Why Spend Loads

[Oddsocks]

Having only played the game 5 months, I am a little confused about golf clubs. I can understand the difference between balls, as they are designed to do different things, and I know that better golf shoes feel more comfortable, but golfing bats?

By this stage you may think I am a complete idiot, but the bloke who sold me my complete set (including bag) played worse when he bought himself an expensive set of Callaways, which would indicate to me that it's what suits you, and NOT how much they cost. My irons, 3 wood, and 5 wood are Dunlop's with graphite shafts, I have two cheap hybrids, and a £4.50 Great Big Bertha I bought on ebay. Having had two pro's look at them, they both told me they are reasonable clubs. I make plenty of bad shots, but I am pretty dam sure that this is my fault, and not the fault of the clubs. When I get things right I can hit a pretty good drive. I can hit 3/5 wood off of the fairway in a straight line, and a long way for someone of my maturing years and inexperience. I can chip a ball accurately with my higher numbered clubs, and my £7.50 1.5 ball mallet putter, I can also be pretty awesome with.

I am expecting you all to come back to me informing me that what I have at the moment is fine for a beginner, but if I ever get any better I will need more expensive clubs. Can someone actually tell me what these clubs will do that my present one's don't ?

But.....but...... Are yours shiny!

 

[xcore]

Wait till you see the prices of pxg clubs!

 

[delc]

Darren Clarke (like any other top player) could probably attach a raw piece of metal to a stick he found in the woods and hit a nice, high draw. The rest of us will be better of with clubs that properly suit them and their game.
Doesn't have to mean that they need to be new, expensive clubs, but chances are that overall built quality and consistency will be better if you stay away from cheap clubs/sets.

I certainly wouldn't buy a cheap starter set with die cast heads and shafts of unknown origin, but almost anything better would be OK.

 

[ger147]

Absolutely true. Was it not Steven Hendry that used a £3 snooker cue his whole career ?

A common myth. Hendry's cue was a Powerglide Connoisseur and a brand new one cost about £150 in 1980.

 

[Hacker Khan]

I am retired now, but most of my working life I worked at a fairly senior level in the retail business. The product my business sold was outdoor clothing pursuits. That said, I suppose it could have been anything. There is a common perception amongst the public that you get what you pay for, whereas in reality this is not always the case. Many products were made to the same spec in the same factory, but one had a top brand name and sold for twice the price. Waterproof jackets are a great example. Goretex is a country mile ahead of everything else, and if you want a breathable fabric, nothing else compares. Other than that everything else is much of a muchness, but the price varies incredibly. At one time we sold trainers. At the time everyone wanted reeboks, but thought HiTec were naff. As it happens they were made in the same factory, and some of the styles were almost identical. The main difference was price. Much the same can be said for cars, with people paying twice as much for an Audi, when it is only really a Skoda.

Now, I'm not pretending that the steel used for a Callaway head isn't better than a Dunlop head, or the graphite shaft on a Ping club isn't better than Slazenger club, but I would argue that the price difference can't be justified. Ultimately, a golf club has an angled head, with a shaft, and it is used to strike a ball. The slight difference in quality may knock a single shot off of a round for a very competent golfer, but for most mortals the thing is that the clubs one owns are suited to that person, and NOT the branding on the package.

Of course, your opinions may differ, and I respect that

But it's not really. Yes the underpinnings of some Audis are the same as some Skodas VW, Seats etc. But then the materials used to build the rest of the car and the quality of those materials are different.

 

[Sats]

Why buy good suit when a cheap one will do.... why buy an expensive steak over a cheap one.... cheap whiskey over a good single malt..why drive a ferrari when a R reg micra will do.....

I've a friend who winces at the cost of golf clubs but will spend £££ on a fishing rod. Its all horses for courses.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Darren Clarke (like any other top player) could probably attach a raw piece of metal to a stick he found in the woods and hit a nice, high draw. The rest of us will be better of with clubs that properly suit them and their game.
Doesn't have to mean that they need to be new, expensive clubs, but chances are that overall built quality and consistency will be better if you stay away from cheap clubs/sets.

Not if the components i.e. grips, shafts, ferrules and heads are essentially the same.

True Temper, KBS, NS Pro, Lamkin & Golf Pride etc; make and supply the same products to Titleist, Taylor Made, Mizuno, MD, Snake Eyes or whoever. Makes no difference to them.

 

[Break90]

Cos she'll only spend it on handbags and shoes if I don't......

 

[WWG]

Why buy good suit when a cheap one will do.... why buy an expensive steak over a cheap one.... cheap whiskey over a good single malt..why drive a ferrari when a R reg micra will do.....

I've a friend who winces at the cost of golf clubs but will spend £££ on a fishing rod. Its all horses for courses.

Absolutely, and if someone gets pleasure from spending their hard earned money on a set of clubs, and then get's pleasure from it, GOOD ON THEM. It's only a problem when someone is stupid enough to get themselves in debt in order to get a digit off their handicap, but I would be surprised if there were any more than a handful of people like that in the entire country. My thread was to determine why I should consider lashing out on clubs if and when I ever get better. As yet I haven't heard an argument on why I should do so.

I have owned many cars over the years, Fords, Vauxhalls, Peugeots, Kias, etc. The only prestige car I have ever owned was a Merc E Class, and it spent half of it's life in the repair shop whilst the dealer printed out massive bills for me. Of course, when it was running OK it was lovely. My point is that quality is debatable, and brands certainly don't mean anything. If I ever get any better and want to push on, I may certainly consider some new sticks, but to be honest I have doubts either will ever happen, but who knows ?

 

[WWG]

But it's not really. Yes the underpinnings of some Audis are the same as some Skodas VW, Seats etc. But then the materials used to build the rest of the car and the quality of those materials are different.

Same engines, gear boxes, chassis, and suspension. Switch gear and refinement vary admittedly.

 

[Capella]

I've a friend who winces at the cost of golf clubs but will spend £££ on a fishing rod. Its all horses for courses.

I can totally believe that. I did sports fishing as a teenager (yes, such a thing actually exists ... competitions and everything) and the money that people spent on equipment makes golf look like a poor man's game. My father and I both had a 36 foot carbon fibre rod by Shimano which cost more than all of my golf equipment together. And I don't think the fish were overly impressed. Golf is not the only crazy sport.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

You can buy top end, you can buy second hand and I have even played with someone that wields JD sports Dunlops to good effect. Horses for courses. Not all new clubs have to be mega expensive and MD golf and Benross do decent gear at reasonable costs as they don't pay pros to play them and so sponsorship costs are nil. That leaves money for R&D and advertising alone.