Buying a full set of 4-PW irons is just the default setting for most golfers. It’s what everyone does. But that habit is a massive drain on the bank account without much real reward. There is a huge argument to be made that the pursuit of every single club in the bag is actually a waste of resources.
The math doesn’t even work for the average player. If your swing speed isn’t elite, your distance gaps aren’t wide enough to justify a massive bag. A player swinging a 7-iron at 65-70 mph instead of 90 mph like the pros doesn’t need that much variety. You end up with clubs that do the exact same thing.
The Case For Half Sets
There is a real way to play smarter. A recent discussion on the Kick Point podcast explored whether mid or high handicap players overspend by filling every slot in their set. Significant overlapping dispersion might occur between a 6-iron and 7-iron, which is the concern. That is just paying for the same shot twice.
Joe Ferguson joined the show to weigh in on this. He was incredibly blunt about the benefits of a smaller bag. According to Golf Monthly, Ferguson said, “I couldn’t agree with that more.” You would fail to detect if the odd or even set ended up in your bag.
He even suggested that the pros could do it too. He noted that he could play a PGA tournament using only a set of evens or odds, which would basically be three or four irons. He claimed that when you are stuck between clubs, you simply “dolly one club or hit one harder.”
Reducing Clubs To Boost Creativity
Less gear might actually lead to better golf. Having too many options can turn a good player into a robotic one. Sir Nick Faldo is a huge supporter of the idea that fewer clubs can help. Golf Monthly states the legendary pro champions cutting down the club count to spark creativity, as he believes elite players have turned one-dimensional.
The modern game is too focused on precision at the expense of imagination. When you have every possible loft available, you stop problem-solving.
