How To Take Care of Your Golf Clubs in 8 Easy Steps

If you want your golf clubs to take care of you, you have to take care of your clubs. Just a few simple maintenance steps will keep your golf clubs in tip-top shape and lasting as long as you want to keep playing them.

Here are eight easy ways to take care of your golf clubs:

1. Store Your Golf Clubs Properly

The best way to store your golf clubs between uses or long-term is indoors, as in inside your house or apartment. Never store your clubs long-term in the trunk of the car, especially in very hot locations. (High heat can weaken the glues that hold the grip and clubhead in place.)

2. Never Put Your Golf Clubs Away Wet

No reason to encourage rust! If you come in after a wet day on the course, just give your clubs a quick wipe-down before tossing them back in the closet or corner.

3. Own and Use a Golf Towel

"Golf towel" can mean any ol' towel you attach to your golf bag, or it can mean a towel purpose-made for golfers with a reinforced eyehole and fancy wicking fibers:

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Attach one to your bag and use it during your round to wipe down the clubfaces and grips, especially when moisture or debris gets on either. (Just make sure you never hold up play when doing so.)

4. Use Headcovers on Your Woods

Headcovers help protect the more delicate and more-easily damaged heads on your driver and woods from damage when you grab them out of the golf bag and shove them back in. Or during the jostling that takes place in a car trunk or on the back of a golf cart.

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Covers for your irons? Not necessary. (The pros don't use them.) For your putter? Not required, but never a bad idea. Many putters are sold with headcovers.

5. Clean Those Clubheads Between Play

Give your golf clubs a cleaning at least every few rounds, making sure to remove dirt and debris from the grooves and etchings on the clubheads. It's simple and not time-consuming, and only requires a soft-bristled brush, some warm water (and suds) and a towel to wipe the clubs dry.

6. Don't Forget to Clean Those Grips, Too

Keeping your grips clean - removing dirt, debris, sunscreen stains, sweat - will help them last longer. And the grips are the one part of your golf clubs you will probably have to replace someday, so making them last longer is a good thing.

7. Regularly Inspect the Grips for Wear

While cleaning your grips, be sure to look for signs of wear. Inspect the grips for shiny areas, which indicates slickness, plus for worn areas or cracks. Those are signs that it's time to consider new grips. Good grips are essential to good golf - you have to be able to hold onto the club, after all.

Re-gripping is something you can do yourself if you're a DIY type of person. But re-gripping at a pro shop is easier, and not very expensive (depending on which new grips you choose).

8. Periodically Inspect the Shafts

When you're wiping down the shafts with a soft, dry towel (because you remember to do that every time you clean your clubs, right?) take a look for dents, nicks or splits in the shafts. If you see any of these, it might be time to replace the shaft (shafts will last essentially forever just considering normal golf play, but they can be damaged by getting banged around).