How to Purchase Golf Clubs on Layaway

Every golf enthusiast knows that the cost of a new set of clubs can be prohibitive. Fortunately, many golf club and sporting goods retailers offer customers the option to pay off major purchases using a layaway plan. Under a layaway plan, you can get a store to hold the merchandise you want to buy once you make a down payment, then continue to pay off the balance of the purchase price over a specified period of time.

Things You'll Need

• Down payment
• Income for making subsequent payments

Instructions

Get Into the Swing of Things by Buying Golf Clubs on Layaway

1. Give yourself as many options as possible. Many online sporting goods retailers also offer customers the ability to purchase golf clubs on layaway. In fact, their terms may be more favorable, since they don't usually have heavy overhead expenses to cover to run their business.

2. Speak to a store employee personally about the terms of the layaway program, and obtain a written version of the store's policies. Review it closely, and ask questions about any items you don't understand.

3. Find out if any fees apply to your layaway purchase. Some stores will charge you a premium for the convenience of using the plan, while others may do a "same-as-cash" sale if you agree to pay the golf clubs off in a specified, relatively short period of time. Be careful about restocking fees that may apply if you cancel the layaway plan--on a set of golf clubs costing a couple of thousand dollars, a 10 or 15 percent restocking fee can represent a bundle of money.

4. Sign off on the agreement along with the merchant. Your agreement should explicitly state the total dollar amount of the set of golf clubs you're buying, the amount of your down payment and your payment schedule. Read closely to make sure the merchant hasn't inserted any additional terms and conditions that weren't part of the original written statement of the store's layaway policy.

5. Make your down payment. Pay off the golf clubs as you're expected to, and enjoy them once they're yours to take home.

Tips & Warnings

• Save yourself a little money by shopping for used golf clubs at a trusted local retailer. You might save hundreds or even thousands of dollars off the cost of a new set.

• Some stores' layaway policies allow them to cancel the plan without refunding any of your money if you default on even one payment. Unless you're absolutely secure in your ability to make the scheduled payments, you may not want to run the risk of having this happen to you.