Best Golf Clubs for Beginners 2021 Reviews
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Almost 500 million rounds of golf are played every year in the United States by close to 25 million different people, or 8% of the population. And the game of golf is only growing in popularity. In the last 5 years, the number of young players has increased by over 20%. This type of growth is great news for golfers. There are more courses than ever to play, the average course is much better quality than it used to be, the competition drives green fees down, and you’ve got tons of big names making golf clubs that are better quality for less money.
However, with the enormous selection of golf clubs to choose from, it can be daunting selecting the perfect set, especially for those new to the game. With dozens of companies making quality clubs, just choosing a brand can be a tough decision, much less finding the best golf set for beginners. Then you’ve got the different technologies, looks, and feel of clubs, all potentially causing overwhelm and confusion.
The purpose of this page is to provide you with the information you need to choose the best beginners golf clubs for you. You will find our top recommendations to best help you as you begin your golf journey. You will also learn about the different types of clubs used in golf and find answers to the most commonly asked questions we get from newcomers to the sport.
You can click here for the best options for beginner irons.
Our Picks for The Best Starter Clubs
Our #1 Pick for Best Beginner Golf Clubs
Callaway Men’s Strata 16-piece Complete Golf Set
Review
One of the biggest names in golf equipment is Callaway, and this brand is used by many professional players. It used to be that if you wanted to play with Callaway gear, you had to be prepared to spend an arm and a leg. They now do a much better job of catering to players of all skill levels and budgets. This set includes a driver, 3-wood, 4 and 5-hybrid, 6 through 9 irons, pitching wedge, sand wedge, putter, stand bag, and 4 head covers. When we tested the Callaway Strata set, there were no glaring weaknesses.
The driver was solid, the 3-wood had a steady feel, the irons consistently surprised us with the height and distance of our shots, and the pitching wedge provided plenty of feel for our shorter shots. The putter was probably the weakest part of the set, but it was perfectly functional and would certainly get the job done for beginners. This set was a solid mix of good quality and having all of the pieces you need to get started. The 16-piece men’s Strata golf set by Callaway is our top choice for best golf set for beginners.
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Top Beginner Golf Clubs Runner Up
Wilson Golf Profile SGI Men’s Complete Golf Set
Review
Wilson is a familiar brand known for combining pretty decent quality with affordable price points. Wilson’s golf equipment offering is par for the course, if you will. This set includes 10 clubs: driver, 5-wood, 5-hybrid, 6 through 9 irons, pitching wedge, sand wedge, and putter. Also included is a lightweight stand bag and 3 head covers. The driver has a sleek design, and we found the club to swing comfortably smooth. The 5-wood also consistently performed well. We found that the hybrid was particularly good hitting out of the rough.
The iron heads were slimmer than we typically see in beginner clubs. Fatter heads provide more forgiveness and are easier to hit, but they are also clunkier to swing. The combination of the steel shafts and the thin club heads resulted in a natural smooth swing. We liked the pitching wedge, but we loved the sand wedge. Shots from the rough and bunkers around the greens were a delight with the sand wedge. The putter also surprised us a bit, as we found it had better feel than most putters that are included in beginner sets.
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Best Golf Set for Beginners (w/out a Bag)
Pinemeadow PGX Golf Clubs
Review
If you happen to already have a bag and a putter, or you can get a bag and putter cheaply, the Pinemeadow Men’s PGX is a great choice. The good quality and good price of these clubs make them some of the most popular clubs amongst beginner golfers. This set includes a driver, 3-wood, hybrid, 5 through 9 irons, and pitching wedge. The driver hit consistently longer drives than any of the other beginner drivers we tested. The fairway wood and hybrid had great lift, perfect for beginner golfers. More loft usually benefits those just starting out.
The hybrid was fantastic. No matter where we hit from, it delivered consistently good feel, distance, and control. We had no complaints about the irons or the pitching wedge and enjoyed using them. Obviously, the glaring negative is that unlike the others, this is not a complete set as it does not come with a bag or a putter. The bag is the most prominent piece of golf equipment, so many like to hand pick their bag. If that’s you, and you can find yourself a great deal on a putter, this set can still be economical while providing really good quality.
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Budget Pick for Best Starter Golf Clubs
Nitro X Factor 13-Piece Complete Set
Review
If you are looking for a reliable set to get you through a few rounds of golf, maybe to see if you like it, this set is a great choice. This set includes a driver, 3-wood, 3-hybrid, 6 through 8 irons, a 9 iron / pitching wedge combo club, putter and bag. The driver was decent and provided adequate feel and distance. The wood and hybrid were better than expected and performed well from the tee box and the fairways.
The irons and pitching wedge were a little heavier than we like, but they were actually really easy to hit, which is something we look for in beginner clubs. The putter was the standout performer in this set. We found it had a big sweet spot and was easy to align. Overall, this is a decent set that would be perfect for getting your feet wet with golf.
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Types of Clubs
There are several different types of clubs, each one uniquely suited for the different situations and distances you will be facing. The types of clubs beginners use are the exact same as the types of clubs professionals use, albeit far less expensive. Let’s get to it. First, a quick note about loft. Loft helps determine how high the ball will go. A bigger loft means a higher trajectory, while a lower loft means a lower trajectory. You will find that each club has a number. Generally speaking, lower numbers mean lower loft and longer distance and higher numbers mean higher loft and shorter distance.
Wedges
Wedges are usually used around the green for shorter shots – anything less than 100 yards – known as pitches, chips, and lobs. In a chip shot, the ball rolls more than it flies, whereas in a pitch the ball flies more than it rolls. Lobs get the ball up in the air as quickly as possible and are used to get the ball over an obstacle, like a mound, a sand trap, or out of a sand trap. There are 4 main types of wedges:• Pitching wedge – included in most iron sets, but as the name suggests is technically a wedge• Sand wedge – usually used to hit out of the sand• Gap wedge – sometimes included in iron sets and is used to cover the distances between a pitching wedge and a sand wedge• Lob wedge – used primarily to get the ball in the air quickly with very little movement after it lands
Woods (Driver)
Woods are designed and used for the longest shots. The club head is much larger and the loft is much smaller, both of which contribute to hitting shots farther. The most common woods are the 1-wood, 3-wood, and 5-wood. You will find these clubs in almost every bag. These are called woods because many years ago, the heads of these clubs were literally made out of wood. Technology has come a long way since then, and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a wooden golf club outside of a museum. The 1-wood is typically referred to as the driver and is used for the longest shots. When using a driver, it is almost always on your first shot and hit off of a tee. 3-woods and 5-woods are often referred to as fairway woods. The head on a fairway wood is much smaller than the head on a driver.
Putter
The putter is used when the ball is on the green. Although it’s not against the rules to use other clubs on the green, it is almost unheard of to use any club other than the putter. There are many instances, however, where the ball is not on the green and the player will elect to use the putter. This is usually when the ball is on the fringe, or on the fairway within several feet of the green. There are two common types of putters:• Blade putter – this is the classic putter shape, where the head is more similar in shape to a miniature golf club head• Mallet putter – strays from the classic putter shape with a lot more head behind the face of the putter; often more forgiving and many consider it easier to align.
Hybrids
A hybrid is a cross between an iron and a fairway wood, thus the name hybrid. The club head is deeper and round like a fairway wood, though not as big. Hybrids are called rescue clubs because they are more forgiving, i.e. easier to hit, than irons. Hybrids are often used in place of the lower irons (3 through 6) as lower irons are considered by many to be the hardest clubs to hit. These are essential and are the best clubs for beginners.
Irons
Irons are designed and typically used for shots between 100 and 200 yards. Named after their metal head, irons usually come in sets that are numbered 3 through 9, though 1 and 2 irons also exist, but are rare. A 3 iron would be used for farther distances and a 9 iron would be used for shorter distances. Also included in most iron sets is a pitching wedge, denoted with a P or PW on the club head. A pitching wedge would be used for even shorter distances than the 3-9 irons.
FAQ
There are a couple of key differences. Beginner golf clubs are designed to make the ball easier to hit, providing more forgiveness if the ball isn’t struck perfectly. This helps with perhaps the biggest obstacle in golf: consistently hitting the ball cleanly. High handicapper clubs are also built with lower quality and less technology. First of all, most beginners won’t be able to tell the difference between lower quality and higher quality clubs, nor will they be able to utilize the various technology that exists in more advanced clubs. The main focus of most beginners should be to learn to hit the ball cleanly consistently, and beginner clubs are designed to that end.
Clubs for advanced players add a lot more technology to help with feel, distance, and specialty shots like hooking, drawing, and backspin. This technology largely assumes the player can consistently strike the ball cleanly. Only then can a player start to tell the difference between different feels and technology of clubs.
A final note, the single most important thing that will contribute to a low golf score (low is good in golf) is hitting every shot cleanly. Clean hits are by far the biggest contributor to hitting the ball in the correct direction and at the correct distance, and beginner clubs are meant to help you get to that point as quickly as possible.
We always advise beginners not to get fitted for clubs, for a number of reasons. First off, while unlikely, you may hate the game of golf so badly after one or two outings that you never want to play again. Not only have you wasted that extra money on getting the clubs fitted specifically for you, you also have made reselling them much more difficult. As a newcomer to golf, you have no idea what feels good to you and what doesn’t as far as club length and grip size go. Some players like longer clubs, some like shorter clubs, some like softer grips, some like harder grips, some like thicker grips, etc. The only way to learn what you like is to regularly play and experiment with choking up and down on the club, for example. If you get fitted for clubs and some “expert” cuts your clubs shorter than you like, before you even know what you like, you’re stuck.
This question is typically asked by beginners, so the answer will be directed towards beginners. There are certain clubs that are essential for every golfer: driver, irons (including pitching wedge), and putter. If you have a driver, 5 through 9 irons and pitching wedge, and a putter, you have everything you need to play any golf course. If you are looking for a little more, we suggest adding a fairway wood, hybrid, and a sand wedge to the mix. Look for clubs that are forgiving to help you more quickly learn to hit the ball cleanly – clubs that are designed for beginners.
Yes! With one enormous caveat: if you have learned the fundamentals of the golf swing and/or you can consistently hit the ball cleanly. If your golf swing or your ball striking isn’t consistently good, buying new clubs won’t provide any benefit to you. If you have a solid swing and can regularly hit the ball cleanly, there is constantly new technology being developed that will assist in taking your game to the next level. Buying new clubs is the way to apply the latest technology.
Not necessarily. First timers, for example, wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between a set of $2000 irons vs. a set of $100 irons, other than the looks. Both will feel awkward at first. Also, higher price points typically mean more technology in the clubs, but your game may not be ready for that technology just yet, or it may not be suited for that particular technology at all. Do your research! Figure out what your goals are and what you’re looking for in a club. A club that is half the price of another may provide you exactly what you are looking for.