A Club For Every Shot

[Diane]

I've been thinking - there seems to be a club for every specific shot now - chippers and wedges of every degree imaginable. Part of me thinks that I should learn to make different shots with the clubs I have before I expand what's in my bag. My father gave me a chipper he doesn't use, but I'm getting good at chipping with my wedges. Isn't it better to expand the range of shots I can make with a few clubs and then think about adding the "specialty" clubs?

 

[C-Tech]

That has always been my thought. I use my 56 or 60 from 80 yards and in 90% of the time. I can use a 7 to bump and run, but that is almost always a specialty shot for me caused by some other factor like overhanging branches, etc. Otherwise, I use one of the two wedges and adjust the trajectory to match the need.

 

[Fourputt]

I've never understood why anyone would use a space in his bag for a chipper when the same shot can be achieved with several other clubs already in the bag. In the typical 3 wedge setup that so many players need these days, there just isn't room in one's bag for a redundant club like a chipper.

My putter is the only club in my bag that has just a single function. Several of the shots that some would use a chipper for I will often putt instead. With a little practice, 3 or 4 feet of fringe isn't that difficult to putt through unless your course has fairly poor maintenance on the green complexes.

 

[ClairefromClare]

Boo has 5 clubs in her bag, including a 6i, an 8i, and a PW. She was taught to chip with her 8i, and now that is the only thing for which she will use it. Granted, she doesn't have all that much difference in yardage between her clubs, but it's still silly not to use an 8i for an approach shot.

 

[dynarider]

I carry 3 so called wedges, PW, a 52º & a 58º. Lately I have been using the 58 a lot more but my go to club for anything from 110 yds down to a short chip is with that 52º.

 

[92Esquire]

I've never understood why anyone would use a space in his bag for a chipper when the same shot can be achieved with several other clubs already in the bag. In the typical 3 wedge setup that so many players need these days, there just isn't room in one's bag for a redundant club like a chipper.

My putter is the only club in my bag that has just a single function. Several of the shots that some would use a chipper for I will often putt instead. With a little practice, 3 or 4 feet of fringe isn't that difficult to putt through unless your course has fairly poor maintenance on the green complexes.

If you're including the Cleveland Niblick as a chipper, I'd have to strongly disagree with you. My wife's bag setup was 11 clubs, so adding a Niblick didn't kick anything out. For folks who don't have a whole lot of time to practice, much less practice their short game, the Niblick is almost magic. It's a very versatile club, and is somewhat equivalent to a low-flight 9 iron.

As to Diane's original question, if it's truly an old-school chipper, then you probably are better off practicing with your wedges.

 

[paulthewitt]

i think the niblick or another similar club is the only exception. What has been said previously rings true for me. A chipper (similar to the odyssey marxsman) is a wasted space in the bag.

I have found learning to use different wedges for all the diferent yardages from 100 yards in to be the single mostuseful thing i have done yet. I want to continue this into the irons learning to hit low shots etc....

so i reckon you should learn to use all your clubs better. HOWEVER, if a chipper is wha works for you and gets your scores down...then do it.

 

[v3.0]

I came across an old Wilson chipper on ebay that looked so beautiful to me that I had to have it. It has the loft of a 7-iron or thereabout, it is a muscle-back blade in form, but the muscle is really fat, and the club is much heavier than a 7-iron, and has a much wider sole than a regular blade.

I haven't brought it to the course, because of the lack of versatility already mentioned in this thread, but I will say this: This club chips muuuch better and easier than a 7-iron would: It is perfectly designed for its task. At the course I play I don't have much use for the low running chip that this club wants to hit though, so it will probably stay out of the bag. However, I am not ruling out that on a different course it might go in!