Adding Lead To Golf Clubs – Benefits Of Lead Tape & How To Add It

In a world where customisation of golf clubs has never been so easy, we mere-mortal golfers can get the tour treatment when it comes to club fitting.

We can get clubs made exactly to our specifications and it’s never been easier. Sometimes though, we need a little tweak more.

When low handicap golfers need to get the weighting perfect for  theirswing mechanics, they add lead tape to the head, hosel or shaft of the club to add weight in the correct area needed, fix any inbalances for their swing and get maximum performance from every club in the bag. 

This is where lead tape comes in. It is something that you only really see on the clubs of elite players but is it something that could help you now or in the future. Read on to get the full scoop.

What Is Adding Lead Tape To Clubs All About?

Many club manufacturers now allow you to move weights around on the head of drivers to change the weight distribution of the club. This is mimicking the effects of lead tape.

In effect, lead tape gives you the ability to change the weight characteristics of the club during the swing. You can bias shot shape by adding tape to the heel or toe and you can move the centre of gravity around too.

Where To Add Lead Tape On Clubs For What?

A piece of tape just one square inch can weigh between 0.8-1.2 grams can change the club by one swing weighting. You must add tape with caution as a small amount can make a big difference so go carefully.

Adding tape to the toe

Tape on the toe will help you reduce a hook or can help you gain more of a fading shot shape.

Adding tape to the heel

If you add weight to the heel of the club you will reduce slices or help develop a draw spin.

Adding tape to the front of the sole

When you add tape to the front portion of the sole you move the centre of gravity further forward. This will reduce spin and produce a lower ball flight. It will also make your club less forgiving.

Adding tape to the back of the sole

If you need more height and spin then this is your remedy. This moves the centre of gravity back and away from the face which can also make your club more forgiving.

 

What Are The Benefits Of Adding Lead Tape?

Nuanced swing weight changes

Lead tape gives you the ability to make very small changes to the weighting of the club.

This allows you change the swing weight of the club in nuanced ways to get the club perfectly matched to your swing.

Increased swing speed

Players like Jack Nicklaus and Sergio Garcia have been known to add lead tape underneath their grips.

This is a process known as counter-balancing and has the effect of making the club feel lighter by reducing the swingweight.

The benefit of this, if done correctly, is that you can increase your clubhead speed during your swing.

Reversible spin correction

As I discussed in the section before this, adding lead tape can help correct shot shape issues or even give you a shape that you are struggling with. The best thing about tape is that it is reversible too.

More control

Many clubmakers have sliding weights or weight plugs to help you move weight around in your clubs. This is great but it is a fixed weight in fixed positions.

Lead tape gives you far more flexibility as to where the weight goes and how much of it there is.

It looks cool

This one is up for discussion but I think some well-placed lead tape looks cool. It makes you look like a player too.

What Types Of Players Should Be Adding Weight To Their Clubs?

I would say that skilled golfers are the only ones who should be tinkering with lead tape. It is also really important that it is applied by someone who knows what he/she is doing and it has to be said that this is a dying art form.

What Types Of Players Shouldn’t Be Adding Weight To Their Clubs?

You should never be adding tape to plaster over a swing flaw. It is also not something that I would recommend to people who are still developing their skills as a golfer.

You need to have a repeatable swing to see benefit from adding tape so newer golfers should continue with practice instead.

Adding Lead Tape To Your Driver, Where You Should Put It

We’ve discussed the areas of your clubs you can add tape to remedy some issues or give you a new shot shape. To add tape to the front of your driver, place a strip a couple of centimetres behind the leading edge of the club on the sole plate.

To add it to the back of the club, for extra height and forgiveness, add it to the middle of the club at the back of the sole plate.

To add to the toe of your driver, you can add tape around the surface between the crown and the sole plate. To add to the heel, place the tape directly down from the hosel.

Adding Lead Tape To Your Fairway Woods

The positions for tape on a fairway wood are the same as the driver. This will be of little surprise since the clubs have very similar shaped heads. One benefit of a fairway wood over the driver is how much side spin you can put on the ball.

This side spin can be controlled by the lead tape and help reduce curve on your ball. Extra tape at the back of your fairway wood can also allow you to hit the ball higher with the three wood and create more stopping power for long approach shots into tricky greens.

Adding Lead Tape To Your Hybrids

One of the issues that many people find with hybrids is that they fly very high, this is one of the reasons I took mine out of my bag. Adding lead tape to the front of the hybrid, under the leading edge as described with the driver, can help you control this.

Adding that little bit of tape can reduce the spin significantly and also give you a more piercing ball flight with the hybrid. This is a great way of creating a hybrid that can beat the wind like a long iron.

Adding Lead Tape To Irons

With irons, the story is a little different, you can add tape toward the sole of the club or higher up the back of the club. If you play bladed irons, you can stick the tape directly to the blade and bias the tape to the side to remedy your issues.

If you play a cavity back you will stick the tape in the cavity, again with bias to whatever side you need.

Most players add tape halfway up the back of the club. This gives added swing weight which can help you create more speed through impact too.

Adding Lead Tape To Wedges

Wedges will require a similar approach to your irons. You can actually increase and decrease your spin by adding tape to different areas. Lead tape added to the bottom of your wedge can help increase the spin you impart on the ball and give you more control around the greens.

If you spin the ball too much you can add lead tape higher up the back of the clubface to help reduce the spin and make it more manageable. It is very common to see tour pros with lead tape on their wedges.

Adding Lead Tape To Shafts

If you want to add a little weight to your club without affecting the weight of the head, you can add a small amount to the shaft. It is important to consider where on the shaft you place the tape as it can change the characteristic of the club. The closer to clubhead you go, the more you’ll increase the swingweight.

The opposite is also true, the closer you go to the grip the lighter the club will feel as the swingweight is reduced. For the pure reason of adding some weight to your shaft, add the tape to the middle of the shaft. Start with small amounts and increase slowly until it feels good.

Adding Weight To Your Putter

Firstly, changing the weight of a putter can have a big effect on how it works in your hands so be very careful with this. The only reason to add lead tape to your putter is to add swingweight or counterbalance the weight by adding it under the grip.

If your putter is shorter than standard you may want to add a little bit of tape to improve the weighting of the putter. You can even add some to the shaft of a putter to keep it off of your clubhead.

Lead Tape On Your Driver To Fix A Slice

Okay, now that we’ve rattled through the general idea with each club, let’s look at a specific example. How do we try to cure a slice with the driver? For this, we want to slow down the heel and speed up the toe to help it square off at impact.

Adding weight to the heel will help achieve this. The tape should go on the sole of the driver toward the heel or further toward the hosel the more extreme the remedy that is required.

Is Lead Tape Allowed In The Rules of Golf?

Both the USGA and the R&A allow the use of lead tape to modify your clubs but not during a round. In the latest version of the R&A equipment rules it specifically mentions that lead tape is a product that can be used on your clubs in competition.

Do Any Tour Pros Use Lead Tape?

Lead tape is rife on tour and is used by many players. I would go as far as to say that most tour players have used lead tape at least once in their careers. The very nature of this product is that it is a removable fix so players add it and take it away as required.

One method that is becoming popular for drivers on tour trucks is the hot melt. This is a way of injecting adhesive into your clubs which can solidify and add weight to the inside of the club. It is irreversible though so not something amateurs should muck about with.

Does Lead Tape Work And Where Do I Get It?

Something that has been used on tour so much over such a long period must work, and it does. It can really help you fine-tune a club to your specific needs but has to be done with care and with the help of an expert.

Lead tape can be purchased easily and cheaply on Amazon. Brampton seem to make some of the best lead tape on the market. As I’ve said though, it is worth getting this done at your pro shop by someone who knows what they’re doing and can look at your swing characteristics to make this process as efficient as possible.

How To Remove Lead Tape From Golf Clubs

This is the very reason that lead tape is such a great tool. When you are done with the need for the weight you can simply remove the tape and go back to playing the club without it.

Just remove it using some heat to help loosen the adhesive and prevent damage to any paintwork on the club.

FAQ

How much lead tape equals one swingweight?

A strip that is four inches long and half an inch wide equals one swingweight. That’s about 10cm long and 1.25cm wide in new money.

Is high density lead tape better?

It is better if you don’t have much space to add tape too or you feel you need to add a lot of weight. Be extra cautious with this tape, you will make bigger changes with less tape.

Should I add weight or get a fitting?

If you are in the market for new clubs then go get a fitting. If you don’t want to part with your clubs but you feel they could be improved with a bit of weighting then carefully do that instead. Don’t expect the tape to completely fix everything though.

Are there any alternatives to lead tape?

You can now get tungsten rubber stickers which have the same effect. These are segmented into squares which give you more control over the weight you add and where.

Conclusion

The golf swing is a very personal thing, it is like a fingerprint. Whilst the golf club market has never had so many customisation options, sometimes you need a little tweak and lead tape can help you. For the skilled golfer, lead tape can make your clubs absolutely perfect and save you strokes.

Nothing can take away from hard work and fixing swing flaws that can be contributing to shot shapes, but tape can help you iron out small flaws. Speak to your club pro if you are thinking of adding some tape. He or she can guide you through this and make your clubs feel better than ever!