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Golf Rules FAQ: What's the Limit on Number of Clubs?

How Many Clubs are Allowed to be Carried in the Golf Bag?

By Brent Kelley, About.com

Fourteen clubs are the maximum allowed in one player's bag. Any number below 14 is fine, but more than 14 is not.

Also, those 14 clubs cannot be changed during the course of one round. You must finish with the 14 you started with. (There are some exceptions in the case of a club breaking.)

However, if you begin with fewer than 14, you may add clubs during a round as long as no delay is caused and as long as the club(s) added are not borrowed from another player.

The penalty for exceeding the 14-club rule in match play is a loss of hole for each hole played in violation of the rule, up to two holes lost.

In stroke play the penalty is two strokes for each hole played in violation of the rules, with a maximum of four strokes.

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