Golfers get in here

[Mo0o]

I started golfing during the summer and I really liked it. I currently have a set of really shitty irons that I got for 20 bucks. They're all wrong for me since they're a pretty stiff steel shaft and not very forgiving. But regardless, I'm slowly learning.

Now that Christmas has come and gone, I got a load of money that I wanna spend on a set of clubs. I was looking at the Nike CCi clubs. Reviews say they're very forgiving clubs and the price seems reasonable (~$300).

Do you guys have any suggestions for other sets within the same price range? The main objective is forgiveness since I'm still learning and the bigger the sweet spot the better.


Edit: I went to regular golf shop that let me test out a few clubs on their range. I tried out the Mizuno MX-19, Taylormade r7, Nike CCi and Callaway X-18. They all felt pretty good although I was hitting the MX-19s a bit better than the other 3 in terms of distance. Checked ebay and I could get 4-GW for about 200 bucks which seems like a good deal. Anyone have any experience with these? Anyways, thanks for all the advice

 

[CKent]

"Forgiving" = flexible shafts & big club heads (or irons with the weight surrounding the clubhead as opposed to "wedge" shaped irons) = as your swing quality goes up, your distance goes down

There's always a tradeoff, but for a beginner more flexible shafts // bigger clubheads are probably the way to go. I'm not super-familiar with brandnames but you can apply this to whatever you're looking at buying.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

^^ This ^^

But in reality... the golfer > the clubs

I have a set of Calloway irons and Taylor Made woods... and I still suck... My suckitude is directly related to the cost of my balls too... If I'm playing with Titleist... I'll spray them all over... If I use the LS Wal-Mart specials... Man, I can play on those for months at a time.

Take lessons...

 

[Mo0o]

I definitely agree and I know that these clubs aren't gonna make me some kind of low handicapper. I just wanted to have a decent set of clubs if I'm going to be spending money on it so just looking for some advice

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Originally posted by: Mo0o
I definitely agree and I know that these clubs aren't gonna make me some kind of low handicapper. I just wanted to have a decent set of clubs if I'm going to be spending money on it so just looking for some advice

PM Gaghalfrunt... He's the golf guru

 

[Random Variable]

I love to golf. But if the economy doesn't improve over the next few months, I don't see myself golfing more than a few times over the next year.

 

[Gamingphreek]

You need to get your swing speed clocked too. If you already have a fast swing and are still accurate, then a softer shaft will hurt you severely as your shot will slice badly when you hit it.

Honestly, Irons are really something that you should be looking at as a beginning golfer. You should probably worry about your driver and fairway woods as far as buying more clubs. Practice should focus on your irons, but money shouldn't until you get a lot better.

That being said - make sure to test whatever you get. If you don't like it, bring it back. Acuity are good beginners club sets though...

-Kevin

 

[Lurknomore]

Equipment will not make as much difference as your "feel" during the swing.

Cavity back, muscle back, perimeter weighting, graphite, titanium, shaft flex- they will only matter once you get enough practice and experience to fine tune your game.
Right now, get some classic looking irons (muscle back) with medium flex graphite shafts- I'm not up to speed on the brands - and any TM, Nike or Callaway woods.

The real key is your grip (every wonder why Sergio Garcia was so damn finicky about his grip during the 2002 US Open). It must never slip (get some good gloves) but you must never grip too tightly. You must always relax, like the best hitters in baseball who seem really loose with the bat before they rip one out. A very tight grip will almost always result in blisters- you want calloused hands, not blisters.

Don't rush your backswing and don't fret about how it looks. Even the best like Jim Furyk and Ray Floyd had the weirdest backswings. But your downswing must be powerful, your hands must never collapse and should stay ahead of the clubhead, and you must accelerate through.

You may slice badly at first, or you may hook even worse. A bad hook is far worse than a bad slice.

Remember, a full swing is really an exaggerated chip shot. And nobody misses a chip shot. So never overlook making good contact with the ball.
And, oh- just goto the range and have fun. PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE!

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: Gamingphreek
You need to get your swing speed clocked too. If you already have a fast swing and are still accurate, then a softer shaft will hurt you severely as your shot will slice badly when you hit it.

Honestly, Irons are really something that you should be looking at as a beginning golfer. You should probably worry about your driver and fairway woods as far as buying more clubs. Practice should focus on your irons, but money shouldn't until you get a lot better.

That being said - make sure to test whatever you get. If you don't like it, bring it back. Acuity are good beginners club sets though...

-Kevin

Sorry I guess i didnt make it clear in my post. I AM looking for an iron set.

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: Lurknomore
Equipment will not make as much difference as your "feel" during the swing.
Cavity back, muscle back, perimeter weighting, graphite, titanium, shaft flex- they will only matter once you get enough practice and experience to fine tune your game.
Right now, get some classic looking irons (muscle back) with medium flex graphite shafts- I'm not up to speed on the brands - and any TM, Nike or Callaway woods.
The real key is your grip (every wonder why Sergio Garcia was so damn finicky about his grip during the 2002 US Open). It must never slip (get some good gloves) but you must never grip too tightly. You must always relax, like the best hitters in baseball who seem really loose with the bat before they rip one out. A very tight grip will almost always result in blisters- you want calloused hands, not blisters.
Don't rush your backswing and don't fret about how it looks. Even the best like Jim Furyk and Ray Floyd had the weirdest backswings. But your downswing must be powerful, your hands must never collapse and should stay ahead of the clubhead, and you must accelerate through.
You may slice badly at first, or you may hook even worse. A bad hook is far worse than a bad slice.
Remember, a full swing is really an exaggerated chip shot. And nobody misses a chip shot. So never overlook making good contact with the ball.
And, oh- just goto the range and have fun. PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE!

Yeah I actually rarely slice or hook but my biggest problem is consistency in not topping the ball and thereby losing a lot of distance. I'm also trying to increase my swing speed since my distances are still pretty pathetic

 

[Lurknomore]

Originally posted by: Mo0o

Originally posted by: Lurknomore
Equipment will not make as much difference as your "feel" during the swing.
Cavity back, muscle back, perimeter weighting, graphite, titanium, shaft flex- they will only matter once you get enough practice and experience to fine tune your game.
Right now, get some classic looking irons (muscle back) with medium flex graphite shafts- I'm not up to speed on the brands - and any TM, Nike or Callaway woods.
The real key is your grip (every wonder why Sergio Garcia was so damn finicky about his grip during the 2002 US Open). It must never slip (get some good gloves) but you must never grip too tightly. You must always relax, like the best hitters in baseball who seem really loose with the bat before they rip one out. A very tight grip will almost always result in blisters- you want calloused hands, not blisters.
Don't rush your backswing and don't fret about how it looks. Even the best like Jim Furyk and Ray Floyd had the weirdest backswings. But your downswing must be powerful, your hands must never collapse and should stay ahead of the clubhead, and you must accelerate through.
You may slice badly at first, or you may hook even worse. A bad hook is far worse than a bad slice.
Remember, a full swing is really an exaggerated chip shot. And nobody misses a chip shot. So never overlook making good contact with the ball.
And, oh- just goto the range and have fun. PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE!

Yeah I actually rarely slice or hook but my biggest problem is consistency in not topping the ball and thereby losing a lot of distance. I'm also trying to increase my swing speed since my distances are still pretty pathetic

Yeah, it seems right now, since you state that you're not getting enough distance, that slicing or hooking will not be a factor.
Remember, to hook or slice, you must be able to impart enough spin on the ball to produce that effect. So, key right now is to produce downspeed with proper ball contact to kill any chance of blading or skulling the shot, and also so that you may control the flight of the ball. Slow swingspeed will nullify any spin action. At this point in your game you want to make good contact, period. The hooking and slicing will follow.
Like I said, start with chipping. Chipping is key. If you were to nonchalantly chip a ball in your back yard, or even a park, you might just end up hitting it over a fence or breaking a window. It may have travelled way further than you imagined. That's actually GOOD. You were relaxed, not thinking about the shot, and it just flew.
Just imagine it that way. A longer shot comes from a bigger and bigger chip shot. As your backswing arc gets bigger, you must control it. You will turn together with your hip, your right arm naturally bent, and your pulled left arm naturally straighter to form a triangle. Try to preserve this triangle for as long as possible by turning with your big muscles- hip, lower back, stomach, and lats.
As you're turning, you must steady your anchor right leg as your left leg will naturally cave or bend in, with your left pelvis and quadricep turning clockwise at the knee. This is one natural motion, and it will put stress on your knee . To alleviate this, your left heel may raise off the ground to lessen the stress.
Try to picture a discus thrower or a baseball slugger. They look completely different from a golfer (and each other) but each is doing the same thing. Proper weight shift, leg action, hip+back+shoulder turn to powerfully explode their projectile.

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: Lurknomore

Originally posted by: Mo0o

Originally posted by: Lurknomore
Equipment will not make as much difference as your "feel" during the swing.
Cavity back, muscle back, perimeter weighting, graphite, titanium, shaft flex- they will only matter once you get enough practice and experience to fine tune your game.
Right now, get some classic looking irons (muscle back) with medium flex graphite shafts- I'm not up to speed on the brands - and any TM, Nike or Callaway woods.
The real key is your grip (every wonder why Sergio Garcia was so damn finicky about his grip during the 2002 US Open). It must never slip (get some good gloves) but you must never grip too tightly. You must always relax, like the best hitters in baseball who seem really loose with the bat before they rip one out. A very tight grip will almost always result in blisters- you want calloused hands, not blisters.
Don't rush your backswing and don't fret about how it looks. Even the best like Jim Furyk and Ray Floyd had the weirdest backswings. But your downswing must be powerful, your hands must never collapse and should stay ahead of the clubhead, and you must accelerate through.
You may slice badly at first, or you may hook even worse. A bad hook is far worse than a bad slice.
Remember, a full swing is really an exaggerated chip shot. And nobody misses a chip shot. So never overlook making good contact with the ball.
And, oh- just goto the range and have fun. PRACTICE! PRACTICE! PRACTICE!

Yeah I actually rarely slice or hook but my biggest problem is consistency in not topping the ball and thereby losing a lot of distance. I'm also trying to increase my swing speed since my distances are still pretty pathetic

Yeah, it seems right now, since you state that you're not getting enough distance, that slicing or hooking will not be a factor.
Remember, to hook or slice, you must be able to impart enough spin on the ball to produce that effect. So, key right now is to produce downspeed with proper ball contact to kill any chance of blading or skulling the shot, and also so that you may control the flight of the ball. Slow swingspeed will nullify any spin action. At this point in your game you want to make good contact, period. The hooking and slicing will follow.
Like I said, start with chipping. Chipping is key. If you were to nonchalantly chip a ball in your back yard, or even a park, you might just end up hitting it over a fence or breaking a window. It may have travelled way further than you imagined. That's actually GOOD. You were relaxed, not thinking about the shot, and it just flew.
Just imagine it that way. A longer shot comes from a bigger and bigger chip shot. As your backswing arc gets bigger, you must control it. You will turn together with your hip, your right arm naturally bent, and your pulled left arm naturally straighter to form a triangle. Try to preserve this triangle for as long as possible by turning with your big muscles- hip, lower back, stomach, and lats.
As you're turning, you must steady your anchor right leg as your left leg will naturally cave or bend in, with your left pelvis and quadricep turning clockwise at the knee. This is one natural motion, and it will put stress on your knee . To alleviate this, your left heel may raise off the ground to lessen the stress.
Try to picture a discus thrower or a baseball slugger. They look completely different from a golfer (and each other) but each is doing the same thing. Proper weight shift, leg action, hip+back+shoulder turn to powerfully explode their projectile.

Ah that makes sense. Yeah I've heart everything you've said before and seen it performed. Just gotta take what I know I SHOULD do and actually do it.

 

[mozirry]

I prefer steel shafted irons, I like the feel of the weight. It helps me w/ ball control

 

[GagHalfrunt]

At this stage fit is more important than anything. If you're enjoying the game, want to keep playing and want to improve you need to forget brand, forget reviews and concentrate on finding the best set-up for your game. You need to get on a launch monitor under the eyes of a knowledgeable fitter who can study your swing and get you into the right heads on the right shafts with the right flex and the right grips. It's all important and it's all going to effect how quickly you can improve and where you're going to top out. Buying clubs out of a catalog without worrying about fit is like buying a pair of shoes without even checking the size. Sure, a miracle might happen and you'll get something perfect, but the odds are against you.

 

[dirtboy]

It is cheaper to have custom fitted clubs than it is to buy off the shelf. You need to find a golf shop that will check your swing speed and what not, then give you a price on making some clubs.

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
At this stage fit is more important than anything. If you're enjoying the game, want to keep playing and want to improve you need to forget brand, forget reviews and concentrate on finding the best set-up for your game. You need to get on a launch monitor under the eyes of a knowledgeable fitter who can study your swing and get you into the right heads on the right shafts with the right flex and the right grips. It's all important and it's all going to effect how quickly you can improve and where you're going to top out. Buying clubs out of a catalog without worrying about fit is like buying a pair of shoes without even checking the size. Sure, a miracle might happen and you'll get something perfect, but the odds are against you.

How much do you think that'll run me? And would most golf shops have something like that?

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Originally posted by: Mo0o

Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
At this stage fit is more important than anything. If you're enjoying the game, want to keep playing and want to improve you need to forget brand, forget reviews and concentrate on finding the best set-up for your game. You need to get on a launch monitor under the eyes of a knowledgeable fitter who can study your swing and get you into the right heads on the right shafts with the right flex and the right grips. It's all important and it's all going to effect how quickly you can improve and where you're going to top out. Buying clubs out of a catalog without worrying about fit is like buying a pair of shoes without even checking the size. Sure, a miracle might happen and you'll get something perfect, but the odds are against you.

How much do you think that'll run me? And would most golf shops have something like that?

Asking how much clubs will run is like asking how much a car costs. It could be a little, it could be a lot, it's all up to you. With big name OEM clubs like Nike, Callaway, Taylormade etc you're paying very little for the club itself. You're paying for the name, the marketing and the contracts of pros paid to endorse the brand. With customs the equation is different, you're paying very little for the parts and you're paying most for the skill of the man who is fitting you and building the set to an exacting set of specifications. A high quality set of custom clubs is a lot less money and a lot higher quality than a high end set found in a pro shop. But high priced pro shop clubs can be greatly discounted because there's so much profit built into them in the first place while quality workmanship isn't ever really on sale. A big name set of irons might be $500 to $1200 or so, on closeout for last years model the low end can drop to $250-$300 or so like those Nikes you mentioned. For customs the price will range anywhere from $300 on the low end to $600+ on the top end. You'll see that they're still WAY less expensive than top dollar pro shop sets costing $1000+, but they're not cheaper than the same pro shop sets when the huge profit margins are stripped away. If you think spending $400 on a set of "no names" that fit is worse than spending $400 on a set of Nikes you saw in a magazine then custom clubs are not for you. Buy the Nikes and hope for the best. But if you're serious about the game and are hoping that your investment in new clubs makes you better, then you'll understand that $400 on clubs that allow you to improve is vastly superior to spending $300 on junk that won't be better than what you have now, then you need to go the custom route.

No, most golf shops will not have something like that. Most pro shops stock major brand, pre-built clubs. They're like buying a suit off the rack and all you're dealing with it salesmen on commission. Custom clubs are a completely different animal. It's like walking into a high quality tailor shop where everything is made to order rather than sitting in dusty boxes in a warehouse. You'll rarely find both OEM and custom under the same roof. You'll need to look in the phone book under "custom golf" rather than simply "golf".

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt

Originally posted by: Mo0o

Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
At this stage fit is more important than anything. If you're enjoying the game, want to keep playing and want to improve you need to forget brand, forget reviews and concentrate on finding the best set-up for your game. You need to get on a launch monitor under the eyes of a knowledgeable fitter who can study your swing and get you into the right heads on the right shafts with the right flex and the right grips. It's all important and it's all going to effect how quickly you can improve and where you're going to top out. Buying clubs out of a catalog without worrying about fit is like buying a pair of shoes without even checking the size. Sure, a miracle might happen and you'll get something perfect, but the odds are against you.

How much do you think that'll run me? And would most golf shops have something like that?

Asking how much clubs will run is like asking how much a car costs. It could be a little, it could be a lot, it's all up to you. With big name OEM clubs like Nike, Callaway, Taylormade etc you're paying very little for the club itself. You're paying for the name, the marketing and the contracts of pros paid to endorse the brand. With customs the equation is different, you're paying very little for the parts and you're paying most for the skill of the man who is fitting you and building the set to an exacting set of specifications. A high quality set of custom clubs is a lot less money and a lot higher quality than a high end set found in a pro shop. But high priced pro shop clubs can be greatly discounted because there's so much profit built into them in the first place while quality workmanship isn't ever really on sale. A big name set of irons might be $500 to $1200 or so, on closeout for last years model the low end can drop to $250-$300 or so like those Nikes you mentioned. For customs the price will range anywhere from $300 on the low end to $600+ on the top end. You'll see that they're still WAY less expensive than top dollar pro shop sets costing $1000+, but they're not cheaper than the same pro shop sets when the huge profit margins are stripped away. If you think spending $400 on a set of "no names" that fit is worse than spending $400 on a set of Nikes you saw in a magazine then custom clubs are not for you. Buy the Nikes and hope for the best. But if you're serious about the game and are hoping that your investment in new clubs makes you better, then you'll understand that $400 on clubs that allow you to improve is vastly superior to spending $300 on junk that won't be better than what you have now, then you need to go the custom route.

No, most golf shops will not have something like that. Most pro shops stock major brand, pre-built clubs. They're like buying a suit off the rack and all you're dealing with it salesmen on commission. Custom clubs are a completely different animal. It's like walking into a high quality tailor shop where everything is made to order rather than sitting in dusty boxes in a warehouse. You'll rarely find both OEM and custom under the same roof. You'll need to look in the phone book under "custom golf" rather than simply "golf".

ah I see. Gonna have to do some more research then

 

[Mo0o]

Did a little research. The custom clubs are a little too far out of my price range at $500+. I went to regular golf shop that let me test out a few clubs on their range. I tried out the Mizuno MX-19, Taylormade r7, Nike CCi and Callaway X-18. They all felt pretty good although I was hitting the MX-19s a bit better than the other 3 in terms of distance. Checked ebay and I could get 4-GW for about 200 bucks which seems like a good deal. Anyone have any experience with these? Anyways, thanks for all the advice

 

[GagHalfrunt]

I'm not a Mizuno fan, but if that's what you were hitting best then go for it. Just make sure that the clubs you buy are EXACTLY the same as the ones you hit. If they have a different shaft, different grip, different lie angle, different length or any other variation they're essential a completely different set and you might hit them worse than you hit the demo set.

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
I'm not a Mizuno fan, but if that's what you were hitting best then go for it. Just make sure that the clubs you buy are EXACTLY the same as the ones you hit. If they have a different shaft, different grip, different lie angle, different length or any other variation they're essential a completely different set and you might hit them worse than you hit the demo set.

right on. thanks gaghalfrunt

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
I'm not a Mizuno fan, but if that's what you were hitting best then go for it. Just make sure that the clubs you buy are EXACTLY the same as the ones you hit. If they have a different shaft, different grip, different lie angle, different length or any other variation they're essential a completely different set and you might hit them worse than you hit the demo set.

Agreed. EXACTLY the same. You found a club you like and kudos for you. But as GagHalfrunt said they need to be exactly the same. What's printed on the head doesn't mean it's the same.

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: spidey07

Originally posted by: GagHalfrunt
I'm not a Mizuno fan, but if that's what you were hitting best then go for it. Just make sure that the clubs you buy are EXACTLY the same as the ones you hit. If they have a different shaft, different grip, different lie angle, different length or any other variation they're essential a completely different set and you might hit them worse than you hit the demo set.

Agreed. EXACTLY the same. You found a club you like and kudos for you. But as GagHalfrunt said they need to be exactly the same. What's printed on the head doesn't mean it's the same.

I'll go back to the shop to make sure I have the exact specs and perhaps try out a few more clubs (any recs?)

 

[pmoa]

i learned playing golf on crap ass 150 dollar dunlops I got off of ebay...as i got lessonsandnowplay to a USGA handicap of 12.4...i upgraded my clubs on feel and how confident they made me...granted i can occassionally break 90 but mostly stay around the low 90's i learned early on that clubs dont matter unless you fix your swing and as you improve on your confidence slowly upgrade to clubs that will fit your own swing...

GET FITTED! It's worth it! It mightnotmake you a better player but at least it cantell you what will help make golf more fun...

 

[Mo0o]

Originally posted by: pmoa
i learned playing golf on crap ass 150 dollar dunlops I got off of ebay...as i got lessonsandnowplay to a USGA handicap of 12.4...i upgraded my clubs on feel and how confident they made me...granted i can occassionally break 90 but mostly stay around the low 90's i learned early on that clubs dont matter unless you fix your swing and as you improve on your confidence slowly upgrade to clubs that will fit your own swing...

GET FITTED! It's worth it! It mightnotmake you a better player but at least it cantell you what will help make golf more fun...

I'm looking on ebay and these mizzys only cost about 200 bucks so I think i could live with that. The ones I have now were $20 bucks for a 3-PW so you can guess as to how crappy they are.