GOLF.com: Fleetwood's Two-Club Same-Distance Strategy — 9-Wood Meets 3-Iron for Links Conditions

Same Distance, Opposite Trajectories

Tommy Fleetwood arrived at Renaissance Club this week carrying two clubs that do essentially the same job on paper — both travel roughly 235 to 240 yards — but couldn't be more different in the air. His trusty 9-wood produces a high, towering flight, while his TaylorMade GAPR Lo utility iron (3-iron loft, a 2018 model) keeps the ball skimming low under the Scottish wind.

According to TaylorMade tour rep Adrian Rietveld, Fleetwood felt the 9-wood was simply too versatile to remove, but he needed a low-trajectory option for both tee shots and approaches into firm, fast greens. To make room, he dropped his 56-degree wedge — a move he's made before — leaving him with just a 52- and 60-degree for the week.

A Links-Specific Logic

The reasoning is sound: links golf rewards ground-game creativity, and having two clubs at the same distance yardage but with fundamentally different peak heights gives Fleetwood a genuine shot-shaping edge. He's pulled this move before — in Miami earlier this year, he dropped his sand wedge to insert a 4-iron for long par-3s. For next week's Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, the same setup stays.

A Field-Wide Trend

Fleetwood isn't alone. Rory McIlroy swapped his 5-wood for a vintage P760 3-iron. Viktor Hovland, Xander Schauffele, Min Woo Lee, J.J. Spaun, and others all made similar moves — notably, most of them had been testing these utility irons for months, not days. The era of scrambling for clubs at the airport is over.

T-Grind Dominates Wedge Bags

Alex Fitzpatrick, Brooks Koepka, and Kurt Kitayama all switched to Vokey T-Grind lob wedges this week. On firm links turf, the T-Grind's low rear sole section allows the face to sit flush at address when opened, making it the go-to grind for seaside conditions. Rory McIlroy also dialed back bounce, switching from his MG5 to an MG4 lob wedge.