Simple question - for a beginner golfer does the quality of clubs make much difference in the ability to learn the game? Will I notice a difference between a $500 set versus a $150 set?
My experience and what I have learned:
When you start golfing, you will suck. Hard. You will suck equally as hard with a $100 set of irons like the ones I started with, as you will with a $1500 set of irons.
You will not be able to notice a difference initially. Don’t fall in to the trap of thinking that your gear will make you a better golfer. There are only two instances where clubs will improve your score (not make you a ‘better’ player!) One is when you suck and you get a significantly more forgiving club. This actually isn’t extremely likely, since clubs in general are pretty forgiving anymore. Second is when you have actually acquired some skill, and you are able to discern exaclty what type of club will help your game. I never made it to this level, and I actually doubt that 90% of golfers ever do.
My advice: Buy the $100 set and take some lessons. Play on those for a year and decide if you’re going to stick with it. Then start looking for more expensive clubs that could possibly help your game.
The only instance I can think of where I noticed an improvement was when I switched to using modern cavity back irons instead of the old set of blades that my dad gave me.
I think beginners will like cavity backs more.
Depends on what you mean by quality. There is a decidedly non-linear effect of club quality - as Hampshire pointed out, swapping from old crappy clubs to modern ones will have an effect. There is, for most golfers, pretty much zero incremental effect to going further up the club quality scale.
There is one reason to spend more on clubs - if you actually get more clubs in the set. Each club has a different angle, and thus will send the ball a different distance. The more clubs you have, the more options you have, which can help your score.
Don’t bother with stuff like sand wedges, though. More = better is only the case when you’re looking at one set with four irons in it and another with six (or something along those lines).
I’d say not really…but also that if you’re serious about the game, and have an idea of what you want, used gear can be a good deal.
For example check out Callaway Preowned - they’re always having some sort of sale, and you can buy stuff for a fraction of what it cost when it was “the latest and greatest” a few years ago, sometimes for not much more than new cheapo clubs - I’m very happy with the literally new condition Big Bertha (ca. 2004) irons and Diablo Octane driver I bought this past summer.
The big difference will be between older clubs and the new ones. Things like cavity back irons, graphite shafts etc.
Just about any new set of clubs from a respectable brand will be fine to learn with, no need to drop a ton of dough. You CAN learn with your grandpa’s old clubs but it’ll be harder.
I’d say get a set of Wilsons for now and in 5 years if you decide you need the control of Callaway’s sell the old set or give it away.
If you don’t start with old crappy clubs you’ll never know how much better the new fancy ones are.
One more point I’ll make is that fitting may be more important than factors like the “quality” of the clubs, or how many you have in your bag - “off the rack” clubs may be fine for the average male golfer, for example, but are not going to be ideal for a slow swinging 5’ tall woman or a hard swinging 6’4" guy.
No.
Actually, the more expensive the clubs get, the harder they are for a beginner to hit. Cavity back or perimeter weighted clubs are better for middling level players, but as a beginner, even those won’t make a difference. The top of the line clubs are solid blades, and unless you hit the sweet spot every time, they will actually make you play worse.
An economy set will do a beginner fine and I doubt going up the ladder to a pricey set will make a stroke of difference. The only thing that matters is what zombywoof pointed out; the clubs should be the right length for you. Really, you don’t even need a big set if you are a raw beginner; it makes no difference whatsoever if you’re hitting a 9-iron or an 8-iron. It does to me. It doesn’t to you. If you get correct loft at all you’re lucky as hell. A standard beginner set at Wal Mart will have two woods, four irons, and a putter and even a nice bag, all reasonably modern, if cheap, clubs from a brand name manufacturer. Buy that. You’re good to go. That set will do you for years.
Take the money you save by buying an economy set and invest in a small slate of golf pro lessons. 3, 4 lessons is enough. It will help you ENORMOUSLY. Seriously. A raw newbie will save a dozen, maybe 20 strokes by taking a few lessons, and you will enjoy the sport more. I shit you not, it’s that valuable.
Spend $150. At WalMArt you can get a 7-peice set WITH a decent bag. Boom, you’re set. Spend a little more on a good golf glove, a large box of balls, a big bag of tees, a small towel (buy a dish towel for $3, do not get sucked into a $15 golf towel) and a divot repair tool. f you do not have really good runing shoes, drop a few bucks on golf shoes.
Oh, and I’ll give you one golf tip:
**
Don’t swing so hard. **
Really. Remember that.
Agreed.
I rarely see anyone playing the solid, blade style clubhead, and I play with guys who shoot anywhere from +8-12 consistently; pretty good golfers. The guys hitting blades by-and-large seem to challenge par, most of the time.
Whatever cavity-back Walmart is selling these days will be much better than the shitty Northwestern blades I started with.
Doesn’t much matter, if you can’t putt worth a damn. 
This was going to be my only advice for a new golfer. Do not get blade irons. Get oversized irons. Only pros and single-digit handicappers can successfully use blades.
Otherwise, no the cheap Wilsons or knock-offs are going to be as effective as Callaways in the beginning. As you get better, there are differences, mostly in what you are comfortable with.
I wish I’d take a few lessons when I started out, my swing would make a good golfer puke. Seriously save money on clubs and get your fundamentals sorted out by a pro.
The only time I’ve played with a good set of clubs the main difference I noticed were the woods were a lot more forgiving - we (a bunch of very casual golfers) were all driving significantly straighter and longer with the Callaways.
Good advice. Spend a LOT of time at the range between rounds, it will make your time on the course WAY more enjoyable. When your juut starting don’t worry at all about distance; worry about keeping a proper swing and making contact. Once you start to build up some muscle memory and your swing is 1/2 decent and smooth you’ll notice the distance will just seem to come on it’s own.
For now,
- proper swing fundamentals
- contact
That’s it.
Agreed. Oversized cavity back irons help you hit it straight, and hit the same way every time. Pros, and other really good golfers can already hit it straight, they want the ability to work the ball, which is what cavity back irons try to prevent.
I would say, if you’re budget limited start with a cheap/used “modern” set of clubs with cavity back irons and metal woods, then spend money on lessons. If you’re regularly set up with lessons, you can think about spending more for a better set of properly fitted clubs.
There’s no point getting expensive clubs until you actually learn how to play. You can play a good round of golf without dropping $1,000 on clubs.
It’s nice to see everyone dropping in two weeks later to say what I said in Post #2 
Yeah ok, your replies were more technically accurate.