If majority of the LPGA don't use 4 irons.. why do you?

[ShortGolfer]

This is a great thread for me.  I did some testing and found My LL flex 22* is much easier to hit than my L flex 22*  So the LL flex 4 iron goes back in the bag, replacing the set iron.  The LL flex is a legit full swing club.

 

I have room in the bag, so this winter I'll put together a 25* iron to gap between 22* and 28*

Edited October 16, 2023 by ShortGolfer

[MtlJeff]

8 hours ago, bombs said:

Whoa 5 pages of responses. 

 

After more testing my latest conclusion is that carrying multiple hybrids is not for me.

 

Gapping not right. No versatility. Essentially carrying two clubs that do the same thing. Just no. 

 

4 iron is back IN. 🤠

 

A 3W has also snuck in. For now. 

 

 

You know a lot of ladies use a 4W instead of a 3W.....

[Dan Drake]

10 hours ago, karstens_ghost said:

 

You'll start seeing how many pros have a fat 4… or maybe just a fat 3. It's getting less common that their longest iron is the same as the set.

 

https://www.golfwrx.com/725332/tom-kims-winning-witb-2023-shriners-childrens-open/?utm_source=Front&utm_medium=Featured_Center_Top&utm_campaign=GolfWRX_OnSite&utm_content=main

 

^ Perfect example.

 

I am a huge believer in the fully "blended" set for a huge cross-section of golfers.  Something like this:

 

Driver - 460cc of fun lovin' 

2nd longest club - Hot fairway or mini driver

3rd longest club - fairway

4th - Small fairway/UW/Big hybrid

5th - Small hybrid/DI

6th - DI/SGI/GI

7th & 8th - GI/CB

9th & 10th - CB/MB

11th, 12th, & 13th - Wedge

14th - Putter

 

Obviously the "forgiveness" of the clubs and where you make the changes is dependent on how you hit the ball, but I believe this is the way to setup a bag for the best possible scores and enjoyment of the game.   

[vamosjackets]

To me, if you "can" hit a long iron, it will generally produce a tighter dispersion than a hybrid or fairway wood.  At least that's the case for me. The kind of swing I make (and kind of contact I have to make) with a long iron vs a hybrid or fairway wood will produce a more consistent result.  I'm able to use a 4-iron consistently ... The 3-iron becomes a little iffy and sort of depends on my game that day.  I've tried a hybrid but it's a little inconsistent for me ... sometimes great, sometimes off the planet.  

[jholz]

2 hours ago, Dan Drake said:

 

I am a huge believer in the fully "blended" set for a huge cross-section of golfers.  Something like this:

 

Driver - 460cc of fun lovin' 

2nd longest club - Hot fairway or mini driver

3rd longest club - fairway

4th - Small fairway/UW/Big hybrid

5th - Small hybrid/DI

6th - DI/SGI/GI

7th & 8th - GI/CB

9th & 10th - CB/MB

11th, 12th, & 13th - Wedge

14th - Putter

 

Obviously the "forgiveness" of the clubs and where you make the changes is dependent on how you hit the ball, but I believe this is the way to setup a bag for the best possible scores and enjoyment of the game.   

 

And it all comes full circle. At least we can hope that the novelty of the return of the term "niblick"  will offset the outrageous "per club" prices. 😃

Edited October 16, 2023 by jholz

[Dan Drake]

7 minutes ago, jholz said:

 

And it all comes full circle. At least we can hope that novelty of the return of the term "niblick"  will offset the outrageous "per club" prices. 😃

You are going to think I am yanking your chain, but I've already gone to calling my 2016 Apex 23° hybrid with a steel shaft a "ginty!" 

[jholz]

7 minutes ago, Dan Drake said:

You are going to think I am yanking your chain, but I've already gone to calling my 2016 Apex 23° hybrid with a steel shaft a "ginty!" 

 

Not at all man. I'd love to see it come back. The sport would become even more esoteric and inaccessible. 

[TiScape]

Because I’m a man baby!!! 💪🏼

 

 

🤣😇

Edited October 16, 2023 by TiScape

[Pepperturbo]

Buying the new T100 3i-PW irons was a good decision, they sure are sweet irons. 

 

This past wkend, was the first time with new shafts.  Faced a Par 3, almost perpendicular green, back Blue pin measuring 198yds, 193 to middle.  Using 21' 3i, I carried ProV1x near pin-high, straight but left; hit middle, bounced, checked and dribbled back, putted for par.  That was as solid as I could hit a 3 iron. 

 

People say they can't stop a long iron on the greens... I don't get it.  Hitting long irons are maybe the most satisfying shots in golf.  One of the guys I played with is a good & long, HS golf team player, he carried 2 hybrids as does his buddy.  My 3i was above the trees, but not as high as both of their hybrids.  They were fun to play with; wanting to beat the ole man added to the fun. 

 

One of my ways of staying connected in-between rounds is picking one or two shots from my last round, and playing them over and over in my head, until the next round.  The other was at a 158yd Red right-front pin.  Hit a baby fade 6i to apron and 10' toe chip, all most holed out.   I finished 4 over, great day of golf.

 

Damn, I love this game, but no interest in what LPGA chooses.

[SurfDuffer]

I still play a full set of traditional blades.  2-P.  My WORST miss with the 2 or 3-iron is far better than the miss I'd get with a 5-wood or hybrid.  Its a strategic decision based on my misses and minimizing the damage they create.  My worst miss with the 2 or 3-iron goes on the line I want but lose a bunch of distance on the chunk.  If I miss with a fairway wood its high and 30* off line to the right.....likely in the trees.

[mshills]

On 10/14/2023 at 5:15 AM, phizzy30 said:

Tell me about it.  I have 3 high school kids I train atm and they they were 170+ ball speed before they came to me.  Mind you, they never touched a dumb bell their entire life.  I know it's genetics, better nutrition, blah, blah, blah, but I swear Jeff, there's something in the water these days.......lol. 

 

It used to be the least athletic kids would play golf.  Not any more!

 

170 ball speed before putting any work in on your body is remarkable.

[karstens_ghost]

 

You'll start seeing how many pros have a fat 4… or maybe just a fat 3. It's getting less common that their longest iron is the same as the set.

 

https://www.golfwrx.com/725425/austin-eckroat-witb-2023-october/

 

Another example.

[MtlJeff]

MTLjeff and the Fat 4 is the name of the movie I starred in while in college

 

(Nod to @TiScape)

[blufblufshuv]

First they came for the 1 irons, but I did not speak out. Then they came for the 2s and 3s, but I did not speak out. Now they are after the 4 irons...... pretty soon they will demand we play hybrid 9 irons if we don't speak out. 

 

This is golf, not croquet. 

[Chunkitgood]

What’s funny is people who post implying people who play clubs that are “harder to hit” than whatever they happen to play are letting their egos control them never seem to play SGI clubs themselves.  They can hit everything up to say a 5 iron (in their minds anyway), and they think the rest of the world is in the same boat.

[SurfDuffer]

By the way, the primary driver in pros not carrying as many long irons as the past has more to do with how long they are off the tee than anything.  Because they are so long off the tee and their shorter irons are so jacked they are not encountering many shots where they would need to hit a 2, 3 or 4 iron like they did in the past.

[boggyman]

Plain and simple, me and my swing don’t get along with hybrids. Hybrid style irons I do however get along with though. 

Edited October 24, 2023 by boggyman

[Pnwpingi210]

Thought about this some more and it’s simple…. Club head speed.  LPGA players that have the club head speed to elevate and play a 4 iron….play a 4 iron.  Lexi Thompson is a good example.  She also plays a 2 iron.

 

clubs aren’t impacted by gender…..but they are impacted by how fast you swing them.

Edited October 24, 2023 by Pnwpingi210

[Flip4000]

If I could get a brand-agnostic outdoor fitting in my area with access to multiple brand heads and shafts to really dial in a hybrid I absolutely would. Otherwise if left to fitting indoors with semi-limited options I'll stick with the devil I know which is the 4 iron. Historically my dispersion with a hybrid has been worse left to right than with a 4 iron, and generally, the front-to-back dispersion kills me less on the course.

 

If I had access to a solid outdoor hybrid fitting where I could dial in dispersion, height, land angles, and take the time to dial in a perfect gapping I'd ditch my hybrid in a heartbeat. 

Edited October 24, 2023 by Flip4000

[RoyalMustang]

4H has never worked for me. I have 2 here in the closet: I don't play either club. They feel off balance and honestly, wild and unpredictable. I've tried several others as well. I want to like them, by your logic, but it doesn't work. 

 

My 4-iron is almost always 220 down the middle. It's consistent, has a great feel, and I don't snap hook it like the occasional hybrid. 

 

I do play a 3H but it's really the only hybrid that I've found that work. G400, Kuro Kage 90g X shaft, cut 3/4" short, D3 SW. Just works but even that gets draw-happy if I'm too quick at the top.