OT- more golf club talk (hybrids)

[Seinfeld]

I’ve never been anything close to a scratch golfer, but I have always been a decent ball striker, and to this day I still hit most tee shots and irons pretty clean. That said, I have never and I mean never been able to hit a 2 or 3 iron. My 4 is a little better, but it’s 50/50, and I then I start hitting solid shots when I get to my 5.

Anyway, I’ve never in my life hit a hybrid, but I’m getting back into golf, and I’m really intrigued by them. I’m seeing a few of the big name brands like Callaway even selling iron sets that come with hybrid options for for the 3 and 4 irons.

Any of y’all in the same boat, and did you have success with hybrids?

 

[Smoked Toag]

Hybrids were created to fix your exact problem. I guess the research would show that most people have issues with 3 woods and long irons. I've read that it's a mental thing with those, as people freak out with longer clubs. But either way, you're supposed to be able to swing the hybrids similar to short irons, but still get the distance of the long irons.

To-date, this still hasn't worked for me. I still struggle with the hybrids. I'm like you, good off the tee and pretty consistent from about a 6 iron on down.

 

[Dawgzilla]

Hybrids are easier to hit than long irons, but they are still longer clubs and can require some practice. I carry a 4 and 5 hybrid. I love my 5 iron, but I struggle with it on the course. The 5 hybrid flies higher and longer, lands softer, and is much more forgiving.

 

[DesotoCountyDawg]

The average golfer isn’t very good with long irons mostly because they don’t use them much and don’t practice them much either. I have always been able to hit woods pretty well (I actually carry a 2 wood in my bag) but 3 and 4 irons were always the devil with me so I went to a hybrid 3 and 4 because they felt like a small wood to me.

 

[mcdawg22]

I was in the same boat as you 15 years ago. I was at my best ball striking that I have ever been but could not hit 3-5 even though I practiced a good bit with them. When i caught them flush I tended to pull them left giving me big scores. My most common misses were thin with no carry or compressed that would balloon and only go 5 yards longer than my 6. My wife bought me a set of new irons which came with a 3 and 4 Hybrid. I hated the irons but loved the hybrids. It gave me the ability to be consistent from 205-190 and I could work them. When I moved I played less and the course I play now doesn’t have me at those yardages a ton so I have lost my touch with them. Last year I got new irons that I was fitted for and opted for the 5-aw. I can pure my new 5 iron. So much that I am thinking of getting a 4. Granted todays 5 is an old 4. I don’t know if it’s the lower center of gravity or the fact that i was fitted for them. I have not used the hybrids since then but for a time they definitely improved my game. I’ll also say, I have always been able to hit a 3 wood well. In my history of playing, outside of wedges and putter, it has been the most consistent club in my bag and I’ve had 3 different ones.

 

[blacklistedbully]

I'm probably similar to you, though likely not as good. I can hit the ball far & with no loft-problems. I tend to hit irons better than woods other than my driver off the tee. I even used to carry a 2-iron I could hit better than a fairway wood.

I say this because a few years back I bought a used set of Calloway FT-ibrid (ibrid, not hybrid) clubs and I love them. They look more like a cross between irons and traditional hybrids...not at all like, say a fairway wood. To me they swing like an iron as well. I even like the way it looks like an iron as I stand over my shot.

If you do decide to go with hybrids, I'd add most people get within 2-5 yards of what the next club up would get. For example a 4-hybrid would get within 2-5 yards of a 3-iron on average. But also consider most brands add length to the hybrid shaft a little beyond what the next club up would have in a regular iron. For instance, a regular 3-iron would have a shaft length of 39" while a 4-hybrid might be 39.5. If that bothers you one way you can counter it is going with a brand known for slightly shorter shafts, like Calloway. My FT-ibrid 4 has a 39" shaft length...the same as most 3-irons. So I can get close to the same distance with my 4-hybrid as I can with my previous 3-iron, and my hybrid is more forgiving. Or I can use my 4 hybrid in place of a traditional 4 iron and take a more relaxed swing.

Hope that helps.

 

[Dawgzilla]

. Granted todays 5 is an old 4.

Today's 5 is an old 3. And in a couple years it will be a 6.

Golf manufacturers say they do this because of lower COG and launch angles. I don't know any golfer who identifies their clubs by launch angle.

Manufacturers should just stamp the loft angle on the sole of clubs. The average male hits a club with 24 degrees of loft and a 38 inch shaft about 170 yards. That was true in 1970 and is true today. Doesn't matter what number is stamped on the sole.

 

[Colonel Angus.sixpack]

Go to an Edwin Watts type place and hit some Callaway 3 and 4 hybrids. Doesn’t really matter which version. Mavrik, Rogue, Epic, whatever. Buy the one(s) you feel you hit the best. I’ve bought several used clubs off this site in great condition at what I felt is a fair price for the most part. secondswing.com

 

[DesotoCountyDawg]

I’ve got the Callaway hybrid 3 and 4 and bought them off of eBay used.

 

[Mobile Bay]

The reason you can't hit your 3 and 4 iron is they are the one and two irons of your grandfathers bag. Only God can hit a one iron. Your five iron is the old three iron and so on. That is why there are so many wedges nowadays. Because your pitching wedge is the old seven iron, and that leaves a huge gap.

If you want to be good at any craft you must first understand the tools of the craft. Read The Search for the Perfect Golf Club by Tom Wishton before you buy anything else. Otherwise you are wasting your money feeding a multi billion dollar marketing machine for no return.

 

[Dawgzilla]

Because your pitching wedge is the old seven iron, and that leaves a huge gap.

Today's pitching wedges are more like old 9 irons, or maybe 8 irons. My old McGregor 8 iron from the early 70s was 42 degrees. Some game improvement PWs might be as strong as 42, but most PWs are still in the 44-46 range. My first 9 iron was 46, PW wax 50, and I never checked my SW but it was probably 54.

My current PW is 46, then I carry wedges in 50, 54, 58 and 62. Ive added 2 wedges not because of advancing iron lofts. But because those lofts weren't really available back in the day.

My next set of wedges might just be 50-55-60.

 

[Smoked Toag]

If you want to be good at any craft you must first understand the tools of the craft. Read The Search for the Perfect Golf Club by Tom Wishton before you buy anything else. Otherwise you are wasting your money feeding a multi billion dollar marketing machine for no return.

This is interesting. You could say this about the whole sports industry, though. "strength training", "development", private lessons, hahaha. Hey if you can make money, make it. I listened to a podcast recently with the guy from Titleist Performance Institute. He even admitted, that with all the things they do, the owner of Titleist hired him basically because, "I think you could help me sell more golf balls".

 

[Mobile Bay]

It's not just loft. Shaft lengths have been going up over the years too.

 

[mcdawg22]

It's not just loft. Shaft lengths have been going up over the years too.

I wish mine did.

 

[Dawgbite]

I wish mine did.

Consult your Dr. Results may vary.

 

[Seinfeld]

Your comments hit home with me because I've watched a lot of friends spend thousands of dollars on clubs over the year, thinking a new $600 driver is going to miraculously fix their banana slice off the tee.

For me, I've got a really specific goal in mind. We just joined a local club a month ago, and most of the par 4s in the 340-375 range. While a few of the fairways are wide open, there are a bunch that have serious danger on one side or the other, and I need something I can confidently put 200 yards off the tee into the center of the fairway. With my 3 wood, I obviously get more distance, and I can hit it pretty well about 75% of the time, but it's a hard pull the other 25%. Then with my 4 iron, I'll hit a beauty half the time, and then a thin, low line drive off the toe the other half.

Anyway, we're headed into Little Rock tonight, and I'm going to stop by Dick's to hit a few

 

[mcdawg22]

Your comments hit home with me because I've watched a lot of friends spend thousands of dollars on clubs over the year, thinking a new $600 driver is going to miraculously fix their banana slice off the tee.

For me, I've got a really specific goal in mind. We just joined a local club a month ago, and most of the par 4s in the 340-375 range. While a few of the fairways are wide open, there are a bunch that have serious danger on one side or the other, and I need something I can confidently put 200 yards off the tee into the center of the fairway. With my 3 wood, I obviously get more distance, and I can hit it pretty well about 75% of the time, but it's a hard pull the other 25%. Then with my 4 iron, I'll hit a beauty half the time, and then a thin, low line drive off the toe the other half.

Anyway, we're headed into Little Rock tonight, and I'm going to stop by Dick's to hit a few

Hopefully they have one of the simulators where you can get some feedback.

 

[tired]

I hit irons pretty well. I have to use a driving iron because I hit it better than my driver. I hardly break out my driver unless it’s wide open. It’s mental, I have a decent swing, and I’ve been playing over 30 years, but can’t get consistent swings with my driver. I hit hybrids like crap, straight up. I have 1 hybrid club I use in a tight spot when I need loft.

 

[III.sixpack]

The Callaway 7, 9 and 11 woods are very easy to hit. I ditched my hybrids for these and I do much better.

 

[HumpDawgy]

I'm no great golfer, but I always could hit my 1,2, & 3 (my fav) irons with the older iron sets. I guess I'm one of those "Anna Mollys".

Disclaimer: My 1 iron was an old Mizuno rounded back which resembles todays hybrids, but wasn't called a hybrid then and I mostly hit it off the tee on tight, straight fairways.