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What golf clubs do I need?
Fewer than you think, chosen for your speed. A bag is a set of distance gaps, and the clubs you need are the ones that fill them with a club you can hit. Put in your level and your driver speed, or just your 7-iron carry, and Morris lays out the bag and the reason for each club.
By Morris, by Badgie Golf · Updated
13 clubs
- 1Driver10.5 to 12 degrees: more loft is more carry at this speed.
- 23-woodSecond shot on par 5s and a safe tee club.
- 35-wood or 7-woodReplaces the 3-iron for almost everyone.
- 44-hybridThe long-iron distance with a wood's launch.
- 55-hybridA 5-iron needs speed to fly; the hybrid does not.
- 66-iron
- 77-ironThe club that tells you how you are striking it.
- 88-iron
- 99-iron
- 10Pitching wedgeFull shots to about 100–130 yards and chips.
- 11Gap wedge (50–52°)Fills the hole between the pitching and the sand wedge, where most amateurs have 25 yards of nothing.
- 12Sand wedge (54–56°)Bunkers and pitches; mid bounce unless your course is firm.
- 13PutterForty percent of your strokes. Try several lengths; a fitting here pays faster than anywhere.
Build the bag from the gaps
- 1
Putter and driver first
They are the two clubs you hit most and the two where a wrong fit costs most. Length and lie on the putter; loft and shaft flex on the driver (more loft under 90 mph).
- 2
The scoring clubs: 7-iron to sand wedge
7, 8, 9, pitching, sand. Add a gap wedge as soon as you notice 25 yards of nothing between your pitching and sand wedges. This is where your handicap lives.
- 3
Fill the long gap with what you can launch
Between the 6-iron and the driver: a 3-wood, a 5-wood and a hybrid for most people. A 3- or 4-iron only if your driver speed is around 100 mph and your strike is good.
- 4
Stop at what you hit well
A club you hit badly costs strokes and confidence. Ten good clubs beat fourteen with four you avoid. Add the lob wedge, the driving iron and the 2-hybrid when the game asks for them.
Three bags, side by side
| Beginner (~10) | Club golfer (~13) | Low handicap (14) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tee | Driver or 3-wood | Driver, 3-wood | Driver, 3-wood |
| Long | 5-hybrid | 5-wood, 4-hybrid, 5-hybrid or 5-iron | 5-wood, 4-iron or hybrid, 5-iron |
| Irons | 6, 7, 8, 9 | 6, 7, 8, 9 | 6, 7, 8, 9 |
| Wedges | PW, SW | PW, GW, SW | PW, GW, SW, LW |
| Green | Putter | Putter | Putter |
The builder above adjusts this to your speed: under 90 mph it swaps long irons for hybrids and gives the driver more loft; over 100 it lets the 4- and 5-iron back in.
New or used, and what to check
A used set of good clubs from three to six seasons ago is the best value in golf, if the shafts match your speed and the lofts have gaps. How to inspect it and where to look: buying second-hand clubs and where to buy them. On WhatsApp Morris reads shops and second-hand listings for a given model and tells you the price he found, where and when.
Sources
- The R&A — Rules of Golf, Rule 4: The Player's Equipment — Rule 4.1b(1): the 14-club limit. Read 9 October 2026.
- GOLF.com — Here's the shaft flex you should play based on your swing speed (True Spec Golf data) — Why the bag builder asks for your driver speed. 12 June 2020; read 9 October 2026.
Bag questions
How many golf clubs does a beginner need?
About ten: a driver or 3-wood, a 5-wood or hybrid, a 5-hybrid, 6- to 9-irons, a pitching wedge, a sand wedge and a putter. Fewer clubs mean clearer gaps and fewer decisions; the rest can come when you know your distances.
Do I need a 3-iron or a 4-iron?
Only with about 100 mph of driver club speed and good contact. Below that, a 3- or 4-iron flies low and short and is hard from the rough; a hybrid of the same loft flies higher and further. Most club golfers are better with hybrids down to the 5-iron.
How many wedges should I carry?
Three is the usual answer: pitching (around 45°), gap (50–52°) and sand (54–56°). A lob wedge is the last club to add, for short-sided shots, not the first. Keep the loft gaps at four to six degrees.
Should a beginner buy a full set?
A boxed set of ten or eleven clubs is fine to start and cheaper than building one, but check the shaft flex against your speed and the lofts of the irons. A used set of better clubs from a few years ago often beats a new boxed set; see our guide to buying used.
What is the most important club to fit?
The putter, then the driver. The putter is forty percent of your strokes and length and lie decide whether you start it on line. The driver is where a wrong flex or loft costs the most yards.
Keep reading
All of Clubs & GearGolf clubs for beginners: how to choose
What forgiving means in a club, what not to buy, boxed set or used set, and the first bag from your speed.
Irons for high handicappers: what to look for
What cavity backs, wide soles, offset and low centres of gravity do for your strike, how to test a set in ten balls, and why used game-improvement irons are the best value in golf.
Which golf ball for your speed
Compression, layers and cover explained, a finder from your driver speed and your contact, how to test two balls and why to stick to one.
Keep going with Morris on WhatsApp
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