How Often Should You Change Golf Clubs?
Most of us would all like to change our golf equipment for the latest models each year, but not everyone has the budget to do this. If you have been custom fitted for golf clubs, you may love the fact a club fits your game perfectly and are reluctant to give it up.
However technology marches on every year in golf both for clubs and the ball and you need to move with the times or you will literally fall behind on the golf course.
Here is the SGGT guide as to when you should replace the various types of club in your golf bag so that you maximise performance and stay within budget.
How Often Should You Change Your Driver?
Each year equipment manufacturers bring out new drivers that promise more distance and accuracy and generally in our driver custom fitting we see that to be true. However gains can be marginal from one year to the next are therefore it might not necessarily be worth upgrading every year.
If your new driver is not working for you then get a new fitting session booked in right away as it could be costing your shots. Otherwise you should look to upgrade you driver every 2 to 3 generations of each model or 2 to 4 years. This is because you will probably see an accumulation of marginal gains to create a big one. In addition it is worth noting that the golf ball will also change over time and the newer drivers will work better with the latest golf balls.
How Often Should You Change Your Fairway Wood?
Similar in construction to drivers, fairway woods benefit from the same advances in technology when it comes to ball speed and forgiveness. Fairway woods are more about accuracy than distance and, especially with the longer 3-wood and 5-wood, changing every 2 to 3 generations, or 2 to 4 years, will see gains in both.
Some players may keep an old trusty fairway in their bag for longer and if the club still fits in your distance gaps then there is no harm in that. Whilst you can potentially leave the changeover time longer than a driver, it is worth checking regularly as fairways launch the ball lower and therefore the club has to tie in with the ball of the day.
How Often Should You Change Your Hybrid?
Hybrids and utility driving irons fill the gap in your set between the woods and the irons. Like fairway woods they can stay in the bag a little longer than drivers as they are about accuracy.
Most players use hybrids to hit approach shots into the green, so the key is to ensure that the landing angle is steep enough for the ball to stop in time. If your swing speed changes or you change your set of irons then it would be worth coming in for a fitting. Otherwise review your hybrids every 2 to 3 generations or 2 to 4 years.
How Often Should You Change Your Irons?
Irons are about having a set of clubs that cover shots of around 100 to 180 yards in equal gaps. They are all about consistency and an iron custom fitting session in our Hogan studio will create a set that delivers this.
If you have been through an iron fitting process then your irons may last you a long time as the groove degradation is not as much of an issue as with wedges. Therefore you could get away with changing your irons every 3 to 4 generations or 4 to 5 years.
However if you change your swing speed, be custom fit for a golf ball or need more forgiveness, then a different set would be worth reviewing sooner than that.
How Often Should You Change Your Wedges?
With our wedge fitting service, we spend a lot of time fitting for loft, lie and bounce and therefore like putters, there is a high level of customisation. The head shapes do not change greatly from one model to the next as wedges are clubs that focus on feel and accuracy.
However the one area where they differ from irons and other clubs is the quality of the grooves as these deliver the spin and control. Not only do they improve from one new model to the next, but they also wear out quicker as wedge faces are more in contact with rough surfaces like soil and sand. Read our review on how often to change your wedges to see the effect of spin reduction.
Therefore you should look to replace your wedges every 80 rounds to keep the grooves fresh, maybe less than that if you practice a lot with your wedges, especially if you use range balls. A tip to lengthen the life of your wedges is to keep any wedges you replace and practice with those and keep your new wedges for the course.
How Often Should You Change Your Putter?
If you have a bad day on the greens then the frequency of changing putters maybe every round for some! For others being faithful to a certain model is the key as the magic will come back eventually.
Technically improvements in materials and weighting in heads make modern putters more forgiving than older ones. Putter shafts are now coming into the mix as carbon and composite shafts replace steel to create more consistently in tempo and therefore more accuracy. Custom fitting for length, lie and head shape as well as shaft can ensure that you return the face square and hole more putts.
If it ain't broke then probably don't try to fix it. However, keep an eye on technology and test new models to ensure that you aren't missing out on potential gains. If you are not a very consistent putter then upgrading every few years could bring benefits.