Club choices for SERIOUS women golfers

[sisko]

For us girls who hit it like the guys...Should we hit men or womens clubs?

Is it all about swing speed?

Shaft flex?

graphite or steel?

I would love to hear everyones take on this.

[iacas]

The club doesn't know what parts the person holding onto the grip end has.

Get fit. Swing speed, tempo, lie angle, length, etc. are gender neutral.

[Mark5]

It's all about swing speed.  The club doesn't know the sex of who evers playing it. Neither does the ball.  The shaft and ball should match the swing.  A woman with a 100 mph swing can play "mens" clubs  better then a man with a 65 mph swing.

Graphite can be made lighter and more flexible then steel so Seniors and Ladies clubs have graphite shafts. For that matter, heavy graphite shafts exist for high speed swings.  Graphite does absorb shock better and some play very stiff graphite shafts for this reason.

As far as heads goes......that's based on golfing ability and personal tastes.  Not swing speed or sex.

Now older and slower if I were to rent clubs at a course I would rent ladies if a seniors set wasn't available.

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by Mark5

It's all about swing speed.  The club doesn't know the sex of who evers playing it. Neither does the ball.  The shaft and ball should match the speed of the swing.  A woman with a 100 mph swing can play "mens" clubs  better then a man with a 65 mph swing.

Graphite can be made lighter and more flexible then steel so Seniors and Ladies clubs have graphite shafts. For that matter, heavy graphite shafts exist for high speed swings.  Graphite does absorb shock better.

As far as heads goes......that's based on golfing ability and personal tastes.  Not swing speed or sex.

Or gender.

A fitting is a great idea, but a real fitting for women is rare. My wife could already play but got talked into a wide soled whippy shaft bag-o-crap. She played better with my old Titleists or Hogans with thinner soles and sharper leading edges. She doesn't hit the ball as solid as she used to.

[Shindig]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

Or gender.

A fitting is a great idea, but a real fitting for women is rare. My wife could already play but got talked into a wide soled whippy shaft bag-o-crap. She played better with my old Titleists or Hogans with thinner soles and sharper leading edges. She doesn't hit the ball as solid as she used to.

I'd like to add:  if you go to a demo day, and a company rep won't give you the same fitting that a man would get, be sure to let us -- and the company he represents -- know.  It's one thing if you were trying to buy a boxed women's set that came in either standard or petite, and they'd measure that, but if they say "well, are you looking at (woman's set) in standard or petite," kiss their company goodbye (figuratively).

There are a few women in my golf club who play from the blue tees and routinely score high 70s or low 80s.  Many of them can out drive me from the same tees -- and I'm a man in my late 20s.  There's no reason they should be limited in their club purchase selection, any more than I should.  I'd be pissed if I went with one to a demo day and the rep tried pushing a generic woman's club (which seem to be made for someone 4'8 and maybe 80 lbs) when one in particular that I can think of does quite well with PX5.5s in her AP (mixed set of 1s and 2s) irons.  I know another that uses R-flex graphite shafts, but could move up if she so chose.

My suggestion for a woman golfer, especially the serious ones:  suppose you were a man with the same body (modulo the obvious).  What clubs would you be considering?

[Justin]

Golf clubs are androgenous.  And they could care less who's swinging them.  Besides, most "women-specific" clubs are the same thing as the "men's" clubs, only they have (supposedly... it isn't always the case with "L"-flex shafts) whippier shafts and a pretty-foofoo paint scheme.

Do yourself a favor: get fitted.  Brand absolutely DOES NOT MATTER- they are all made in the same foundries in China and Taiwan (forged models are done in Japan and China).  Getting the correct lofts, club lengths, shaft flex, grip size, swing weight and total weight for your new sticks is what matters most.

[sisko]

Thanks for all the great replies.

I plan on getting fitted then looking for something that matches my swing speed and game.

It's what I planned on anyway, but hearing the same replies from all of you just solidified that thought process.

:)