Being a beginner might make you think that you have to use the same club as the one used by pros and tour players, but doing this would be the biggest mistake you make. Figuring out how to choose golf clubs for beginners can greatly increase your learning curve, as you start out.
So, if you are a beginner in golf, the best thing that you could do is to learn about the best golf clubs that are ideal for your level of experience, and also the ones that would help you learn the game faster and easier.
While there are several considerations that you need to bear in mind, the most important consideration that you need to keep in mind is the forgiveness of the golf club.
How to Choose the Right Golf Clubs for Me
The golf clubs for beginners (Callaway Edge vs Big Bertha) all boast more forgiveness, which means that they have more sweet spots, and with more forgiveness, it means that you won’t have to worry about missing the sweet spots.
Now, if you are new to golfing, you will agree with us that some of the biggest problems you face have to do with mis-hit shots, often resulting from sacrificing distance, hence unwanted slices and hooks. The beginner golf clubs are designed to prevent these issues by making it possible and easy for you to make the right hits.
It’s also worth noting that the best beginner clubs are important for intermediate players and all other golfers working on improving their game. This means that as you work on improving your skills and level of expertise, having a beginner-level golf club would be the best investment you make to improve your performance on the course.
To reiterate, the beginner-level forgiving clubs allows you to make decent shots, even from the most mediocre swings, and this means better engagement and many more good shots.
From using the beginner-level clubs repeatedly, you are able to make more good shots, and as you play and practice more, you are able to improve your performance.
With that said, you need to know that the use of the tour-level clubs in a bid to learn to golf is a counter-intuitive move because the tour-level clubs have been engineered for excellent performance only suited to the best and the most experienced golfers.
So, for a chance to learn, grow, and fall in love with the game of golf, you need to avoid the tour-level hard-to-hit blades because the only thing that these blades would do is to discourage you from golf, and you might exit from a sport that you have immense potential in for all the wrong reasons.
How then do you choose the best golf club to boost your performance on the golf course if you are a beginner?
Best Golf Clubs for Beginners
If you are shopping for best beginner clubs, either as an individual club or a set, you need to consider the differences between woods, irons, drivers, and hybrids.
In as much as there are 14 types of clubs, you don’t need all of them for the best performance on the course, especially as you learn.
There is a golf club for every situation, and since a golf course averages 74 acres or varying terrain, you will need different clubs for different situations.
The woods are essential for long shots out on the fairway as they are designed for distance maximization, which is why you’d need a diver or a fairway wood for these shots.
But why is it called wood? Well, the name woods comes from the fact that this clubhead is made of wood, either persimmon or hickory.
As a beginner, the best wood for you is the 3-wood (easiest fairway woods for beginners) because it allows you to cover long distances off the fairway, while also adding versatility to your gameplay.
Irons are made of a metal clubhead, but there are many options on the market, and choosing one over the other is very much overwhelming. If you are shopping for irons as a beginner, there is one thing that you need to keep under consideration – your confidence at the address.
If you are a golfer standing over a 3-wood shot and you are certain that you will not miss the shot, it will be a good idea to choose a hybrid (fairway wood vs hybrid comparison) rather than a long iron.
However, the 3-iron will be an ideal fit for you if you struggle to hit the woods but feel great standing over an iron shot.
The good news, however, is that the iron shots are quite versatile, and you might enjoy working with the iron depending on where your ball is at on your stance and how hard you swing the ball. The 5, 7, and 9 long irons are also often preferred by beginners for similar reasons.
You have two options – the muscle back and the cavity back irons. The cavity back irons are preferable for beginners because they provide larger sweet spots, and since they have perimeter weighting on these irons, stopping the ball is easier, even with poor hits.
The muscle back or blades aren’t recommended for beginners, and you should only consider using these irons once you get down your handicap to single digits.
Unlike the muscle-back irons, the cavity back irons boast an impressive error correction than muscle backs, and they make the difference between mis-hits finding the green or that mis-hit dropping into the pond.
How to Choose the Best Driver for a Beginner
Drivers (easiest driver to hit for beginners) are typically used off the tee on the long holes because they allow you to hit the golf ball as far off as possible. The driver, being the lowest-lofted wood, is regarded as the Number 1 wood, and it’s ideal for use on elevated tees. A lower loft angle means that you will be able to strike the ball further.
As a beginner, you need to know that drivers are measured in volume/ cubic centimeters, and the biggest driver head allowed in the golfing world is 460cc. These drivers are made of a carbon composite and/or titanium, which means that they are significantly lighter than clubs made of steel, and this is also why manufacturers get to increase the size of the driver’s head.
And if you are looking for a driver to use competitively, make sure that the Coefficient of Restitution is 0.83, and if the driver rebounds at a higher speed than allowed, it would be deemed an illegal driver.
Now, besides the standard models of golf drivers, you also need to choose between the Draw, Offset, and Neutral drivers. With these options, it’s easy to fix issues like ball slicing (how to stop slicing a driver) because you’d place the weight of the driver inside your clubhead, keeping the clubhead more closed upon impact.
The models aside, the other considerations that you need to keep in mind include shape and the loft.
Best Golf Club Shafts for Beginners
The best irons for beginners are made of either steel or graphite shafts. The graphite shafts are more expensive than steel shafts, but they make up for this with their low-weight, softer, and more flexible design, as well as the fact that you will feel less of the vibrations with the graphite shafts, especially for the off-center hits.
This is a good thing for beginners – experienced players would prefer steel shafts because they need more feedback. The feedback in terms of vibration allows the players to know more about the miss, and if they want to know if the hit was out on the toe, off the heel, or thin.
Steel shafts are too heavy and stiff, and beginners find them uncomfortable, especially for beginners with slow swings. With these in mind, a graphite club is a better option for beginners with slow swings because this clubhead would mean low iron weight and higher swing speeds.
For durability and good performance, however, you might want to look out for the irons made of cast iron – these are forged cast irons molded from single metal pieces. The cast iron irons are affordable, durable, and result in smoother swings.
For your perfect club, you need to look for the flex and the weight that works best with your swinging style and speed, while staying within your budget.
Regarding the shaft, you also need to factor in its length, with respect to your height.
If you find the long irons more intimidating, the hybrid clubheads would be a better choice for you. Hybrid club heads are designed with the characteristics of both the woods and the irons.
As a result, most beginners find the hybrids to offer smooth swings, hence, high-flying shots that would be impossible for beginners to achieve suing the long irons. Note that the long irons call for high swinging speeds for launching the ball into the air. A 4-hybrid gives better shots, and you’d be able to enjoy the game much more. The best part is that you get to use hybrids all the way up to the 6th or 7th iron.
Your options are endless, but if you are to choose the best clubhead, bear in mind your budget, its design and build, as well as the weighting. The chosen clubhead must enhance the success and allow you to have fun out on the green. That said, it would be a great idea to choose a club with a larger clubhead because this would inspire confidence while offering more forgiveness.
As a beginner, you need a golf club that offers as much forgiveness as possible, and for this, you need to consider the COG. Go with a club with a low COG and pay attention to its weighting precision, balance, and placement.
Conclusion of Beginners Golf Clubs
There is a lot that goes into a good beginner’s golf club, but for the best results on the green and for you to build up your skill level faster, (Best Golf Swing Trainers for Beginners) choose a golf club that feels good, high forgiveness, right height, and low COG, and always choose a durable club.
FAQ of How to Pick Out Golf Clubs for Beginners
Do golf clubs make a difference for beginners?
Beginners golf clubs usually provide a bigger sweet spot, with a more flexible shaft. This allows for mis-hits, which is common for a beginner. As you improve, your clubs should improve too. Bottom line, yes, clubs matter.
How expensive are beginners’ golf clubs?
Golf clubs can range from very cheap, around $100-$200 all the way up to thousands. Clubs are designed for different levels of golfers. A beginner should consider many brands before making a decision.
What clubs should a beginner carry?
Rules allow for 14 clubs in your bag. If you’re just getting started, try out a variety of clubs, hybrids, irons and woods to see what works for you. As you progress, narrow it down to the limit of 14.