buying 1st set of clubs...

[B. Amish]

i'm thinking about buying my first golf clubs. any general suggestions. i'm new to golf and don't have much background except watching occasionally on tv.

buy used? new? where to look? price ranges? deals? time to buy?

[Dave S]

If I were to start from scratch again, I would go to a golf pro and go through some golf lessons.

The golf pro can see what needs to be "fixed" with your stance, form and your swing then recommend the best type of clubs based on your own personal features.

Money well spent IMO.

[Gary Crichton]

The deals should start soon. It all depends on how serious you are. The price range is great. Check out Golf Galaxie or any golf shop around. If you want to start out with the basics, get a 3-5-7-9 irons and a pitching and sand wedge, and a putter. I would get measured for your driver and 3 wood again Golf Galaxie or some place like that have the set up. They should have deals on a full set also, so check out both.

[Coach1310]

In your situation.... I would buy used. Going to see a pro and being fitted for clubs is good advice, but if you've never really played or don't really care to practice enough to improve your game, that is a waste of money in my opinion.

I would look for a used set on clist or somewhere like that and get out to see if you enjoy playing the game, before I would spend money on golf lessons or getting fitted for clubs

[Dave S]

I bought an "off-the-shelf" set of clubs that don't quite fit me the way they should. Luckily I've had the patience to bear with it. But without clubs that fit you right, you can develop habits that are hard to break.

Come next year, I hope to be in a position where I can take some of my own advice and buy a fitted set. Now that I've gotten to the point I enjoy being on the course, I'm willing to take the next plunge and buy my next set of clubs.

Places like Golf Galaxy will have many different price ranges to choose from. I hope I wasn't misunderstood in my previous post. I didn't intend to sound like a person should grop $1500 on their first set of clubs. I'm only in my second year of golfing myself and gradually improving.

[slurpie]

Unless your loaded i would'nt buy an expensive set of clubs to start. There is alot to learn about swinging a club. Most people dont like sky marks on their driver or fairway woods. I would'nt buy a nice driver for your first i would put the marks on a club that dont cost alot. The shaft flex can have a big effect on your game so try to figuire out if you have a fast or slow swing speed. And as far as fitted clubs unless you swing exactly the same everytime it would be a waste of time and money to get fitted IMO. You'll learn to hit any iron set you get. Good luck it's a fun game but can be very frustrating at times if your a competive person. And the lessons are a good idea a trainer could teach you alot faster than you could learn on your own.

[Wanderer]

BAmish,

Several years ago I bought a new stainless steel starter set and a bag that was on clearance. They've served me well for the few times a year I get out.

Cash outlay was minimal compared to the options.

Find out if you like the sport. See if you can swing and then make improvements.

I try to learn something significant every time out. Yesterday I actually started bringing my wrists into my swing instead of it being all arms and shoulders.

Sounds rudimentary but for us rookies those are the things we need to focus on.

Good luck!

BTW, what does the asterisk by your name signify?

[CJH]

I started out with my Dad's 20 year old clubs and moved up to some off the rack Wilson's from Fleet Farm. So you get the idea of the price range, and I played 4 years of highschool golf with them. I know they weren't the best, but it was all I could afford.

I think that until you established a repetitive swing consistently hitting the ball solidly and in the air, the quality of clubs doesn't matter. That's when you can determine the proper clubs/shafts etc. to help with your particular swing. Hitting a grounder with Titelists vs. Wilsons will gain you no advantage, if you follow my drift.

Good luck! It can be a frustrating sport at first, but if you stick with it, can be a fun way to enjoy the spring/summer/fall, other than fishing of course!!

[B. Amish]

BTW, what does the asterisk by your name signify?

i asked the same question to someone else and ended up with an asterisk myself.

[Kidd]

You've gotten a lot of good advice here and I'm just going to throw in my 2 cents.

If you're new to the game I would suggest not buying a driver, use a 3 wood off the tee. They're a lot easier to hit and you're not giving up much distance. A well struck 3 wood is only 10 - 20 yrds shorter than a well struck driver.

Don't even think of carrying a 3 or 4 iron, buy a used hybrid of about 22 - 24 degrees. Again, they're a lot easier to hit and control.

If your ball is within 30 yrds of the green, and no hazards in front of you, learn to bump and run an 8 or 9 iron, leave the lob shots to Phil Mickelson. Buy a Sand wedge and a pitching wedge and leave the 52 and 56 degrees alone.

And last but not least, in fact the most important thing; Golf is a tough game so always remember that you're going to be lousy. Accept that fact and you'll never get mad at yourself for hitting bad shots. Just walk up to the ball and whack it again.

Have fun, it's a great game.

[picksbigwagon]

Kidd makes a good point, of course my wood play has fallen so much lately that I have gone to hitting my hybirds off the tee since my swing is so bad right now....Nothing feels right with my driver or my 3 wood right now. I at one point this summer was pounding the driver, now I am like the bass-o-matic, slice chop dice.................

I have been trying to play smarter, not smashing the ball, that has a made a huge difference in my game. 2 hybrid shots and my lob wedge get me to most par 5 right now

[Dave S]

My driver shots had a bad slice and what I found is if I scaled back on my swing speed, I was timing the kick point of my driver better and still getting the same distance as before. Only difference is, I'm hitting straighter now. The biggest issue is the flex of my driver shaft and my 3 wood which are an intermediate flex.

I'll be upgrading to stiffer shaft on my clubs for my next set.

[jimjdebj]

DON'T BUY ANY CLUBS, GOLF COURSES ARE TOO FULL NOW!!!!! Just kidding, whatever you get, stay with it and enjoy the game, stupid game,(you have to play your foul balls, not like baseball) but fun. Maybe we'll play together sometime.

[Double D]

I bought my first set used at play it again about 17 years ago, and it's still the set I use today.

Obviously I don't get out near as much as I used to or I would have traded up by now, what I am saying is don't be afraid of a good used set that works for you.

DD

[LovenLifeGuy]

Go find what clubs you want at golf galaxy or wherever and then go to e bay. I have purchased my last set of irons, my driver, putter, shoes and bag all off of HSO-Classifieds. The most I spent was 1/2 the price of the sale price at golf galaxy. I would never buy anywhere else. I forgot, I also bought my skycaddie off of e bay. Example. purchased my ping g10 driver for $120 when they were going for $350 and my nike putter for $45 when it was $145 at golf galaxy and my irons are adams a3 that I got for $225 and they were on sale at the time for $500 at golf galaxy. If you know what you want e bay is the best place to go. They were all brand new!

Good luck!

[Kidd]

Go find what clubs you want at golf galaxy or wherever and then go to e bay.

You need to be a little careful when buying clubs off E bay. There are a lot of people selling counterfeit clubs, not knock offs, at greatly reduced prices. The difference between counterfeit and knock offs are counterfeits will use the Nike, Ping etc... markings and pass themselves off as the real thing, when in fact your getting nothing but junk shiped over from China.

Make sure you check the feedback on the seller before purchasing.

Good Luck

[CJH]

What Kidd is saying is true. They often break really easily and use inferior materials, so you won't get the same performance and durability you are expecting.

[Eckie]

Well said --- as an example, TaylorMade uses a serial number on the hosel of its' clubs. I'm sure other manufacturers do something similar.

Yeah -- there are some great "finds" on the Interweb, but make sure to do your research....