Every shot you hit is important. A 300-yard drive counts the same as a one-inch putt. Each stroke is worth the same at the end of the round, so you better treat every one with the same respect.
However, there are certain shots that you hit with much more frequency than others. And for that reason, some shots — and clubs — are more consequential to your score than others.
In legendary instructor Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book, he shares a conversation he once had with golf scribe Herbert Warren Wind regarding which clubs were the most important in the bag.
“I said, ‘The putter, the driver and the wedge,'” Penick wrote.
The reasoning for his choices are quite simple — it all boils down to confidence.
The putter is the club you’ll hit more than any other. Even when you have the best putting day of your career, you’ll strike the ball with the putter more than with any other club in your bag. But more than anything else, the putter is important because of what it does for your confidence.
The best swing tips and advice from legendary teacher Harvey Penick
“Nothing is more important psychologically than knocking putts into the hole,” Penick wrote. “Sinking putts makes your confidence soar, and it devastates your opponent.”
Similar to the putter, the driver is also in your hands quite frequently. And if you know you’re going to use a club on every hole, it’s important to be competent with it in your hands. Not only for your score, but for your psyche.
“If you hit your tee ball well, it fills you with confidence,” Penick wrote. “On the other hand, if you smash a couple drives into the woods, your confidence can be shaken.”
When it comes to the wedge, it once again has to do with confidence. Missing greens in regulation is a guarantee — even for the best players in the world. But if you can chip it close and save par, it’ll do wonders for your confidence.