Long Iron vs. Hybrid for TOUR Players....

[HappyGas]

Long Iron vs. Hybrid for TOUR Players....

For those that recognize my posts.....here I go again.

I struggle to no end seeing TOUR PRO's out there with Hybrids in their bags. There are a ton of TOUR players out there that don't carry anything longer than a 4-iron. If I'm not mistaken.....Ian P. carried no more than a 4-iron last week at Match Play.

But I ask.....

What would you all rather see:

Hal "Be The Right Club Today" Sutton smooth a long iron mere feet from the 72nd Hole at 2000 TPC to beat Tiger....

or....

YE "Gimme My Hybrid" Yang smooth a nice Hybrid into the 72nd of the 2009 PGA Championshp.........

It just pains me to see GOLF go this direction. Sure, the hybrids make the game easier to play. But at what expense ???

Nicklaus, Trevino, Player, Palmer had similar choices back in the '60s and '70s when they could have pulled their 1-irons for 5 Woods and such. But they didn't. There was a time "Style" mattered out there.

....not the case today. Even for Ian "Crazy Pants" Poulter.

[drewspin]

It does beg the question of why the pros back in the day were not using higher lofted woods, modified sole Stan Thompson gintys or raylors.

Perhaps it was about style, perhaps they were not as creative or open to workable options.

The ball spun a lot more back then than it does now. That may be one big reason why the higher launch angle of the modern hybrid is a bigger performace advantage than if you were to use a balata.

[ram01002]

imo, its the ball and new golf courses. new greens call for shots that are LAUNCHED. the match play course was a perfect example.

[mat562]

It's a shame, but the modern ball and the preponderance of ever longer holes with frontal hazards on the PGA Tour mean that the long iron is simply a lot less viable for the majority of players than it used to be. It's harder to hit the ball high these days with a long iron, and even if you[i] can[/i] manage it a hybrid or a lofted wood is more suited to long approaches that demand a soft, quick-stopping shot to maximise scoring opportunities at the typical tour venues. A lot of younger pros have also grown up playing the hybrid and current ball and are thus familiar with that set-up, never having really honed their skills with the big irons.

You still see a decent smattering of 2 irons at certain venues, and if you look in the bags of a lot of players playing the European and Australasian tours you can still see a few of the things (and even some 1 irons) on a reasonably frequent basis, but for a lot of players a lofted fairway wood or a hybrid is still generally the club of choice.

As for the number of bags that have relatively short clubs as the longest iron, you have to factor in that modern lofts on many sets are a full club stronger-lofted than the irons of yesteryear; sometimes even a bit more. Players who start their iron sets with a 4 iron are often actually bagging a 3 in old money. A lot of players also adjust the lofts on their longer irons to fill yardage gaps in conjunction with a hybrid or a lofted club so, again, the number on the sole very often gives a bit of a misleading picture of what the club actually [i]is.[/i] I know one tour pro who carries a '3 iron' that's stronger-lofted than my already-strong-lofted 2 iron. Despite the numbers on the bottom of the clubs saying that he doesn't carry a longer iron than a 3, he's actually got a strong lofted 2 iron in the bag whenever he plays.

[juststeve]

Once upon a time I carried a 1 iron. Now my longest iron is a three iron and the 2 iron has been replaced by a 19* hybrid. Why? Two resons plus I've gotten older. It is harder to launch a proV1 high than it was an old Titleist Black. Also, modern hybrids are much superior to the old Gintys and the like.

Steve

[astamm8]

i've always had a soft spot for a classic set up along the lines of driver, 3 wood, 1-sw. but i see hybrids and woods etc, to be a return to the even older days than anything. hickory sets always have more woods, more hybrid like woodlike clubs, and fewer irons. so, the modern change in bag set up has never really bothered me.

[drewspin]

[quote name='astamm8' date='24 February 2010 - 06:35 PM' timestamp='1267054549' post='2275022']
i've always had a soft spot for a classic set up along the lines of driver, 3 wood, 1-sw. but i see hybrids and woods etc, to be a return to the even older days than anything. hickory sets always have more woods, more hybrid like woodlike clubs, and fewer irons. so, the modern change in bag set up has never really bothered me.
[/quote]

That's a very interesting observation. I never thought of that.

[HappyGas]

I'll swallow some pride & agree....

I prefer to play a game of golf with the older persimmon clubs and muscle back blades.

However, if I want to be competitive in the stroke play events this summer....I'll likely need to find a set of GI Clubs.

I'll play maybe 5% of my rounds with Persimmon Woods. Fantastic experience.

[iteachgolf]

Sutton hit a 6 iron, not what I'd call a long iron. I go back and forth between a 3 iron and a hybrid

[iteachgolf]

Sutton hit a 6 iron, not what I'd call a long iron. I go back and forth between a 3 iron and a hybrid