What Golf Club to Use for Each Shot

Standing over your ball, debating between a 7-iron and an 8-iron, is one of golf’s classic dilemmas. Choosing the right golf club for your shot doesn't have to be guesswork. This guide will give you a clear framework for selecting the perfect club, helping you commit to every swing with more confidence and play smarter golf.

First, Understand Your Tools: The Main Types of Golf Clubs

Your golf bag holds up to 14 clubs, and each one is a specialized tool designed for a specific job. Before we can choose the right one, we need to know what they are. Golf clubs are generally grouped into five categories based on their design and intended purpose.

Think of it this way: the lower the number on the club, the less loft it has, and the farther it's designed to hit the ball. As the number goes up, the loft increases, which means the ball will fly higher and shorter.

• Drivers and Fairway Woods (1-Wood, 3-Wood, 5-Wood): These are your long-distance clubs. The driver, or 1-wood, has the lowest loft and is generally used from the tee box on par 4s and par 5s to hit the ball as far as possible. Fairway woods have a bit more loft and can be used off the tee or from the fairway.
• Hybrids (3H, 4H, 5H): Hybrids are a modern combination of a fairway wood and an iron. They are far more forgiving than long irons (like a 3, 4, or 5-iron) and help get the ball airborne from trickier lies, like the rough.
• Irons (3-iron through 9-iron): These are your precision tools, primarily used for "approach" shots from the fairway into the green. Each iron is designed to travel a specific, predictable distance. The 3-iron and 4-iron are "long irons," the 5, 6, and 7 are "mid-irons," and the 8 and 9 are "short irons."
• Wedges (PW, GW, SW, LW): Wedges are the highest-lofted clubs in the bag. They're used for short approach shots, chipping and pitching around the green, and getting out of sand bunkers. They create a high, soft-landing shot. Common types include the Pitching Wedge (PW), Gap Wedge (GW), Sand Wedge (SW), and Lob Wedge (LW).
• Putter: The putter is the specialist of the group, used exclusively on the putting green to roll the ball into the hole. It has an almost-flat face designed for rolling, not launching, the ball.

The Core of Club Selection: It's All About Distance

The single most important factor in choosing a club is distance. Your top priority is to select a club that will send the ball to your target, not short and not long. Forget what your friend hits or what the pros on TV hit. The only thing that matters is how far you hit each of your clubs.

Creating Your Own Personal Distance Chart

Finding your personal club distances is the foundation of smart golf. You can’t make good decisions without good information. Here’s a simple, step-by-step process to create your own distance chart:

1. Go to a Driving Range or Simulator: Find a driving range with accurate yardage markers or, even better, book time on a launch monitor simulator which gives you precise "carry distance" data for every shot.
2. Start with Your Wedges: Warm up, then grab your sand wedge. Hit 10-15 balls with a smooth, full swing. The goal isn't to hit a monster shot, it's to hit a consistent shot. Think about making a good, balanced swing powered by the rotation of your body, not just your arms.
3. Find Your Average: After you hit your shots, discard the two shortest and two longest ones (we all have mishits and flukes). Find the average distance of the remaining shots. This is your "stock" yardage for that club.
4. Work Through Your Bag: Repeat this process for every club in your bag, moving from your highest-lofted wedge up through to your fairway woods. Write these numbers down in a notebook or on your phone.

You’ll notice a pretty consistent "gap" in distance between each consecutive iron, usually about 10-15 yards. For example, if your 8-iron goes 130 yards, your 7-iron should go around 140-145 yards, and your 9-iron about 115-120 yards. This is your personal distance profile, and it is a massive step towards playing better golf.

Choosing the Right Club in Specific Situations

Once you have your stock yardages, you can start applying them on the course. Here’s how to think through some of the most common scenarios.

On the Tee Box: Power and Position

The tee shot sets up the rest of the hole. Your choice here isn't always about hitting it as far as possible.

• Par 4s & 5s with Wide Fairways: This is a "green light" situation. The driver is usually the best play to maximize your distance and leave a shorter approach shot.
-

Is the fairway narrow? Is there a water hazard or a bunker in your landing zone? Here a more conservative club might be the "smart" play. A 3-wood or even a hybrid/long iron can put you in a great position on the fairway, taking the big mistake out of play. It's better to be 160 yards out in the middle of the fairway than 120 yards out from behind a tree.
• Par 3s: This is more straightforward. Find the yardage to the flag and select the club from your distance chart that most closely matches. We'll add some finer adjustments for this later.

From the Fairway: The "Approach" Shot

This is where your iron-play skills and distance chart truly shine. Use a GPS watch or rangefinder to get the exact yardage to the hole. If the distance is 142 yards and your 7-iron is your 140-yard club, that’s your likely choice.

A Very Important Tip: The vast majority of amateur golfers miss short of the green. They hit their 7-iron 140 yards one time a few weeks ago and think that’s their number. In reality, their average might be 135 yards. When in doubt, it's almost always better to take one extra club (our example, a 6-iron). A ball that goes a little long past the pin is usually a much better result than one that ends up in a front-side bunker.

Around the Green: Chipping vs. Pitching

When you're close to the green but not on it, you have to decide between two types of shots. Your club selection makes all the difference.

• Chipping (The "low" shot): Use this when you have plenty of green between you and the hole and no obstacles (like a bunker or long grass) in your way. A chip shot flies low and rolls out like a putt. The idea is to fly it just onto the putting surface and let the roll do the work.
  • Clubs to Use: 8-iron, 9-iron, or Pitching Wedge. Setup with the ball in the middle or back of your stance and make a small, putting-like stroke.
• Pitching (The "high" shot): Use this when you need to carry the ball over an obstacle or have to stop it quickly. A pitch shot flies higher and has less roll. Trust the club's loft to do the work of sending the ball up in the air, you don’t need to try and "help" it up.
  • Clubs to Use: Sand Wedge or Lob Wedge. These high-lofted clubs will produce a higher trajectory with a softer landing. Play the ball more in the middle of your stance and make a slightly bigger swing than you would for a chip.

Adjusting for Tricky Lies

The golf course isn't always perfectly flat. You must adjust your club selection for challenging lies.

• From the Rough: Thick grass can grab the hosel (neck) of the club, slowing the clubhead down and closing the face. Your first goal is to get the ball out cleanly and back to the fairway.
  • The Play: Take at least one extra club (e.g., a 7-iron instead of an 8-iron) and make a smooth turn, focusing on solid contact. A hybrid is often fantastic from the rough because its design cuts through the grass more easily than an iron.
• From a Greenside Bunker: The name gives it away. Use your Sand Wedge. Its wide, bounced sole is specifically designed to glide through the sand under the ball, popping the ball out. Don't try to pick the ball clean, hit about two inches behind the ball and let the club and the sand do the work.
• Uphill and Downhill Lies: Lie angle has a massive effect on loft and distance.
  • Uphill Lie: The slope adds effective loft to your club, causing the shot to fly higher and shorter. You need to take more club (a 6-iron instead of a 7-iron, for example).
  • Downhill Lie: The slope actually de-lofts a club, making it fly lower and longer. You need to take less club (an 8-iron instead of a 7-iron).

Don't Forget Wind and Elevation

Your "stock" yardage is a baseline. Now you must make the final adjustments based on conditions.

• Wind: The most common variable.
  • Into the Wind: This will "knock down" the shot and reduce its carry distance. A 10 mph headwind can easily take 10-15 yards off your shot, so club up accordingly.
  • Wind at Your Back: This will help your ball, pushing it farther. You'll likely need to take one less club.
  • Elevation: If the green is significantly higher than you are (uphill), the ball has to travel farther vertically, meaning it won't fly as far horizontally. You'll need more club. The reverse is true for a green that is downhill.
  Final ThoughtsMaking smarter club selections boils down to a two-step process: First, know your real, personal distances for every club in your bag. Second, analyze the specific variables of each shot - the lie, the wind, the elevation - and adjust your base number accordingly. This removes the guesswork and allows you to stand over the ball with a clear plan and the confidence to make a good, committed swing.Making these adjustments on the fly can be a lot to remember, especially when you’re out on the course. To help simplify these decisions in real-time, our coaching uses on-demand tools like Caddie AI. The next time you face a tough decision - like a tricky lie in the rough or calculating a shot into a strong wind - I can talk you through it and give you a specific club or a shot recommendation. You just tell me everything about your situation, from yardage and wind to how the ball's sitting on the turf, you can even snap a photo of a tricky lie. Then I'll give you instant, strategic advice to guide you through it. I want to take the uncertainty off your plate so you can focus on simply hitting the shot confidently.