The complete guide to buying a second-hand golf iron

Let’s start by covering the basic information that you need to know when it comes to buying second-hand golf irons. Once your pre-loved driver has hit your ball off the tee, you’ll then rely heavily on your golf irons to take you closer to the hole. (Some players can even use an iron to hit the ball off the tee in certain scenarios). Because you have a range of irons to choose from, you’ll be able to use your irons for a variety of shots.

In any standard golf bag, you’ll find 14 golf clubs - that is the maximum number of clubs any one player is allowed (check out our post on the top three golf clubs to focus on). Of those 14 clubs, around 7-11 of them will be your irons - which also includes your wedges. Irons are sorted by a number from 1-10 but more commonly this is 3-9. This number indicates the (relative) angle of loft on the clubface, but they may also vary in terms of clubhead size, and length of the shaft.

Irons that have a higher loft than the numbered irons in your golf bag are also called wedges, pitching wedge (PW) and sand wedge (SW) - being the most common). But let’s not worry too much about wedges in this article, because you will find that most used golf iron sets contain at least one wedge.

So, when you’re looking at the description of an iron set online, it’ll say something along the lines of ‘3-PW’. This means that you will get a full set of irons starting from a ‘3’, and also a pitching wedge. Likewise, ‘5-SW’ means you will get a set starting from a ‘5’, going through to a sand wedge. You may also come across gap wedges (GW) and attack wedges (AW).

Golf irons are made - as the name would suggest - of metal. They have a large, flat and angled face, and they are usually scored with deeper grooves from toe to heel that help generate more ball spin and therefore control your shot better. They can be used in all sorts of different situations and are particularly handy for getting you out of a tight spot like a bunker or perhaps even shallow water. For better accuracy with close shots, golf iron club heads are thinner than some of the other clubs such as woods and hybrids.

Irons are, without a doubt, one of the most useful clubs for your game, so it’s important to get a set that is perfect for you. (Left-handed? We’ve got you covered with a huge range of left-handed used golf irons from all the leading brands).