Golf club gapping: how to map your real carry distances

What gapping is

Gapping means measuring the carry distance of each club in your bag and looking at the spacing between them. Ideally each club covers a distance the next one does not. In practice you find two kinds of problem: overlaps, where two clubs go about the same distance, and holes, where a stretch of distance has no club for it.

Why carry, not total distance

Total distance includes roll, which depends on the ground, the weather and the club. Carry is the distance to the first bounce, and it is the number that decides whether you clear the bunker or the water.

How to measure it

1. Warm up first. Cold, tight swings give short numbers.
2. Hit around ten balls with each club, on a launch monitor or a range with measured targets.
3. Set aside the clear mishits. Keep the typical shots, not the best one.
4. Record the average carry, and the spread between your shortest and longest typical shot. The spread matters as much as the average.

What to look for

• A gap much bigger than the others leaves a distance with no good option.
• Two clubs within a few yards of each other means one of them is not earning its place.
• A wide spread on one club points to an inconsistent strike, which is a coaching problem more than a gapping one.

Using the numbers on the course

A table in your head is no use on the 14th tee. The numbers have to be in front of you for the shot you are facing, adjusted for conditions, because wind and temperature both change carry. In Caddora, Map My Bag turns your range sessions into a real carry for every club, and the caddie uses those distances with the wind and temperature to name a club for the shot in front of you.