Over the last couple of decades, the golf equipment industry has grown massively and the companies are making the most out of the growth of the industry, but the information coming from them can at times be misleading and cause confusion amongst amateur golfers.
So, what is the reason behind the continual confusion, well there are many, however I think the biggest reason is quite simple.
Amateur golfers believe that the most expensive equipment will make them better golfers.
Unfortunately, this message has been created by some of the largest companies in the world and the message will take a long time to be removed from the mindset of golfers.
So, you can obviously get the gist that expensive equipment does not always mean an immediate reduction of your handicap.
If we look at the technology of the expensive equipment on the market, we can see similarities with the cheaper more affordable golf club models. The main difference between the high-end golf equipment and the lower end equipment is the shaft, which until you get into the low double digits or single figure handicaps are not worth the added expense.
What people who are reading this must consider is that many of the “budget” clubs are produced by companies that have once upon a time designed some of the most renowned club models, used by some of the greatest players in the world, so they still retain the knowledge to produce stunning golf clubs in the lower range price bracket.
So, what benefit would you gain from purchasing an expensive club over a less expensive range of clubs? To be honest very little for the weekend golfer, as a budget club will still have the same technologies within the design of the club head as the more well-known expensive brands.
The most important thing to remember when comparing the club heads and the benefit to a high handicap golfer is to look at the technology within the head to aid with three things:
- Ball speed – this is the speed at which the ball leaves the club head, modern technology has allowed for the creation of thinner faces, creating more of a “trampoline” effect and helping to add distance to our games
- Perimeter weighting – this is how the weight is distributed around the outside edges of the clubhead. By moving weight from the face of the club manufacturers can reduce the “twisting” effect caused by striking the golf ball off centre, this is what is referred to as a more forgiving club head.
- Off-set – If a club is described as off-set it means that the leading edge of the golf club is set at a different angle to the hosel of the club. You will often see a large off-set on the driver to try and counter-act side spin that is imparted on the ball by a swing that is moving across the ball to target line through impact. For some golfers club that have too much off-set look odd and actually cause more problems than they solve so be sure to test a few clubs that you be sure you need a larger off-set than standard.
It is worth pointing out that for expensive clubs are directed towards the low handicap golfer and professionals, so for a beginner or high handicapper they are probably not going to the right club choice regardless of what the manufacturer may say.
Many golfers may also be surprised to know that many of the tour players are not using the “flagship” or most expensive model of iron that their sponsors are producing.