eric,

if you're having problems hitting your 3 and 4 irons, i'd definitely take a look at hybrids.  they generally have a lower cg (launching the ball higher), but similar distances to long irons.  just remember to treat them like irons and hit them with a slightly descending blow.

personally, i still play a 4 iron (because i can), but have replace my 3 iron with a hybrid and also replaced my 5 wood with a hybrid - it gets through rough better than a 5 wood.  the one thing you'll want to do is find a hybrid that suits your eye.  i'm still trying to get used to my 21* - it has more offset than i'm used to.

most importantly, don't let your ego get in the way.  get clubs that will give you the best chance of playing your best and scoring low.  good luck!

-fred

Along the ego  lines, if you fare better with a 7 wood vs a 19 or 21H, go for it.  I've heard too many comments about "I'm too young to carry a 7 wood" or "lofted woods are for old people" - TW uses an 11.5 driver and 19.5 fairway wood.  Like I said on my bag, you could classifiy it as a so-called "old geezer" setup (I carry a 13* draw driver - bottom line I find the middle of the fairway pretty often) but it works and what matters at the end of the day is a better golf score.

Carrying a 5 wood or 17H is a matter of personal preference.  I can hit a 19 or 20 fww off any lie from thick grass to almost a dirt clod. 

I have a friend who couldn't launch a 5 wood off the deck (hits it OK off the tee) and struggles to hit a 4H but can consistently wail on a 3 iron.

Hey guys thanks

Im a decent player, and i do hit the ball on the lower side.  Off the tee i can hit the 3 and 4 iron up in the air with a nice flights  I dont carry a 5 wood... this wkend in a tournament play i had 190+ up hill out of rough with a bunker to carry and made 7s both times. I just couldnt get the ball high enough to carry the bunker.   Scoring a 7 hurts my ego more than carrying a hybrid would!  

Is it to your findings that having a hybrid makes this shot a little more of an accomplishable task?

Sounds more like you need a sand wedge

hahaa exactly!

Not guarenteeing results, but a 19/21/24 degree hybrid (a.k.a. rescue club) will likely result in better loft/better distance from the rought than the long irons.  More than likely for you if using the 3/4 irons from the fairway tend to not get adequate loft.  Not sure of your age/swing speed, but you can look at 5W/3H/4H.  The preference on the 5W/2H tends to involve swing speed.  Slower swings generally prefer the 5W, higher tend to prefer the 19H for accuracy.  KJ Choi recently dropped his 5I for a hybrid.  Money beats ego in this case.

I swing a little easier with the woods, so I have A flex on my driver and fairway wood (probably a little closer to R flex since the former is 44.5" and the latter is 41.5" - proven lengths; the driver is a TM and is 1.25" shorter than stock and the fww is only .5" shorter than stock).   I like the feel.  Like Don O, I prefer a fairway wood over a 2 or 3H and simply hit it much better. 

Definite yes.  Keep in mind that what I have in my bag could be considered unusual.  My winning combination since 2006 has been a 19-21* fairway wood, 26-28* and 32-34* hybrid.   At this point I carry a 910F 19 set at C3, Superfast 2.0 6-27H and Louisville HL3 persimmon 34H (it is a beast vs a lot of metals on the market).   I have a 20 yard gap between the fww and the 27, 10 yards between the 27 and 34, and 15 between the 34 and my 8 iron.  The gaps aren't insurmountable because I have learned how to work the distance.  I also can close the gap between the fww and the 27 by hitting a choke shot with the former or using the reserve power and annihilating the 27H.  For the 34, I hit a choke shot for 7 iron distance.

The hybrid definitely has a higher ball flight  vs the same lofted iron and gets about 5-10 more yards.  I use the 27H in place of the 5 iron.  I use the 34H in place of the 6 and 7 irons (although I hit the ball reasonably well with the 7, the distance overlaps the 8 iron and is 5 yards less vs the 34 on a pure shot).  

Regardless of all the hype about 17, 19 or 21 hybrids, compare them side by side with the fairway woods of the same loft.  You are going to hear mixed opinions about whether a fairway wood or hybrid is better.  I hit my 910F slightly farther than a 17H and at least 10 yards farther vs a 21H.   What you can do also is hit a 4 iron vs a 24H and a 5 iron vs a 27H - this case would be most likely the hybrid outperforms the irons.  

I played with a 2 iron up until a couple of years ago and finally bit the bullet and took the 2 and 3 iron out of my bag and replaced them with a 17 degree fairway wood (4 wood) and a 21 degree hybrid. I had no problem getting the ball in the air with either iron but the advantage of the fairway wood and especially the hybrid was hitting long shots out of the rough. A hybrid with cut through thick grass like butter where as you would not even consider using an long iron. I call my 21 degree hybrid my magic club as I can hit it anywhere from 175 -200 yards depending on the situation. It is also eaiser to hit than my long irons. My golf pardner has replaced all of his irons up to a 5 iron with hybrids. He calls them is cheat clubs because they are so easy to hit. You are burning daylight if you are not heading to the store and pick up at least a 20-23 degree hybrid to put in your bag.

Let's disregard to what people might say if you carry a hybrid or how far you can hit with your clubs. At the end of the day it's the score that matters.

For me I've been using my hybrids since 2001 to replace my 3 & 4 irons due to my inconsistency, and the result is amazing. Believe it or not, I still the same hybrids I have today even though I replaced the rest of my clubs. Hybrids are easier to hit when your in the rough vs fairway woods, and it does gives you the carry that you like (but I believe this is also due to the weight, flex & characteristic of the shaft)

I've tried the 910H 17*, 21* & 24* and I think they're great. My advice is before you go out and purchase them, maybe you can borrow it off from your friends or golfing buddies.

Hope this helps.

Cheers!!!

Alex, thats a great reply man!

in the end its all about the score!

thanks everyone who contributed, i got a  910H 21* is on its way!

I think that's a great choice.....I recently dropped my 3 and 5 fairway for a  910H 21.0 and a 910F 17.0.

Let's disregard to what people might say if you carry a hybrid or how far you can hit with your clubs. At the end of the day it's the score that matters.

For me I've been using my hybrids since 2001 to replace my 3 & 4 irons due to my inconsistency, and the result is amazing. Believe it or not, I still the same hybrids I have today even though I replaced the rest of my clubs. Hybrids are easier to hit when your in the rough vs fairway woods, and it does gives you the carry that you like (but I believe this is also due to the weight, flex & characteristic of the shaft)

I've tried the 910H 17*, 21* & 24* and I think they're great. My advice is before you go out and purchase them, maybe you can borrow it off from your friends or golfing buddies.

Hope this helps.

Cheers!!!

[/quote]

Agree with the score at the end of the day.   As far as hybrids being easier to hit out of the rough vs a fairway wood, again that is a matter of playing style and what you feel comfortable with.  Spec-wise, the 17H and 21FW are pretty close (the hybrid .25* flatter and 1/2" shorter).  The only difference between the 19H and 19FW is shaft length and clubhead size.   I happen to be partial to a fairway wood around 20* loft and 41.5" length and that has been what has worked for me since 2006; this is in line with being used to hitting steel shafted persimmons since the 1970s. I also learned how to work a 7 wood and I fare better doing a choke down shot with it vs hitting a 4H.

As far as hybrids, I can knock the daylights out of a 26-28H (range is 155-175 yd) and have been carrying some form of an "approach" hybrid since 2006 (32-35*; initially as a backup for the 6 and 7 irons and nowadays it is a go to club between 135-155 yards).   I don't carry a 4H because not much added value (distance difference on equally hit shots is 5-7 yards vs 5H but I have 20 yards in reserve with the latter). 

A good suggestion is if you want to try hybrids out, go to Golf Mart and purchase a used or demo club.  They have a 90 day playability guarantee and you can return it and try another club or apply the store credit toward purchase of a new one. 

Again, for the longer hybrids (such as 17,19,21), do a side by side comparison with the equivalent fairway woods. 

I agree with Lou. When I compared my 910F 15* with my hybrid from Kasco 16* the difference is about 15-20 meters. I still carry both of them because I use them according to the lie and approach. For me a 17* hybrid is roughly equivalent to my FW 5.

Good thing about me is that I don't need too many hybrids in between because I can use my 25* for 175-185 meters (normal grip) and up to 10 meters less on choke down. My 16* is for shots between 190-200 meters, other than that it'll be the job of my FW 3.

Do consider Lou's suggestion to try them out in the range and if you really like the 910H, probably have a Titleist fitter to help you out in the selection of shafts. I tried the 21* in Motore 65g, Motore 95g and the Aldila NV8S Hybrid...overall it is neck to neck between the Motore 65 & Aldila NV8S.

Hope this will help you determine your choice of hybrids ^_^

Cheers!!!

My "one two" punch on the golf course is my 910F 19* fairway and my Superfast 27H. 

Hi Eric,

In my case it was absolutely worth it. I could always hit long irons, even carried a 1 iron for a while. However, while I could hit long irons I couldn't stop them. The low ball flight meant short carries and run outs of 20/30 yards or more. Hybrids? The ball flys in high, lands and stops where I want it to. Plus, I hit the hybrids about one club farther than the corresponding iron and, for me, they are just flat out easier to hit.

Another benefit I get is two for one. My 18 degree hybrid replaced my old 1 iron & 5 wood but, if I choke down about an inch, it replaces my old 2 iron as well. I also have a 23 degree hybrid that replaces my 3 and 4 iron too. That lets me put another wedge in the bag!

Good luck to you.

I actually carried a 1 iron between 1984-1990 and even briefly tried a 15 hybrid in 2008 (G10).   Even the 15H wasn't easy to hit but could get 220-230 yards out of it.   I carried a set of  1967 vintage Wilson X31 irons and had no problem with hitting the 2 or 3 iron off the tee and could hit the 4 iron almost 200 yards with reasonable consistency.  When I started playing again in 2006, I found I had a hard time with anything above a 7 iron and I also discovered a 7 wood.  I also played with the combination of a lofted fairway wood (25-28*) and a 32-35* hybrid (mainly as a backup to the 6 and 7 irons initially) between 2006-mid 2011.   My "one two punch" during mid 2010 thru mid 2011 was a combination of a persimmon 10 wood (28.5) and 34H.  I actually used an 11 wood during  the first part of 2010.  I found a Sumo SQ 5/26H last year and it got 5 more yards vs the 10 wood and upgraded to a Superfast 27H.   I'm still using the persimmon 34H and I have the 10 wood in reserve now.  What I like about using the hybrids in place of the 5-7 irons is they stop the ball dead on the green and take less effort to hit.  Even with the 10 wood, I hit it 160 yards on the dot just about every time and could hit a 150 shot by choking down.  If I really get on the 27H, I can hit it close to 175 yards.  I can get almost 160 with the 34H if I really let one rip.  Even the fairway wood stops the ball dead on the green.

I'm also considering this Eric. I am debating between a 910f 19* or a 910h 19*. Has anybody hit them both? Is there a distance/trajectory difference? I would assume the fairway wood is longer. But the hybrid may be easier to hit? Thoughts?

I've been partial to a 5 or 7 wood vs a 2 or 3H since 2006 and this is mainly because I find the wood easier to hit.  If you tend to have a steep swing, you may fare better with the hybrid.  Best thing to do is a side-by-side at the launch monitor and driving range. 

I have a 19F and I love it to death.  I only tried the 19H on the practice mat and didn't like it.

My 19F is 41.5" length with a Bassara A flex shaft and I have the Surefit setting at D3 (59.5 lie angle and 19.75 loft) and I NAIL it this way.  I had a few 200 yarders this morning.

Even with TM Superfast 1.0, I hit the 5-18 fww better than the 3-18 h. 

The wood has a higher trajectory.  For me, the distance difference is 10-20 yards.  The best I have been able to muster with a 20H is 180 yards and the best I have hit a 7 wood is 225 yards.  I could hit my old Burner 7W just as far as a 17H.

Thanks Lou, I have not been able to cross the line to hybrids yet. I hear the hype: they are easier to hit, versatile, forgiving, almost like cheating, etc. so I should probably go to the local golf galaxy and compare the two side by side. I would assume the fairway wood would go farther because of the longer shaft, but thought the hybrid would have a higher trajectory because of the hype I hear. Thanks for the detailed reply! Much help!

The wood actually has a higher trajectory given the same loft and more carry.    The shaft on the wood, as a rule, is 1.5" longer. 

 If you take the specs of a 910H 17* hybrid and 910F 21* fairway, the former is 1/2" shorter and 1* flatter. They get about the same distance for some people.  

For me, I've found that I hit a 17-21* fairway better mainly because the hybrid feels like hitting a club that is too flat.   The opposite happens with a 9 or 11 wood vs a 24 or 27H (the wood feels flat because most of the vendors left the lie angle the same as a 7 wood but shortened the shaft).  I played with a lofted wood between 2006- Mar 2011 until I found the right 5H (an SQ2 26H; I just recently upgraded to a Superfast 2.0 27H).  I still have a Louisville Niblick persimmon 10 wood that I got in 2010 as a Father's Day present (I used it for almost a year and I could drop it on a dime from 160 yards and I beat it up pretty good); I don't play it on the course these days because I don't miss with the 27H.

Also, since 2006, I have chucked the 6 iron in favor of a 32-35H (mainly because of consistency).   "Approach" hybrids are pretty handy to have.   I have had a Louisville HL3 persimmon 34H alongside a 7 iron for over a year and a half now; all carry and no roll for 150 yards (I can also work it down to 130 yards by gripping all the way down on the handle) - I stuck it 5 feet from the pin for a birdie on my last golf game. 

I am bidding on a 910H 24* with Bassara A flex shaft at eBay.   I got  the same shaft on my 910F 19* and I love the feel (what I also did was shorten the club to 41.5").  

I'm a decent player (12 handicap) but I perfer to play the hybrids over the long irons.  The hybrids are easier to hit and they feel better to me.  When I hit a long iron I lose distance and usually slice it.  Also it feels almost like hitting a rock, therefore I just stick with a hybrid.

IMO hybrids are much easier to get a high ball flight and they seem to land softer than your typical long irons.Unless your a scratch I would say they are well worth a try.