Golf Clubs

Choosing your clubs will obviously be the most important decision you'll have to make, aside from devising devious schemes to alter your score and in turn, kicking your buddy's butt. There's nothing quite as satisfying as hearing a solid wack as your club connects with the ball and watching it sail and diminish in the distance, except maybe nailing a crucial putt in the back nine. There are innumerable factors to consider when choosing a new set of clubs, and much of those will become clearer with experience and the development of your personal style of play. If you're new to golf, here's a good beginner's lexicon to help sort through the golfing terminology you'll see below.

What to Buy (Beginners) A beginner should have the following: Woods: 1 wood (driver) and 3 wood (though the latter is not absolutely essential). Irons: 3, 5, 7, and 9 irons A putter. Buy them used. Garage sales are great for that, as is the internet, including some manufacturers' Web sites and, especially, Ebay and craigslist (Edgeio perhaps, as more people start using it). Brand is an issue for many, but in general a beginner will not be able to tell the difference between a pricey model and the bargain stuff (it's all made by the same people anyway). Is resale value -- that is, how much you will be able to get for this set when you're done with it -- worth considering? It is if you ignore the fact that most golf clubs depreciate faster than fresh milk.

Woods

Despite the name, woods are no longer actually made primarily of wood, though they are available for the traditionalist jonesing for the unmistakable "twack" of a wooden club head. There are four main variables to consider when purchasing a wood. Shaft: Graphite shafts tend to be lighter than steel shafts, and this leads to more distance off the tee and in the fairway. Steel is better for players who are looking for specific distance control. Loft: The higher the loft on the club, the higher the ball will travel and the less the ball will roll, or spin. Clubs with more loft are also more forgiving, meaning less hooks and slices off the tee. Conversely, clubs with lower loft have a flatter trajectory causing the ball to roll more, giving your shots more distance. They are, however, less accurate in the hands of inexperienced golfers. Head Material: The harder the material in the head, the more forgiving and longer the club will be. Titanium is hard and lightweight and has become very popular. Head size: Larger club heads are more forgiving. Fairway woods often have lower profile heads to help hit balls caught in deep lies. In general, drivers should be larger and lighter, while fairway and utility woods should be smaller and heavier.

Irons

There are many considerations when purchasing a set of irons. Beyond your budget, you need to decide whether your priority is forgiveness, feel, or workability. Determining which of these factors are most important to your game will help define which set is best for you. Factors to consider are: Shafts: As with woods, graphite shafts are preferred by golfers looking to add distance to their irons. Steel is better for stronger players who like a heavier shaft and are looking for more feedback. Head material: Most clubs today are cast from carbon steel, allowing manufacturers to weight the iron's perimeter, which results in a more forgiving club. This makes cast and stainless steel clubs best suited for mid-to-high handicap players. Forged clubs are softer, allowing the player to put more spin on the ball, but making the club more difficult to hit. These are best for players who value feel over forgiveness. Head size: Larger heads will tend to be more forgiving, but lack some feel and shot working ability. Smaller heads have more feel and workability, but are far less forgiving. NEW PRODUCT ALERT! Due out November 1, the Nike CCI Irons  (Composite Cavity Irons) are targeted to mid-to-low handicap golfers. The two main components are a high-density tungsten weight plug (which creates a lower Center of Gravity) and a feel enhancing polymer (to increase forgiveness while the polymer dampens vibration for a softer feel).

Wedges

Wedges are used for shorter shots around the green which makes the considerations with the club slightly different than with irons. Lofts: Wedges can come in a variety of lofts, so as a general rule it's best to space your lofts out to cover the most area. Four to five degrees of spacing between clubs is a good baseline. For example, many players will carry three wedges in addition to their pitching wedge: a gap wedge for fairway shots (50-54 degree loft), a sand wedge (55-58 degree loft), and a lob wedge (58-64 degree loft). Bounce: Bounce is the angle on a wedge from the leading edge to the back portion of the sole. The softer the area you are hitting from, the more important bounce becomes. Sand wedges have more bounce allowing the clubface to bounce into the ball instead of digging into the sand. On firmer lies, bounce can become a problem. Consider this when purchasing wedges to have a club for both situations. Head Material: The harder the material, the less spin and more forgiveness a wedge will have. Softer wedges will give you more touch on your shots, but are easier to miss-hit.

Putters

Deciding on a putter is one of the most personal decisions a golfer will make. The most important consideration should be what feels right for you. Insert Material: Most putters have a softer insert material that deadens the shot. This allows a golfer to be more aggressive and gives more control over the shot. Face Balancing: On a face-balanced putter, the weight of the toe and the heel offset one another. This helps the putter to remain square while making shots. This is particularly crucial on short shots. Other golfers prefer a toe-weighted club because it helps the clubface stay closed (i.e. when your club face is pointed to the left of the intended target) on impact. Offset: An offset places the hands ahead of the blade without having to make an adjustment. This is attractive to players who push the ball to the right. For players who already keep their hands ahead of the ball, an offset could cause them to pull putts.

Major Manufacturers and New Models

Here are some of the talked about sticks listed as must-haves in the June '06 issue of Golf Digest.

Irons and Woods
Nicklaus Airmax DPT 460  (15 degrees of loft)	Tour Edge V25 Driver  (10 interchangeable weights)	Sonartec LS-99  (Aldila NV 45-gram shaft)	Titleist 695CB  (z-shaped channel iron)	Yonex Cyberstar C280  (graphite insert)

	Adams Golf	Callaway	Cleveland	Cobra	Nickent	Taylor Made
Woods	LP Fairway	X-460 Driver	Hi Bore Driver	X/Speed Fwy.		r7 Titanium Fairway
Hybrids	A2 OS Graphite	FT Fusion Hybrid Neutral	Halo Club	F/Speed Driver	3DX DC Utility	Rescue Dual Hybrid
Irons	A2 OS Iron Set	Big Bertha 2006	CG4 Tour	Inertia 3400 I/XH	3DX Pro Irons	r7 XD 3-PW Set
Wedges	Watson Edge Pack	X-Tour Wedges	CG1 Black Pearl			rac Black TP
Putters		Odyssey White Hot XG		Optica	Pipe Blade	Monza Corsa

Still on top (from GolfDigest's Hot List 2006)

Hot Drivers

TaylorMade remains the dominant force in drivers on PGA Tour. For 52 months running,  TaylorMade ranks as No. 1 at every PGA tour event in 2005. Twelve TaylorMade's r7 quad driver  was played by a PGA Tour winner. Other top drivers included Nike's Ignite,  Callaway's Fusion FT-3,  and Cleveland's Launcher Comp.  Additional products: Bobby Jones Players Series,  King Cobra HS9,  Wilson Dd6 Wilson Drivers

Hot Putters
	Scotty Cameron and Odyssey putters rank highest amongst the pros. For Tiger Wood: Scotty Cameron by Titleist Tiger putter.  For Will MacKenzie: Scotty Cameron by Titleist GSS putter.  For Lorena Ochoa: Odyssey Tri-Hot 2 putter.  For Eduardo Romero: Odyssey White Hot 6 putter.  Other options from these lines:  Scotty Cameron Detour Putter  Scotty Cameron Detour Putter  Odyssey White Steel Putter

External Links

• Meet the Clubs -- An overview of golf club types from About.com.
• Pre-Owned Golf Clubs -- Explains why beginners should start with used clubs.
• Club Basics -- Chart and explanation on choosing the correct lie and flex.
• Golf Instruction -- Watch streaming video of instructors demonstrating correct technique.