Let’s face it. Golf is an expensive sport. Golf clubs continue to get more expensive year after year, and it’s just not possible for some to continue to afford upgrades. Luckily there are plenty of budget options out there; you just need to know where to look and how to spot a good deal.
We tested a lot of equipment over the last few years, and these are the best budget golf clubs on the market. Remember that in addition to choosing reasonably priced golf clubs, we also look for clubs with great performance.
Best Budget Golf Clubs: Our Top Picks
Best Complete Set: Callaway Strata Complete Set
Complete Set Runner-up: Callaway Edge Complete Set
Best Driver: PXG 0811 Gen 4 Driver
Best Iron Set: Cobra Golf F Max Iron Set
Best Wedge: Wilson Harmonized Golf Wedge
Best Putter: Pinemeadow Golf PGX MB Putter
Best Hybrid: Tour Edge Hot Launch C522 Hybrid
Best Budget Golf Clubs: Reviewed
Best Complete Set: Callaway Men’s Strata Complete Golf Set
The Callaway Strata Ultimate 16-piece Set includes eleven clubs, a golf bag, and everything to help mid-to-high handicappers succeed. Also available in 12 and 14-piece sets.
- Titanium golf driver for extra distance
- Two hybrids to replace long irons
- The lightweight stand bag is easy to carry (can help you save money on cart fees)
- Lightweight golf shafts that help promote higher ball speed
- Feel and precision is not all that great
- Not a good fit for the lower handicap golfers
We know that the Callaway Strata set is highly talked about and reviewed, but it is genuinely one of the best budget golf club sets on the market. This, of course, does not have the technology that the new Rogue or Epic lines have, but it still has some impressive performance that is well worth considering for the golfer on a budget.
The 16-piece set comes with 11 clubs, including a Driver, 3 wood, 4 & 5 Hybrid, 6 to 9 Iron, PW & SW, Putter, Stand Bag, and four Head covers. The hybrids are easy to hit, and having two of them helps to be a more well-rounded set of golf clubs.
It’s also available in 12 and 14-piece sets.
In addition, the golf bag is easy to carry but has plenty of storage. If you are planning to walk the golf course, the bag will make it considerably more enjoyable.
Complete Set Runner-up: Callaway Edge 10-Piece Complete Golf Club Set
The Callaway Edge Complete Set does not come with a golf bag, but it has everything you need to take your game to any level you would like.
- Putter with SuperStroke grip
- Impressive distance for a budget set
- High quality
- It can work for mid-handicappers as well
- No options for customization or shaft selection
Although the Callaway Edge may seem a bit more expensive than the Strata, it still doesn’t reach the pricing of a brand-new set of individual clubs. However, each golf club in this set is well constructed with both forgiveness and distance in mind.
Where we would recommend the Strata for the higher handicappers and beginners, this is a better mid handicapper or average golfer set. The set has 10 clubs, including a 10.5-degree driver, 3 wood, 5 hybrid, 6, 7, 8, 9, PW, and SW. In addition, you will also get an Odyssey White Hot Pro Putter.
The putter is much higher quality and has a better feeling than other budget golf clubs, so it’s well worth considering from a quality standpoint.
Best Budget Driver: PXG 0811 Gen 4 Driver
The PXG 0811 Gen 4 Driver is built for forgiveness, but it offers players great customization and fine-tuning for a fair price.
- High forgiveness
- Ability to get a higher ball flight
- Several shafts to choose from
- Great for forgiveness
- Sound is a bit more of a thud and takes some time to get used to
A brand new, premium driver costs close to $600. For many players, this has just become too expensive. Even some used clubs on the market can be $400 or more. However, the PXG 0811 is fairly priced, has excellent shaft options, and will help with both distance and forgiveness.
This is our favorite budget golf driver because it is made by a company that focused entirely on premium clubs for quite some time and then chose to start offering more value to customers. When PXG decided to make more fairly priced golf clubs, they still kept quality in mind.
The driver features a high MOI for improved forgiveness, adjustable weight technology, and several different premium shafts for golfers to choose from. In addition, we liked the way that the clubhead of the driver sets up and looks; it does not have a cheap look to it.
Related: Best Forgiving Drivers For Beginners & High Handicappers in 2022
Best Budget Iron Set: Cobra Golf F Max Iron Set
The Cobra Golf F Max Airspeed golf irons have fair pricing, impressive forgiveness, and a very low center of gravity.
- Heel-biased weighting for better ball flight
- Impressive accuracy
- Low profile look with high launching technology
- Won’t be an excellent choice for faster swing speeds
- May cause a strong right to left ball flight for stronger players
The Cobra Golf F Max Airspeed irons are the best budget golf irons on the market. These are cavity-back golf clubs designed for those with moderate to slower swing speeds. You will find that these are very lightweight golf clubs designed to get players much higher ball speeds.
With the Cobra F Max irons, Cobra decided to decrease the weights in the grip, shaft, and clubhead. The overall reduction led to much higher speeds. We noticed quite a bit of forgiveness out of the rough, making this a much easier club to deal with when your ball gets stuck in a rough spot.
This is a progressive iron set, so the short iron has a more streamlined look, and the longer irons have a wider sole.
Related: Best Forgiving Irons for Beginners & High Handicappers in 2022
Best Budget Wedge: Wilson Harmonized Golf Wedges
This is the best wedge "for the money" on the market. Wedges aren't flashy clubs, and something like this Wilson can do the trick more often than not. The sole grind allows you to open the clubface to hit higher shots. It also helps stop shots from rolling off the green.
- Amazingly affordable
- It comes in three different lofts
- Premium golf shaft
- Versatile from various lies
- Comes from a reliable brand
- Spin is not up there with other wedges
- Grip quality isn’t the best
- Performance is not great when the turf is wet
- Feel is not quite as soft as it is with other wedges
The Wilson Harmonized Golf wedges are some of the least expensive on the market. They have a clean look, an impressive overall feel and really perform when you need the ball to stop on the green. In fact, we were surprised by how great the feel was on these wedges when you considered the price.
With a Wilson Harmonized wedge, the sole grind encourages the player to open the club face to hit a slightly higher shot when needed. In addition, this can be a great wedge for hitting out of the sand. With three different loft options, you can genuinely get three golf wedges for the price of one.
Out of the rough, you will notice that the Wilson Harmonized does not spin as well, but from a tight lie, the club does pretty well. Be smart about where you land your shot, and these wedges have some outstanding performance for the price they are offered.
Related: 5 Best Golf Wedges For High Handicappers & Beginners in 2022
Best Budget Putter: Pinemeadow Golf PGX MB Putter
The Pinemeadow Golf PGX MB has a matte black finish, impressive soft feel, plenty of head weight, and a matching PGX Black headcover.
- Great looking putter
- Easy alignment
- Heavier head weight for faster greens
- Pinemeadow Spider Grip is soft and encourages a better feel
- Not custom weighting
- Paint on clubhead will chip if you don’t take care of the club
As golf club prices continue to increase, one of the most difficult to watch is the cost of the putters. Not long ago, you could get a premium putter for $150, and now some of these putter releases are over $500. With the Pinemeadow Golf PGX MB, you can get soft feel and an impressive-looking design for a really fair price.
Our favorite thing about this putter is the mallet shape. Alignment and consistency are great with this club in hand. In addition, the Pinemeadow Spider Grip is soft and feels easy in your hands. You will notice that it becomes easy to make both short and long putts.
In addition to the putter, you will also get a headcover to help protect the black matte finish. We recommend using that headcover as much as possible. With this being a lower-priced putter, the paint can chip a bit easier.
Related: 5 Best Golf Putters for Beginners in 2022
Best Budget Hybrid: Tour Edge Hot Launch C522 Hybrid
The Tour Edge Launch C522 Hybrid is an excellent solution for golfers that need a low center of gravity, 360 Face Cup technology, and increased distance.
- Very fair pricing
- Works well for mid-handicap and above
- 360 Face Cup Technology, similar to Callaway
- High MOI
- Does not have the fastest ball speeds
Taking an iron out of the bag and replacing it with a hybrid is an excellent choice for many players. However, if you don’t choose the proper club, it can be almost twice the price of the iron you are replacing.
With the Tour Edge Hot Launch C522 Hybrid, you can get great forgiveness, an impressive center of gravity, and good sound and feel, all for a low price. Expect that this club will have plenty of power across the face, and it comes in a few different lofts.
We love how you can fit this Tour Edge Hot Launch into the bag, and it seems to flow nicely with the other irons you have in place. In other words, you don’t need to break the bank to have a more complete and finished set of golf clubs.
Related: 5 Best Hybrid Golf Clubs for High Handicappers in 2022
Pros and Cons of Budget Golf Clubs
Golfers often wonder if it makes sense to spend money on great golf clubs. Although some of this will end up being a personal decision, there are some things that all players should consider about quality before they make final club selections.
Essentially there is a level of spending that is necessary to be able to get good results on the golf course. Of course, if you play once or twice a year, the cheap clubs may do the trick. However, with how addicting this sport is, count on playing more than just a few times per year.
Pros
1. Save Your Money For Greens Fees
The problem with the game of golf is that even after you purchase these high-end golf clubs, the spending is far from over. It doesn’t really make sense to spend $2500 on a set of clubs and use all of your budgets before you have even hit the course.
We would take mediocre golf clubs and the chance to play a few times a week over perfect golf clubs and one round a month. Think about the other expenses you will have as a golfer.
2. Can Build Upon The Set Over Time
If you start with a cheap set of golf clubs, you can get out on the course right away. Then, over time you can upgrade each club as you can afford it. In fact, we have always liked the strategy of upgrading wedges one year, irons another, etc.
3. Works For Occasional Play
Cheap golf clubs work just fine for those that only play a few times per year. If you aren’t going to use the clubs, keep your budget in mind when you purchase. Golf clubs are like cars and will lose value, so don’t spend the money if you don’t plan to use them.
Cons
1. Tend To Have More Issues With Them
Unfortunately, cheaper golf clubs tend to have issues with breaking, damage, chipped paint, and more. You have to be careful that you are still buying from a reputable company that does not sacrifice quality.
The options on our list should not have issues like this, as even though these are not always the top brands in the game, they still keep quality in mind.
2. Feel Isn’t As Good
Most cheap golf clubs don’t have a really impressive feel. In fact, they feel a bit harsher at impact and are less workable. There are times, too, that the sound that comes off the clubface won’t be all that pleasing.
This tends to be a more significant issue for better players.
3. Hard To Find Options For Low Handicappers
Low handicappers are kind of stuck when it comes to budget golf clubs. Unfortunately, the golf clubs on the market that fit into the budget category are not necessarily for lower handicappers. In fact, most are for high handicappers and beginners.
The best option for lower handicappers on a budget is typically to purchase used golf clubs.
FAQs about Budget Golf Clubs
Budget golf clubs are worth it for those that want to get into the game but can’t afford the top choices from the big brands. However, if you are a golfer that plays every day and really cares about scoring and performance, it’s important not to get too involved with budget golf clubs.
Try to look at the price divided by how often you use them. If you purchase $2000 worth of golf clubs but play 100 rounds this year, your clubs can even out to around $20 a round, plus all your practice sessions; it’s a pretty good deal.
However, if you spend $2000 on clubs and play ten rounds, your cost each time is $200, and you may as well have rented the golf clubs!
Beginner golf clubs range in price from around $200 for a complete set to more than $1500. Most beginner golfers can get a great set of clubs for about $800. If you can spend $500-$800, the set you purchase may get you out of the beginner stages and into the high handicapper stages.
If you know you will play a lot of golf, spending just a little extra money will likely be well worth it.
Related: 5 Best Golf Club Sets For Beginners in 2022
The benefits of buying more expensive golf clubs are improved feel and precision on the golf course. You can hit the ball further but also have more control and feel than you do with a cheaper golf club.
More expensive golf clubs are also typically customized to fit your golf game perfectly. This means shaft length and weight, as well as the club, and set makeup, will be properly fitted to the needs of your golf game.
Buying expensive golf clubs is well worth it if you plan on using them. However, for occasional golfers or those with tons of other hobbies and golf is not the focus, the more expensive golf clubs are probably not worth it.
A decent golf club set costs around $750 or more. One option to consider that gives you excellent quality for a fair price is the Callaway Edge golf set. These clubs are certainly not the most premium on the market, but they are considerably better than a beginner’s set of golf clubs.
Golf clubs are expensive to replace all at once, so many golfers decide to upgrade in pieces. Purchase a few things from time to time and see how that helps to keep your budget in check, but your clubs are all relevant from a technology standpoint.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you now have a better idea of which golf clubs are some of the best on the market from a budget standpoint. There is no perfect amount of money to spend on golf clubs. This is a decision that has to work for your budget as well as your skill level.
However, Callaway does offer two great options with the Callaway Strata and the Callaway Edge golf sets. Each of these provides strong performance and fair value to the budget-conscious golfer.
