A complete set of golf clubs can easily cost between $500 and $2500, depending on whether you buy them new or second-hand.
Knowing where to look, what to look for, and how to save money and time when buying golf clubs is essential, so let us guide you in the endeavor.
We will look at the cost of some of the latest drivers, putters, irons, and wedges and why a complete second-hand set could be the best and most cost-effective option for golf.
How Many Clubs Do You Need In The Bag?
You can have as many as you want, but you can only carry 14 clubs in your bag at any time. More than this number is in your bag on the course, and you are breaking the rules- so let’s start here.
The rules of golf state that any player may only carry 14 clubs in their bag, so let’s look at what most golfers have in their bags. For starters, there are the woods and not Tiger. The driver and two fairway woods, normally a 3-wood and 5-wood.
Now for the irons. Most irons come in a set from 4-iron to pitching wedge, adding another seven clubs to the bag. Include the drivers and woods, and now you have ten. Let’s add the putter to make eleven and then three wedges – the sand wedge, gap wedge, and lob wedge to make fourteen.
Some players remove longer irons and replace them with hybrid clubs, which are a ‘hybrid’ of irons and woods and are easier to swing and hit consistently than longer irons. You have this option too, as the rules don’t state what kind of clubs you can have, only the stipulated number.
Let’s now consider what each of these individual ‘sets’ of clubs would cost and then look at what you could save if you bought a complete set.
What Do Drivers And Fairway Woods Cost?
As someone starting, you don’t need that latest driver, but before you buy one, you need to know a few technical aspects of your swing –your swing speed. This is because you need to find a driver that matches your swing speed to get the correct shaft on the club.
If you swing very fast, you will need a stiffer shaft; if you swing slower, you will need a shaft with more flexibility. Without getting too technical, the shaft bends as you swing the club, and if it flexes too much or not enough, you will struggle to get the clubface square to the ball at impact, which means your shots will go everywhere!
The best way to sort this out is to head to your local pro shop and swing a driver on the launch monitor to get some indication of your swing speed. Once you know your average swing speed, you are ready to buy a driver!
What Do Drivers Cost?
This will depend on which one you buy, and it would be advisable to start small rather than going for the hottest new driver available, simply because you need to keep some money back for the rest of the clubs for your set.
If you head to a site like globalgolf.com, you will find a vast selection of golf clubs, bags, balls, tees, shoes, gloves, and everything else you need to get going – but let’s focus on the driver.
The new Taylor Made Sim Max 2 sells new for $449, but you can buy used models of this club for between $223 and $430, and most top brand clubs would be around the same price range for used and new drivers.
Some drivers sell for much more than that, around $700 to $900, but if you are starting, you don’t need to spend that kind of money just yet. If you buy new, that’s $450, and used is about $300, leaving you $1050 or $1200 left of your $1000 budget.
What Do Fairway Woods Cost?
At the same site, fairway woods new range from around $190 for a used PXD Gen 2 fairway wood to $290+ for Taylor Made Sim2 Max D Fairway wood and $367 for Callaway’s Rogue Plus XT – remember that you would usually have two of these in your bag.
So if you opt for two new fairway woods at about $300 each, that’ll add $600 to your driver or $400 if you opt for used clubs.
The new club budget includes driver and fairway woods – $1050 with $450 remaining and the used club budget of $700 with $800 remaining. Let’s move on to the wedges.
How Much Are Wedges?
For your set, you would probably have three additional wedges, the sand wedge, gap wedge and lob wedge. You’d also buy these individually and, preferably, the same brand and model for consistency.
The leading brand on tour by a long way is Titleist’s Vokey wedges, and these would be about $190 each new and about $160 each used. You would look at about $155 mint for Cleveland’s Zip Core wedges and around $120 for used clubs.
Remember, you would need three, so for new Vokeys, add another $570, and for used add $420, while Cleveland’s wedges would cost you $465 for a new set and $360 for a used set.
Budget Update: New Vs. Used
There is a considerable difference if we look at the cost of golf clubs for just the driver, woods, and wedges and compare the new prices against used prices.
With a new driver at around $450, new fairway woods at $600 for two, and a set of wedges at around $480, the current spend is $1530.
For the used clubs, we would have $300 for the driver, $400 for the woods, and $360 for wedges which are $1060 spent so far – which is $470 less than the new clubs- and we still need to buy irons and a putter!
What Does A Set Of Irons Cost?
When it comes to irons, you can buy cast irons or forged and as a beginner, you won’t be able to swing forged irons as they are mostly for the better golfers, so cast or cavity-back irons designed for beginners would be best.
The ‘game improvement’ irons or cavity backs have more forgiveness for high handicap golfers and beginners. While the forged or blade irons look amazing ( and cost a lot more), you will struggle to hit them properly as a beginner.
Most major brands offer different cavity-back models, so you can find a set that will easily get you going.
A good set for beginners would be Ping’s 425 irons, and new ones sell for just over $1000! Yep! Irons aren’t cheap; while used, that same set would sell for $760. This would include 4-iron to PW (pitching wedge) as this is the most common set configuration with irons.
When buying irons, ensure you have the 4-iron to PW configuration, or you will pay more for fewer clubs as some sets only have the 5-iron to PW.
Budget update with a set including the driver, fairway woods, wedges, and irons: new clubs – $2520; used clubs – $1820; that’s a $700 difference!
How Much Is A Putter?
For the last addition to your set of clubs, we need to get a putter, so let’s look at what these cost, new and used on globalgolf.com
Like drivers, many putters are available, so let’s look at simple blade putters like Ping’s Anser and TaylorMade’s Spider putters as examples.
The Anser putter would sell for $290 new, while the Spider Tour Red putter would be much less at $146, and most putters used and new would be in this price range. Scotty Cameron’s 2019 Phantom X5 will be around the $430 mark if you want the top end.
As a beginner, spending around $200 would be a good buy as you could get a relatively decent new putter or a good used one.
Budget update including putter – New : $2820 ($300 putter) and used : $2020 – $800 difference.
Why Buying A Complete Set Could Be Your Best Option
Considering the costs and budget for both new and used clubs when bought individually, you can see that this is not a cheap sport, but there is another way to get going and save a good few dollars and buy a complete set.
Whether new or used, you can often get great deals on used sets with all the clubs and a bag for much less than you can buy used individual clubs for, as we have looked at above.
For example, on globalgolf.com, a full set of TaylorMade RBZ Speedlite sells for $1460! This set includes the driver, two fairway woods, a four hybrid, five hybrid, 6-iron to 9-iron, Pitching Wedge, Sand Wedge, putter, and the bag.
That’s a $1200 difference between the used set without the bag and a complete set with the bag, and even if you wanted to add the gap and lob wedge, this would save you around $800 – plus you get the bag too!
Most retail golf stores have a dedicated section where they sell complete used sets, and you can even buy completed sets new for much less than it would cost to buy the individual clubs and then still have to add a bag.
Many other online channels offer full sets, whether new or used. You can pick phenomenal deals on clubs in reputable groups on Facebook Marketplace and respectable stores with online shopping options.
Try Before You Buy
As someone starting in golf, the best thing you can do before laying out any cash is to go to a golf store and try out some clubs first. Try a few different drivers, fairway woods, irons, and wedges to see which ones feel better for you.
There is no hard and fast rule that says you HAVE to buy the same brand, and most pros have different branded drivers, irons, wedges, and putters based on what feels the best for them.
Putters come in various types, from the blade to the mallet and hybrids. Make a few putts with each and see which one works and feels better for your swing- then you can shell out and take it home.
Once you have found what you like, make notes of the brand and model of the driver, fairway woods, wedges, irons, and putter, and then see whether you can find them online or elsewhere for cheaper.
As a first-time golfer or first-time buyer, don’t get suckered into ‘the too-good-to-be-true offers you sometimes find online. Rather stick with trusted sites and suppliers if you go the online route.
What Will My First Set Of Golf Clubs Cost Me?
Based on the numbers we’ve looked at above, you would be in for between $1400 and $2500, depending on what you want to spend. Remember that buying individual clubs will not get you a golf bag, and often if you look around, you will find great deals on good quality full sets that are ideal for a beginner.
Another point to remember here, especially if you have bought your irons at a store or even from an online retailer, is to ask about upgrading and trade-ins. Many retailers understand that once the golf bug bites and players improve, they want to look at better clubs.
It will save you money if you can trade your clubs back to the people you got them from and then put in a little more to get better ones, than going through the process of buying a new set – you can also sell your used clubs online as well, but this may take longer. The price you get may be the same or only slightly more than a trade-in.
Conclusion
As a first-time buyer, rather see if you can pick up a good used set, as you will often get all the accessories like balls, gloves, tees, and the bag included, which will save you enough to pay for lessons or your first round.
Now that you know how much golf clubs cost, you can start your journey into this magical game. Remember, you will still require shoes, clothing, a glove or two, golf balls, and a bag, but if you shop smart and don’t look to own the best set of forged irons you can’t afford, you can build a great set for a lot less.
