Hickory Golf Clubs – What’s in a Name?

Before there was a 3-wood, a 5-iron and a pitching wedge, there was  Spoon, A Mashie and Niblick.  Prior to the 1930s, most golf clubs had names, not numbers, and their shafts were made of hickory wood.  They were heavier than today’s modern clubs, but the hickory shafts were much more flexible.  Today’s players are allowed only 14 clubs in their bags. Before 1938, there was no limit as to how many golf clubs a player could carry.

Since there was no established standard among hickory club makers, the names and numbers could vary, based on the different degrees of lofts found on both the hickory and modern clubs. However, this list provides a close comparison:

Play Club = Driver

Brassie = 2-wood

Spoon = 3-wood

Baffy = 4/5 wood

Cleek = 1-iron

Driving Iron = 2-iron

Long Iron = 3-iron

Mid Iron = 4-iron

Mashie = 5-iron

Spade Mashie = 6-iron

Deep Face Mashie = 7-iron

Mashie Niblick = 8-iron

Niblick = Pitching Wedge

Putter = Putter