
What Do the Numbers on Golf Clubs Mean?
- Numbers. The numbers stamped or marked on the heads of golf clubs relate to the club's loft. ...
- Location. In most cases, the number displayed on a fairway wood or iron is always in the same place. ...
- Club Covers. Most golfers use clubhead covers to protect their driver and fairway woods from damage sustained in their golf bag.
- Exceptions. ...
What do the numbers on golf clubs mean?
Now that you are more familiar with the types of golf clubs, what about the golf club numbers? Golf club numbers refer to the loft, which is the angle of the golf club face. When you adjust the loft, you are changing the height and distance the golf ball will travel when struck.
What are the Golf Club distances by number and type?
What Are The Golf Club Distances by Number and Type? 1 2 Iron – The golf ball will travel far, not as high 2 9 Iron – The golf ball will travel very high, but not very far 3 3 Wood – The golf ball will travel farther 4 5 Wood – The golf ball will travel higher
Where do you find the serial number on a golf club?
On fairway woods, this number is often on the bottom of the club so that it's visible when the club is in your bag. Numbers stamped on irons are usually found on the bottom of the club for the same reason, but some manufacturers display this information on the rear of the club.
What is an iron in golf?
Iron – Golf irons are used after teeing off and can be recognized by the extreme angle club heads. Every golfer has more irons than any other golf club in their bag!

Do higher number irons go further?
Golf clubs are designed to hit the golf ball different distances when struck correctly. Woods will drive the ball further than irons and the low numbered irons will hit a golf ball further than the high ones.
Does a 5 or 9-iron go further?
A 5-iron will go further, and you can be on the green in three if you are lucky, but a 7-iron will go at least 120-130 yards, getting you easily on the green in four. Your 9-iron, for beginners, is for shots from around 50-60 yards, Otherwise, stick with a gentle 7-iron shot.
What does +1 on golf clubs mean?
However, not long ago, your driver, which could be anywhere from 8-12-degrees, would have been labelled #1, marking the start of the 'scale' on where your other woods will slot in. Following on from this, we know that any other woods you have in your bag will have a higher number, which means more loft.
What does +1 irons mean?
If the lie angles of your clubs are 1 degree greater than the manufacturer's standard, your clubs are 1 degree flat. If your lie angles are lower by 1 degree, the clubs are 1 degree upright.
How far should a 70 year old hit a 7 iron?
How Far Should a 70-Year-Old Man Hit A Seven Iron? A 70-year-old man should be able to hit a seven iron roughly 135 yards. The 135-yards shot will vary depending on the use of steel or graphite golf equipment.
Can I use a 9 iron as a pitching wedge?
9 iron example For this approach shot you would normally hit a full pitching wedge, but in these conditions you will need a lower trajectory and more distance. The 9 iron is the better choice here as it will guarantee enough distance without creating spin which will call the golf ball to balloon and come up short.
What does P mean on a golf club?
Instead that have letters such as P or PW for pitching wedge and S for sand wedge. The sand wedge, gap wedge and lob wedge might also be identified by the degrees of loft.
What is a 7 iron used for?
The irons from 5 to 7 are typically called the "mid irons", and are generally used from the fairway and rough for longer approach shots, between 130-210 yards depending on the club, player and course. They are also used on hillier fairways to avoid hitting a low rise, which is a risk with long irons.
What does W mean on a golf club?
The term "pitching wedge" is now used by virtually all manufacturers and players to describe this club; Karsten Manufacturing (maker of the PING brand) simply labels their pitching wedges "W" for "wedge".
What is an 11 iron golf club?
The 8 through 11 irons (in Honma's nomenclature, the 10-iron is a pitching wedge and the 11-iron is a gap wedge) are designed for optimum spin to control the ball when it lands on the green by increasing contact time with the grooves while maintaining forgiveness, Suzuki says.
Do any pros use a 1 iron?
One of the most famous shots in golf is Ben Hogan's 1-iron approach to the final green during the 1950 U.S. Open at Merion. Hogan made par and later clinched the championship in a Monday playoff. Costantino Rocca used a 1-iron to defeat Tiger Woods in a singles match during the 1997 Ryder Cup at Valderrama.
What is a 6 iron used for?
The golf club also proves its mettle on the fairway when you're playing closer to the green. It's best to use a 6 iron if you want to hit the ball over a tree or prefer a soft landing on the green so that the ball hits the ground without rolling further too much.
What are the numbers on golf clubs?
Numbers. The numbers stamped or marked on the heads of golf clubs relate to the club's loft. Fairway woods and irons are the clubs that are always stamped, although specialty clubs also carry some form of identification. A 4-iron, for example, has less loft than a 9-iron.
Why are golf clubs stamped with a number?
Clubs are labeled clearly for identification. Most golf clubs are stamped with a number as a means of identification. Although experienced golfers are often able to differentiate between their clubs simply by viewing their size, shape and loft of their clubface, the number helps make this distinction certain.
Why do golfers use clubhead covers?
Most golfers use clubhead covers to protect their driver and fairway woods from damage sustained in their golf bag. These covers are always marked with corresponding numbers so that even when a clubhead is covered, you can still identify the club with ease.
What does 9.5 mean on a golf club?
A driver, however, usually has a number such as 9.5 or 10.5 to indicate the loft of the club. Drivers are available in a variety of lofts. Wedges typically don't have numbers. Instead that have letters such as P or PW ...
Where is the number on a fairway wood?
In most cases, the number displayed on a fairway wood or iron is always in the same place. On fairway woods, this number is often on the bottom of the club so that it's visible when the club is in your bag. Numbers stamped on irons are usually found on the bottom of the club for the same reason, but some manufacturers display this information on ...
Do sand wedges have numbers?
Wedges typically don' t have numbers. Instead that have letters such as P or PW for pitching wedge and S for sand wedge. The sand wedge, gap wedge and lob wedge might also be identified by the degrees of loft. The sand wedge, for example, might say "56" for 56 degrees of loft, rather and "S." Putters also are not marked with a number because ...
Why do golf clubs have numbers on them?
Golf clubs have numbers on them, in large part, because of tradition. Every golf club is different. Some are long, while some are shorter. Some have more loft than others, while some have less.
What do the numbers on golf clubs mean?
The numbers on golf clubs are meant to give the golfer a simple way of understanding the difference in how far each golf club is meant to hit the ball. The higher the number on a golf club, the less distance it will hit the ball relative to other golf clubs.
What number is on the driver?
The driver is a unique club. We almost always refer to hit by that name -- driver -- instead of with a number, like pretty much every other club in the bag except perhaps for a wedge. However, the driver has a number on it. It's the 1-wood.
Why are golf clubs called irons?
The golf clubs called irons are so-called because their clubheads are made of metal. Of course, "woods" are now also made of metal, but that's a relatively recent development. Irons have featured metal clubheads (steel, these days) for centuries. The clubheads of irons are thin from front to back, and the clubfaces are grooved to impart spin on ...
How many clubs are in a set of irons?
A typical, off-the-shelf set of irons will include a 3-iron through pitching wedge (advertised as "3-PW"), 8 clubs total. The clubs are identified by a number (3, 4, 5, etc.) on the sole of each club, except for the pitching wedge which will have a "PW" or "P." Other irons may be available for purchase separately, including a 2-iron and additional wedges ( gap wedge, sand wedge, lob wedge). None of the additional clubs are necessary for beginners, and especially not the 2-iron. 1-irons used to be available, too, but are now virtually extinct.
Why are irons called irons?
The golf clubs called irons are so-called because their clubheads are made of metal.
What is the difference between a blade and a muscleback iron?
The difference is that a blade-style features a full back on the rear ...
How many yards is a 3-iron?
The yardage gap between irons is generally 10-15 yards. Your 3-iron, in other words, should produce shots that are 10-15 yards longer than your 4-iron. The specifics of this gap depend on the player, but the gap should be consistent from club to club.
What are the different types of irons?
Irons are generally categorized as long irons, mid-irons , and short irons. Long irons are the 2-, 3- ,and 4-irons; mid-irons, the 5-, 6-, and 7-irons; short irons, the 8- and 9-irons and pitching wedge. (Two-irons are becoming obsolete and are exceedingly rare for recreational golfers. Because of this, some sources now count the 5-iron as one ...
What does it mean to hit the ball high on the green?
If you need to hit the ball high—to get over a tree, for example, or to make the ball land "soft" on the green (meaning hit the ground without much roll )—you would choose one of the higher-lofted clubs.
PXG 0311 IRONS AND WEDGES
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PXG 0211 DRIVER, FAIRWAYS, HYBRIDS, IRONS
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BATTLE READY PUTTERS
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Beginner Guides
If you are new to golf and are a little bit confused about what all the numbers and letters on your golf clubs mean, that's understandable. Depending on the clubs you have, you could have two or even three #5s, others with a single-digit number, some with a double-digit number, some with numbers in various places, and even some with letters!
Know what you're looking at
Before we talk about the numbering system used in golf, you will need to understand what you're looking at. Knowing which type of golf club you have in your hand will go some way to explaining the numbering (and explain why you might have some clubs with the same number).
How numbers translate
Again, breaking it down to its simplest form, the numbers on your golf clubs relate to how far they hit the ball - the lower the number, the further the ball should travel. A club with a #4 on it will hit the ball further than one with a #9 on it.
Numbers on woods
Modern woods (even though they're not made out of wood anymore!) are more likely to have the loft stamped on them rather than a simple number. However, not long ago, your driver, which could be anywhere from 8-12-degrees, would have been labelled #1, marking the start of the 'scale' on where your other woods will slot in.
Numbers on irons
In the same way as woods, numbers on your irons will directly translate to the loft on the club.
A little more on wedges
As you get better and add more clubs to your bag instead of a traditional number or letter, it could be the case that any new wedges have the loft stamped on them - anywhere from 46- 64. This number will represent the club's loft, and as you know, the more loft, the shorter distance the ball will fly.
Where do hybrids fit in?
We mentioned above how long irons are no longer viable golfing equipment and have been replaced by hybrids that can bridge the gap left by not carrying long irons.
What does the number on a golf club mean?
Golf club numbers refer to the loft , which is the angle of the golf clubface. Adjust the loft and you change the height or distance the golf ball will travel when struck. The lower the golf club number, the lower the loft, the less intense the angle on the golf club face; this means the golf ball will travel more distance at a lower height.
What does 9.5 mean on a golf club?
A driver, however, usually has a number such as 9.5 or 10.5 to indicate the loft of the club. Drivers are available in a variety of lofts. Wedges typically don’t have numbers. Instead that have letters such as P or PW ...
Why do golfers use clubhead covers?
Most golfers use clubhead covers to protect their driver and fairway woods from damage sustained in their golf bag. These covers are always marked with corresponding numbers so that even when a clubhead is covered, you can still identify the club with ease.
What are the best golf clubs for beginners?
As a guide for first-time golfers, a standard beginner golf club set would look like this: 1 Woods – 3 & 5 2 Irons – 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and a pitching wedge 3 Putter – only 1 needed
What are the three types of golf clubs?
The three golf club types are wood, iron, and putter. Wood – These are the long-range clubs used at the beginning of every hole when you tee off.
What does higher loft mean in golf?
The higher the golf club number, the higher the loft, the more intense the angle on the golf club face; these means the golf ball will travel higher but for a shorter distance. If that all sounds like more science and physics than you wanted to learn today, we understand.
What club is used at the beginning of every hole?
Wood – These are the long-range clubs used at the beginning of every hole when you tee off. For longer courses, they are also used in the second swing. Woods have large, circular club heads with a flat front where the golf ball is struck.

Set Composition
Loft, Length, and Distance
- As you go through the set, from the 3-iron to the pitching wedge, each iron has a little more loft than the previous, and a little shorter shaft length than the previous, so each club (going from 3-iron to PW) hits the golf ball a little less distance than the previous. That is, a 5-iron has more loft, a shorter shaft, and produces shorter shots than the 4-iron; the 4-iron has more loft, a shorter sh…
Long, Mid-, and Short Irons
- Irons are generally categorized as long irons, mid-irons , and short irons. Long irons are the 2-, 3- ,and 4-irons; mid-irons, the 5-, 6-, and 7-irons; short irons, the 8- and 9-irons and pitching wedge. (Two-irons are becoming obsolete and are exceedingly rare for recreational golfers. Because of this, some sources now count the 5-iron as one of t...
Distances
- Learning your distances—how far you hit each club—is much more important than trying to hit each club to some predetermined "correct" yardage. There is no "right" distance for each club, there is only your distance. That said, a typical male recreational golfer might hit a 4-, 5-, or 6- iron from 150 yards, while a typical female might use a 3-wood, 5-wood, or 3-iron from that distance. …
Hitting
- Irons can be played from the teeing ground, using a golf tee, and it is often appropriate to do so. On a par-3 hole, for example, you will probably use an iron on your tee shot. Or you might use an iron off any (or even every) tee in order to have better control over the shot. But most of your iron shots will come from the fairway. Irons are designed with divots in mind. That's why they have a …