Starting over ( again )

[CrapHacker]

Need help please. As a newbie here I don't know the etiquette for posts, so I'll just dive in, and you can correct me as necessary.

Basically I'm broke. Shouldn't really even be contemplating it, but.....

I tried getting back into the game last year, after many years away, to the extent of buying some new Benross clubs and new kit too. ( About £500 complete set ). But it got knicked and I found my insurance didn't cover it, so I gave up before I really got anywhere.

But I wanna play.

So I need some cheap clubs. I have played to 13 many, many years ago, and reckon I could fairly easily get to 18-22ish with a bit of practice.

Any advice on where to go? Is 2nd hand best, or are any of these new fangled package sets up to any sort of standard? Eg a set of Hippo Ryder Cup OS4 for £150 sounds reasonable, both for quality and price.

I'm basically confusing myself. I can't find any reviews on any of these sets. I'm not expecting too much, but I don't want clubs that are so bad I won't enjoy the game.

I basically want a few clubs that I can wander round the local pay and play, and gradually improve it bit by bit as money allows.

Any advice ?

Cheers.

 

[fastmover2]

If it was me I would go for decent secondhand kit rather than new "starter set" style gear. See how you get on with it and then think about where to go from there. I believe that if you get a reasonable set of secondhand sticks made by one of the higher end manufacturers you will probably do better when it comes time to trade up. The hippo etc. type stuff will be worth next to nothing as a trade in I believe.

 

[madandra]

I am with fastmover on this one as a half decent second hand set will benifit you more than a pack. Try your local American Golf or similar as they sometimes stock clearance clubs that have been traded in. I noticed the AG in Edinburgh selling Yonex V-Mass (New) for only £149 and also nice Wolson Di7's for £130.

 

[Smiffy]

I played yesterday with a mate of mine. Hadn't played with him for a while, and on the first tee he smacked a 3 iron straight down the middle. His second shot only just missed the green. He carried on hitting his 3 iron off the tee on most holes, and was deadly with it. First time he had played "my" course and he scored 35 points. Last time I played with him he wasn't hitting his irons this well. I commented on it half way round and he showed me the irons he was using. Cheapy Dunlops he had bought from JJB Sports for £7.99 each!! He just kept buying one or two everytime he went in there until he had built up the full set. He plays off 12, and was hitting the ball absolutely miles. His chipping and putting was crap, but his iron play was some of the best I'd witnessed for ages.
Kinda says it all really.

 

[Mike_j_golf]

Hi,
I think if i was you i would go with the second hand kit a set on Muzino MX 17's or 15's then u would just need a driver and maybe a utility u could pick up a cheap md golf 3 wood think there maybe some for sale in the other section there are plents of good second hand drivers out there for a lot less than a 100 Ping G5 taylormade r7 draw.
Mike

 

[nicksampo]

As all the above say, second hand is the way to go. But £150 may be a bit of a squeeze. If you up that to £200 or even £250 then you can get a really quality set of clubs. Have a look on golfbidder.co.uk, or even better search ebay for sets of 3-4 year old cavity backs on bidding (Cobra 3100s etc, you can get these for about £80 now) and your bound to get a good deal. As far as woods go, I would recommend MD or Benross last year stuff is going cheap and is probably better than the 4-5 year old clubs that you'll get for a similar price of the premium brands. Good luck with the restart!

 

[bobmac]

ORRRR
Why not start with a half set and build up later?

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I would vote for 2nd hand but would shy away from golfbidder initially as they seem pricey to me. Most AG's will have a few sets of 2nd hand irons and there are usually the odd drivers, 3 woods and putters there as well. Providing you aren't too precious about make or model there should be something there to get you started. You can pick upa chepa bag for £30-40 and some of the brand new putters are about the same.

 

[RGDave]

I would look in the local paper. As the season is starting, I'd bet there will be lots around now, with folk buying new gear.
Before I found regular employment (many years ago now), I picked up 2 or 3 sets from the rag.....quite good stuff too, for not very much...2 sets of Mizunos, 2 sets of Tommy Armours, bags, putters, never more than £60 for a set....

 

[viscount17]

on this occasion I would say don't exclude ebay as you won't be looking at new 'name' clubs, which are the ones that get faked.

generally the weakness of package sets are the shafts in the woods, the irons are usually reasonable.

 

[GB72]

Some of the forged MD gear from a couple of years ago can be picked up for very little these days but has always been well thought of.

 

[CrapHacker]

Wow

Thanks for a great response.

I'll keep my eyes peeled for a decent 2nd hand set - I've tried the local rag, but the fools are asking for £50 for a few unmatched post war tools

I hadn't thought of AG - there's one just outside Brighton, so I'll pop in next time I'm passing.

But if nothing decent shows up it seems I could worse that pick up a few of those cheap Dunlops, just to get me started, maybe.

I mean, a good walk spoiled is better than a good walk.

My local pay and play has an offer on a set of Petrons for £130. Nostalgia alone says that's a possibility - Back in the 70's my first ever set were Petron Impala blades.

But of course you lot would be too young to remember them

Thanks again

 

[viscount17]

what part of Brighton - my old stamping grounds, used to live near Hollingbury

as to the Petrons, I started with a set of those 3 years ago, snapped the head (not shaft!) off the 7-i in 6 weeks

 

[jammydodger]

Sent you a pm craphacker