4 iron or new hybrid?

[9 iron]

I try to use my 4 iron off the deck as much as possible but find it difficult to hit it consistently well and get any sort of reasonable distance. Now i've read that maybe, as a (very) high handicapper i should use a hybrid or a 4/5 wood instead of the iron.
My driving has been really good in hte last few outings, pretty straight and 200+ yards but usually the second shot is where things start to go pear shaped. I haven't quite mastered hitting my 3 wood off the fairway in the direction i want it to go so either pick up my Baffler 22 degree or 4 iron if i'm feeling confident. However, the result is either the 22 degrees goes far but not always straight (or much higher than waist height) or 4 iron goes straight but not very far with sometimes a massive divot up to 6 inches behind where the ball was. On the range of course, i hit both pretty well off a perfectly flat piece of astroturf!

So should i invest in a new hybrid with loft angle between the 3 wood and my 22 degree and put the 4 iron in a cupboard or persevere with the irons? What have other beginners gone with?

Some of the Adams range has good things written about them.

 

[golfdub]

I went trough the same situation after hitting my 4 iron poorly on the course and went and tried some hybrids but never fell in love with anything so practiced harder with the long irons and now my 4 iron Is my go to club, saying this everyone is different and there is no harm trying out some hybrids to compare.

Maybe figure out why your hitting massive divots and I'm sure if you find the answer and fix it that 4 irons will be a lot easier to hit

Good luck

 

[Foxholer]

Park the 4-iron.

Practice - a lot - with the 22* -which is a 4-iron replacement.

No need to replace the 4-iron - yet!

I'd question whether the 60* is helping you too. It can be a tricky club to use, though some really love it - maybe because they use it more than once on any hole! Good fun though!

 

[the_coach]

I try to use my 4 iron off the deck as much as possible but find it difficult to hit it consistently well and get any sort of reasonable distance. Now i've read that maybe, as a (very) high handicapper i should use a hybrid or a 4/5 wood instead of the iron.
My driving has been really good in hte last few outings, pretty straight and 200+ yards but usually the second shot is where things start to go pear shaped. I haven't quite mastered hitting my 3 wood off the fairway in the direction i want it to go so either pick up my Baffler 22 degree or 4 iron if i'm feeling confident. However, the result is either the 22 degrees goes far but not always straight (or much higher than waist height) or 4 iron goes straight but not very far with sometimes a massive divot up to 6 inches behind where the ball was. On the range of course, i hit both pretty well off a perfectly flat piece of astroturf!

So should i invest in a new hybrid with loft angle between the 3 wood and my 22 degree and put the 4 iron in a cupboard or persevere with the irons? What have other beginners gone with?

Some of the Adams range has good things written about them.

At this stage it would probably be better to spend the money on some lessons (if you're not already) to get help with the swing technique, address set-up, ball position, grip etc.

Probably not the answer you wanted but it's one, or probably a mix of the above that's the problem & you'd likely get similar results, contact wise with the hybrid anyways.

Sounds from what you describe that your weight is on your right side still {assuming you RH, if LH then your weight is still on your left side} in the down swing approaching impact which is why you dump the club in the ground a ways before impact.

Your driving isn't too bad contact wise because the ball is up on the Tee, your still making the same move with too much weight on your trail leg but the Tee height means the club on approach can just about avoid the ground coming into impact, but when ball is on the ground that height is no longer there so you get the ground contact first.

Remember the weight turns onto your trail leg in the backswing the direction the club is moving, then before you start the downswing with your shoulders/arms & club you need your weight already gently moving to your lead leg just before the club starts down. That way the lowest point of your arc the point when the club would contact the ground (talking about a shot off the ground) is now a little ways target side of the ball, so you contact ball first, ground after.

A good drill to use at the range using an 8i first then work up to the 4i. Is to take a ball towel with you and place it 3" or 4" behind your ball. Practice swinging at about 70% effort, you just take the club back smooth complete shoulder turn feel the weight then gently in your lead foot & then swing smoothly down, to miss the towel & contact the back of the ball & swing to a balanced finish. If you can do this, then you'll stop hitting the ground first.

 

[London mike 61]

Hybrids are very useful in situations where a long iron would struggle.

When your ball is just off the fairway and in slightly longer grass the hybrid just powers through the blades of grass and stilll gives a good contact.

Long irons would struggle getting any distance on the ball because any trapped grass would impede the contact.

I love my hybrids and would definitely not go back to long irons, but like any thing in golf you have to practice with them.

EYG

 

[SAPCOR1]

There was another thread a month or so ago about the Mizuno Fli Hi and out of interest I bought the old model 4 replacement and it has stayed in the bag.

Easier for me to hit from both fairway and rough than my 4 iron.

Only cost £39.99 and well worth it for me. The new model is around £80

 

[Fish]

I would be working on the 4 iron and/or the fairway wood/s you have at the range and stop taking them as a 2nd shot. I'd be taking whatever club your comfortably with for the 2nd shot like a 6 iron and then look to get on the green with what ever club distance you are then left with. This will mean your on the green 1 under its par and with 2 putts your playing single bogey golf :thup:

If the 2nd shot is getting you into trouble and you can't reach the green, then don't take your biggest club at it, leave whatever distance your comfortable with to the green, if that means 2 x 8 irons, great, that 28 handicap will then start to fall :smirk:

Just my tuppence worth