This is our review of the best beginner golf clubs on the market in 2024.
I’m an avid golfer, an 8ish handicap on my way to a 2 (been a 5.6), and frequent tester of golf clubs and equipment since 2015.
Here are two factors for beginners to consider before buying clubs:
- Budget – Is price a primary concern? Either way, there’s no need to break the bank.
- Interest / Seriousness – How interested are you in golf? Don’t know yet? Have you been bitten by the bug? Answering this will likely affect #1 above.
Here’s what I suggest if you’re looking to save money, but want good clubs.
- Read reviews of golf clubs made for or good for beginners or high handicappers.
- Go to a trusted online retailer (it’s just easier and faster) and find the club you want and buy it used or discounted.
I’m not a believer in buying 2nd rate cheaply made whole sets that “will do”. Get good quality at a fair price and carry on.
In this best golf clubs for beginners review, we discuss, benefits and features of each, our recommendations, and offer any discounts we’ve been able to scare up.
Our Best Golf Clubs for Beginners in 2024
Best Complete Set Option (We’ve tested)
Best Beginner Drivers
Best Beginner Hybrids
Best Beginner Irons
Best Beginner Wedges
- Cleveland Smart Sole 4 Wedge
- Callaway Mack Daddy CB Wedge
- Cleveland CBX 2 Wedge
- Cleveland CBX Full Face Wedge
Best Beginner Putters
Best Complete Sets for Beginners
Stix Golf
Save $50 on Full set w/ Code: GOLFERGEEKS50
- Premium Golf Bag
- Complete 14-Club Set
- Beautiful Black Matt Finish
- Great for Beginners & High Handicaps
- Lack premium refinement
- Grips can be slippery
Stix Golf clubs are our top recommendation for the best complete set of golf clubs for beginners.
What we like:
- Quality material and construction.
- They don’t look cartoonish or bulky, though they do look forgiving and have game-improvement-size heads.
- They get the ball up easily and want to fly straight. Perfect for those just starting out.
- You won’t break the bank but you still get a quality set of clubs.
What we don’t like:
- The wedges seem too small for beginners. Not that they’re unplayable, but I’d like to see larger heads with cavity backs.
I resisted testing these clubs for quite a while. They looked cool enough online, but I don’t generally trust full sets like this or non-major brands when it comes to golf clubs.
Plus, there’s no way I could get close to my specs which means I wouldn’t be able to hit them and give them a fair shake.
Surprise – I didn’t get close to my specs and these are definitely game-improvement clubs. But, I was able to get around the course just fine and score one of my best rounds of the year.
Even on the range, I could tell these clubs were good to go. Every club in that bag wants to go straight. And, it was the same story during my round.
Customer Reviews: Stix Golf has collected (as of this writing) 2710 reviews. 76% are 5-star and 12% are 4-star. (Read our full review here)
Recommendation: Stix Golf clubs are made well and work well. They’re worth a try if you’re thinking of buying a full matching set.
Best Beginner Drivers
Ping G430 Max
- Long & Forgiving
- Premium Looks
- Improved Sound & Feel
- Improved shaft selection
- Nada
The Ping G430 Max driver is as forgiving as the G425 Max we tested in June of 2022, but with improved sound and feel and a better shaft selection. Oh, it looks a lot better too.
Time and again, the G430 Max converted my mediocre swings into drives either in the fairway or just off the fairway with a good or reasonable shot into the green.
This is ALL I want from my driver. Especially early in the year. The G430 is a driver I would own if I was in the market.
Customer Reviews: Early days, but all 5 reviews at pinggolf.com are 5 stars for the G430 Max.
Recommendation: Any golfer that wants less stress off the tee should give the Ping G430 Max a try. It works hard to keep you playable with a nice boost in distance.
Callaway Paradym X Driver
- Premium Distance & Forgiveness
- Excellent Sound & Feel
- Best Looking Driver of the Year(s)
- Nada
The new Paradym X driver is our next recommendation best driver for beginners.
What we like:
- Largest sweet spot in the Callaway driver lineup.
- Superb distance on center contact and great distance with minor mishits.
- Superb sound & feel (just like the Paradym)
- THE best looking driver I’ve seen in years (also just like he Paradym).
What we don’t like:
- Price – still not in love with
The Paradym X is the Paradym but with more distance away from the sweet spot. I really enjoy playing and hitting the Paradym. But, I enjoy the Paradym X even more because it’s a touch more forgiving.
I hit some truly great and beautiful drives with the Paradym X during my round with it. I think it’s an exceptional driver for those of us who are mediocre off the tee.
Customer Reviews: 97% of reviewers would recommend to a friend. (I have no idea what the 3% were smoking)
Recommendation: Premium driver and premium forgiveness at a premium price. Needs to be on your list to test if you’re in the market.
Cobra LTDx Max
- Exceptional Distance & Forgiveness
- Best Sound & Feel
- Now at a Bargain Price
- Nada
The Cobra LTDx Max driver is our #1 Recommendation for best driver for beginners & high handicap golfers for a couple reasons.
- Easy to hit and keep in play.
- Beaucoup distance & forgiveness all over the face.
- Best in class feel and sound.
The Cobra LTDx Max is even more forgiving than the LTDx (which is mucho forgiving & awesome).
They both have great feel, great sound, excellent forgiveness, & distance.
The LTDx Max made me look like a good driver – which is not easy.
It has more customization options than the Ping G425 Max, too.
Customer Reviews: 16 reviews with a 4.9 average rating on cobragolf.com. (I concur)
Recommendation: MUST test. You will like. Guaranteed you won’t return it because of performance.
Ping G425 Max
New & Used Clubs Available
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- Great for mediocre drivers (like me)
- Long & Forgiving
- Med-high penetrating ball flight
- Not the best-looking driver of 2022
The G425 Max driver is on our list for best beginner & high-handicap drivers for a couple reasons.
- As forgiving as our Editor’s Pick
- Springy face and beaucoup distance
- Good feel & sound
Ping’s been making great drivers for a while, but I hadn’t put my hands on one in years. The G400 & G410 are well-known to be great drivers and I’d heard and read nothing but good things about the G425 Max.
All the great things were validated on the first swing. Long high draw down the middle and it felt great coming off the face. I hit a bunch of good drivers during my round and I could see myself owning the G425 Max, no problem.
My biggest gripe is the looks are pretty plain for a premium driver and I couldn’t get a shaft close to my specs.
Customer Reviews: 96% of reviewers would recommend the G425 Max. It has 225 reviews and an average rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: If you need help with your driving (like me), you gotta give the Ping G425 Max driver a try.
Best Beginner Irons
Titleist T350 Irons
- Launch the ball High & Straight
- Forgiving & Long
- Beautiful Clubs
- Pricey
The new Titleist T350 irons are our new #1 recommendation for the most forgiving irons.
- We recommend them for 13-ish handicaps up to beginners.
What we like:
- Easy to launch and elevate. (crucial for high handicappers)
- Loads of forgiveness and help with distance.
- Great-looking irons. Large forgiving clubheads without being cartoonish or awkward-looking.
What we don’t like:
- The price – Very expensive for beginner and high handicapper irons.
I’m always worried when I test game improvement or super game improvement irons like the T350s.
They usually come with light whippy shafts because they cater to higher handicaps with slower swing speeds. The T350s come with a host of good shaft options that will serve you well as your game progresses.
The clubheads are large, but their design blends this in well. They’re about as sleek as you’ll see in this iron category. (Titleist knows how to build attractive irons)
They feel and sound “clicky” with solid contact, but have zero harshness. The ball flies off the face – without needing great contact.
Conclusion: Excellent irons for beginners or high handicappers.
Recommendation – They’ll cost you a pretty penny, but they perform like a Titleist-built game improvement iron – exceptional.
Ping G430 Irons
- Easy to hit & Elevate
- High trajectory & Straight Ball Flight
- Great distance & forgiveness
- Can shape & flight the ball as well
- Looks, not the best
Ping G430s are our #1 recommendation for beginner irons for a couple of reasons:
- The large clubheads are confidence builders for higher handicaps at address.
- They elevate the ball easily with or without great contact.
- Hot all over the face with distance to burn.
- They want to fly high and straight.
- You can still work them left or right, flight them down, or take off distance if that’s part of your game.
- Good playability attributes for when your game matures.
The lofts are stronger in the G430s and they’ve added more tech for distance. Well-struck shots were about half a club longer for me on the course and I got a couple of crazy-long numbers on my launch monitor.
As with the G425s, center contact is stellar, but slight mishits will get you good results too. I was on or around the greens all day.
Conclusion: We like the larger appearing clubhead for the beginner or high-handicap golfer. But, they’re not a significant improvement over the G425s. I don’t think that would be realistic. The G425s are too good.
Recommendation: Put them at the top of your list if you’re in the market. (No need to upgrade if you own any of the irons on this page…in my opinion).
Ping G425 Irons
- So... so easy to hit
- High trajectory
- Great distance & forgiveness
- Nada
Ping G425 irons are high on our list for beginner golfers for a few reasons:
- Supremely easy to hit and elevate
- All the distance you need
- Can hit good shots all day long without needing perfect contact
- Awesome feel and sound for a mid handicap iron
- You can play any shot you want if you’ve got the game
I was not expecting the G425s to perform as well as they did. I play soft carbon-steel low handicap irons and I thought the 425s would feel harsh and wooden. No sir. I’m a low handicap ball striker with my irons and these did anything I wanted.
Center contact feels great and slight mishits feel about the same, with no very little loss of distance. There’s a ton of forgiveness built into these irons.
The lofts are already jacked, but Ping offers even stronger lofts if that suits your game.
Conclusion: The G425s are one of the best irons for beginners or average golfers I’ve tested this year.
Recommendation: You’re going to want to at least test these. My money is on you keeping them if you do.
Mizuno JPX 923 Hot Metal Irons
- Exceptionally Soft & Solid Feel
- Loads of Distance & Forgiveness
- Absolute Eye Candy
- Great Price
- Nada
Mizuno JPX 923 Hot Metal irons aren’t made specifically for high handicap golfers. But we believe it’s too forgiving and easy to hit to leave off this list.
A few of the attributes we love:
- Buttery, marshmellowy, unbelievably soft (yet solid) feel.
- Incredibly forgiving and easy to hit. Great contact is not needed for good results.
- Exceptional distance.
- You can play any shot you want if you’ve got the game.
For this year’s JPX 923s, Mizuno combined Chromoly and Nickel to form Nickel Chromoly which allowed them to make the clubface 8% thinner, yet 35% stronger than last year’s JPX 921s.
So, the sweet spot is bigger for more forgiveness and distance over a larger portion of the face.
At least, I thought I did. The Chromoly metal Mizuno uses to make the Hot Metals (and Forged & Hot Metal Pro irons) is on a completely different level.
ALLL the good things I had to say about the 921s apply to the 923s.
Conclusion: Continued exceptional feel, performance, forgiveness, and distance out of the JPX line.
Recommendation: Just try them. You’ll thank me.
Ping G410 Irons
New & Used clubs available
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- Easy to hit and elevate
- Good trajectory & playability
- Excellent distance & forgiveness
- Not the best looking
Ping G410 irons make our short list of the best irons for beginners in 2023 for a few reasons. Yes, they’re a few years old at this point, but they’re still superb clubs.
- You get great results without great contact.
- Ball flight defaults to high and straight.
- Playable and forgiving all over the face
- Exceptional sound and feel for a game improvement iron.
I tested the G410 irons at the same time as the G425s. They are remarkably similar in every way, except for a few cosmetic differences.
Ball flight between the two were identical. The sweet spot is generous and delivers beautiful trajectory shot after shot.
I didn’t want to stop hitting the G410s. And don’t sleep on distance, either. They have excellent carry numbers and should hold any green you’re likely to play.
Conclusion: Play and feel EXactly like the G425s – Just different cosmetics.
Recommendation: Give them a try if you’re in the market. You won’t return them because of performance. I almost guarantee it.
Best Beginner Hybrids
Callaway Rogue ST Max OS Hybrid
New & Used clubs available
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Callaway Rogue ST Max OS hybrids are or favorite choice for biginners for a couple of reasons.
- There’s no more forgiving-looking hybrid clubhead on the market. But, it doesn’t look awkward
- As with the Rogue ST Max, the clubhead is more stable on mishits (thanks new and improved Jailbreak tech), so you don’t need center contact for good results
- Easy to launch and keep in the air for max distance and green holding
Customer Reviews: 100% of reviewers would recommend the Rogue ST Max OS to a friend.
Recommendation: The Rogue ST Max OS hybrid is worth testing if you’re in the market. Either at your local golf store or take advantage of Global Golf’s U-try program.
Callaway Rogue ST Max Hybrid
New & Used clubs available
For up to 25% OFF at Global Golf - Check Current Deals
Callaway Rogue ST Max hybrids are a good choice even for beginners for a couple reasons.
- They provide a ton of help with getting your ball airborne and keeping it there
- The clubhead is much more stable on mishits (thanks new and improved Jailbreak tech), so you don’t need center contact for good results
- Head is on the larger side so it looks forgiving at address to boost confidence
Customer Reviews: 100% of reviewers would recommend the Rogue ST Max to a friend.
Recommendation: The Rogue ST Max hybrid is worth testing if you’re in the market. Either at your local golf store or take advantage of Global Golf’s U-try program.
Best Beginner Wedges
Cleveland Smart Sole 4.0
New & Used clubs available
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These are the best wedges for beginners or 25+ handicappers that
- Suffer with chipping and/or sand shots
- Also need more forgiveness on full shots
The soles of the Smart Sole 4 wedges are designed purely to keep you from chunking (the bane of every large handicappers existence) your pitches, chips, and sand shots.
But…these are still Cleveland wedges, so you will get all the help you need with spin.
- I’m recommending either the sand wedge or the chipping wedge or both. Use the gap wedge that goes with your current set.
- OR
- Replace your pitching wedge with the Smart Sole 4 gap wedge because it will be the same loft- 42 degrees.
NOTE: I’ve read a few customer reviews with single handicappers singing the praises of these wedges.
Callaway Mack Daddy CB
- Most forgiving on list
- Jaws grooves for tour-level spin
- Matches well with game-improvement iron sets
- Not the most refined wedge
The Callaway Mack Daddy CB wedges are Callaway’s most forgiving wedge line.
They are meant for golfers that play game improvement irons. They are perimeter weighted and have a deep cavity back for added forgiveness.
They perform equally well on full or partial shots from the fairway or rough and on all shots around the green.
The pitching and gap wedge have full sole grinds to mimic your irons and the sand and lob wedge have “W” grinds which add bounce for added forgiveness.
They all have JAWS grooves and the pitching and gap wedges have full face JAWS grooves.
Recommendation: We think the CB wedge would make a fine option for any player looking for extra forgiveness in otherwise standard wedges.
Cleveland CBX 2 Wedge
New & Used Clubs Available
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- Superior spin, control, and forgiveness
- Best game improvement wedge
- Retains classic look at address
- Great pricing
- Getting hard to find
The Cleveland CBX 2 wedges were made specifically for golfers that play game improvement equipment.
That means most of us…
They provide tour-level spin and performance while still offering game-improvement features such as
- Hollow-Cavity with a hollow chamber near the heal and added weight in the toe for increased MOI for max forgiveness across the face
- Dynamic Sole with three different sole grinds optimized by loft for ultimate versatility
- Rotex Face with extra-sharp grooves and aggressive milling for max spin and control
Cleveland has been one of the top wedge companies for as long as I can remember. I played the 588 wedges for 20 years and still have one in the closet.
I think the CBX 2 sand wedge and lob wedge will work well for the high handicapper with just a little work on some wedge basics.
As a set, the CBX 2s can handle full-swing shots as well as any shot around the green.
Best Beginner Putters
Cobra King 3D Agera
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- Large Sweet Spot
- Solid & Stable on Off-center Contact
- Easy to Align
- Good feel & sound
- Expensive
The Cobra King 3D Agera does two things very well:
- Remains extremely stable at impact to keep your ball rolling on line. ( Think forgiveness)
- Rolls the ball consistently no matter your angle of attack at contact. (Again, more forgiveness for inconsistent strokes)
Together, they mean supreme forgiveness and better results on every stroke. Especially on lag putts, where distance control is crucial.
Credit the 3D printed lattice cartridge, steel chassis, forged aluminum crown, and 4 tungsten weights for the high MOI (stability & forgiveness).
And, credit the collaboration with SIK putters for Descending Loft Technology (DLT) to produce consistent launch (yes, the ball launches, not rolls, immediately when it leaves the putter face) whether you have a descending, neutral, or ascending stroke.
Customer Reviews: The main attribute buyers speak of is how easy this putter makes putting.
This is a steep investment for the beginner golfer, no doubt. But, its worth a look if you’ve got the money.
Taylormade Spider S
New & Used clubs available
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I’ve been a fan and user of Taylormade putters since they introduced the Spider line a few years ago.
They feel great, get the ball rolling well, and have a good bit of forgiveness.
The Spider S is part of the latest generation of those putters. SR = Stability Refined. Taylormade makes the Spider S stable in a couple ways
- The double wing design helps distribute weight in a way that increases MOI (always think stability and forgiveness when you see this). The wings have cast-in sole weights and two additional moveable tungsten weights to help optimize the MOI.
The Pure Roll inserts are still there to improve sound, feel, and roll with the 45-degree grooves, which get the ball rolling online faster.
Our Verdict
There’s a lot to chew on on this page.
I don’t believe in buying cheap clubs, but I do believe in buying inexpensive clubs. I’ve given you options to do that or spend a little more for the latest and the greatest.
My #1 suggestion is to test before you buy. Either at your local golf store or take advantage of Global Golf’s Utry trial program. I use it and recommend it.
Thanks for checking out my review of the best beginner golf clubs in 2024. Let us know which ones you end up choosing and how they worked out for you.
