
Generally, hybrids have some offset enabling you to square clubface at impact resulting in longer and straighter shots. The hybrid design generates a high MOI combined with a low, deep CG providing more forgiveness on mishits while promoting high spin for high launch. With a hybrid in your bag, this internal debate might not be taking place. Maybe you should just lay up and play it safe. A 1 or 2 iron should get you there, but can you stop the ball on the green and avoid the bunker?

Imagine a long approach to a green protected by water in front and a bunker behind the green. The same shot played with the equivalent iron, we are talking long irons here, would result in a lot more rollout, possibly enough to overshoot the green into all sorts of trouble at the back. The ball will drop quite steeply and settle on the green with little rollout as the backspin slows down. You should be getting the same distance as you would get with the iron, but here’s what happens next. This dual effect of height and backspin gives the hybrid a great advantage in certain situations. The average golfer can now play his hybrid and get the ball to launch and fly, which was often not possible with the iron.Īpart from the increased launch angle and height achieved, there is a further advantage thanks to the impulse, the trampoline effect, and that is backspin. With the center of gravity further back from the face, combined with the concave face’s impulse or trampoline effect, the result is height. With this additional depth, it is possible to place the center of gravity further back than would be the case on an iron. The clubhead of the hybrid, size-wise, is not as deep as that of a wood but is deeper than the shallow head of the iron. Pros seem to hit a 1-iron as high as the average golfer hits a wedge, but they have greater swing speeds and greater swing skills.

How does the hybrid club behave differently from the iron version to make it a better option? Average or recreational golfers have a problem getting enough height from their long irons. They have a much larger sweet spot, but their longer shafts are not always the best alternative. The result is that these clubs are generally avoided. Generally, long irons require more clubhead speed to get the ball airborne. The clubhead is relatively small, the shaft a bit longer, and the results are usually not satisfactory. Many golfers experience difficulty hitting long irons, from 4-iron up to the 1-iron. The weights and shaft lengths will also be comparable. The 7-hybrid, for example, will generally have the same loft as a 7-iron. However, the loft or angle of the club is the same as the equivalent iron. Unlike the fairway woods, the back of the hybrid does not extend as far back. Not only does the ball compress, but the clubhead also compresses and launches the golf ball as if it is coming off a trampoline. With the hollow center, the curved face has a unique effect when striking the ball. This curved face creates the “ gear effect,” or the shot correction, which straightens out any slightly off-center hit on the heel or toe. Like those found in woods, this convex shape gives the long irons’ forgiveness. The head resembles that of a fairway wood, it is hollow steel or titanium with a slightly convex face. The design of the hybrid club is interesting. Similar to woods, hybrids generally use graphite shafts.Lofts ranging from 16-degrees to 27-degrees.Wide sole with a low profile to cut through the turf.Low and backward placed center of gravity for increased forgiveness.Priced on the high end of the pricing spectrumĭistinctive features of hybrid golf clubs:.The newer technology will be a bit longer.Feel is not as great as some other options.Higher launch that other hybrids on the market.Great for getting out of difficult lies.Helps golfers with a slower swing speed.In this article, we look at what hybrid clubs are used for and their benefits. When TaylorMade released their version of the hybrid in 2003, calling it a rescue club, it led to a revolution in golf clubs which became extremely popular. Its ability to get a ball out of the rough led to the original name of a rescue club. It offers more forgiveness on off-center strikes and versatility from the tee, fairway, and rough. But today, most golfers rely on hybrid golf clubs, so what exactly is a hybrid golf club?Ī hybrid golf club looks like a wood but hits like a long iron.

Cobra was the first company to launch a version of a hybrid club with the release of the Cobra Baffler in 1975.
