3 easy gear adjustments to gain consistency and lower your handicap

Golf club lie angle

Getting your lie angles checked can make a huge difference to you iron and wedge game

Ryan Barath

Shooting lower scores requires consistency along with improved accuracy, and with a few simple adjustments to your clubs, it’s easy to find them both. These adjustments all come with either minor costs or no costs at all meaning they’re not only easy to do, but they are also affordable options to help you play better.

Adjustable hosel settings

Adjustable hosel sleeve driver
Adjustable hosels allow you to fine tune your ball flight Ryan Barath/GOLF

If you’ve bought a driver, fairway wood, or hybrid in the last decade there is a good chance that it came with an adjustable hosel and torque wrench to help you dial it in. Unfortunately, player data also suggests that there is a really good chance that you’ve never used that wrench and it’s still sitting at the bottom of your golf bag.

Equipment companies use adjustable hosels to help with the fitting process and to make them easy to understand for any golfers looking to help reduce a miss or find a particular ball flight — so if you are struggling with a shot shape make sure to use that adjustability to your advantage!

Get your grips sorted

Best golf grips to keep your hands comfortable
No matter what grip you choose, make sure they match through the set GOLF

If you want consistency in your game, there is no easier way to make your clubs all feel the same in your hands than by using matching grips through your set.

Now obviously you’re not going to use the same grip on your putter as your would on your driver, but for every full-swing club it can be a big confidence boost to have everything feel the same, and as an added benefit it will help keep your grip pressure the same too.

There are some exceptions to the rule and some golfers will prefer to use an alternative grip on their driver for the purpose of not losing grip orientation when adjusting a hosel but if you know you have everything else where you want it, match those grips up!

Get your lie angles checked

Golf club lie angle
Getting your lie angles checked can make a huge difference to you iron and wedge game Ryan Barath/GOLF

If the lie angle of your clubs is off by just a couple of degrees it will have a huge impact on your ability to hit solid shots and have a consistent ball flight. This is even more critical in your short irons and wedges because, with more loft on the club, the lie angle will have a greater impact on where your golf ball will start directionally.

A tell-tale sign that your lie angles are off is a persistent miss with a couple of clubs in your bag that don’t match the rest of your game, or a shot shape this is more exaggerated than it should be to the right or to the left.

Most club fitting studios charge a minimal fee you check and bend lie angles and considering how much of a difference it can make to your game, it’s one of the best investments you can make.

Want to overhaul your bag for 2023? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. For more on the latest gear news and information, check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast below.

Ryan Barath

Golf.com Editor

Ryan Barath is GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com’s senior editor for equipment. He has an extensive club-fitting and -building background with more than 20 years of experience working with golfers of all skill levels, including PGA Tour players. Before joining the staff, he was the lead content strategist for Tour Experience Golf, in Toronto, Canada.