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41 Comments
I changed my steel shaft for a graphite in my 4 iron and got hybrid results
Only go down to a 5 in my bag then 7wood, 5 wood, 3wood , mini driver and driver 😁
When I was a lot younger there was a noticeable difference down to my old 3 iron but age and body won’t allow me to go under a 5 iron with any consistency
I love my 4 iron I don’t like hybrids at all to be honest but everybody is different
Quite interesting, thank you for sharing this information.
My longest iron is a 5 too. Next are 4 and 3-hybrids, a 5 wood, a 14* mini driver and a 12* driver.
The mini is new for my 65th birthday and I like it so far. Today, I didn’t hit the big driver until the back 9 when I was all warmed up.
This shows so well what happens with me too. In fact, I don't use my 5 iron either. Just started back playing a few months ago and didn't really like the hybrid idea. But that's changed for me. So often I'm surprised at how easy they are to hit and how well the ball flies. Thanks for another good video!
Mr. Average- This testing makes me wonder if the "loft jacking" phenomenon of modern irons is making the difference between 5 and 4 irons too small to make much difference in hitting results. ? Bob
I would say a lot of slower swingers could get rid of 5 and 6 as well as the 4 and replace them with hybrids or higher lofted fairway woods. I know many though who are put off with hybrids as they don’t like the offset and how it looks at address
HI Andy, long time watcher first time commenter. I was fitted a few years ago and have 4 and 5i in the bag. Carry distance – 4i is 10m longer than 5i. My speed is a little higher than yours (88mph with the 4i) so maybe thats helping me get more value out of these? We have par 3s at my club right in this distance range too, so its important for me!
Big difference in our abilities but I can relate to this. I got the Caley 01T's which is 4-PW. I don't carry the 4i in my bag. I got the 3 and 4 hybrid set from Caley in a sale. Lovely clubs. A set with the 4hy and 5 to PW would suit more golfers. Or 5 to GW as the strong lofts need an extra wedge.
I alternate between 19 deg wood (5 wood?) and 3 hybrid. Can't get it right.
Great job, as I can carry my 4 iron 20% of the time, but I fully agree with you as I can hit the 5 constantly 100% of the time.
I do carry a 4 hybrid and can hit it & different yards like 215 or 235 depending what I want. 👍🏻👍🏻. Now I can truly just remove & use another wedge or a 5 wood, as my 3 wood goes 245. Options are great to have 👍🏻
More forgiving clubs at the top end of the bag are always welcome. You can even see it among tour players. A lot of people with driving irons, hybrids and even 7 woods now.
👍👍
very interesting, but what if the probably is the 5 & 8 with similar figures and dispersion?
Now do a 9 wood.
It would be nice to know what lofts we are talking about. In my last set had a 4 iron at 24° which i hit about 170m or 10m more than my 27° 5 iron and about 10m less than my 21° hybrid. Now i have a new set with stronger lofts and i hit my 24° 5 iron the same distance as my old 4 iron and the same relative distances to my 27° 6 iron and my 21° hybrid. I'm guessing your 4 iron is 20-21° so it probably makes sense to replace it with a hybrid as you can't achieve optimal launch conditions with your swing speed. But if you had a more traditional lofted 4 iron at 24° it would still have a place in your bag. The old 24-38 rule applies for the average golfer. Edit just looked up the specs and the 4 iron is 22.5° and the 5 iron is 25°.
Good video Andy. Recently the longest iron I carry is a 6 iron. I also carry 4, 5 and 6 hybrids. This seems to cover the distances I need before I get to my 5 wood.
Why are there sheep grazing on the Green?!
I got fitted for Qi irons and as mentioned before, the stronger lofts made the 4 iron redundant. I got the 4 hybrid at 22 degs. It may sound strange that the 5 iron has a loft of 21 degs, but i hit the hybrid further due to mass behind the ball. Fitter covered this when i raised the issue of gapping and he has been proved right. 5 iron carry for me is around 170 and 4 hybrid 180 to 185.
Haven’t used a 4 or 3 iron since I was in my 30’s. As a now over 60 golfer I use a 4 hybrid and 7 wood. 😊
Andy, ….next video 5i vs 6i. Where does the consistent and usable difference begin to occur. At our swing speed, I suspect it may be at a point further up our bag than we think or than our egos will allow.
You're preaching to the choir for me. I play a 4 and 5 hybrid and I'm happy with both. I sometimes swap out the 5 hybrid for the 5 iron, depending on the course.
Agree the logic here Andy. My only counter is you need a lowish loft iron for playing low shots from under trees or bump and runs from the rough. Hybrids are high launch and dont don't do the job as well. That said a 5 iron can do this job and I do go from there to 4H then 7 wood but for me I would not have a 6 iron as the longest iron. I rarely use the 5 iron other than as a rescue, but when you need it you need it…
a solution might also be changing the shaft in your 4i… a lighter shaft or even graphite will increase your swing speed…
Great advice. Your just a youngster, Andy, so you can still hit a 5 iron. I turned 83 on June 17. About three years ago I sold my Mizuno MP-33 2 iron and 3 iron, both of which I could barely carry 150-160 yards, to a young guy who hated his utility club for going left too often. He was playing his father’s MP-5s and seeking long irons. Let him try mine. First hit with the 3 iron, bang, a gorgeous trajectory like they were designed to fly, 220 yards. Then the 2 iron. Bang, like a jet taking off, 240 carry. Let him take them to a competition. Sold when he got back. It was sad in a way to see them go, but wonderful to see them in hands that could use them properly. So in the next couple of years I have replaced my 3, 4 and 5irons with a 21 degree 7 wood and 24 degree 9 wood. Don’t like hybrids, always feel stiffer and heavy in the head. And this month I just acquired a 27 degree 11 wood that will replace my 6 iron. I get longer carry, steeper descent angles, and thus a better chance to stop on the green. The gaps between the three woods are about 15 yards, about what you would want from irons. And not only better for landing on greens, but also easier than irons to get the ball out of the rough if I miss a fairway. So I totally agree with you. Just expanded the concept in keeping with a couple of extra decades of age.
Hello Andy. I have gone through this already. Myself I can hit an iron better and more precise than a hybrid. So I have taken the hybrid out of my bag and kept 4 & 5 in my bag. On top I added the P DHY as 4 iron from TaylorMade. Maybe , getting a bit older , I have to reverse my decision. 😊😊😊
Don’t forget Hybrids are built differently to suit your angle of attack and you could easily pick the wrong one.
Hi Andy, always love your videos. It would be great to know your carry distances to understand what your gaping is and therefore what you’re trying to achieve but, quite obvious that the 4i is defunct. Out of interest, how far would you hit 7w and 9w. Would these be clubs you’d put in the bag as well (I’m looking myself at a 7w and already use a 4hb but it doesn’t go as far as yours 😂)
I'm with you. I'm "only" 68, came to golf later in life (40's) and shifted to fairway woods and hybrids more than 10 years ago in lieu of 3,4 irons etc. The switch has contributed to fun on the course (about a 9 handicap now). I won't win tournaments but I have fun!
7 wood Andy
Definitely can’t hit these well
Good video and spot on as usual. I ditched my 3-4 irons years ago and replaced w hybrids. My 5-6 are 0311p, 7 0317T and 8-pm 0137 cb. Amazing set up for me works Words of advice, look at what the lpga pros play. 👍🏻
You're right Andy. Found myself "plateau-ing" my long irons and now stop at a 5 iron. Brings its own problems though, as I now hit 5 hybrid & 5 wood similar distances. Some sorting out going on at present!!
Great advice Andy
I can’t take anyone seriously who games pxg
I added a 2h(185) ,3h (170) ,4h(150) , to my bag and took out my 4,5,6 irons. I did keep my Cobra driving 2 iron in at 180 yards for longer par 3's ,windy days, or smacking it under a tree.
I think hybrids are also good for those with an inconsistent strike. I just started playing again last summer after a 25+ year break from golf. I’m obviously older now and carry a few ailments that make consistency difficult. When I struck my 4 & 5 iron well, they went a mile, but many shots weren’t struck well at all. When I switched to a 4 & 5 hybrid, my bad strikes were much better, and my good ones were even longer.
On a side note, my strike consistency has improved a lot over this past year, and I tried the i230 irons today. I love the feel and spin I’m getting from them relative to the G430s I currently use. If I switch, I may put a 5-iron into the bag for those as they aren’t lofted as strongly. Gonna give it a few more months to make sure my game continues to trend positively. Enjoyed the video Andy!
Andy, have you ever considered looking at the Cleveland HyWood? I believe the current model comes in at 17° and 20 or 21°. I have the 2021 18° model and it's a bag favorite.
Depending on the golfer and chosen loft, it might replace 3 hybrid or 5 and/or 7 woods. For me, it's more reliable than 3h or 5w.
I’ve just turned 65, two years ago I finally took the one iron out my bag, a version of which, I’ve carried since I was 16! This last one was a Ping Eye 2+. I could still hit it well but I wasn’t happy with the flight and it WAS becoming harder to launch! It was a “certain” course” club! No big deal! Haven’t carried a 4 iron for a while but changed to a Callaway AI Smoke 4 hybrid and I love it but in the same spirit, I built a 7 wood that I can swap it with for certain courses/ weather conditions when I want that steeper land angle for a softer landing!
Interesting video – in the studio I found that my 5 wood and 7 wood delivered exactly the same distance – ditching the 7 wood meant that my existing 5 hybrid gave me the right gapping from 5 wood to 5 hybrid.
7-wood for the win.