Which Golf Club to Use and When: A Guide on Golf Clubs and Their Uses

Do you ever struggle wondering which golf club to use and when? It might be tricky to know what type of golf club to use in every situation if you’re a beginner.

Professional golf players not only knows exactly the right type of club for each moment but also have already got to the point where they have their preferred clubs to hit. In every scenario. But hey, you’ll get there too!

So you can learn which golf club to use in each situation, I prepared this thorough guide on Golf Clubs and their uses! Make sure you don’t miss it to know everything you ever wondered about. Good reading!

Golf Clubs and Their Uses

How to know if you need a driver or a 3-wood? Oh, sounds easy? But what about the different uses of a 7-iron and an 8-iron? Now it’s trickier.

In this blog post, we'll help simplify things for you by outlining the basic rules of when each club should be used. Keep on reading!

Players are allowed to have a limit of 14 clubs in their bags, and they are at liberty to combine these clubs as they wish. It can be difficult to figure out which golf club to use when starting. 

In a typical golf set, you will find a driver, a couple of woods, a few wedges, irons, and a putter. In some instances, you can also find hybrids, which can be substituted for irons or wood. These are suitable for different conditions concerning distance, terrain, and spin.

But which golf club to use and when?

The driver, for instance, is best designed to tee off on the course. It is designed specially to achieve the longest distance and is, therefore, best to kickstart the game. The woods and irons are suitable for varying average length shots, while wedges are best suited for special terrains such as sandy areas.

Hybrids, as can be implied from the name, can be used to make life easier for a golfer by combining the benefits of both irons and woods.  When you are winding down the game, the putter is great for the last leg of the course, as it enables you to make more accurate and shorter shots.

Summary of When to Use Each Golf Club

To ease you into the functions of the various clubs in golf, we have a snapshot below that briefly explains the use of each: 

Plenty of features go into each of these clubs, all of which are designed to achieve the clubs’ intended purposes. If you were wondering which golf club to use in each condition, we’ve got your back! 

When to Use Each Golf Club

Golf Clubs per Distance

Different golf clubs will cover a vast range of distances.

Here’s what you need when you need that ball to fly! 

When to Use a Driver

When you kick off the game, you should be using a driver to hit the ball as far as possible. A typical driver will have a long shaft and a large head and can be made up of materials such as titanium, steel, or graphite.

In addition, a driver contains the least loft, that is, the angle between the face of the club and the shaft. This angle ranges from 9 to 12.5 degrees, and as a result, it will allow you to hit long distances of about 180 to 305 yards. It is also often the most expensive club in a golf set.

When to Use an Iron

The iron club can be said to be one of the most crucial components of a golf set. Of the 14 clubs a player is allowed to have on the golf course, irons make up about 7 to 11. Irons typically have a smaller and more flat club head which is lined with grooves.

Irons are typically divided into 3 sets, with your 2, 3, and 4 irons classified as long irons, 5, 6, and 7 as mid irons, and 8 and 9 as short irons. The long irons have longer shafts and a lower loft. As a result, these clubs are used to lift the ball higher and cover a longer distance.

The mid irons cover an average distance and are great for the progression of the game. Short irons have the shortest shafts and club heads with a heavy mass. These are ideal for shorter distances as they have a larger loft. For many players, it can be hard to use clubs that have a longer shaft, as these prove more difficult to master and to have an accurate shot.

When to Use a Wood or a Hybrid

Woods are a type of golf club that has typically larger and rounder club heads that are used to hit the ball over long distances. Initially, woods were made up of hardwoods such as persimmon. Nowadays, however, they have taken a more modern approach and are currently made up of materials such as titanium. 

Woods are classified by numbers, from 1 to 9. The 1 wood, typically known as the driver, has the lowest loft that ranges from 9 to 12.5 degrees. This increases up to the 9 wood, which has 26 to 29 degrees of loft. 

Woods are generally divided into 2 categories; the drivers and the fairway woods. The latter is mainly used to get the shots off the fairway and closer to the green. Since they progressively have a higher loft, these can be used to lift the ball off ground and over obstacles such as hills.

To get the best of both worlds,  one can however use a hybrid golf club which is a cross breed between an iron and a wood.  These clubs typically have a more oversized head than a convex face. They also have shorter shafts than most fairway woods, making them easier to maneuver.

When to Use a Wedge

The wedge is part of the iron club family but is reserved for use in particular situations. Wedges have varying degrees of loft, which is the angle between the face of the club and the ground. These variations have thus resulted in the design of three types of wedges, namely the pitching, sand, and lob wedge. 

Wedges are used for shorter and more accurate shots. The pitching wedge in particular contains a high amount of loft, as it usually ranges between 44 to 50 degrees.  This makes it perfect for short-range distances. 

As the name dictates, the sand wedge is suitable for rough terrain areas. It has a higher amount of loft, about 54 to 58 degrees, which helps to lift the ball up. It also has a more rounded sole which ensures that it does not get stuck in the sand.

The lob wedge has the largest loft of about 59 to 65 degrees. This is designed to get the ball high up in the air.

When to Use a Putter

A putter is the golf club that you use to get your ball into the hole. This club is designed to get the ball rolling gently along the ground, as opposed to letting it take flight and cover longer distances. Putters are typically shorter in length and contain a flat face.

Now You’re Ready to Choose!

As you can see, the game of golf is not only about technique and skill. While these are extremely important, your equipment and how you use it will play a major factor in the success of your game. We hope that now you have a better understanding of the clubs, and will be able to make better decisions to up your game!