistent speed control with the putter is key. My putter this year is a Cobra 3DP Tour AGERA RS. I picked this model for a combination of high moi and the DLT (Descending Loft Technology) face which gives a consistent launch every time.
No double chips.
Chipping technique and skill is most of the solution, but having wedges in multiple grinds, lofts, and bounce will give the skilled player options to get the ball on the green the first time.
Statistically speaking, Not all dispersion patterns are the same. From your driver to your short irons the biggest deviation from target is left to right. Once you get to 100 yards or less it’s north and south that matters most.
So slotting a 50 degree gap wedge between the pitching wedge and 54 degree sand wedge is an obvious choice. Now add a 58 degree lob wedge and we have nice 4-5 degree gaps from 6i to lob – a pretty standard setup.
- Ping 159 50 degree
- Black dot
- Ping 159 58 degree
- Black dot
- T grind
- Black dot
Of course we just have one problem, that leaves an open slot in the bag.
I chose to go with a 62 degree lob wedge over a hybrid or fairway wood at the top. Although most players favor the tighter gap at the top of the bag, either choice will be in play maybe once or twice a round unless your having a really bad day. So an extra get out of jail club is what we are going with – we shall see if the strategy pays off this season.
- Titleist Vokey sm9 62 degree
- M grind
I am a golf club junkie, a tinkerer, an addict of the promise of new tech. But this means my golf game never has a solid footing to improve. So I will be focusing on swing and golf technique to move my index down for the next 12 months. Wow, that feels long when I write it down.
Cheers, and may the fairways be with you.