I started playing golf at seven with an old cut-down 7-iron. It wasn’t fancy and it wasn’t plastic and nobody had to make the game “kid friendly” for me. I just liked it. I liked it because my grandfather, dad, uncle and neighbor all liked it. That’s how golf gets passed from one generation to the next and it’s why I’m having a hard time with the Lil’ Legends Learning System from Performance Golf, a $199 set marketed for ages 3 to 6.
What you get
The set includes three oversized orange plastic clubs with yellow shafts, three foam balls, three tees and a See & Stand Mat that folds into what the company calls a carry bag. The product page says “not a plastic toy” but out of the box it looked like one. Before I even hit the driver, I could see a gap along the clubhead seam. Maybe that’s just the set I was sent but it’s a pretty obvious defect out of the box.
The set also warns against using real golf balls as swing speed picks up which tells you what these clubs are built to handle. After testing the clubs with plastic balls, I don’t see a performance benefit that justifies the price of this kids’ set.
The bag matters
When my kids were really little, they cared more about the accessories than the clubs, a towel they picked out, a headcover they liked. Kids buy into ownership before they buy into the game and a real bag with a zipper and pockets for ball markers, tees and a rock from the third hole is part of that.
It’s part of the fun for adults, too. A rolled-up hitting mat doesn’t give a kid any of that; it doesn’t function like a golf bag at all.
Real doesn’t mean boring
We’ve started to assume that real golf isn’t fun for kids and that it has to be turned into a toy first. Vice does a great job of showing that isn’t true. They make real, kid-sized clubs and colorful balls my kids love and their junior set for ages 4 to 8 is a legitimate set of golf clubs at $249.99.
Fun and real aren’t opposites.
Where I’d put the money instead
If you’re going to spend around $200 on your child’s first set, I’d rather you put it toward clubs built to last long enough to be passed along to a younger sibling or cousin and to be enjoyed along the way. A few good options:
- Tour Edge Max-J, $169.99: ages 3 to 6, with a fairway wood, 7/8-iron, putter, stand bag and headcovers.
- US Kids UL7-39, $179.99: a 3-wood, 7-iron, putter and carry bag. This is what my kids started with.
Real clubs mean you have to watch them. Teach your kids to be careful and show them what each club is for. If your child isn’t ready, wait.
The bottom line
I’ve always been passionate about junior golf and growing the game. Golf only survives if each generation hands it to the next, and if we want that to keep happening, we’re going to have to do a little better than this Lil’ Legends Learning System.
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