Beginner Set for High School Girl

[TeeAreNY]

Currently, my niece is using a Top Flite complete beginner set and asked for my help about building a set of used golf clubs. My question is with the used options being fairly limited that come in womens/ladies flex, can she get away with a men's club with senior flex to unlock a bit more used options. She hits her 6 iron around 120 yards.

Edited March 25, 2023 by TeeAreNY

[Ghostwedge]

She sure can, men's senior shafts work great for ladies. Take her to the nearest golf store and have her try out the different models. There is your baseline.

[golfinbrad]

Be sure to focus on weight.  Unless she is physically strong, consider graphite. 

[third-times-a-charm]

Sure. Shaft flex has nothing to do with man or woman but soft and stiff. You can use any designation you'd like as long as it fits the player in question.

 

The harder part is using 'adult' heads and shafts for children and teens if they are not at the height needed - because 98% of shafts arent meant to be cut short and head weights dont favor these huge swings in length without huge modification.

[getitdaily]

Is @MtlJeffchanging irons again? 

[mgoblue83]

If on a budget (or not) I HIGHLY recommend Maltby STI-2 or TS3 heads with UST Recoil shafts.

 

Can get SW-6i for a couple hundred bucks and then she would only need a Driver and Hybrid to complete her set. 

[MtlJeff]

35 minutes ago, getitdaily said:

Is @MtlJeffchanging irons again? 

 

All I saw was I was tagged in a thread about high school girls and i got worried I was on dateline again 

[bobfoster]

4 hours ago, golfinbrad said:

Be sure to focus on weight.  Unless she is physically strong, consider graphite. 

^^^ Very important. Graphite shafts have improved considerably over the past few years. IMO any golfer (except unusually strong ones) under 15 or over 75 would do well to at least give graphite a look/try. 

[getitdaily]

6 minutes ago, MtlJeff said:

 

All I saw was I was tagged in a thread about high school girls and i got worried I was on dateline again 

I figured this was your mea culpa for going pxg but you were too embarrassed so you had someone else do your bidding.

[Hawkeye77]

Don't guess on the shafts, get her somewhere and get clubs that fit, it's not what she can get by with.  Lightweight graphite shafts are in order, but I wouldn't make assumptions about whether a senior or women's or men's R, etc. would work, lots of variability.  A rudimentary Ping fitting would be great.  Ping used to sell older year models at pretty cheap prices, don't know if they still do that, but if you have a Ping person that says they can get them, that's a great deal and good way to get into great clubs at reduced prices.  If not, you know what to look for used.  A fitter ought to be able to suggest all sorts of good options appropriate for her speed and swing.

[wantacigar]

Being a father of 3 daughters I know, first of all, girls stop "growing" between the ages of around 12-16 on average and could be anywhere from petite to larger.  I have a daughter that in her college sports days was 5'6 150 lbs.  Other daughter college sports days she was 5'10" and 180 lbs.  She's out of college sports since 2018 and she would still swing a R flex and standard mens length clubs.  Go to a PGASS and get her "fitted" and see where she is in terms of length, shaft, etc. then head over to Golfworks and look at the M890 which is an UGI club designed for lower swing speeds.  The Pak with the M890 Launch Tech graphite shaft is $239 for 6-PW, GW, SW (7 clubs.) or they have a combo 4H, 5H 6-GW for $309.99  + Driver for $120.  You can put a brand new set with 2 hybrids, driver and irons for under $500 without putter or bag. 

Edited February 22, 2023 by wantacigar

[dekez]

How tall is your daughter?  I always recommend Ping because you can dial in the lie angle with color codes.

[JAM01]

12 hours ago, MtlJeff said:

 

All I saw was I was tagged in a thread about high school girls and i got worried I was on dateline again 

As long as there was no Chris Hansen or cold pizza involved I think you are safe. 

[Milfordlefty]

Get into a place with a simulator to determine her avg driver swing speed and her 7 iron swing speed. This will then tell you if she swings fast enough for ladies, senior, regular, etc. flex. If she is on the lower end of swing speed a bag full of graphite shafts is ok (even wedges). If she is on the low end, more fairway woods and hybrids in a bag is likely. (driver, 5w, 7w, maybe 9w, then 5h, 6h, maybe 7h, then 7i, or 8i up. 58° degree wedge at the most if you go 3 wedges (gw, sw, lw). If she is a beginner, look at at least a GI model and maybe SGI (used Cleveland, Cobra, Wilson or new Maltby). She will enjoy golf better regardless of her distances if she consistently hits the ball in the air.

Lastly, girls golf is usually more social compared to boys golf. Head color, shaft, grip color is something they take into consideration.

I had a daughter who played 4 yrs of HS golf, not the best player, not the worst. BUT, she is left handed, talk about club options! If I knew then what I know now, knowing swing speed (not just estimating watching her hit on the range) will help with fitting her into a set that fits her skill level. Short game, short game, short game, while watching the ball go farther will excite her, short game is what will make her scores. Watch some LPGA tournaments on TV to get an idea how elite women play the game vs men, it is different. Enjoy the next 4 years.

[TeeAreNY]

Can I get away with men’s wedge with a graphite shaft? Saw a good deal on used Cleveland smart sole sand wedge which I think she can benefit from as a beginner with natural ability. 

[boggyman]

11 minutes ago, TeeAreNY said:

Can I get away with men’s wedge with a graphite shaft? Saw a good deal on used Cleveland smart sole sand wedge which I think she can benefit from as a beginner with natural ability. 

Yes

[Dan Drake]

A couple of beginning golfer set ideas that I've come to learn by playing the game off-handed:

 

1. Bigger grips are easier at first

2. Shaft flex is important, but shaft weight is FAR more important

3. 1/2 sets are still just fine, and you should add clubs at the short end first and work you way up to the long end

 

And yes, as @dekez noted, PING makes it pretty easy with the color code.  I'd get her static measurements and then scour eBay for a set of G series irons that match the color code and have lightweight, and most likely softer flex, shafts.  Then, remove 1/2 of the irons and add them back into the set as you start to see the need for the greater level of distance control.

 

Good Luck!

[ShortGolfer]

I learned to play with five clubs.  Better to play with a few clubs you can swing well. 

Golf is a game of adapting to new situations, so I never worried about "missing out" by not carrying a club.

Instead of buying a set, I bought my clubs one at a time, starting out with a 7 iron  at a local store that sold used clubs.  

Then I bought clubs on ebay and Callaway Pre Owned.

Used Women's clubs are often in great shape, as most women don't swing hard enough to wear out the grooves on their irons and wedges.

Women also use softer golf balls.  Men often hit their wedges hard enough to wear them out.

Edited March 25, 2023 by ShortGolfer