#3 ARE HYBRIDS MORE ACCURATE THAN IRONS?

I t’s a very valid question, and not quite as easy to answer definitively as you might think. The experts at Shot Scope – the watch-based shot-tracking GPS device – dived into their database to tell us golfers who hit hybrids from 180-200 yards are 29% more likely to hit the green than those who use long irons. And that number drastically improves to 71% for approaches from 200-220 yards out.

It’s lovely insight, and obviously favours hybrids, but it doesn’t quite tell the whole story. That’s because we’ve also spoken to a number of fitters who tell us they often see golfers hit long irons into a tighter dispersion circle than hybrids. They say the shorter shaft length offers more control, and as long as you have the downward attack angle and enough club speed to launch long irons into the air, and you’re happy to do so, they’re happier seeing more golfers use long irons.

We reckon there’s a couple of factors at play here. Fitters see golfers on a range where they don’t need to account for water hazards, bunkers, OB, the wind or the state of a card coming down the stretch; whereas shot trackers record data for every shot hit. You can’t delete those you don’t like, as you can on a launch monitor. It means Shot Scope’s data more accurately reflects what really happens on the course.

At the end of the day we’d say it boils down to confidence, and how you feel personally about standing over a long iron. But be open-minded to what’s out there, too.

Equipment Editor Simon Daddow – who’s a massive hybrid fan – was adamant he couldn’t hit a 5-iron more than a few yards further than his 6 (from the turf), until PXG fitter Matt Straughan convinced him to try their 24° (#5) X driving iron. After having absolutely no difficulty launching shots from the turf, and hitting balls into a brilliant six-yard dispersion circle, Simon soon changed his mind...