One of the most crucial decisions in golf is choosing the appropriate club. Whether you’re 100 yards from the green or have to carry a bunker 200 yards away, picking the right club should be more than guesswork. It’s crucial to determine how far you hit each club to master club selection on the golf course.

In this article, I’ll teach you how to assess your average distances with all of your clubs and explain what to do if there are big or small distance gaps between them. Mastering the science of club gapping will lower your scores and ensure you won’t have any gaps in your game!

What is Club Gapping in Golf?

On average, each golfer has tendencies and hits their clubs a certain distance. Golf club gapping is simply the number between the average distance of each club. For example, if I hit my seven-iron 160 yards and eight-iron 150 yards, my gapping between the clubs is 10 yards.

Benefits of Taking a Gap Analysis Test

A difference between professional and amateur golfers is the professionals know how far they hit each club. Whereas amateurs know how far they can hit each club. A common problem with amateur golf is we base our perception of distance on our best shots. Instead, we should look at the actual average.

For instance, say you’re 150 yards away from a green with front bunkers. You may hit an 8-iron due to multiple factors, such as you think the 8-iron goes around 150 yards, or your best strikes with an 8-iron produce 150 yards. Ultimately, you hit the ball 145 yards and end up short in the bunker.

After doing a gap analysis test, you realize your eight iron’s average carry distance is 143 yards, and your 7-iron’s carry distance is 152. Yes, your best shot of all time with an 8-iron might carry 150 yards, but the proper club is the 7-iron.

The benefit of a gap analysis is that you will know your tendencies on how far each club in the bag goes. When you’re on the course, you can make better-informed decisions and strike the golf ball with confidence.

Another benefit of performing a gap analysis is identifying parts of your bag that aren’t maximized. For example, if you have two clubs that tend to go the same distance or have a 25-yard gap between two clubs. Knowing the weak parts of your current setup will lead you to make the proper adjustments.

What is Considered Good Club Gapping in Golf?

Distance

Achieving 10-15 yards of carry distance between your clubs is considered perfect gapping. Four degrees between clubs equate to 10-15 yards of distance. You may not be taking full advantage of your clubs if your gapping is less than 10 or more than 15 yards.

Ball Speed

Ball speed should steadily increase as you hit clubs with lower lofts. Each golfer produces different ball speeds, depending on their swing speed and overall contact with the ball. However, as you hit longer clubs with less loft, you should see an increase in ball speed.

Launch Angle

The launch angle should decrease as the loft decreases. For example, a 7-iron should have a lower launch angle than a 9-iron.

What Causes Poor Golf Club Gapping?

Club Lofts Change

It’s possible the actual loft of your golf clubs may not be the same as the advertised loft. For example, golf club manufacturers have accuracy tolerances for specs, such as lie angle and loft. A club might be labeled as 48 degrees, but it is 47 or 49 degrees.

Golf clubs can also change in loft over time. If you’re using old clubs, they might have a different loft than their original state.

Using a tool like a club protractor can allow you to know the exact loft of your clubs.

Inconsistent Strikes

Poor shots due to high, low, right, or left strike locations on the clubface can drastically impact distance. If you’re experiencing poor contact, then you aren’t getting an accurate representation of your club gapping.

Slow Clubhead Speed

Clubhead speed should increase as you move up through your bag. If you aren’t increasing the clubhead speed with lower-lofted clubs, distances between clubs can be similar.

Poor Swing Mechanics

Improper mechanics, such as scooping, can increase a club’s loft at impact, causing higher and shorter ball flight.

Ball Positioning

Where you position the golf ball at setup can cause variations in distance. The further the ball is in your stance, the more loft it creates at impact. The inverse is true when the ball’s position is back in your stance toward your trail foot.

Swing Weight

Swing weight is how heavy the club feels in your hands. Factors such as clubhead weight, shaft weight, and club length all contribute to measuring swing weight. The swing weight can produce more or less club head speed, which promotes various distances.

How To Improve Golf Club Gapping

Step 1: Calculate Your Distance

To achieve balanced gaps between your clubs, it’s important to calculate your average distance accurately. To get an accurate average distance, you shouldn’t only keep track of your best shots but also track shots that aren’t as good. However, you shouldn’t track every shot. Avoid measuring mishits, such as shanks, thin, or fat shots, as these shots can disproportionally impact your average distances.

Custom Fitting vs. Gap Test Yourself

You can perform a club gapping analysis by yourself or by booking a session with a professional fitter.

Going to a Fitter

Costs around $100
Will provide knowledgeable insight and information
Can measure the exact loft on each club
Supply you with launch monitors to accurately conduct testing
Will provide immediate solutions to correct any gap issues

Gap Testing By Yourself

Cheaper than seeing a fitter
Go at your own pace
Learn about the process independently
May not know the correct solution to correct gapping issues

Pro Tip: Before seeking a professional, try testing your club gaps yourself to gain knowledge about the process and potential issues.

Different Methods to Test Club Gapping

Rangefinder

Go to a driving range with various targets. Then, use a rangefinder to measure the distance of each target. Next, hit each club and estimate how close the ball lands relative to the targets. While not as precise as alternative approaches, this method is straightforward.

Golf Simulator

Visit an indoor golf simulator that’s equipped with Skytrack, Trackman, Bushnell, or other top launch monitors. Indoor simulators are in controlled environments, with no wind or temperature impacting ball flight.

Outdoor Launch Monitor

Some players prefer hitting balls outdoors compared to indoor simulators. Some outdoor driving ranges have launch monitors that track all sorts of data, including ball speed, height, launch angle, carry distance, and total distance.

Facilities like Topgolf or BigShots have trackman Launch monitors installed in each hitting bay.

Important Note: Range balls tend to be limited flight balls that don’t go as far as regular, premium balls. Software like Trackman allows you to convert range balls to premium balls and will display data as if you are using premium balls.

How to Perform a Gap Test

Warm up by stretching and hitting easy wedge shots
Start with your highest lofted club and work toward your club with the lowest loft
For each good shot, write down the carry distance
Hit 5-10 good shots with each club
Disregard mishits or very poor shots
Calculate the average carry distance for each club
The distance between each club is your average gap

Important Note: While testing your club-gapping, make sure to take sufficient rest breaks. Ideally, you’ll want to hydrate and rest a few times throughout the gap test. Refraining from rest breaks can exhaust your body and produce inaccurate numbers due to fatigue.

Gap Test Analysis on Trackman

Trackman launch monitors are some of the most convenient devices to test your club gapping.

First, download the Trackman app on your phone, create an account, and enter each club into your virtual bag.

Next, go to an indoor or outdoor facility with Trackman launch monitors. Open the Trackman app on your phone, press the Quick Login button on the app, and scan the QR code on the Trackman screen.

Then, select the “Practice” game mode. Hit around ten solid shots with each of your clubs. If you hit a bad shot, you can delete it so the poor shot isn’t calculated into your average distance.

After your gapping session, you can view your average carry and total yards for all your clubs. You’ll also get insights on other relevant data, such as ball speed, launch angle, and height.

If you’re using limited flight range balls during your gap test, Trackman has a “Convert” toggle button that allows you to convert the data as if you were hitting premium golf balls.

Carry Distance vs. Total Distance

Wedges and Irons

Carry distance is far more important than total distance when looking at wedges and irons. That’s because you typically use irons and wedges on approach shots to the green, which heavily depends on where the ball lands.

Hybrids and Woods

Besides carrying distance, it’s important to understand the total distance for woods and hybrids. For example, on a par five, you might not be able to reach the green on the fly but could potentially do so on the roll.

Step 2: Make Adjustments

Each golfer’s gapping struggles are different, so the correct adjustment can drastically vary. Due to the effort in making the proper adjustment, visiting a club-fitter is recommended because they will have all the clubs, shafts, lofts, and overall knowledge you need.

The most common corrections fitters make to combat poor gapping are loft and club adjustments.

Loft Adjustments

Loft adjustments are made by bending or tuning clubs. A golf club’s loft is the angle created by the club and the ground, which impacts the golf ball’s launch angle and distance.

Tune Hybrids and Woods

Most modern hybrids and woods have adjustable clubheads that allow you to easily manipulate the club’s loft. An example is Ping hybrids and woods. These clubs can be adjusted to 1.5 degrees in both directions.

If one of your hybrids or fairway woods requires a loft adjustment to correct a gap in your bag, you can do so easily.

Bending Irons

In contrast, iron lofts are not as simple to change, but still can be done! If you want to adjust the loft on a wedge or an iron, it’s best to take the clubs to a professional club fitter. Stores like PGA Superstore have certified club technicians who utilize bending machines to measure your club’s loft and adjust it to the exact loft measurement you need.

Club Adjustments

Club adjustments are simply removing or adding specific clubs in your bag to improve your club gaps.

Replace Irons with Hybrids or Woods

If your club gapping is too small between your irons, replacing them with a hybrid or wood could be ideal. Hybrids and woods have a low center of gravity that makes it easier to launch the ball higher and supply a further carry distance.

Replace Hybrids or Woods with Irons

The opposite is true if you have a large gap between clubs due to a hybrid or wood. For example, if you hit your 6-iron 180 yards and your 5-hybrid 210, you may want to either swap the hybrid for a 5-iron or add a 5-iron between the 6-iron and 5-hybrid.

Add a Wedge

Gap issues with your short clubs can be resolved by adding a wedge. If you have a large gap between your sand wedge and pitching wedge, adding a gap wedge between the clubs can provide even gapping.

Add a Hybrid or Wood

Poor gapping is common toward the end of your bag with longer irons. If you’re an amateur golfer who has a large gap between your longer irons, picking up the right hybrid or wood can help.

Golf Club Gapping FAQ

How Can Propper Gapping Help on the Golf Course?

Having proper gapping, or at least knowing what your average distances are, can assist a golfer with making better-informed decisions with club selection.

By knowing how far you hit each club, you’ll be more confident with your club selection on the golf course. As golf is as much a mental game as a physical one, being confident and knowing you have the proper club in your hand can drastically improve your game.

How Often Should You Test Your Club Gapping?

At least once a year. Variables, such as swing speed, mechanics, and strike quality can change from year to year. The loft of golf clubs can also change the more you use them. Visiting a professional fitter or conducting a gap analysis will ensure your clubs are evenly spaced out.

What If Your Club Gapping Isn’t Perfect?

Club gaps vary from golfer to golfer. Distance dispersion can also change for one golfer over a few years. It’s safe to say no one’s gapping is perfect. If you’ve gone to a club fitter, made necessary adjustments, and still have issues with gapping, it’s best to learn other swing tactics that influence distance. Learn how to hit punch shots or a 3/4 shot. Experiment with ball positioning and choking down on the grip. Even professionals learn how to take distances off shots because they will encounter yardages that don’t fit their stock shots.

How Many Shots Should You Hit During a Club Gap Analysis?

The quality of each shot is more important than how many shots you hit during a gap analysis. However, the more shots you take with each club, the more precise your average distance will be. Hitting at least 5-10 shots with each club is sufficient for a gap analysis.

Final Thoughts

Achieving consistent gapping between all your clubs requires thorough testing and experimentation. A golfer’s bag gradually evolves, and your first set of clubs is rarely right for you from the beginning.

I enjoy testing my gapping between clubs as it not only helps me fine-tune my bag but also assists with my club selection on the course.