US Kids Clubs: In-between sizes ... What to get?

[Little Ned]

My son is getting into golf, so we want to buy him a good set for his birthday.

 

He's 9 and 55".  I'm confused about what to get. He falls in the range for the 54" set. However, it says it's for 8-10 year olds, whereas the 57" says it's for 9-11 year olds. So, the sets sort of overlap in that respect.

 

So, do you go with the size that fits him right now? Or the one that he'll likely fit in a year and let him grow into it? It shouldn't be confusing, but it is.

[bobfoster]

You can always choke up a bit as he grows into them. You can never choke down. Pretty much the same principle as buying clothes for growing kids. Start slightly large.

[Aggies087]

IMO, shorter is better than longer particularly for brand new players. All 3 of what I consider the major "players" in kids clubs (USKG, Flynn, Ping), are uniform in club lengths at least when it comes to irons. For example, for Flynn and Ping where you can customize the set for a specific height rather than the 3 inch bands for USKG, at 54 inches the recommend 7 iron length is 32 inches. This is also the length in the 54 inch set from USKG. Both also recommend 32.5 inches for a 55 inch player, 33 inches for a 56 inch player, and 33.5 inch 7 iron for a 57 inch player. The USKG 57-60 set has a 33.5 inch 7 iron, so it is uniform with these other guys.

 

If your son is 55 inches now as a 9 year old, according to the CDC growth charts he projects to be 56 inches in about 6 months, and a little more than 57 inches in 12 months.

 

Especially if he plans to use the set quite a bit the rest of 2024, I wouldn't go too long. Trying to learn the game with clubs that are too long for you is not the way.

 

I was in the same spot as you as my son was in between sizes and this issue more or less served as the tiebreaker between sticking with USKG and shifting to Flynn/Ping. That said, going to Flynn/PING would be quite a bit more money, particularly if you went all PING. Yes you get to lengthen the set in the future for free, but an 8 piece set from PING would be $1,135. Flynn is a bit cheaper as a set from them would be $595. Still quite a bit more than the $359 for a 7 piece set from USKG, and then you can also go and get an extra club from USKG using the buy 5 get 1 free program (could add a 3W, 9i, LW, etc.).

 

My recommendation is this: get the USKG 54-57" 7 club set. It's $359, would give him 7 clubs plus like mentioned above you can though pick out an 8th for free. This set would last him the rest of this season and all of next. At that point you'll have a pretty good idea how much he likes golf and how much he's improved prior to buying the next set.

 

At that point, after the 2025 season, if he's really loving golf and wants to take it a little more serious, then you could spend a bit more on the next set, custom fitting to the proper size (would likely be basing on a 58"player based on growth charts projection of his height in spring 2026, so again may be between sets on the USKG spectrum). Could look at either going all Ping, or what I did was get the Ping FW/Hybrid which are considered far superior to clubs from other manufacturers, and then I went Flynn (Alto series) for irons/wedges. Driver we used a Flynn shaft into a Calaway Xr 16 head I had already, that's a whole can of worms I would worry about for the next set, for now the USKG UL one is great for learning. And if he ends up being "meh" on golf, but still wants to dabble in it, then after the 2025 season go and get the 57" UL set and continue from there.

 

[MB19]

The Flynn Size chart is the gold standard for golf club sizing, IMO--great resource for club buying.

 

Buy him something that fits him now so he can enjoy the clubs now.  It doesn't have to be a full set--FW, 7-PW, SW, Putter for now.

 

Buy all your USKG iron sets used (eBay or Play it Again Sports), as kids are going to play them for a year at the most.  You can find USKG or other kids golf bags $25 and under at Play it Again Sports.

 

If you want to splurge on an item, grab a used Ping Prodi g hybrid and/or FW.  These are the pound-for-pound best junior clubs ever made..  

 

For putter, look for something cheapish with an insert.  The older TM Rossa mallets are fantastic putters for the money.  Just make sure it fits him (31" at his size, or so)

 

Checking out Flynn Golf's site for clearance clubs can get you a nice array of new clubs (older model) at an attractive price

 

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[hangontight]

Err on the shorter side.   My son (now 13) went through almost every USKG set from age 5-11.   I would always have the next size up on deck and found that he wasn't ready for that set until he was an few inches(about halfway) into that sets recommended height range.   I disagree with the choke down/grow into it approach.    Forget Age "recommendations".   Get used to getting new clubs annually or even more frequent as they grow...just part of the deal.  They need clubs that fit now, not in a year.
 

Edited August 22, 2024 by hangontight

[Andypark713]

As most have echoed I would err on the shorter side as well. Kind of stinks as you will probably have to upgrade sooner, but for your kids development it will be much easier/ smoother for them.  

 

Cobra has a good junior program where you can get a junior driver, and then upgrade the shaft once to a longer shaft as they grow.

[mogc60]

On 10/15/2024 at 2:29 PM, Andypark713 said:

As most have echoed I would err on the shorter side as well. Kind of stinks as you will probably have to upgrade sooner, but for your kids development it will be much easier/ smoother for them.  

 

Cobra has a good junior program where you can get a junior driver, and then upgrade the shaft once to a longer shaft as they grow.

Agreed biggest things to avoid is clubs too heavy. Longer length equals higher overall weight and swingweight so erring on the slightly too short side keeps the weight in check 

[MB19]

I always thought that Flynn's size chart was more accurate for length of clubs.  I still go by their chart even though my kids use OEM now.