Equipment

How and why to add lead tape to golf clubs

Published

5 years ago

Dec 12, 2020

Many tour pros apply lead tape to their clubs to alter the weight of the club, how it feels, affect the ball’s trajectory, and to help cure a swing defect.

Despite the increase of weight adjustability features in modern drivers, lead tape’s enduring prominence in today’s game is necessary to note. Here we’ll take a look at the ins and outs of the sticky stuff and how, why and where to add lead tape to your driver, irons, wedges and even putter.

Where to apply lead tape to help your golf game

Lead tape can be applied in a multitude of ways to a golf club, and its function is to increase the swing weight of the club, as a 1-inch strip of lead tape typically weighs about 1 gram. So not only can it help fix a common miss or change shot shape, the added weight can, in theory, help you hit the ball further and straighter.

Driver

Applying lead tape to your driver can help you fix your big miss

Applying lead tape to the big stick in the bag can alter a multitude of different factors. Let’s take a look at where to use an inch of lead tape depending on what your desired goals are/what your primary struggle is with the club.

Reduce a hook or to promote a fade

Add tape to the driver’s toe either outside the driver or beneath the toe, as the tape will slow down the clubhead’s rotation by restricting the release of the toe resulting in the clubface staying open longer.

To stop slicing the ball or promote a draw

Place a strip of tape on the heel portion of the driver, typically on the bottom of the clubhead. In doing so, the heel will be weighed down by the added weight from the lead tape, allowing the toe to release more.

Higher trajectory and more forgiveness

If you’re struggling with a low ball flight and a lack of forgiveness on your drives, you can apply lead tape to the rear portion of the sole away from the face. This will pull CG (center of gravity) more rearward, resulting in a driver offering higher spin and launch.

Lower ball flight and spin

If you want a more penetrating ball flight off the tee, then apply lead tape on the front portion of the sole near the face. Doing so will reposition the CG low and forward, reducing spin rates while giving you a lower ball flight.

Increase Swing speed

Placing led tape on the shaft of the club underneath the grip is a practice which Jack Nicklaus and Sergio Garcia have implemented throughout their careers. The method, known as counter-balancing, is said to make the club feel lighter and is designed to help a golfer gain extra swing speed. This has mostly gone out of fashion in favor of counter-balanced shafts and butt weighting, but it’s still on the menu.

Depending on how big your miss is, use one strip to begin and adjust from there depending on results.

Irons

C/o: @thejdog1. Applying lead tape to irons can help ball striking and shot shaping

The same general rules will apply when using lead tape with your irons.

Blades

Most pros will apply lead tape directly behind the middle portion of the iron with the added weight designed to help with accuracy. However, based on shot shape, using tape on either the heel or toe is certainly not uncommon.

Cavity Backs

If using cavity back irons, then place the lead tape directly into the cavity in the center of the club. Adjust to heel or toe depending on shot shape desire.

Wedges

Phil Mickelson is a lover of lead tape and it often features on his clubs

Since you don’t shape your wedge shots, lead tape is applied directly behind the center of the wedge. In doing so, the heavier swing weight can benefit ball flight and ball striking. Some pros believe placing lead tape lower on the club will help increase launch as well.

Putter

Tiger Woods using lead tape on his GSS Scotty Cameron at the 2019 Open Championship

Yes, you can even apply lead tape to your putter, and it’s something 15-time major champion Tiger Woods has done in the past.

Sole of Putter: Placing lead tape on the sole of the putter will help square the putter at impact assisting those who struggle with opening or shutting the putter face.
Behind center of clubhead: Tiger often places lead tape in this position when competing on slower greens, with the added weight helping him hit putts hard enough.
Shaft: Players will sometimes add tape to the shaft to improve the overall tempo of the stroke.

How to apply the tape

The most important factor in applying lead tape to the club is ensuring the area is clean. Lightly sanding down the area with sandpaper can be beneficial also, to make sure the area is flat. After applying the tape to the desired spot, flatten it out with a golf ball.

Lead tape remains a popular accessory on the PGA Tour

Is lead tape safe?

Yes, but avoid storing the stuff in your golf bag and use gloves when possible. Always store the tape in a safe and dry location.

Is lead tape legal?

Yes, but it must be placed on the club before the start of a round. The USGA states in Rule 14-3 that “Lead tape may be applied to the head or shaft of the club for the purpose of adding weight (see Decisions 4-1/4 and 4-2/0.5)”

Hopefully, now you have a better understanding of the benefits of lead tape, and how you can apply it to help your game.

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A post shared by Lead Tape Chronicles (@leadtapechronicles)

A final word from our friends at @leadtapechronicles about the sticky silver stuff.

“Lead tape on each club serves a purpose. Not every club has the same weight in the set so it is a great way to get a matched feel throughout your set, or help a certain club accomplish a certain tendency with ball flight.”

Whats in the Bag

Christiaan Maas WITB 2026 (June)

Published

1 hour ago

Jun 11, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D LS (8 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 6 X

3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9 TX

Irons: TaylorMade P770 (3), TaylorMade P7CB (4), TaylorMade P7TW (5-PW)
Shafts: Fujikura Ventus Black HB 10 X, True Temper Dynamic Gold X100

Wedges: TaylorMade Prototype (50-SB09), TaylorMade MG5 (56-HB12, 60-LV07)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold S400

Putter: TaylorMade TP Juno

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord

Check out more in-hand photos of Christiaan Maas’ clubs here.

Equipment

TaylorMade MySpider Tour and Tour X: More customizable build options now available

Published

2 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

TaylorMade Golf’s MySpider program underwent a substantial overhaul over the last month. Firstly, the company launched the option to customize the Spider ZT model, and now the program has returned with the MySpider Tour and MySpider Tour X.

The revamped page now gives golfers complete control over every visual and functional detail of their putter on the popular Tour and Tour X head, with every cosmetic idea thought of. In MySpider Tour, golfers can choose from four head finishes, 16 paint fill colors, nine Surlyn face insert colors, three aluminum insert options, six sightline configurations, and four hosel options — L-neck, small slant, double bend, center shaft. Six sightline options are available in MySpider Tour, including the optically engineered True Path alignment system. MySpider Tour X gives builders the option of four head finishes, four hosel configurations, and five sightline options, also including True Path alignment.

One of the more interesting features of the new MySpider program is the availability of three distinct face insert options. Along with the usual Surlyn Pure Roll insert trusted by Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, which can be customized from nine colors, golfers can now also select firmer options. Two are offered with the black aluminum Pure Roll insert, slightly firmer than the traditional insert, or for the firmest feel, golfers can choose from two colors of milled aluminum inserts.

Another fun addition to the MySpider Tour is the ability to use the “Tommy Sightline.” The custom alignment aid design, which was first drawn onto Tommy Fleetwood’s putter by PGA Tour Rep James Holley, is based on the milled sightline on his Spider ZT head. There are five shorter lines on the left and right of a longer central line serving as the traditional short line alignment aid.

See below for the full specifications sheet for MySpider Tour and Tour X:

MySpider Tour

MySpider Tour X

Equipment

Then and now: Comparing Rory McIlroy’s current setup to his record-breaking 2019 Canadian Open victory

Published

4 hours ago

Jun 11, 2026

Alistair Cameron

In Rory McIlroy’s first appearance at the 2019 RBC Canadian Open, he crushed the record books to earn his 16th PGA Tour title in dominating fashion, winning by seven shots over Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson.

McIlroy’s score of 22-under-par 258 is the lowest 72-hole score to date at the Canadian Open, and his closing 61 is also the best final-round score in the history of one of golf’s oldest tournaments. Finally, with his win in 2019, McIlroy became only the sixth player to win the career Triple Crown, adding to his victories at the U.S. Open in 2011 and The Open Championship in 2014, joining Tommy Armour, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tiger Woods in a coveted list.

So, with that, why not compare his current setup to the clubs he used to break all the records?

Driver

2019: TaylorMade M5 (9 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D (9 degrees @8), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7X (45 5/8 inches)

McIroy led the Tour in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee in 2019; he’s doing the same in 2026. Between now and then, McIlroy has switched from the Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX (a shaft with slightly more feeling in the tip) to the original Fujikura Ventus Black 7X, having just made the change to the heavier version from playing the 60X.

What’s interesting about McIlroy’s 2019 setup is that the weighting on his driver is actually set in the high-draw setting, using the T-Track weighting system, whereas in the Qi4D, he’s currently using a heavily rear-weighted setup. (Two 13-gram weights in the rear and only two 4-gram front weights.)

The TaylorMade M5 driver he played in during his Canadian Open win was the company’s first head that they claimed to design to initially exceed the USGA’s COR limit, and then injected with tuning resin to bring it back in bounds.

Fairway woods

2019: TaylorMade M6 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 80 TX; TaylorMade M5 5-wood (19 degrees), Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 90 TX
2026: TaylorMade Qi4D 3-wood (15 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8X; TaylorMade Qi4D 5-wood (18 degrees), Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 9X

The TaylorMade M6 fairway wood that McIlroy was using during the 2019 season is still in the bag of some of the best golfers on Tour in 2026. Just check out Justin Rose’s winning setup from the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. This year, though, McIlroy has still been searching for his top-end-of-the-bag setup, having played both the new Qi4D and the Qi10, which he won the Masters with.

The same shaft swap can be seen in the fairway woods as the driver, along with slightly less loft on the 5-wood.

Irons

2019: TaylorMade P750 (4) Buy here, TaylorMade P730 (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0
2026: TaylorMade P760 (4), TaylorMade Rors Proto (5-9), Shafts: Project X 7.0

The biggest difference between McIlroy’s custom set and the stock P730s is the groove design. While the P730s were constructed with 14 MX-9 grooves on their milled faces, McIlroy’s proto heads instead use the higher-spinning, 16-groove layout of the TW2 grooves. Other big differences between the sets are that McIlroy’s 7- and 8-irons have thinner toplines, are 1 degree stronger in loft, and are 1/4 inch longer than the original P730 builds.

With McIlroy’s 4-iron, the switch from P750 to P760 sees a transition to a two-piece construction with Speed Foam in it, which allows McIlroy to launch the ball slightly higher, with more workability.

Wedges

2019: TaylorMade Milled Grind (48-09SB), TaylorMade MG Hi-Toe (52-09SB, 56-09SB, 60-LB09), Shafts: Project X Rifle 6.5
2026: TaylorMade MG5 (46-09SB, 50-09SB, 54-11SB, 60-08LB @61), Shafts: Project X 6.5 (46-54), Project X 6.5 Wedge (60)

Between 2019 and 2026, McIlroy’s focus on his short game has been much more apparent. It was the reason why he switched back to the TP5 golf ball, to help with launch, spin and control with his wedges leading up to his career Grand Slam victory in 2025. The most apparent changes to McIlroy’s wedge setup are his lofts and bounce. He’s slowly delofted his pitching to a sand wedge, but has increased the loft on the lob wedge, bending his current 60-degree to 61. With that, adding more loft to his lob wedge also slightly increases the bounce and leading-edge sit point, so, as a result, he plays a lower-bounce lob wedge compared to 2019. The MG5 wedges are also softer than the first Milled Grind option from 2019. McIlroy also no longer plays the full-face grooves found on the Hi-Toe.

Putter

2019: TaylorMade Spider X
2026: TaylorMade Spider Tour X

Notice anything similar. Yes, the copper finish on Rory McIlroy’s Spider X putter in 2019 is a slightly more reflective finish than the recently released torched PVD finish. McIlroy was using the True Path alignment system, but now uses only a single white sightline.

Ball

2019: 2019 TaylorMade TP5 (#22)
2026: 2025 TaylorMade TP5 (RORS)

As mentioned above, McIlroy had transitioned from the TP5 to TP5x golf ball since his victory in Canada in 2019, but now is black with the same style of golf ball as his victory at Hamilton Golf & Country Club.

Grips

2019: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
2026: Golf Pride MCC

Interesting, McIlroy actually used Golf Pride’s Tour Velvet Cord grips during his victory in 2019 (it was during a 2+ year switch to the corded TV) as opposed to his usual MCC grips, which he has played for most of his career.