Beginners Guide to Buying a
Set of Golf Clubs

You walk into a golf store and there are hundreds of woods, irons, wedges and putters to choose from along with clothing, balls and all kinds of accessories. When just starting out in golf, choosing a set of clubs can be an overwhelming task. What is one to do? What decisions need to be made when buying a set of golf clubs? This article aims to help you know what you need to know, so you can make the right call and save you a little dough in the process.

First, you need to know what makes up a set of clubs. Well, there are four main parts to a set of clubs: woods, irons, wedges, and a putter. These days you also have the hybrid clubs. These are a cross between irons and woods. People who have trouble hitting their long irons, such as a 2 or 3 iron, tend to use these types of clubs instead. You are allowed up to 14 clubs in your bag and they can be in just about any combination you want. For example, in my bag I carry a driver, a 4 wood, 3 thru 9 irons, pitching wedge, gap wedge, sand wedge, lob wedge and a putter. This arrangement of clubs fits my game and the types of courses I usually play.

Next, what options are out there when buying a set of golf clubs? To start out with you can buy new or used. Used can be a money saver over new, but can also come with some inherent problems, such as, worn grips, cracked shafts and other problems. When you are buying a first set, these are not things you want to deal with. So, I would recommend going the new route.

Now that you have decided on purchasing new clubs, the next option is buying a complete set or putting one together. Putting a set together yourself will be the more expensive option over buying a complete set. Also, getting a complete set takes much of the hassle and intimidation out of the decision making process.

As a beginner, you should buy a complete starter set. This will usually include a driver, 3 wood, 5 wood, 3 thru 9 irons, a pitching wedge and a putter. Some may even include a sand wedge and a golf bag. This is only 11 or 12 clubs you say! What else should I get? Don't worry about this now. As you improve you can think about adding another wedge, a 2 iron or a hybrid of some sort. Until then you are just wasting your money. You would be better off spending your coin on some lessons and improving your swing. Remember, expensive clubs won't help you play any better. Why spend $300.00 on a driver when you can spend less than that and get everything you need to play except golf balls in one package. A complete set is a great way to save some money in the beginning, since you're going to be spending enough cash replacing a lot of those lost golf balls.