Best Golf Clubs For Beginners

Just like starting any new hobby or career you will often have to invest a little at the start to see yourself progress and golf is no different. When you start playing the amazing game you will want to buy yourself a good set of clubs to get you going. However, even if your budget will stretch to buy the signature clubs of your golfing hero’s this will almost certainly be the wrong choice for your first set of clubs. Golf is a game of precision, each club a finely crafted tool for a specific purpose and the finer the club the less forgiving it will be with your technique. So, let us talk you through what to look for to get you started in finding the right club to help develop your playing.

What To Look For In a Club

Forgiveness: As Briefly mentioned above an important feature that starter clubs aim to provide is more forgiveness. No this doesn’t mean you have to go to confession with your driver but rather any minor mistakes in your technique won’t be highlighted by the club. The more forgiving the club you choose to buy the more consistent your shots will be even if you haven’t quite finished crafting your technique. A major part that contributes to a forgiving club is that it will feature a large ‘sweet spot’. The sweet spot is the part of the clubhead you want to make good contact with the ball to improve your chances to hit the ball with proper form.

Club selection: Golf is unlike most games in the fact that you need to very carefully select the correct club for every shot. Most beginner sets will give you anywhere between twelve and eighteen clubs. whilst having the extra clubs is always nice as long as you have all your bases covered with drivers, woods, irons, wedges and a putter you will be covered for any situation. Some sets will also offer some nice hybrid clubs which can be very versatile in their use and a nice thing to look for in the sets that provide a lower number of clubs to fill multiple rolls.

Distance: The ultimate aim of golf is to get your handicap down. Realistically there are 2 pretty basic components to achieving this, the first is to increase your accuracy so that you get the ball where you want it. The second is to improve the distance you are reaching with each stroke to get you closer to the green in fewer shots. The club won’t do all the work for you, playing with good form with improve your distance by the most notable amount which, as we have already covered, can be helped by having a forgiving club. A large sweet spot, aerodynamically designed club head and a correctly weighted club can go a long way to adding that little bit more distance to your swing.

Purchasing Sets: Whilst we have spoken about looking for a good selection of clubs when buying a set of clubs you may be tempted to but them individually to build up your collection. For a player unsure about committing to the sport, this can seem like the way to go but it does have its drawbacks. A set will offer clubs that compliment one and other, preparing you for any shot and most come with a great range of accessories like a bag and head covers. Just be sure you don’t expect 18 clubs if a set is described as 18 pieces this will often account for your bag and heads. You want to also consider overall weight and look of the product carefully to give you a comfortable day whilst playing eighteen holes.

Cost: There’s no point in spending thousands on your first or second set of clubs. You need to buy smart. Look for clubs that offer a lot of forgiveness until you rack up a few years of experience and start to become more consistent in your form. Spending more on a very high-end club may actually have a negative impact on your handicap until you improve your consistency in technique. Although you can buy your clubs individually we would recommend the most cost effective way to start out would be to look at a set. You can always add to it or upgrade later but it is an ideal first buy.

Some Recommendations

Whilst this is by no means an exhaustive list of all the amazing clubs on the market we would suggest this is a good place to start looking.

Our top 4 list

Below we’ve selected 4 starter sets that we think would be great to get you started

Callaway Strata Ultimate (18piece)

Description

As one of the more expensive products on the list, it is also the most feature-rich offering you 12 clubs, five head covers and a very striking club bag. The Callaway Strata Ultimate is a very popular set for new starters or people looking for their next set of clubs to improve their performance. The clubs are very forgiving with the titanium driver offering a large sweet spot to give you consistency when teeing off. The inclusion of 2 hybrids in this set gives you a little more versatility when selecting a club for your shot and giving you a better distance and confidence in your swing when you may usually have to use and iron for a longer shot. This set orders some really well-built clubs with the putter using precision face milling to give you an edge when you need to be precise on the green. The fact that even the putter has been well considered in its design shows that a lot of thought has gone into this entire set offering a well rounded and very competitive set of clubs even at an entry level price bracket.

Club List (18Piece)

• Driver
• 3wood / 5wood
• 4hybrid / 5hybrid
• 6-PW, SW
• Putter

Our thoughts and customer reviews

This is a great starting set for you if your budget stretches to the slightly higher price mark and if not then it would be worth considering the 12-piece version of this set. With a good range of forgiving clubs, the inclusion of your driver and putter as well as the really good looking bag and club heads this is a definite one to consider to get you started. One customer reflected on their purchase saying:

“This set is great! I purchased it about 3months ago and have been really impressed. I’ve managed to play games with other more experienced players and never needed to borrow a club. All the clubs are very good quality of the price and I would definitely recommend to any other beginners.”

Wilson 2015 Ultra

The Wilson 2015 Ultra is a no-nonsense starter set for anyone looking to get into the sport. Whilst this set may only be 14pieces Wilson have not cut corners on club selection. Offering you a set of clubs and bag at just under half the price of the Callaway 18 piece set you would be pleasantly surprised to know that the Wilson actually still has 10 clubs compared to the Callaway’s 12 clubs. This set gives you a robust bag with bipod stand and a set of 3 heads for your driver and wood and hybrid clubs.

Club List (14Piece)

• Driver
• 3wood
• 4hybrid
• 5pw
• Putter

Our thoughts and customer reviews

With a good selection of clubs and a high-quality bag offering some nice features the Wilson 2015 Ultra is a great first choice for anyone on a budget. Whilst the clubs are fairly basic in design there’s a great selection for your money. Wilson offers a great option for anyone who’s looking to get started. Although the ascetic design is not for everyone, it does remind us a little more of a JCB than a traditional golf bag… We actually quite like it.

“Whilst I am certainly not a professional golfer, I have played the game on and off for the past few years so I’ve tried a good number of clubs and I must say I am impressed! I only really get to play every few months so couldn’t justify the cost of higher end clubs until I get my eye back in but these clubs will definitely help serve me well until I am ready to upgrade.”

Prosimmon Golf X9 V2

The Prosimmon Golf X9 V2 is the second generation of the fist X9 golf series. The Prosimmon Golf X9 was very well received and a popular choice on the market. Now the V2 offers more at a very low and competitive price mark. Offering you a decent selection of clubs and a well-designed bag as well as 4 heads for your larger clubs the Prosimmon Golf X9 gives you a lot for your money. This golf set also offers a lot of versatility and customization as you can choose to order the clubs with a graphite shaft for your drivers or if you prefer a steel/graphite mixture. The steel variant of the set comes in a little cheaper and also allows you to have a stiffer shaft as a pose to the graphite. Prosimmon has paid special attention to the drive in this set giving it an oversized head which should allow you long drives of over 350 yards when used correctly, and a larger sweet spot to help you do this.

Recommended usage

• Driver
• Wood
• 2hybrids
• 5-9 – PW Irons
• Putter

Our thoughts and customer reviews

The main appeal behind the Prosimmon Golf X9 V2 for many is the track record and history in the product. We like the fact that even in a starter set of clubs you have some nice customization options and some great accessories with the band and covers. One feature in particular that stands out in the reviews is that many larger customers are happy that these clubs are +1 length allowing for comfortable use by taller players.

“I have been looking for some good clubs for someone of my height (6’5”) for a while and when I ordered these I found them really comfortable to play with. Regardless of the extra length, they are great quality clubs and even after not playing for a year using these clubs after a couple of buckets on the driving range I was played 3under my usual par. The proof is in the pudding!”

Pinemeadow PRE 16

Coming in at a nice middle ground on our price list of starter sets the Pinemeadow PRE 16 is a really solid choice of set for a beginner to the sport. With a good range of clubs similar to the previous mentions on the list one of the things that make this set stand out is the attention to detail across all the clubs. The driver features a titanium enhanced driver with graphite shaft and 10.5° head. To further the quality of the set the Putter is a weighted pre mallet design giving you better performance and response on the green. Whilst most of the budget start sets will give you the basic clubs you need this set by Pinemeadow will offer some development in your clubs with some initiative design.

Club List

• Driver
• 3wood
• 3hybrid
• 4-9 Irons / PW
• Putter

Our thoughts a customer reviews

We really like the variety of club offered in the Pinemeadow Pre 16 set. With the nice putter and inclusion of hybrids, you have a versatile range of clubs to give you an edge in your game. Many other start sets will aim at more basic and traditional putter and driver designs to keep the cost down but still offer a complete set. If you are looking for a second set of clubs or want a set which will let you experience some different club types this is a good option. Some customers wrote:

“As a new golfer, I needed a set of clubs which would not break the bank as I was unsure if I would take to the sport. I decided to pick up this set of clubs as they are a good price for the range and was really happy when I got them! whilst playing around with my friend who has been playing for over 20years he was really surprised by the quality for the price I paid and that I can just about manage to keep up with some of the really good players on the course.”

Conclusion

We personally don’t think you can go too far wrong with any one of these sets of clubs. The nice thing is that for beginners all these clubs will offer you a large sweet spot to allow you to play a good round even if you haven’t yet had years of practice to craft your form and technique. Even if you are on a very tight budget you can pick up a full set of clubs which will serve you well and get you going for around $150 or you can go for something a little more advanced if your budget will stretch. Remember a few of these selections on our list like Callaway Strata Ultimate also offer a 12 piece version of the set if you like the quality over the quantity idea and can’t afford the 18 piece.

If you’re not so keen on our top 4 picks then there are plenty of other options out there. You’ll be able to find a good selection of clubs from a local dealer or Amazons dedicated golf store. Just remember our key principles if you are going to venture beyond our list.

• As a newbie to the game, your technique naturally won’t be fully formed so find yourself a forgiving club with a large sweet spot which will allow you to play more consistent shots.
• Keep in mind the size of the club if you are a particularly tall player bare in mind that one size doesn’t fit all. You may well want to look for a +1 set of clubs like the Prosimmon Golf X9 V2 set to accommodate for your longer swing.
• Whilst all the extras like the bag and heads for the top of your clubs are nice don’t get carried away and pay through the teeth for an 18 piece set that offers the same quality clubs as a 12 piece but instead of more clubs you may actually be paying for accessories that you don’t need to get you started if you are on a budget.
• Remember buying a set is always more cost effective than single clubs. You can get some great quality clubs in some of these sets for an absolute steal. Try out a few of your friend’s clubs and see what style suits you then find one of our recommendations which are You can always add to your set at a later date.