What is a "gamer" club or set? Do you have one?

[RoyalMustang]

So, what exactly is a "gamer"?  Is it something that someone plays all of the time, or a special club that is only used for performance rounds?  If so, do you practice with a different club?  Why or why not? I would think that it would screw up your game to swing one club part of the time and another club the rest of the time.  

 

When I was racing a bike as a pro, we had a "race bike" and a "training bike" but the difference was usually in materials. The training bike was also the winter bike: it had robust wider tires and often fenders.  No carbon wheels in the winter, as they don't stop in the rain (this has been mitigated by disc brake technology).  It didn't shift worth crap usually as it had gunked up cables. I eventually moved to a fixed gear for this reason; less parts to replace in the winter!  I could have raced my winter bike, but it would have meant a lot of time swapping parts to have it race-ready.  During the summer months, I trained on my race bike for the most part.  

 

If you have 2 sets, why not just use one set of clubs year-round and replace them when they wear out (unless you play an extreme amount of golf and wear out clubs before the technology moves along....)

[Chadwickog]

Your gamer is the club/bag you play most. You have trust in it to perform when you need it to, most times. Any backup bags are usually for fun, experimenting, seconds of the gamers, or travel clubs etc.. I just cleaned out the back up bag and trying to roll with the gamers full time. I do have a retro bag for fun though

[cardoustie]

My gamers come with me when it’s a big event or gambling is on the line ... which is pretty much every serious round 

[dlygrisse]

Let’s say you own 5 putters. The gamer is the one, as Cardoustie says, is in The Bag when serious.  For many here that tend to be club ho-ish you may own much more than 14 clubs.  I personally tend to rotate wedges, fairways and hybrids.  But I got gamers I rely on till I have made a definitive decision to make a switch.  
 

if I’m messing around I may have 16-17 clubs in my bag, but only 14 gamers. 

[kiwihacker]

Yeah if you only own 14 clubs they are your gamers. But if you own multiple drivers, putters, sets of irons etc it's sometimes fun to play different clubs in casual rounds. But in serious competition rounds the gamer i.e. the clubs you prefer/think are best go in the bag. 

 

In cycling analogy I own a full suspension mountain bike and a hard tail. The hard tail is used for easy, flattish, bike path trails but the full suspension is my gamer for real mountain bike riding on steep, rugged terrain. 

[ChipNRun]

Your gamer items are the ones you play during normal rounds, and especially in competition.

 

Besides clubs, these can be a specific golf ball or a couple of same-model pairs pairs of golf shoes. For ball, I play the Callaway SuperHot in orange (I see it best, although some partners say they can't see it at all). It gives me a little check spin even on close-in short shots. The cousin SuperSoft tends to run out too much on short pitches.

 

Some players have what you might call a sweet 16 short list of clubs. A players might swap out a mid-bounce SW for a high-bounce if the course's sand is really soft. Also, a player might pick a 4i vs. a 4H depending on how tight the course is.

 

Players test out non-gamers during normal rounds. For example, I get several sleeves of decent golf balls each season at events, and I trade around so I have a half dozen I could try over a couple of rounds. You might find something better than your current gamer.

[iNeedMoreGolf]

Gamers are the ones you know are locked and loaded and ready to go. You need a baby cut or draw or maybe you want it dead straight at that big tree in the backround or maybe need to hit a nice high soft 30 yard shot to a tight pin  that runs away from you or just a regular 6 iron to the center of the green where you know your safe... these you can only do confidently with you gamers. Its like being out in the world for the first time on your own but if you know you have great parents and you screw up somehow they will back you up and teach you how it should have been done so the next time you can get it right. Its like having the perfect women by your side that you know you can accomplish anything because she belives in you and loves you and you her... wow this got wierd fast... anywho.. yeah they are just the right clubs that your confident in.

[Valtiel]

For me, once i've dialed in a club to my specs (grip, weight, length, lie etc), a gamer is anything that has passed the initial eye/feel test so it inspires confidence from the start, and then has been part of enough personal "highlight reel" shots to where I have enough fond memories of it performing. That is pretty much it!