Guide

Golf club gapping

Gapping is spacing your clubs so each one has its own distance: no hole where no club fits, and no two clubs doing the same job. Start from loft. In the 51 current forgiving iron sets whose makers publish a loft for every club, the irons step a median 4° apart (2° to 6°), and wedges after the set should step 4° to 6°. Then check it with your own distances, because two clubs a few degrees apart can still fly the same.

Gapping by loft

Loft is the main thing that sets how high and how far each club sends the ball, so even loft steps are the first sign of even distances. As a rule of thumb from the makers' own tables and the bag check on this site:

Makers set their lofts for the flight they want, so the same number differs between sets: the golf club loft chart has every set's lofts, from the driver to the lob wedge.

Where each set's steps are uneven

Each current set's steps, from its longest iron to its pitching wedge, as its maker publishes the lofts. 13 of the 51 sets keep every step within 1° of the others; none has a step wide enough to leave a gap. The widest step comes first.

Each iron set's loft steps from the longest iron to the pitching wedge, its widest step, and the step to its next wedge
Iron setSteps, longest iron to pitching wedgeWidest stepPitching wedge to next wedge
PING G Le4 4.5° · 5.5° · 6° · 5.5° 6° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the UW (51.5°)
PXG Wildcat 5° · 5° · 6° 6° 9-iron to W 6° to the S (54°)
PXG Women's Wildcat 5° · 5° · 6° 6° 9-iron to W 6° to the S (54°)
Cobra KING MAX 2.5° · 3° · 3° · 4.5° · 5° · 5.5° 5.5° 9-iron to PW 5.5° to the GW (50°)
Cobra Women's KING MAX 3° · 3° · 4.5° · 5° · 5.5° 5.5° 9-iron to PW 5.5° to the GW (50°)
TaylorMade Qi Max 2.5° · 3° · 4° · 4.5° · 4.5° · 5.5° 5.5° 9-iron to PW 5.5° to the AW (48°)
Callaway Apex Ai200 2° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the AW (48°)
Callaway Apex Ai300 2° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the AW (47°)
Cleveland HALO XL Full-Face 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the GW (48°)
Cobra KING TEC 2° · 2° · 3° · 3.5° · 4.5° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the GW (49°)
Haywood SV.2 3° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 4.5° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the AW (48°)
Mizuno JPX925 Forged 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the GW (48°)
Mizuno JPX925 Hot Metal 3° · 3° · 3° · 4.5° · 4.5° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 6° to the GW (48°)
Mizuno JPX925 Hot Metal HL 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the GW (50°)
Mizuno JPX925 Hot Metal Pro 3° · 3° · 3° · 4.5° · 4.5° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 6° to the GW (48°)
PING G440 3° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the UW (47°)
PING G440 HL 3° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the UW (47°)
PING i540 3° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the UW (47°)
Srixon ZXi4 2° · 2.5° · 3° · 4.5° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 6° to the AW (49°)
Srixon ZXi7 2° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the AW (51°)
Srixon ZXiR 2.5° · 3° · 3.5° · 4.5° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the AW (48°)
Takomo 101 MKII 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the G (48°)
Takomo 101T 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron no wedge after it in the set
Takomo 201 MKII 3° · 3° · 3° · 5° · 5° · 5° 5° 7-iron to 8-iron no wedge after it in the set
Takomo 201T MKII 3° · 4° · 3° · 5° · 4° · 5° 5° 7-iron to 8-iron no wedge after it in the set
Takomo 301 CB 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to P no wedge after it in the set
TaylorMade P790 3° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the AW (49°)
TaylorMade P7CB 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 5° 5° 9-iron to PW 5° to the AW (51°)
Titleist T350 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the W (48°)
Tour Edge Hot Launch C524 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the AW (48°)
Tour Edge Hot Launch Max 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the AW (48°)
Tour Edge Hot Launch Max D Ironwoods 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 5° to the AW (48°)
Wilson DYNAPWR Forged 2.5° · 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 4.5° · 5° 5° 9-iron to P 5° to the G (49°)
XXIO 14 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 6° to the AW (48°)
XXIO 14 Ladies 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 6° to the AW (50°)
XXIO Prime 3° · 3° · 4° · 5° · 5° 5° 8-iron to 9-iron 6° to the AW (48°)
Srixon Women's ZXiR HL 4° · 4° · 4° · 4.5° · 4.5° 4.5° 8-iron to 9-iron 4.5° to the AW (50°)
Srixon ZXiR HL 4° · 4° · 4° · 4.5° · 4.5° 4.5° 8-iron to 9-iron 4.5° to the AW (50°)
TaylorMade P7MB 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4.5° · 4.5° 4.5° 8-iron to 9-iron no wedge after it in the set
TaylorMade Qi Max HL 3.5° · 4° · 4.5° · 4.5° · 4.5° 4.5° 7-iron to 8-iron 5.5° to the AW (50°)
Titleist T250 2° · 2° · 2° · 3° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 4.5° 4.5° 9-iron to P 5° to the W (48°)
Callaway Apex CB 2.5° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 5-iron to 6-iron 4° to the AW (50°)
Callaway Apex MB 2.5° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 5-iron to 6-iron 4° to the AW (50°)
Callaway Apex Pro 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 5-iron to 6-iron 5° to the AW (50°)
PING Blueprint S 3.5° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 7-iron to 8-iron no wedge after it in the set
PING G740 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 7-iron to 8-iron 5° to the UW (45°)
PING i240 3.5° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 7-iron to 8-iron 5° to the UW (50°)
TaylorMade P770 3° · 3.5° · 3.5° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 6-iron to 7-iron 5° to the AW (50°)
Titleist T100 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 6-iron to 7-iron 4° to the W (49°)
Titleist T150 3° · 3° · 3° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 6-iron to 7-iron 4° to the W (48°)
Titleist T250 Launch Spec 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° · 4° 4° 5-iron to 6-iron 5° to the W (52°)

Tap a set to see its full table with lengths and lies. A wedge after the pitching wedge is the one the maker sells with the set; the wedge planner works out which wedges to add after it.

The two ends of the bag

Between your longest iron and your woods, the numbers on the clubs mislead the most: a 5-wood, a 3-hybrid and a 4-iron can carry almost the same loft, so match them by loft, not by number: hybrid vs iron and hybrid vs fairway wood line them up maker by maker.

After your pitching wedge, the set may stop, or add one wedge. From there, add wedges 4° to 6° apart up to a sand wedge of 54° to 58°: wedge lofts gives every set's wedges, and 52, 56 and 60 degree wedges says which to add.

Gapping by your own distances

Loft is a start; your distances decide. Two clubs a few degrees apart can fly the same distance if one launches higher, and a long iron you cannot get airborne flies shorter than its loft says. Hit a handful of shots with each club on a launch monitor or at a range with marked distances, and write down the typical carry, not the best one. Then put the numbers in the bag check: it lays your clubs out by loft, takes your carries, and names the step that is too wide or too close and the one club worth adding first.

We give no yardage chart here, because carry depends on your swing and we hold no measured distances. The 14-club limit is the other end of the sum: how many golf clubs you may carry, and what a first bag needs.