GP Junior (Nov-Dec 18) Cover | Page 24

Instruction BUYING JUNIOR GOLF EQUIPMENT Junior golf equipment has come a long way in the past twenty years. Gone are the days of used adult clubs that were cut down for junior golfers. It is fi ne to get a 2 or 3 year old child started with some simple plasƟ c clubs, but as kids get older, they need a set of golf clubs that are made with their body in mind. Today there are several manufacturers making clubs specifi cally for juniors. To help with these choices, there are a few important things to consider when buying junior clubs. L ength is the fi rst consideration. The key is to fi nd a set of clubs that is the right length for the junior golfer, but also a set that the junior can grow with. Remember that it is all right for the junior to choke or grip down on the club. You just don’t want them to move their hands down the grip too much. The basic rule is this: if the junior is choking down more than 1 ½ to 2 inches, he or she is choking down too much. If they choke down more than 2 inches, the club is too long and they may form habits that may be diffi cult to change. A set of clubs where the junior only has to grip down an inch, allows them to make a normal swing at the ball and probably get two seasons out of the clubs. Try not to let your junior play with a driver that is too long. Ideally, the length of the driver should be 2 inches below the sternum or less. At some point they’re going to try and play with an adult driver before they’re ready. A driver that is too long can lead to timing problems and coming into the ball at a fl at angle which makes it hard to hit the ball on the center of the face. The next consideration is shaft fl ex. The 24 main problem with the old cut down set of golf clubs is the stiffness of the shafts. When you take 4 to 5 inches of length off a golf club, you make the shaft extremely stiff. This is the reason that junior golfers can’t hit the ball high with a cut-down set of clubs. One benefi t of new junior sets is that the manufacturers are making shafts that are the right fl ex for a kid’s swing speed. Using light-weight steel and graphite has made junior golf clubs more playable. The shafts of junior clubs today are so fl exible that you can bend them with your hands. So check and make sure that your child’s set of clubs has a nice fl exible shaft. Does your child need to be professionally fi t for clubs? The general rule is that until they are 60 inches tall, they’ll be fi ne with a set of junior clubs from a good manufacturer. After they reach 5 feet, experienced junior players really benefi t from having each club fi t for their game. The weight of the golf club is also very important to junior golfers. If the club is overly heavy, the child will struggle to take the club to the top of the back swing. The struggle to get the club back causes a GolfPlus Junior November-December 2018 manipulation of the swing that will result in inconsistent shots. A lighter club will help the junior get the club in the correct position at the top and lead to an easily repeatable swing. Just like with shaft fl ex, most club companies make junior clubs with lighter heads and shafts. So before you buy, make sure the weight of the club fi ts your junior’s age. Grip size for kids has become an important consideration in the last few years. In the past, clubs were cut down and any grip that fi t the shaft was put on. The problem of oversized grips is the same for kids as adults. If the grip feels like a baseball bat, it’s going to change the swing mechanics. Look for junior grips on their new set of clubs. If you’re changing grips ask for junior grips with a core of 0.50. You can also look at their hands while on the club. The tips of the junior’s fi ngers should have a little space or barely touch the palm of the hand. If there’s a lot of space, like an inch, between fi ngers and hand, the grips are too big. These thinner grips will make a difference in your child’s game. There are now golf balls made for juniors. Most juniors swing speed is less than 90