I’m not talking about insurance coverage here. What I’m referring to is the number of wedges you carry as well as the gaps in loft between all of them.

As I’ve said many times, I’m a fan of Dave Pelz’s 4×3 system, where the idea is to carry four wedges and to groove three distinct swing lengths that give you a total of twelve easily repeatable distances within 100 yards.

It’s clear that scoring happens within 100 yards. Your goal on approach shots should be to get the ball close enough to the hole to make the next putt. To do that, you need to take out the guess work. Grooving wedge distances that are easily repeatable makes it much easier to achieve that goal.

To do all this effectively, it’s imperative to have the right tools for the job.

First, this means carrying four wedges. That will give you maximum coverage within 100 yards. I carried three wedges for a long time and considered getting a fourth, but couldn’t decide which club to ditch. After a lot of consideration, I realized that I almost never use my 4-iron. I mean never. Coming to that realization meant that I then had an open slot for that fourth wedge.

Second, it’s important that the wedges have fairly even gaps in loft to them. This allows you to have an even distribution of grooved yardages within 100 yards.

After dropping my 4-iron, I picked up three new Cleveland 588 chrome wedges. I now have a 49° pitching wedge, a 56° sand wedge, a 60° lob wedge, and a 64° extra lofted wedge. Having a fairly even distribution of loft between each wedge ensures that my distances within 100 yards will be somewhat evenly distributed.

Something to consider: I play Callaway X-16 Pro irons. The pitching wedge that came with those irons is 46°. However, I replaced it with a pitching wedge that’s three degrees more lofted. That means that I now have a significant gap between my 9-iron and pitching wedge.

I’m planning on getting new irons for next season, so I’ll be sure that I consider the lofts to give me more even coverage. In the meantime, I’ll get my 9-iron bent to add a degree or two of loft and I’ll have about a degree added to my 8-iron. This will even out the coverage some until I get new irons. Of course, that means I now have three new clubs and will have two clubs with different lofts to get used to.

You may notice that I have a somewhat larger gap between my 49° and 56° wedges at 7°, whereas it’s 4° between the others. The main reason is that I wanted to keep my 60° wedge. This was mostly due to the cost of buying 4 wedges instead of 3 (my 54° sand wedge needed to go because it was getting too worn).

Why did I choose the larger gap where I did? The reason for that is that I wanted more precision from the shorter clubs. That means that the yardage gaps get smaller as I get closer to the hole. My preference was to have that extra level of distance control closer to the greens.

Another thing to consider when outfitting yourself with wedges is the bounce of each club. Having a variety of bounces will make your wedges more suited for a variety of situations.

For instance, you’ll want more bounce on your sand wedge because it’s more appropriate for hitting from the sand. However, if the sand is excessively wet or packed down, a club with less bounce might be more effective. Also, from a tight or hardpan lie, a club with less bounce will be more effective, while from deeper rough, more bounce is helpful.

For my 56° wedge, I chose the most bounce, for use in the sand. My 60° wedge has the least amount of bounce for hardpan lies. My other two wedges have moderate bounce for a large variety of situations.

If you’re really looking to score, look to do it within 100 yards. Putting is arguably the most important skill, but even the best putters start to quickly lose effectiveness outside of 8-10 feet. That means it’s imperative to put your approaches close. Get the right clubs for the job, and you’ll have a better shot of doing that.

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