Curated Golf Expert Bobby Funkhouser got his hands on the Callaway Strata Ultimate Complete Set to test this spring. Check out how it performed, but consider the fact that each and every golfer is different; if you have any questions about the Strata Ultimate Complete Set or need recommendations on which club would be best for you, reach out to a Golf Expert here on Curated.

Before we get started, it's worth noting that Curated Experts are not sponsored by any brands. All of these reviews are completely unbiased.

Brand Claims

What does Callaway claim about this club? [Bobby] Callaway claims that it has ultimate distance, is in a modern design, and is a forgiving set of clubs. Basically, a great set of clubs for a beginner to start out with.

Overall Impressions

What are the specs of the club you are testing? [Bobby] It comes with a driver, 3-wood, 4-hybrid, 5-hybrid, 6-iron, 7-iron, 8-iron, 9-iron, pitching wedge, sand wedge, putter, and a bag. It also has head covers for the driver, the 3-wood, 4-hybrid, and 5-hybrid. It’s not a complete set. You’re missing a couple of clubs, like a gap wedge and potentially a 5-wood or a 5-iron. There are a couple of things, but as you grow in the game and get better at the game, those are clubs that you can add to the set later. Or when you decide to upgrade, you can also get a set that has those. This set of clubs comes in steel shafts for the irons, the wedge, and the hybrids, which is a little rare. Not many hybrids come with steel shafts, but it works well. And then, the driver and the 3 would have graphite shafts. It’s great for beginners to have those hybrids with a little bit of a stiffer steel shaft.

What is your overall impression of the club? [Bobby] My first impression when I opened it up and looked at the clubs was that they’re pretty sturdy. They don’t feel super cheap when you’re looking at them and feeling them, but overall, they have a nice look to them for being a $600 set of clubs.

Review

How is it for distance? [Bobby] The distance is a little bit less than you would get with a more high-quality set of clubs.

How is it for forgiveness? [Bobby]They have quite a bit of offset, which is suitable for most beginner golfers because many people have an issue with coming from the outside in and hitting a big slice, basically pushing their shots to the right. This set purposely has a bit of offset that will help you hit more of a draw naturally.

How is its launch? [Bobby] The driver in this set of clubs has 10 ½ degrees aloft. I noticed that it’s super easy to launch and get up in the air. For beginners, that’s a great thing because many people have difficulty getting the ball up in the air.

How is it in terms of ball speed? [Bobby]I’ve hit a couple of the clubs, and I notice that the ball speeds are a little bit less than I’m used to, and that makes sense because they’re not made with as high-quality materials.

How is it for spin? [Bobby] The spin rates are a little bit higher with the driver and then the 3 because everything is really easy to launch and get up in the air. I also noticed that the sand wedge is not getting much spin on my chip or approach shots. Everything was hitting and rolling out because the wedge isn’t a high-quality forged wedge with deep grooves that are going to put spin on the ball. But that’s something that you can get used to.

What do you find unique about its appearance? [Bobby] One unique thing about this set of clubs is that there is quite a bit of offset on all of the clubs. But at address, you can see it when you’re looking down. It’s not a bad thing. It’s good for beginners because it helps them eliminate that big push or slice to the right.

What may make a player shy away from it? [Bobby]It’s very common. You see it a lot everywhere. It’s a set many beginners get, so if you want to be unique and get something different, this might not be the way to go. Another thing is that it’s on the lower end, quality wise and performance wise. But besides that, for the price, it’s a great set of clubs that get you out on the course and get you playing some golf.

How would you describe the sound of this club and feel at impact? [Bobby] At impact, the iron sounds somewhat normal compared to normal- or high-quality iron. The driver and the 3-wood had kind of a tinny sound, where it doesn’t sound super-high quality, but overall, I would say I was happy with how they sounded compared to similar sets.

Does this club swing light or heavy to you? [Bobby]I felt like the swing way to the clubs was actually heavy, which is a bit weird, especially for the hybrids, because they have steel shafts on them. And I’m used to swinging hybrids that come with graphite shafts.

How does weight affect different players? [Bobby] So the weight of the clubs is very important when looking at what clubs you should have in your bag. For instance, if someone’s a little bit older and has a slower swing speed, they should be using a lighter-weight shaft with a little bit more whip to it, and that’ll help them get more clubhead speed and overall hit the golf ball further. If someone is a bit stronger and uses something really lightweight, it will be too whippy for them and feel like they have a wet noodle in their hand. Thus, figuring out what shaft, flex, and shaft weight you should use for your game is very important.

Are there any drawbacks to this club? [Bobby] If there were any drawbacks to this set, I would say it’s mainly the performance from the clubs. You’re not going to get the most distance out of them. They’re not going to feel as good as a really high-quality set of clubs. But this will be a great set of clubs for you to get out on the golf course and learn the game, and once you’re ready to upgrade, you’ll be able to buy nicer clubs.

Recommendations

Who would you recommend this club to? [Bobby] The type of player I recommend this set for is a beginner golfer, someone wanting to get their first set of clubs to get out on the golf course, learn how to play the game, and spend time with friends and family.

Who should avoid this club, and what type of club would be a better option for that player? [Bobby] Anybody used to playing with a high-quality set of clubs that gives you high performance. If you’re playing with something that isn’t a package set or beginner set, this isn’t something that you would want to go down to. You would see your performance drop.

Golf clubs work differently for different types of golfers. If you are wondering whether the Strata Ultimate Complete Set is the right club for you, chat with Bobby or any other Golf Experts here on Curated, and they’ll put together free, personalized club recommendations on the best club for your needs.