I’m still a beginner and would like your most forgiving club, but I’m torn between the 2022 KE4 Max and the 2025 TS3. Part of me says the KE4 Max is the obvious choice, but the TS3 is also very forgiving and newer tech.
Also, I’m lost when it comes to shafts. Will a more expensive shaft help someone who’s just trying to stay in the fairway?
I recommend the STi2/Si2 GEN 2. It’s Stainless Steel construction is more resistant to nicks and dings, it’s forgiving and has more loft than the KE4 MAX, which will help achieve a proper trajectory on misshits.
I think for a pure beginner, the KE4 Max’s are great. I took a 20+ year break and the KE4 Max’s worked out really well for me to get back into golf shape. I ended up getting after it more than anticipated so I’m currently at a 16 handicap and still trending downward. I bet the TS3‘s would be a fine choice as well but I do feel the KE4 Maxs probably helped me a lot at the very beginning of getting back into golf.
Whatever your choice is it might be a good idea to see what kind of swing speed you currently have. It’ll go up as your swing improves but I feel that I got lucky choosing stiff because early on I just barely had the swing speed to want a stiff shaft. If I didn’t have so much experience playing golf early in life then regular would have fit me until I learned how to swing. The standard steel shafts are better than I thought they’d be based on how affordable they sre and even remind me of the shafts I had on my old callaway irons as a teenager.
Also might consider having hybrids. My current setup is perfectly fine but I am considering replacing my 4 iron with a hybrid. I can hit my long irons reasonably well but honestly I am more confident in my 2 FDI iron than my 4 KE4 Max iron. I am going to get a couple hybrids and swap them in for a couple rounds and range sessions. I feel I probably should have gotten a hybrid instead of a 4 iron when I first ordered.
I play the TS4s, and just got a set of TS3s. The TS3s are extremely forgiving and just excellent overall. The TS4 is more traditional and still wonderful, but the TS3s will give you, personally, more confidence, I think. The most important distance in golf is the space between your ears, so having your mind confident vs wondering if “your good enough” for your clubs goes a long way.
As one starting out, if you want clubs that you could literally start and end your entire golfing journey with, go with the TS3s. They are a bit more expensive but worth it and less expensive than buying two sets eventually.