WWYouD re 12 YO clubs

[caligolfer2103]

My son is 12.5yo and just now starting to get more into tournaments. Shoots pretty consistently in the mid 80s. Currently stands about 5'3" but I suspect is on the verge of a growth spurt of a few inches given his older brother's growth path and his large hands / feet (lol.)

 

He's always played USKids but the graphite shafts are starting to get whippy and so this weekend, we tested adult clubs. If we were to buy today, it would likely be the Titleist T-150 irons and Callaway driver / wood. I know he's ready for them and would immediately benefit given what I saw in increased distance and tighter dispersion. I think the heads will last him a long time, but I'm worried that he'll outgrow the shafts (graphite / regular flex) pretty quickly if he does sprout. For reference, his driver swing speed is ~86 - 88mph, so decent but not off the charts by any means.

 

What I lack is the experience to know when he'd have to change shafts again. Is it like a couple MPH away, 5 MPH or like 10+ MPH? And I have no sense for how quickly he can gain MPH, i.e. if he does grow let's say 2 - 3" by end of year, how much does that translate in swing speed without additional improvement from speed training / increased strength?

Sorry if these are dumb questions, but just trying to wrap my head around all this before I take the plunge on his first adult club set... I want to do it for him bc I know it will help him on course but it will gut me if I have to reshaft in a few months! And we've been patient about this while all his friends have already upgraded to adult clubs, so I don't want to have waited all this time only to get impatient at the last moment.

 

[mrshinsa]

Our son went to adult clubs at 12.  

Since then, he has switched clubs at least once a year.  

 

 

When I ran the numbers, it did not make sense to re-shaft, unless you're doing the work yourself.

 

 

 

 

[caligolfer2103]

Yikes, he's switching 1x a year?!?!  See, I have much to learn about the cost of junior golf... I've been spoiled with USKids and waiting for them to go on sale. Time to swallow hard, I guess.

[mrshinsa]

3 hours ago, caligolfer2103 said:

Yikes, he's switching 1x a year?!?!  See, I have much to learn about the cost of junior golf... I've been spoiled with USKids and waiting for them to go on sale. Time to swallow hard, I guess.

 

Yes, I miss those USKids club days...  $500 bux and you got everything you need for a year.

 

Now I'm spending just as much on a single shaft.   🤕

 

 

 

Edited July 18, 2023 by mrshinsa

[Fairway28]

Sorry for a boring answer here, but as I have said before I highly recommend going to a reputable fitter in your area.  Find someone you trust or from a recommendation and put the decision in their hands and your sons.  Transitioning to adult clubs brings more possible combinations than the lottery which can be overwhelming, but you will find the right set up with proper help.... Good Luck!

[hangontight]

In short, if he is committed to the game and competition and you are committed to supporting him (i.e, with the right equipment)....then he needs equipment that fits him now.  If not, he'll be searching for compensations (choking down, flat swing, etc.)...really a moving target.     Trying to squeak an extra few months at best out of a set by getting it too stiff/too long isnt worth having properly fit equipment that he can be confident in.   *That being said, money doesn't grow on trees for me, like most....so it does seem that there is always something in his bag that he has outgrown (currently his 7 wood shaft and iron shafts)...he makes due with what he has and sometimes just has to wait.  

 

My thoughts on your post....

 

- he WILL benefit from adult fitted clubs.  You noted in the other post he was gaining 20+ yards with OEM driver over USKG.  This alone will benefit his game tremendously.  20 Yards is huge ....9 iron will be more accurate than a 7 iron into greens.

- he will need new shafts at least once a year.  Impossible to predict how his growth & strength will change his swing or equipment needs.  My son tends to actually lose speed, control, and distance when he hits a growth spurt.  It eventually comes back.  More so his gains come when he is consistent with stretching and instruction. 

 

For reference, my son is 12.  Adult woods for many years, but adult irons and wedges at 11.   T200's & vokeys....hope to get a few years out of them but is past due for shaft upgrade at this point.   

 

 

Edited July 19, 2023 by hangontight

[caligolfer2103]

Thanks all. I didn't appreciate that most kids are changing shafts every year. Which means i'm really just stalling the inevitable...

[TroyB123]

With the AJGA discount on TM, Callaway and Mizuno, you can get new clubs for almost what you can sell 1 yo clubs for.   It definitely makes changing them annually much more cost effective and generally cheaper than re-shafting.

[bliznock]

My son is turning 12 this weekend and I bought him an older set of TaylorMade RACs - regular graphite shaft.  He doesn’t have a ton of club head speed, but does play competitively. He’s testing them on the range and hitting them fine. So I’d consider an older set (known for being all time great clubs) for the growth spurt. Going well for us so far and like $400-500 cheaper for me personally so far. 😂

[MikekiM]

What I've done in the past when purchasing adults heads, is buy clubs with shafts that I think he'd grow into later.

Then after I pull them, I set them aside for later.  I bought his JPX 921 with Nippon Modus 105 S shafts in them.  Pulled those, and put in Nippon Zelos 8 Then  I put the Modus 105 shafts back in.  Got over 2 years of use out the JPX heads this way.

 

This year though I think he'll finally go through an actual club fitting since he's finally now playing standard length clubs.

 

[Guest RobS]

23 hours ago, bliznock said:

My son is turning 12 this weekend and I bought him an older set of TaylorMade RACs - regular graphite shaft.  He doesn’t have a ton of club head speed, but does play competitively. He’s testing them on the range and hitting them fine. So I’d consider an older set (known for being all time great clubs) for the growth spurt. Going well for us so far and like $400-500 cheaper for me personally so far. 😂

I did the same thing while my son was in those early physically maturing years.  I'd find an older, high quality used set, with the appropriate shafts and adjust the lengths and lies if necessary.  Ping i200's and AP2's for example.  I can also do any club work at home which helps.  Once he outgrew them, I'd trade them in for another used set.  The big used club sites have periodic 15%-20% off sales so you can get some really good deals and upgrade for $100-$200 with your trade in.  Kids can go through rapid physical changes from 12-15 and the frequent club changing can add a big expense to an already expensive sport.  

I waited until my son was out of his major growth spurt before I made a bigger financial commitment on equipment.  I also wanted to make sure he maintained his commitment to the game when the teenage social distractions came around.  I still look for used club deals at times when he needs to change something.

Despite not walking into the golf store and buying the latest and greatest, his equipment never held him back.  It also kept him out of that rabbit hole. Don't get me wrong, he's still a gear head and always wants new stuff but he knows the difference between a need and a want and doesn't blames his equipment.

[bliznock]

1 hour ago, RobS said:

I did the same thing while my son was in those early physically maturing years.  I'd find an older, high quality used set, with the appropriate shafts and adjust the lengths and lies if necessary.  Ping i200's and AP2's for example.  I can also do any club work at home which helps.  Once he outgrew them, I'd trade them in for another used set.  The big used club sites have periodic 15%-20% off sales so you can get some really good deals and upgrade for $100-$200 with your trade in.  Kids can go through rapid physical changes from 12-15 and the frequent club changing can add a big expense to an already expensive sport.  

I waited until my son was out of his major growth spurt before I made a bigger financial commitment on equipment.  I also wanted to make sure he maintained his commitment to the game when the teenage social distractions came around.  I still look for used club deals at times when he needs to change something.

Despite not walking into the golf store and buying the latest and greatest, his equipment never held him back.  It also kept him out of that rabbit hole. Don't get me wrong, he's still a gear head and always wants new stuff but he knows the difference between a need and a want and doesn't blames his equipment.

So true Rob. I'm thankful that I read some boards here before buying him another set of "perfectly" fitted clubs. The 12-15 range is tough, so I figure why overspend and overthink it. Just get something with decent shafts and club face and let them figure it out. Totally different story if your kid is locked in on AJGA tourneys all summer...but for the most part I agree...make sure they're committed before buying the Miuras! 

[Guest RobS]

3 hours ago, bliznock said:

So true Rob. I'm thankful that I read some boards here before buying him another set of "perfectly" fitted clubs. The 12-15 range is tough, so I figure why overspend and overthink it. Just get something with decent shafts and club face and let them figure it out. Totally different story if your kid is locked in on AJGA tourneys all summer...but for the most part I agree...make sure they're committed before buying the Miuras! 

12-15 is tough for sure.  Lots of changes going on.  I'm not knocking any parents that are retooling their kids with new clubs every season, at all ages.  My kid is 16, adult sized now, and has a full custom bag of the latest and greatest.  It's daunting at times for a parent to navigate junior golf in many aspects, equipment being one of them.  There are a lot of different but good suggestions in threads like these that are helpful.

 

A side story, 3 years ago my son was telling me he needed a new driver because all of the new drivers he'd hit were 20+ longer than his.  In a parental way, I told him he was F.O.S.  To prove a point on the range one day, I asked for his driver.  I figured I'd just rip a few with his driver to show him it was just fine.  I take a swing, hit it pretty flush, and it flies like a dead duck.  I looked at the face and there is long but hard to see crack.  He'd have probably been playing that driver for another year, telling me how short it was, if I had never hit it myself.

[MB19]

On 7/19/2023 at 4:50 PM, caligolfer2103 said:

Thanks all. I didn't appreciate that most kids are changing shafts every year. Which means i'm really just stalling the inevitable...

It takes a bit to accept this, but yes.

 

The good news is that if you are having to change shafts every year, it means the kid is getting bigger and faster.  That's the way I force myself to accept it.

[mbh922]

1 hour ago, MB19 said:

Just curious as I know way less than most on this board - at 12 / 13 are most kids using graphite or steel shafts for their irons?  What would be the benefit of one vrs the other?  Appreciate any feedback 

[CaddyMomNC]

Their age doesn't matter. How big is your kid? What is his swing speed? What does his ball flight look like? A proper fitter can do a LOT to get your kid in the right clubs that will make the game easier for your child right now.

 

My son at 12 was 5'6 and weighed 100lbs soaking wet with a swing speed in the mid-80's. He's  just turned 14 and is now 6'1 / 130lbs / swing speed 105+. There have been multiple shaft changes (3 for the woods / 2 for the irons & wedges - also went from graphite to steel) during this time. We are about to go to a fitting here in a few weeks to change out the irons/wedges to something more suitable for his game is now.

 

The key to all of this has been our fitter. Between him & our swing coach they both had things they wanted his clubs to be able to do. However it needed to be within reason to where he was at the time yet have room for where we were trying to get his game moving forward. We have been more than pleased with how things have progressed and most importantly it has been easy for him every time. We've had two issues with clubs that needed to be bent in angles & a driver setting that didn't go as planned so we moved it back for a couple of months until our son was ready.

 

Long story short. My kid isn't your kid. Find a fitter who can help you out with where YOUR kid is today and it will make the game way more enjoyable for him at any level. 

[MB19]

On 8/14/2023 at 12:15 PM, mbh922 said:

Just curious as I know way less than most on this board - at 12 / 13 are most kids using graphite or steel shafts for their irons?  What would be the benefit of one vrs the other?  Appreciate any feedback 

That's a good question.

 

My guess is that most 12/13 yo boys are using steel, while a good portion of 12/13 yo girls are in graphite--although I won't put a guess on what percentage that is.

 

My daughter will be 12 (5'4/115) next month, is in R flex, and is in what will could likely be her last graphite set of shafts for her irons/wedges.

 

The biggest benefit previous to the current Recoil 760 ES F3 70g shafts was weight savings.  Her shafts before this were between 40-55g as she moved up in flex.

 

There are other variables at play like torque, but there are others on this board way more versed in shafts than I.  Shafts can change dispersion, spin rates and swing speeds depending on the shaft.