To Hybrid or not to Hybrid, that is the question
What to put in the bag
The title and photo should make it clear that this will be a golfing post. As most you know, I play at least once a week, typically on Sunday mornings and in good weather during the summer I might get out a second time for an open competition on a Tuesday or the like.
Today I have a question I'd like some help with around club selection for the bag. For the benefit of those who may not know, one of the rules of golf dictates that you can only have 14 clubs in the bag, so some decisions need to be made. Today my bag is made up of the following:
Ping G410 Driver
Ping G425 Max 3 Wood
Callaway Xhot Hybrid 3
Wilson D9 irons GW, PW, 5-9 iron
Titleist Vokey Wedge 60°
Titleist Vokey Wedge 56°
Titleist Vokey Wedge 54°
Odessey White Hot Putter
To be honest I've been playing decent golf. I'm very happy with the majority of the clubs but there is one Club that I do not feel that confident when I stand over the ball. Funnily enough it's the oldest club in the bag and one that I've been thinking out for a while now. Yep you guessed it, it's the Callaway Xhot Hybrid 3.
Some friends at the club have ditched their hybrids for driving irons and I would like to know your thoughts.
@fermentedphil is the only other person on here that I know definitely play Golf so I will tag you my friend, but hopefully there are a few more golfers who can share an opinion with me.
Here are a couple of clubs that I've been looking at in my local golf shop in Galway.
Srixon 4 iron
To be completely honest, I'd never hit a Srixon club before. The pro who was showing me the clubs at the golf store plays them and couldn't say enough about them. Callaway, Ping and Titleist have been the staples of my bag and more recently Wilson which replaced my old Callaway irons.
I played some shots on the trackman with them and struggled to hit them a bit if I'm totally honest, but I'm not a huge fan of the trackman and really like to hit clubs out on the course to get the real feel and see if I can actually play with them.
Taylor Made SIM 4 iron
Next up was the Taylor Made SIM UDI. I have not ever had Taylor Made in the bag. I've hit their clubs plenty of times, but they were always pipped by Callaway, Ping and Titleist over the years. I know they make good hardware though, so I'm always willing to give them a shot.
These ones felt nice in my hand, but again the striking was distinctly average and I know that I would hit them much better out on the course. Ideally that's what I'd love to do. Bring my existing Hybrid and a few new long irons and hybrids out to my course and crack a few shots and judge the clubs based of that.
Taylor Made Stealth DHY 3 iron
The last club that I got to hit was this one. I'd love to have had an hour on the trackman to try loads more, but there's always a queue of people and you just get a set time.
The pro was kind of giving me a lesson too which in one way was nice of him, but in another way it completely put me off what I was trying to do, which was to compare some clubs against each other.
Which One?
Ok now it's your turn lads and ladies. Do I:
Stick with my Callaway Hybrid.
Buy a new hybrid.
Buy a new distance iron.
The technology, design and engineering into distance irons has come on so much and recent years that I'd really love to give them a go, but at 250 euros I really want to get the decision right, so let me know what ye think.
Also something else to note is that the few tips that the pro gave me have actually improved my hybrid play with my existing hybrid which had been acting up and given me problems previously. I could hook it or push it quite badly, but the last few rounds it has flown pretty straight. Hmmmmmmm. Decisions. Decisions.
Thanks as always for stopping by everyone.
Peace Out
Sorry I can't help you decide since I am not into golf. I can barely understand the dynamics of the game.
Ha ha, no worries, thanks for stopping by anyway
It's a pleasure sir
I keep thinking about getting some new clubs, but then I remember that I hardly ever go golfing, so the set of Wilson's that I bought for $20 from some guy at work a long time ago work just fine. It would be cool to get a set for my wife and I so we could go together every now and then.
Ya sure if you're not playing regularly there is no point in splashing out on expensive kit. Those clubs for 20 bucks will do the job unless you get into properly, although I suspect golf in America may be an expensive pastime. Annual subs at my course are < €1,000 for the year which is good value in my eyes. It that number was closer to €5,000 I may well have a different opinion.
It's definitely expensive. I think you are lucky if you can find a round for $30 to $40. A lot of it just depends on the course. That's part of the reason I like disc golf, it is much cheaper to play!
Would you believe I've never played disc golf. It's not really a thing here
I show seven courses in Ireland. They are all pretty spread out though. Mostly on the coasts.
Hey buddy! I am totally the wrong person to ask here, as I am one of those rare idiots that still try to play golf with blades, so I am rocking this 2 iron butter knife in the bag at the moment (I hope the photograph uploads haha.)
In any case, me being me, I obviously checked your wedge selection first, how’s the short game been going? You have the perfect wedge combination going there. Jealous of you!
Uhm utility clubs these days have been like you said massively improved. I have hit a couple of them and I prefer the 3-2 iron ones. How often do you use it though? And what do you use it for? From the tee, into the wind, and for longer lay ups, i’d personally go for the distance iron or utility club, just because I prefer them. I feel more confident with them.
So ask yourself these questions. Hybrid I personally feel is very limited. My dad uses one and it suits his game perfectly. But someone like me would never use it just because I have never really felt comfortable with woods and less so with hybrids.
I hope this helps!