Newbie golfer choosing my setup

[thirtyoverpar]

Hey all. I bought some clubs and took some lessons years ago but time got away from me and I'm just getting back into it this year. I bought a used set of Spalding Pro Impact p-3 set of irons way back that are in great condition and a co-worker gave me a set of MacGregor DX Reverse Draft irons. 

The Spaldings are graphite shafts, Macgregors are steel, both regular flex, Macgregors are a bit shorter than the Spaldings (about 1/2-3/4") though I've read that's common between graphite and steel shafts? Spaldings are much lighter (guessing the graphite?), I'm missing the PW and 9 from the MacGregor set (have a MacGregor DX non reverse draft 9) though on the hunt for them to fill out the set. I've taken a few lessons and honestly not sure I can really feel or tell a difference on which set works better for me. From my limited findings online, the Spalding Pro Impacts were never very popular, MacGregor of that era were hit or miss, Which set do you think would be the better starting point? 

[ShortGolfer]

Graphite shafts are better if you  hit off mats to avoid elbow tendonitis.  Are you hitting off mats or grass?  

 

When you are young the injury issue may not seem important, but I have a lot of friends who can't play golf due to injuries they sustained when they were younger.

A few strokes is a big deal when you are playing for money, but it you just want to have fun nobody really cares about how many strokes you take if you maintain a proper pace of play.

I can play triple bogey golf really fast if my ball stays on the fairways and greens.

 

Edited July 24 by ShortGolfer

[thirtyoverpar]

Local range is mats, I'm turning 40 in a month and starting to feel it so maybe that's something to put a lot of thought to. I do find I feel it in the elbows when I spend any amount of time swinging clubs.Thanks 

[ShortGolfer]

I went to local shop that sells used clubs and picked a 7 iron that felt good in my hands with a grip that I liked.  

Over a couple months I assembled a minimalist set of five clubs, 4 iron, 7iron, AW, SW, and putter.  That worked well for playing a 9 holes short course.

I've finally started playing 18 hole rounds this year, four years after I picked up that 7 iron.  I'm surprised how well I can play now. 😀

[Stuart_G]

On 7/24/2025 at 8:52 AM, thirtyoverpar said:

Which set do you think would be the better starting point? 

 

IMO - the two most important specs for beginners is 1) playing length not too long and 2) shaft weight not too heavy or too light (2b maybe head weight or swing weight).

 

On 7/24/2025 at 8:52 AM, thirtyoverpar said:

The Spaldings are graphite shafts, Macgregors are steel, both regular flex, Macgregors are a bit shorter than the Spaldings (about 1/2-3/4") though I've read that's common between graphite and steel shafts?

 

It used to be common - it's not any more and it never was a good idea.   BUT - it's easy to chop some length off the butt end - maybe at the cost of some new grips.   So it doesn't really rule out the longer set as a possibility (with some mods).

 

For beginners a good fit for shaft length would start with the Wrist to Floor (WTF) measurement.   Getting and posting that could help decide which set has a better playing length for yourself.

 

The shaft material isn't nearly as important as the shaft weights.   If you can find that out it would make it easier to give a recommendation.  If nothing else, get the total static weight on a kitchen scale (in grams) of two matching irons from each set (e.g. both 8 irons or both 9 irons).    Also some basic overview on your general athletic ability (strength).   The concern would be that the graphite shafts might be too light, making it harder to have a consistent rhythm and timing.   And it's also possible that the steel shafts might be too heavy - resulting in (among other things) slower swing speeds or even too much excess muscle tension in the hands and forearms.   

 

It may or may not be a good idea to get your pros opinion on which might be a better set since he can judge your potential abilities and evaluate the clubs better than we can without much more details.   The "may not" comes into play because not all teaching pros know all that much about equipment fitting.  It's kind of hit or miss so to speak.

 

Edited July 31 by Stuart_G

[ShortGolfer]

On 7/24/2025 at 9:06 AM, thirtyoverpar said:

Local range is mats, I'm turning 40 in a month and starting to feel it so maybe that's something to put a lot of thought to. I do find I feel it in the elbows when I spend any amount of time swinging clubs.Thanks 

It is hard to learn good ball striking with irons off mats but it makes a huge diffence in being able to play good golf iby not wasting a lot of energy digging up the ground before hitting the ball

You can't really tell bouncing the club head off a mat into the ball.  It is easy to tell the difference on grass by comparing strikes off a tee versus off the ground.

Edited July 31 by ShortGolfer

[Stuart_G]

5 hours ago, ShortGolfer said:

You can't really tell bouncing the club head off a mat into the ball.  

 

While it's true that it's not as easy as it is with turf, if you pay attention to the right things, it's not really all that hard.   Both the sound and the feel (even with graphite) of impact are different if you hit the mat first.

 

Regardless, IMO beginners should start off using a short tee when working on the irons.  The focus should be on how the body is moving and  timing and sequencing.   Impact can be fine tuned later after a good foundation has been built.

Edited July 31 by Stuart_G

[thirtyoverpar]

On 7/31/2025 at 6:17 AM, Stuart_G said:

 

IMO - the two most important specs for beginners is 1) playing length not too long and 2) shaft weight not too heavy or too light (2b maybe head weight or swing weight).

 

 

It used to be common - it's not any more and it never was a good idea.   BUT - it's easy to chop some length off the butt end - maybe at the cost of some new grips.   So it doesn't really rule out the longer set as a possibility (with some mods).

 

For beginners a good fit for shaft length would start with the Wrist to Floor (WTF) measurement.   Getting and posting that could help decide which set has a better playing length for yourself.

 

The shaft material isn't nearly as important as the shaft weights.   If you can find that out it would make it easier to give a recommendation.  If nothing else, get the total static weight on a kitchen scale (in grams) of two matching irons from each set (e.g. both 8 irons or both 9 irons).    Also some basic overview on your general athletic ability (strength).   The concern would be that the graphite shafts might be too light, making it harder to have a consistent rhythm and timing.   And it's also possible that the steel shafts might be too heavy - resulting in (among other things) slower swing speeds or even too much excess muscle tension in the hands and forearms.   

 

It may or may not be a good idea to get your pros opinion on which might be a better set since he can judge your potential abilities and evaluate the clubs better than we can without much more details.   The "may not" comes into play because not all teaching pros know all that much about equipment fitting.  It's kind of hit or miss so to speak.

 

Thanks! I'll try to get some of that when I get home from work.

As for my own athletic ability, I could stand to loose 30lbs or so but overall healthy average 40 year old. Never played a lot of sports, more work muscle than athletic build. Broad shoulders for my build, 5'9". I've been to the local sim a couple times and my swing speed seems to average in the high 80's. This actually surprised me, I thought it would be higher but my distances aren't what they were when I bought the clubs 12 or so years ago. 

 

I took lessons back then and was hitting average or just above average distances for a rookie (around 150-160ish 7 iron) but life came up and golf took a back burner. I took some lessons from the local pro this spring and my distances are a good 20-30 yards short to what they were. I'm attributing that to being older, less flexible/contact issues than the clubs being the issue. Tried to discuss clubs with him when I took the lessons this spring but he didn't seem to want to engage in it. While the lessons did help some I didn't feel he was the right teacher for me. Felt like taking lessons from Chubbs in the first Happy Gilmore movie when he was sitting back reading a magazine just repeating the same "you're doing great" comments, no real feed back or fixes. 

Thinking if I can figure out which set suits me more I'm going to book some lessons elsewhere. Small town an hour away has a higher end course and hoping their pro is a bit better suited.

Edited August 1 by thirtyoverpar