Golf Club Fit for a Beginner

[liamw]

I’m a new member here and new to golf. I am looking to purchase my first set of clubs and was wanting some advice. My friend is a local pro at the clubhouse of a course near where I live and he has recommended that I get a club fitting before buying, so they suit my body and swing.

 

I’ve also read that a first set should be a second hand set or a cheap off the shelf set. 

 

Although I don’t have a budget, he did say if I was going to spend $1,000 just get a standard off the shelf set. If I was going to spend $3,000 to buy clubs that fit. He also said if I were to buy clubs that didn’t fit, I may not enjoy golf and give it up quicker as compared to buying clubs that fit me. 

 

Physically, he did say I was pretty average and most off the shelf clubs wouldn’t be too bad, although I’d have to make do with the shaft flex, loft and length. As a reference, I’m 31 years old, 5’9” (174 cm), 65 kg (142 lbs) and am very active (run 3 x 12km and cycle 3 x 60-100km per week).

 

Liam

[butchammon]

Good morning, Liam,

Welcome to the forum!  I too am a newcomer to The Sand Trap forum.  It's a great place from what I have seen so far!

As far as your friend suggesting getting yourself fit and setup for clubs, that is EXCELLENT advice!  If you have a golf shop in town that has one of those indoor ranges, you could try out several clubs, and see the difference between regular shafts and stiff shafts versus swing speed.

Buying used clubs is also a good idea, as long as they match you.  You *DON'T* want too long a club or too short a club, as that will greatly affect your swing.  Also, stay away from department stores (if they even carry golf clubs anymore) like WalMart, Target, etc...

I am sure others on here (way more knowledgeable and experienced than me) will chime in with advice to also help you out.  I wish you the best!

Butch

[georgep]

Hi Liam! Welcome to TST and to golf.  Your club pro friend gives good advice. But a few more things to consider:

How much have you played so far?  It's tough to jump into a $3K investment without being sure you like the sport. What are your goals for golf?  Are you primarily in it for competitive, social or business reasons (I'd normally add exercise, but it sounds like you have that aspect covered already)?  If you're in it to compete at some level or for business, you may want to spend a little more than if you're it it purely for social reasons. 

Roughly, judging by your height and weight, standard loft, lie, and length are going to be in the ballpark for you. So while I always recommend getting fit, depending on your commitment level right now, you might get more mileage out of the same or less money by buying off the shelf or used and getting some lessons from your club pro friend or another qualified instructor. Starting with good fundamentals will put you ahead of the curve for future improvement.

I hope you find years of enjoyment on the course and on the site! Good luck and keep us posted. 

 

 

[Patch]

Fitting before clubs is alright if you have been playing for a while. Along with the fitting, the fitter will probably find some flaws in your swing and help you out there.

Set of clubs before a fitting is fine just to get you started. In that respect you buy a cheap starter set. $1000 is way too expensive for a starter set. I am thinking $200-$300 is a good price for a set to start to develop a swing. 

Don't know where you are at so prices might vary. My gamers, bag and all, cost well under $500. 

[mcanadiens]

It would seem a shame to spend big bucks on a fit clubs and then decide golf isn't your thing. Personally, $3000 represents roughly three years of my entire golf budget. 

On the other hand, if you are all in and money is no object, I'd say go for it.

Edited April 8, 2018 by mcanadiens

[liamw]

Thanks for the replies.

 

I suppose there are a few reasons for taking up golf, one being in the finance industry, there are a lot of golf days and opportunities to network. A few of my friends play every week and socially it’s something I’d like to be a part of, especially as I get older and the body begins stopping to do the things it used to. I also know myself enough to know that it is more likely than not that if I were to get an off the shelf set or second hand set that I’d buy a new set in 6-12 months anyway, so in the long run it’d be more cost effective to bite the bullet now.

 

My friend who is the local pro has already offered me free lessons and practice at his course whenever I want to play. So I suppose there are some more savings there. He is also the one that will be fitting me and I will be buying my clubs through him, so I know I’ll get a reasonable deal as well.

[MarvChamp]

12 minutes ago, Patch said:

I am thinking $200-$300 is a good price for a set to start to develop a swing. 

Don't know where you are at so prices might vary. My gamers, bag and all, cost well under $500. 

Yes to this. You can get VERY GOOD starter clubs on eBay or other online sellers. Also, @liamw I would suggest you read up on grips, club shafts and clubs of different levels of forgiveness (Maltby Playability Factor, Tom Wishon). Also the many golf club reviews online, like My Golf Spy. Best of all, go have a lot of fun with this adventure! Best, -Marv

[WUTiger]

2 hours ago, georgep said:

Hi Liam! Welcome to TST and to golf.  Your club pro friend gives good advice. But a few more things to consider:

How much have you played so far?  It's tough to jump into a $3K investment without being sure you like the sport. ...  

Roughly, judging by your height and weight, standard loft, lie, and length are going to be in the ballpark for you. ...

@Liam, welcome to TST!

Good advice from others so far. As far as fittings go, there are different types. There's a basic static fitting, which makes sure the club shaft lengths and lie angles match your physical posture and swing motion. And, a check of your clubhead speed can help you get the right flex shaft. You want to make sure grips are not too thick (can cause slicing) or thin (can cause hooking).

The more advanced dynamic, or full bag fittings, work best when your swing has stabilized and you're going for your second set of clubs. Not what a beginner needs.

And, I like that you are getting lessons and fittings from the same person. This has been the best mix for me in the past.

Lots of good trade-in clubs available. With modern club tracking, these sets often feature their club "recipe" (shaft flex, shaft length, etc.). So, it's easier to find used sets which need just a little tweaking to fit your swing.

[liamw]

I went in yesterday for a club fit and have put my order in for a full set of TaylorMade M4 Driver, Fairway Wood, Hybrid, irons and Spider Tour putter.

Apparently I hit the ball hard and the KBS Tour 105 X Flex shafts felt the best.

I was initially set up with the Mizuno fitting system to figure our shaft lengths, lie etc. and then tried different brand heads (Mizuno JPX900 Hot Metals, Callaway Rogue, TaylorMade M4, Cobra King F8) once I found the right shaft. I probably needed all the forgiveness I could get and in the end it was down to the TM M4 and Cobra King F8, which, for mine, felt similar but the M4 were a bit more forgiving.

Now to play the waiting game (hopefully 2 weeks).

[EricBro]

I'm winding up my 2nd year playing.  I'm 5'9", 165 lbs, age 67.  Been using Strata box set since that's what I found the internet said was the best set for a beginner.  It was a small investment to get started.  But I'm not happy with my distances, and when I swung some Tour Edge clubs at my local course's demo day, I thought they had lots more heft and I felt like I was getting much more distance. I know getting fitted is the right thing to do, but I'm confused about the timing.  I've had two people (one of them my instructor) say that my swing isn't "consistent enough" to get fitted.  But I'm struggling with understanding how I'll know when that happens.  I don't have a problem with the investment if it will make the game more enjoyable.  Anyone have any thoughts?

Edited November 3, 2019 by EricBro