Opinion & Analysis
10 reasons you should switch to hybrids
Well, the time has come for me to admit that I’m NO longer a long-iron carrying player. I’m a hybrid convert! And I’m not ashamed to admit it, because hybrids help me play better.
My approach shots with my hybrids (which replace my 2, 3 and 4 irons), fly higher, land softer and stop quicker. And when I do mishit these clubs, the results are much better and, more importantly, findable. My only dilemma is that my bag now looks like I have a traveling puppet-show in tow.
I strongly suggest you follow my lead, and to support my suggestion here are my Top-10 reasons you need to play hybrids!
You need hybrids in the bag if you…
If your handicap is higher than 3
Higher handicap golfers must use hybrids because, generally speaking, they don’t have the club head and ball speed to use long irons effectively. Shots with long irons that don’t have ample speed will come out too low, have too little spin, and run off the back of greens. Remember that hybrids are designed to launch the ball higher, spin more, and come into the green softer; all things that the average player will find supremely beneficial.
The higher your handicap, the more fairway woods and hybrids you should have. A general rule of thumb:
- 25+ handicappers should start their iron set with a 7 iron.
- 12-25 handicappers should start their iron set with a 6 iron.
- 10 handicappers or less should start their iron set with a 5 iron.
- 5 handicappers or less should start their iron set with a 4 iron.
If you’re a flat-ball hitter
An LPGA Tour players’ average apex height with their driver is roughly 75 feet, and most amateurs never even get close to that height! I would say that most of my average players hit their long irons in the 45-60-foot range, with landing angles in the 20s and 30s. At that height, golfers simply do not hit the ball high enough to hold the green, which leads to hitting less greens in regulation.
If your misses tend to be thin and right with long irons
The thin miss with a long iron comes from the player trying to lift the ball into the air, causing the hands to flip prematurely. This moves the low point of the swing too far behind the ball, and in an effort to avoid pounding the club into the ground, the player catches the ball thin.
There’s three reason why hybrids help to eliminate this miss:
- The center of gravity is farther back and lower, which helps lift the ball into the air.
- They’re less intimidating. Golfers know, from experience, how much easier and more forgiving higher-lofted woods and hybrids are to hit up into the air, which instills confidence.
- Vertical gear effect, will help increase spin on shots hit low on the face.
If you’ve noticed your club head speed lagging over the last few years
While losing a little swing speed isn’t earth shattering, hybrids will be more convenient as your speed decreases. The slower your swing speed, the less ball speed you can achieve, and the flatter the ball will launch; all bad things if you need to stop the ball on the green. Most of the time, and especially in this circumstance, adding height increases distance.
If the course you play has mostly elevated greens
Whenever you’re hitting into an elevated green, your ball is naturally coming in flatter due to the rise of the slope and the reduced decent time of the golf ball from its apex. Therefore, a golf ball coming in higher will help offset the negative effects of the slope on your approach, and the ball stop quicker on the green. Hybrids offer that solution.
If your long irons tend to chase off the back of the green after landing
Whenever you have a lack of speed, a lack of apex height and a lack of spin, you will have a flatter launch angle and thus, a flatter angle of descent into the green. Why would you want your longer irons chasing? Hybrids will allow the ball to stop because it counters all the above factors. However, if you play in hard and windy conditions, then it might be a good idea to have the long irons handy, because if it gets too blustery, a high and spinning shot will balloon. Approach shots are all about controlling angle of descent.
If your course has tight fairways
Hybrids for the average player are easier to hit, we know, and this helps a player make better swings on more difficult driving holes. Your worst long-iron swings are almost always worse than your worst hybrid swings. Hit 1,000 shots off the tee with each, and I’ll bet you put more hybrids in play.
From a more scientific standpoint, the softer landing angle and added spin produced by a hybrid will keep the ball from running too much when it lands. Tour pros use driving irons (which are basically part long iron/part hybrid) because they have a touch more versatility than hybrids when it comes to shaping shots and changing trajectory. The tour pros don’t need the forgiveness, they need the control — but we aren’t tour pros.
If you play a “distance” ball
If you play a distance ball, chances are that you don’t have the club and ball speed necessary to spin the ball and get the ball up high enough. The carry distance between irons should have consistent separation throughout the bag. The last thing you want to see during gap testing is your shots separated by 7-12 yards in all your irons until you reach a certain length of iron, then have your carry distances close in while the run out increases. Once you start seeing the plateau, that’s where you should start adding in hybrids.
If you struggle hitting the ball solid with your irons
Hybrids can work with varying angles of attack unlike long irons — some good players are more sweepy, while others are a touch more diggy.
As discussed, hybrids are designed with this in mind: they have a wider sole, a lower and further back center of gravity, plus bulge/roll on their faces, which aids gear effect. These are all great designs that help the average player with impact and control. From a psychological standpoint, if you think something is easier to hit, you will make more relaxed golf swings. Relaxed swings are usually better, and most importantly, lead to shots that are findable!
If you want to play better
As little as I play (about 10-15 times per year if I’m lucky!), and the frequency of my practice time (zero), I need all the help I can get. Hybrids do this for me — they make it easier for me to find my shot around the green, not off in the rocks or desert.
I need something that does not require me to hit a million practice shots in order to have some idea where the ball is going to land — not to mention the fact that I just don’t hit long irons high enough for them to be useful under typical playing conditions. I am very honest about my abilities and Trackman has shown me what weaknesses I have. Why fight it when there are clubs that can help?
Golf is hard enough without letting our egos get in the way!
Related: The Best Hybrids of 2015
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Opinion & Analysis
Myrtle Beach, Explored: February in South Carolina
As I gain in experience and age, and familiarity breeds neither contempt nor disdain, I understand why people return to a place. A destination like Myrtle Beach offers a sizable supply and diversity of restaurants, entertainment venues, and shops that are predicated on the tenets of the service industry. Greet your customers with a smile and a kind word, and they will find comfort and assurance. Provide them with a memorable experience and they will suggest your place of business to others.
My first tour of Myrtle Beach took place in the mid-1980s, and consisted of one course: Gator Hole. I don’t remember much from that day, and since Gator Hole closed a decade later, I cannot revisit it to recollect what I’d lost. Since then, I’ve come to the Grand Strand a few times, and been fortunate to never place a course more than once. I’ve seen the Strantz courses to the south and dipped my toe in the North Carolina courses of Calabash. I’ve been to many in the middle, including Dunes, Pine Lakes, Grande Dunes among them.
2024 brought a quartet of new courses, including two at the Barefoot Resort. I’d heard about the North Myrtle Beach four-pack of courses that highlight the Barefoot property, including layouts from Pete Dye, Tom Fazio, Davis Love III, and Greg Norman. I had the opportunity to play and shoot the Dye and Fazio tracks, which means that I’ll have to return to see the other two. Sandwiched between them were the TPC-Myrtle Beach course, also from Tom Fazio, and the Pawley’s Plantation trace, by the hand of Jack Nicklaus. I anticipated a bit of the heroic, and bit of the strategic, and plenty of eye candy. None of those architects would ever be considered a minimalist, so there would be plenty of in-play and out-of-play bunkers and mounds to tantalize the senses.
My nephew arrived a few days early, to screen a few more courses. As a result, you the reader will have an extra quarter of mini-reviews, bringing the total of courses in this piece to eight. It was inconceivable that CJR would play four courses that I had never played nor photographed, but that was the case. His words appear at the end of this piece. We hope that you enjoy the tour.
Main Feature: Two Barefoots, a TPC, and Pawley’s Plantation
What Paul “Pete” Dye brought back from his trips to the United Kingdom, hearkened back to what C.B. MacDonal did, some 65 years prior. There is a way of finding bunkers and fairways, and even green sites, that does not require major industrial work. The Dye course at Barefoot Resorts takes you on a journey over the rumpled terrain of distant places. If there’s one element missing, it’s the creased and turbulent fairways, so often found in England and Ireland. The one tenet of playing a Dye course, is to always aim away from temptation, from where your eyes draw you. Find the safe side of the target, and you’ll probably find your ball. It then stands that you will have a shot for your next attempt. Cut the corner, and you might have need to reload. The Barefoot course begins gently, in terms of distance, but challenges with visual deception. After two brief 4s and a 3, the real work begins. The course is exposed enough, to allow the coastal winds to dance along the fairways. Be ready to keep the ball low and take an extra club or two.
If memory serves, TPCMB is my first trek around a TPC-branded course. It had all the trappings of a tour course, from the welcome, through the clubhouse, to the practice facilities and, of course, the course. TPC-Myrtle Beach is a Tom Fazio design, and if you never visit Augusta National, you’ll now have an idea of what it is like. You play Augusta’s 16th hole twice at TPCMB, and you enjoy it both times. Fazio really likes the pond-left, green-angle-around par three hole, and his two iterations of it are memorable.
You’ll also see those Augusta bunkers, the ones with the manicured edges that drop into a modestly-circular form. What distinguishes these sand pits is the manner in which they rise from the surrounding ground. They are unique in that they don’t resemble the geometric bunkering of a Seth Raynor, nor the organic pits found in origin courses. They are built, make no mistake, and recovery from them is manageable for all levels of bunker wizardry.
If you have the opportunity to play the two Tom Fazio courses back to back, you’ll notice a marked difference in styling. Let me digress for a moment, then circle back with an explanation. It was written that the NLE World Woods course designed by Fazio, Pine Barrens, was an homage to Pine Valley, the legendary, New Jersey club where Fazio is both a member and the architect on retainer. The Pine Barrens course was plowed under in 2022, so the homage no longer exists. At least, I didn’t think that it existed, until I played his Barefoot Resort course in North Myrtle Beach.
Pine Valley might be described as an aesthetic of scrub and sand. There are mighty, forced carries to travers, along with sempiternal, sandy lairs to avoid. Barefoot Fazio is quite similar. If you’re not faced with a forced carry, you’ll certainly contend with a fairway border or greenside necklace of sand. When you reach the 13th tee, you’ll face a drive into a fairway, and you might see a distant green, with a notable absence: flagstick. The 13th is the icing on the homage cake, a callout of the 8th hole at Pine Valley. Numero Ocho at the OG has two greens, side by side, and they change the manner in which the hole plays (so they say.) At Barefoot Fazio, the right-side green is a traditional approach, with an unimpeded run of fairway to putting surface. The left-side green (the one that I was fortunate to play) demands a pitch shot over a wasteland. It’s a fitting tribute for the rest of us to play.
Be certain to parrot the starter, Leon’s, advice, and play up a deck of tees. Barefoot Fazio offers five par-three holes, so the fours and fives play that much longer. Remember, too, that you are on vacation. Why not treat yourself to some birdie looks?
The Jack Nicklaus course at Pawley’s Plantation emerged from a period of hibernation in 2024. The greens were torn up and their original contours were restored. Work was overseen by Troy Vincent, a member of the Nicklaus Architecture team. In addition, the putting corridors were reseeded with a hardier, dwarf bermuda that has experienced great success, all along the Grand Strand that is Myrtle Beach.
My visit allowed me to see the inward half first, and I understand why the resort wishes to conclude your day on those holes. The front nine of Pawley’s Plantation works its way through familiar, low country trees and wetlands. The back nine begins in similar fashion, then makes its way east, toward the marsh that separates mainland from Pawley’s Island. Recalling the powerful sun of that Wednesday morning, any round beginning on the second nine would face collateral damage from the warming star. Much better to hit holes 11 to close when the sun is higher in the sky.
The marshland holes (12 through 17) are spectacular in their raw, unprotected nature. The winds off the Atlantic are unrelenting and unforgiving, and the twin, par-three holes will remain in your memory banks for time’s march. In typical Golden Bear fashion, a majority of his putting targets are smallish in nature, reflecting his appreciation for accurate approach shots. Be sure to find the forgiving side of each green, and err to that portion. You’ll be grateful.
Bonus Coverage: Myrtlewood, Beechwood, Arrowhead, and King’s North
Arrowhead (Raymond Floyd and Tom Jackson)
A course built in the middle of a community, water threatens on most every hole. The Cypress 9 provides a few holes forcing a carried drive then challenge you with water surrounding the green. On Waterway, a drivable 2nd hole will tempt most, so make sure the group ahead has cleared the green.
Myrtlewood (Edmund Alt and Arthur Hills) and Beechwood (Gene Hamm)
A middle of the winter New Englander’s paradise. Wide open fairways, zero blind shots and light rough allow for shaking off the rust and plenty of forgiveness. A plethora of dog legs cause one to be cautious with every tee shot. Won’t break the bank nor the scorecard.
King’s North @ Myrtle Beach National (Arnold Palmer)
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19th Hole
Vincenzi’s 2024 Players Championship betting preview: Pete Dye specialists ready to pass tough TPC Sawgrass test
The PGA Tour heads to TPC Sawgrass to play in one of the most prestigious and important events of the season: THE PLAYERS Championship. Often referred to as the fifth major, the importance of a PLAYERS victory to the legacy of a golfer can’t be overlooked.
TPC Sawgrass is a par-72 measuring 7,245 yards and featuring Bermudagrass greens. Golfers must be patient in attacking this Pete Dye course.
With trouble lurking at every turn, the strokes can add up quickly. With a par-5 16th that is a true risk-reward hole and the famous par-3 17th island green, the only safe bet at TPC Sawgrass is a bet on an exciting finish.
THE PLAYERS Championship field is often referred to as the strongest field of the year — and with good reason. There are 144 in the field, including 43 of the world’s top 50 players in the OWGR. Tiger Woods will not be playing in the event.
THE PLAYERS is an exceptionally volatile event that has never seen a back-to-back winner.
Past Winners at TPC Sawgrass
- 2023: Scottie Scheffler (-17)
- 2022: Cameron Smith (-13)
- 2021: Justin Thomas (-14)
- 2019: Rory McIlroy (-16)
- 2018: Webb Simpson (-18)
- 2017: Si-Woo Kim (-10)
- 2016: Jason Day (-15)
- 2015: Rickie Fowler (-12)In this article and going forward, I’ll be using the Rabbit Hole by Betsperts Golf data engine to develop my custom model. If you want to build your own model or check out all of the detailed stats, you can sign up using promo code: MATTVIN for 25% off any subscription package (yearly is best value).
5 Key Stats for TPC Sawgrass
Let’s take a look at five metrics key for TPC Sawgrass to determine which golfers boast top marks in each category over their last 24 rounds.
1. Strokes Gained: Approach
Strokes Gained: Approach has historically been far and away the most important and predictive stat at THE PLAYERS Championship. With water everywhere, golfers can’t afford to be wild with their iron shots. Not only is it essential to avoid the water, but it will also be as important to go after pins and make birdies because scores can get relatively low.
Total SG: Approach Over Past 24 Rounds
- Tom Hoge (+1.37)
- Scottie Scheffler (+1.20)
- Tony Finau (+0.99)
- Jake Knapp (+0.83)
- Shane Lowry (+0.80)
2. Total Driving
This statistic is perfect for TPC Sawgrass. Historically, driving distance hasn’t been a major factor, but since the date switch to March, it’s a bit more significant. During this time of year, the ball won’t carry quite as far, and the runout is also shorter.
Driving accuracy is also crucial due to all of the trouble golfers can get into off of the tee. Therefore, players who are gaining on the field with Total Driving will put themselves in an ideal spot this week.
Total Driving Over Past 24 Rounds
- Rory McIlroy (22)
- Akshay Bhatia (25)
- Keith Mitchell (25)
- Adam Hadwin (34)
- Sam Burns (+39)
3. Strokes Gained: Total at Pete Dye Designs
TPC Sawgrass may be Pete Dye’s most famous design, and for good reason. The course features Dye’s typical shaved runoff areas and tricky green complexes. Pete Dye specialists love TPC Sawgrass and should have a major advantage this week.
SG: Total (Pete Dye) per round over past 36 rounds:
- Patrick Cantlay (+2.02)
- Scottie Scheffler (+1.90)
- Min Woo Lee (+1.77)
- Sungjae Im (+1.72)
- Brian Harman (+1.62)
4. Strokes Gained: Ball Striking
Prototypical ball-strikers have dominated TPC Sawgrass. With past winners like Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson, Webb Simpson, Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas, it’s evident that golfers must be striking it pure to contend at THE PLAYERS.
SG: Ball Striking Over Past 24 Rounds
- Scottie Scheffler (+2.02)
- Tony Finau (+1.51)
- Tom Hoge (+1.48)
- Keith Mitchell (+1.38)
- Will Zalatoris (+1.18)
5. Par 5 Average
Par-5 average is extremely important at TPC Sawgrass. With all four of the Par-5s under 575 yards, and three of them under 540 yards, a good amount of the scoring needs to come from these holes collectively.
Par 5 Average Over Past 24 Rounds
- Scottie Schefler (+4.31)
- Erik Van Rooyen (+4.35)
- Doug Ghim (+4.34)
- Wyndham Clark (+4.34)
- Matt Fitzpatrick (+4.31)
6. Strokes Gained: Florida
We’ve used this statistic over the past few weeks, and I’d like to incorporate some players who do well in Florida into this week’s model as well.
Strokes Gained: Florida over past 30 rounds:
- Scottie Schefler (+2.43)
- Erik Van Rooyen (+1.78)
- Doug Ghim (+1.78)
- Wyndham Clark (+1.73)
- Matt Fitzpatrick (+1.69)
7. Strokes Gained: Total on Courses with High Water Danger
With water everywhere at TPC Sawgrass, the blow-up potential is high. It can’t hurt to factor in some players who’ve avoided the “eject” button most often in the past.
Strokes Gained: Total on Courses with High Water Danger over past 30 rounds:
- Scottie Schefler (+2.08)
- Rory McIlroy (+1.82)
- Tony Finau (+1.62)
- Patrick Cantlay (+1.51)
- Will Zalatoris (+1.49)
THE PLAYERS Championship Model Rankings
Below, I’ve compiled overall model rankings using a combination of the five key statistical categories previously discussed — SG: Approach (25%), Total Driving (20%), SG: Total Pete Dye (14%), SG: Ball-striking (15%) SG: Par 5 (8%), SG: Florida (10%) and SG: High Water (8%).
- Scottie Scheffler
- Shane Lowry
- Tony Finau
- Corey Conners
- Keith Mitchell
- Justin Thomas
- Will Zalatoris
- Xander Schauffele
- Cameron Young
- Doug Ghim
- Sam Burns
- Chris Kirk
- Collin Morikawa
- Si Woo Kim
- Wyndham Clark
2024 THE PLAYERS Championship Picks
(All odds at the time of writing)
Patrick Cantlay +2500 (DraftKings):
Patrick Cantlay is winless since the 2022 BMW Championship but is undoubtedly one of the most talented players on the PGA Tour. Since the win at Wilmington Country Club, the 31-year-old has twelve top-10 finishes on Tour and is starting to round into form for the 2024 season.
Cantlay has done well in the most recent “signature” events this season, finishing 4th at Riviera for the Genesis Invitational and 12th at Bay Hill for the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The former Tour Championship winner resides in Jupiter, Florida and has played some good golf in the state, including finishing in a tie for 4th at the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational. His history at TPC Sawgrass has been up and down, but his best career start at The PLAYERS came last year when he finished in a tie for 19th.
Cantlay absolutely loves Pete Dye designed courses and ranks 1st in the field in Strokes Gained: Total on Dye tracks in his past 36 rounds. In recent years, he’s been excellent at both the RBC Heritage and the Travelers Championship. TPC Sawgrass is a place where players will have to be dialed in with their irons and distance off the tee won’t be quite as important. In his past 24, rounds, Cantlay ranks in the field in Strokes Gained: Approach.
Despite being winless in recent years, I still believe Cantlay is capable of winning big tournaments. As one of the only United States players to bring their best game to Marco Simone for the Ryder Cup, I have conviction that the former top amateur in the world can deliver when stakes are high.
Will Zalatoris +3000 (FanDuel):
In order to win at TPC Sawgrass, players will need to be in total control of their golf ball. At the moment, Will Zalatoris is hitting it as well as almost anyone and finally has the putter cooperating with his new switch to the broomstick style.
Zalatoris is coming off back-to-back starts where he absolutely striped the ball. He finished 2nd at the Genesis Invitational and 4th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational where his statistics were eye opening. For the week at Bay Hill, Zal gained 5.0 strokes on approach and 5.44 strokes off the tee.
Throughout the early part of his career, Zalatoris has established himself by playing his best golf in the strongest fields with the most difficult conditions. A tough test will allow him to separate himself this week and breakthrough for a PLAYERS Championship victory.
Shane Lowry +4000 (DraftKings):
History has shown us that players need to be in good form to win the PLAYERS Championship and it’s hard to find anyone not named Scottie Scheffler who’s in better form that Shane Lowry at the moment. He finished T4 at the Cognizant Classic followed by a solo third place finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
The fact that the Irishman contended at Bay Hill is a great sign considering he’s really struggled there throughout his career. He will now head to a different style of course in Florida where he’s had a good deal of success. He finished 8th at TPC Sawgrass in 2021 and 13th in 2022.
Lowry ranks 6th in the field in approach in his past 24 rounds, 7th in Strokes Gained: Total at Pete Dye designed courses in his last 30 rounds, 8th in par 5 scoring this season, and 4th in Strokes Gained: Total in Florida over his past 36 rounds.
Lowry is a player who’s capable of winning big events. He’s a major champion and won another premier event at Wentworth as well as a WGC at Firestone. He’s also a form player, when he wins it’s typically when he’s contended in recent starts. He’s been terrific thus far in Florida and he should get into contention once again this week.
Brian Harman +8000 (DraftKings):
(Note: Since writing this Harman’s odds have plummeted to 50-1. I would not advise betting the 50).
Brian Harman showed us last season that if the course isn’t extremely long, he has the accuracy both off the tee and with his irons to compete with anyone in the world. Last week at Bay Hill and was third in the field in Strokes Gained: Approach, gaining 5.54 strokes on the field in the category.
In addition to the strong iron play, Harman also gained strokes off the tee in three of four rounds. He’s also had success at Pete Dye tracks recently. He finished 2nd at last year’s Travelers Championship and 7th at the RBC Heritage.
It would be a magnificent feat for Harman to win both the Open Championship and PLAYERS in a short time frame, but the reality is the PGA Tour isn’t quite as strong as it once was. Harman is a player who shows up for the biggest events and his odds seem way too long for his recent track record.
Tony Finau +6500 (FanDuel):
A few weeks ago, at the Genesis Invitational, I bet Hideki Matsuyama because I believed it to be a “bet the number” play at 80-1. I feel similarly about Finau this week. While he’s not having the season many people expected of him, he is playing better than these odds would indicate.
This season, Tony has a tied for 6th place finish at Torrey Pines, a tied for 19th at Riviera and tied for 13th at the Mexico Open. He’s also hitting the ball extremely well. In the field in his past 24 rounds, he ranks 3rd in Strokes Gained: Approach, 3rd in Strokes Gained: Ball Striking, 6th in Par 5 average and 15th in Total Driving.
Finau’s problem has been with the putter, which has been undeniably horrific. However, this week he will see a putting surface similar to the POA at TPC Scottsdale and PGA West, which he’s had a great deal of success on. It’s worth taking a stab at this price to see if he can have a mediocre week with the flat stick.
Sungjae Im +9000 (FanDuel):
It’s been a lackluster eighteen months for Sungjae, who once appeared to be a certain star. While his ceiling is absolutely still there, it’s been a while since we’ve seen Im play the type of golf expected of a player with his talent.
Despite the obvious concerns, the South Korean showed glimpses of a return to form last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He tied for 18th place and gained strokes off the tee, on approach, around the green and with the putter. When at his best, Im is a perfect course fit for TPC Sawgrass. He has remarkable precision off the tee, can get dialed in with his irons on shorter courses and can get up and down with the best players on Tour.
This number has gotten to the point where I feel comfortable taking a shot on it.
Billy Horschel +20000 (FanDuel):
Billy Horschel is a great fit on paper for TPC Sawgrass. He can get dialed in with his irons and his lack of distance off the tee won’t be a major detriment at the course. “Bermuda Billy” does his best work putting on Bermudagrass greens and he appears to be rounding into form just in time to compete at The PLAYERS.
In his most recent start, Billy finished in a tie for 9th at the Cognizant Classic and hit the ball extremely well. The former Florida Gator gained 3.32 strokes on approach and 2.04 strokes off the tee. If Horschel brings that type of ball striking to TPC Sawgrass, he has the type of putter who can win a golf tournament.
Horschel has been great on Pete Dye designed courses, with four of his seven career PGA Tour wins coming on Dye tracks.
In a season that has seen multiple long shots win big events, the 37-year-old is worth a stab considering his knack for playing in Florida and winning big events.
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19th Hole
Vincenzi’s LIV Golf Hong Kong betting preview: Trio of major champs primed for big week
LIV Golf is set to begin its fourth event of the season at Hong Kong Golf Club in Hong Kong, China. This marks the first time that LIV Golf will travel to China for an event.
Hong Kong Golf Club is a par 70 measuring 6,710 yards. LIV will be using the “Fanling Course” for the event.
While speaking with Asian Tour player Travis Smyth, he gave me a rundown on what it takes to be successful at Hong Kong Golf Club.
“Hong Kong golf club, it’s pretty old school, like super short and tight. And I, I don’t think it falls into like a bomber’s hand. I think you’ll see a lot of guys hitting it to roughly the same spots on the majority of the holes. There’s a few holes where Bryson will be able to unleash a few but not many. When I played here, I hit Hybrid on Par 4’s off the tee maybe like seven times.”
Travis also said that the tight fairways and penal potential misses will keep the bombers at bay.
“It’s just that sort of course you’re hitting it like anywhere from 220 to 240 off the tee. And then from there you have a range of holes where it’s like kind of some sort of wedge or nine. It’s not very long.”
Around the green game will also be tremendously important at Hong Kong Golf Club.
“The greens are small as well and it’s usually quite hard to get up and down if you miss the greens. Someone like Cameron Smith I could see doing really well there. He played well in the international series. but just someone that’s, you know, pretty dolled in with their, their scoring clubs, he’s probably going to do well there.”
Players dialed in with their game from tee to green with control over the golf ball should fare extremely well.
“You can’t really scramble from the trees either. So, you really just have to. I’d, yeah, just whoever’s the best ball striker that week, you can’t really strap it around and fake it around there. You got to hit it straight. The tree lines are dead, there’s some hazards and stuff. It’s a short, tight quirky course, not what any of these guys are probably used to.”
Despite it being short, don’t be surprised if it gives players some real trouble.
“It should be fun viewing because there’ll be a lot of opportunities. They’ll feel like they can go low around there because it’s short but, you know, you make a few bogeys, and you get quite frustrated, and you start pushing off the tee and find some trouble and stuff. It can eat you up as well.”
Smyth finished 2nd at Hong Kong Golf Club to qualify for the 2023 Open Championship at Royal Liverpool.
Past Winners at Hong Kong Golf Club
- 2023: Ben Campbell (-19)
- 2022: Wade Ormsby (-17)
- 2018: Aaron Rai (-17)
- 2017: Wade Ormsby (-11)
- 2016: Sam Brazel (-13)
- 2015: Justin Rose (-19)
- 2014: Scott Hend (-13)
- 2013: Miguel Angel Jiminez (-12)
The top of the board once again will be a major threat this week. Jon Rahm is still in search of his first win on LIV and has been knocking at the door in each of his first three starts. Brooks Koepka hasn’t yet contended but is playing steady golf and has yet to shoot a round outside of the 60’s this season. Joaquin Niemann is the hottest player on the planet and has shown no signs of slowing down.
However, on a golf course that can neutralize the big hitters, this is an event that seems a bit more up for grabs than we’ve seen in the first three LIV events.
LIV Golf Stats YTD
2024 LIV Hong Kong Picks
Cameron Smith +2000 (Bet365, BetRivers)
It’s been a slow start for Cam Smith this season. In his three starts on LIV, he’s finished T8, T15, T41 and has yet to look like the Cam that is one of the best players in the world. Hong Kong Golf Club should be the perfect course fit to get the former Open Champion out of his slump.
Hong Kong Golf Club is tight off the tee, and many players won’t be able to hit driver. That will neutralize some of the best drivers of the golf ball in the field and propel players like Cam, who are almost unbeatable from fairway to green. Cam’s driver has been a weakness throughout his career, and it’s been especially pronounced this season. He’s tied for 51st in fairways hit thus far on the season. Taking driver out of his hand this week could be exactly what he needs to get on track.
Despite the poor tee balls, Smith still ranks 1st in putting and 5th in birdies made. He’s also a great scrambler, and with small greens at the course, having to get up and down is inevitable. If he can play from the fairway this week, he should have a major advantage in the other facets of the game.
Louis Oosthuizen +2000 (DraftKings)
Louis Oosthuizen should be an absolutely perfect fit for Hong Kong Golf Club. The South African has been remarkably consistent over the past few months dating back to the fall, where he won two consecutive DP World Tour events and also finished 2nd at the International Series Oman. In his three LIV starts this year, Louis has finished T8 at LIV Mayakoba, 50th at LIV Las Vegas and T2 at LIV Jeddah.
Louis is relatively short off the tee and that won’t hurt him this week. He is one of the best putters and scrambler on LIV, and his silky-smooth swing looks as dialed in as ever at the moment. He’s yet to win a LIV event, but a victory for Louis seems imminent.
Patrick Reed +5000 (FanDuel)
Patrick Reed is another play who’s yet to win a LIV event but has been a winner throughout his entire career. The former Masters champion should love Hong Kong Golf Club as it will play to his strengths on and around the greens.
Reed played on the Asian Tour this fall and finished T15 at the Hong Kong Open and T7 at the Indonesian Masters. The experience in Asia this season should be a benefit for Reed acclimating to the travel and conditions this week.
The 34-year-old should benefit from taking driver out of his hand and similar to Smith, can beat anyone in the world if the tournament become a short game competition.
*Featured Image and Stats Image courtesy of LIV Golf*
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Don Golfo 2018
Oct 15, 2018 at 2:07 am
There is a lot of bravado going on here in the comments. The question is not can you hit a 3 iron well. Really it’s can you hit it as consistently as an equivalent hybrid. I’ve seen lots of amateurs hit great 3 iron shots on one hole and then see a big drop off on the next hole. I think that if they swallowed their pride they’d find that the poor strikes with a hybrid would have been far less damaging. I know a lot of guys will be reading this thinking I don’t make bad strikes, but that’s just delusional.
Travis
Jun 6, 2017 at 3:55 pm
I love all the comments here about people saying “learn to hit long irons” when the vast majority of Tour Pros nowadays are going to easier-to-hit long clubs. Look in the bag of even the best in the game and you’ll see a hybrid of some sort in the 3-iron/21*-ish spot. Numerous pros don’t even start their true iron sets until the 4 or 5 irons. They’re all using hybrid clubs in the long irons now. Some are chunky “driving irons”, some are hybrids, but whichever way you spin it, they are all hybrid clubs to some variety whether they be more iron-like or wood-like.
If the best players in the world are going for easier to hit alternatives of their 3 and 4 irons, and starting their real irons at the 5-iron, then I think a lot of us should take notice.
Rick
Nov 9, 2016 at 6:36 am
I have only been playing golf since I retired (5 years) and I was advised to get rid of my 3 and 4 irons and use a hybrid. I believe I have been using it reasonably successfully for the last two years (despite criticism from mates who have been playing for the last 40 years), to drive the last 150 metres to the green, chip the ball onto the green from 15 metres out etc. It has proven to have been an invaluable club and I get a bit pissed off when people tell me I should be using an 8 or 9 iron onto the green, and I should use anything but my hybrid! I think it is time they moved on and started to get with the modern game.
I believe there is more skill in using a hybrid from various distances than supposedly using a 7, 8,or 9 iron as the occasion calls!
Each to his own I guess!
Rick
Richard
May 14, 2015 at 11:24 am
The handicap analysis at number 10 is absolute baloney. It is all about strike and not your handicap. I play off 16 and according to flightscope and trackman, I get far better numbers off long irons than I do a hybrids. It comes down to whichever you happen to strike better and ultimately what you prefer looking down on. There is no general rule of thumb in golf just people trying to cover their backsides…..
Nard_S
May 6, 2015 at 9:52 pm
I’ve adopted an alternative perspective. Learn how to hit a long iron and every club in your bag becomes easier to hit. 3-irons off the tee are a higher percentage shot than any wood or hybrid once you dedicate.
Phat
May 6, 2015 at 5:09 pm
Cheers Tom. I play a similar about to you so it was also time to get realistic about what I can actually hit consistently. Favorite clubs in my bag the past two years have been an s300 shafted 585h 21* followed by my old Aussie blade PW. Recently added a 24* hybrid. These two hybrids are definite performers for me both on 150+ yard par 3s and par 5 fairways. Problem clubs for me are fairway woods (removed from my bag recently), low lofted drivers (read. gave away my 9.5 and shortened my 910d to 44″ and set to 13* draw – much more consistent and even drove the green on a par 4 last week…) as well as hot faced perimeter weighted shorted irons (hit my 25 year old Hogan Redline 7-E more consistently than anything out there. There is a lot to be said for idiosyncratic club set ups and seems strange that there aren’t more unusual PGA WITBs.
Bigleftygolfer
May 6, 2015 at 10:18 am
So any advice for a low handicapper who is getting older really wants to use a hybrid for his three iron but just can’t seem to find one I can hit consistently? I currently play miura Tournament blades I hit them fine unless my knee hurts and sway and end up hitting a pull however aside from old age I have a higher ss 115 with driver. Does anybody have a suggestion for a lower HC HYBRID every time I try a HYBRID I hit a balloon ball And I can’t seem to flight them at all my 3 iron goes high and lands soft but I no longer hit it over 225 so I have learned from fellow players that hybrids go a bit further than a normal blade. I have seen this on trackman but can’t find a head that suits my eye or playing needs I typically play local state events and private clubs that usually have greens in the 10 -12 range I also play in all conditions so ability to flight and shape the ball is important to me. Please help as I have swallowed my ego years ago but can’t find the right club!
Dave S
May 6, 2015 at 1:31 pm
I would try the Adams Pro A12 (from a few years ago) for a few of reasons: (1) They are a smaller-headed hybrid that will probably be a better transition from iron to hybrid for a low handicapper, (2) because they are geared toward the better player, they have very little off-set (which means you’ll have an easier time converting to them using your standard long iron swing, (3) they come with very good stock shaft offerings (Aldila RIP Phenom or Matrix Ozik White Tie), and (4) You can get them for very cheap now (b/w $40 and $80 on ebay)… don’t get sucked into buying the new version that’s $180. I game the 20deg to replace my 3i and an Adams DHY 24deg to replace my 4i. Loving them. Cheers!
MHendon
May 6, 2015 at 5:40 pm
Yeah I use the 20 degree A12 also but to replace my 2 iron. And I bought a 22 degree tour issue Adams Pro black head and had the same shaft as the 20 degree installed in it. The Matrix shaft. The pro black has a very small head and actually feels like an iron. Flights the ball like an iron but longer and more forgiving. It’s great out of difficult lie’s and even for chipping around the green.
Phat
May 6, 2015 at 5:23 pm
Could be worth trying a stiff, steel shafted 21* hybrid… I picked up a very well used titleist 585h 21* (shafted with an s300) a couple years ago for $20. It plays so well that I professionally refinished the chipped paint on it head and now bag it for every round. Can’t imagine a more consistent 3i substitute.
Obee
May 20, 2015 at 10:19 pm
Absolutely. As a low-handicapper myself (0 to +2 during the season, usually) who plays a LOT of hybrids (my longest iron is an 8-iron!), the key for better players who want to use hybrids is that the shaft should be heavy (75 or more grams) and should have minimal torque (3 degrees or less?). Find a hybrid shape that you like and put a heavier, stouter shaft in it, and I’ll bet you fall in love. 🙂
Jeffrey
May 6, 2015 at 3:54 am
What if you do not like the look of Hybrids? (like Me) and therefore have never had them and never will. I will stick to my Fairway woods and long irons regardless of handicap.
dapadre
May 6, 2015 at 5:28 am
Have you tried Hybrid irons.
Dave S
May 6, 2015 at 1:34 pm
Incredible clubs… game the Adams DHY Proto XTD from last season in 24deg as a 4i replacement and I absolutely love it. They are miles more forgiving on mishits. I’m not joking that I hit the club 200 yds on the nose out of the first cut of rough, uphill (walked this off with GPS)… I would have never come close to that w/ my old 4i. Everyone but low single digit HCPs would benefit from these clubs.
Alex
May 5, 2015 at 1:54 pm
Long irons are SO MUCH EASIER to control in the wind. If there’s a 10+ MPH wind in my face, putting a hybrid club in my hands is like suicide. I like having the two extremes of a long iron (3) and also carrying a 7 wood. They’re the same loft, but are useful in two completely different situations.
Graham
May 5, 2015 at 3:32 am
Can we please put aside the arbitrary “if your handicap is…” rules when they have zero relevance to the topic at hand? So people above a handicap over 3 should carry hybrids because they generally don’t have the clubhead and ball speed to use long irons effectively? Why not then just say “if your average driver clubhead speed is not 105” or something that actually pertains to the topic at hand? Sorry to rant, but as a high handicap (12) with high clubhead speed (avg ~110) these blanket statements that somehow magically relate clubhead speed and ball-striking to handicap are just plain wrong. Over 60% of the shots on a golf course are taken inside 100 yards, and it’s those shots that prevent some of us from reaching your magical arbitrary 3-handicap , not the fact that we do or don’t carry hybrids…
Carlos Danger
May 5, 2015 at 10:24 am
While I agree with the overall message of this article in that 95% of golfers have no business with anything higher than a 5 iron in their bag and if they took the time to practice with a hybrid they would have better results.
I do agree with your comment regarding the blanket statements about what you should play based on your hdcp. Im a 5 and If you were to watch me hit the ball off the tee and out of the fairways…you would think I was tour player. I have just always had a really good swing and been a good ball striker, but like most people…my weak point is on and around the greens. There are many guys that I lose to that I crush it past and hit it alot better than that make up so many strokes on the green. So if you want to say anyone over XYZ hdcp need to play this…that is not accurate.
I think the further breakdowns in this article regarding your average miss, ball flight, club head speed, etc…are much better indicators
Joe Golfer
May 6, 2015 at 12:06 am
Excellent point about the relationship to handicap and the need for hybrids.
I happen to hit the ball fairly well with five iron on up, but like you I lose strokes on the short game due to lack of available practice time and facilities.
One problem I don’t have with my hybrids is ballooning. That may be because my hybrids are rather old. They are Sonartec MD hybrids, probably the first company to popularize the hybrid. It still gives a penetrating ball flight, but it is much easier to hit than a three or four iron.
That said, they don’t stop as fast as some of the current hybrids that give a much higher ball flight, but I’ll take the happy medium.
TR1PTIK
May 19, 2015 at 8:53 am
Absolutely agree with the sentiment here. I play off an 18 handicap with an average swing speed of 102 – 105 (according to my most recent lesson with Flightscope). I can play from pretty much any tee on the courses near me (they’re all quite short) and score roughly the same. I lose it all in penalties (usually OB from slicing my driver) and the short game.
Travis
May 5, 2015 at 3:18 am
This article is spot on.
I replaced all irons 3-6 with Cobra hybrids. I have noticed very good results as Im not long off the tee. Even if my 2nd shot is 170m out I can hit the green about 1/3 of the time and if I miss have a short chip.
Before anything +160m and I would completely botch the shot maybe 1/3 of the time. Have to play the percentages. 3iron vs 3 hybrid not question what is easier to hit – for me
Greg
May 4, 2015 at 9:31 pm
I picked up a Mizuno JPX Fli-Hi Hybrid #4. Its a long iron replacement so it fits right in to replace that iron…same length. Its not longer like a normal hybrid. Mine fits right into my G25 irons set. It’s 1/2″ shorter and a 2* flat lie. So you can customize them. It is soooooo much easier to hit than a typical 4 iron. It’s so much easier for me to hit that I just ordered a #5. I have one regular hybrid and its a 20* Ping G20. Easily the easiest and most consistant hybrid I’ve ever hit. These clubs aren’t leaving my bag. Seriously…..if you’re considering switching out a 3, 4, or 5 iron for a hybrid check into the Mizuno JPX Fli-Hi’s. They’ll change your golfing life 🙂
Pablo
May 4, 2015 at 8:20 pm
I can hit a 3 wood 250 yards, I pee standing up, and I play a hybrid. Michelle Wie — US Women’s Open champion — pees sitting down, drives the ball further than most members of GolfWRX (even though everyone here drives it over 300 each time lol), and she uses hybrids as well.
Oh, the plight of the macho man and his fragile sensibilities! Lol
MHendon
May 6, 2015 at 5:43 pm
LOL I’m with you Pablo
Tweedie
May 6, 2015 at 9:27 pm
Given the way she bends over while putting, I wouldn’t like to guess how she pees!
Philip
May 4, 2015 at 6:14 pm
Personally, whenever I suck at my long irons, I suck at hybrids; and when I smoke my hybrid, I smoke my long irons. Thus, I’ll continue to improve my swing and game overall instead. I still have one 20 hybrid and am looking for a 23/24, but I do not find any real differences between irons and hybrids, for myself – they play the same.
Jack
May 6, 2015 at 12:21 am
The main benefit for me is that for the same hybrid club that replaced an iron, I can swing easier knowing that it will fly just as far. That’s a huge plus already. Unfortunately I feel like my missing with hybrids are worse than my irons. I didn’t actually test that but it just feels like it.
Philip
May 11, 2015 at 2:29 pm
That’s the thing. For sure the average person “me included” can get a ball airborne with less effort using a hybrid, but my it is the misses that causes me the most grief. I suspect by the time I am able to rock a long iron, my hybrid will become steady too. At least I hope so. Personally I enjoy my hybrid more for the saves I can pull off with it over just a long iron replacement. Around the green, in the sand, in the woods – you name it – I find so many creative uses for a hybrid. I may even pull a wedge to keep my 3i and use my hybrid mainly for emergency recovery situations.
Mr. K
May 4, 2015 at 6:09 pm
There should be an asterisk next to this article, applies to a few. You don’t need hybrids, if you hit them well then sure by all means. But it’s not the end all be all that it’s portrayed to be.
MHendon
May 4, 2015 at 5:46 pm
I think one point you left out Tom is the very low spin rates of the new golf balls. I’m 45 now and my club head speed is still with in a mile and hour or two of when I was 30. Back then I not only carried a 3 iron but also a 2. The higher spin of the ball 15 years ago allowed it to climb easier off that low launch angle you get with long irons. Not long after the introduction of the PROV1 I replaced my 2 iron with an 18 degree adams hybrid. About 3 years ago I realized the carry difference between my 3 and 4 iron was only about 7 to 8 yards so I replaced the 3 iron with a 22 degree adams hybrid. Now my gaping is much better. Just for sake of reference I’ve been using the same Irons since 2001 Mizuno MP33’s and my club head speed usually comes in around 112. Oh and I’m a 1.6 handicap and feel know shame in carrying two hybrids because not only are they better from good lies, they’re far superior from bad ones.
SJ
May 6, 2015 at 8:47 am
+1
Cliff
May 7, 2015 at 10:15 am
+2….great out of the rough and fairway bunkers!
Jang Hyung-sun
May 4, 2015 at 5:03 pm
I don’t like hybrid Traj. For me, nothing like hitting my Miura MB-001 3 iron…butter soft. Anything longer its PRGR fairways paired with Oban Devotion- so easy it’s automatic. Once I no longer hit Miura 3 iron perfectly I put on skirt rather than hit pickle on stick looking hybrid.
Cliff
May 7, 2015 at 10:18 am
I’ll take my hybrid from the thick rough over your Miura 3i any day of the week.
Martin
May 4, 2015 at 4:39 pm
4/10 apply to me, I gave up on my 3&4 irons over 10 years ago.
I used to love hitting my 3 iron, but reality is even when my Driver SS was 102-105 (now low 90’s), hybrids were just so much easier to hit higher and straighter.
Lowell
May 4, 2015 at 4:24 pm
Totally agree with your recommendation of switching long irons for hybrids. I myself picked up a hybrid to fill in the gap between my 3 wood and 3 iron. My 3 hybrid hits about 230 and my 3 iron is right at 215. Great way to pick up yardage when needed on those longer par 3’s.
Jim
May 4, 2015 at 4:04 pm
As a PGA Teaching Professional and accomplished player, I definitely agree!!!! Best thing to happen to golf in a very long time!!! If you haven’t tried them you should. If you are “too good”” for them well I hope your ego doesn’t mind throwing a few shots (or dollars) away each round! If it’s legal and it makes it easier……why not?!?
Lucky Intervale
May 4, 2015 at 3:51 pm
I do have a 17* H2 that I hit well, but I love the idea of the hybrid iron… best of both worlds. I game an MP H5 3 iron bent to 20* with a lighter weight version of my irons’ shafts… money. Wilson’s new hybrid irons are sweet as well…
David
May 4, 2015 at 10:34 pm
Lucky, I’m on the same boat as you. I’ve tried many hybrids and no luck. Tried again over the last month and my Mizuno MP-H4 2-iron continues to win out. The heavier and SHORTER shaft definitely help me with my accuracy. But, Tom, I fully understand your position and encourage others to go the hybrid route.
sgniwder99
May 5, 2015 at 7:52 am
I’m with both of you on the H4 and H5s. I have a full set of H4s right now. But come on, let’s not fool ourselves. The H4 and H5 long irons ARE essentially hybrids.
David
May 5, 2015 at 11:12 pm
Yes, I would say they are a cross of a hybrid and an iron. Say one part fairway metal and two parts iron (if a hybrid is only one part of each). Very forgiving due to their large cavity, but steel shaft, shorter shaft, and minimal offset really benefit those with some higher swing speeds that are looking for forgivenes.
tony
May 6, 2015 at 4:35 pm
I love that as you get better, you can get player Mizuno irons and still use the MP-H4/5 series for the long irons. Pretty much like mizuno does with their split sets.
Brutus
May 4, 2015 at 3:33 pm
I hate comments like “if you’re a 3 handicap or higher”. I had 2 hybrids in my bag (21 and 25 degree) and recently starting this season put my 4 iron back in the bag over the 25 hybrid. I play to about a 9 handicap, but I was rewarded with several excellent 4i shots into the wind in the first several rounds this year that the hybrid is too unpredictable in handling. I found that distance control with hybrids in general is harder than with a iron too, even in calm condidtions. That said, the 21 hybrid is one of my favorite clubs to hit. Arbitrary rules are meant to be broken arbitrarily.
Golfraven
May 4, 2015 at 1:42 pm
btw, if you don’t like chunky hybrids try a Ping iSeries or even Adams. Ping i20 hybrid is still one of my favourites – even compared to my new 915h. If you want to go back in time, buy the Ben Hogan CFT hybrid. Had this one for over 8 years in the bag – those still sell well on ebay.
Golfraven
May 4, 2015 at 1:36 pm
What about replacing your short Fairway woods with hybrids? I have just kicked my 4 FW out and put a H2 instead in the bag – guess which of those I hit better off the deck and fairway/semi. You still see lots of folks with FWs but think they would have less work swinging a Hybrid.
Mke
May 4, 2015 at 1:13 pm
Have a 3 wood and 5 hybrid. Feel like I used to hit the hybrid better but lately been money with the wood.
jcorbran
May 4, 2015 at 8:16 pm
those are normally 4 clubs apart. 3w/1i, 5w/2h/2i, 7w/3h/3i, 9w/4h/4i, 11w/5h/5i.
Jeff Smith
May 4, 2015 at 1:11 pm
That idea doesn’t apply to everyone and most of your numbers are meaningless and not accurate
Tom D
May 4, 2015 at 12:55 pm
For the record, I pee sitting down. Easier than remembering to constantly adjust the toilet seat. I also play hybrids instead of long irons. I am quite consistent with long irons – consistently short, consistently bad. With hybrids I am inconsistent: occasionally bad, usually pretty good, once in a while brilliant. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds.
SJ
May 6, 2015 at 8:51 am
Sitting down is just more comfortable. Why society decided we have to stand is beyond me!
MHendon
May 6, 2015 at 5:47 pm
It’s not as messy either. lol
Bob
May 4, 2015 at 12:51 pm
I hit a 21* hybrid (similar to a 3-iron) at a demo day about twelve years ago. The first three balls I hit were the best 3-iron shots I had ever hit, and all in a row. Maybe one out of three actual 3-iron shots would have flow like that, and I did that with the hybrid every time. Instant convert.
All you have to do is swing the club and stay out of its way. I even use a 17* hybrid that I hit very straight and let it eat up the yards. I can still hit my 4-iron, but the hybrid is so much less work, there’s no point in not using it.
9.5 handicap.
jcorbran
May 4, 2015 at 8:13 pm
most manufacturers have a 17* 2 hybrid, 19* 3 hybrid and a 21/22* 4hybrid, so it sounds like you were hitting the 4 hybrid better than your 3 iron, looks like a keeper as long as your gapping is good.
Charles
May 4, 2015 at 12:47 pm
Tom, great article as usual, but I have a question. What loft is a long iron for you? When I played my best in 1972-74 my iron set, Wilson Staff forged, had a 1 iron of 17* of loft, 5 iron had 32* loft, this is almost my current 8 iron. Going this way the golf club companies will release in 2020 a Pitching wedge of 36* loft.
Nolanski
May 4, 2015 at 2:07 pm
36 degree PW? Ha! Thats too funny. Eventually they will have to stop strengthening club lofts right? Its kind of insulting that golf companies think they can pull a fast one on consumers with their whole disappearing loft shenanigans.
MHendon
May 6, 2015 at 5:51 pm
That’s because most golfers are egotistical male hacks who only care how far they hit it. However it’s funny when they can hit there super strong 8 iron as far as mine but are then 50 yds behind me off the tee.
rob
May 4, 2015 at 12:37 pm
Tom, great advice, its good to hear someone of your stature finally talking sense!!! Rob
Charles
May 4, 2015 at 12:28 pm
In the end of each hole you just write a number, you don’t tell stories. It doesn’t matter if you are a super macho fueled by steroids or a delicate lady, in the end you just write a number. And just to remember the objective of the game is to score the lowest possible in accordance with the rules, it is totally independent if you pee stand up or seated.
Brian
May 4, 2015 at 12:50 pm
Yeah, but sexism!
Myron miller
May 4, 2015 at 12:14 pm
This might be good advice but i don’t believe its true for everyone. Personally I’ve tried well over 100+ hybrids and have yet to hit one consistently. One I hit pretty good but still had my usual problems with it – chunking it. Whereas my 4 iron may not be as high although its higher than many 4 hybrids I’ve hit but is way more consistent. And there is no comparison to how well I hit a 5 iron versus any hybrid – higher/longer/more consistent contact.
A couple of 4 hybrids I tried I couldn’t get over about 6-10 feet off the ground no matter what. I think the highest shot was 10 feet and many were not more than 5 feet. Granted my 4 iron is about 20-30 feet but the 5 is about 50-60. Driver is close to 100
And i’m definitely shorter and less swing speed than years ago. But I’ve gone to a 5 and a 7 wood and am looking for a 9 wood with the correct shaft. i use both the 5 and the 7 wood a lot and am very comfortable hitting them.
I think he missed the point by recommending only hybrids and not higher lofted woods. Not everyone can hit a hybrid where they could hit a fairway wood and others would definitely hit a hybrid easier than a fairway wood. It most assuredly is not a one set of hybrids fits all situation.
dapadre
May 4, 2015 at 12:10 pm
So very true! I have seen the results of this with a playing partner. He asked me for some advice as a recent golf convert. Since he had played for about 2 years he saw little improvement. I told him ditch your 3 – 6 irons and use hybrids. he was really hesitant at first, but did it. That summer he dropped from a HCP28 to 16! He is now a HCP 12 an his highest iron is a 6. What many fail to take into consideration is for one the lofts have gone wacky. Note that what you is being sold as a 5 iron now is probably a 4 or even a 3 iron not to long ago. Also for some especially newbies, they dont have the swing speed to get the long irons airborne to a good height. I can hit a 4 iron quite well, but 5 is my longest iron.
Some food for thought, most senior tour players have 5-6 as longest irons. Lydia Ko’s longest iron is a 6. She is lighting up the LPGA. For the guys that may look down on that and say LPGA or Senior, if you had an LPGA/Senior game, you would be one heck of a player.
Paul Clarke
Dec 18, 2015 at 10:30 am
Excellent comments, could not agree with you more. I run three hybrids, a 3 set at 20 a 4 set at 24 and a five set at 28 my Mizuno irons come in with a six set at 32, which by the way used to be the typical 5 iron, and 4 degree gaps all the way to 60 lob wedge. While I appreciate that removing long irons from ones bag is considered by some to be less than completely heterosexual, I find that the results speak for themselves. So I shall continue in my own little world with my 6 handicap and enjoy the game for what it is meant to be, namely, fun.
Jm
May 4, 2015 at 11:13 am
I definitely believe most players should be playing less long irons and more hybrids/fwy woods.
2 good reasons are the new balls and the new irons
The newer balls typically spin less off long irons than even the balls of 10-15 years ago. Also the new iron lofts make a 4 iron play at the same loft as previous 2/3 irons
What are your thoughts on choosing hybrids over fairway woods?
I have seen data that shows players hit hybrids better in regards to yards off line left to right (better directional control) and typically hit fwy woods better in regards to how close to pin high (more consistent distance control)
I believe some of this can be equated to shaft length differences and I believe most people would actually be better off with fairway woods that are cut to the corresponding hybrid length
Adam
May 4, 2015 at 12:19 pm
It’s interesting what you said about new balls and new irons. A lot of equipment accommodates higher handicap players so when they start to get better, different adjustments need made. If a new player needs a low spin ball to help keep the ball straight, what do they do when they have to stick balls on greens? Is that what you were getting at? I guess that wouldn’t solve the landing angle problem though.