Couple of comments here (noting that I am out of the club renting/buying situation):
1. At least in Flash, it was impossible to rent clubs higher than one's level entitles one to buy. (For example, if one is less than level 102, one could not rent the TS3 driver.
2. I agree with Sam's comment. There is no point in renting or buying clubs better than one's actual skill. WGT has made some very expensive clubs and balls available to players at level 0 at a higher cost for comparable equipment that can be bought later, but a WGT beginner is wasting his/her money. They will will have no idea what to do with them.
3. I have not learned how one progress through tiers strictly playing coin games but I did play a coin game against a TL with a 150.00 average last week. She had top equipment and could out-drive me, but couldn't hit a fairway off the tee or GIR. Go figure. To play in this game successfully, one needs to learn the entire game.
Tom.