Formula
Wrist-to-floor is the better of the two measurements because arm length is what the club has to reach. Stand in golf shoes, arms hanging, and measure from the wrist crease to the floor. Plot height and that measurement on the Wishon chart. The length column is the change from a 37 inch men’s steel 7-iron. This page adds that change to every iron and wedge. It does not add it to the driver, the fairway woods, the hybrid, or the putter.
recommended iron = GolfWorks standard + Wishon length change
graphite standard = steel standard + 0.5 in
cm = inches × 2.54
If wrist-to-floor is blank, the length change is the height column on the PING color code chart, and the result is marked less precise. A point that is not a printed row is left blank. Lie angle is the Wishon “initial lie” for that row, in degrees upright when positive. Length and lie move together: a longer club wants a flatter lie check, and a shorter club wants an upright check, on a lie board.
Worked examples
5 ft 10 in, 34 in wrist-to-floor, men’s steel. Wishon length change 0. The 7-iron stays 37.0 in (94.0 cm). The 6-iron is 37.5, the 8-iron 36.5, the pitching wedge 35.5.
6 ft 4 in, 37 in wrist-to-floor. Length change +1. The 7-iron is 38.0 in (96.5 cm). The pitching wedge is 36.5 in.
5 ft 6 in, 34 in wrist-to-floor. Length change −1/2 in. The 7-iron is 36.5 in (92.7 cm).
Graphite, standard row. GolfWorks graphite irons are 0.5 in longer than steel, so the 7-iron is 37.5 in before any further change. 6 ft 2 in is 74 in, 187.96 cm.
Reference
Men’s steel standards below are the GolfWorks chart. Graphite adds half an inch. Women’s standards are one inch shorter on the irons. The fitting change is added after that, and only on the irons and wedges.
Questions
What length golf clubs do I need for my height?
Height is only half of a static fitting. A 5 ft 10 in player with a 34 in wrist-to-floor is the standard row on the Wishon chart, so a men’s steel 7-iron stays 37.0 inches. The same height with a different wrist-to-floor can move a half inch or more.
How do I measure wrist to floor?
Wear the golf shoes you play in. Stand upright with your arms hanging relaxed. Measure from the crease where the wrist meets the hand down to the floor. Do not reach or bend the elbow.
How long should a 7-iron be for a 6-foot man?
Six feet even is 72 inches. On the Wishon chart a 6 ft player at 34, 35, or 36 inches wrist-to-floor is not one single band. At 34 inches the length change is +0.5 inch, so the men’s steel 7-iron is 37.5 inches. Measure the wrist. Do not use height alone if you can avoid it.
Are standard clubs fine at 5 ft 10 in?
On this chart, 5 ft 10 in and a 34 in wrist-to-floor is the standard length. A shorter or longer wrist measurement at the same height is a different row. Standard is a starting point, not a promise that the lie angle is right.
Should women and juniors use different lengths?
The GolfWorks women’s steel 7-iron standard is 36.0 inches, one inch under the men’s 37.0. The same Wishon length change is then added. Juniors on this page use the U.S. Kids Golf driver lengths that the catalogs actually print. Iron lengths for juniors are not invented.
Does club length change the lie angle?
Yes. A longer iron plays more upright if the lie is left alone, and a shorter iron plays flatter. The Wishon chart prints an initial lie next to the length. A lie board is the check.
How long should my driver be?
The GolfWorks men’s standard is 45.0 inches in steel and 45.5 in graphite. This page does not add the iron adjustment to the driver. The Wishon sheet is an iron chart. A fitter can still change the driver on its own.
Sources
- Wishon Golf, Height & Wrist to Floor Initial Length and Lie Fitting Charts, the PDF published at wishongolf.com in October 2019. Each row is height, wrist-to-floor, initial lie, and length change. A pair that is not on the sheet is not estimated. One printed 7-iron cell, 5 ft 7 in at 27.5 in wrist-to-floor, reads 3.65; the length column on that row is −0.5, and that is the value used.
- PING Color Code Chart, © 2017. Used only when wrist-to-floor is blank. The length columns run −1½, −1, −½, standard, +½, +1, and +1½ inches across the printed height groups from 5 ft 0 in through 6 ft 7 in. The chart’s own instruction is to plot both measurements.
- The GolfWorks, Standard Lengths. Men’s steel 7-iron 37.00 in, graphite 37.50 in, half-inch steps through the irons, driver 45.00 / 45.50 in, pitching wedge 35.50 / 36.00 in, sand and lob wedges 35.25 / 35.75 in, putter 34.00 in. Women’s steel 7-iron 36.00 in, driver 44.00 in, putter 33.00 in.
- U.S. Kids Golf catalogs, 2016 and 2017, for junior driver lengths by height: 42–45 in players 28 in driver, 45–48 in 30 in, 51–54 in 34 in, 54–57 in 36 in, 57–60 in 38 in, 60–63 in 40 in, 63–66 in 42 in. Heights between those printed rows are not given a length.
- NIST SP 811. One inch is 2.54 centimetres.