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Golf club
A golf club is a club used to hit a golf ball in a game of golf. Each club is composed of a shaft with a grip and a club head. Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; irons, the most versatile class, are used for a variety of shots; hybrids that combine design elements of woods and irons are becoming increasingly popular; putters are used mainly on the green to roll the ball into the hole. A set of clubs is limited by the rules of golf to a maximum of 14 golf clubs, and while there are traditional combinations sold at retail as matched sets, players are free to use any combination of legal clubs.
The most significant difference between clubs of the same type is loft, or the angle between the club's face and the vertical plane. It is loft that is the primary determinant of the ascending trajectory of the golf ball, with the tangential angle of the club head's swing arc at impact being a secondary and relatively minor consideration (though these small changes in swing angle can nevertheless have a significant influence on launch angle when using low-lofted clubs). The impact of the club compresses the ball, while grooves on the club face give the ball backspin. Together, the compression and backspin create lift. The majority of woods and irons are labeled with a number; higher numbers usually indicate shorter shafts and higher lofts, which give the ball a higher and shorter trajectory.
Woods are long-distance clubs, meant to drive the ball a great distance down the fairway towards the hole. They generally have a large head and a long shaft for maximum club speed. Historically, woods were made from persimmon wood, although some manufacturers—notably Ping—developed laminated woods.
In 1979, TaylorMade Golf introduced the first wood made of steel. Even more recently, manufacturers have started using materials such as carbon fiber, titanium, or scandium.
Although most "woods" in golf are constructed from various metals, the term "woods" persists to characterize their general shape and intended use on the golf course. Contemporary woods commonly feature a graphite shaft paired with a predominantly hollow head made of titanium, composite materials, or steel. This design emphasizes light weight, enabling faster club-head speeds. Woods, being the longest and most powerful clubs, typically consist of three to four options in a set. They are primarily utilized from the tee box and, on longer holes, may be employed for the second or even third shot. The largest wood, often referred to as the driver or one wood, is frequently crafted from hollow titanium and incorporates feather-light shafts.
The length of the woods has been increasing in recent decades, and a typical driver with a graphite shaft is now 45.5 inches (1,160 mm; 116 cm) long. Woods can also have very large heads, up to 460 cm3 (28 cu in) in volume, the maximum allowed by the USGA in sanctioned events; drivers with even larger club-head volumes are available for long-drive competitions and informal games. The shafts range from senior to extra-stiff depending upon each player's preference.
Irons are clubs with a solid, all-metal head featuring a flat angled face, and a shorter shaft and more upright lie angle than a wood, for ease of access. Irons are designed for a variety of shots from all over the course, from the tee box on short or dog-legged holes, to the fairway or rough on approach to the green, to tricky situations like punching through or lobbing over trees, getting out of hazards, or hitting from tight lies requiring a compact swing. Most of the irons have a number from 1 to 9 (the numbers in most common use are from 3 to 9), corresponding to their relative loft angle within a matched set. Irons are typically grouped according to their intended distance (which also roughly corresponds to their shaft length and thus their difficulty to hit the ball); in the numbered irons, there are long irons (2–4), medium irons (5–7), and short irons (8–9), with progressively higher loft angles, shorter shafts, and heavier club heads.[citation needed]
As with woods, "irons" get their name because they were originally made from forged iron. Modern irons are investment-cast out of steel alloys, which allows for better-engineered "cavity-back" designs that have lower centers of mass and higher moments of inertia, making the club easier to hit and giving better distance than older forged "muscle-back" designs. Forged irons with less perimeter weighting are still seen, especially in sets targeting low-handicap and scratch golfers, because this less forgiving design allows a skilled golfer to intentionally hit a curved shot (a "fade" or "draw"), to follow the contour of the fairway or "bend" a shot around an obstacle.[citation needed]
Golf club
A golf club is a club used to hit a golf ball in a game of golf. Each club is composed of a shaft with a grip and a club head. Woods are mainly used for long-distance fairway or tee shots; irons, the most versatile class, are used for a variety of shots; hybrids that combine design elements of woods and irons are becoming increasingly popular; putters are used mainly on the green to roll the ball into the hole. A set of clubs is limited by the rules of golf to a maximum of 14 golf clubs, and while there are traditional combinations sold at retail as matched sets, players are free to use any combination of legal clubs.
The most significant difference between clubs of the same type is loft, or the angle between the club's face and the vertical plane. It is loft that is the primary determinant of the ascending trajectory of the golf ball, with the tangential angle of the club head's swing arc at impact being a secondary and relatively minor consideration (though these small changes in swing angle can nevertheless have a significant influence on launch angle when using low-lofted clubs). The impact of the club compresses the ball, while grooves on the club face give the ball backspin. Together, the compression and backspin create lift. The majority of woods and irons are labeled with a number; higher numbers usually indicate shorter shafts and higher lofts, which give the ball a higher and shorter trajectory.
Woods are long-distance clubs, meant to drive the ball a great distance down the fairway towards the hole. They generally have a large head and a long shaft for maximum club speed. Historically, woods were made from persimmon wood, although some manufacturers—notably Ping—developed laminated woods.
In 1979, TaylorMade Golf introduced the first wood made of steel. Even more recently, manufacturers have started using materials such as carbon fiber, titanium, or scandium.
Although most "woods" in golf are constructed from various metals, the term "woods" persists to characterize their general shape and intended use on the golf course. Contemporary woods commonly feature a graphite shaft paired with a predominantly hollow head made of titanium, composite materials, or steel. This design emphasizes light weight, enabling faster club-head speeds. Woods, being the longest and most powerful clubs, typically consist of three to four options in a set. They are primarily utilized from the tee box and, on longer holes, may be employed for the second or even third shot. The largest wood, often referred to as the driver or one wood, is frequently crafted from hollow titanium and incorporates feather-light shafts.
The length of the woods has been increasing in recent decades, and a typical driver with a graphite shaft is now 45.5 inches (1,160 mm; 116 cm) long. Woods can also have very large heads, up to 460 cm3 (28 cu in) in volume, the maximum allowed by the USGA in sanctioned events; drivers with even larger club-head volumes are available for long-drive competitions and informal games. The shafts range from senior to extra-stiff depending upon each player's preference.
Irons are clubs with a solid, all-metal head featuring a flat angled face, and a shorter shaft and more upright lie angle than a wood, for ease of access. Irons are designed for a variety of shots from all over the course, from the tee box on short or dog-legged holes, to the fairway or rough on approach to the green, to tricky situations like punching through or lobbing over trees, getting out of hazards, or hitting from tight lies requiring a compact swing. Most of the irons have a number from 1 to 9 (the numbers in most common use are from 3 to 9), corresponding to their relative loft angle within a matched set. Irons are typically grouped according to their intended distance (which also roughly corresponds to their shaft length and thus their difficulty to hit the ball); in the numbered irons, there are long irons (2–4), medium irons (5–7), and short irons (8–9), with progressively higher loft angles, shorter shafts, and heavier club heads.[citation needed]
As with woods, "irons" get their name because they were originally made from forged iron. Modern irons are investment-cast out of steel alloys, which allows for better-engineered "cavity-back" designs that have lower centers of mass and higher moments of inertia, making the club easier to hit and giving better distance than older forged "muscle-back" designs. Forged irons with less perimeter weighting are still seen, especially in sets targeting low-handicap and scratch golfers, because this less forgiving design allows a skilled golfer to intentionally hit a curved shot (a "fade" or "draw"), to follow the contour of the fairway or "bend" a shot around an obstacle.[citation needed]