CHOOSING THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT

When starting in the game or an established player it is important to use the right tools for the job.
These guide lines will help you in choosing the correct clubs for you.
New to the game of golf
When you have just started the game you need to learn the correct technique with the shorter golf clubs ideally a 7 iron, this is because your hands will be closer to the golf club and the club has more loft producing more backspin which will help you to hit straighter higher shots.
Tom Kite used to make swing changes hitting an 8 iron off the tee his response when asked why he did this was changing your swing is hard enough so why hit a club which is going to make it harder?
Nick price used to favour a 6 iron which is also fine but I wouldn't recommend you go lower than a 6.
Nick price hit so many golf balls with his 6 iron that he was reported in saying that he wore a hole through the steel, wow! No that's a lot of practice.
Club selection when you first start is important and you are going to need to purchase a set of clubs which will not break the bank, and last a good couple of years and will aid you in your improvements.
Starter sets are available with what we call a oversize cavity back iron, now these irons are excellent to start with because the oversize head will improve your ball striking and a cavity back iron is designed with more weight to be delivered at the bottom of the club which will help you to get the ball up in the air.
You should be looking at a steel shaft regular flex if you have strong arms and wrist flexibility and graphite if the body is not as young as it used to be. There are all sorts of graphite shafts out on the market now such as regular, seniors, ladies, ultra lite!
When you start playing a more flexible shaft or whippy shaft is advisable this will help to increase your swing speed and get the ball up in the air easier.
Grip size isn't going to make a great deal of difference at this stage and off the rack sized grips will suffice for now.
A good idea when choosing a new set for a beginner is to choose a progressive set of irons which will replace the 5 4 and 3 irons with what we call a hybrid club, these clubs are a mixture between a wood and an iron, the reason being is you get the best of both worlds and you will get the forgiveness of a wood and the accuracy of the irons.

Woods

When people start they are better off to use the 3 wood of the tee instead of the driver. This will help in hitting straighter shots off the tee for the reason that there is more backspin on the ball due to the extra 5-8 degrees of loft.
When choosing a set it is important that the woods do not have too much torque in them.
This basically means club head twist the way to check this is to pick the 3 wood up and hold the club head in one hand and hold the grip in the other, Twist your hands in opposite directions and if you can move the club head too easily this is a poorly made golf club and will lead to more off centre hits.