Picking the right golf clubs can be a HUGE challenge for women golfers. There are tons of complete sets out there for women, but what about golfers that don’t want to buy a complete set? After all, complete sets are really for beginners that simply want a convenient package without much effort.
Intermediate women golfers are past their beginner golf club sets and need to find clubs that will allow them to reach their low-handicap goals. If that sounds like you, then you came to the right place!
For this article’s sake, we will classify intermediate & mid-handicap women golfers as those that typically shoot around 80-95. Those numbers were taken directly from my butt, but they will do for now. Golfers that are shooting over 95+ should stick with complete sets, while golfers shooting in the 70’s obviously will need to pick equipment based on a professional club fitting if they want to see any noticeable improvement.
For you female golfers in the middle ground, off the rack clubs will be just fine, unless you’d like to shell out the extra money to get fitted and buy brand new golf clubs.
This article is going to go through each club type (driver, fairway woods, hybrids, irons, wedges, putters) and discuss two options for each. The first option will be for those that want the latest and greatest. The second option, the “better value option,” will be for those that want the best bang for your buck.
All of the clubs discussed will be focused on mid handicap golfers. Therefore, the focus will be on the best combination of distance, forgiveness, and control.
Driver
Women’s drivers are just a little different than men’s. First, the club heads are typically a little bit lighter to allow you to swing faster. Secondly, the club shaft is a little whippier (ladies flex shafts), allowing the shaft to flex a little at impact to generate more club head speed at impact. Lastly, the lofts are sometimes a little higher (usually around 12 degrees compared to 8-10 degrees) to make up for the slightly slower swing speeds. Other than that and some color differences at times, they are practically the same.
I’d like to make it clear that you may not NEED a new driver. If your current driver is working just fine, there is no shame in keeping it in the bag, no matter how old it is or what brand it is. However, if you want to get the absolute most out of your game, then you may want to consider upgrading to the latest released. Depending on your current driver, you may end up adding some distance to your average driver.
Again, what we are looking for here is a driver that is forgiving and long. The “forgiving” part is what will help your game more than the “long” part. As an intermediate golfer, you probably don’t hit the dead center of the face on a consistent basis. So our goal is to find a driver that will not punish your mishits too badly. If you miss the center of the club face by an inch, we want to end up in the rough, not out of bounds. A forgiving driver will definitely help us do that.
#1 Overall: TaylorMade M6
Today, the best driver that mid handicap women golfers can buy is the TaylorMade M6 women’s driver. TaylorMade has recently released the SIM line of clubs, but the M6 can’t be beat. Without getting into the marketing mumbo jumbo, their Twist Face technology increases the size of the sweet spot, therefore allowing you to hit more fairways.
Another thing that I like about the M6 drivers is that they are not very adjustable. Having an adjustable driver causes you to constantly want to adjust the settings, when really your swing probably needs the work – not the club. The only adjustable part of the club is the hosel. The adjustable hosel allows you to adjust the effective loft and lie angles. I’d recommend only changing these with the help of a PGA professional, though.
Pricewise, this driver is around $350 right now. It was $500 when it was first released, so at least it has already come down a little bit. If that is still a little over your budget, check out the next section for a budget-friendly option.
It’s best for: The Taylormade M6 women’s driver is best for a mid-handicap golfer that wants a premium driver to optimize distance and forgiveness, no matter the cost.
Better Value: TaylorMade Burner
To me, $350 on a driver sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? It you agree, then you might be interested in a sub $100 option, like the TaylorMade Burner women’s driver. It can be picked up for under $50 sometimes, in fact.
The TaylorMade Burner series of clubs will go down as one of the most budget-friendly series of clubs to ever be released. They released many different version of the Burner clubs, and you truly can’t go wrong with any of them that were released after 2005 or so.
Truthfully, I bet 99% of women golfers would have a hard time telling the difference between the Burner clubs and the latest TaylorMade clubs. You know what would be able to tell the difference, though? Your wallet.
I really like the fact that the women’s Burner driver comes in two different loft options: 10.5 and 13 (for those that struggle with getting enough height on their shots).
It’s best for: The TaylorMade Burner women’s driver is the clear choice for mid handicap, intermediate golfers looking to pick up a great value driver that is forgiving and decently long.
Fairway Woods
Let’s face it. Fairway woods are simply hard clubs to hit. Small club heads + low lofts = tricky, especially for intermediate female golfers. As a result, you should be searching for the most forgiving fairway woods on the market. Do you know what brand that is? Callaway.
Callaway produced fairway woods with super flat, wide soles. This increases the sweet spots and won’t punish you much if you miss the center of the club face… which you will do… pretty often unfortunately.
Best Overall: Callaway Mavrik Max
If you want the best of the best when it comes to fairway woods, check out Callaway Mavrik Max fairway woods.
They launch the ball super high and have a draw bias, which is great for those that are tired of hitting slices all day. The women’s version comes with a ladies flex shaft (obviously) and an extra 1.5 degrees of loft, for a total of 16.5 degrees.
Do you see that weight near the heel of the club? That encourages the club face to turn over through impact much easier. That means less open club faces at impact, less slices, and less pushes shots to the right.
Like I said earlier, Callaway manufactures their fairway woods to have long, wide, flat soles. They look super easy to hit at address… that’s because they are! With other brands, if you miss the club face by an inch towards the heel or toe, you’ll end up with a terrible result due to the narrow, curved sole of the club.
It’s best for: The Callaway Mavrik Max women’s fairway woods are best for mid handicap golfers with lots of money to spend that have a problem with hitting low slices.
Best on a Budget: Callaway XR 16
Callaway has released practically the same fairway woods each year for 5 or so years. They get a different name, a different design, and a new high price tag each year. If you are aware of this though, you can take advantage by buying an older model for a fraction of the price that performs nearly just as well.
The Callaway XR 16 women’s fairway woods, for example, are super forgiving & super high-launching. Most intermediate golfers have a hard time getting enough air on their fairway wood shots anyway. You can pick up a slightly used one for around $80 at the moment.
Who it’s best for: The Callaway XR 16 fairway wood is the best option for budget-focused women golfers looking for a long, forgiving fairway wood.
Hybrids
I’d wager that there would be a FAR lower number of golfers worldwide if hybrids did not exist. Long irons are simply hard to hit – it’s that simple. Most women have a hard time generating enough club head speed to correctly compress the ball with along irons to get the ball to travel high enough in the air to stop on a green.
Hybrids are a gift from the gods. Not all hybrids are the same though. Some brands design their hybrids to have very small club heads and very narrow overall. For the most forgiveness, I’d recommend wide soles and lots of perimeter weighting behind the club head.
Best Overall: Ping G410
Ping, in my opinion, has made some of the most forgiving & highest launching hybrids on the market for women. If you are searching for forgiveness, you might as well pick the most forgiving option out there.
Similar to the Callaway fairway woods, the Ping G410 women’s hybrid soles are very wide and flat, offering a larger hitting area and therefore a larger sweet spot. You know what most mid-handicap women golfers are looking for? Yep. A larger sweet spot.
Unfortunately, because they were released pretty recently, the price is a little high at $200. To save a significant amount of money, head on down to the next section for a $40 option.
It’s best for: The Ping G410 women’s hybrid is best for intermediate women golfers looking for a premium, new hybrid that will last a lifetime and offer the most forgiveness possible.
Best Value: Ping G20
Many golfers would be surprised about what they can find for under $60. When a hybrid can have such a large impact on your long game, it’s easily worth the small amount of money.
The Ping G20 women’s hybrid, which you can find pretty easily online in used condition, is one of the best value clubs for intermediate women golfers in my opinion.
Obviously they aren’t as good as the $200 G410 hybrids, but they are pretty close. For the price savings, I’d say I’d lean closer to buying this club than the more expensive model.
Truthfully, hybrids haven’t changed much over the years. I know they look different (just look at the differences in the pictures. But when it comes to results, they are pretty similar.
It’s best for: The Ping G20 ladies hybrid is best for conscious female golfers that want the best bang for their buck.
Iron Sets
Most intermediate women golfers would benefit from game improvement irons. Game improvement irons are smack dab in the middle of SUPER game improvement irons and players irons. They are forgiving, but long. They offer good control, but still a little bit of workability if you’d like.
To put it simply, game improvement irons are the best combination of distance, forgiveness, and control that would benefit your game if you are mid handicap golfer.
Best Overall: Titleist T300
If you can afford the best, why not go with the best? Titleist’s new irons, the T series, have been incredibly popular so far this year. And for good reason. They offer a great iron set for all types of golfers. For intermediate women golfers, I’d recommend the T300 women’s irons. They are the best combo of length and forgiveness on the market.
They are more forgiving than the T100 and T200 irons, but less forgiving than the T400 irons. Distance wise, they are all practically the same.
The Titleist T300 irons also offer great feel at impact, which is hard to find in a women’s game improvement iron set. A huge benefit of this set is that you can’t really outgrow it. As you progress into a low handicap golfer, this iron set will still benefit your game greatly. You can game this iron set until the grooves are smooth as a baby’s bottom. Well, actually you should probably not wait until the grooves are gone. You get the point though.
The price of the Titleist T300 irons is currently around $850. That may sound high, but you are probably aware that the majority of new irons sets are over $1,000 these days.
Just make sure you are getting the ladies flex shafts.
It’s best for: This iron set is best for female mid-handicap golfers that want to shell out lots of money for a premium set of irons that will last nearly a lifetime and improve their ballstriking.
Better Value: Titleist AP1 (710, 712, 714, 716)
For those on a tighter budget, here’s a great alternative. The Titleist AP1 women’s irons. They are the previous versions of the T300 irons, and there were five different versions made (710, 712, 714, 716, and 718). 710 models are the oldest and the cheapest, but it’s hard to find sets in good condition. 718 irons are just a few years old, so they are pricier, but you can find lots of options in like new condition.
I’d recommend sticking with AP1 714 or Ap1 716 for the best combination of performance and value.
AP1 irons are game improvement irons. AP2 irons are players irons. The great thing about game improvement irons is that you never have to outgrow them. I know lots of single digit handicap female golfers that still prefer game improvement irons over thinner players irons.
For the time being, AP1 irons will definitely help with your ball striking. The sweet spots are large, the launch angles are high, and the distance is near the top of the market.
It’s best for: These irons are best for women golfers that only have a couple hundred dollars to spend on a set of game improvement irons.
Wedges
Believe it or not: not all wedges are the same. Some wedges (especially blade style wedges) are more difficult to hit. Cavity back wedges are easier to hit. Considering that A HUGE PERCENTAGE of women’s golf shots are with a wedge, you need to find one that you are comfortable with. As a mid handicap golfer, you should go after more forgiving, cavity back wedges. The extra perimeter weighting helps keep your mishits manageable.
Best Overall: Cleveland CBX 2
If you are looking for the the best wedge for mid handicap and intermediate golfers, check out the Cleveland CBX 2. Cleveland just recently released a new set of cavity back wedges, but the CBX 2 is such a great option that I didn’t think it was worth it to mention the new models.
If you want the best combination of control, forgiveness on mishits, and spin, then the Cleveland CBX 2 wedge is for you. The cavity back (yes, that’s what the CB stands for) perimeter weighting helps improve the results of shots that are hit away from the center of the club face.
The CBX 2 wedges are selling for around $130 brand new. If you need 2-3 wedges, that’s going to end up being a pretty penny. If the total cost scares you a little (it scares me), then head to the better value section below.
When it comes to men’s vs women’s wedges, you need to be sure that you know what you are buying. Women’s wedges are sometimes (not always) lighter. They may come with smaller grips, and they will have more flex to the shafts.
It’s best for: This wedge is perfect for golfers that want to buy brand new forgiving wedges, even if the entire set costs ~$260-390 total.
Better Value: Cleveland CG16
If you are ok with buying older wedges, then you can save lots of money. The Cleveland CG16 wedges are super old, but you’re golden if you can find some in good condition. Most popular online sites have them in stock as of the time that I’m writing this.
Compared to most (blade style) Cleveland wedges, the CH 16 wedges have larger club faces and more of a cavity back to improve the overall forgiveness.
I’ve seen these wedges go for around $30 on countless occasions. That’s going to be hard to beat.
It’s best for: These wedges are perfect for mid handicap female golfers that want more forgiveness without have to pay an arm and a leg for it.
Putter
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Putters are putters. And putters will always be putters. In other words, putters are pretty much all equal. Sure, there are some that are milled. There are some with soft inserts. There are mallets. There are blades. But in the end, you are trying to hit the ball with the right force and get it started on the right line. That’s it.
If you like your current putter, no matter what it is, stick with it.
If you want a new putter, go down to your local golf store (if you have one) and try as many as you can. Then, if you want to save money, leave the store and but it online in new or used condition.
And remember: you can putt with a potato if it’s shaped correctly and if you practice enough.
BUT, I will say this. Most female golfers prefer the look and feel of a larger mallet putter. They are easier to align and easier to get started on the right line. But hey, you do you, boo-boo. Peace out girl scout.
