My advice on buying clubs

AFTER I stopped playing golf as a tournament professional and became a club professional, the retailing side of my new job was a real eye-opener!

When it came to choosing a new set of clubs, women were often tempted by what looked ‘pretty’, with the actual colouring of the clubs a definite factor!

Men were more influenced by advertising in that they often wanted to play with the clubs that their golfing heroes used, along with using the stiffest shaft, least amount of loft, and preferably with a name that had a macho association!

These are obviously generalisations, and with more choice and information now much more readily available, as well as custom fitting being the norm rather than the exception, hopefully getting the right clubs for your ability, strength and skill level happens more frequently today than it did 10 or 15 years ago.

With the models of golf clubs changing almost as quickly as fashion, and there being so many different manufacturers, trying to select what is best for you as an individual can be a minefield, so where do you start?

If you’re someone who takes regular lessons from a professional, he or she should be your first port of call as they will already have a good idea of what will suit you best. Once you have the information about your requirements, such as shaft, lie angle and grip size, the next thing to concentrate on is the lofts on your speciality clubs (i.e. woods and wedges).

Then it does become a matter of personal choice and what you can afford. Personally, if I were investing a considerable amount of money in a set of clubs, I would always want to test them first, and, if at all possible, be personally fitted. Most club professionals who recommend certain manufacturers will have trial clubs in those brands that you can borrow, and often will have had training in how to ‘fit’ you for those particular clubs.

Increasingly these days manufacturers will also offer a club professional’s client the opportunity to visit their fitting centre to be fitted for new clubs free of charge.

Say for example that you had decided that you wanted to play with Cobra or Ping golf clubs, two of the top manufacturers for women, you would need to find a professional who has an account with Titleist or Ping, then that professional could make you an appointment to visit their fitting centres in Cambridge and Gainsborough respectively.

After your fitting, your personalised clubs would be made and sent to the professional for collection and payment. Many golf clubs also arrange days when a particular manufacturer offers the opportunity for members to try their clubs and have someone on hand to offer expert advice. Many of the things that are important when choosing which clubs to buy are fairly common sense.

Are the clubs that you’re playing with so heavy that you are not in control of them? Do you prefer your woods or your irons? Most women don’t generate enough clubhead speed to be able to hit long irons, so don’t buy them in the first place.

Many of the top women tournament pros these days don’t carry anything above a five iron, instead preferring to use lofted woods or hybrids, which in many cases are easier to hit, and produce a higher-flighted shot. Probably the most common thing that I’ve seen over the years when women are at the start of their lives as golfers is that they start with their husband’s or partner’s old set of clubs, which are too heavy, too stiff, too long, have the wrong lie angle and too thick a grip. I then hear the comment that “I’ll get something better when I’m good enough”.

I have always maintained that you should play with the best clubs that you can afford right from the start! If you do start with second-hand clubs, make sure that they are approximately the right weight, shaft flex and length for you. Another often neglected area when we purchase second-hand clubs is that the grips are so worn out or perished it’s impossible to grip them without holding on for grim death! Do clean and check your grips regularly, and replace them if necessary.

If you’re one of those lucky women that are having new clubs as a Christmas present make sure that your partner gets ones that are right for you!