The Definitive Guide to Youth Golf Clubs

As parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles we’re often all to ready to share the sport we love with our youngsters.  We all know the drill.  It often starts out with a simple wiffle ball golf set when they’re still in diapers and then quickly transitions to a more realistic junior set around age 3 or 4.

It’s fun to see them knock the ball around the living room or back yard but dig a little deeper and you’ll find that golf is one of the greatest sports to teach a young child.  From the educational and muscular development it promotes to the etiquette, comrade, and sportsmanship its famous for, learning the game of golf can have a positive influence on children of any age.

We’ve identified ways to get your child started in golf and what golf gear is available on the market to help teach these children the “game you play for a lifetime”.

As adults, we are the catalyst to the growth of our child’s interest in the game.  This can begin with something as simple as taking them to the driving range with you, watching golf on television together, or even a Golf A to Z Bedtime Story.

Once you’re little ones are ready to start taking a swing of their own you can let the fun of purchasing them their first set begin!

Newborn – 3 Years

The best way to assist children in developing their early motor skills is to let them try new things and swinging a (safe) club can be both fun and educational.  You can start them off with something as simple as the Little Tikes Totsports Easy Hit Golf Set and slowly move them up to the Mylec Future Pro Golf Set which comes with a mini driver, putter, 3 balls, plastic tee, and a putting circle to get them accustom to aiming at a target.  For under $25 neither of these toys will assist your youngster in developing a real golf swing but they will provide them with plenty of enjoyment while developing large motor skills and creating an interest in the game.

Ages 4 – 5 Years

Who can forget two year old Tiger Woods showing off an almost perfect swing on the Mike Douglas show?  While Tiger is obviously more the excption than the rule, children as young as 4-5 years are capable of starting to learn a real golf swing.

Intech offers a great learning golf set for young children called the Future Tour Junior Golf Set which comes with a 20 degree fairway driver, a 5 and 9 iron, putter, and a nylon golf bag which is lightweight and easy to carry.  Amazon offers this higher-quality set for under $70 (with free shipping) making it a perfect holiday or birthday gift for that 4-5 year old golfer who is learning the basics of the game.  This is also a great age to start bringing your children along on the real golf course (when it’s not too crowded) and having their own little set will help make them feel more connected to the game.

Ages 5 – 10 Years

Intech, who seems to be big in the junior golf category, makes golf sets for almost every young children age group.  The Intech Lancer Junior Set, like the Future set, comes with the driver, a 7 and 9 iron, putter, but they now also include a hybrid in the bag.  At $89.98 these clubs make for the perfect set for that kindergartner – 2^nd grader looking to play the game.

For around the same price the Confidence Junior Golf Club Set with Stand Bag also comes with two irons, a driver/fairway wood, and a putter.  Like the Intech set, these youth golf clubs are designed with oversized heads and high lofts to help get the ball in the air and travelling in the right direction.

Now for those children who are a bit more developed and have taken a higher interest in the game (even at this young age), there are more serious clubs such as those found in the Wilson FG Tour Junior Golf Set or the Paul Frank Junior Golf Set, both of which are geared towards ages 6-8

Ages 10 – 15 Years

This can be perhaps the trickiest of all ages when it comes to purchasing youth golf clubs.  The reason being that development can vary so much at these pivitol pre-teen and early teen ages.  Especially when considering the later 14-15 year old ages of this group it’s important to assess the child’s development and skill level before purchasing anything still to be considered “youth” clubs.  At this age when youngsters are transitioning into high school we find that many  are ready to step up to a full size adult set.  Again, this is going to depend on their physical development, size, and experience with the game.  

There are however still quite a few excellent youth sets that will work for this age group.  Just a few of our favorites include:

• The Wilson Profile HL Teen Package Set 
• The MacGregor Tourney Junior Set
• The Callaway 2013 XJ Boys Junior Golf Set (choose the 8 piece set for ages 9-12)

After age 15 most youth golfers are ready to transition into adult golf clubs.  As a matter of note, another excellent way to provide clubs for children of just about any age is to take an older set (either one of your own or even one purchased from a garage sale) and have them cut down to size and re-gripped.  This can be an excellent way to re-purpose old golf clubs to save money, while at the same time providing your children with a high quality, full set of clubs.

Do you have any additional suggestions for youth golf clubs that we haven’t covered in this guide?  If so, let us know about them by leaving us a comment below!

(Cover Photo Credit)