5 Iron v. 5 Hybrid Showdown ... It Wasn't Close

[Jayjay_theweim_guy]

10 hours ago, teedub21 said:

And in the real world (not Golf WRX) neither do most of us.  

Yes, but no.  

 

Their strike is unGodly precise.  As it should be, they're Professionals.  But as far as club speed goes...maybe the Trackman chart from a decade ago is FOS, but:  

Isn't all that daunting, club speed wise.  I'm supposed to be awed by an 88 MPH 5w?  Seriously?

 

I'm in awe of how accurate they are with said 5W, but the point that perhaps some/many/most LPGA Pros don't have the club speed to get a long iron to do what they need, and perhaps a hybrid is more efficient, shouldn't be laughed away, IMHO.

[gator022]

1 hour ago, optimator said:

Like I said, I could be wrong 😁

Heck me too! I get told I’m wrong all the time on here and at home.

[TerryDactyl]

Can't hit hybrids. Hook em all 

[teedub21]

Just bought a “shop worn” Ping G430 26 degree hybrid to go with my new to me set of Ping i525 irons.  Shall see how it goes.  Have the Ping G430 22 degree hybrid already.  

[jeffrey r]

11 hours ago, TerryDactyl said:

Can't hit hybrids. Hook em all 

 

Different strokes for different folks, but no real reason you should not be able to adjust out a hook with hybrids these days, whether with a heavier, stiffer shaft, lowering loft, opening up face, etc. I am sure that most of us have fought the hooks at one time or another with hybrids over the years. I have sorted that out by now.  But whatever works. 

[TerryDactyl]

1 minute ago, jeffrey r said:

 

Different strokes for different folks, but no real reason you should not be able to adjust out a hook with hybrids these days, whether with a heavier, stiffer shaft, lowering loft, opening up face, etc. I am sure that most of us have fought the hooks at one time or another with hybrids over the years. I have sorted that out by now.  But whatever works. 

Yup I agree! I actually go up to a Srixon 3 utility to replace my 5w and love it! Never though I'd be able to hit one but now I'm that guy with mostly irons 

[Chunkitgood]

What can I say?

 

If you consistently hit the hybrid a whole lot better than the iron, you may need to check and see if you are swinging your clubs as designed.

 

For example, if you need a high MOI, you possibly don’t contact the ball in the center of the face very often.

 

If you need a low COG for trajectory and distance, you may possibly not be striking the ball with sufficient force and at the proper angle to get enough spin.

 

I’m not even going to ask why a nonprofessional would, in a game of skill, want good results from a bad effort.  There is a vast difference between an expert making allowance for an occasional errant shot, and the typical loft adding golfer relying on equipment to approach a simulacrum of good golf.

 

Good luck in your endeavors.

[teedub21]

simulacrum?  Wow, had to look that one up!  I play with a guy that has the weirdest terrible swing you’ve ever seen.  He has a bag of headcovers.  He also shoots consistently in the 70’s, takes money off everyone at our club and has a great time doing it.  I’ve seen him hit a 4 hybrid from 120 out and spin it back, no crap.  He’s also the master of the driver off the deck.  His only irons are a sand wedge and a PW.  Different strokes for sure I guess.  

[azgreg]

18 hours ago, optimator said:

I thought I’d read 6i, using a set of Sub 70’s. But I might be wrong.

I was going by a post in this thread:

 

 

[Itsjustagame]

Your 6 iron goes next.

[bgfgolf]

16 hours ago, Jayjay_theweim_guy said:

Yes, but no.  

 

Their strike is unGodly precise.  As it should be, they're Professionals.  But as far as club speed goes...maybe the Trackman chart from a decade ago is FOS, but:  

Isn't all that daunting, club speed wise.  I'm supposed to be awed by an 88 MPH 5w?  Seriously?

 

I'm in awe of how accurate they are with said 5W, but the point that perhaps some/many/most LPGA Pros don't have the club speed to get a long iron to do what they need, and perhaps a hybrid is more efficient, shouldn't be laughed away, IMHO.

Top 50 in driving distance on lpga tour this season all averaged over 260.

 

Top 50 in driving distance on pga all averaged over 305.

 

take your pick which group amateurs are more like…

 

 

Edited December 17, 2023 by bgfgolf

[cardoustie]

See sig, 5 and 6 hybrids

 

put a ball in rough at 200 out, over water, and there’s no scenario where I’d rather be hitting a 5 iron 

 

I’ve hit some 5h shots into par 5’s where I just shake my head

[Obee]

8 hours ago, Chunkitgood said:

What can I say?

 

If you consistently hit the hybrid a whole lot better than the iron, you may need to check and see if you are swinging your clubs as designed.

 

For example, if you need a high MOI, you possibly don’t contact the ball in the center of the face very often.

 

If you need a low COG for trajectory and distance, you may possibly not be striking the ball with sufficient force and at the proper angle to get enough spin.

 

I’m not even going to ask why a nonprofessional would, in a game of skill, want good results from a bad effort.  There is a vast difference between an expert making allowance for an occasional errant shot, and the typical loft adding golfer relying on equipment to approach a simulacrum of good golf.

 

Good luck in your endeavors.

Dude ... 

 

You do realize that lots of LPGA players play 4-hybrids and 5-hybrids, right? Some play 6-hybrids. It has nothing to do with not having a proper golf swing and much to do with the fact that the modern ball doesn't spin much, and many women and senior men don't have the club head speed to reliably get the ball airborne with low-lofted irons — especially if they tend to trap the ball as their natural move.

Edited December 18, 2023 by Obee

[Obee]

20 hours ago, TerryDactyl said:

Can't hit hybrids. Hook em all 

I have found that that is almost universally due to the fact that people play shafts in their hybrids that are too soft and have too much torque. Manufacturers love to put light whippy shafts in hybrids in order for the average player to hit them higher and farther. Stupid marketing crap. 

[cardoustie]

95g x shafts in hybrids = money

[GolfTurkey]

IMO this is one of the areas where a stats app is valuable.

 

You can shut out all the ego, shaming and general noise, and simply make a data-driven decision.

[Obee]

Just now, GolfTurkey said:

IMO this is one of the areas where a stats app is valuable.

 

You can shut out all the ego, shaming and general noise, and simply make a data-driven decision.

with one caveat: that is assuming you have dialed in your shafts with your lofted hybrids. If not, the comparison is problematic. You can't just go out and buy some off the shelf hybrids and put them up against your five iron and make an informed decision. Lofted hybrid fitting is a bit ... temperamental.  🙂

[Obee]

On 12/16/2023 at 11:19 AM, azgreg said:

The last I looked the longest iron in his bag is an 8i and he's capable of shooting in the 60's.

 

That is correct. My bag today is 7H, 6H, 5H, 7W, 5W, 3W, driver.

 

Shooting in the 60s is still something I do quite a few times every year with the caveat being I'm usually doing that on courses with a rating between 70 and 73  — and more importantly, when my back is cooperating. I can no longer shoot in the 60s on long or very difficult courses from the back tees. 

Edited December 18, 2023 by Obee

[uglande]

8 hours ago, Chunkitgood said:

I’m not even going to ask why a nonprofessional would, in a game of skill, want good results from a bad effort.

So I assume you play blades through 1 iron plus a persimmon driver? I mean why would you want all that tech help in a game of skill? 

[GolfTurkey]

14 minutes ago, Obee said:

with one caveat: that is assuming you have dialed in your shafts with your lofted hybrids. If not, the comparison is problematic. You can't just go out and buy some off the shelf hybrids and put them up against your five iron and make an informed decision. Lofted hybrid fitting is a bit ... temperamental.  🙂

 

Yes, assuming fitted club vs fitted club, otherwise it's not a fair fight.

 

This is another spot in the bag where the longer iron also often suffers from the typical let's fit the rest of the clubs to the 7i problem.

Edited December 18, 2023 by GolfTurkey

[ChaosTheory]

Never mind.

@uglande beat me to it.  😑

Edited December 18, 2023 by Snowman9000

[jomatty]

I have a 4 hybrid and the only thing that keeps me from getting rid of the 5 iron as well is the ability to flight it low.  I have a hard time hitting the low hooks and low cuts that I find myself needing too often (2 handicap that still seems to need this sort of a shot at least once a round.  With the 5 iron I can hit that low hook that runs out 185ish and I just can’t do that with the hybrid.  The idea of intentionally hooking a hybrid just scares me as it is so easy to overlook them (don’t really struggle with hybrids going left on normal shots). I suppose I need to learn that shot with the hybrid or stop hitting it in the trees…

Edited December 18, 2023 by jomatty

[bgfgolf]

Just now, jomatty said:

I have a 4 hybrid and the only thing that keeps me from getting rid of the 5 iron as well is the ability to flight it low.  I have a hard time hitting the low hooks and low cuts that I find myself needing too often (2 handicap that still seems to need this sort of a shot at least once a round.  With the 5 iron I can hit that low hook that runs out 185ish and I just can’t do that with the hybrid.  I suppose I need to learn that shot with the hybrid or stop hitting it in the trees…

I just hit my 6 iron the same way.

[Obee]

1 minute ago, jomatty said:

I have a 4 hybrid and the only thing that keeps me from getting rid of the 5 iron as well is the ability to flight it low.  I have a hard time hitting the low hooks and low cuts that I find myself needing too often (2 handicap that still seems to need this sort of a shot at least once a round.  With the 5 iron I can hit that low hook that runs out 185ish and I just can’t do that with the hybrid.  I suppose I need to learn that shot with the hybrid or stop hitting it in the trees…

what shaft do you have in your four hybrid?

[jomatty]

3 minutes ago, Obee said:

what shaft do you have in your four hybrid?

ADDI 85X.  I used to use the same shaft that was in my irons (MMT 105S) but have had good results with the ADDI.  I don’t have trouble with missing left with normal shots, but low hooks can get away big time.

[jomatty]

6 minutes ago, bgfgolf said:

I just hit my 6 iron the same way.

Yeah, when I’ve used a 5 hybrid that’s what I did.  I’m giving up a lot of distance doing that though.  Especially because I game a proto concepts 6 iron and the. Switch to t300 5 iron that is strong lofted and hot.

[Obee]

6 minutes ago, jomatty said:

ADDI 85X.  I used to use the same shaft that was in my irons (MMT 105S) but have had good results with the ADDI.  I don’t have trouble with missing left with normal shots, but low hooks can get away big time.

And which hybrid head are you using?

[moostache]

I've gone a different direction. For the longest time I carried a 4 hybrid and always struggled with it, but it was always better than a 4 or 5 iron. I tried sticking a heavier shaft in it and it went better, then on a whim decided to try a lofted fairway wood in that group instead.  Ended up being even more forgiving. The hybrid to me introduced more lateral dispersion than the iron did. I still feel comfortable hitting a 5 iron, but I'm starting to get curious on whether to try a 5 hybrid, or start digging into 9 wood territory 🤷

[jomatty]

7 hours ago, Obee said:

And which hybrid head are you using?

In the 4 slot is the Cobra King tec.  The 5 I was using was a Mizuno CLK.  
when you hit a low bullet with your hybrid how do you go about it?  With the 5 iron I feel like I can choke up, get close to the ball and cover it really well and hit hard low ones.  With the hybrid I’ve had trouble with that technique and sometimes feel like I almost need to thin it to keep it low and then I feel like I can’t go after it.  Maybe I just need to put the work in with the hybrid and learn these shots.  As much as I find it easier to hit different shots with the 5 iron, when I have a full swing 190ish yard shot I would rather have the hybrid every single time.  The course I play every day is short though, so unfortunately I’m in the trees more than I’m 190 out from the fairway.

Edited December 18, 2023 by jomatty

[Obee]

2 hours ago, jomatty said:

In the 4 slot is the Cobra King tec.  The 5 I was using was a Mizuno CLK.  
when you hit a low bullet with your hybrid how do you go about it?  With the 5 iron I feel like I can choke up, get close to the ball and cover it really well and hit hard low ones.  With the hybrid I’ve had trouble with that technique and sometimes feel like I almost need to thin it to keep it low and then I feel like I can’t go after it.  Maybe I just need to put the work in with the hybrid and learn these shots.  As much as I find it easier to hit different shots with the 5 iron, when I have a full swing 190ish yard shot I would rather have the hybrid every single time.  The course I play every day is short though, so unfortunately I’m in the trees more than I’m 190 out from the fairway.

Interesting. 
 

Most 5h clubs are made to launch high. Lots of OEMs make two or more varieties of their hybrids in the 2h, 3h, 4h slots, with the "player's" version designed for a slighty lower ball flight — Titleist's TSR 3, for instance. Play those. 
 

I will do a quick video of a low 5h shot. For me it's a 175 shot, max, nowadays, though. 🙂

 

Are you normally a fader or drawer of your mid-irons?