A Guide To Outfitting For A Beginning Gravity Golfer

Picking up a new sport or getting back into one is no easy task. Whether you’re trying tennis or snow skiing, you have to consider purchasing equipment, properly training, and how this new sport fits into your time and monetary budgets. Golf is no exception. While being a sport that you can carry through many stages of your life, golf has one of the longest and most expensive lists of equipment – especially when you get into training aids and practice times. To make things easier for the beginning golfer, we’ve created a guide to get you started.

Clubs - Irons

Acquiring a set of golf clubs may be the most expensive and daunting process of your setup – until you get to the actual practice. But with a little research and knowledge of what to look for, it doesn’t have to be scary. For your first set of clubs, unless you are just dying to spend your money, it’s not a bad idea to look for a used set.  There are plenty of people who spend a ton of money on nice clubs only to use them a few times before they give up and sell them on Craigslist or at a consignment sports store – let their loss be your gain. We recommend that you start by looking for a set of forged irons. For more information on the difference between forged and cast irons you can check out this article from golfsmith.com, but we prefer forged because they are more pliable if you find that you need to change the lie angle on your irons. Some good brands to check out are Ping, Titleist and Mizuno – they all make excellent forged irons.


When looking for the right set of irons you want to make sure that you are also keeping in mind shaft stiffness. We recommend staying away from stiff or extra-stiff shafts and going with a mid-range flex. Playing with shafts that are softer will help you feel more of the little movements in your technique, and they will also be more forgiving as you learn. Don’t be bullied into thinking that better players use stiff shafts – remember, Freddie Couples won the Masters using a woman’s driver as a 3 wood.

You will also want to take note of the lie of the club head. Ideally you will want to find irons that are between the standard lie and 4 degrees flat. Many clubs today are built more upright to counteract for slicing the ball, but it is better not to start out with your equipment compensating for your mistakes and teaching you bad habits. Buy clubs for the player you want to be, not the player you are.

Lastly, if you do buy used clubs, you may find that the grips have cracked or do not feel comfortable in your hands. We recommend using heavier grips – they provide more cushioning for your hands and will give an effect similar to back-weighting. Edwin Watts is a good place to get your clubs re-gripped at a reasonable price.

Clubs-Woods

When looking for woods and drivers a lot of it is going to be based on feel. You need the right length and weight for your body type, and you’re looking for a club that will give you high launch and low spin. Try going to a driving range or outfitter that will let you test various drivers so you can take notes on the different specs of clubs that feel right. Then you can go searching on your own for a more cost effective version.

Stretching

Just as beginning with any sport or new workout routine, when you start practicing golf you will be using muscles in ways that you haven’t used them before. It’s important to stretch before and after to prevent injury. Try a practice routine designed for Gravity Golfers.

Practice Space

Once you have all your equipment ready you will need to find a place to practice. You might want to check out a few local places to see where you can get the best price on practice balls and space. Often it is cheaper if you can find a place that offers monthly memberships for practice – that way your not shelling out $15 for every tiny practice bucket. The most economical way to practice is to set up a mat and net in your own house or back yard. I good mat will pay for itself in little time compared to the cost of the driving range. Our favorite golf mat is by JR Mats.

Practice

Now comes the fun part. Beginning golfers should practice 2 to 3 times per week for an hour to an hour and a half. This will give you a good start on developing all facets of your game without overwhelming your body. We’ve put together a beginners guide to a practice section that will walk you through the best drills to start out with and roughly how many of each shot you should take in a practice session to cover all the shots you will need in your game. You can download that guide here.

For more practice videos and drills check out our YouTube channel. Follow us on Facebook and subscribe to our newsletter for more useful information and blog updates.

Shoes

There are lots of stylish golf shoes on the market that are designed to give you traction on the grass, but if you’re already athletically inclined, there’s a pretty high chance you already have a pair of shoes that will do the trick. Just make sure that your shoes give you ankle support, traction, and are comfortable to walk in if you’re going to be walking 18 holes. Better to spend your money on your clubs before your shoes.

Glove

Blisters are the blight on every new golfers hands, and bad ones can put you off your practice routine for up to a week. After consistent practice you will build up calluses, and the more perfect shots you hit, the less damage you will do to your hands. In the mean time, protect your digits and palms with a well fitting glove (or gloves), or at least use some medical tape. We like 3M Coban Self-Adherent Wrap that’s 1” wide. It only sticks to itself and you can rewrap it if it starts to slip.

Sun care

This is probably the last thing on your mind, but playing golf generally means a lot of sun exposure. Wear sunscreen, lightweight clothing and a hat, and drink lots of water.

Bag

Essentially a bag is a bag. Just remember to get something light if you’re going to be walking when you play.