Golf equipment seems to get more and more expensive every year.
For players who have been around the game a long time, it can be frustrating to know that the next upgrade to a new set of clubs will likely cost thousands of dollars.
More and more players are asking the question: Are expensive golf clubs worth it?
With so many options out there from different price ranges, it’s hard to know if these clubs are truly worth it.
We have thought long and hard about this, and we truly believe that expensive golf clubs are worth it.
Here are ten reasons that expensive golf clubs are worth it.
Are Expensive Golf Clubs Worth It? (10 Reasons They Are)
1. Longevity
Expensive golf clubs hold up longer than cheap golf clubs.
When you purchase a set of expensive golf clubs, they are going to last for quite some time.
This will mean that you have a lower chance of needing to replace the clubs you have purchased.
The longer you can go without needing to purchase new golf clubs and fill up your golf bag, the better the initial value of these clubs is.
Let’s say you purchase a set of irons that costs $1,200, but you keep this set of irons for 10 years.
This is a better investment into your game than a $500 set of irons that you replace every other year.
Not only will you spend less money, but you will also find that the consistency in technology and feel that you give yourself over that ten-year period will help you become a better player.
The expensive golf clubs last longer than cheap golf clubs, and you will sometimes even be able to sell them when you are done with using them.
Think of this like any other premium product you can purchase.
In the end, it’s like there will likely be some value associated with it.
2. Distance
One of the main differences in technology that we see between expensive golf clubs and cheap golf clubs is distance.
With a long-distance golf club, the course you are playing becomes quite a bit more manageable.
Think of how easy it is to get the ball to go 250 yards with an expensive driver as opposed to a cheap driver that may not have the same technology in the club head.
In fact, the distance that you can hit the ball with your golf woods and irons will make all the difference when it comes to scoring.
All players like to hit the ball a long way, but distance is more about scoring than anything else.
When you can get a ball to go close to the hole in fewer shots, chances are it took some extra distance to accomplish this.
Many great players will talk about distance as though it is not the only thing that matters in golf.
This is entirely true, but distance does matter.
Even if feel, accuracy, course management, and all of these other things are essential and part of the game, distance still matters.
If you compare, a driver produced this year with one that was created just five years ago, the difference in the distance you can create is incredible.
These changes in distance technology come with both club head and shaft improvements, not one or the other.
3. Spin Technology
Spin is a very important word for golfers.
Golf is a complicated game, and spin is something that golfers need to pay attention to regardless of where they are playing their shot from.
This means that you will need low spin from the tee to keep the ball straighter and ensure it rolls quite a bit when it makes contact with the ground.
In addition, the spin on the iron shots needs to be strong enough to allow an iron shot to stop on the green.
Lastly, golfers need a higher spin around the greens to make sure that their wedges are stopping directly next to the pin.
The spin technology that golf clubs create is incredibly important.
Manufacturers are using artificial intelligence to ensure that spin technology is accurate and that golfers are capable of getting the ball to go where they want it.
When you don’t pay attention to spin, it becomes difficult to be accurate on the golf course.
Expensive golf clubs will allow even the golfers who are considered to be higher handicappers or less talented players to get the spin rates that they need.
Spin technology can be enhanced by choosing the right ball as well as the right golf clubs, but the proper golf clubs are a key component of this process.
Look at the grooves on an expensive golf wedge like the Callaway Jaws compared to a cheaper knock-off wedge.
You can see that there is extra technology used to try and improve the overall traction and grip that the wedge has in controlling the golf ball.
If you have never thought about spin technology when purchasing a golf club, now is the time to start.
4. Better Feel
When expensive golf clubs are tested next to cheap ones, the thing that stands out for most golfers is the feel.
The feel of an expensive golf club is considerably better than that of a cheap golf club.
Essentially, you will find that the expensive golf clubs will give you much better performance and feedback than the cheap golf clubs.
One of the things you may find with an expensive iron is that the club head will feel soft and in control when you make contact.
With the cheaper golf irons, you can experience a harsh feel or something that feels almost like a rock when you make contact.
The higher quality clubs are made with better materials that go through a longer forging or manufacturing process to improve the overall feel.
Testing golf clubs to find a feel that works for you as a player is a very smart thing to do.
When you have more feel in your clubs, it’s much easier to improve your game and to feel as though you are rewarded for a good golf shot.
For some players, a slightly firmer feel is important, and the sound and look will likely incorporate into this a bit as well.
Hitting a great shot should feel as though you have hit a great shot, but when you get a bit of feedback from hitting a poor shot, it is not a bad thing.
Make great contact with the golf ball, and then see how it will respond and whether or not it has the feel you are looking for.
Premium brands like Titleist, Callaway, Ping, and TaylorMade sell a good majority of their player-style irons on the premise of golf clubs feeling better.
5. Increased Forgiveness
Expensive golf clubs can often have increased forgiveness.
For the higher handicappers, this can mean a tremendous amount of forgiveness in the clubhead to try and keep the ball straighter.
However, for lower handicappers, increased forgiveness is also a positive.
Lower handicappers don’t want clubs that have corrective technology to make it easier for them to hit shots, but some extra room to accommodate a bad swing here and there is very important.
Increased forgiveness is a positive that comes from enhanced research and development of the golf clubs and the materials that are used to create them.
With this increase in forgiveness, players are able to take swings with full confidence and know that the golf club will help them to have a great hole.
This increased forgiveness in golf clubs is expensive because it takes extra materials and more complicated production methods to make it happen.
For instance, you will notice many of the newest golf clubs on the market have tungsten weighting in the club head.
Tungsten is a relatively new material used in golf clubs to help improve overall functionality.
More and more golf manufacturers are using tungsten weighting in their clubs because of the lightweight nature of the material.
Since the tungsten is lighter in weight, it can be used in different areas of the club head to improve the center of gravity and get the ball higher in the air.
Sweet spots are getting larger, and manufacturers are narrowing down the areas of the club where players miss that sweet spot most often.
This allows the golfer to hit the ball off the heel or the toe and still see plenty of distance and accuracy.
Golf manufacturers have noticed that players often hit the ball a little too high or a little too low on the face.
In more expensive clubs, forgiveness in these areas has been enhanced and improved.
6. Proper Fitting
Most of the time, when you invest in more expensive golf clubs, they are also going to be properly fitted to the needs of a player.
When golf clubs fit your game properly, you can become a much better player at a faster rate.
Essentially, we have all of these great equipment choices on the market, but if you do not use the equipment properly or are not fitted for the tools you need, you are leaving shots on the table.
If you have the money to invest in more expensive golf clubs, don’t play another round with something cheap that does not fit your game.
Technology in the form of launch monitors has improved significantly in the last few years.
Even the average golfer can have a launch monitor next to them as they hit golf shots on the range.
This will ensure that you find the proper loft gapping between clubs and which shafts and club heads may help you increase launch.
The overall fitting process will add to the costs of the clubs that you purchase.
Fitted golf clubs often have custom shafts and grips that will, without a doubt, increase the overall price that you pay.
However, when you can have an expensive set of clubs that is fit to your exact needs as a player, it is well worth the performance that you will get.
7. Reach Goals For Your Game
Expensive golf clubs make it easier to reach your goals as a golfer.
When you play with cheap golf clubs, you are often working against yourself in the form of goals for your golf game.
Most of the time, players who want to shoot lower scores are going to need workability in the golf clubs they choose.
Having the ability to hit a draw or a fade on demand is a major reason to choose a more expensive golf club.
Set the goals for yourself and your game, and then think about what it will take to get you there.
Take a good look at your equipment and think about which upgrades are necessary.
Maybe you will find that some of your golf clubs are already performing as well as they need to for you to reach your goals, but others are causing some problems.
Golf clubs do not need to be replaced all at once.
You can work to build the perfect set over a few years and then find yourself content with the best set for your game.
We like to try and alternate years in which we make big upgrades.
So one year will be a replacement of an iron set, while the next could be just a new fairway wood.
This helps to keep all of the technology in your bag more relevant and capable of helping you reach the goals you want for your golf game.
8. Replace Clubs Less Often
When you purchase more expensive golf clubs, you can replace them much less often.
Replacing golf clubs less often will allow you some extra time before making another large investment.
This is one of the major reasons players will eventually purchase the more expensive clubs.
In a golfer’s mind, they know that they can get performance and overall feel for a long time.
With the cheap clubs, you may only get a year or two of this performance without the need to replace it to find something that is better for you.
Some golfers with really high swing speeds will also notice that cheap golf clubs can break.
The shafts and club head material are not made from the same high-end or premium-feeling equipment.
This means that you can take a great swing, and the clubhead could fly off or the shaft could start to crack.
Although some of these can be replaced, it is certainly nothing like having a premium golf club in your hands.
If you want to replace golf clubs less often, don’t forget to consider the value that the expensive golf clubs can bring along.
9. Resale Value
Eventually, you will be done with your golf clubs and ready to move on to the next step.
This is something that happens to all players based on their preference, budget, and playing ability.
If you originally purchased ad high-end set of golf clubs, chances are the overall resale value will be quite good.
Some brands are known for their higher resale value, like Ping.
Although you won’t come close to getting your initial investment back, you can still get several hundred dollars to put towards a set of new golf clubs.
The resale value should be looked at when you purchase the clubs so that you can choose the perfect time to sell.
Just like most products on the market, golf clubs can be sold online and will appeal to a large audience.
The used golf club market is strong, and people all over the world will sometimes be looking for certain rare golf clubs with the shaft or specifications that they need.
Since manufacturers stop making the same line of golf clubs after a while, it is much easier to find used golf clubs and then tinker with them.
10. Can Handle Daily Play
The last but certainly not least reason to purchase more expensive golf clubs is that they can handle daily play.
The more you enjoy the game, the better the clubs you should purchase.
If you end up with a set of golf clubs that you love and trust and can handle everyday play, you will be much more satisfied.
Golf clubs handle daily play much better when they are expensive.
Cheap golf clubs may only last for a year or so before they will need to be replaced and improved upon.
Overall, if you play golf several times a week, you will almost need to purchase the more expensive golf clubs so that they can hold up better over time.
The best golf clubs on the market will not only withstand your daily play, but they will hold up for years to come and be worth something when you are done with them.
Conclusion
The more expensive golf clubs on the market are worth it.
When you choose golf clubs that have great technology and feel, you will be doing yourself a favor from a scoring standpoint.
In addition, you will enjoy plenty of years of playing great golf and being able to manipulate the ball and hit the ball long and straight.
At the end of their useful life for you, expensive golf clubs can be sold for much more money than a cheap set of golf clubs.
Try to determine your commitment level to the game and then base your budget on that.
The more golf you play and the more you love the game, the more important it is to choose a set of golf clubs with premium technology and performance.
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