Are the days of good deals on used clubs over?

[DevilDog]

Used club prices will drop once this latest golf craze ends.  Golf has always been like this.  A few years ago, courses were closing and many in financial trouble because the people who picked up the game due to Tiger quit playing for a myriad of reasons mostly cost, time and not improving.  Same will happen now.  Once a lot of people leave golf again in a couple of years or so, used club prices will crater.

[coreyhr]

1 hour ago, dekez said:

 

Pretty much everyone who tries to sell on GolfWrx Classifieds.

"Priced to move" "Quick sale" => Proceeds to list it 20% over used market value. 

Edited February 14, 2023 by coreyhr

[1puttTUT]

In the last two weeks I bought a NIP LTDx driver for $199 and sold two excellent condition Srixon ZX utility irons for $125 each. I think those are all excellent deals.

[thepunch_out]

I do most of my browsing on E-bay and it's remarkable just how much 2nd Swing has taken over the marketplace in the last couple years. I'm not sure how they bankrolled it (PPP??), but it definitely seems like they purposely bought up enough of the market to collectively move the price floor up to a point of their choosing, at least on a lot of the clubs I consider "modern classics."

 

Now having said that, there are absolutely still some amazing deals out there. Granted, I'm willing to play a little older equipment than most but I built this bag for $260, all from E-bay auctions. 

 

Driver: Nike VR Pro Limited - $40

Fairway: TaylorMade V-Steel 2/4w - $80

Irons: MacGregor PCB Tour (Miura Forged!) 3i-PW - $80

Wedges: Ben Hogan BeCu Special 52/56° - $20

Putter: Cleveland Corey Pavin Commemorative - $40

Again, I realize they're all over a decade old, but I'd challenge anyone to build a better overall set for cheaper. The deals are out there, you just gotta dig deeper than you used to.

[dwboston]

1 hour ago, coreyhr said:

"Priced to move" "Quick sale" => Proceeds to list it 20% over used market value. 

 

The flip side of that is lowballers and WTB, which should be renamed "Want For Free".  

 

eBay sold listing prices do a pretty good job establishing what the market value is for a given item.  Lowballers still offer 50% less than that.

Edited February 14, 2023 by dwboston

[Ghostwedge]

Occasionally I'll hit up  the bay and check out used Scotty putters. 

SMH stuff, a used studio select that has never been covered and beat to h+ll with a generic worn out grip is not worth $300 + shipping, Uncle Sam's theft and the bays cut.

[ilikegolf26]

1 hour ago, MtlJeff said:

Callaway Pre-Owned is very good as has been mentioned. And their quality is usually better than advertised

 

Also you can just buy PXG 0211 line which is very inexpensive , and good quality

Callaway Preowned is fantastic. I bought a Rogue ST TD driver about a month or two ago for $220. It arrived to my house still in the plastic. Just bought a Rogue ST Pro Hybrid for $102 in “Very Good” condition. It’s a great site. Wish all the other OEMs would set up something similar (PXG does have their eBay store). 

Edited February 14, 2023 by ilikegolf26

[JFM628]

No.

[betarhoalphadelta]

Finding "steals" is an information asymmetry problem. It's usually caused by a seller not being able to know the actual market price for an item, and listing it in a place obscure enough that you can stumble upon it. I.e. a local craigslist, a local Facebook for sale group, a garage sale (obv not "listed" there), etc. 

 

eBay and 2nd Swing are national marketplaces where you can get a general idea before listing of what the market price is for an item. So there is no information asymmetry there between the buyer and the seller, because the seller sees what similar items have actually gone for in the past. 

 

And for that first group (sellers w/o info), there are people who constantly search for arbitrage opportunities in those more obscure selling forums. I look in my own neighborhood when walking the dog on weekends and there are certain houses that I see have garage sales every 6 weeks or so. For these people I think there's a whole side hustle of going around to garage sales of people just trying to unload their crap for cheap to get rid of it, and they spend a month scouring all those houses for something sold under market, and then resell it at market when they host their own sales. I'm sure those same people, if they find a REAL steal locally, are reselling eBay rather than via their driveway. 

 

So yeah, finding steals is really hard. But I don't think it's a COVID problem (although clearly that has caused demand in general to rise, which pushes prices up overall). It's an information problem--as a buyer you're upset that sellers have access to it, so they're not letting things go for WAY less than they should.  

[Is Golf Fun or Work]

With new sets now at what, for premium OEMs, $1300 for 7 clubs....naturally good used clubs will increase as well....that said, hard to beat Callaway PreOwned sales, I 'stole' a few clubs I feel....meaning, $270 retail, LikeNew CPO, $110 on sale.

[aquapig]

The golf boom since Covid has hurt the used market more than anything else. Not only did it take away the used club market, it has increased club memberships a lot here in Florida.

 

My old club was 750.00 to join and 300/month. They now are asking 10k to join and the monthly has gone way up. The reality is they don't really need or want new members.  They are just about maxed out and members now are fighting for teetimes. 

 

My current club is putting over 3mil into the club and both courses this year. Our rates will be going up soon as well and I'm sure so will the initiation fees. We used to be able to book our Sunday morning tee times a few days out. Now we book after our round on Sunday for the following Sunday just to ensure we get off by 8am. 

 

I'm not sure the used market will ever be what it used to be. 

[aquapig]

3 minutes ago, Is Golf Fun or Work said:

With new sets now at what, for premium OEMs, $1300 for 7 clubs....naturally good used clubs will increase as well....that said, hard to beat Callaway PreOwned sales, I 'stole' a few clubs I feel....meaning, $270 retail, LikeNew CPO, $110 on sale.

Simple supply and demand. A lot more folks playing golf these days means increased prices across the board.

[njmack]

16 minutes ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

Finding "steals" is an information asymmetry problem. It's usually caused by a seller not being able to know the actual market price for an item, and listing it in a place obscure enough that you can stumble upon it. I.e. a local craigslist, a local Facebook for sale group, a garage sale (obv not "listed" there), etc. 

 

eBay and 2nd Swing are national marketplaces where you can get a general idea before listing of what the market price is for an item. So there is no information asymmetry there between the buyer and the seller, because the seller sees what similar items have actually gone for in the past. 

 

And for that first group (sellers w/o info), there are people who constantly search for arbitrage opportunities in those more obscure selling forums. I look in my own neighborhood when walking the dog on weekends and there are certain houses that I see have garage sales every 6 weeks or so. For these people I think there's a whole side hustle of going around to garage sales of people just trying to unload their crap for cheap to get rid of it, and they spend a month scouring all those houses for something sold under market, and then resell it at market when they host their own sales. I'm sure those same people, if they find a REAL steal locally, are reselling eBay rather than via their driveway. 

 

So yeah, finding steals is really hard. But I don't think it's a COVID problem (although clearly that has caused demand in general to rise, which pushes prices up overall). It's an information problem--as a buyer you're upset that sellers have access to it, so they're not letting things go for WAY less than they should.  

 

Yeah this is huge. And like many have brought up with their own experiences, the steals are still out there, you just have to be lightning fast to pull the trigger when you see one.

 

I almost bought a used TSR3 on rockbottom when they were running a 25% off sale a couple weeks ago. With the markdown, it was a "like new" TSR3 for $400. Still a high price, but it's a major markdown on what is essentially a brand new club.

 

I also try to remind myself that I can't expect to make out like a bandit each and every time I'm in the market to buy a club. I've gotten my fair share of steals throughout my buying lifetime, but they're few and far between. And anytime I do, I try to remember to "pay it forward" the next time I list a club for sale. Especially here! Life's too short to try to squeeze blood out of every stone.

[coreyhr]

1 hour ago, dwboston said:

 

The flip side of that is lowballers and WTB, which should be renamed "Want For Free".  

 

eBay sold listing prices do a pretty good job establishing what the market value is for a given item.  Lowballers still offer 50% less than that.

Yep. It definitely goes both ways. I've actually had much more luck selling on eBay lately because of the laughable low ball offers on here. 

[Garydean]

Ebay has good deals, other  websites that have shops on eBay too. 2nd swing and all those popular search engine sites seem to be slow to drop their prices to market value 

[dwboston]

9 minutes ago, coreyhr said:

Yep. It definitely goes both ways. I've actually had much more luck selling on eBay lately because of the laughable low ball offers on here. 

 

Same here.  Had a few items listed here recently (also listed on eBay) - all priced at market.  Two of them sold here, 5 sold on eBay. 

[Is Golf Fun or Work]

49 minutes ago, aquapig said:

Simple supply and demand. A lot more folks playing golf these days means increased prices across the board.

Correct, however a 60% discount off MSRP is a relative 'steal' in today's market, at least I think so

[Ger21]

$210 for my Srixon Z-965/Z-765 Combo set. The 8 iron had a fair amount of wear on the face, but they played just fine. I was looking for a cheap set to get refinished in black, and they were perfect. Similar sets were listed for $400-$500, but in a little better shape.

[mjf34g]

I think a LOT of consumers have gotten better informed regarding all the "magical technological advancements" in equipment. They've caught on to the OEM's BS claims of every new model is longer and more forgiving than the last. 

If you're driver is more than three years old you MIGHT see a jump in performance and as for irons, five years perhaps. But if you've got a set that works? No reason to change. 

To me its one of the reasons that used prices are higher than in the past. Because the sales of new is down the supply on the used side is way down. For example. Check for a set of say Ping G410 irons. A year after they were released i'd see tons for sale on the Bay. Not now and the same for G425's. 

 

[BagofToast]

Golf is more popular than it was before so generally prices will go up. 
 

Also 2nd swing is absolutely terrible with pricing. Get excited seeing a set of 730s pop up only to see they have the largest rust spots I’ve ever seen and listed at 800 bucks. 

[R.Patrick]

I was able to find a LTDx driver on Amazon in spring of last year for $228 shipped…came in a box big enough for a mattress (in 2 days), but there it was.  Couldn’t believe it.

Edited February 14, 2023 by R.Patrick
Driver

[Telecaster92]

My .02- almost all the clubs in my bag have been purchased from Callaway Pre-Owned. Some great deals there even on other brands. 

 

I’ve also gotten into collecting older golf sets. For $60 I’ve recently picked up a 4-SW set of Titleist DCI black irons in great condition (building out a 90s bag).
 

I also see deals on used clubs on Facebook marketplace all the time. Now if you’re talking about retail used deals well, I think YMMV

[Double Mocha Man]

2 hours ago, njmack said:

For these people I think there's a whole side hustle of going around to garage sales of people just trying to unload their crap for cheap to get rid of it, and they spend a month scouring all those houses for something sold under market, and then resell it at market when they host their own sales.

 

Hope those folks keep track of their hours of labor going to garage sales and setting up their own on a regular basis.  Even at minimum wage they are probably losing money.

[kblahey]

Definitely can be frustrating to find good used clubs these days.  You may find a decent used club on eBay but then shipping is like 2/3 the price of the club.  Kijiji is a struggle too in my area.  Guys will ask like $900 for AP2s from 10 years ago.

[Inglewood]

Its the same with used cars, etc...everything post covid.  If the item is still in demand and scarce, a premium will be in order.

[ChipNRun]

15 hours ago, DoughBack18 said:

And the problem is that seems to establish the market so everyone else follows suit. About the only decent deals i’ve found recently are though global golf when they are trying to clear inventory. 

 

The golf OEMs are doing what the farm implement people started doing back in the pre-2000s: enter more into trade-ins and thus have more control over the resale market.

 

Also, circa 2015, Callaway made a move that gave it better control of product availability. Callaway went from push marketing to pull marketing. In the old push scheme, the OEM would plan to market WonderIron A in 2016 and schedule WonderIron B in 2018. If WI-A is still abundant in 2018, no worry, the OEM would discount remaining sets and push WI-B onto the market.

 

Under pull, the OEM waits for conditions that would naturally pull WI-B onto the market. It WI-A is lingering but selling, delay WI-B entry onto market. But if WI-A is selling out fast, let market forces pull WI-B onto the market a few months early.

 

This is what happened to me in late summer 2019 when I decided to get fit for Rogue Pro irons. It was year 2 of their run, and I wanted to get a set before the December changeover. But, I was out of luck. Callaway notified everyone that the Rogue Pros were on backorder, and I could only get intact sets still in the supply chain. Rogues went off market six months early.

 

This pull move also means it's riskier than 10 years ago to test out iron set A in January 2012 expo, and hope to pick it up on first price cut in summer 2013. You may find yourself out of luck.

 

This especially shows up in the Callaway wedge area. When the MD4 model was cycling out of production, the only presence in the wintertime clearance and Spring expos was lob wedges. A couple dozen LWs of all types. For GW and SWs, maybe a half-dozen total, except for some used items with grooves that had already seen 120 rounds of play.

 

(Note: This has been the pattern in the Missouri region the past couple of years. It may vary with other brands and models in other areas.)

 

The indiscriminate use of the old push model, plus supply chain delays, was what crippled the TaylorMade brand back in 2014.

 

On a happy note: At the recent St. Louis Golf Expo, I got slightly used SeeMore FGP putter - with a spotless SuperStroke upgrade grip - for $79. Last year, the price for a new one was $179. Sometimes we get lucky... 

[JourneyToBreak80]

I suppose it depends. I've still sniped some crazy deals off eBay. Got a few barely used Vokey wedges for 35 and 50 dollars just because they are a few generations old. I got my X Forged CB set off Facebook Marketplace for half price of new from a local club hoe who needed to move them and had only played them like 6 rounds. 

 

On the flipside I also do see the crazy beat clubs on eBay that people are trying to sell for half of what they paid, I just roll my eyes and move on. 

 

 

[Golfdoctor]

I know that I've been looking for a set of Ping G425 irons and the difference between used and new is less than a hundred dollars with the price drop of Ping irons.

Decided to just order a new set.

[James the Hogan Fan]

I walked out of a Golf Mart in the spring of 2021 with a mildly used Z785 driver for $110. Fast forward to now and the same golf mart doesn't have a driver in the used bucket for less than $125, and they want things like $150-175 for an R15.

 

But that's just how it goes now. A dollar today would be worth 87¢ in 2020, and we have to adjust to a new Paradym. That said, a lot of quality irons from the 90's and even early 2000's are starting to appear in thrift shops (Got a full set of Wilson FG-51'S for $20. SLDR driver for $10, Speedblade iron set 4- AW for $25), and used equipment stores like the local play-it-again will often cut a steep discount if you aren't looking for Cally/TM/Titleist. (Like my Srixon driver above)

 

The deals are still out there, you just need to do more work to find them.

[sm_watts]

6 hours ago, Neilvice said:

Just spent $32 to send clubs from New Orleans to New Hampshire. Ouch. 

Have you checked out Pirate Ship?  If you're just going to the post office and paying to ship a box at the price they're telling you, you're getting ripped off.