Background

Before jumping into this blog, I want to give you a little bit of background about me, I write this as someone who has only ever bought premium quality second hand golf clubs. I personally don’t see the value of brand-new golf equipment when I can get it just 12 months later for around 40% less. This blog will highlight why the second hand golf industry is growing so quickly, and the brilliant opportunities available when purchasing second-hand. I will also give you a few of my personal tips on what you should look out for when purchasing second-hand golf clubs.

The second-hand golf club market is, in my opinion unlike any other second hand sports sector. Technology in the golf industry is evolving year on year, or at least that’s what the manufacturers want us to think. With most major brands bringing out multiple new products usually just after the new-year, and of course with each new product comes different product variants. Combine this, with the enormous marketing budgets and ad campaigns from major brands all fighting against each other for who has the ‘longest, most accurate, most forgiving etc.,’ you know the script. This has resulted in many golfers changing their clubs every 12-18 months which I believe is why the second-hand golf club market is growing so quickly. From a consumers standpoint that can only be a positive! It just means we have more choice to which preowned, hardly used equipment is available for a fraction of the new retail price! 

So here are my tips when buying golf clubs online:

1. Don’t get done by the photos, one of the main risks when buying used golf equipment is that the pictures sometimes don’t fully represent exactly how a club looks when you unbox it. Make sure that the pictures of the product you find online are unique, this means making sure it’s not just an image taken off the manufacture website as that clearly won’t be the actual used golf club you’ll be receiving.
   
   

2. The next tip would be to check the image quality, if the image is slightly blurred, or taken with poor lighting there may be a good reason for this, it is not uncommon for sellers to take pictures of used golf equipment at certain angles which may hide scratches, or paint chips.
   
   

3. Finally make sure the seller is providing all the relevant photos of all the clubs you are buying, for example if they are selling a set of irons 4-PW, make sure there is an image or images clearly showing all seven clubs faces. You don’t want the irons to turn up with six being immaculate and the other looking like it has been used to stoke a fire!

4. Unfortunately, there is no custom fit element to buying used golf clubs, so make sure to find out exactly what you need, and at the very minimum understand what flex shaft suits your game, and whether you need to purchase forgiving clubs suited to higher handicappers, or less forgiving clubs suited to lower handicappers.

5. A simple way of understanding what golf clubs are best for you is to go for a lesson, golf coaches can of course help with your swing, but many have an encyclopaedic knowledge when it comes to golf equipment and what specific clubs you would be best suited to you. If you don’t want to spend on a golf lesson, simply asking low handicap golfers, who at one point will have been in your position, may also give you some insightful knowledge. 

6. Make sure if you are buying from any online store, that they have a fair returns policy, the worst-case scenario would be to receive a product which you are not happy with and cannot send it back. Whilst checking the returns policies it takes two minutes to have a quick look at the company/seller’s recent reviews, as this give you a good understand exactly who you are buying from.