At just over five foot, when I first started playing golf I used a set of hand-me-down women’s irons. I believed that because they had a lightweight women's shaft that they were perfectly suitable for me, no consideration was given to whether they were right for my height.
For petite women golfers, using clubs that are too long will affect your posture because you will end up standing too far away from the ball with little or no spine tilt and this will also lead to a distinct lack of control.
The longer your golf clubs, the more they will weigh. This might only be a slight difference, but every gram counts when it comes to control. Do you get to the end of a game of golf feeling exhausted? Does swinging your clubs sometimes feel a bit laborious? The chances are the clubs you are using are not only too long but also too heavy, and added weight can lead to an inconsistent swing.
Standard women's clubs are designed for a 5'7" golfer. The shorter you are, the more you will benefit from a set that is custom-fit for your petite height. A standard women's driver shaft, for instance, is 44 inches long. Mine, which has been custom-fit, is two inches shorter than standard.
Finding a set of women’s golf clubs that are specifically made for petite women is not easy because the main manufacturers want to encourage custom fitting, but there are some great women's package sets available, especially for beginner or game improver golfers.
We have tested some of the best clubs for shorter women and our guide will provide you with all the information you need from off-the-shelf sets to custom fit options from the leading brands producing the best women’s golf clubs. You might also want to check out our guides on best golf drivers for women, best golf irons for women, and best women's putters.
Carly Frost is one of the golf industry’s best-known female writers. As a consistent three-handicapper, her passion for golf and skill at writing combine to give her an unbeatable insight into the women's game.
Quick List
Reva is engineered for premium performance, luxurious looks and made from high-quality components.
The Magnolia set helps women to feel in complete control of their game and ultimately providing greater enjoyment.
The Fly XL has every club a female beginner golfer needs to play with confidence and at an affordable price.
For women just starting out in the game, this set has everything they need without breaking the bank.
Like all clubs in the Ping G Le3 range, this driver provides ultimate forgiveness for consistently long and straight shots.
Kalea premier irons are well-designed, high-performing clubs that have wide appeal to female golfers.
Best Ladies Petite Golf Clubs
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Best looking set
Wilson Magnolia Package Set
The Wilson Magnolia set impresses with its design, performance, and value. The set includes a high-lofted driver, 3-wood, 4, 5, and 6 hybrids, 7 iron through sand wedge, putter, and a lightweight trolley bag, making it one of the best beginner sets available for petite women.
Despite the lower price, Wilson maintains high quality with lightweight graphite shafts on the metal woods and irons, making them easy to swing. The driver features an oversized, rounded head with ample loft for easy launching. The hybrids, designed with strong lofts, a large sweet spot, and low head weighting, are versatile and effective from various lies, particularly the rough.
The oversized irons are forgiving, with perimeter weighting for better balance. Also included in the set is a bespoke sand wedge for better spin control around the greens and a balanced mallet-shaped putter with a clear alignment line for accurate aiming, so everything you need in a women's golf set.
- Read our full Wilson Magnolia Ladies Set Review
Best premium set
Callaway Reva Ladies Package Set
Callaway offers a custom fitting service, but petite beginner golfers might also want to consider the Reva 11-piece golf because in addition to the standard size, there’s a shorter option for women who are 5’ 1” and under, and it's one of the most popular women's golf sets on the market.
This premium set includes a driver, 3-wood, 5 & 6 hybrids, 7-9 irons, pitching wedge, sand wedge, putter, cart bag, and five headcovers. All the clubs are fitted with soft, tacky grips for maximum comfort and control.
The driver boasts a large sweet spot, providing a confidence boost at address and producing a satisfying high-pitched sound upon impact. The 3-wood and hybrids offer substantial loft and sizable heads for easier and more accurate long approach shots.
The cavity-back irons are light and forgiving, ensuring stable and precise shots even on mishits. The standout feature of this set is the inclusion of a ladies Odyssey Stroke Lab putter, which is known for improving stroke tempo and consistency.
- Read our full Callaway Reva Ladies Package Set Review
Most user-friendly
Cobra Fly XL Women's Package Set
The women’s Cobra Fly-XL package includes a driver, fairway woods (3, 5, 7), hybrid, 6-SW irons, a mallet putter, and women have a choice of either a stand or cart bag. It’s designed for beginners or aspiring golfers and is available in two sizes - standard (height 5'3" - 5'8") and petite (height 5'2" and under)
There’s also a choice of colorway for this set - plum or olive - and combined with the bag, it’s a good looking women's golf set, all of which are fitted with a lightweight graphite shaft.
The 12.5° driver is oversized to boost confidence and forgiveness. It features a back weight that moves the centre of gravity backwards, making it easy to launch. The same can be said for the women's fairway wood and hybrid that produce a high ball flight. With a thick topline, the irons are also easy to hit and forgiving on mishits, and the sand wedge's wide sole aids in basic chip shots.
Overall, the Cobra Fly XL package set offers high-quality, user-friendly clubs at an affordable price.
Best budget set
Confidence Golf Lady Power V3 Petite Club Set
Confidence Golf has spent over four decades developing golf equipment tailored for beginners and improving golfers, and this set is an inch shorter than standard, so ideal for women 5’ 3” and under.
It comes in a striking lilac/black/white bag including an oversized 12° driver with a large sweet spot, a versatile hybrid rescue club, cavity back irons and completing the set is a 33” blade putter. All clubs are fitted with steel shafts and all-weather grips for year-round golf and with the design features that will help women at the start of their golf journey.
The 24° hybrid rescue wood is a standout in this set, combining the ease of hitting a fairway wood with the accuracy and control of an iron, providing confidence and reliability on challenging shots. The 6-7-8-9 irons, along with pitching and sand wedges feature a cavity back design, making them easier to hit and with forgiveness on mishits.
Overall, Confidence Golf has created some of the best beginner clubs for ladies and improving golfers that offer a range of features designed to enhance playability and enjoyment on the course.
Top driver pick
Ping G Le3 Driver
Ping is dedicated to helping women find the right equipment to suit their swing and ability, G Le3 driver is just one club that forms part of the complete range of the third generation of G Le3 clubs including fairway woods, hybrids, irons and putters.
This driver is specifically designed for women with a swing speed of 80mph or less. The colorway is great - navy with gold and silver accents. Our tester found it effortless to swing, generating noticeable power for consistent long and straight drives. The loft is set as standard at 11.5 degrees, but it's possible to adjust the hosel to a loft of +/- 1.5°.
The standard length of this driver is 44 3/4", but Ping has a highly regarded club fitting program, so petite female golfers are well catered for should this driver or any other clubs in the G Le3 range be their choice of clubs. You might also want to check out the G Le3 irons and G Le3 hybrid.
- Read our full Ping G Le3 Driver Review
Best premium irons
TaylorMade offers custom fitting at a number of worldwide locations and the brand’s Kalea Premier range sends a clear message that female golfers deserve high-performance, well-designed clubs, and these are considered as some of the best golf irons for women.
The Kalea Premier women's irons are both aesthetically pleasing and highly functional. They feature a Cap Back design and Speed Pocket, providing impressive distance and high, accurate ball flights. While they may not offer a soft feel, their ability to generate longer shots is notable, with the 8-iron performing as well as a typical 7-iron. The irons excel in dampening vibrations from mishits and offer a sleek, elegant shape.
The Kalea Premier irons combine the forgiveness of game-improvement clubs with a refined design that allows for creative shot-making, making them appealing to a wide range of female golfers. The luxurious rich blue color adds to their appeal. You might also want to check out the Kalea Premier driver, Kalea Premier fairway wood and Kalea Premier Rescue.
- Read our full TaylorMade Kalea Premier Irons Review
How we test ladies petite golf clubs
When it comes to product testing, our reviews and buyers' guides are built upon a rigorous testing procedure as well as the knowledge and experience of the test team.
Getting into specifics for testing the best petite clubs for ladies, we first attend product launches and speak to manufacturer's to understand the technology. Then we hit golf clubs indoors in a controlled environment to get baseline data on simulators and launch monitors.
Outdoor testing is next sow e can see how the clubs perform on the golf course. We think doing both is imperative because this allows us to gauge total performance, and we can then be as honest and insightful as possible to you, the audience. We want to try and find the best golf club sets on the market for women under 5’ 3” and give you some insight on them, which requires being thorough and transparent.
It is important to acknowledge that no manufacturer can buy a good review because our test teams to be clear and honest. To find out more on how Golf Monthly tests products, click here.
How to choose ladies petite golf clubs
If you are 5' 3" and under, just starting out on your golfing journey, or about to take your game to the next level, there are several things that you need to consider to ensure you play with the right clubs for your height.
Clubs Are Too Long
There are tell-tale signs that your golf clubs are too long. You have poor posture. It's common for women using clubs that are too long to have a completely upright posture with little or no spine tilt. You shouldn't be stood up straight, or hunched over either, at address or when you swing. An improper posture can put serious strain on your body as you swing.
Wayward shots. One of the big challenges of playing with a set of clubs that are too long for you is control. You'll be more wayward off the tee and struggle to find fairways, miss more greens and have an inconsistent ball flight trajectory. Overall, a distinct lack of control. If you find that your ball isn't going in the right direction or it is flying too high or too low then it could be due to your clubs being too long for you.
Clubs Feel Too Heavy
The longer your golf clubs the more they will weight. This might only be a slight difference, but every gram counts when it comes to control. Do you get to the end of a game of golf feeling exhausted? Does swinging your clubs sometimes feel a bit laborious? The chances are the clubs you are using are too long and too heavy for you.
Added weight can lead to an inconsistent swing move. The tell-tale sign is a shallow angle of attack into impact as your body can't maintain the strength that is required to swing the heavier club on the correct path.
Standing Too Far From The Ball
We all know that player who stands with her arms outstretched way in front of her reaching for the ball, which is clearly too far away from her body at address. Every club has someone with an odd-looking address. The chances are they are short and this set-up posture is a consequence of their clubs being too long.
The best players in the world all look completely comfortable in their posture at address, standing to the ball with arms hanging down naturally. Standing too far from the ball effects your body's ability to rotate, limiting the power that you will transfer to the shot. Doing so robs you of distance.
For more golf gear buying advice, check out our guides on the best women's hybrids, best women's golf bags and best women's golf shoes.
FAQs
What happens if short women use standard length golf clubs?
It depends on athleticism and swing technique, but the likelihood is that using a club that's too long for you will lead to poor ball striking and inconsistency off the tee. A driver that's too long is harder to control, so you'll miss more fairways.
Can junior clubs work for short women?
Junior golf clubs can be a really great (and potentially much cheaper) option for petite women, especially if you are just learning to play and are not yet ready to splash out on a custom-fit set. They are built
Children's package sets, like the Ping Prodi G are excellent. Ping offer an outstanding service that allows you to send the clubs away to get the shafts changed as and when need.
Is it just height that matters?
Actually no. The most important measurement is the distance from your wrist to the floor, known as your 'arm hang'. This determines the length of the shaft that is needed to encourage the perfect lie angle of your club.
Lie Angle: Is a measurement of the angle formed by the hosel/shaft and the ground when the head is at rest or when the grooves are parallel to the ground. The greater the lie angle, the more 'upright' the club is. The less the lie angle, the more 'flat' the club is.
Your shots don't lie! If the lie angle of your irons is too upright you'll make heel contact with the ball and your divots will point left of the target, leading to pulls and hooked shots. If your irons are too flat for your swing you'll make contact out of the toe and hit push shots out to the right.
If the club is too long, the lie angle will be too flat. Interestingly, there are no standard lies for manufacturers. They may even use different lie angles for different models. Certainly if you examine clubs closely, American manufacturers tend to make them more upright than Japanese manufacturers, because Americans tend to be taller than Japanese golfers, so they are primarily built for their home market.
How do you check your lie angle?
The club's lie angle can only be tested dynamically by a custom fit technician by getting you to hit balls off a lie board. The other thing you can do yourself is to read your divots. If they are deeper at the toe and pointing right then your clubs are probably too flat. Heel deep divots pointing left indicates that your clubs are too upright and need flattening.
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