How to fill the gap between 5i and 5w

[SteelyDan]

Hi,

 

My longest iron is a 5i Mizuno JPX919f with a PX LZ 115g shaft. 25 degrees of loft.

I also game a Mavrik Max 5 Wood with 18 degrees of loft.

With 7 degrees of loft gap between these two, I am wondering what club to add.

Right now, I have a Srixon U85 23* with PX LZ 110g. I like the look and feel compared to a hybrid, but it's hardly longer than my 5i with 25*. No big surprise considering the loft. I also feel it is a bit hard to accelerate for me.

I was thninking to bend the utility to 21 degrees and probably switch to a lighter (graphite) shaft to add some distance. Or should I look at something else?

What do you think?

 

Thanks

 

SD

 

 

[bvanlieu]

A lot factors into what you like to see and how you want to play the shots: we all have a point where the irons are going to overlap based on speed/launch. For me its in the 22-23d range and I go 20 and 23d hybrids before 17d 4 wood vs. seeing my 4 iron go from great shot to meh not much better then 5iron. 

 

Need bullet balls? Try a utility iron with more help, lighter shaft maybe bit lower loft to match the gap. The U series is a good club for sure though swapping in say a 95g hybrid shaft, some lead tape may be an expensive experiment : you may be able to demo them instead and compare some launch data for yourself. 

 

Want to hit it high and can't stand a hybrid? 7wood (I prefer shorter shafts regardless, don't need the long shaft game on those clubs) 

 

 

 

 

[ShortGolfer]

It isn't just loft.  A wood is longer than an iron, unless you have a customized club like Michelle Wie's 11 wood.  Longer clubs give you more club head speed. (unless they get too long, which isn't an issue here)

A 7 wood would give you another long club with if you primarily hit off good lies.  A 4 Hybrid would be better off the rough and give you more distance than the 5I or U85.

Edited August 4, 2021 by ShortGolfer

[CJINC]

What are they distance gap between the clubs ?

 

CJ

[kepeollie]

I’m in the exact same situation as the OP. 
 

I have a 21 degree hybrid, but bad shots are left…so went to the golf shop looking for a club that would fill that spot (205-215) between my 5 iron and my HL 3 wood. 
 

Looked at a utility and when I hit it flew the distance I needed, but when I missed…we’ll it didn’t. 
 

Then the fitter asked me if I thought about a 5/7 wood. Said no, so he took a 5 wood and turned the loft up 1.75 and flat and it seems to fit the bill nicely! 

[Golf64]

I'm going 7W and 4H.

[SteelyDan]

18 minutes ago, CJINC said:

What are they distance gap between the clubs ?

 

CJ

About 6 yds between 5i and 23d and about 25 yds between 23d and 5W.

[dbleag]

I decided to focus on carrying only 12 clubs instead of 14.

 

Driver = 10.5*

4W = 17.5*

7W = 21*

5I = 25*

 

Dropped LW and got a PING Eye2 Gorge XG SW (56*) - very versatile for me.

[JShaw]

Don't chase specs, they bog a lot of people down when trying to fill yardage gaps.  Demo some stuff and choose something that fits the yardage and trajectory you're looking for regardless of the specs.

[bvanlieu]

3 hours ago, ShortGolfer said:

It isn't just loft.  A wood is longer than an iron, unless you have a customized club like Michelle Wie's 11 wood.  Longer clubs give you more club head speed. (unless they get too long, which isn't an issue here)

A 7 wood would give you another long club with if you primarily hit off good lies.  A 4 Hybrid would be better off the rough and give you more distance than the 5I or U85.

 

Woods and hybrids both are longer, but they don't have to be.

 

Its trivial to butt trim an inch and weight up the head as most clubs have some sort of removable weight for those that can't stand the horror that is high density lead tape. I play my 4H near a standard 4i length with a shaft that is the same family as my irons. 

 

Side note: I am happy with my 3H however all the folks on this site talking about their awesome 7 woods has me quite the itch to scratch. I need a demo day 😄 

 

Edited August 4, 2021 by bvanlieu

[Drivingrangehero]

I play a 19* 5 wood (Adams Tight lies 2013) with an 85g Evenflow black 6.0 at 41.5 inches  and a 25* five iron that is 1/2 over (Mizuno HMB) I’ve tried to gap this a few times different ways and not yet satisfied with what I’ve done

 

I have a 23* Adams 9031 proto hybrid that plays at the same progression as my irons (1/2 over standard steel length) with an OG  Hzrdus black 85g 6.0 in it,  and I have a Tour Edge CBX Ironwood at 22* that is the same length (1/2 over) with the same shaft as my irons Modus 105 hs/x1  at +1/2.  I find that they can both work well, but I get the occasional bomb that flies 10 yards further with less spin if I catch them a shade high on the face, so they end up flying my 5 wood distance with even more roll out ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

I just today ordered a 2016 Cobra Forged Tec (the cavity back looking one) that is 21* and I will play it 1/4 longer than my 5 iron. It will give me 4* of loft between the two clubs and 1/4 inch length.  My reasoning was that I don’t think there will be as much as an effect on strikes that are a touch high on the face, so spin won’t drop as much……. I’m hoping anyways. 
 

I bought the Cobra on the ‘bay with head only, and they had some other game improvement type heads that were in the realm of possibility since I have a couple of shafts lying around. 
 

Taylormade M CGB 5 iron

TM Sim Max OS 

Cobra Bio Cell

Callaway Maverik Max 

PXG 0211

New Level 1126

 

i only went with the forged tec because it had the least offset, but there are options 

 

[jkody]

Have you considered the JPX 921 Hi Fli hybrid in a 4? Mizuno advertises them as a direct replacement for the same-numbered irons, and they are somehow less expensive than the JPX 921 irons.

 

I was unable to find one to demo, but have one on order. I will report back.

Edited August 4, 2021 by jkody

[dlygrisse]

7 Wood

[L29]

3 hours ago, dbleag said:

I decided to focus on carrying only 12 clubs instead of 14.

 

Driver = 10.5*

4W = 17.5*

7W = 21*

5I = 25*

 

Dropped LW and got a PING Eye2 Gorge XG SW (56*) - very versatile for me.

Had this exact setup for over a year now and try as I might I can’t find any gaps anywhere.  Just works. 

[animalgolfs]

I'll suggest the 9 wood 22/23* range

 

It will fit that gap perfectly- besides you get to hit some beauty's with it

[nitram]

4-iron when it's windy. 7W when it's not.

[nostatic]

The answer is simple - hybrid and/or 7/9 wood.

The answer is complicated - hybrid and/or 7/9 wood.

 

Not all hybrids hit the same. If you go with adjustable clubs you can often tweak distances and/or draw bias and/or appearance at address. Some people like hybrids, some like woods, no single right answer.

[Gerr]

I guess it depends on if you like a wood, hybrid, or utility iron to fill the gap between the 5i & 5w.  The most budget friendly option is your original suggestion, to bend the utility iron strong and replace the shaft with a lighter AND longer shaft.  That should easily get you to at least 10-12 yards between it and your 5i, but probably not to the halfway point of the 5w.  Maybe do that AND add 1* of loft to your 5w, pending it's an adjustable one?

 

Otherwise, get a 7w or hybrid to fit the gap and make sure to get fitted and target a specific distance in that fitting.

[Bar_Stroll]

I have this same issue and mainly use the 4i off the tee to stay short of trouble. My solution was going with the stronger lofter companion set from the same manufacturer. I now have 5i - GW in Ping i200 and changed to the i500 4i which is stronger lofted than the i200 set and more forgiving. 

 

You could add a JPX919 HM 4i which is 20* and it would be a nice progression. Or like you said, bend that utility to 21*.

[lefthack]

Currently have a 19* 3h and 19* GAPR Lo utility ish thing. I am looking at 2 driving iron and hat might replace the hybrid.

[Drivingrangehero]

1 hour ago, Bar_Stroll said:

I have this same issue and mainly use the 4i off the tee to stay short of trouble. My solution was going with the stronger lofter companion set from the same manufacturer. I now have 5i - GW in Ping i200 and changed to the i500 4i which is stronger lofted than the i200 set and more forgiving. 

 

You could add a JPX919 HM 4i which is 20* and it would be a nice progression. Or like you said, bend that utility to 21*.

Kind of what I’m doing. 
 

You may be able to play the Hot Metal the same length as your 5 iron with the 5* loft difference ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

 

a Jpx 921 HMP is 22* in a 5 iron. At 1/2 over you would be the same number as your set 4 iron. Less offset than most Utilities and Game improvement irons 👍

 

My 4 Utility was 8-9 yards longer than my 5 iron at the same length with a 3* difference, but I just seem to catch it high in the face off the tee and bust it another 10 carry and 15 roll, so it’s ending up 30 yards longer than my 5 iron randomly……… usually off the tee, and flying the green 😡 

Edited August 4, 2021 by Drivingrangehero
Added info Jpx 921 HMP

[azgreg]

14 hours ago, Golf64 said:

I'm going 7W and 4H.

 

[sfdoddsy]

I also recently found I was hitting my utility (on average) not much further than my 5 iron.

 

I then discovered I wasn't hitting my 5 iron much further (on average) than my strongly lofted 6 iron.

 

So I went hybrid even though I didn't like hybrids. I used to hook them.

 

For me, hybrids with adjustable hosels were a game changer.

 

They go higher and further for me than equivalent irons (I'm getting old and slow) so I now have proper gaps..

 

Adjustable hybrids tend to be more 'player' for a start so less draw biased. But the ability to open the face and adjust lie is brilliant.

 

I now have it set up so I have a 16.5 4 wood which I draw, a 19 hybrid which I fade, a 21 hybrid which I draw, a nd a 24 and 27 which I hit straight.

 

In your case I'd go for a 22ish adjustable hybrid. Ping G425 is the obvious one. I use an Epic Flash, but have also had great results with a TM GAPR Hi.

 

I also have the Mizuno JPX FliHi's mentioned above and like them a lot, but would like them more if they were adjustable.

 

 

[MountainKing]

I only have a 4 iron in between.  It leaves a bit of a bigger gap than I probably want, but if I choke up the 5w an inch or so I can chop some yardage off that way if needed. 

[ChipNRun]

On 8/4/2021 at 4:46 AM, SteelyDan said:

Right now, I have a Srixon U85 23* with PX LZ 110g. I like the look and feel compared to a hybrid, but it's hardly longer than my 5i with 25*. No big surprise considering the loft. I also feel it is a bit hard to accelerate for me.

The U85 may not be the right club for you, if the distance between U85 and 4i is only 6 yards. If the U85 now has a low trajectory, lowering the loft likely won't help. Loft is primary determinant of launch angle; shaft only gives fine-tuning. 

 

As others have hinted, a 4H would be worth trying out. So...

• What has been your past experience with hybrids?
• Besides distance, what do you want from this 5W-4i bridge club?

[kcarrgolf]

I have an 18 5 wood and filled in with a 20 Hybrid and a 22 4 DHY.  Yardage gaps are working out well.

5 Wood - 235-240

3 Hybrid - 220

4 DHY - 205

5 iron - 190

[Rbsiedsc]

On 8/4/2021 at 9:25 AM, jkody said:

Have you considered the JPX 921 Hi Fli hybrid in a 4? Mizuno advertises them as a direct replacement for the same-numbered irons, and they are somehow less expensive than the JPX 921 irons.

 

I was unable to find one to demo, but have one on order. I will report back.

how did the hi fli work for you? looking to replace my 22* 4i and don't know if I should go Hi Fli 5 or Gapr hi 4? leaning gapr since it is adjustable. Already have a 21* UW.

[lil'mike]

7wd

 

[Rbsiedsc]

1 minute ago, lil'mike said:

7wd

 

thats my 21* UW

[chollier986]

4 hybrid for me.

 

5iron- 200ish

4 hybrid- 220ish

5W - 240ish