Although, not new to golf, I have not played in 35 years. I have started hitting balls again, and am interested in a complete set of clubs. My neighbor has loaned me a s set of Jazz clubs he had as a spare set and suggested the Adams set (Subject) for purchase. He also is considering buying a set. Most of the clubs available today are much different than what I have played in the past. I am totally unfamiliar with Adams and would appreciate any inputs.

Hey welcome JTS to the forum. I've only gotten serious with golf the last 5-6 months and taken a few lessons. Before that I only played once or twice a year when family came in town, so don't take my comments as gospel.

Adams has really been coming of age the last 10 years or so. The guys/gals here that have been in golf longer than I can correct me if I'm wrong. But Adams became popular with their fairway woods that had curved bottom that really allowed the club to get to get into the grass and get the sweet spot on the ball and it was good at going through taller cuts of grass. So I believe the popularity rose with their fairway woods.

Currently they are becoming more and more popular in the hybrid arena and the A2's are supposed to be really nice. Thinking about getting a couple myself. They are respectable in their drivers also as of the last several years. I have a couple of them, but I don't hit them well, but that is really user error in that situation.

I can't say anything about the irons, never hit them before, but I would consider them if I were looking at buying a new set of irons. If looking for an inexpensive set, I think it would be a decent way to go or pick up a set of used Callaways, etc.

Personally I have a set of Ping Eye 2's from around the late 80's and I hit them well and I like them. Those were the most popular irons ever sold and very nice sets can be had on ebay for $200. I'm partial to the Pings though but I think if you're looking for an inexpensive set those would be fine also. My father-in-law used to have a set and had moved on to Titleist and other irons, but he just recently went and bought a used set of the Ping Eye 2's.

Most clubs for the avg golfer are of the cavity back form and not of the blade form that you are probably used to. I believe the Pings were the first to come out with the cavity backs and now everyone has cavity back clubs. They will be more forgiving than a blade.

Anyway there's my 2cents. Hopefully someone in here can attest to the Adams irons, but the hybrids are supposed to be really good.
Good luck and welcome back to the beautiful yet maddening game of golf.
-Jody

The Adams A2OS senior clubs are some really nice clubs. I was trying to get Adams to sponsor me by sending me a set of them, but KZG sent me a set of clubs first. I was playing Callaway X14's that I had bought off the callawaygolfpreoned.com site. If the KZG's don't work out then I might be tempted to buy a set of the Adams A20S.

Thanks for the feedback. It seems consistent with other things I read after posting my question. I will search on e-bay to see what is available in both Callaways and Pings. I had not considered e-bay before and just didn't feel up to commiting to well over a grand until I am well grounded in playing again. I am living in a house on a lake in a gated community with a great country club and want to take advantage of the opportunities here.

JTS (John Stanfield)

If you like Callaway golf clubs it might be worth your time to go check out www.callawaygolfpreowned.com. I bought a set of X14 irons with graphite shafts, a Great Big Bertha II driver, Big Bertha 4 wood, Big Bertha 7 wood, and Odysesy putter all for right around $600.

I have check their preowned set but less specific clubs and wound up with a price ~1200. I will check again for set you described. Thanks,

JTS

JT,
I think that's a good call for a set. Maybe try some hybrids though and see if they fit your eye.

Callaway Preowned--What were the conditions of the Callaways you bought from the preowned site. Does cosmetic condition really make a difference in playability of the clubs? I've read the descriptions from the lowest "Average" to high end "like new" and do not have a feel for best value to buy.

I have been checking the preowned site for several days and found a set of Steelhead III Driver, 3 and 5 wood set in "like new" condition at ~$360 and a set of X-14 Irons (4-PW) in "very good" condition for ~$450 all (woods and irons) have the senior shafts that I need. Add a bag and putter, and it's pushing $1000. That's a pretty far cry from $600.

JTS (John Stanfield)

I've bought in various conditions, they won't sell something that is not playable (ie, grooves worn, etc.). "Like New" is essentially new. I've bought "Very Good" and it looked practically new as well. "Good" still looked better than most of the clubs in my bag. You can't go wrong.

Condition will only affect re-sale values. Callaway typically "under-rates" the condition of the clubs on their pre-owned site. If you don't mind that they don't look "perfect" the lesser graded clubs on their site actually look pretty darn good.

Steel drivers- forget it. No need to go that far back to get good prices. Steel fairways are perfectly fine (and most people still use them, myself included) but Titanium is the way to go in drivers.

hey, if you are looking for a set of irons, the best thing to do is demo demo demo and then demo some more. I spent over 2 months demoing clubs and redemoing them before I finally settled on what I wanted. That being said, I really do suggest you take a good look at the Nickent 3dx hybrid irons. Those are the clubs I settled on and I love them. Im making balls stick on the green from 170 yards away with my 7 iron... these clubs are fantastic, I couldnt imagine playing a round without them. And for the guys here who do the demos-reviews for this website, do the patrons here a favour and get a set from nickent to demo. Im sure your writeup afterwards will be quite positive.

Mike:
I recently discovered a number of companies that make clones similar to name brand clubs. Are they worth considering?

JTS (John Stanfield)

JTS,
I know a couple of guys that have bought clones and getting clones seem to be somewhat popular. I have hit some Big Bertha clones and they seemed fine even though I only hit a few shots. The only thing is that you will get zilch if you decide to re-sale them for new clubs. You will still spend about $200-$300 for a set I believe. At that point I would probably go with some Adams, used Callaways on ebay, or a clean set of Ping Eye 2's. At least those you could trade in at some point.

That's my opinion. Let some of the wiser pros in here give you their opinion.
Have fun,
Jody

John, I am currently in the process of having clubs built with GigaGolf. I did my research on them and I think they are very well worth considering. Nice folks too. I have really come to appreciate the advice that Bill with them has given to me concerning equipment for my needs. Their eFit system which comes at no extra cost was the deciding factor for me (this determined that I needed a Men's standard length with a +1 degree lie in my irons and my own testing of demos at Golfsmith confirmed this) and when comparing apples to apples they seemed to offer the best bang and quality for the buck between the various companies offering clones. Sometime in the near future I will hopefully know just how well their clubs work for me and will be better able to give you my first hand opinion of them.

I understand the value of having name brand clubs when you want to trade them in at some point in time, but please understand as a newbie, I just want to get into the game and right now this way just seemed to make the most economical sense for me.

I agree with the advice to "demo demo demo." The folks at Golfsmith are probably sick of seeing me but this was how I determined which set of irons I thought best suited me and then choosing something comparable with GigaGolf. I have been told by people in the know that please understand though that clones will have their own playing characteristics and will not match exactly the clubs they are based on, and that is probably a good thing and something that I think I want in my clubs. Please do note that I have bought a putter, a bag, balls, and gloves from Golfsmith, so in fairness I will give them as much business as possible in turn for letting me use their equipment to demo with.

Just to be fair about it, be sure to also check out the offerings from Pinemeadow. Another option that you should be aware of is that Golfsmith sells components and will custom fit and build them for you. They even have classes to teach you how to build your own clubs so that you can just purchase the components you want and then build them yourself!

Robert

Mike (Mr. Divots):
I'm not sure if you read my question on Clones that had several replies from others on my question that was addressed to you (Mike). Can I send an e-mail to you about the clone issue?
John Stanfield (sharonstanfield7@charter.net)

John,
Patience my friend!

There have been a number of topics on clones here, and I really hate to go down that road to far yet again. It's one of those "one side of the fence or the other" kinds of issues. If you want extended (often heated) opinions on this topic, please scroll back in this folder and you'll find plenty.

For me, clones are tantamount to copyright infringement that falls just short of any actual infringement. They use the OEM's R&D and marketing and leach on. They might perform just fine, but I am against them from an ethical standpoint.
I've never hit clones, and never intend to.

Companies that make "component" clubs of their own like SMT, GolfSmith/SnakeEyes, etc. are all reputable companies that have their own products that they have developed/marketed. They are often less expensive but still very good quality. I know Don plays the SnakeEyes 600c forged irons and likes them a lot. My advice would be to check out something like those brands if you don't want OEM.

Also, how "serious" you intend to get into the game is another factor of course. "Clones" might be just fine for occasional golfers. But, just typing the word "clone" makes me cringe. Can you tell which side of the fence I'm on?

Quote:

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Mike (Mr. Divots):
I'm not sure if you read my question on Clones that had several replies from others on my question that was addressed to you (Mike). Can I send an e-mail to you about the clone issue?
John Stanfield (sharonstanfield7@charter.net)

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John, sorry if I hijacked the thread and responded to your question that you intended for Mike before he had a chance to answer it.

Mike, first of all I appreciate your comments and I respect from where you are coming from.

Another option to consider is Divotmasters (divotmastersgolfdotcom) that sells custom built clubs with the same SnakeEyes clubheads that Golfsmith sells.

If I am happy with the clubs I am having built through Gigagolf and decide to keep them, then years down the line when I am ready to purchase my next set of irons, I may well be interested in learning how to build my own. As I mentioned in my previous post, Golfsmith has classes that teach you how to do this and this has perked my curiosity a bit.

Right now I am on a tight budget and for that reason and their eFit option, I chose to go with Gigagolf just to get into the game. It was either that or buy a cheap combo set somehwere. Believe me, if I had the dough, I would have loved to bought a set of Taylor Made r7 CGB Max irons. I got a chance to demo a couple of them (a 5 iron and a 6 iron) last weekend and WOW, were they SWEET!!

Have a great week!
Robert

Mike:
My question was based on a total lack of awareness of the "clone" market in Golf clubs and equipment and any breaches or infringement are surely delt with in courts of law.

More personally, as a professional that has been responsible for leading the charge in "high-tech" military product development, program management, sales and marketing I can appreciate your position on "clones". However, in my observations, the supposed golf product "clones" are not clones but similar designs with an outward appearance and here the similarity may stop, and as you have said the companies making the "clones" have not breached any copywrite or design laws.

The major manufacturers have indeed made substatial investments in Sales and Marketing. However, designs have changed little over the last 50 years, only some material technology and some design aspects have evolved very slowly. Maybe the cloning and new competitors will spur things along. Competititon is a good thing.

I look forward to reading some of the threads you mentioned. As you can tell, I for one am still on the fence.

regards,
JTS (John Stanfield)