Spalding Golf Club Reviews – Are They Any Good?

Spalding Golf Club Reviews – Are They Any Good?

Sports enthusiasts are surely familiar with the name Spalding.

The name can be seen brandished across basketballs, baseballs, volleyballs and various other types of equipment at the professional and casual levels.

But I’d be willing to bet that younger golf enthusiasts didn’t know that Spalding once made some of the highest-performing golf clubs in America. You may even be surprised to learn that you can still buy Spalding golf clubs today. The important question is: should you?

Spalding golf clubs aren’t seen in the bags of tour pros today which begs the additional question: are their clubs still good? I went out and tested some Spalding clubs to help you answer that question.

A Brief History of Spalding Golf Clubs

The Spalding company was founded in 1876 by Albert Spalding. Albert Spalding established the company in Chicago, the home of the professional baseball club he pitched for.

But it wasn’t until 1905 that the company turned its attention to golf clubs. During that time, golf was just slowly catching on in the American public. So Spalding saw an opportunity to corner an emerging market.

The company opened production in England and Scotland. They began with forged irons and expanded to putters and hickory-shafted fairway woods. Spalding’s golf club designs were considered innovative at the time and the golf division of the company saw great success.

Today though, the Spalding Golf division holds only a minor share of the golf club market. The golf division has been drastically downsized as competitors like Ping, Titleist and Taylormade have established themselves as industry stalwarts over Spalding.

Spalding Men’s Molitor 17 Piece Complete Golf Set Review

The Spalding Men’s Molitor golf club set includes an oversized driver, #3 wood, #5 wood, a #4 hybrid, irons 6-9, PW, SW and a mallet-style putter.

The set also comes with a cart bag that includes a rain hood. The whole package can be had for about $200.

Starting with the driver, I liked the overall distance of this set. The driver sits really big behind the ball and performs as forgiving as it looks. I was getting good club head speed thanks to the lightweight graphite shaft. The club head speed translated nicely into ball speed. I averaged a carry distance of 258.7 yards with the driver.

The fairway wood didn’t have the best turf interaction; but it was still a missile launcher off the tee. This is a great fairway wood for attacking long par 4s when you don’t want to worry about overshooting the green.

The hybrid has a nice clean sound to it and provides decent turf interaction. When you pure the ball with the hybrid, you get really good distance and tight dispersion. It’s also very easy to get the ball in the air with this hybrid.

The cavity back irons are a bit on the oversized side so the forgiveness factor is high. They have moderately wide soles so I was gliding over the turf without losing too much feedback or launching the ball too high. I found the irons to produce a mid-high flight that I was actually able to work down a bit when I needed to stay under trees or out of the wind.

The putter has a nice smooth feel. “Fluid” is the word I would use to describe it. The feedback isn’t overwhelming and you can still feel where you made contact. Overall, I would have no problem plugging this putterinto my bag.

Who is it for?

The Spalding Men’s Molitor is clearly for higher handicap players and beginners. While the distance and moderate workability can surely be advantageous to mid handicappers, the forgiveness is clearly intended for inexperienced or new players. Forgiveness is the biggest advantage of this set which would be sort of lost on mid and low handicappers.

Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Nice color scheme
• The cart bag seems durable
• Workable launch in the irons
• Very forgiving woods
• Fast shafts

Cons:

• Digging with the woods was an issue

Overall Score: 96/100

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Spalding Graphite Pro Series Irons Review

The complete set of Spalding Graphite Pro Series irons consists of irons 5-SW.

The set has a pretty cool look – a gunmetal finish contrasts nicely with the yellow stripe in the cavity and the yellow iron numbers on the sole.

These are cavity back irons with a fairly deep undercut. When I first got my hands on the Spalding Graphite Pro Series irons, I marveled at how fast they felt. They come stock with special lightweight graphite shafts. I felt like I could swing well outside of myself with these irons.

Turns out I was right. I was increasing my average club head speed with the 7-iron by 1.3 MPH. Not bad. It didn’t always translate to improved distance though. When I was able to find face-center, my shots were playing long with a high trajectory. But with my semi-aggressive transition, I was often missing the sweet spot.

When I did, I picked up significant spin which widened dispersion. The result was a slight loss of yardage. Still, the Spalding Graphite Pro Series irons are very easy to launch and I can imagine that if I had more time with them, I would be able to find the sweet spot more consistently.

Who Are They for?

The Spalding Graphite Pro Series irons would be a great choice for players with swing speeds in the 75-80 MPH range. These irons also favor a deliberate tempo. That’s when you’ll get the most accuracy and control out of them.

Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Great club head speed
• Great for moderate swing speed players
• They are accurate with a controlled tempo
• Easy launch
• They look really cool

Cons:

• Not great for aggressive tempo players

Overall Score: 96/100

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Spalding Tour Edition Irons Review

Some of the marketing I dug up regarding these irons boasted that the Spalding Tour Edition was for players of all skill levels.

That’s not exactly what I found during my testing. The Spalding Tour Edition irons are traditional cavity back irons.

They have a progressive sole design which means the soles start out wide in the long irons and thin out in the short irons. The Spalding Tour Edition irons also feature perimeter weighting which helps the face resist twisting when you make contact near the heel or toe.

The Spalding Tour Edition irons are also cast from 431 stainless steel. While I found these irons to be highly forgiving and great for mid to high handicappers, I wouldn’t say they are “good for all skill levels” because they are almost unworkable. Low handicappers will have a hard time working the flight down or manipulating spin with these irons.

However, I really liked the forgiveness they provided. Even on considerable mis-hits near the toe, I was still affecting a nice draw. The thick soles in the long iron helped prevent digging and subsequently, club head speed.

The launch was high which will be a boon for players with moderate swing speeds. The feel of these irons is a bit muddled. The ball seems to get buried in the face without much feedback.

Who Are They for?

The Spalding Tour Edition irons would be best for players who tend to use the whole face. Lateral mis-hits are barely punished. For that reason I would have no hesitation recommending these irons to high handicappers.

Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Perimeter weighting
• Very forgiving
• Good turf interaction
• Good for high handicappers
• Affordable

Cons:

• Not for low handicappers

Overall Score: 96/100

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Spalding Paradox Irons Review

The Spalding Paradox irons are no-frills, forgiving, game improvement irons.

They feature a full cavity back and a traditional face shape with a high toe area. The profile of these irons is oversized so high handicappers should have no problem finding the sweet spot – I certainly didn’t.

I liked the way I fell into a groove with these irons almost immediately. After just a couple of practice swings, I was hitting nice, high draws consistently. The Spalding Paradox irons will give you exactly what you put into them.

When you find the sweet spot, you can expect the same shot shape and distance as long as you are locked in. Speaking of distance, I was averaging 155.4 yards with the 7-iron in this set. Not the longest 7-iron but still very impressive considering how quickly I was able to yield that distance.

Who Are They for?

The Spalding Paradox irons would be a great choice for players who are looking for easy irons to game. They may very well flatten the learning curve as you are trying to master your iron play.

Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Expansive sweet spot
• Good distance
• Easy to swing
• Moderate sole widths

Cons:

• A bit pricey

Overall Score: 97/100

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Is Spalding A Good Golf Brand? – Final Thoughts

Spalding still makes good game improvement clubs.

Their irons in particular are a great alternative to more expensive GI offerings from Taylormade and Callaway. Durability may be an issue; but Spalding should still be on your radar as a high handicapper looking for a great bargain.