Equipment

Today from the Forums: “Using only one club for all short game work?”

Published

6 years ago

Mar 10, 2020

Today from the Forums we take a look at an interesting discussion created by WRXer, Hit Em Good, who has asked fellow members whether or not playing all short game shots with one club is a wise approach. Per Hit Em Good:

“A few years ago, I only used a 56° for all short game shots, and my short game was the best it ever was. It wasn’t perfect, but it allowed me to get so familiar with the one club, that I could rely on it with confidence.

What do you think about this approach? Does anyone else use only one club for all short game work?”

Our members have their say on the matter.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

pldbryan: “This can be a great idea if you put in some practice. By far the best part of my game is chipping and pitching. I decided about 5 years ago I would primarily use one club around the green unless there was an unusual circumstance that made me use a higher lofted club or a lower lofted. I use a 56 any time I am within about 50 yards, and I feel pretty confident that I can almost always get up and down.m or have a good shot at doing so. I can flop it better with my 56; I can stop it better, I can get it to run out. My only problem is that it is an older 56, and I can not find any new wedge that seems to have the same grind. I would love to find a new version of the club, but I can’t seem to find something that sits the same, opens up etc.”
piler45: “90 yards and in – 56-degree sand wedge ONLY. I can close it or open it up to make it 46 or 66 degrees. No second-guessing and I can practice with one club only – why make a difficult game more difficult. I went to a short game presentation by Rocco Mediate, and this was his advice. I listened to him, and I’ve gone from the worst chipper in the world to an average one.”
Nard_S: “I use a 56* for 95% of shots inside 90 yards. Full & partial shots, chips and pitches. Utilize 2 types for each one. If I’m feeling it incorporate the flop shot. The big advantage is it simplifies distance control; I’ll know my landing spots and how the ball will kick.”
PuffyC: “I used to struggle around the greens but then went to just using a 50 degree Vokey for pretty much everything except sand, although I’ve been known to use it out of bunkers on occasion too. It’s probably my favorite, most confidence-inspiring club in my bag for the reason you stated. When I can find time to practice I‘d rather spend an hour focusing on different shots with one club than 20 minutes with 3 that are all different.”
JoeFrigo: “I made this switch last year, and it was the best decision that’s ever helped my short game. Very very rarely do I need my 60*. I maybe use the 60* once a round. Any opportunity to use my 56 I will and its made a huge difference Among us amateurs, the less I need to worry about special shots/clubs, the easier it is.”

Entire Thread: “Using only one club for all short game work?”

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Gianni Magliocco

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3 Comments

stephen hall

Mar 11, 2020 at 10:46 am

WOW! THE ARTICLE SAID TO CHOOSE ONE CLUB.

Reply Report comment
Rich Douglas

Mar 10, 2020 at 6:16 pm

For pitching with wedges, I use Dave Pelz’s 4×4 system. I have 4 wedges, each with 3 swing lengths (1/2, 3/4, and full). This gives me 12 different yardages to choose from. This covers almost everything I face inside 135 yards. If I’m in-between, I like to take the next yardage up and open the blade.

For chips, I use a ratio system. I determine where I need to land the ball, then take the distance in the air and the distance rolling on the ground. The ratio then tells me what club to select. For example, if I have a 16-yard chip with 4 yards of carry, that’s 3:1 (3 yards of roll for every yard of carry). Pitching wedge. If I’ve got a long chip relatively close to the green, say 25 yards, I might take an 8-iron (5:1), carry it 4 yards in the air and watch it roll 20, which puts me near the hole. (It isn’t an exact science, but it is a managed approach.) I have to account for the speed of the greens and the slope, adjusting my ratios accordingly.

In both chipping and pitching, these methods allow me to be focused on a target and be confident that a good strike will result in a good shot, which takes away deadly doubts during the swing.

There is no reason to limit yourself to one club unless you just want to guess and not think. This describes more than 90% of the golfers I meet. So for them, getting comfortable with one club might be a better idea.

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Karsten's Ghost

Mar 10, 2020 at 6:04 pm

I could not disagree more.

Quarter-swings:
30-40 is a 58*
40-50 is a 54*
50-60 is a 50*
Anything inside 30:
50 for a runner
54 for a two-hop and roll
58 for a hop-and-stop
9iron toe-down for bare lies

Sound complex? It’s not. Quarter swing for 30+, small pop for less, putting stroke on the 9-iron.

It’s not about how straight you hit it; most shots will be fairly online. The critical factor is stopping it close. If you don’t have your yardages dialled in with a single club, which takes a boatload of practice/feel, you better have a system. This system requires a laser, and two repeatable partial swings.

One club requires practicing endlessly, executing different types of shots, some not best suited.

To each their own, I guess.

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Equipment

Slab city on the Korn Ferry Tour — Lead Tape Report

Published

5 hours ago

Jun 10, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This week, we have our Tour Photographer, Greg Moore, on the ground at the OccuNet Classic at Tascosa Golf Club in Amarillo, Texas, for the 14th event of the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour season. With that, we see some great things in the Lead Tape Report as we roll into Amarillo.

Joel Thelen

Monday Qualifier, Joel Thelen is in the field this week. He has played on the Korn Ferry Tour for a full season in 2023, and he is back in action this week. A couple of clubs caught my eye this week in his bag.

First off: His trusted Titleist 816 H2 hybrid. This club came out in October of 2015, and it still remains strong in the bag. Also, take a look at this Odyssey White Hot OG 7, putting a capital S in the 7S model. This custom neck has some impressive lean for an arm-lock-style putter. The bottom of the putter is covered in tape for optimal weighting.

Mitchell Meissner

Taking a look at Mitchell Meissner’s bag this week, we have some great lead tape coverage. Top to bottom working from fairway metals, irons, and wedges. We can see on the short irons and wedges that there is tape at the base of the grip, adding a little counterbalance. Along with that, some tape on the short irons and wedges as well. Moving to his putter, he rolls the Odyssey 7 Bird putter. Meissner putts left-handed and strikes the ball right-handed.

Whats in the Bag

Bud Cauley WITB 2026 (June)

Published

5 hours ago

Jun 10, 2026

Will Schube

Bud Cauley had >14 clubs in his bag when photographed prior to the Memorial Tournament.

Driver: Titleist GTS2 (8 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X

3-wood: Titleist GTS3 (15 degrees, B1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei 1K Pro Red 70 TX

7-wood: Titleist GTS3 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei 1K Pro Red 80 TX

Irons: Titleist U505 (3), Titleist 620 MB (4-9)
Shafts: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 8 X, True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F), WedgeWorks (60-K*)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putters: Scotty Cameron Tour Prototype, Scotty Cameron GOLO 6.3 Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align

Ball: Titleist Pro V1

See more in-hand photos of Bud Cauley’s clubs here.

Equipment

Name every set of irons you’ve owned – GolfWRXers discuss

Published

5 hours ago

Jun 10, 2026

Will Schube

In our forums, one user has offered up a prompt for the true sickos, inviting fellow forum members to share every set of irons they’ve ever owned. As to be expected, this is a lengthy forum topic.

@Lamosteve began:

Can you name every set of irons you’ve owned? Here’s mine

Spalding Dots
Spalding Eclipse
Ram Lazer FX
Lynx Parallax
Mizuno EZ Comp
Ben Hogans
Cleveland CG Red
Taylor Made R9s
PING i20
PING iE1
Taylor Made M6

Our members in the forum have been offering up their own collections. Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

macedan: “Started with a hand-me-down Golden Bear set from my brother when I was in high school, never really played more than once a year or got into the game until about summer of 2017. First purchased a set of Cleveland CG4’s (I actually really miss this set sometimes, soft & not terribly large for a GI iron), moved into Nike Vapor Fly’s by the end of the year. Those lasted until spring of 18 when I decided I wanted new, so I traded them in for TM Rbladez. Honestly, although I liked the Rbladez, poor decision on my part, I think this was really about the only time so far that after a week or two I was kicking myself for not staying with what I had. Rbladez stayed with me until late last summer when I switched to P790’s and (knock on wood) I am hoping this will be my longest lasting set.”
JimmyC59: “MacGregor Jack Nicklaus Triple Crown. Palmer The Standard. Still play these.”
jgrzask: “Tommy Armour 845u
Mizuno MP-32
Mizuno MP-33 (2 sets)
Bridgestone J33cb – still own
Srixon i-302 (2 sets) – still own
Tourstage X-Blades – still own
Mizuno Hot Metal – still own
Nike Forged Blades – still own
Titleist 714 AP1 – still own
Cobra Forged SS – still own”

Entire Thread: “Name every set of irons you’ve owned.”