| Planning on becoming the next Tiger Woods? If so, | | | | spot you can miss hitting the ball directly on the |
| the first thing you might consider is getting some | | | | center of the club face and still end up with a decent |
| new golf clubs. Choosing the right golf clubs can | | | | shot. Forged irons are better for more advanced |
| make the difference between spending your time on | | | | golfers because they allow for better control of |
| the fairways and greens and spending your time in | | | | trajectory, allowing you to hit the ball at a desired |
| the rough. Although famed golfer Ben Hogan once | | | | angle to get the height necessary for the result you |
| said, "The only thing a golfer needs is more daylight", | | | | want. |
| for my money, having the right set of golf clubs runs | | | | The next thing to consider is the size of the head. As |
| this a close second. | | | | a novice golfer, you'll find a definite trade-off here. A |
| First, I'll assume you aren't a pro. Otherwise, you | | | | bigger head equals a bigger sweet spot and more |
| probably wouldn't be here; you'd be out perfecting | | | | tolerance of miss-hits. However, at the same time, a |
| that already outstanding golf swing. For the amateur | | | | bigger head is also a little harder to control. You'll |
| golfer, choosing the right golf clubs hinges on two | | | | probably want to start with a set of irons with |
| factors - distance and accuracy - and, of these, | | | | medium-sized heads. They're easier to control than |
| accuracy is the more important. The ability to hit the | | | | the oversized-heads, but they still have a bigger |
| ball half-way across town may sound great, but if | | | | sweet spot than the traditional, smaller heads. |
| you can't keep it on the fairway, out of the bunkers, | | | | Bet you didn't know there were this many factors to |
| and heading for the flag, then all the distance in the | | | | choosing the right set of golf clubs! Well, I'm not |
| world isn't going to help your game. So, the starting | | | | quite done yet. |
| point for all of us needs to be accuracy. Once the ball | | | | Another factor to think about when choosing golf |
| starts going just where we want it to go with | | | | clubs is what the head is made of - cast iron, |
| reasonable consistency we can start working on | | | | stainless steel, or titanium. Titanium heads are best |
| building distance. | | | | for novice golfers as this light material allows for a |
| Of course, cost can be a big issue when choosing a | | | | bigger head, without making the club too heavy. |
| new set of clubs, but since that's a personal | | | | Bigger head equals bigger sweet spot! If the cost of |
| conversation between you your wallet - and maybe | | | | titanium heads is beyond your wallet's reach, then |
| your spouse - we won't cover it here. Don't forget | | | | consider cast iron rather than steel. They're durable |
| though that you don't need to buy tailor-made golf | | | | and the harder material can help improve both |
| clubs and that a good starting point may well be one | | | | accuracy and consistency. |
| of the many outlets for discount golf equipment. | | | | Swing speed is also important in deciding upon the |
| Another good starting point is to look at pre-owned | | | | right golf clubs. Golfers with lower swing speeds can |
| golf clubs. | | | | benefit from more flexible graphite shafts that are a |
| Begin by analyzing what's going to best fit your | | | | bit longer and lighter. With a higher swing speed, it's |
| needs. The primary set of clubs in every golfer's bag | | | | more likely you want to focus on accuracy, so stiffer |
| is the irons, so that's what I'm going to concentrate | | | | and heavier steel shafts can help you develop that |
| on here. Irons have several characteristics to consider | | | | accurate ball placement that gets your name on the |
| when you're choosing golf clubs. The first thing to | | | | leader board. |
| look at is the method of manufacture. Irons are | | | | Obviously, there are many factors to consider when |
| normally made either by casting or forging. For the | | | | choosing the right golf clubs. But consider what the |
| novice golfer cast irons are generally better because | | | | comedian Henny Youngman once said, "The other |
| they have a bigger sweet spot on the club face. The | | | | day I broke 70. That's a lot of clubs." Choosing the |
| sweet spot is the area on the club face that you | | | | right golf clubs for your game and level of play can |
| want to contact the ball and, as a general rule, the | | | | reduce both your handicap and the number of clubs |
| larger the sweet spot the greater the room for error | | | | you get the urge to break! |
| in your swing. In other words, with a large sweet | | | | |