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Setting your bag for success

I know what clubs I hit and how well I hit them in certain situations. Last year I had 4W, 7W, 3HY and 5HY. Most people would think that was insane but it worked for me. It was comfortable for me because I knew what each club could do.
 
My bag is only somewhat set up for success. If I were like Ernie Els and had unlimited access to clubs, launch monitors, analytic tools and the best fitters and club builders in the world free of charge, I suspect it would look a bit different. I know better than to carry a 3 iron or a 60* wedge. I can't hit either. My biggest dilemma would be 4h vs 4 iron. I would obviously spend a lot more time optimizing shafts on my woods, etc. I have also considered playing a 5 wood instead of a 3h.
 
It's getting there. I've changed my set up quite a bit over the last year to 18mos.

Higher spinning/more forgiving driver. Easily my best year off the tee. Gave up a few yards on those perfect shots, but gained everywhere else.
No more 3w. Changed it to a 5w.
No low lofted hybrids. I get plenty from a 4h.
More wedges, because that's what I'm good at and where I make my scores.

This year I'm going to:

Flex down on my shafts.
Maybe introduce a specialty club.
 
Good topic Freddie Kong! At this time I think my bag is setup for success, but that could change. I only keep one fairway, the old FK Titleist 3W, in the bag and only one Hybrid (Adams V4 3i). I have 4-PW and 52,54 and 58 degree wedges.
I have another V4 Adams hybrid (4i) and another Adams 4W fairway that I can put in the bag depending on how I'm swinging and the course that I'm getting ready to play.
I don't hit my 4i very often but it is currently my "get out of trouble" club.
After I get into the golf seaon this year and my swing is more consistent I will likely put the 4 hybrid in the bag and take out the 4i. The hybrids are easier to hit better shots when coming out of the rough.
Thanks for the thread! I think that many people will benefit from this conversation.
 
When I rediscovered the game early last year all of my clubs were left over from when I played in high school, great clubs for the time but ten years old at least. Since then I've picked up a couple hybrids (on sale no less) and go 5-lob wedge in the iron department. I'm really loving it. I know a lot of people say to drop that 60 from the bag, but with my new I'm still trying to get a feel for them and have been flying over the greens a little bit. I need the versatility to drop the ball right on to the collar for those terrifying tucked pins.

The only thing now is to replace my 3 wood. I absolutely love it but the technology boost on the top end of my bag has left it behind and I'm starting to have some gapping problems with it.
 
I would like to believe that my bag is. I have gone from a 52 and 60 degree wedge setup, to only carrying a 56 now. Driver, 4W, 3H, 4I-AW, 56deg.

My main struggle is my 2nd shot. Being shorter with the driver hurts me in that I am often left with a 5i or more on longer holes. I was ok with a 3W off the tee, but really struggled with it off the fairway, thus replacing it with a 4W. (I liked a previous 5W I had, but found I was using the 3H more in place of it).

I also found that having the 52 and 60 degree wedges in the bag tended to muddle what I wanted to accomplish. The 60 degree was great for really only one shot I would use, and the 52 was so close in gapping to my AW that I tended not to use it. Switching to the 56, as silly as it sounds, has allowed me to simplify my short game options, by having one club that I would consistently use.

The one change I might make, would be taking out the 4i and 5i and replacing them with hybrids. I mainly hit 4i off the tee, and the 5i looks like it has never been used. Perhaps a revamp or my 3H, 4i, 5i setup is in order.
 
I haven't played with my setup yet for this year, but I think it's set up to succeed. I've got 2/3 options off the tee that are very long, which is my struggle. I don't need a very high lofted club as I can't hit it well enough to be confident on every shot. I think I'll have much more success this year than past because of the bag I have been graciously provided.
 
I feel like mine is getting there.
I've dropped my driver until I can some more confidence with it on the range & through lessons. I couldn't control it and it left me bad places.
I'm hitting either a 3W or hybrid or 4-5 iron off the tee alot. I can control them a let better and a better chance at a decent second shot. I have off days with my 4I and might be going to another hybrid for that spot, just need to find one I'm comfortable with. The rest of my irons through wedges and putter are swinging well and will get better as I start taking lessons again.
 
This is a really good point and something I am planning on taking to heart this year. I may run my MC bag by you my brother.
 
I think so. I have had hybrids in the 3-6 range and play with hyrons the rest of the way at the moment.
 
I'm pretty happy with the setup of my bag at this moment in time.

Apart from changing the irons for AP2's in the near future all I intend to do would be to perhaps change the 60* to a 58*, or just a newer 60*. I know I have a 4H and a 4iron but I find I'm sometimes more comfortable with the iron when I'm playing that from a finely cut fairway over the hybrid.

Not convinced with the 3 wood off the fairway but off the tee it's perfect, I think I just need to put in some more work to resolve this though.
 
excellent point Freddie! I just posted in another thread (The King) asking what, if any, equipment changes were going on and stated that I was going from 3 wedges (53, 56, 59) to 2 wedges (54, 58) to be able to add a hybrid to the top of my bag above my 4i (which I use mainly off the tee anyway).
 
I really believe it is this year. This time last year, I still carried a players 3 iron and the idea of carrying it now is frankly ridiculous. Now I carry a fairway and 2 hybrids, and pick up at 5 iron, and I've switched to 4* gaps in my wedges to give me more versatility around the greens. And I definitely avoid a 60* wedge, I can't hit them for crap! I go up to 58*.
 
This is a great thread idea. I think for the most part mine us, except for one club. I very rarely use my 4i, every other club I use and each has a purpose. I would like to eventually swap out the 4i for a hybrid, I think that would set me up fairly well.
 
Freddy its funny that you bring this up as I have recently changed my whole bag set up and it was for this reason. I have a similar set up to Ernie now and it has really helped. I kill my xhot 4w and 5w and with the new 3h sldr from Taylor made I have eliminated my 4 and 5 irons. I also dropped one wedge and now roll with a 54/58. It came down to me first getting better and now seeing that course management and this, having the right clubs make a huge difference.
 
I started making set up changes to my bag 4 years ago by adding hybrids and removing low irons. At one time in that process my lowest iron was a 6 iron, with the next clubs in progression being a 4 hybrid, 3 hybrid, 5 wood, 3 wood, driver.

When I switched to new irons this past year I put the 5 iron back in the bag because I hit it so much better than the 5 iron from my previous set. I've also dropped one hybrid and added a 58° wedge. My wedges go 50°, 54°, 58°.
 
I had a reality check and put my ego aside around 18-24 months ago. I looked at my previous rounds and realized I am not managing the course properly. I'm letting my ego dictate shots I have no business taking & I changed that. Up until this point I had not had any lessons & distance off the tee was giving me second shot distances that I was not going to put the ball on the green in two. So I decided I needed to concentrate on course management & pay closer attention to my 120yd and in game. By doing this I completely changed my bag to allow me to carry an extra wedge. Now I have a 3W & 3 hybrid at the top, I go 5-GW, then 52*, 56* & 60* in my wedges. I have been dialing in the distances with each wedge and feel comfortable at certain distances with each. I will say the 60* is primarily used out of greenside bunkers or short chips around the green when lying in the rough.

I've been happy with this set up and has served me well. Checking my ego has minimized the 'blow up' holes as I am not putting myself in those positions taking unnecessary risks.
 
I really like the make-up at the bottom of my bag, where I like a set matching AW (instead of a 50 deg wedge) then 54 and 58 deg loft wedges. The top of my bag is where I want to focus more. I currently use a Dr/3W/3H/4H/5i and feel like I have a bigger gap between 3W/3H than I would like and too small of a gap between 3H and 4H. I want to explore the setup of Dr/3W/5W/4H/5i instead. Additionally, I want to try 3W vs 4W and see if more loft would help me get better distance or at least control out of that slot which would rearrange everything up top.

I am reluctant to go with a 5H over a 5i because when I need a low punchy shot, I have trouble pulling that off with a hybrid.
 
Great idea Freddie. And I do believe my bag for 2014 will be much improved.

I dropped a wedge and added a wood to help close the gaps at the top of the bag. I feel it's much easier to control distance with my wedges than it is with my woods.

When I am a long ways out I want a full swing every time. Trying to take something off of a wood is not an east task for me. I can easily lay up to a number on a par 5 or par 4 but when those times come when I hit a bad tee shot, I want to make sure I have a club that will give me the most success.
 
I believe mine is. I carry Driver, 2 woods, rescue, 5-AW, 54, and 58. I had a hard time hitting my RAC 3 iron and I'm hitting the rescue better than the RocketBlade 4 iron.
 
I would say, no it isn't. I've been playing the same set of irons for 10 years, and have tried to change, but was unsuccessful the time I tried. They are currently a player's cavity back that is more blade than anything else. I need to go with something that helps. I've never been good with a wood consistently off the tee, whether it be driver, 3 wood, 5 wood, what have you. I carry a hybrid that I like and won't be changing that out. Been thinking about just putting the driver away for a bit, changing my 14 year old 3 wood for a 4 wood, and then going with a 4-pw set up. I like my wedge set up, but that may have to adjust after new irons, since all the newer irons have jacked up lofts, that may leave too large a gap between my 52 and my PW.

I'm still working on the changes I made in my lessons last year, so, I don't think I'll be making any changes to my bag until those are more set. I've never been fit, so if I do make any changes this year, I really want to get a fitting, however, I won't be able to afford brand new models, and will be looking at models from last year and maybe years prior, which means that I probably won't be able to make a special order for a fitting anyway.
 
It's a really good question, Tadashi. I used to focus on the long end of the bag, because "distance was king". Breaking 90 on an easy course was just short of a miracle. Once I decided to get involved in competitions, I went the other way... I wanted good full shot options in the short end of the bag, and now only carry driver, 3 wood, and a 20 hybrid on the long end.
 
Mine is set for success. I carry only one hybrid, a 19* Titleist 503h and only one fairway wood, but I don't have many long shots out of fairway. Most par 5's I'm hitting 3 wood off the tee and laying up with a mid iron since I can make more birdies from 90 yards than I do from 20-40 yards. Since most of the courses/tees I play are in the 6400-6900 range, I don't need to worry about hitting many shots longer than 180 yards(6 iron). I need 4 wedges because most of my approach shots and par 3 shots are 9 iron or less. When I'm going to play a course over 7000 yards I put a 5 wood and another hybrid in my bag and pull my 4 iron and gap wedge. I have a lot of hybrids in my garage but still prefer a 4 iron from 205 yards over any of my hybrids. If I had to play the 7200-7600 yard courses that the pros do all the time I'm sure I would carry 2 or 3 fairway woods and a couple hybrids.
 
I like to think my bag is set up for success. The longest iron I have is a 4 iron, and that's a gap filling club for me that I don't hit very often. I carry 4 wedges, and have thought about dropping the 4 iron for another wedge or additional hybrid, that's still up in the air for me. I don't go with what everyone else is doing, there scores don't go on my card. So I'm just trying to fill out my bag so there is no gaps in my set, or it's set up for the course I'm playing.
 
I like to think that my bag will be set up for success. My setup once I get my wedges and my utility or second hybo built will be: Driver, strong 3w (14.5*), 16* hybo, either a 20* Hybo or 712U 3-iron, 4-pw, 53*, 58* wedges. I feel like this give me the most options off the tee, and then allows me to be fairly flexible around the greens.
 
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