Callaway Golf Men's Strata Complete 12 Piece Package Set (Blue, 12 Piece (Strata), Men;s, Right Hand)

Why it's worth it

The Strata packs a lightweight 460cc driver, a fairway wood, a hybrid, irons and a putter into one 12-piece box. The heads are big, the shafts are light, and that combination is exactly what a swing you're still building needs.

The Strata is the set golf instructors keep pointing beginners toward, and the reason is forgiveness. Callaway built the driver head at 460cc, the legal maximum, and paired it with cavity-back irons that push weight to the perimeter. Miss toward the toe and the head twists less, so the ball still goes somewhere useful. Golf Digest's Hot List panel put the Strata among its top value beginner packages for exactly that combination.

Picture your fourth hole. You've hit two decent drives and one that went sideways, and now you're 180 yards out with a lie you don't love. This is where the hybrid earns its spot. PGA of America instructors say most new golfers get more out of a hybrid than a 3- or 4-iron, because the wider sole slides through grass instead of digging, and the ball climbs on its own.

From our review of 8 golf clubs for beginners

What we like

• +The Strata is the set golf instructors keep pointing beginners toward, and the reason is forgiveness
• +Picture your fourth hole
• +Twelve pieces is fewer than the 14 clubs the rules allow, and you won't miss them
• +One more practical point: the Strata sells constantly on the used market

What to know

• –The shafts are the giveaway
• –Callaway builds Strata sets in men's and women's versions, and this listing is the right-handed men's set